Monday, January 4, 2021

Bridgerton (TV 2020)

Rotten Tomatoes
Bridgerton (TV 2020): 1800s costume drama. Pouts and swoons. No racism in this England, but lots of sexism. Too many singles looking for proper matches. All prigs. A vow of revenge made by the Duke to his dying father proves a barrier to happiness. Who cares? Only the prig. C-

Friday, January 1, 2021

Random Thoughts: A Collision of Two Dump Trucks

Tweets from December, 2020:
  • 2020-12-01: When H-P and Compaq merged years ago, someone described it as a collision of two dump trucks. The wreck is being towed back to Houston.
  • 2020-12-02: Watching PBS series "The Rise of the Nazis" with this shit happening in Washington is like watching annotations to current events in the US. Enlightening and frightening.
  • 2020-12-02: Profile in courage. Not.
  • 2020-12-03: Germany wasn't special. America isn't somehow immune. "If [Hitler's] life and career teaches us anything, it is how quickly democracy can be prised from its hinges when political institutions fail."

After the jump, more random thoughts.

Thursday, December 31, 2020

2020 Gets Last Licks In

Just when I thought we were through with this annus horribilis, 2020 proved it was still capable of causing mischief. The last week of 2020 brought me some bad news. But it wasn't all bad news. The good news is that by the time my test results came back confirming my suspicions, my symptoms were already disappearing or already gone.

Symptoms, you ask. Symptoms of what? That's the bad news. I've been tested for COVID-19 and the test results came back positive. It was a nasal swab PCR test. It was irritating, but not intolerably so. What was more irritating is feeling that Ellen and I have been good at wearing facemasks, social distancing, avoiding gatherings, etc. And yet I still caught it. It's a nasty disease.

Wednesday, December 30, 2020

The Midnight Sky (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes
The Midnight Sky (2020): After planetary disaster, the last man on Earth tells astronauts from Jupiter not to come home. Science and space, right? Then why the wolf attack during a blizzard in Arctic? Plot is goofy. Characters forgettable. Connecting element contrived. C+

Tuesday, December 29, 2020

The Undoing (TV 2020)

Rotten Tomatoes
The Undoing (TV 2020): A whodunnit that will keep you guessing 'til the end. I wanted to yell at Nicole Kidman, "Don't listen to your husband," and "Get your own lawyer." I couldn't believe she'd play the role of a weak woman. Turns out she was stronger than she was revealing. A-