⦿ Sunday Links
Sunday Links As I mentioned, some of these go back over a month. They are worth sharing despite not being the freshest links in the world. First up, Complex did a visual representation of the best rapper alive, by year, from 1979 to the present. I disagree with a few of their choices (Chuck D. was never #1????), and I…
Friday Link – Re:Rey
I’ll share a traditional links post over the weekend, but I wanted to devote some focused words on one link in particular. Most of you have probably heard about the Star Wars toy controversy: that Rey is almost entirely absent from the new toys released with The Force Awakens. This article lays out much of the story. Where’s Rey? Some…
Friday Vid
https://youtu.be/i7nXvOTqyCY “Bad Art & Weirdo Ideas” – Beach Slang This is the first great New Music Friday of 2016. The first two Fridays of the month were rather slow, lacking both a large number of new releases and a bunch of eagerly awaited albums. But this week there are three new albums I’ve been looking forward to. And based on…
Hoop Tales
L. kicked off her basketball career a week ago. I wrote a lengthy accounting of her epic debut last Monday but didn’t get around to posting it before I had to leave town. Just because I didn’t share it with the world does not mean I’m not still on the hook for the resulting jinx. She is playing at the…
December Books
December is always a big reading month for me. Each year I read Jean Shepherd’s A Christmas Story, which only takes a couple hours. I generally squeeze in at least one other quick Christmas read. And then the holiday break at the end of the month allows me to really finish the year strong. 2015 was no exception. I knocked…
A New Beginning
It has not been the best start to the New Year. As I would imagine most of you know at this point, my stepfather died a week ago today. I had mentioned his health issues, somewhat anonymously, in my final post of 2015 and my early posts for 2016. Unfortunately, his cancer had reached the point where there was just…
Monday Vid
Among the various Breaking News bulletins on my phone when I woke this morning was the notification of David Bowie’s death. I think I’m like a lot of people of my generation: not a huge Bowie fan – I really didn’t know who he was until his 1983 album Let’s Dance, which was the poppiest, most mainstream of his career…
Friday Vid
“Listen Like Thieves” – INXS Already Friday of the first full week of 2016. Hard to believe we have just 51 weeks left before 2017. Which means only 50 weeks of shopping until Christmas. Better get a move on! If my records are accurate, I’ve never shared an INXS track in the Friday Vids series. Which seems like a terrible…
Sporting News
I’m trying to get back into a routine after the holidays, and a few big sports stories demand some words. As I drove home Monday night, I was able to listen to the Kansas-Oklahoma game. When I pulled into my garage, OU had just gone up by 8 with around eight minutes to play in the second half. By the…
Strange Beginnings
Another weird start to the New Year. Just like in 2015, this New Year’s Day I received a call that a close relative was experiencing some serious health issues. While last year I had a day to prepare to travel, this time it required me to pack a bag and get in the car immediately. I spent the weekend mostly…