Tag: media (Page 1 of 15)

June Media

July 1, 2025 / DB

Movies, Shows, etc

NBA Playoffs
A+, until Hali blew out his achilles.

Your Friends and Neighbors
I think I have this complaint about all but the best modern, streaming dramedies: there were the wrong number of episodes. Some shows go on two episodes too long, others have two too few. It’s a tough needle to thread. I felt like this show had, maybe, 1.5 too many entires. So close but the middle part became a little too trashy, modern soap-ish and could have been trimmed. And as a show where almost every person in it is terrible, those sections where it was not as compelling really stuck out. I also wondered if this show really knew what it wanted to be. It pin-balled between noir-ish drama, schlocky soap, standard murder mystery, and comedy. I think you can do all that successfully if the writing is a little more dialed in and the overall direction of the show more confident. Both those aspects get like an 80 so it came across as unfocused.

All that makes it sound like I didn’t like this. I did. It was funny when it tried. A solid cast around the always good Jon Hamm. We watched it over three nights and I was never reluctant to watch the next one.

Oceans 11
Black Bag
Soderbergh weekend! A re-watch of Ocean’s on S’s suggesting, then followed it up with his latest movie the next night. Ocean’s never disappoints. I had heard great things about Black Bag but it was a little disappointing to me, although perhaps my expectations were wrong. Too restrained and subtle even if it did build to an exciting climactic scene. No action and some of the drama-building felt navel gazey in the early stages. I wonder if I hadn’t seen it listed as the best action movie of the year I would have approached it differently.

A, B

The Accountant
I had heard at some point this was decent, and with the sequel out figured it was worth checking out. I couldn’t get past the fact a boy with autism and anger issues was turned into a killing machine by his dad, and that’s supposed to be cool?

B-

Heart of Pearl
Wow, what a story. Former Jayhawk and Pacer Scot Pollard received a new heart just over a year ago. I knew a lot of that story. Seeing him go through the process and learning more about his background was pretty impactful. But seeing him meet his donor’s family…whoo. S and I watched together and that scene hit us both pretty hard. Sign up to be an organ donor.

The Bear, season four
See here.

A-

Van Halen – Live at the Capitol Centre 1982 First Night
I didn’t watch this whole thing. A combination of dodgy video and bad sound made it difficult to watch. Plus, come on, Dave is doing the minimum here. Wait, let me re-state: he’s doing the bare minimum as a vocalist. Plus his monologues were strange and cringey. But I guess if I was under the influence and in 1982, this would have made more sense.

B+

Titan: The OceanGate Disaster
The latest addition to the list of filthy rich white guy who ignores people who tell him his ideas are going to get people killed.

B+

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Eddie Murphy Does The Greatest Tracy Morgan Impression
I never skip Eddie doing Tracy.

Joshua Jackson Shares a Great George Clooney ‘Ocean’s 11’ Story | The Rich Eisen Show
Great Clooney story with a bonus incredible Soderbergh story.

Picking up bottles and cans to pay for a lift
Possibly the silliest Beau Miles bullshit ever.

It took me 5 years and $92 to finish this cabin
Whereas this is classic Beau Miles bullshit.

DRIVING AROUND THE WORLD | Japan to Hawaii
All I could think while watching this was that those kids probably aren’t vaccinated against anything. I could be wrong, but that was my thought.

Island Hopping Around Canada in our Camper
A Few Nights in an Off Grid Floating Cabin
I continue to be jealous of this couple.

Prince Finally Revealed The 6 Bands He Hated The Most!
Musical geniuses pissing on other artists is always fresh.

John C. Reilly Breaks Down His Most Iconic Characters
Not sure what is better, Reilly’s comments or his outfit.

No Laying Up: Las Vegas
I’m not playing golf but I’ll still watch these guys’ travel series.

Why doesn’t France own the Channel Islands?
Very good question.

Alessandro Del Piero – Best Goals EVER
I love when the algorithm spits out stuff like this. Del Piero was my favorite Italian soccer player during the years I followed that closely. It’s cool how his career spanned the range from when you relied on grainy video to perfect HD.

15 Times Will Ferrell Broke Other Actors On Set
Only 15 times?

EXPERIMENT : HIGH PRESSURE WASHER 10000 PSI VS FRUITS
David Letterman would be proud.

Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere | Official Trailer
This is me, sitting up in my seat, showing interest.

Oreo CEO: Stop Making New Oreos
Have you seen the Selena Gomez Oreos? What the hell is that? We have an Oreo freak in the house and she agrees any variations other than the original are stupid.

Living Colour: Tiny Desk Concert
Fantastic.

Johnny Brunet
Last week I added a Blackstone griddle to my outdoor cooking setup. Since its arrival I’ve watched a lot of videos on how to season it, how to care for it, recipes, etc. This guy’s site is the best of the bunch.

Which Corvette is Best Corvette?
I watched this thinking it would be something my stepdad liked. I’m not sure if he would have liked this or not, but the whole weird bit made me laugh.

Car Content

First time in 17 months I didn’t watch a car review video.

Photography

Fujifilm X-E5 Review: The Series Just Got a MAJOR Up-Lift
Fujifilm X-E5 REVIEW: X100 killer?
Using the Fujifilm X-E5 as my daily camera for a week
The new Fujifilm X series camera that is certainly intriguing, but thanks to the state of the world economy and the popularity of Fuji cameras, it seems way overpriced for what it offers.

15 Years of Photography Lessons in 18 Minutes.
I brought my Leica M11P on a family trip to the Dolomites.
Postcards from Juneau, Alaska // Fuji X-T5
The Camera you told me I’d love…

The Bear, season 4

June 30, 2025 / DB

We had a very slow, uneventful weekend, which leaves this space open to discuss how S and I spent Thursday and Friday evenings: binging season four of The Bear.

If you want the TLDR version: I liked it. Although it had some flaws and inconsistencies and did not match the first two seasons, it was a nice rebound from the uneven and divisive season three.

Most importantly, it felt like there was momentum throughout the season, augmented visually by Uncle Jimmy’s countdown clock, reminding the restaurant’s crew when he would pull financial support and begin exploring options to unload the property. Like the proverbial gun in act one of a play, the constant presence of the clock made it feel like the show was moving forward, even when it was spinning its wheels.

There are three classic episodes in this season. Episode 4, “Worms,” in which Sydney hangs out with her hairdresser cousin, Chantel, and is forced to watch her daughter when Chantel has to run out. Ayo Edebiri was proven her acting chops over the past three years, but in this season, notably in this episode, we see what a remarkable screen presence she has. I would watch her in anything at this point. Episode 7, “Bears,” is the big ensemble piece we’ve come to expect each year. It takes a very different tack than others, “Fishes” for example, and because of that sums up what this season is all about. It is one of the longest, if not THE longest, episode in program history but it is so charming and warm that time races by. And episode 10, “Goodbye,” is almost exclusively shot on one set with two, then three, then briefly four actors. It crackles with energy. While it is secondary to the interaction between Carm and Syd, Carm and Richie’s segment of the episode floored me. We’ve seen Richie transform himself over the show’s run. As their scene begins in “Goodbye,” for a moment you feel him slipping back into his old ways. Then he shakes it off and he and Carmen have this deeply revealing and touching moment. “Goodbye” is the standard half-hour episode, but it felt much longer (in a good way) because the acting is so strong and the emotions so intense.

Aside from those three excellent entries, I thought the season was solid. I guess one downside of binging a show is sometimes the good and not-so-good all mix together. Maybe there was an episode that fell flat in the first six we watched Thursday and the final four we watched Friday, but they get lost when you’re rolling right into the next one. The season was filled with personal growth and genuine, heart warming connections between characters. There were so many deeply moving moments. And I found this to be one of the funniest seasons in the show’s run.

That said, despite the ticking clock in the background, there were too many plot lines that felt stuck. Tina spending an entire season trying to cook a pasta dish in 3:00 was the biggest waste. It’s been hard to give each character enough time as the cast has grown larger. Tina is one of the most satisfying characters and deserved better.

