praeceptrix

Composer Sir Peter Maxwell Davies has died. He was 81. http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-35802564

I think I like this Lane Bryant ad (which has yet to air, as the networks are rejecting it), but I am not entirely sure: http://www.self.com/trending/2016/03/this-body-positive-lane-bryant-ad-was-too-sexy-for-tv/

I still have at least six pages to go in the thread, but I agree that there will be great celebrations when (if???) Daryl ever washes. Especially if we can see it. ;-)

Medieval historian here, doing my best to avoid going all-out lecture mode on the inaccuracy of the term "Dark Ages" (short version: Petrarch invented the phrase as part of the self-conscious superiority of the Italian Renaissance over what came before. Aside from a few really grim centuries (5th - 7th), as the Western Roman Empire evolved into the Germanic successor states, it is no longer used. And, frankly, I wouldn't use it even for that period, as learning did not completely disappear.). Oops, that wasn't very short. Sorry! Back to the ZA: once we lose the ability to use computers, most knowledge stored electronically will likely be lost (with the rapidly changing technology, we are already losing knowledge stored on outdated systems -- anyone tried reading a 5 1/2 inch floppy lately?). Books, on the other hand, last a lot longer than you might expect. Not cheapo 1950s paperbacks; those have already disintegrated for the most part. But any decently made book stored in a more or less hospitable environment (i.e. not used as fuel for fires, nor left out in the rain & snow) will survive in somewhat readable condition. I have worked with 13th century documents -- on paper, not parchment -- which, in spite of the bug damage, were readable. The ZA survivors will have a much easier time than I did, as they will be working from printed editions, not late 13th century notarial hand!

I love this ad I saw when watching a YouTube video: http://www.iizcat.com/post/3252/This-GMC-ad-is-purrfect-Just-wait-till-the-end-

27 year old Raphael Schumacher has been declared brain dead. He was in a coma after a botched hanging scene. A member of the audience realized that he was being strangled and tried to save him, but it was too late. http://edition.cnn.com/2016/02/05/europe/italian-actor-strangled/index.html?sr=fbcnni020516italian-actor-strangled0112PMVODtopLink&linkId=21000159

Sheep, eh? Gets kinkier by the minute. Was the episode set in Scotland?

I am not a beer drinker, but I have been told by those who do like it that Bud Lite is not very good (they were s little more vulgar in their description). So I have to wonder what the heck they were thinking when they came up with this commercial: http://theshrug.com/this-banned-beer-commercial-is-hilarious-and-i-cant-stop-laughing/

Bill Johnson has died. He was only 55! http://www.bbc.com/sport/winter-sports/35382786

New York talk show host Stanley Siegel has died. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/13/arts/television/stanley-siegel-a-riveting-and-irrepressible-talk-show-host-dies-at-79.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fobituaries&action=click&contentCollection=obituaries&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=6&pgtype=sectionfront&_r=0

Brian Bedford, classical actor & the voice of Robin Hood (1973), has died at the age of 80. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/14/theater/brian-bedford-master-stage-actor-dies-at-80.html?_r=0

Billie Allen, who helped integrate network television in the 1950s, has died at the age of 90. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/11/theater/billie-allen-actress-who-bridged-racial-gap-dies-at-90.html?_r=0

12th & 20th century references? I think I love you!

Pierre Boulez has died. He was 90. http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-35241250?SThisFB

Elizabeth Swados has died. She was 64. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/06/arts/elizabeth-swados-creator-of-socially-conscious-musicals-is-dead-at-64.html

I suspect that the show, Sir Terry, and Ms. King are all making reference to "The First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstrous Regiment of Women," an extremely mysognyinistc pamphlet written by John Knox and directed at Mary Stuart (& Elizabeth Tudor & Queen Mother Catherine de Medici): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_First_Blast_of_the_Trumpet_Against_the_Monstruous_Regiment_of_Women

The world has lost a great man. Conductor Kurt Mazur has died: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/20/arts/music/kurt-masur-new-york-philharmonic-conductor-dies.html?_r=0

At this point in the semester, I often wish I had a bottle of scotch in my desk drawer. Sadly, I am not a character on television.

From your mouth to the ears of a kindly deity!

I love this one. Sadly, I doubt I will ever actually see it on tv. http://www.upworthy.com/a-canadian-shelter-sells-older-cats-like-used-cars-and-its-pretty-effective-and-hilarious

A friend posted the ad on Facebook. I googled & found a few articles about it, as it has not aired yet. Here is an article with the ad embedded (sorry, don't know how to post videos): http://www.towleroad.com/2015/09/tide-to-go/

I have a friend who is battling cancer, and he has found comfort and pleasure using coloring books. This is the first commercial I have seen, but I have read a number of articles about how helpful it is, as well as a number of coloring books specifically meant for grown-ups. I'd sort of like to try it, but I was never good at it as a kid.

Since when is "recreate" a verbal form of recreation?!

I hope your cat recovers fully & soon! My Artemus Squeakifur likes to accompany me so that he can bite me when I can't escape... (To bring this back to television, yes, he is named after the character on The Wild Wild West)

John Oliver has a response to/spoof of that dreadful hamburger/hot dog/potato chip concoction. And a whole lot of very important information to go with the humor: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=i8xwLWb0lLY