Afternoon Tea (6/25/19)

This is great: Naked, Afraid and Transgender: ‘The Wilderness Couldn’t Care Less’

The Wild Ride at Babe.Net

Can ‘Big Data’ Help Fight Big Fires? Firefighters Are Betting on It

I FEEL ATTACKED but no, this is important: You Are Doing Something Important When You Aren’t Doing Anything

6 YA Books About Thorny Female Friendships

Morning Coffee (12/30/18)

Horrifying: How a Crackdown on MS-13 Caught Up Innocent High School Students

Delays, frustrations as Congo’s presidential election begins

Court dissolves North Carolina elections board with election fraud scandal still under investigation

Of course: New E.P.A. Plan Could Free Coal Plants to Release More Mercury Into the Air

Malware attack disrupts delivery of L.A. Times and Tribune papers across the U.S.

This is an essential look at both Trump and the TV industry: How Mark Burnett Resurrected Donald Trump as an Icon of American Success

The Border Dividing Ireland Has Long Been Invisible. Brexit Threatens to Make It Real.

Sono Osato, Japanese-American Ballet Star, Is Dead at 99

A Journey Into the Solar System’s Outer Reaches, Seeking New Worlds to Explore

Papers reveal saga of horse given to John Major by Turkmenistan

Morning Coffee (8/5/18)

Venezuelan President Targeted by Drone Attack, Officials Say

‘We are Q’: A deranged conspiracy cult leaps from the Internet to the crowd at Trump’s ‘MAGA’ tour

Trump Administration Unveils Its Plan to Relax Car Pollution Rules

Trump’s wildlife protection council is mostly trophy hunters and donors, lawsuit says

Kris Kobach’s Lucrative Trail of Courtroom Defeats

The sad last act of Rudy Giuliani

How The Modern Mainstream Media Would Cover The End of Slavery

Beyoncé Given Unprecedented Control Over Vogue’s September Issue Cover, Sources Say

Huh: John Green wants you to read tiny books

I am skeptical: MTV Preps ‘The Royal World,’ an Aristocratic Reality Show

Afternoon Tea (11/9/17)

Smuggled, Beaten and Drugged: The Illicit Global Ape Trade

Drug Hunters: Meet the Scientists Building a Library of Designer Drugs

The Rise of the Millennial Mortician

How Artificial Intelligence Could Revolutionize Archival Museum Research

None of this is surprising at this point but it's interesting because it's about a relatively early show when no one involved quite knew what they were doing: I Was A Contestant On The Worst Reality Show Ever

Morning Coffee (8/25/17)

Time for Friday happy links! Make sure you come back this afternoon for TWO posts, including the return of Friday afternoon links. I've got a doozy for you.

NEW TAYLOR SWIFT SINGLE. I love it.

Eee, trailer for Strike, new show based on J.K. Rowling's mystery novels!

Whoa: Antares: astronomers capture best ever image of a star’s surface and atmosphere

I'm always so relieved when an author I like doesn't say anything terrible in her By the Book interview, and Louise Penny's is great.

Look at my friend Holly's elf ears in the New York Times!

Penguins Filmed Their Own Videos of Antarctica, and the Footage Is Incredible

YES I DO: 15 Next-Level Ice Cream Sandwiches You Need in Your Life

Netflix’s Latest Hit Series Is a Boring, Soothing Japanese Reality Show. I'm in.

Beatles Monuments in Unexpected Places

I have read bachelorette party instruction letters that sound JUST LIKE THIS: Tips for Emily’s Low-Key Destination Bachelorette! PLEASE READ

Afternoon Tea (6/19/17)

Paradise Lost: The Other Side of Reality TV

Fun! These Maps Reveal the Hidden Structures of ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ Books

Watching the [Hotel] Detectives

The ancient mystery of St Hilda's 'snake stones': what do ammonites really look like?

14 Curious Telegrams from (and to) Famous Writers (Some of these aren't exactly CURIOUS, but they're interesting!)

Morning Coffee (12/17/16)

"Prevent Tragedy Before It's Too Late": Read the Statement 1,200 Scholars Just Released About Trump

Ivanka Trump Will Not Fix "Women's Issues"—She Will Distract From Them

ICYMI, here's the Vanity Fair piece that had Trump tweeting against them, because obviously that's something very important for him to be spending his time on. (Spoiler: it's a restaurant review.)

Of course: West Virginia Official Fired for Calling FLOTUS 'Ape in Heels' Is Reinstated

"Feminists’ critique of male power has long been caricatured as hatred of men. But it is feminists whose fight is motivated by the belief that men can be better, if we can make clear that they, too, benefit from a safer, more equal and more just world."

"Trump is taking advantage of a well-established media norm— if the president-elect says something, it’s news."

Good for him: Dan Snow crowdfunds £160,000 to back pro-EU political candidates

I have so many questions about this, starting with - is it REAL? REALLY? Siberian Reality Survival Series ‘Game2: Winter’ To Allow Rape, Murder & More

The Private Heisenberg and the Absent Bomb

William Trevor's Quiet Explosions

This new study may explain why peer review in science often fails

I kept putting this off in favor of more IMPORTANT links but I really want you to see it: A Canadian town is threatening drunk drivers with Nickelback torture

Morning Coffee (10/28/16)

Boy do we need a break for some happy Friday links.

These stories of women born before the 19th Amendment who are now getting to vote for a woman for President are amazing.

There are some pictures from the new Anne show here and here and I remain optimistic.

A football player did a press conference dressed as a wizard and talked about Quidditch and it was amazing.

