Pop Culture

Sir Terry Pratchett Reaches the End of Cake

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Sir Terry PratchettI almost never write about celebrity deaths, but this is one that has me genuinely heartbroken. Sir Terry Pratchett, one of my all-time favorite authors, has passed at the age of 66. Much too soon.

The headlines, presumably written by those who don’t really know his work, call him a fantasy author. While it’s true, it only scratches the surface. Pratchett wasn’t just a fantasy author, he was a brilliant satirist and humorist. His Discworld novels were at times laugh-out-loud funny, while telling engaging stores about a rotating cast of beloved characters. They poked fun at some of the crazier things in our society. They had heart.

The joy of satire is it allows us to laugh at some of the things that might otherwise make us cry. Pratchett’s stories not only pointed out, humorously, the bad things but also the good things. He helped his readers appreciate their health, their family, their friends.

I’m feeling particularly ineloquent right now, so I’ll end this with a quote. RIP, good Sir.

THERE IS NO MORE TIME, EVEN FOR CAKE. FOR YOU, THE CAKE IS OVER. YOU HAVE REACHED THE END OF CAKE.

-Death, in Night Watch (Death speaks in ALL CAPS, always.)

Meet the new pope, same as the old pope

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As you’ve no doubt already heard, the Catholic Church has elected a new pope, the former Cardinal Bergoglio of Argentina. He’s taken the name Francis, which is apparently a big deal to those who pay attention to papal names.

What will be different? It seems like this guy has been focused a lot on the poor, and eschews many of the trappings and perks of his office (unlike the last guy, for sure). So that’s different. And the world would probably benefit if the Church really put a top-down priority on helping the poor for a change.

But in other areas? Well, not much good news there. He takes the same old very conservative stances on homosexuality and contraception. He has spoken out against gay adoption and same-sex marriage, calling the later “a real and dire anthropological throwback”, which oddly enough is how I would describe the Catholic Church.

Celebrity Apprentice…Again

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Ugh, I got sucked into “Celebrity Apprentice” last season, and I am still stuck on it. This shames me a bit.

So as I type this, the season premiere is on now. There are a fair number of contestants what made me go “Who?” They’re all pretty irrelevant. I haven’t decided who I want to win yet, but I have a couple I’d like to see gone right now.

First, Adam Corolla. I could probably rant on about why I don’t like him, but it basically comes down to him being a major prick. Next, Victoria Gotti. I don’t think being a member of a an organized crime family qualifies you as being a celebrity. Also holy shit is she scary looking! This early on, there’s no one else on my must go list, but as I start to see what some of these peoples’ personalities I’ll add to it I’m sure.

Other random thought: Clay Aiken looks terrible.

Let the games begin!