Resting Church Face with Amanda Allen

January lasts approximately 18 years, so I think it’s safe to say we’ve all succumbed to some Winter Doldrums. But let’s try and reframe it and embrace some good things about winter - even the sad parts!

This week, we’re continuing our series Aging Like Fine Grape Juice and I’m talking to my long-time friend, Brett Duncan. Brett is one of those friends who, no matter how long it’s been since you’ve seen each other, you can pick right back up with like no time has passed. He’s also the creator of Uncle Dunc’s Sticker Shoppe, and if you have a Kindle, it’s THE place to go for all the cool sticker de...

I read 121 books in 2024 (yay me!), but don’t worry - I’m not going to talk about every single book on this episode. I’ve narrowed it down to my 10 favorites! What were your top 10 books in 2024? Let me know!

Happy New Year! It’s 2025 - can you believe it? And Resting Church Face is back (and this time, I really mean it)! Let’s talk about things we did a great job with in 2024 and some things we can work on - and when I say “we,” I mean “I.”

Aaaaand we’re back, friends! I’m so pumped to start recording new episodes of Resting Church Face again, and what better way to start than talking about my favorite season of all time? That’s right - it’s autumn! So let’s talk about all the best movies, music, books, and tv shows that are just waiting for us out there in the melancholy and cozy weather.

Last week, I asked all of you on Instagram and Facebook to send me some of your favorite vacation and travel memories and you sent me some great ones! So let’s talk about all the best places we’ve been and the places we want to go. Also, Tina Arena.

I think everyone would agree - the world is cuh-razy right now (I’m looking at you, America), and I don’t know about you, but I need to get out of my own head for maybe an hour. Or 2. Or 24. So let’s talk about things that make us laugh - like, out loud - and make life just a little more bearable. And fun!

There are so many tropes (recurring themes) in books and movies. A lot of them are good, but some of them are just awful. Like, really awful. So let’s talk about them! Also, dinosaurs.

Secondhand embarrassment is defined as happening “when someone feels embarrassed or uncomfortable after witnessing another person experience something embarrassing.” Or, as the youths say, CRINGE. So let’s talk about the things that make us blush for other people. Also, The TikTok.

Summer is here! It is definitely hot, but not necessarily miserable. This week, let’s talk about summer glimmers - those little moments every day that just ignite a little spark of joy inside us. Also, tea that tastes like foggy rain. It’s a thing.

This week, I want to tell you a story about a new phobia that was unlocked for me - a skink got into my house (not a skank - that would be a very judgmental phobia), and it has almost made me…unhinged. Let’s talk about it.

Here’s the second part of our roundup of spring books! Settle in and let’s talk about books 16-31 (even though I’m off by one number for the majority of the episode - but don’t worry, I figure it out at the end!)!

🎵 June is bustin’ out all oooooover 🎵 and it’s time for our roundup of books I read this spring. I feel like I’ve been on a good book streak for the past couple of months, and I can’t wait to share them with you! (And yes, there are some ghost stories. Because it’s me.)

This past weekend was Mother’s Day, and I thought it was a perfect time to continue our series on Aging Like Fine Grape Juice and having a good conversation with my mom, Alana Allen! I loved doing this so much, and as much as I thought I knew about my mom, she surprised me with stories I’d never heard (and isn’t that the way it always works with our parents?). She’s also a really smart lady, so I...

Oof. This was a hard episode to record. The Met Gala was this week, and once again, we are being bombarded with critiques of women’s bodies. Are they too fat? Too thin? On Ozempic? Did they get plastic surgery? Was it good plastic surgery? Was it bad? And so on and so on until - seemingly - the end of time. And guys? I’m sick of it. Why can’t we just stop talking about women’s bodies? So let’s tal...

Get the Kleenex ready guys - we’re doing a deep dive on the second half of Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Dept. Anthology! And just trust me. We are going to feel everything. And we’ll (mostly) like it, because melancholy can be fun when it’s done well!

Love her or hate her, Taylor Swift is probably the biggest star in the world right now. And she has a new album with 31 songs on it (yes - 31!) Oh my word, all the feelings. And I do mean AAAAALL the feelings. Let’s do a deep dive on why we all have an opinion about this music and the woman behind the music - and warning - you might need a nap afterwards. To paraphrase our Millennial Poet Laureate...

Life is hard. And as much as I think Killers of the Flower Moon is an excellent piece of cinema, sometimes I don’t want to be reminded that people can be awful and everyone was sweaty in the 1930s because there were no air conditioners. Sometimes I want to be transported to a place that is totally and completely unlike my everyday reality. So let’s talk about movies that sweep us away and make us...

A few days ago, Catherine, Princess of Wales (or as we all call her, Princess Kate), announced that she was undergoing chemotherapy for cancer. The world was stunned, and most were rightly ashamed, since the conspiracy theories surrounding her public “disappearance” had reached fever pitch. And everyone was wrong. How did we get here? Why did we go after Kate and her family the way we did? How do...

Spring is finally here! Trees are green again, flowers are blooming, and let’s just decide to ignore the pollen for a while. On this week’s episode, let’s talk about the little moments of joy that spring is…springing on us. I had to. And I’m not even sorry.

It’s time for part 2 of the roundup of books I read this winter! The latter part of the season was a little hit or miss for me, but there were still a lot of really good reads. And honestly? Some of these “bad” books were so bad they were…good? You know what I mean. So let’s discuss!

It’s booooook tiiiime! (I hope you sang that.) I read 35 books this winter, so this roundup will be split into two episodes. I have some good ones for us (and a few duds), so let’s talk about it!

I consider myself a (usually) upbeat person. But sometimes, it feels good to let it out and rant a little bit. So this week, we’re talking about pet peeves - specifically, my pet peeves. It’s possible that my pet peeves are yours too, and if they are, let’s be best friends! Just don’t chew anything around me, ok?

Guys. I recorded this because I need you to share in the hilarity of this soon-to-be-leaving movie on Hulu called “Among the Shadows.” It has everything: Lindsay Lohan as a VAMPIRE. Werewolves. Age confusion. Green screens. The President of France! It’s too good not to share.

Are you in the mood to binge some good tv (and one movie)? You have come to the right place! I have some recommendations that I think will satisfy your entertainment itch (and none of it involves Travis Kelce or Taylor Swift)!