Starving Stray Dog Is Rescued and Taken to Pet-Friendly Restaurants All Over LA

In other important dog news: Ice cream truck's most loyal customer is this beautiful dog

The Old-Fashioned, Modern Marriage of Ina and Jeffrey (Clearly this book needs to go on my Christmas list.)

All the brooding in Poldark, ranked

Giant Flip Books Are Hiding in the Woods of New Hampshire

I don't agree on ALL POINTS but this ranking of Taylor Swift songs is a good read, and I am now working on my own rankings for you.

Two contestants on The Bachelor fell in love WITH EACH OTHER instead and this story is just delightful.

Morning Coffee (8/31/16)

A "safe zone" in Syria sounds like a great idea. It would be a disaster.

The Times is pulling no punches: Donald Trump to Visit Mexico After More Than a Year of Mocking It

Related: Stop getting played by Trump’s scam job on immigration

This piece about Clinton's and Trump's approaches to debate prep is FASCINATING (and yet again leaves me thinking "she's just like me!").

Maybe don't get too excited about those clickbaity SETI headlines.

Anthony Weiner’s sexts are being treated like a campaign story — they shouldn’t be

This was very interesting and not something I had thought about: Colin Powell’s foundation and Hillary Clinton’s are treated very differently by the media

How Facebook’s foray into automated news went from messy to disastrous.

Rick Perry is doing Dancing with the Stars?!?! (It actually seems like a more interesting group this time, or at least more tailored to my specific interests. [I still won't find time to watch it.])

I'm all in for Taylor Kitsch: cult leader.

Morning Coffee (7/3/16)

No one tell Donald Trump: Chechen Leader Kadyrov Seeks Apprentice on Reality TV Show

Europe needs a real opposition party

This is really funny AND important: Mike and Dave Need a Gender Studies Course

Poor Kids Need Summer Jobs. Rich Kids Get Them.

Oooh: Dinosaur-Era Bird Wings Preserved in Amber

Heh: New York pol quotes wrong 'Hamilton'

NPR's Summer Entertainment Guide is nifty.

This makes a lot of sense: Martha Stewart Is Launching a Meal-Kit Service

"In conclusion, living like Tom and Gisele is hard. You have to live in Boston and you have to eat nothing."

Portraits Of “The Wrath Of Achilles” That Just Make Me Wanna Cuddle Him

Morning Coffee (6/8/16)

I woke up to the news from California and THAT was delightful.

(Me elsewhere: Feed the Beast was disappointing.)

This is really happening: Hillary Clinton will be the first woman presidential nominee — that's a big deal beyond symbolism

The meaning of Hillary, and the long, hard climb to the top of the ticket

Hillary Clinton Made History, but Bernie Sanders Stubbornly Ignored It

No concession, but the Times says Sanders is laying off half his staff.

And I just read this and it made me both furious and so so glad that he will not be president, as he would clearly be terrible at it: Inside the bitter last days of Bernie's revolution

Reporters covering Clinton report harassment following AP call

I'm not saying what it is here but reading this Cursed Child spoiler about a certain character last night of all nights made me start crying again.

Stop the Bots From Killing Broadway

This piece on Dancing with the Stars casting was interesting even though I don't watch the show, and obviously if they got Bill Clinton (their dream contestant) I would WATCH EVERY MOMENT.

The Lost Literature of Medieval England

Morning Coffee (6/3/16)

Happy Friday! As usual, we'll go with some lighter links today.

Me elsewhere: Some thoughts on the Outlander renewal and a new episode of The Fourth Wall!

!!!!!!!!!!! Netflix Sets ‘Julie’s Greenroom’ Preschool Series From Julie Andrews, Jim Henson Co.

I have never watched The Bachelorette but this guy is my new hero.

This xkcd showing how to estimate the dates of maps is amazing and hilarious.

New emoji are coming! I'm excited about some of the food ones.

You had me at Post-It note war.

The Rolling Stone feature on Hamilton and accompanying interview with Lin-Manuel Miranda are worth a read.

As is Esquire's delightful profile of Daveed Diggs, who plays Lafayette and Jefferson. (And I feel like in all the talk about him having the fasted rapping on Broadway, people don't even MENTION that it's in a non-native accent! [French, as Lafayette.])

This will sound familiar to anyone who has tried to get a toddler to pose for a formal picture: Mike Tindall opens up about daughter Mia's scene-stealing handbag moment in the Queen's 90th birthday portrait And of course the Queen was the one to realize how to get her to behave, because this is the kind of thing she's dealt with constantly her whole life. Never say Her Majesty isn't good at her job.

Heh: Kate Middleton May Have Called Prince William “Babe”: What Does It Mean?

Perfect: How To Tell If You Are In A Transcendentalist Essay

Maybe I'll watch The Voice.

I generally don't watch reality TV. I have nothing against it philosophically or anything (in general; certain shows are despicable in various ways), but I have to draw a line somewhere, and I just watch so much and reality stuff usually just interests me less so I ignore it. But I've been thinking I should watch a season of a music competition show, because they've become such a cultural thing. I guess I want to know what I'm missing. And I think that show will be The Voice, which ended last night but starts up again already in March, because a) a completely unscientific skimming of my Twitter feed suggests that people are general more positive about it than its competition, b) I have a few friends who cover it regularly so I might as well understand what they're talking about, and c) all else equal, the music show that puts Adam Levine's face on my TV seems the logical choice. (No, I actually like his music, too. Seriously.)

And hey, here's an adorable promo for season 4! Warning: This will earworm you.