Morning Coffee (8/31/15)

Boo: No pumpkin spice lattes until after Labor Day.

Wait, this surprises people? Oh, Iowa, you sweet summer child.

McKinley no more: America's tallest peak to be renamed Denali

I love how cautious this headline is: Two Men Say They’ve Found a Mythical Train of Nazi Gold

This one, however, is WAY TOO INCAUTIOUS: A 500-Year-Old Royal Murder Mystery May Soon Be Solved

Meet the 15-Year-Old Tech Whiz Whose Software Is Turning the Tide Against Internet Hate

Science Says Working With Too Many Men Will Literally Hurt Your Brain

Hands off our comfort reads

Morning Coffee (8/28/15)

Happy Friday!

Five Shows They Will Never Stop Making "1. The Adventures Of Mr. Superabilities And Detective Ladyskeptic." Hee.

World's oldest message in a bottle washes up in Germany after 108 years at sea

100 Years of Iconic Royal Wedding Dresses

This look at the mid-century food on Astronauts Wives Club is great.

!! A Cat Library, Just for Government Employees

Heh, this ad of kids reacting to bitter dark chocolate is adorable.

Taylor Swift sang "Smelly Cat" with Lisa Kudrow.

The Abandoned Theme Park That Finally Got a Storybook Ending

Morning Coffee (8/27/15)

On-Air Murders Highlight How TV News Crews Are Exposed at Every Angle

Even if you don't care about this specific thing, this is fascinating from a data analysis standpoint: Almost None of the Women in the Ashley Madison Database Ever Used the Site

Harry Potter isn’t over, but what happens when a fandom grows up?

Libby really GETS me: Fantasy-casting a week of 'Late Show With Stephen Colbert' guests

The year without a summer is fascinating.

I love this: Twelve Habits of Happy, Healthy People Who Don’t Give a Shit About Your Inner Peace

Gotta love a good reply allpocalypse.

Oh geez: Good Morning, Wake Up, You’re Going To Be Late For School

Morning Coffee (8/26/15)

Heh: Christie Says "Pushy" Granite Staters Don't Like to Wait for Answers He thinks New Hampshire is pushy? HE'S FROM NEW JERSEY.

Reporter: Do you write all your tweets?
Trump: People are shocked at how smart I am.
Reporter: Do you type your own tweets?
Trump: Thank you.

Eee! My friend Susan Adrian's new book Nutcracked has been officially announced. It's about Christmas AND ballet AND magic, and I read an earlier draft and loved it. Don't worry, I'll remind you when it comes out.

I am so curious to see how Colbert's new show shapes up.

Interesting: Connecticut to Require All 11th Graders to Take the SAT It's not mentioned much in the story, but I'd hope this would make it more likely for some underprivileged students to consider college, since the SAT will now be free and something all students take, rather than a separate thing that must be sought out and purchased.

Hear, hear: Can Walton Goggins Just Be in Everything, Please?

UM: "At one point, the Beatles asked Stanley Kubrick to direct them in “The Lord of the Rings.” John, Paul, George and Ringo would respectively play Gollum, Frodo, Galdalf [sic] and Sam."

Great House Therapy: Marilla and Matthew’s God-Fearing Avonlea Orphan Sanctuary

Morning Coffee (8/25/15)

Trust me, you want to take three minutes out of your day to watch Hot Historical Maniacs. IT IS WORTH YOUR TIME.

You should also check out new web comic Defunct, about your discarded gadgets.

Taylor brought Alanis on stage to duet on "You Oughta Know" and IT IS EVERYTHING.

The August stock slide, explained.

The Right-Wing Hate Machine

Linda Holmes is writing some great stuff at NPR about the state of television.

Black Arts: The $800 Million Family Selling Art Degrees and False Hopes

And with it: The Best, And Perhaps Only, Response To An Article About One’s Family That Opens With “Black Arts: The $800 Million Family Selling False Hopes”

Morning Coffee (8/24/15)

Me elsewhere: TV news!

