A heap of things you might love

Helloooooo!!! I am once again astonished by the passage of time. December, already??? It’s finally actually wintry here -- no snow, but temps are below freezing, and I’m ready to sleep until March or whenever.

I haven’t done a link roundup in a while! So, here’s some stuff I’m into that you might like, too! But before we get to it, here’s a puppy picture, because I can’t help myself!!!

BUFFY!!!!!

READ

• Jenny Slate’s book, Lifeform, is so exquisitely weird and good. I’m not totally sure how to categorize it, but Jenny has a really great brain and you should read it.

• I thought the book, Unshrinking: How to Face Fatphobia by Kate Manne, was very good!!! Kate is building on the excellent work of fat activists like Aubrey Gordon and Virginia Sole-Smith, and she argues that being fat isn’t as much of a health problem as encountering fatphobia is. It’s highly readable and full of interesting data.

  WATCH

• If you’re looking for a more intense winter TV commitment, I’d like to recommend Battlestar Galactica! It’s on Amazon Prime, and it’s about tech, AI and how to live after the world ends. (Hot tip: You need to start with Battlestar Galactica: The Miniseries, which is essentially a three-hour pilot, before diving into S1E1. Trust me, it’ll all make MUCH more sense if you do.)

• I’ve never read Wicked or seen the musical, and I’ve been pretty ok with that! The thing that has me sold on seeing the new movie, though, was watching Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo show off their matching tattoos on The Kelly Clarkson Show. (I also just learned that Winnie Holzman, who wrote one of the best TV shows of all time, also wrote the playbook for Wicked! YES, I am talking about My So-Called Life!!!!)

• I REALLY LOVED Nightbitch!!!!!!! It’s about motherhood and women embracing their wildness and also kale. Amy Adams’ performance is exquisite. It’s out in theaters today, and you should go see it!!!

  EAT

• If you’re running out of cozy recipes (which you shouldn’t be since I posted that FALL RECIPE GUIDE!), I highly recommend this turkey meatloaf! It’s flavorful and veggie-ful and great. (Put extra ketchup on top! Why not!!!)

• These chocolate cakelets from Smitten Kitchen are absolute perfection. They’d be a showstopper for a dinner party or will provide you with an elevated dessert for days.

THINK ABOUT: BURDEN OR DELIGHT

Every once in a while, I come across a weird news story and think, “This would have been a PERFECT panel topic on Nerdette.” This happened to me twice this week -- once with this story about the woman who snuck on a Delta flight to Paris and hid in alternating airplane bathrooms for seven hours, then again with the story about how Bible sales are on the rise (though I’m not sure whether we really would have been able to tackle that one.) WHAT DO YOU THINK?? Leave a comment if you want!

DO: MEET OTHER GREAT NERDS

• For book club this month, we’re reading Sally Rooney’s Intermezzo. We’ll meet to discuss it on Sunday, Dec. 29. Email me if you want the Zoom link! gretamjohnsen@gmail.com

• And, for those of you who are less inclined to read on a deadline, I’m super excited to announce that we’ll be skipping book club in January to do a crafting Zoom hang instead! It’ll be a fun opportunity to get to know other excellent humans and find good company in 2025, Lord help us!!! I’ll follow up with more timing details when we get closer to the new year.

• Speaking of good company, the GRETAGRAM corner Discord server is really fun! There are lots of fun channels there to talk about stuff like books, recipes, fiber arts, video games, even sports!!!!!! Come hang out!!!

Ok, that’s it for this week. Hope you’re staying warm out there!

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