Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Tick tock motherfuckers!

Fuck these fucking interesting times.

There are no moderate republicans – only extremists and cowards.

Wow, you are pre-disappointed. How surprising.

Washington Post Catch and Kill, not noticeably better than the Enquirer’s.

Many life forms that would benefit from greater intelligence, sadly, do not have it.

The fight for our country is always worth it. ~Kamala Harris

It’s pointless to bring up problems that can only be solved with a time machine.

Hot air and ill-informed banter

Let’s delete this post and never speak of this again.

If rights aren’t universal, they are privilege, not rights.

So very ready.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

The arc of the moral universe does not bend itself. it is up to us to bend it.

Teach a man to fish, and he’ll sit in a boat all day drinking beer.

We cannot abandon the truth and remain a free nation.

The Supreme Court cannot be allowed to become the ultimate, unaccountable arbiter of everything.

The world has changed, and neither one recognizes it.

75% of people clapping liked the show!

Our messy unity will be our strength.

The line between political reporting and fan fiction continues to blur.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

Nancy smash is sick of your bullshit.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Open Thread: Looking for Something To Do On This Lovely Afternoon?

Open Thread: Looking for Something To Do On This Lovely Afternoon?

by | 135 Comments

This post is in: 

Medium Cool with BGinCHI – Looking Ahead
You may have noticed that Medium Cool started up again last week.

Well, BG is  back and he has all sorts of ideas for the next few weeks.  And there’s homework, but only for extra credit, of course, and only if you’re interested.  I mean, come on, this is Balloon Juice so of course we don’t need to have watched something to have an opinion about it!

BG is hoping that we (at least some of us!) will watch Ted Lasso and The Green Knight ahead of time.

Oct 17:  Ted Lasso

Oct 24:  The Green Knight

BG promises that after we get through tonight’s topic and the next two, that he will pivot to some general topics for a few weeks.

I see that the last Sunday in October is Oct 31 – who knows, maybe that one will be Halloween related!

Totally open thread.

Reader Interactions

135Comments

  1. 1.

    Doc Sardonic

    Watched a few episodes of Ted Lasso and have enjoyed them, but can’t watch much tv because it seems this new streaming video lifestyle is a trigger for my insomnia.

    eta: Frist

  4. 4.

    lahke

    Saw The Green Knight in August with a couple of friends.  Since it was a Monday afternoon and we’re seniors, we paid $4 each and were the only folks in the theater.  Hit another mostly empty theater yesterday for the Met Opera simulcast.   I don’t think the movie-going public is fully confident about returning to theaters just yet.

    (I refuse to believe that my taste in entertainment is in any way deficient as a possible explanation for these events.)

  6. 6.

    WaterGirl

    @Baud: Alternatively,

    Apple TV+https://www.apple.com › apple-tv-plus
    A monthly subscription is just $4.99 per month after a free 7-day trial. Share Apple TV+ with your family. Try it free. Free 1‑month trial.

  10. 10.

    WaterGirl

    @Baud: I wondered the same thing.

    I just googled “apple tv free trial”.  As I was pasting it into a comment, I notices that it was a bit ambiguous.

    If you check it out, let us know what you find out.

  12. 12.

    zhena gogolia

    @Baud: I already have extreme anxiety from all the delightful programs that I’m NOT watching on the services I pay for — Amazon Prime, Disney+, HBO Max, Netflix, and Passport.

  13. 13.

    Another Scott

    We don’t have any dedicated streaming services, either. (We have Prime, but I don’t watch much TV and J doesn’t use it.)

    In other things to do, DeLong has a good piece on his Substack:

    BERKELEY – If you are concerned about the well-being of the United States and interested in what the country could do to help itself, stop what you are doing and read historian Geoffrey Kabaservice’s superb 2012 book, Rule and Ruin: The Downfall of Moderation and the Destruction of the Republican Party, from Eisenhower to the Tea Party. To understand why, allow me a brief historical interlude.