Along those lines, while I liked the addition of the refugees from the closed eatery Ever, did we really need them? Jessica and Richie’s connection was interesting, but only hinted at anything bigger. I would rather have spent more time with Tina. And for a restaurant that is in a serious money crunch – they couldn’t pay their weekly supplier bills! – how can they bring these A-list pinch hitters into the fold?

The final episode closes with ambiguity. The clock runs out, but what does that mean for the restaurant and the show? Neither FX nor the show creators have made any statements about a potential season five. While most people expect the show to continue, in retrospect so much of this season looks like a long goodbye, as Carmy comes to terms with his personal and professional failures, makes amends, and prepares to move on. It would be an odd way to end a show, but one critic I follow suggested it might be the best way to end The Bear as whatever comes next would be too far removed and less interesting than what the first four seasons gave us.

I get that. I also think that the combination of amazing actors and mostly great writing could still result in a compulsive watch. When The Bear was at its best, it was awe-inspiring. Not just in terms of pure television, but also because I would sit there and think that Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, or whoever was doing some of the most incredible acting I’ve ever seen. And the connections the cast made with each other on screen, even the bit players who show up for just a few scenes each season,[1] are so compelling and interesting and emotional that it feels like you could still make a prestige show after subtracting Carmen.

Honestly continuing the show may not be the choice of the network or show creator Christopher Storer. White is poised to become a big movie star. Edebiri can do whatever she wants. And the supporting cast is so broad it has to be a nightmare to schedule them. It feels like any season five would be very different simply because of logistics. Is it best to stop now, even with an unconventional finish?

The Bear was a great show, especially the first two seasons. I remember putting it off for several months when it first aired, thinking it was a documentary not a “dramedy,” and then watching the entire thing in one night once I finally gave it a shot.[2] Season two took all that was great about season one and ramped it up more. It may have become too ambitious, or full of itself, or chasing artistic originality over coherent story at times. Or maybe it just reached such a high peak that it was impossible to keep pushing and seasons three and four had to step back some, or take different directions. Even at its most frustrating, it was one of the most interesting shows of its era.

John Mulaney, Bob Odenkirk, Jon Bernthal, Gillian Jacobs (especially this season!), and of course Jamie Lee Curtis. ↩
Actually, looking back to my post about season one, we didn’t have Hulu when it first aired. But I also don’t recall being interested in it until I had weathered several months of hype about it. ↩

Great Eight Comedies

June 18, 2025 / DB

I’ve been busy trying to finish an amazing book and get some work outside done before storms roll through later. For today’s post I dug into my list of ideas and found this one, which has been sitting there since George Wendt died last month and news broke that there will be a Scrubs revival.

With minimal commentary, here are my favorite TV comedies of all time.

1) Cheers
A few years I went back and watched the early years and was amazed by how well they hold up. Same anytime I come across a clip. A perfect combination of high and low brow comedy.

2) Seinfeld
I used to say this didn’t hold up as well as Cheers because it was, often, so topical. Does “The Non Fat Yogurt” hit as hard now as it did at the time when it pretended to swing the NYC mayoral election? There is also the argument that Curb Your Enthusiasm takes away from Seinfeld’s brilliance. I’ve made that argument myself at times. What defeats that critique, though, is that I can flip on a Seinfeld episode and almost always get sucked in. I feel like Curb isn’t as satisfying in small bites.

3) The Office
There is no comedy I’ve watched more in the last decade. Which is weird because its original run ended in 2013. The first five seasons are so good I don’t mind that I’m not really interested in anything that came after them.

4) Arrested Development
The back half of this list is heavy with shows that were wildly popular amongst critics but rarely got good ratings. This is kind of the originator of that sub-genre.

5) Community
A lot of similarities between this and Arrested Development, in terms of how meta it was, how people who loved it REALLY loved it, etc. Also had a monkey named Annie’s Boobs.

6) Parks & Recreation
Take the bones of The Office, move it to Indiana, and make it 75% sweeter. I still maintain if Comedy Central showed reruns of P&R as often as The Office, it would be just as popular.

7) Scrubs
Where Bill Lawrence began his run of comedies with heart.

8) Curb Your Enthusiasm
Above I said that this is right there with its cousin, Seinfeld. As much as I enjoyed it, I think this is the least universal of the bunch. I know several people who either didn’t find it funny or were put off by it.

There are plenty of other shows I enjoyed, but if you were going to ship me off to an isolated location with only a hard drive that included my favorites for entertainment, these are the eight I would require.

May Media

June 1, 2025 / DB

Movies, Shows, etc

Confess, Fletch
There’s a reason it took over 30 years to make the next Fletch film. No matter who filled the title role, no matter how talented they were, they would be compared to Chevy Chase at the absolute apex of his comedic powers. After years of rumors and starts and stops and so many rumored actors as Fletch, it finally happened. And somehow I totally missed it? I had no memory of this coming out three years ago, so was surprised to see it when scrolling around. And it went about as I expected.

Jon Hamm is great, has all kinds of comedic chops. But he’s not Chevy, or at least he’s not 1984/5 Chevy. I laughed, but not nearly as hard as I would if I rewatched the original Fletch immediately after. I wondered if I would have reacted differently/more strongly if the name Fletch wasn’t involved, and it was just a comedy with no baggage. Maybe being 53 instead of 13 made a big difference in how I viewed it? I think it might still have been a little too subtle. I skimmed a few reviews after watching and the one criticism that stuck out to me was that this movie needed to be sillier and closer in tone to the original. I agree.

Anyway, this wasn’t a bad film at all. I enjoyed it. I laughed. I liked some of the repeating jokes (“Five stars!”). The cast was generally quite good (John Slattery and Jon Hamm together again!). There was a callback to the climax of the original film that was nice. I wanted it to be more, though.

Alas, as this movie didn’t do much business, the plan for another Hamm-led entry in the series has been scrapped. Maybe in another 30 years some other actor will take on the role, and by then we’ll be far enough removed from the original that it will work better.

American Psycho
One of my favorite movies of this era, a wicked satire on the Wall Street culture of the late Eighties. It forever changed how I think about Phil Collins/Genesis, Huey Lewis and the News, and Whitney Houston. Also wild to see Christian Bale strolling through the dark streets of New York in an overcoat when a few years later he would do a similar walk in Batman’s cape. Shame so many of the young people chose to meme the hell out of this movie without understanding what it was truly about.

Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol
I had never watched any of these other than the very first one. I think mostly because the series really got rolling in the years I thought Tom Cruise was a total nutter and I didn’t have a ton of interest in his work. Figured I would give them a shot, starting with this one, which is where the online reviews say the series got good. Agreed, this was pretty solid. Funny that Leá Seydoux was a villain here and a few years later James Bond’s lover. I didn’t get around to watching the rest before our Paramount + sub expired, but some of them are on Prime so I’ll get to them at some point.

B+

Airplane!
My first complete re-watch in who knows how long, after reading the oral history of the film. Still as funny as ever. So many subtle jokes in between all the big laughs.

30 Rock, season 2
The show really hit its stride this season, only to be shortened because of a writer’s strike. It’s interesting to read back on the history of the show, and how the critics were crazy about it while the ratings were never there. Even being a part of NBC’s comedy night. Somehow this was one of the least watched shows on TV. America is dumb.

A-

Tucci In Italy
Thank goodness someone gave Stanley Tucci some money to continue his culinary travels through his ancestral homeland. If you’ve ever been to Italy, this show will make you want to go back.

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Will Ferrell Takes The Colbert Questionert
Not the locked-in, late night Ferrell of 10–15 years ago, but still fun.

Why did Communist Vietnam invade Communist Cambodia?
Because people are people?

Why Nobody Uses Boats Between the Hawaiian Islands
Interesting question which seems like a no-brainer to us mainlanders until you see there are some serious reasons why before you even get to the economics of it.

Meet Henry, the world’s oldest crocodile
I did some more reading about Henry after watching this. He’s sired around 10,000 offspring with six different partners. It’s good to be king.

Cheers | Every Time Norm Peterson Enters the Bar
RIP to George Wendt.

Jon Hamm Replies To Fans Online | Actually Me
Hi-larious!

