Friday Newsletter – Fighting the January blahs

Every Friday I fire off a list of things I think you need to know. Want me to know something in return? Leave it in the comments.

January blahs – It’s been a quiet week and as I sit here on a Friday morning compiling the newsletter, it’s hard not to feel the January blahs. It has been raining for days it seems and while not freezing cold, it’s that damp cold that gets to your bones. This time of the year is always a bit of a slog. We are a month from celebrating Christmas, our ambitious resolutions are waning and all we have to look forward to is more of the same in February. No wonder it’s one of the more depressing periods of the year for many people. Unless you are a fan of the Detroit Lions. If that is you, you have been waiting for this day for decades. I hope you win this weekend and keep the party going.

New TV – Well it’s the third week in a row I will be referencing Masters of the Air. It has be released by Apple TV plus finally and the first few episodes are now live. I am looking foward to watching them, especially as I just finished a rewatch of Band of Brothers and The Pacific. I had little memory of even watching The Pacific, so I am glad I went back. The war with Japan does not get as much attention as the battle in Europe did. It’s an incredible piece of TV and I highly suggest giving it a watch. I totally forgot that Jon Bernthal was in it. Don’t touch that fork Mikey! As for Masters of the Air, I am trying to keep my expectations low. How can it live up to Band of Brothers or The Pacific? Early reviews are sounding positive. Also, Apple apparently spent $300 million to make the 9 episodes. So that says the action scenes are going to be epic. If you want to get a review that doesn’t have a lot of spoilers, this Ringer article really aligned with my feelings before watching it. As the writer says, I really, really hope one day we get a Navy version of this series. If not, I will just have to watch Greyhound for the 10th time.

Masters of the Air

Podcasting – This week I listened to my usual bunch of podcasts. Bill Simmons, Smartless and other NBA themed shows. The one I want to point out is Family Trips with the Meyers Brothers. It is hosted by Seth Meyers and his brother Josh. They interview celebrity friends and talk about family vacations when they were kids. The latest guest is someone I have talked a lot about, Mike Birbiglia. As he is a great story teller, it’s no suprise this was an excellent interview. Give it a listen if you can.

Food for thought – In the evening Katie and I watch a number of food series on YouTube. They are short videos that open our minds to how the pros make certain dishes. We tend to stick to recipes we would actually do at home. We watch a lot of Matty Matheson, Sam the Cooking Guy and Brian Lagerstrom. This week Brian posted a video on making 30 minute chili. Now, I tend to think you can’t make good chili in 30 minutes but he sold me. I am pretty sure there is a pot of chili in our future. Of note, Katie made turkey chili last week which was very tasty. It’s winter. You can’t have enough chili.

X facts – This week X brought to my attention at some very bad reporting from CTV Toronto News. It was about the Toronto Raptors. Since it’s Toronto and it was about the team that plays here, you would expect some research or fact checks to be done before it airs. Give it a watch. Poor RJ. Also, Scottie Barnes is not from Toronto. This is the kind of stuff I expect to see on CP24. How far is journalism falling these days.

Funny cause it’s true: I saw a funny video from the people at This House Has 22 Minutes and wanted to share. As you will see, it touches on the lastest stories of the Ontario Govermment making some interesting partnerships with Staples and Walmart to house ServiceOntario kiosks. While humourous, it’s actually not far off and that is what worries me for the future.

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