    Until roughly the start of the seventeenth century, people generally had to look back in time to find evidence of human greatness. Humanity had reached its peak in long lost golden ages of demigods, great thinkers, and massive construction projects. When people did look to the future for promise of a better world, it was a religious vision they conjured – a city of God, not of man. When they looked to their own society, they saw that it was mostly the same as in the past, with Henry VIII and his retinue holding court in much the same fashion as Agamemnon, or Tiberius Caesar, or Arthur.

    But then, around 1600, some people in Western Europe noticed that history was moving largely in one particular direction, owing to the expansion of humankind’s technological capabilities. In response to seventeenth-century Europeans’ new doctrine of progress, conservative forces have represented one widely subscribed view of how societies should respond to the political implications of technological and social change. In doing so, they have generally gathered themselves into four different kinds of political parties.

    […]

    Needless to say, the GQP is in the wrong categories.

    Click on over – it’s a good read. DeLong loves bringing history into his discussions of economics and politics.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  15. 15.

    mali muso

    Woot, looking forward to the Ted Lasso discussion!  We just watched the last episode of season 2 last night.  I don’t have a smart TV or a new enough “box” to add AppleTV+, so I just activated it on my Macbook and we watched from there.  If you are a Target Circle member, they have a special going on now where you can get 4 months of AppleTV free.

  16. 16.

    Abnormal Hiker

    For anyone in western Switzerland this afternoon, you can visit the Musée Baud in Sainte-Croix.  Unfortunately I was too late to the last thread, but I think this fits here too.

  18. 18.

    Baud

    @Abnormal Hiker:

    The three Baud brothers, Frédy, Robert, and Auguste, began collecting and restoring automatons in 1946

    I think “automaton” sounds much more sophisticated than “bot.”

  20. 20.

    Benw

    @WaterGirl: it’s a 7 day free trial. I signed up Wed or Thu last week to watch Ted Lasso with the fam, and we’re not gong to get through S1 before our first payment kicks it, but i’m not opposed to forking over $4.99 to Apple for a month to finish it. So far it is so good.

  21. 21.

    laura

    I binged season 2 of Ted Lasso friday night with my best friend and Wow- love Love LOVE it. Looking forward to the discussion next Sunday. He’s here, he’s there, he’s every fucking where….. Roy Kent!

  24. 24.

    Raven

    I decided to take Artie to Boolebark. There’s no parade on the street but we have 75 dogs in costume and folks are having a good time. We are sort of in competition with Porchfest, 100 bands playing on neighborhood porches.

  26. 26.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Baud: 

    I only have Prime, and that’s only because it’s included in Amazon’s Prime membership (although it’s a pretty nice service).

    Same here. My wife and I have never been big TV-watchers, so we’ve never bothered with anything else. And now TV’s just gotten too complicated and segmented. Is it on regular cable? (We don’t even bother with that.) Premium cable (HBO etc.)? Netflix? Amazon? Apple TV? Network TV? Something else?

    So we’ve pretty much said the hell with it. We’ve got movies on DVD and can check DVDs out from the library, and occasionally one of us will notice something available on Prime that we want to watch. And if we can’t get it that way, then nuts to it.

  27. 27.

    WaterGirl

    @Raven: That doesn’t sound like competition, it sounds like synchronicity to me.

    Are you taking pics this year?  Did your bride decide whether you want to have your pics in a post?

  34. 34.

    MomSense

    Anyone ever dread going to the grocery store?  I don’t even know why because once I get there it’s fine.

  38. 38.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Erik Solheim
    @ErikSolheim
    The Japanese ?? Puffer Fish is probably nature’s greatest artist ?

    To grab a female’s attention he creates something that defies belief ?

    Do yourself a favor and spend the 2 minutes and 17 seconds it will cost you to watch this.

  39. 39.

    debbie

    @germy:

    He made me nervous the way he was slopping the hot oil around to cook both sides of the fried object. No gentle spooning for him!

  41. 41.

    oatler

    I don’t have cable or streaming, so can we talk about mesothelioma ads? Or tardive diskenesia? Or Lume, the crotch-stank deodorant!

  42. 42.

    oatler

    I don’t have cable or streaming, so can we talk about mesothelioma ads? Or tardive diskenesia? Or Lume, the crotch-stank deodorant!