The world’s oldest river has a big problem
As much as I enjoy Beau Miles’ usual bullshit, when he is serious his videos are very well done and quite moving.

Roberto Baggio | FIFA World Cup Goals
Hell yeah! I can still hear Bob Ley’s call of the goal against Bulgaria as he worked his way through the defense: “Roberto Baggio. Roberto Baggio! ROBERTO BAGGIO!!!!!”

The Loneliest Flight in The World
Stuff like this kind of freaks me out. We put A LOT of trust in our technology.

The Untold Story of Jordan’s Pre-Game Bar Adventure
Yikes!

Why wasn’t Portugal Conquered by Spain?
Added to my Portugal file in advance of next year.

Christian Bale Breaks Down His Most Iconic Characters | GQ
Legend.

Why Lawrence of Arabia Still Looks Like a Billion Bucks
A little too technical at times but still interesting.

The Patagonia You Don’t See
Gorgeous. But the title is kind of a lie, since he clearly took a cruise ship to these areas “you don’t see.” Dummy.

Inside the Arnett, OK tornado – May 18, 2025
This is wild, and apparently now a thing. I immediately found other videos where drones were flown into twisters.

Worst bomb: Eddie Murphy, Norm Macdonald, John Oliver, and Jerry Seinfeld
A lot of good moments in here.

Vaer Presents North Shore Lifeguards Association – A Story of Purpose and Protection
I’m fine with commercials that are this cool.

The Most Naughty Innuendos Of All Time | This Morning
Gino’s Most Iconic Moments Ever | This Morning
So apparently British morning TV is way better than ours. I might watch the Today Show again if it was like this. The sausage in the hole bit is amazing.

Incredible Hiking in the Canadian Rockies
Finding a Hidden Gem in the Middle of Nowhere
My standard comment that it sure would be cool to live like this.

How We Made the Best Adventure Travel Show on the Internet | Huckberry’s DIRT Origin Story
Cool inside baseball details.

Exploring NOMOS – finally!
Adding this to the long list of watches I will never be able to afford but can still lust after.

Caine’s Arcade
What a wonderful, heart-warming, soul-filling video. Obviously it is 13 years old, because nice things like this don’t happen anymore.

Car Content

The Zeekr 007 GT Is A Cool Electric Wagon I Wish We Got In The USA
The American auto industry will never go away. It’s too important in too many ways. And no matter who is president we will be more interested in protective tarrifs than incentivizing American companies via the same kinds of subsidies the Chinese used to build their industry. But its influence in the rest of the world is rapidly waning because of vehicles like this. GM and Ford are going to be niche manufacturers before we know it.

You could wait for the Rivian R3X or…
This was intriguing until I saw how little legroom there is in the backseat.

Everything I Love & Hate About Our New Rivian R1S After Driving It 1,000 Miles Home
Still #1 on my list for my next vehicle, but in addition to getting the R2 onto roads next year, Rivian really needs to solve their service problem if they want to become legit players.

Photography

The Magic of Spring in the Columbia River Gorge
Travel Photography in the Columbia River Gorge // Fuji X-T5
Photography Report: Key West, Florida with the Mamiya 7ii
TTArtisan AF 27mm f2.8 vs Fujifilm 27mm f2.8 WR
I Took My Leica M11-P to Italy for a Week
Shooting a New Film Stock on the Bronica SQ & Contax T2
It makes photography easier, instantly.
one camera. no plan. in London
From Lisbon to Nazare | Fuji X100VI Cinematic
The Fujifilm X half is Just Plain FUN!
Fujifilm Colors | Are You Getting the Most Out of Your Camera?
How to use the 50mm like the masters, and why?
Film Photography in the San Juan Islands

April Media

May 1, 2025 / DB

Movies, Shows, etc

Court of Gold
I mostly watched these on our flights too and from Florida. You know what you’re getting with shows like this. Highly edited game highlights. Interviews with the participants and analysts that are aimed at casual fans and thus not super insightful. But, man, the formula works. Last summer’s Olympic basketball tournament was electric and this captured that magic well.

September 5
A brisk, tense, and very well done dramatized look at how the ABC crew in Munich handled the day Palestinian terrorists took Israeli athletes hostage at the 1972 Olympics. One of those period piece movies that will make our kids shake their heads at how primitive technology was when their parents were kids.

The Last Stop In Yuma County
A quirky, creepy film about a bank robbery and subsequent hostage stand off going wildly wrong. The story is just a little thin, thus it felt like there are a lot of stretched out moments to get the movie to its 90 minute run time.

Dunkirk
Second time watching this? Still a magnificent combination of story, pacing, visuals, and soundtrack.

1917
Another second viewing of an excellent, modern war movie. All wars are hell, but World War I was a particularly nasty hell.

High Fidelity
A top five movie about music and loving music.

Almost Famous
While I’ve watched High Fidelity many times, I believe I had only seen Almost Famous once, when it first came out in the theaters. Yowsa. So many people hold it in such high esteem it’s crazy I had not re-watched it for 25 years. I forgot how brilliant so many scenes are. So many terrific performances. It hits a different, slightly less relatable side of being a music lover from High Fidelity, but no less impactful.

30 Rock, season one
After starting this in March I knocked out the second two-thirds of season one in April. As good as it was from the very beginning, it got even better as the season progressed. I’ve started season two, but just barely into it, making it a May entry.

Pearl Jam – 2003–06–22 Noblesville, IN
I’ve noted before how amazing modern, fan-shot concert videos are. Smartphones shoot incredible video. Modern editing software allows you to piece together videos from dozens of devices seamlessly and then sync it perfectly to the soundboard recording.

This is a less advanced effort, and it shows. The audio and video are slightly out of sync. And I think this was just someone with a big lens standing at the top of the lawn section at what is now called Ruoff Music Center, shooting the video screens rather than the stage. Which was still pretty incredible for the time. Thanks to the official bootleg audio it sounds awesome.

This show was five days after I moved to Indiana, and I did not try to attend because it had been kind of a busy week. Also stark is how Eddie had not yet become the showman he is today. He seems a little angry and drunk at this show.

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Bullitt | The Car Chase | Full Scene | Warner Classics
This might still be the greatest on-screen car chase ever. No CGI or camera trickery here.

Quick-witted Craig Ferguson
I don’t know that I ever watched Ferguson’s show live. But if you look around at all at YouTube, there are dozens of compilation pieces like this where he’s flirting with extremely attractive and well dressed female guests. Tough job.

From Takeoff To Landing: The Fascinating World Of Aviation | BBC Earth Science
This needed to be a longer show. In fact, maybe it was and these were bits taken from that show(s).

Utah Is on a Mission From the Basketball Gods | Home & Away
Weaponizing the Mormon Church to turn BYU into a basketball power is a wild and unexpected result of the NIL era. Good to know there’s a strong culture of hoops in Utah already.

Martin Scorsese Breaks Down His Most Iconic Films | GQ
Terrific.

Michael Fassbender Breaks Down His Career, from ‘Inglourious Basterds’ to ‘X-Men’
For some reason these Vanity Fair projects aren’t as interesting as the GQ ones. Which seems dumb since it’s the exact same concept.

We Answer YOUR Travel Questions | Best Shoes, Packing Tips & More!
Even though our next big trip is a year away, I’ve already started diving into the YT travel vid rabbit hole again.

20 Things You Didn’t Know About High Fidelity
Good stuff, but a Brit mispronouncing dozens of American English words drove me nuts.

Why Anyone Lives On The Falkland Islands (And Why You Can’t)
People live in weird places.

Travelling America With One Rule: Eat Only At Diners
Beau Miles bullshit.

A moment 29 years ago changed everything
Not the usual bullshit, but rather a Beau Miles origin story. Very well done.

How a Traded-In Apple iPhone Gets Refurbished
Relevant as April was new phone month for me.

Proper Honest Tech
Stephen Robles
Speaking of my new phone, I spent a lot of time watching videos about the latest generation of iPhones and how to harness their powers, the best cases, etc. These were two channels I kept going back to.

Seth and Paul Rudd Go Day Drinking
Hilarious.