Dixville Notch and the midnight vote will not die without a fight

Carly Fiorina out of step with Silicon Valley

Not the Onion: Jonathan Franzen 'considered adopting Iraqi orphan to figure out young people'

Oh! First wolf pack found in California in nearly a century

Add me to the "How has it been 20 years???" chorus.

I really think names should need APPROVAL. Sigh.

Ooh: One of the World's Only Globe-Making Studios Celebrates the Ancient Art of Handcrafted Globes

Heh: Board Game

...Lunchtime Coffee? (8/21/15)

Sorry! Time got away from me this morning, but I didn't want to entirely deprive you of some HAPPY FRIDAY LINKS.

It's Friday. Have 25 Photos of Famous Authors in Uniform. (What is your DAMAGE, Faulkner?)

IT'S FRIDAY. You really, really need to watch Baby Can't Contain Her Excitement When She Sees a Cat.

In other important cat news: School adopts a cat? Fine. But HE HAS AN ID CARD, YOU GUYS.

Hugh Jackman would really be the perfect Odysseus for a Lionsgate movie, huh?

See the Stunning Portraits That Will Mark Queen Elizabeth's Record-Breaking Reign

Whoa: Visit every place on this vintage US map for the most epic road trip ever

If You Had Married King Henry VIII…….What Would Your Fate Have Been?

Paintings Where The Subject Is Clearly Thinking “Oh, Christ, I’ve Left The Iron On”

Morning Coffee (8/20/15)

This is HUGE and great: 'New York Times' Changes Children's Bestseller Lists

Rape Case Puts Focus on Culture of Elite St. Paul’s School

TV’s slow embrace of diversity

Oh hey, here's the trailer for The Last Kingdom. I'll be recapping it at The Televixen!

Someone write me a novel about Marjorie Rice.

I know crime isn't funny but - cheese ring!

This new Financial Times 404 page is GREAT.

"Edmund burst into tears, like a Communist."

Morning Coffee (8/19/15)

Wow: BuzzFeed gets $200 million from NBC

Yay: First Openly Transgender Official Hired at White House

I read Donald Trump's immigration plan, and it's even crueler than I expected

How Katrina Destroyed a Town - And Its Mayor

Ooh, let's go to Dover: Churchill’s wartime tunnels under white cliffs of Dover open to the public

Fascinating, and sad in a few different ways: Nepal's earthquake forces 'living goddess' to break decades of seclusion

Why 35 screenwriters worked on The Flintstones movie

KARL MARX: i have other friends
HENRIETTA MARX: “the workers” do not count as friends
KARL MARX: I AM A FRIEND TO EVERY WORKER IN THE WORLD
HENRIETTA MARX: then why didn’t any of them come to your birthday party
KARL MARX: because theyre ALIENATED, MOM
like me

Morning Coffee (8/18/15)

I'm all for natural ingredients, but the point of Pumpkin Spice Lattes is the SPICE, not the pumpkin.

"When Edward Thomas joined the Houston Police Department in 1948, he could not report for work through the front door. He could not drive a squad car, eat in the department cafeteria or arrest a white suspect."

This is smart: Donald Trump’s secret political weapon is his mastery of reality TV

As rape trial begins, elite St. Paul’s School in N.H. faces scrutiny of ‘sexual scoring’

I'm not sure what to think of the supposedly possibly supernatural aspects of this, but the story is fascinating regardless: Reburial of woman in native Ireland highlights 183-year-old murder mystery

How White And Male Are Digital Newsrooms? New Media’s Old Diversity Problem

"If you started on Jan. 1, 2016, and caught up with one scripted 2015 prime-time TV series per day, you could not finish by the end of the calendar year. Assign Jan. 1 to Mad Men, Jan. 2 to Orange Is the New Black, Jan. 3 to Modern Family and so on, knock out a whole show every single day, week in and week out, on Saturdays and Sundays and Flag Day and your birthday, and you will not make it."

They're doing a Star Trek cruise. Shatner is the host. Because of course he is.

Morning Coffee (8/17/15)

Me elsewhere: TV news summary for the week.