  44. 44.

    FelonyGovt

    Looking forward to the Ted Lasso discussion. I’ve watched it all, watched some of the episodes twice. It’s remarkable.

  46. 46.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Rick Scott
    @SenRickScott
    · 23h
    Joe Biden’s radical, socialist agenda is pushing America off a cliff. Yesterday’s job numbers prove it. Are we surprised? No. But every American should be furious.

    Travis Akers
    @travisakers
    The organization on his hat has free universal healthcare, free prescriptions, free college, tax-free housing allowance, subsidized food, and free social programs for families and spouses.

  47. 47.

    JoyceH

    I’ve had Netflix since before streaming, when it was all disks by mail. My only other streaming is Prime. I joined Prime for the free delivery – I order enough from Amazon to make that a sweet deal, and the streaming service is just icing on the cake. I’ve noticed lately that I watch a lot more Prime than Netflix. They have some great stuff. (I’ve learned to look for the little white triangle in the corner of the listing, indicating Free With Prime, because otherwise it will cost you money or send you to another pay service like BritBox.)

    Has anyone else seen Counterpart? Awesome cold-war espionage drama where the two sides are alternate universe Earths.

  48. 48.

    JoyceH

    @oatler: ​
     

    I don’t have cable or streaming, so can we talk about mesothelioma ads? Or tardive diskenesia? Or Lume, the crotch-stank deodorant!

    How about the ads for gambling apps? Those really skeeve me out. “My life was so boring, but now I gamble on my phone and everything is exciting!” Can’t help but think those apps are going to cause some real damage.

  49. 49.

    NotMax

    @JoyceH

    Agree that Counterpart was worth the time. Ditto for The City and the City.

    That last may still be on Prime but I believe only on the already included at no extra charge free-with-ads IMDb TV listings there.

  51. 51.

    JoyceH

    @NotMax: For some reason, I can’t watch those free with ads shows on my big TV. (It’s an older flat screen model, so maybe that’s why.) They’ll run on my laptop and my phone, but I really want to watch shows on the ‘big screen’.

  52. 52.

    NotMax

    @JoyceH

    I’ve learned to look for the little white triangle in the corner of the listing

    I refer to it as the Nabisco banner.

    :)

  53. 53.

    HumboldtBlue

    @Baud:

    I signed up for the free weekly trial on Friday and have watched season one. It’s very charming, it’s funny, but it’s rather overrated from some of the reaction I’ve read online. It’s very kind,  the humor isn’t raw or edgy, but clever and real and the show features some wonderful characters.

    You’ll recognize a lot of faces if you watch a lot of British TV, and it helps to have an inkling into the Premier League, but not necessary.

    It’s worth a watch simply for Sudeikis, his lead character is lovely, but that takes nothing away from other characters. It’s a bit pat at times, but the writing is very good and it’s a compelling watch. The show does a good job exploring emotions, particularly among the male characters, and the women are smartly written and acted.

    If you can’t love Keely, you can’t like life.

  55. 55.

    Baud

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Joe Biden’s radical, socialist agenda is pushing America off a cliff. Yesterday’s job numbers prove it.

    Wait till you see what happens when Congress actually passes it.

  58. 58.

    MagdaInBlack

    @MomSense: Every damn time, which is goofy because it’s 4 blocks away and I like the store

    It’s just too people-y out there. Ew, people ?

  62. 62.

    eddie blake

    @NotMax:  my mom’s an anglophile and a trekkie. i grew up saturated with arthurian mythos and the united federation of planets. she hadda huuuuge hard-on for mr. spock and richard burton.

  65. 65.

    scav

    Don’t have the free cash for the Green Knight, but I do have the Simon Armitage version so I’ll go old school and follow along.  Not really worried about spoilers, to be honest.

  66. 66.

    Benw

    If there’s one more missed field goal in this game, neither the Packers nor the Bengals should get a win!