Exploring California’s Highway 39 – Closed For Over 40 Years
This would be more interesting if there were abandoned businesses and homes along this stretch of road. Still some gorgeous views.

There Will Never Be Another Anthony Bourdain
No shit.

New Series | Tucci in Italy | National Geographic
Tucci’s show is very different than Bourdain’s, but his are no less compelling. Glad to see someone new is paying him to continue exploring Italy after CNN stupidly cancelled Searching For Italy.

why do some things just look so good?
Let some South African kid teach you about aesthetics.

The War On Drugs: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert
I busted this out for the first time in a couple years. I maintain this might be the best sound ever in one of these pieces. Whoever mic-ed up that studio and produced the sound deserved an award.

Landings at San Diego Int Airport Nov 23, 2012
Not sure whether I’ve seen this before or not. Five hours of flight activity compressed into 30 seconds.

Ice Cream Sandwiches | How It’s Made
Mmmmm, ice cream sandwich season is here!

I built a Tiny Office to be more Productive
On one hand, I think this is super cool and brilliant. On the other, it’s kind of insane. I also wish I had stumbled into some career where you could make a living just doing videos like this that allowed you to fill up a workspace with the latest tech, hundreds of cool notebooks, etc.

James Bond & The Omega Seamaster – The Untold Story
I’m a sucker for a Bond-Omega vid.

Shipwrecks Depth Comparison
I know I’ve seen some exercise like this before, but they are always cool to watch.

Why didn’t the US nuke Tokyo?
Great question.

Charley Steiner Outtakes Including Kerry Wood
I miss the days when Sportscenter had anchors with true gravitas instead of people either trying to become comedians or others who just want to spout non-stop nonsense in hopes of at least one take going viral for 24 hours.

How Apple INVENTED the Laptop as we know it
Fascinating progression.

Into the Wild – 7 Days in the Sahara Desert
Ah, to have the freedom to jump in a Land Rover and just drive all over the planet.

10 Things David Harbour Can’t Live Without
For some reason I expected cooler, more original stuff from him.

Bill Hader Does Van Halen
Something about Hader’s real voice makes his impressions even better, like it’s a surprise they came from him.

Inside This Entrepreneur & Former Pro Surfer’s Coastal New Jersey Home | Huckberry Homes
A little weird to be so intentional at how you decorate your home when you don’t see it as a long term residence.

One of the Most Beautiful Drives in America
Glad these guys have a new adventure to share.

Car Content

Nearly Two Months Wait To Get Rivian Service! Racing 60,000 Mile Warranty Expiration
Austin Rivian Space Has Free Charging, Rooftop Terrace, Trail Access & More!
Polestar 1: The Most Interesting Car in the World
The Lucid Gravity Is The Most Exciting EV Of 2025! Full Tour Of This Grand Touring Production Model
Three Years & 26,000 Miles in the Lucid Air Grand Touring | This Is What It’s Like to Live With
Lucid Air | The Final Drive

Photography

The Problem With Digital Cameras…
My Favorite Camera: Fujifilm X-T3
A day of Street Photography in Porto l Fujifilm X-T4 l Film Emulation
The Trip of a Lifetime: Two Weeks in Norway with my Dad
This camera is phenomenal.
Lofoten Islands 🇳🇴 with one lens
A Photographic Day in the Life with my OM System OM–3 + Nikon Coolpix P310
40mm is Everyone’s new Favorite Focal Length
Travel Photography in New York City // Fuji X-T5
Spring on the Oregon Coast – A Solo Roadtrip

Podcasts

The Zach Lowe Show
He’s back! After being fired last fall because ESPN chose to pay their loudmouths and didn’t value their best actual analysts, Lowe landed at The Ringer this month. In addition to his own show, he’s been on Bill Simmons’ a couple times as the NBA postseason began. Great to have him back. Shame on ESPN for not letting him keep his original pod name, The Lowe Post. He came up with it but somehow it’s their property, even though they didn’t want to employ him. Corporate America sucks.

March Media

March 27, 2025 / DB

A little earlier than normal so it doesn’t sit in the Drafts folder until we return from spring break.

Movies, Shows, etc

The Agency
Tuuuuuurific! I had read/heard raves for this and was waiting until S needed to get her next Taylor Sheridan fix on Paramount+ so I could watch it. It lived up to the hype. Now, there are some issues with the story, which got a little broad at times. But that’s a minor complaint. Tense, generally well written, good acting performances. Most of all, though, it is shot like a movie, more cinematic in visual presentation than most other spy shows out there. And the soundtrack was incredible. This felt like what Michael Mann always wanted to make, but often fell short off on the script side. And the big twist at the end worked in making me look forward to season two.

The Neighbors’ Window
I wasn’t sure which section to put this in. I watched it on YouTube, but since it won an Oscar it seemed right to elevate it. A wonderful piece of filmmaking. You can do a lot in 20 minutes if you want to.

Exploring New Zealand’s Wild Flavors, Māori Culture & Volcanic Hot Spring Cooking | DIRT
I’m also elevating this in status as they require a true commitment to watch now. New Zealand looks beyond spectacular.

The Hunt For Red October
Still holds up.

Lioness, season one
I took a chance on this as I had heard very mixed views on it from others. There are some big problems with the season. Midway through I was contemplating bailing as it was veering towards similar dumb territory as the Jack Ryan series. I wouldn’t say it totally saved itself but I did finish and didn’t feel like I wasted my time. Some of the dialogue though, yech. I lost track of how many times I knew exactly what a character would say. Like to the word. Nicole Kidman’s performance was kind of terrible. And her husband? One of the worst characters I can recall in a series like this. Debating whether to watch season two, as it got better reviews, but was also reviewed by a lot fewer critics.

B-

30 Rock, season one
While I’ve not watched them as much lately, reruns of The Office and Seinfeld are staples of my normal, casual TV time. If Parks & Recreation aired more often, I would gobble that up as well. I’ve rewatched Arrested Development, parts of Community and Scrubs. The one classic 21st Century (I know Seinfeld doesn’t fit that timeline) comedy I’ve never rewatched? Tina Fey’s classic. So this is super fun because of all those shows, it’s the one I remember the least well. I’m still in the midst of season one, but so far, so great!

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

How Tower Cranes Build Themselves
Obviously this works, but it sure doesn’t seem like it should.

Link Sar: The Last Great Unclimbed Mountain
On one hand, I’m fascinated by these climbs. On the other, when they look down from the tops of 3000 foot drop offs, I have trouble watching.

Robert De Niro Breaks Down His Most Iconic Characters
Here’s one of the biggest ones of these you can get. And it is surprisingly great. De Niro isn’t always the most forthcoming or comfortable talking about himself, but he was terrific here.

John Cusack Breaks Down His Most Iconic Characters
This is whack because there is no section about Sixteen Candles.

Why wasn’t France a part of the Holy Roman Empire?
Why was the Netherlands banned from selling Luxembourg?
Why did Europe obey the Monroe Doctrine?
I love this series. Good content and the subtle humor in the animations is terrific.

Inside This Home Builder’s Desert Hideaway in Far West Texas | Huckberry Homes
These never disappoint.

How an Architect Optimized a 400-Square-Foot Manhattan Apartment | Architectural Digest
My last apartment in Kansas City was about 400 square feet, so it was fun to watch this and imagine what could have been done with that space other than throwing a futon and a computer desk into it.

Up Close with Polar Bears – Sony FX6 Short Film – Churchill Manitoba
Super cool footage of polar bears followed by an interesting description of how it was made.

The Last Observers
Charming piece about another old school occupation that is being replaced by technology.

Cafe hopping in Lisbon, Portugal | best coffee & hidden gems
Living in Lisbon, Portugal | Typical day as digital nomads, life update + coffee, food & fun
M is going to spend the spring ’26 semester in Lisbon, so I started seeking out some Portugal content on YouTube. I think she will enjoy these millennials way more than I did. I stopped watching their stuff, but started a new playlist of other Portugal content I’m sharing with M and will watch on my own next fall.

Not the Typical Golden Route: 10-Day Winter Itinerary with My Family in Japan
Canadians in Japan, eh?

