Month: April 2018

🎧 ‘The Daily’: Putin’s Grip on Russia | The New York Times

Listened to ‘The Daily’: Putin’s Grip on Russia by Michael Barbaro from nytimes.com

President Vladimir V. Putin has been elected to a fourth term, drawing support from more than three-quarters of voters. How is the most powerful man in Russia staying that way?



On today’s episode:
• Steven Lee Myers, a former Moscow bureau chief of The New York Times who covered Vladimir V. Putin’s rise to power and who is the author of “The New Tsar: The Rise and Reign of Vladimir Putin.”

Background reading:
• The long-serving Russian leader has become a model for the modern autocrat.
• Russian voters gave Mr. Putin their resounding approval for a fourth term on Sunday.
A great, but brief overview of Vladimir Putin and his backstory leading up to his present position.

🎧 This Week in Google 450 I Just Swallowed a Pollywog | TWiT.TV

Listened to This Week in Google 450 I Just Swallowed a Pollywog by Leo Laporte, Stacey Higginbotham, Mike Elgan from TWiT.tv
Oracle vs Google, Google vs Apple

Google owes Oracle $8.8 Billion Dollars. Apple and Google fight over the classroom. Should everyone stop using Facebook? Should everybody stop using Twitter? Should everybody start using Google Plus?
  • Stacey's Thing: Nest Hello Doorbell and Nest X Yale Lock
  • Mike's Stuff: Lenovo Mirage Camera with Daydream
  • Jeff's Number in Absentia: 5.5 GB


📺 “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Thank You and Good Night | Amazon Prime

Watched "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" Thank You and Good Night (Season 1, Episode 8) from Amazon Prime
Directed by Amy Sherman-Palladino. With Rachel Brosnahan, Alex Borstein, Michael Zegen, Marin Hinkle.
In the Season One finale, Midge and Susie deal with the repercussions of Midge's off-script takedown of a famous comedian. With tensions still high at the Weissman household, Rose makes some bold changes. Midge and Joel reunite for Ethan's birthday party.
Moments after pledging his undying love Joel gets the worst gut-punch. There’s something redeeming enough in this last episode that I may be won over to watch into an ensuing season. I may be able to overlook the blurring of the characters by Ms. Palladino and their single-voiced witty repartee which makes them nearly indistinguishable in broad swaths of the series (or even from Gilmore Girls in an entirely different setting decades hence).

📺 “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Put That on Your Plate! | Amazon Prime

Watched "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" Put That on Your Plate! (Season 1, Episode 7) from Amazon Prime
Directed by Daniel Palladino. With Rachel Brosnahan, Alex Borstein, Michael Zegen, Marin Hinkle.
With Susie's help, Midge hones her act at the Gaslight. Abe surprises the women with a dinner guest, sending Rose into an emotional spiral. Working towards a promotion, Joel conjures up a new plan. Midge stirs up controversy after meeting a big-time comedian.
Not sure that I buy Midge totally blowing her chance to get an opening gig unless she completely didn’t know what the stakes were. She’s too smart and really not nearly edgy enough to blow the shot the way she did. Too much of this feels like plot for plot’s sake and deus-ex-machina instead of real characters unfolding.

Palladino’s characters just never feel true to themselves but bend too far to the will of the writer who makes them all the same.

📺 “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Mrs. X at the Gaslight | Amazon Prime

Watched "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" Mrs. X at the Gaslight (Season 1, Episode 6) from Amazon Prime
Directed by Scott Ellis. With Rachel Brosnahan, Alex Borstein, Michael Zegen, Marin Hinkle.
Midge finds a different kind of audience to perform for, much to Susie's chagrin. Abe gets offered the experience of a lifetime. The Weissmans come together for a family dinner. Susie finally shows off her management skills.
Playing gigs at friends’ parties?? I also don’t think I buy that the whole family gets up and walks out of a restaurant.