  69. 69.

    narya

    Repost (FU auto incorrect): I got a year of Apple TV+ for free with my new phone–but my AppleTV box is too old to stream to that, and my TV is even older, so I’ve been watching on the laptop. I’ll eventually suck it up and get a new box, but I’m wondering if I can get another year free if I hold off. I just finished S1 of Ted, and I do love it. I also do Netflix, and I have extra cable so I can catch F1 and hockey, but I don’t do any of the other streaming services. And that’s about as much as I’m willing to pay for. There are a few things I would like–I very much liked The Expanse early seasons, as I’d read the books and I thought SyFy was doing a good job w/ it–but I just don’t want to sign up for more stuff.

    Feel free to delete the other one.

  74. 74.

    Another Scott

    @NotMax: We’ve watched YouTube things on our big TV by running a video cable from the TV to a Mac laptop video out.  HDMI on the TV makes it easy, then at the other end you just need the proper video connector for whatever laptop you’re using.  There are sometimes audio syncing issues (~ 1/2 second) but one can usually live with that (and it’s apparently adjustable on newer systems).

    We do it that way when our Chromecast won’t work (blue box error).  :-(

    HTH a little.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  79. 79.

    brendancalling

    The boy and I have been watching Squid Game. We just finished Lupin, and we’re also watching El Vecino, kind of an updated, actually funny, Spanish “Greatest American Hero.”

  80. 80.

    dmsilev

    @WaterGirl: Disney does that with new-release films on their streaming service (a $30 charge to unlock access right at release, rather than waiting a few months), but I don’t think any of the other services do anything similar.

    Apple does have a la carte purchases (through the iTunes Store) of movies and shows from other companies, but that’s distinct from the stuff on their streaming service like Ted Lasso.

  81. 81.

    Scout211

    I definitely have heard of Ted Lasso, but out here in the wilds there is no streaming.  When you either have satellite internet (which we used to have) or a wireless version (which we current have), you either don’t have enough in your monthly download allowance or your connection isn’t stable or fast enough to stream enough shows for the monthly cost to be worth it.

    I like reading about each commenter’s favorite shows, series, books, music or live performances but a whole thread on one show that many people can’t access?  Yeah, that doesn’t sound like my favorite Medium Cool, but I guess I’ll just tune in and see how it goes.  :)

  82. 82.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: Before the Great Recession he was an excellent, but run-of-the-mill, economist.  He used to blog about how we’d conquered recessions, “The Great Moderation”, etc.  But then the Financial Crisis caused him to take stock of himself and his profession, and his judgment was severe.  He began trying to understand why his profession was so singularly bad, and from this arose a new direction: economic history, and connecting it to modern conditions and events.

    I learned a ton from his blogging, just a ton.

  83. 83.

    Omnes Omnibus

    I have Netflix and Amazon Prime (with several additional cost channels).  I am not signing up for more.  Fuck ’em.

  84. 84.

    Ruckus

    @WaterGirl:

    I haven’t looked at Ted Lasso so I don’t know. I signed up to watch an Apple TV special and it was included at no extra cost for a while. Now it costs extra. Most everything I’ve looked at costs extra, the $4.99 is your access to the shows. If you click on Apple TV without an account – IOW not yet paying the $4.99 there are no prices shown for any show. If you sign up you click on most every show and it then tells you how much it costs. It’s likely that if you knew that you’d never sign up in the first place.

  86. 86.

    karen marie

    @WaterGirl:   I can’t even with the Apple stuff.  I looked at the site, and the “information” about how to watch on something other than an Apple device is completely obtuse and, as far as I can see, requires, if not Apple, some other very specific device that I ain’t got.

    My attitude is, Apple doesn’t want me to watch their stuff.  I’m shrugging in an “I don’t care if I don’t see it anyway” kind of way.

    I watch so little “TV,” it’s not worth my while to subscribe to four or five different streaming services.  And when I say “so little,” I’m talking about “when I think of it.”  I can go months without watching “TV.”  I cancelled Netflix and Hulu after paying them and not watching for three or four or more months.

  89. 89.