Every “I’ve Made A Huuuge Mistake” – Arrested Development
Can never watch too many AD clips.

The Heatwave Continues, Ireland 1976
Hilarious.

Creating Saturday Night Live: Cue Cards
Quite the process.

Your Spring Wardrobe, Simplified | Answering Your Spring Style Questions For 2025 | Ask Huckberry
Not all this fits my aesthetic, but I always appreciate their seasonal updates.

Alec Baldwin’s Impressions Of “The Godfather” Cast
Shame he’s a total kook, but I do admire the man’s talent.

55 Greatest James Bond One-Liners
Solid.

MUSCAT: OMAN’S ANTI-DUBAI CAPITAL CITY
Funny, I watched this randomly and suddenly I was getting suggestions for other vids about Oman daily. The algorithm is never shy about forcing you down a rabbit hole.

Matthew McConaughey’s Funniest Impressions
How had I never seen Matt Damon do this until now? Uncanny!

Top 20 Songs You Didn’t Know Were Written by Prince
I was prepared to slam this list, but there were actually seven songs on it I had no idea Prince was responsible for. Now, I had never heard any of them before. But I thought it might be 20 obvious ones.

Car Content

I Drive The Hyundai IONIQ 9 For The First Time! Full Tour & Initial Road Test Experience
Hyundai IONIQ 9 EV Road Trip To North Korea!
Ugly car, but glad Hyundai/Kia are pushing their EV offerings forward.

Rivian R2 vs NEW Model Y
I’ve Been Hard On Rivian Recently But Now Is The Best Time To Get One
How Rivian R2 Will DOMINATE
RIVIAN CEO ⚡️ RJ Scaringe on the electric future and unifying vision | Interview @ SXSW
The Rivian R3 Is Getting Closer & Here’s What I Want To See Make It To Production
What We Learned After Testing a Rivian R1T for 40,000 Miles
Only 25 months until I can get an R2. This space may just turn into a Rivian-stan section between now and then.

Photography

5 Tips for Photographers with No Time
Travel Photography on the Oregon Coast in Winter // Fuji X-T5
Travel Photography at Home in Seattle // Fuji X-T5
Travel Photography in Vancouver // Fuji X-T5
OUR LAST DAY ON THE OREGON COAST
5 Photos Show How The Ukraine War Changed
My Minimal Street & Travel Photography Setup for 2025
A Plea to all Camera Brands…
What I Learned Traveling With ONLY The Fujifilm 27mm
50mm Street Photography: Lisbon (POV)

Podcasts

Real Ones
I’ve dialed back my NBA pods, mostly because ESPN fired Zach Lowe last fall ending his twice-weekly show. But I still cycle through as many of The Ringer’s NBA pods as I can each week. This is, by far, the best. Howard Beck is a fantastic NBA writer and surprisingly funny when the other two get him ranting about something. Former NBA player Raja Bell is an AMAZING podcaster. Like outrageously good. Some folks don’t like Logan Murdock’s act, but I do, especially when he and Raja go back and forth. If you only have an hour to listen to folks talk about the NBA each week, this is the one you should pick.

January Media

February 1, 2025 / DB

Movies, Shows, etc

Rebel Ridge
Movies like this are hard for me to watch these days. The moments of injustice seem far too real and common in the real world. That said, this was a good, old fashioned action flick. Not too complicated. Amazingly, despite a lot of gunplay, there’s not a ton of bloodshed nor are there any deaths as far as I could tell. There are some BIG leaps in logic in the final 20 minutes, but that goes along with the old school, action movie vibe.

B+

The Fall Guy
Two uncomplicated action movies to start the year. This one is just goofy enough, and filled with enough wild stunts, to gloss over a thin story. Throw in Emily Blunt and Ryan Gosling, two dazzling looking humans, and this was a pretty fun couple hours.

B+

Canary Black
Here’s a movie that took a pretty cool idea for a Bond film – bad guys use a computer virus that could cripple the world’s economies, one country at a time, to ransom trillions of dollars from governments – and shoves the reveal into the final 20 minutes. Right there we have a problem. Then a lot of the writing is extremely dumb. Some of the acting is C-level. A lot of the action sequences are super unbelievable. And even a lot of the production is strange; some of the dialogue feels like it was dubbed in because the actors were speaking a different language. But Kate Beckinsale is mindblowingly hot, and I wonder if the producers thought that would be enough to paper over all the movie’s issues.

Black Doves
First off, I wish I would have known this took place before Christmas so I could have watched it a month ago. Christmas music played a big role in this show, so you know I got all bent out of shape hearing them in January.

As for the show? Eh. There were some good elements, but many aspects of the story seemed far-fetched, crazy, or both to me. I will often measure how much I’m enjoying a series by how well I remember details of things that happened an episode or two earlier. I kept having to remind myself of who characters or what plot angles were in this one. Which is funny, since Netflix now writes their shows to constantly re-state the central themes because they know people aren’t paying full attention. I felt like I was and still couldn’t keep all the details of a not super complicated show straight. It was fun watching Ben Whishaw go from the nebish Q of the Daniel Craig era to an absolute assassin in this flick, all while maintaining his queer bonafides.

B-

Spectre
I needed some real spy shit to balance the last two entries. At the moment this is the only Bond movie I could find streaming for free. So I watched it. Some good car chases but otherwise far from the peaks of the Craig era.

Also, I kept wondering how Bond always has these fabulous clothes and insane gear but you never seeing him toting a bunch of luggage around. You might see him with an old school suitcase, but it clearly isn’t holding all the stuff you see him wear in that location. These are the things I think about when I watch a movie for the third or fourth time.

Van Halen: Story Of Their Songs
Literally an hour after I finished Ted Templeman’s book, I was scrolling through the cable guide and found this show. It had started 20 minutes earlier, but I sat through the next 90 minutes anyway. Kind of a bummer. For some reason, of the six songs they picked to break down Van Halen’s career, only two were David Lee Roth songs. Seemed like a bizarre choice to me. I’m not convinced you have to include a Gary Cherone song, but let’s say you do to pull in the entire history of the band. Then the breakdown should be three DLR songs, two Sammy Hagar, one Cherone. I think the mid–90s “answer to grunge” entry should have been replaced by a third Dave song. Also thumbs down to the Reelz channel for peppering this show with four minute commercial breaks.

B-

Wolfs
Oceans Eleven is a perfect movie. That’s what you’re running up against when you put George Clooney and Brad Pitt in a movie together. So you better come with your strongest material. This, sadly, did not. I thought the script was weak. How do you not give these two crackling dialogue? The pace was far too slow, especially when this is supposed to be as much a comedy as a drama. There are moments where their charisma is strong enough to lift the picture up for a moment. But those isolated scenes make it clear how weak the rest of the movie is. I’m disappointed in them for taking on this project without giving it some serious sprucing up.

C+

Slow Horses, season two
I didn’t love the first season, but I keep hearing people rave about this show so figured I’d give it another shot. It took me most of the way through this one to remember I read the book it was based on just a year ago. I didn’t love that book, either. I did like this season better, though. Bonus points for wrapping things up in six, sub one hour episodes.

B+

Ladies & Gentlemen…50 Years on SNL Music
Treeeeeemendous. I was a little worried that, at three hours, the last hour would drag and be filled with extra long commercial breaks. Instead that might have been the most interesting part of the program, diving into some of the biggest controversies in the show’s music history. I found it awfully convenient that Lorne Michaels suddenly thinks Sinead O’Connor ripping the photo of Pope John Paul II was brave and sincere two years after she died. I don’t recall him defending her in the days after her act.

I also found the segment in the middle about the choices for musical guests in the 70s and early 80s that were less than conventional fascinating. Those kinds of acts haven’t been part of the show in decades, which is a big shame. Now it’s all massive, established stars or of-the-moment artists doing heavily produced sets. Some of those left-of-center picks back in the day were not very good, but they also reinforced that the show was cutting edge and, at least in theory, subversive. Today the show is all about reading cue cards and hitting your marks, with the audience a slave to the Applause sign. The early days gave us comedic geniuses. The modern iteration gave us Jimmy Fallon. ‘Nuff said.