This is a horrifying but very important read: ISIS Enshrines a Theology of Rape

This Jeff Flake profile is interesting.

‘Sesame Street’ goes to HBO and makes it clear why we should fund the arts

Not that I USUALLY understand the Bush family's choices, but as someone who also calls her grandfather "Poppy," the idea of using it as a child's name just BAFFLES me.

Man Poses as Target on Facebook, Trolls Haters of Its Gender-Neutral Move With Epic Replies

The new War and Peace looks super pretty.

TV critic James Poniewozik is leaving Time for the New York Times, and his retrospective goodbye post is worth a read.

If this happens, DC Comics will have shows on four of the five main broadcast networks.

Morning Coffee (8/14/15)

Happy Friday!

Good news: The Connecticut Supreme Court just let everyone off the state's death row

This is awesome: Iowa Barber Gives Free Haircuts To Kids Who Read To Him In Support Of Back-To-School

Important cat news: Japan gets a new stationmaster cat as Nitama is officially named successor to the departed Tama

I appreciate how calm and measured this headline is: Archaeologist Says He May Have Found Nefertiti’s Tomb

PERFECT: Everything I Am Afraid Might Happen If I Ask New Acquaintances to Get Coffee

A Poem Becomes Meme. Forgive Me.

How the Tudors Invented Breakfast

“Don’t be fooled by the name,” Tami said. “The lights come on every night, as long as you use the light switch.”

Morning Coffee (8/13/15)

Sad news: Ann McGovern (author of Stone Soup and more) has died.

Presented without comment: Everything you need to know about the CW’s post-apocalyptic ‘Little Women’ show

Yes yes yes: How to Get Your Book Noticed Without Being a Jackass

Meet the Women of Election 2016

Vox's John Kasich profile was pretty interesting.

How the FBI recovered our stolen million-dollar Stradivarius

Ooh: Storms yield Spanish Armada 'treasure' on Sligo shore

"MAZARIN: sire, Paris is revolting
LOUIS XIV: lol youre damn right it is
MAZARIN: sire please
you make that joke every time there is a revolution
and it is a very good one
but there is an actual mob at the gates"

Morning Coffee (8/12/15)

New Hampshire news: apparently the ballot selfie ban is unconstitutional.

This is perfect: "Hell Is Empty and All the Devils Are Here": A Shakespearean Guide to the 2016 Republican Primary

Confused about the Google/Alphabet thing? Read Timothy Lee here and here.

My friend Chris is in this film currently crowdfunding - take a look!

I am absolutely one of those people who will read anything about Roanoke.

Fascinating and tragic: The children taken from home for a social experiment

Remember I Wanna Marry 'Harry'? This interview with the winner is actually very interesting! (Random factoid: A promotional shirt they sent out for that show is the most comfortable item of clothing I own, but I refuse to wear it out of the house, as it says "Keep Calm & Marry Harry.")

I know I've said it before, but I really mean it this time: This is the greatest thing The Toast has ever done. "SUIT #3: Literally Wishbone is wearing a Romeo costume and standing in front of a grown woman in an Elizabethan gown who’s asking him to deny thy father and refuse thy name, but no mention of the fact he’s a dog?

VISIONARY: Correct.

[Suits shrug, like ‘I guess that checks out’]

SUIT #2: All fours or hind legs?

VISIONARY: That really depends on the themes of the book."

Morning Coffee (8/11/15)

I'm back! Maybe. Let's give this a try, anyway. (Some of these links are old but I LIKED THEM.)

Shea-Porter is officially running again.

I'm so glad Target is doing away with unnecessary gender-based signs, and the comments on their blog post are pretty incredible.

Have you seen Coming Out Cards? They're pretty funny.

Why we should keep reading ‘Gone With The Wind’

This is pretty perfect: "Should you press on, the Spinster will be forced to deploy her arsenal’s biggest guns: exact recollections of anything you’ve ever said or done in front of her."

All Dolled Up: The Enduring Triumph of American Girl

The Onion: Study: U.S. Wastes 2 Million Hours Annually Figuring Out Where Tape Roll Starts

A List of Modern Relationships