Hello comrades and welcome to the first improvement megathread of August! 
Some discussion ideas:
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How was your week?
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Do you have some plans for next week?
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How was your July?
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Do you have some plans for August?
Image description: “To the Defenders of the Soviet Arctic during the Great Patriotic War”, commonly called Alyosha, is a monument in Murmansk, Russia to Soviet soldiers, sailors, and airmen of World War II (called the Great Patriotic War in Russia).
Glad to hear you’re doing well! What is your favourite thing that you have read/watched this year?
Thank you!
For reading, I’m kinda embarrassed to say I mostly was reading theory I should’ve read a decade ago. Read Lenin, Stalin, Mao but it was really cool to read State and Revolution, Stalin’s Marxism and the National Question, and Mao’s On Practice as well as On Contradiction. The pretty new The East is Still Red was cool because it felt kinda bloomer. Currently reading Fanshen based on a recommendation here.
In terms of watching, Wong Kar Wai’s trilogy of Days of Being Wild, In the Mood for Love, and 2046 were amazing. In the Mood for Love, in particular, lived up to the hype for me. But Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat is probably my “favorite” considering I’ve already watched it like maybe 15 times. It just has everything for me to often passively watch or have in the background as I rest or do things, beyond having something like The Simpsons. Honorable mentions: Happy Together, The Cranes are Flying, Saving Face, Sisters of the Gion.
Anything you would recommend on those fronts?
That’s awesome, I should also read theory. I’m still reading boring ass self-improvement books in order to make my life less horrifying. I’m currently re-reading Buddha’s Brain, which is a great book that combines Buddhist ideas with neuroscience. Before that, I read The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Tolstoy.
In terms of movies, the latest movie I saw in the cinema is 28 Years Later and I really enjoyed it. I definitely recommend it. I also watched Mickey 17 this year and liked it.