Our Kind of Traitor
Decent enough film based on a John le Carré novel, but despite checking in well under two hours it lacked energy so it seemed to lag a bit. And there was a healthy chunk of the story that seemed flat-out dumb to me.

B-

Pearl Jam – Chicago – Wrigley Field Night 1
A terrific show – of course – from just a couple nights after I saw them. It’s pretty amazing how 1) people can make high quality concert videos taken on cell phones these days and 2) can perfectly match up the video from multiple devices with the official soundboard audio. These look better than official concert films from not that long ago.

The Town
On the last night of the month I spent 45 minutes trying to figure out what to watch, whether to pick a movie I had not seen before, start a new series, etc. Eventually I landed on this as a rewatch. Which was smart. Or smaht.

A-

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Why streaming will destroy the typical sports fan
We still pay for cable, partially because I am too lazy to change and partially because every time I do the math to switch to YouTube TV I can’t see that it would change our monthly outlay that much, and while we don’t watch a ton of TV, the cable bill is worth it to me to ensure I can watch whatever I want when I need to. This piece shows how that traditional offering is on the verge of collapse. And the observation about how young people consume sports very differently than older people checks out with how L follows basketball.

Paul Rudd Breaks Down His Most Iconic Characters
Zero surprise this is great.

Jack Black Breaks Down His Most Iconic Characters
Jack’s, on the other hand, isn’t nearly as fun since he’s kind of a weirdo.

Top 10 Controversial SNL Sketches We Can’t Believe Made It to Air
Funny how times change.

SCTV SPORTS – Battle of the PBS Network Stars!
Truly amazing comedy, if you are able to get most of the references.

The Ultimate Paper Airplane
This is some wild shit right here.

1977 NIT Indiana State vs Houston Larry Bird 44pts vs Birdsong 30pts
This is so awesome. A highly edited selection of highlights from what appears to be an insanely good NIT game in 1977. The hoops are incredible. Even better is our glimpse to how a college basketball game was aired on a local station in the late Seventies. The choices in cuts. The announcers. Throw in the behavior of the players and ISU’s uniforms and this is a fan-freaking-tastic time machine piece.

Larry Bird 35 Pts Vs DePaul 79 NCAA Final Four
The Game Larry Bird Dropped 49 Points vs Wichita State
Algorithm gonna algorithm.

Fighter Pilot Breaks Down Every Fighter Jet From Top Gun: Maverick
How Navy Pilots ACTUALLY Land on Aircraft Carriers
Watch The Navy’s Most Difficult Student Training
USAF B1-B Lancer EARTH SHATTERING Full Afterburner takeoff!
Trying to keep up with an SR–71 Blackbird
Speaking of the algorithm, watch one fighter jet video and you’re going to get a bunch of jet videos in your feed. Which I do not mind.

Why are mountains so tall?
Science!

Classic Bob Uecker – July 29th, 1976 | Carson Tonight Show
Bob Uecker’s Advice For Kids | David Letterman
A Visit with “Mr Baseball” Bob Uecker
19 minutes of legendary Bob Uecker calls and moments
RIP to Mr. Baseball.

Dave Chappelle Stand-Up Monologue 2025 – SNL
Good stuff, especially the ending.

Hilarious Steve Carell BLOOPERS VS Actual Scene
Office bloopers never get old.

Every James Bond Watch Is A Watch To Die For (1962 till now)
Come on, the Omegas are clearly the best, and the Brosnan Omegas rule them all. If I ever win the lottery…

How Super Bowl Fields Are Deep Cleaned And Prepped For Game Day
Not as interesting as I hoped.

Car Content

First Road Trip In My New Tesla Model 3! FSD Taking Us To Kansas City
Road trip to KC? Sure, I’m in. Wish I was as comfortable turning my car over to FSD as this guy is.

My Kia EV6 GT 800mi Winter Road Trip Was Super Annoying!
Amazing how many cars have horrible software. That’s a bad thing in a traditional ICE vehicle. That’s a deal-breaker in an EV.

Lucid Gravity Charging Performance! 400kW, Tesla Supercharging & Deep Dive Interview w/ Emad & Peter
Lucid definitely has the battery/charging side of the equation figured out. I remain hopeful they remain in business long enough to finally release a vehicle that is competitive with what the average auto buyer can afford. Maybe that is two cars away for me?

Photography

Fujifilm X100 VI: My Honest Take as a Leica Shooter
A Day of Film Photography in the North Bay
Do You Need a Wide Angle Lens?
Capturing the ‘modern prairie’ with landscape photographer Alex Burke
A Day of Winter Film Photography and the Struggle to Stay Motivated

Podcasts

The Rest Is History
I did some looking around to refresh my podcast routine and this one got good reviews. I enjoyed their recent series about the lead-up to World War II, but have skipped the latest one about Roman emperors for the time being. Maybe I’ll dive back in once the NBA trade deadline passes and the hoops pods slow down.

Plain History
Derek Thompson has added this subset of his Plain English pod in which he tackles a moment in history, in this case the assassination of President James Garfield. Fascinating topic I knew nothing about.

December Media

January 1, 2025 / DB

Holiday Shit

Elf
Christmas Vacation
A Christmas Story
Die Hard
Assorted SNL holiday sketches
A’s all around.

Band Aid – The Making Of The Original ’Do They Know It’s Christmas?’
Not a true documentary but rather a collection of the raw film shot on November 25, 1984, the day the vocals were recorded for this holiday classic. A remarkable view of a moment in time that became eternal.

Holiday Baking Championship
Surprise winner! After looking like a total doofus the first couple weeks, home baker Steven came out of nowhere to capture the title. Thanks to both the way the calendar fell and our new DVR limitations, this was the earliest I’ve ever finished the show, a full week before Christmas.

A-

Die Hard (1988): 20 Things You Never Knew!
Best of the Die Hard OBSESSION | Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Topical.

Giving away my stolen christmas tree
Beau Miles holiday bullshit!

How A Fake Band Made A Christmas Classic – The History of Christmas Wrapping by The Waitresses
Wonderful summary of the history of a wonderful song.

Movies, Shows, etc

Shrinking, season two
A terrific second season puts this in the running for best show on TV. It continued to avoid the trap so many shows in its vein fall into: being too cute and satisfied with itself. Each week had many deep, genuine laughs. Most episodes had touching moments. A couple were incredibly moving. This was a show we looked forward to each week and were seldom disappointed by. It is an A++ cast that share fantastic writing with us. Repeating something I’ll say below about another show: the world would be a better place if we had more programs like this.

St. Denis Medical
A couple more new episodes this month. I think it’s still finding its way, but remains solid. As I don’t watch any other sitcoms on regular TV, I have to assume that they are all garbage based on how many good reviews St. Denis receives. I see promise, I just don’t think it’s in the league of the shows that came before it yet (The Good Place, The Office, Parks & Recreation, etc.)

B+

A Man On The Inside
Goddammit, those sons of bitches Michael Schur and Ted Danson have done it again!!! An utterly delightful show. I’m convinced if we had more people with the emotional intelligence of Schur making TV and movies and music, this country would not be the hateful mess that it is. Alas…

This show will make you laugh a lot. It will give you the feels. It will probably make you cry. It is so full of heart and life. It shines a light on a part of our world – retirement communities – that most of us spend no time thinking about until we have to. Brilliant TV. Fortunately it looks like there will be a season two. Oh, and just another reminder that Danson is the greatest comedic actor in TV history.

A+

Hit Man
I think I was confusing this with another movie – The Fall Guy probably – with a brief title that looked kind of dumb but actually got decent reviews. This was not that. Every element felt like a 75% effort: the scenes that were supposed to be funny only got ¾ of the way there. Same for the suspensful scenes. Same for the sexy scenes. Script could have used some zhooshing.

C+

Extraction 2
Like the first, an almost perfect action movie. Checks in under two hours. Minimal plot/mission, so the writers don’t have to get too cute. Then roughly 80% of it is people trying to shoot/blow each other up. Bonus for bringing in Idris Elba and setting us up for another edition in a year or so.

B+

David Letterman | The GQ Video Cover Interview
Dave is an American treasure.