    WaterGirl

    @Ruckus: Yeah, it can really add up.  I imagine the trick is to maybe have one you always keep (for me that would be Netflix) and then when there’s a show you want on another streaming channel, don’t sign up until you’re ready to watch that particular show or shows, and then cancel it.

    Right now, it’s the worst of both worlds.  Cable is still charging for a whole set of things and if you want streaming that costs $ on top of cable.

  90. 90.

    RevRick

    Just got back from an Allentown Symphony Orchestra concert, featuring guest pianist, George Li. The program included Louise Farrenc’s Overture #1, Mendelssohn’s Symphony #4, and Brahms’ Piano Concerto #1.
    Li won the silver medal at the 2015 International Tchaikovsky competition.

  91. 91.

    mali muso

    @WaterGirl: I add the Starz monthly subscription on my Prime account every year for the 1-2 months it takes to watch the current season of Outlander.  Then I cancel.  Rinse, repeat. lol

  92. 92.

    RaflW

    (edit: screw it I deleted my boring political/twitter comment)

    On topic: Is anyone watching The Voice? It’s one of my few mass market TV pleasures. The blind auditions in particular. Tho Blake’s schtick is wearing on me this season.

  93. 93.

    Chetan Murthy

    @RaflW: *snicker* How many times it now, Big Media Matt’s had to cycle between “saying something pretty decent” and “saying something so objectionable, so beyond the pale, he’s gotta delete his tweets” ?  At least 4-5.

    I’ll ignore him until he bites the head off a live bat onstage.

  94. 94.

    Brachiator

    @WaterGirl:

    Apple TV+https://www.apple.com › apple-tv-plus
    A monthly subscription is just $4.99 per month after a free 7-day trial. Share Apple TV+ with your family. Try it free. Free 1‑month trial.

    I may check out The Green Knight, but will skip Ted Lasso.

    I am probably just lazy or stubborn, but I don’t have room for another streaming service. I don’t even take full advantage of the ones I have already. And I don’t have time to binge watch a show during a seven day free window.

  95. 95.

    RaflW

    @Chetan Murthy: To the ‘ignore him’ point I decided before seeing your reply to nuke my own comment. He really is worth ignoring. Talking about enjoyable media entertainments on a Sunday seems better, so I did a substitution comment.

  97. 97.

    Brachiator

    @debbie:

    Won’t it be out on DVD eventually?

    DVDs are probably a dying market. Might survive as a niche. But you will probably be able to buy digital downloads of some series.

  99. 99.

    trollhattan

    Ah, the life of the runner.

    Kid’s XC team went to a park in the East Bay hills to train–16 in two vans. While running the vans were broken into and all their things taken–16 backpacks with varying amounts of stuff including phones, laptops and evidently, at least one passport.

    Kid informs us of this while we were out of town, her inventory including phone, car keys, house and apartment keys, driver’s license, student ID, etc. and the scramble begins. Cancel phone with Verizon, start locksmith search for our front door, investigate replacing and recoding fancypants electronic car key, etc.

    Next morning we learn the coaches somehow tracked a lot of the loot stashed in a dumpster, via a phone signal, I think, including the kid’s backpack. Once she and it were reunited, everything was there except a pair of earbuds–ID, phone, keys. Whew! “Why didn’t they take it?” “I think it’s because I have so much trash they didn’t dig through it to find my stuff.”

    Lesson learned: carry more trash.

    The end.

  100. 100.

    RaflW

    @MomSense: “Anyone ever dread going to the grocery store?  I don’t even know why because once I get there it’s fine.”

    This is pretty much the weekly discussion in the household. I hate getting ready to shop. I hate making the list. I dread it all. Then I finally drag my butt to the coop, and it’s fine. 30 minutes (or less) and out for the week.

    Though I liked our early-pandemic routine that the Rev. Mr. RalfW (my spouse-like unit, not me) used to do the second weekly run to the ‘fancy’ mainstream store for the things the coop lacked, and some more fresh protiens and fruit.

    We added Blue Apron and that + coop has mostly been enough. And when it hasn’t, the Rev. mister has been so damn busy I do the supplementary shop as well. Same dumb samba: I don’t wanna! Yeah write the list for me. Oh, here I am and they have huge bags of Honeycrisps on sale. This is OK.

