Popcorn Diet: August 7 through August 21
Here is list of the pop culture I consumed - hence, my popcorn diet - from August 7 to August 21. Let's get into it.
Mon. Aug. 8
This was the night I saw Pete's Dragon, which possibly might have been the most I've cried in a long time. Like, UGLY CRIED. For best children's movie of the summer, I think it's a tie between Pete's Dragon and Finding Dory, which is also unbearably sad. So ... yeah, I have preferences, and they veer toward the melancholy almost always. (As I explained in my piece about Pete's Dragon last week.)
Thurs. Aug. 11
Is it weird that I keep The Bob's Burgers Burger Book: Real Recipes for Joke Burgers on my bedside table? None of the recipes are too long, so it's nice to peruse while I'm trying to decompress and fall asleep. Also, I'm sorry, why WOULDN'T I want to dream of delicious cheeseburgers?!
Fri. Aug. 12
Watched the season finale of The Great British Baking Show, and YAY, NADIYA! SHE WON! I truly was so impressed by her skill, classiness, and personality all season. After watching the finale I went back and rewatched some of the episodes I had missed because they're all available for free to stream at PBS.org, and you should DO IT. And please think about donating, because public access TV always needs the help from viewers like us. (No sarcasm there, truly.)
Sat. Aug. 13
The new Deftones song, "Phantom Bride," is really good. Takes me back to 7th grade, which was a terrible time, but still!
Mon. Aug. 15
The 2017 IKEA catalog is available!! I have slapped color-coded Post-it notes on a trillion pages of this thing, and I HAD to get the print version in the mail because I am confused by interactive PDFs. DON'T JUDGE ME.
Tues. Aug. 16
Saw Ben-Hur, during which I gasped a LOT during the chariot scene. It's pretty well-done in 3D, even though I keep thinking there were female chariot riders in the 1959 version of the film, and I was very irritated that there weren't any in this version. PRESSING CONCERNS. (Perhaps you would like to read my Ben-Hair expose or my review of the film for further complaints.)
Wed. Aug. 17
MR. ROBOT. MR. ROBOT. MR. ROBOT. "When you see Whiterose, make sure you say I did you good."
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thurs. Aug. 18
Fell down the rabbit hole of finding Robert Redford gifs while writing this post about Pete's Dragon. This one from Jeremiah Johnson is clearly my favorite.
Fri. Aug. 19
Watched some Olympics and some of that racist Washington team's game. I honestly can't remember the events I watched or what was happening in the preseason football game. It was a long week, guys.
Sat. Aug. 20
Stayed up late to watch UFC202 on PPV, which had some great performances, including from my outlaw boyfriend Donald Cowboy Cerrone. Nate Diaz lost a decision in the rematch against Conor McGregor that I absolutely thought he won, but this whole thing has been a victory for Diaz overall, honestly. He gave McGregor his first major loss in devastating fashion in their first fight; he's re-entered the public consciousness in a spectacular way with his bombastic keeping-it-realness; and I could watch this video clip of Nate, brother Nick, and their Skrap Pack taunting Conor at the UFC202 press conference forever. Plus, he made something like $13 million from the fight and the PPV points he negotiated. GET THAT MONEY, NATE.
SNOWBALL FIGHT!!!! pic.twitter.com/8YIuEbFKXo
— Michael Hutchinson (@TheMikeyHutch) August 17, 2016
Sun. Aug. 21
Caught up on lots of reading today, including these two stories that you should read: an insane story about family lies, abuse, and murder over at Buzzfeed; and a well-researched story about the murder of an intersex Olympic athlete as well as the history of the modern Olympics and their sometimes amoral bureaucracy. Set aside a half-hour or so for each and don't let yourself get distracted.
Did you watch 60 Minutes? Because their updated segment this past Sunday that investigated how medical gear manufacturer Kimberly-Clark knowingly sold faulty gowns to physicians during the 2014 Ebola outbreak was fucking infuriating and incriminating, and a must-watch. Check out the full episode online ASAP.
Also watched the penultimate episode of The Night Of, and agreed with most of what Alan Sepinwall posed in this piece about next week's season finale. I still don't think Naz is guilty of killing Andrea, but the way the show has shown us his transformation from a secretly angry, bullied Muslim kid into a vacant, morally ambiguous Rikers inmate is pretty great. I'll definitely be interested in rewatching this season with some distance to see how my reactions hold up with time.