Swingers
How long has it been since I watched this, in full? Twenty-ish years, I bet. It is one of those movies that faded away after I got married and had kids, as it speaks to a very different part of my life. Sure, I referenced it plenty, but even those quotes faded in time. YouTube randomly spit out an interview with Jon Favreau from when the movie was first released, which got me thinking I should watch again. I couldn’t find it on any streaming platforms we pay for so I grabbed the DVD at the library. It was one of those really poor library DVDs that seems like it was produced overseas from a bad copy. Still, it was fun to revisit Mikey, Trent, Sue, Rob, and Charles. It brought back a lot of memories from my “single days,” as I once called them to S’s great laughter.

There are so many elements that make this movie great – even with the allowance for it being nearly 30 years old and a bit out-of-date – but what stuck out to me in this viewing was how it never runs out of steam. The final 15 minutes are just as funny and well-written as the first 15.

Top Gun: Maverick
Oceans Eleven
The Bounty Hunter
A collection of movies we watched as a family with our Christmas guests.
Maverick remains the perfect, modern action flick. I could watch Oceans 1000 times and never get sick of it. The Bounty Hunter? Well, it was a random pick from the Netflix menu screen. Thin story, some bad acting, but it does have In Her Prime Jennifer Anniston running around for 90 minutes in a tight tank top, short skirt, and very high heels. She knew how to give the fans what they wanted.

A, A, C

English Teacher
Ahh, the series that has a limited number of episodes (eight) that are short enough (all in the 21–24 minute range) that you can knock the whole thing out in a few hours. Even better that this is super funny. That said, I don’t think this is a universal show. The humor is often dark and cutting. The main character has lots of flaws so you aren’t necessarily pulling for him. There’s a lot of culture wars content, and it definitely leans one way, which will annoy 30–40% of its potential audience. But I really enjoyed it, especially the first 3–4 episodes which were a little funnier than the back half.

B+

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Dead on Arrival: The Soyuz 11 Disaster
Scary space shit.

Jon Favreau interview on “Swingers” (1996)
Ron Livingston on Swingers
Vince Vaughn Breaks Down His Most Iconic Characters
Swingers content.

Sacha Baron Cohen Breaks Down His Most Iconic Characters
The Vaughn entry above was good. This one was incredible.

Why the B–52 is outliving newer bombers
It’s absolutely wild that not only are B–52s still operational, the ones currently in service will have nearly 90 years of service logged when they are finally expected to be retired.

Dramatic low level flying bomber footage (1943)
Kind of cool.

The Oberg Color Film Footage of Pearl Harbor – December 7, 1941
This doesn’t quite live up to expectations, but still a fascinating time machine to one of the most important days of the 20th century.

How this Van Life Pioneer Set Up His Perfect Off-Grid Camper
A little different than the other Huckberry Homes vids.

A Journey Into New York’s Basketball State of Mind
Good stuff from The Ringer’s hoops crew.

Mt. St. Helens: The Gary Rosenquist, AI interpolated landslide and eruption sequence
This is when AI is cool.

2025 Moon Phases – Northern Hemisphere
2025 Moon Phases – Southern Hemisphere
Jason Kottke posted this with the observation that blew his mind, and in turn blew mine: the moon looks upside down from your normal perspective if you cross from the northern to southern hemisphere. Or vice versa. Wild!

Star Wars: rare behind the scenes “The Empire Strikes Back”
Nine-year-old me would have thought this was the coolest thing I’d ever seen.

Picking up a new car that my daughter likes
Some quick Beau Miles bullshit. Hopefully there’s more to this next month.

Car Content

I Drive The Lucid Gravity For The First Time!
Looks incredible. Get back to me when they release a vehicle that checks in at about half the cost of the Gravity.

I Drive The Audi Q6 E-Tron For The First Time! A Better Electric SUV Than Q4 & Q8
As usual, Audi does some things amazingly well, and does some other things amazingly oddly.

Photography

Rather than post all the photog stuff I watched, here are the ones that stuck out most.

Bad Weather, Good Photos?
A Day In Cincinnati
Exploring One of the World’s Most Beautiful Countries
SantaCon, London, 2024
The Most Important Kind of Photography

Podcasts

You’re Wrong About
Trying to mix up my pod routine a bit and Overcast recommended this. I listened to the episode about Dungeons & Dragons, which was fun. The host and guest made some great observations about how weird the whole satanic panic related to D&D was. D&D kids were generally good kids with good grades who liked to read, who didn’t do drugs or get into trouble. “So they must be doing something wrong, right?” seemed to be one argument against D&D. Also, all the demons and whatnot religious types complained about…were the exact things you are trying to destroy if you’re playing D&D! And lots of other just odd stuff that made a select few parents lose their minds and get media attention in the Eighties.

A-

November Media

December 2, 2024 / DB

Movies, Shows, etc

The Americans, season 6
Why re-watch something I’ve seen before when I have so many unwatched shows on my list that I need to get to? Because this is my favorite TV drama ever made, it never had a subpar season, and its final 10 episodes were as good as any concluding season ever filmed. Each season got progressively bleaker and more stressful. In season six, you could almost feel the weight crashing down on each charater, like a strong arm in the middle of your back forcing you to the ground.

And the finale? Holy shit. Even knowing what was coming, the middle 40 minutes were an emotional A-bomb. The 11-minute garage scene was a masterclass of television, somehow wrapping up almost every loose thread from the 74 previous episodes without seeming tedious or overdone. Then STAN LETS THE JENNINGS GO!!!! THE CALL TO HENRY! PAIGE GETS OFF THE TRAIN!!!!! I urge any of you who have never watched this series’ 75 brilliant episodes to give it a shot.

A+

Starting 5
I liked this far more than I thought I would. I know the players, especially LeBron, had a lot of control over the final project (much like his control of his team). But all five subjects were anywhere from pretty to extremely interesting. The insider look at their lives seemed pretty honest, if anodyne. How can you not love Ant or Jimmy Butler? Or admire Jason Tatum? Domas Sabonis was probably the least interesting of the bunch, but it was fascinating to see that maybe his wife controls his entire life? Joe Mazzulla? Crazy genius. And LeBron and his family are amazing. I know he’s not perfect, but he really is the prototype for how you want a modern superstar to behave, at least off the court.

A-

Shrinking, season two
In progress.

Bad Monkey
Looks like I read this book back in 2013. Fortunately I didn’t remember much of it, so this series was all new to me. Didn’t reach the level of the other Bill Lawrence shows (see Shrinking above). Probably could have been tightened up a bit rather than a 10-episode season. But in general, it was entertaining and fun. I always wonder how much of Vince Vaughn’s dialog is written just for his style, and how much he riffs on his own. Natalie Martinez isn’t terrible to look at.

The Diplomat, season two
For the first half, this was not as good as season one. It seemed like the slider for gossipy romance had been cranked up a couple notches. Fortunately the last two episodes yanked it right back to where it belonged. That ending!!!

A-

Sixteen Candles
AMC had an 80s movie marathon on Black Friday. This was the only one we watched, and we watched the entire thing. Interesting they add a disclaimer now that it contains cultural stereotypes that may be offensive to some viewers. Which, fair. They also cut out a couple of my favorite lines. Again, for fair reasons. Still holds up. Am I bad person for still finding the parts that are offensive to 2020 ears funny?

Cheers, Thanksgiving Orphans
38th consecutive year watching this classic.

Holiday Baking Championship
Our cable package changed this fall. Part of the deal was a reduction in our DVR space. So I had to start watching these earlier than usual rather than letting them stack up until December. I’m four episodes in. I have a favorite, but she nearly went home in week four, so what do I know?

Incomplete

St. Denis Medical
The latest entry in the lineage of shows that somehow are conneted to The Office. (There’s another new one I may try to get to in December.) It’s always tough to judge new shows as the characters are finding their places, the writers are settling in to find what works, and so on. Plenty of funny moments. I’ll keep watching to see where it goes.

B so far

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Beau Miles builds a raft for Amy Shark
Glenn McGrath Attempts to Build a Beach Bar with Beau Miles
I approve of Beau’s sponsored bullshit, even if they are very Australian and I have no idea who these people are.