    LOL

    ps: I think we’re about done with Blue Apron. Pre-vax, it seemed more essential. I tolerated their mishaps better. And the mounting piles of silver bubble bags and ‘drain safe’ frezer gel weren’t weighing on me. I’ve X’d the nest three weeks and then will decide if I miss it.

  102. 102.

    Ruckus

    @WaterGirl:

    I’ve had Netflix for over a decade, I used to get only discs and watch them on my computer. I was gifted a flat screen a couple of years ago and watch Netflix on there or discs off my BlueRay player. As I said I had Apple TV and the quality is amazing but as I’m retired I really don’t have a lot of extra cash for more stuff. As you say everyone is trying to make massive bucks off every damn thing possible and TV is no exception.

  103. 103.

    Brachiator

    @Another Scott:

    Click on over – it’s a good read. DeLong loves bringing history into his discussions of economics and politics.

    Thanks very much for this link. I find it very provocative, even though I think he is totally wrong and deliberately misreads history.

  104. 104.

    CaseyL

    I have trouble these days mustering up enough interest in any new TV series to start watching. I have two streaming services (well, three if you include Peacock, which is mostly free) and all I watch are shows I already know and like.

    Feeling strangely listless and unmotivated in general, which maybe is a normal thing after a long-ish vacation out of state. I’m not excited about going back to work tomorrow, but maybe it’ll help to get me re-centered.

  116. 116.

    Brachiator

    @Another Scott:

    I have been hugely busy with work, continuing education and a couple of medical issues. I had pretty much become a lurker.

    Will continue to lurk, but hope to be able to jump into a few threads from time to time. I tremendously value the BJ community.

  125. 125.

    J R in WV

    @RevRick:

    This all sounds wonderful, BUT you had to sit in a crowd of strangers to hear it… Our local symphony is going to have a star pianist appear very soon now, and I’m just not going to sign up for seats with the plague still rampaging.

    Wife and I have all 3 shots, but she’s got a weak immune system.

    I love classical music, along with blues etc, but not yet at all !!!

  126. 126.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    @WaterGirl: Clare, the central character, starts off just after WWI. She was a nurse in the war and her husband has come home. She passes through the standing stones into Scotland in the mid-1700s. So most of the series takes place in that earlier timeframe.

    There’s good historical details. It’s essentially a romance.

  129. 129.

    Joy in FL

    I started watching Ted Lasso because of comments here and some random praise I saw on other sites. I love it. I don’t care about anything else on Apple TV, but it’s worth the subscription cost to watch just Ted Lasso.
    I’ll probably cancel Apple TV next month until Ted Season 3 arrives.
    I’m looking forward to both discussions. I haven’t seen The Green Knight, but I bought the streaming version so I can watch it.

  130. 130.

    laura

    @oatler: Well, not quite sure yet what all the hubbub was about, other than a couple of guys fled a freeway crash and climbed up over the unfinished sound wall and ended up on our street and the next street over. The K9 that searched our yard took a gigantic dump right off the back porch. Chet the weinie dog was/is furious at the affront and has spent most of the day smelling everything in the yard and peeing anywhere that interloper was. If there’s any info in the news or paper of record, I’ll do a follow up comment in an open thread. It took hours to wring out the adrenaline and cortisol and I’m dragging.

  131. 131.

    laura

    DAW @43: Well, not quite sure yet what all the hubbub was about, other than a couple of guys fled a freeway crash and climbed up over the unfinished sound wall and ended up on our street and the next street over. The K9 that searched our yard took a gigantic dump right off the back porch. Chet the weinie dog was/is furious at the affront and has spent most of the day smelling everything in the yard and peeing anywhere that interloper was. If there’s any info in the news or paper of record, I’ll do a follow up comment in an open thread. It took hours to wring out the adrenaline and cortisol and I’m dragging.

  134. 134.

    RevRick

    @J R in WV: 
    The venue required us to show proof of full immunization and required that we wear masks. But I can understand why you may be leery.

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