Google spent so much time learning to be more and more evil that it took them until 2026 to realize it has been a bad move to make all of their app icons nearly identical in shape and color.

I started watching a documentary about Ub Iwerks and it took me about 10 seconds to recognize that he was the Jack Kirby to Walt's Stan Lee, with all that entails.

Sometimes I think having to see bits of Fox News while at the gym is doing worse things to my blood pressure than not going to the gym would do.

I dried a sprig of lemon verbena from my planter overnight and made tea with it this morning and I've never felt more cottagecore.

I think this gets to me especially because as an assistant editor at Marvel, I had to make "AR" videos for in-comic activation. Then they decided to post them to YouTube for a free-for-all commentariat. It...wasn't pretty.

Listening to a podcaster with a long professional history in audio storytelling and production talk about having to learn how to put on makeup because she has to start making videos just breaks my heart. This video pivot is bad for listeners and an extra burden for women in podcasting.

Sometimes your friend gets so much well-deserved good news that it makes you teary-eyed. Go Jess!

If Colbert had to end, that was a lovely send-off. But I'll truly miss the show.

Jess is such a talented storyteller in so many ways (as anyone who's had the pleasure of her conversational company can attest) and I am so thrilled for her! Everyone will want this book.

My brother's dog (the family dog, really) died today, and even though he was 13 and in poor health I'm still heartbroken. Herbie was the best boy.

I would have started the last season of the Handmaid's Tale sooner if I'd known it would involve so much creepy Josh Charles.

Hoppers was tun and appropriately distracting.

It feels impossible that it's been 6 years since I lost my dad. I still miss him every day.

I'll probably need distraction tomorrow and I still have a birthday reward to use at a local theater, so should I see The Drama or Hoppers? (Yes, this is a serious question.)

I'm not entirely sure why Madison-area radio stations insist on playing "Low" so frequently, but as a millennial I'm not exactly complaining.

While I'm complaining about ads, "up to 100% leak proof" means absolutely nothing.

Commercials for AI all seem to be about how it will help you pretend not to be the dumbest, laziest jerk in the world.

People are going to think there were no goalies in this game.

Or maybe I do!

Maybe I don't actually want to watch this Wild game...

What a race!

I kind of love that a horse just straight up noped himself out of the Derby.

Happy May Day, folks.

IKEA, escape room, bowling, board games, Lebanese food. 40 isn't so bad so far!

The problem is that the Venn diagram of people I follow who hate AI and people I follow who want an expansive understanding of gender...is a circle.

I just learned that Butlerian jihad is not, as I'd assumed, an insulting way to describe the work of gender theorists.

Anyone have advice for the particular ennui called "I'm about to turn 40 and what do I have to show for it?"?

Backyard friends.

One of my biggest pet peeves is someone calling the Grimm "the original version of Cinderella." "Original" is a nonsense word for a folk tale, and the Grimms collected theirs over a CENTURY after Perrault published the version that Disney based the movie on.

Not loving the batting average on narrator choices here.

I've decided I really want Jamie Ding to win exactly 39 games of Jeopardy. I want him to beat Matt Amodio but not beat Amy Schneider.

I guess I've finally acclimated to the Midwest because I'm mostly shrugging at the tornado sirens. We have no basement so there's not a whole lot we could do anyway, and the spotted storm isn't moving in our direction.

For a moment I genuinely thought Bonnie Raitt and Bluey were going on tour together.

I can't remember ever experiencing hail like this. My cat is terrified.

Post your favorite film from the year you turned 18. (Thankful for this; every other option I considered when I looked at a list of 2004 movies was deeply embarrassing.)

It's all a mix of serendipity, talent, friendliness, and being genuinely interested in other humans. My foot in the door was a single conversation with an editor at the Marvel booth where I mentioned I'd always wanted to intern in editorial. But I'd already been building acquaintanceships for years.

Giving myself a day of rest and mild (but entirely local) retail therapy: lunch, coffee, and a pastry from local cafes; new coasters from a kitschy gift shop; a book from an indie bookstore; and a wall scratcher for my cat from an indie pet store.

So thrilled for the people of Hungary.

I just watched Red White and Royal Blue for the first time. I loved the characters and the love story but had a lot of nitpicks about its version of electoral politics.

🥳🥳🥳🥳 thank you to my fellow wisconsinites for voting today!!

At least I get to vote today. Fellow Wisconsinites, please don't forget to go to the polls to vote for Chris Taylor for Supreme Court!

Julia is a friend of many years, and she's experiencing some tough times navigating a brutal job market while recovering from injury. Any donations or shares would be greatly appreciated.

My roommate and I are watching Jeopardy from Thursday and Friday -- the two episodes we saw taped while we were in LA. We were able to spot ourselves in the panning audience shot! And now we can watch future episodes without being spoiled.

Rus, we're going to miss you like crazy, but Jackie did an amazing job on her first issue! And I can't wait to see what you do next.

My brother gave me a knockoff Lego flower Advent calendar...on Christmas Day. But since my birthday is April 25th, I've decided to use it to count down to 40.

My roommate had to point out the pun of Grace's name in Project Hail Mary, and I can FEEL my CCD teachers' disappointment.

What impressed me most about Project Hail Mary is that under the hard science fiction trappings and white-dude-saving-the-world premise, it's a movie that privileges and celebrates the "soft"/feminized skills of communication, compassion, and teaching.

I'd like to add to the freelance discourse an acknowledgement of the fact that many EDITORS / employees at the publishers are also treated very poorly by their corporate leadership - getting massively overworked, underpaid, and forced to be the face / voice of business decisions they hate

Project Hail Mary was adorable. I liked it way more than I expected to.