I made a picnic table from someone’s rubbish
I made a fort on the Mississippi River
And here is some of his regular bullshit.

Getting a Crash Course in Tex-Mex Cuisine, Bull Riding & the Spirit of Texas | DIRT Texas
Not sure how I missed this when it first came out.

Brooklyn 99 moments that were NOT scripted
Always fun to catch up with the 99 crew.

Dr. J at Harlem’s famed Rucker Park
Nothing about this sucks.

iPhone 16 Pro: In-Depth Camera Review
Not strictly photo-related, so I’ll drop this gorgeous piece into this section. Looking forward to upgrading my phone next spring.

Our Top Holiday Gifts For Men | 2024 Huckberry Holiday Gift Guide
How To Elevate Your Cold-Weather Wardrobe | Men’s Fall Style Guide | Ask Huckberry
Watching these videos always sends me straight to Huckberry. Which I think is the point, right?

An Overlanding Pilgrimage for Wildlife | Australia Part I
Not What We Expected | Australia Part II
Again, it would be cool to be sponsored to take trips like this.

Golf, Food, Magic | Neil and Randy Explore Brooklyn
Even when the NLU guys do a single episode travel vid it is great.

200 Earth Impact Craters Mapped by Size and Age
My big takeaway is that Canada seems targetted.

How Copperfield Vanished the Statue of Liberty
Fascinatingly low tech! This event played a major role in one of the best episodes of The Americans, and seeing it now it seemed super cheesy. I kind of remember watching it live as a kid, but don’t remember being dazzled by it, just thinking that there was some simple explanation. Who knew it was so simple?

Johanna Under The Ice: Freediver Johanna Nordblad on the accident that led her to a world record
This is beautiful, but no fucking thank you!

The Big Wait
What a charming piece about an odd and amazing place. Only in Australia can you find these modern throwbacks to the frontier days.

Very Good Chili Crisp Recipe
I had never tried chili crisp before last summer, when I bought some for a spicy noodle recipe. Man, how did I miss this for 53 years?!?! Not sure I’ll make my own, as I’m the only one in the house who will eat it. But it’s in the back of my mind for the next time I make those noodles.

Why Americans Love Iced Coffee
Enjoying iced coffee is the most millennial thing about this Gen Xer.

A Real Diplomat Reviews Netflix’s “The Diplomat”
Not a true review, more of a set of observations.

Top Dunks in Kansas Jayhawks Basketball History
Kansas Jayhawks Basketball Coach Bill Self On His Role As The Caretaker Of Allen Fieldhouse
Inside Kansas Jayhawks Coach Bill Self’s Office: Memorable Stories And Hidden Gems
Other than watching Cheers, this is how I spent my night before Thanksgiving.

Car Content

Why American Cars Are So Expensive
Some surprising explanations in here, the biggest being simple greed.

The Polestar 3 is Amazing
Sure would be cool if Polestar could stay in business and drop a ~$50K car on the market.

Photography

Some of the many, many photo vids I watched.
A Week in Peru on Film // Leica M6 + Ultramax 400
2 Days in Florence / [#35mm]() Film
Mark Ruwedel: Seventy-Two and One Half Miles Across Los Angeles
Backpacking the Coast Mountains on 35mm film
Exploring Pubs & Shooting Film in Ireland
Fuji Recipes and 27mm in the Streets of Oslo | Street Photography
30 Days Photographing Italy With My Little Fujifilm XT5
A Road Trip in Finland with the Plaubel Makina 670
The North Cascades Highway, Pre-Closure
Photographing Washington’s Larch Trees on Slide Film
Everyday Photography EP.1
Matt Day
Fall Photography, Camping, Mamiya 645, 35mm, Fuji x100f
James Popsys
Is 40mm the new 50mm?
In Search of my Everyday Carry Camera
7 Days in Puglia, Italy / 35mm Film

October Media

November 1, 2024 / DB

Kind of an odd media month. There was some baseball early, but not much after the Royals were eliminated. A lot of reading The Lord of the Rings. A fall break vacation. But not much long-form stuff. That should shift in November. And there was a changing of the hobbies, a switch that is reflected below with a new section.

Movies, Shows, etc

Halloween Baking Championship
The winner was a bit of a surprise, as Manny rallied in the final three episodes to take the competition. Poor Aaron has now reached the finals of two different holiday shows without getting a win.

A-

Anchorman
As noted before, we watched this as a family with our hosts in Denver. Apparently the kids and moms did not like it as much as the dads. Not sure what is wrong with them.

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Bill Self UNFILTERED on the portal, navigating NIL, Kansas as Preseason No. 1 | Goodman & Hummel
Unfiltered is a little strong. I guess he does say “shit” once. But otherwise your standard, solid interview.

Running Australia’s hardest 100km while needing a hip replacement
I got nervous when I saw the title for Beau Miles’ latest bullshit. Turns out it is his buddy who needed the replacement, not him. A touching short, with a sequel to come.

I built a chicken coop for zero dollars
This is some good, and wholesome, Beau Miles bullshit.

Beau Miles takes Cody Simpson on an epic adventure
Hey, Beau now has sponsored bullshit! I had no idea Cody Simpson, who was big on Disney Radio when our girls were in that phase, was a competitive swimmer now.

‘Afternoon Plus’ documentary on the BBC World Service (1982)
Did I watch and enjoy this British doc from 1982 about the BBC’s World Service? Hell yes I did.

We Answer Your Fall Style Questions For 2024
Get your wardrobes correct, fellas.

6 Minutes of the Best Jokes in Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee
Sometimes I like these better than the actual show.

We bought a NEW CABIN ︱ Svalbard
I can’t imagine living like this.

Inside The World’s Most Secret House Built Into a Mountain
This, on the other hand, would be a wild way to spend a shit load of money for a very isolated vacation.

How This Surfer Built His Dream Home on the Nova Scotia Coast
Forget the financial side of this. I wish I had the imagination to conjure up a place like this, then the ability to put it together.

Indianapolis | Cinematic Travel Diaries Shot on Sony FX30 w/ 20mm lens
Not a lot of travel videos about Indy. Makes sense this one is less than two minutes long, although I guess that’s kind of this guy’s thing.

The unique undersea tunnels that link the Faroe Islands
Fascinating. I read an article that mentioned these a few weeks before this video popped up.

Is Colorado a Food Utopia? Exploring Farm to Table Cuisine, Epic Landscapes & UFO’s | DIRT Colorado
Perfect timing, right before our trip to CO, even if it focused on different parts of the state than we did.

First Big Trip in Our New Truck
I know I’ve said this before, but it sure would be cool to be cool enough to live like this. Or, rather, it would be cool to be cool enough that brands sponsored you to live this way.

Leon Bridges Talks New Album, Texas Roots & How He Developed His “Futuristic Retro” Style
I dig Leon’s whole vibe.

Apollo 16 lunar rover “Grand Prix” in HD
Dopeness.

Remembering Fernandomania
A wonderful piece from a couple years back about a legend we lost in October.

Car Content

Lucid Air Pure: The Real Tesla Fighter
If only they were in my price range…

Photography

Welp, I’ve picked up the camera again. Check my Instagram feed. More details later, but here is a sampling of the photo vids I watched last month.
Italy on 35mm
“Street photography is creative freedom” | A Day with Chris Harrison
How to take Great Photos with Patience / Lake Garda on #35mm Film
Journals E28- Fuji XF10 Photography in the South Of France
Spain & Italy
Three weeks of film photography across Japan
Chasing Fall Color in the Eastern Sierra | Pentax 67
One Month Two Cameras
The Photo Dept.

Movies, Shows, etc

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Car Content

Photography

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Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Car Content

Photography

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Car Content

Photography

Podcasts

Movies, Shows, etc

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Car Content

Photography

Podcasts

Movies, Shows, etc

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Car Content

Photography

Podcasts

Holiday Shit

Movies, Shows, etc

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Car Content

Photography

Podcasts

Movies, Shows, etc

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Car Content

Photography

Movies, Shows, etc

Shorts, YouTubes, etc

Car Content

Photography

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