Rec. #553: Visages Villages (Faces Places)

What: In this charming and surprisingly moving documentary, legendary New Wave director Agnès Varda and muralist JR travel through rural France creating massive portraits of the people they meet. JR teases Varda about her experience photographing naked men, and Varda urges JR to get over himself and remove his ever-present hat and glasses.

It is an hour and a half of pure delight.

How to get it: Visages Villages (Faces Place) is currently streaming on Netflix.

Rec. #552: Kodachrome Snapshots

What: "Colourful Lives: Salvaged Snapshots from the Kodachrome Era" is a Guardian photo gallery highlighting some selections from The Anonymous Project.

Families, friends, bodybuilders --- this collection's got it all.

How to get it: The Guardian published this gallery last October.

Connections to previous Wreckage: Other photo galleries from The Guardian include "Holi 2018" (Rec. #467), "Gun Violence Protests Around the World" (Rec. #486), "Amazing Mini Animals" (Rec. #495), "Pantone Project" (Rec. #516), China's bicycle graveyards (Rec. #531), and "ABBA Unseen" (Rec. #536).

Rec. #551: How to Spring Clean Your Digital Clutter to Protect Yourself

What: This compact article from Wired goes beyond the most obvious to cover outdated devices, email purging, and defunct accounts.

Representative quote: "The point isn't to part with data that is personally meaningful or useful. The goal is to pare down what you have so if your data is ever compromised hackers aren't getting copies of your friend's son's leg x-rays—complete with name, birthday, and social security number—for no reason."

How to get it: "How to Spring Clean Your Digital Clutter to Protect Yourself" appeared in Wired last May.

Rec. #550: Revisiting Quote from a Fictional Character #8

[Originally posted October 28, 2013.]

"True, I have started noting down the odd things people say. But contact with the actual creatures themselves I keep to a minimum."

--- Miss Shepherd,

The Lady in the Van, by Alan Bennett, 1989

Also by Alan Bennett: The Clothes They Stood Up In (Rec. #169), The History Boys (Rec. #115), and The Uncommon Reader (Rec. #260).

Rec. #549: Revisiting Quote from a Fictional Character #16

[Originally posted January 20, 2014.]

"Well, this is the most depressing hallucination I ever had."

--- Harper Pitt,

Angels in America, 2003

[play by Tony Kushner, 1993]

Rec. #548: Revisiting Quote from a Fictional Character #41

[Originally posted August 4, 2014.]

"It is true she liked him most when he wasn't there, but then she usually liked everybody most when they weren't there."

--- [about] Lady Caroline Dester,

The Enchanted April, Elizabeth von Arnim, 1922

(Rec. #113)

Rec. #547: Blanket Burrito After a Bath

Last day of Cute Week. Big goddamn finish.

What: This is my dog, Oona. I gave her a bath. Then she took a nap in a cozy blanket burrito.

Rec. #546: Snoring Hummingbird

Yup. Still Cute Week

What: There is a hummingbird, and it is snoring. Will you find yourself making this your ringtone? Will you accidentally watch this clip twelve times in a row? I don't know! Maybe!

Transcript for your convenience:
"A scientist in Peru [pause for peep] captured this, escaping from the tiny body [pause for peep] of a sleeping hummingbird. [pause for peep] A high-pitched [pause for peep] but unmistakable snore. [pause for peep] Hummingbirds are loved for their beauty and speed [pause for peep] but this one was behaving a little bit like a human. [pause for peep] The perfect cute-response trigger."

Source: This is a clip from the aptly named BBC One program Super Cute Animals.

Rec. #545: Letter Grades for Foxes

Still Cute Week, yes, of course, but also now a midweek treat of additional humorous commentary.

 

 
What: Twitter user Colin J. Carlson laid out 16 definitive fox ratings this past November. The whole thread is glorious.


Representative commentary:

"always look kinda sleepy which i do respect"

"what is this shit. some kind of long dog. some kind of dog ferret"

"i've never seen game of thrones but when i look at this fox i feel an emotion that i think is wanting to watch game of thrones"


Source note: Colin J. Carlson, an alarmingly young bio postdoc, passed the "not an obvious monster" test (see Rec. #517 for first reference to the test).

Rec. #544: Three Dog GIFs

Still doing this Cute Week thing, goddammit.

Source: Posted by Dogs of Instagram (@Insta_dogs), November 2017.

Source: The wilds of Tumblr ... I don't know the original source. I'm sorry. 

Source: Posted by Ranger (@ranger_thegshepherd), January 2018. The original Instagram post has very important audio.

Rec. #543: Bears Playing with a Balloon

OK, that's it. We are having a goddamn Cute Week.

What: It's a short video of three bears playing with a pink balloon. A longer version, with commentary, is available here.

Provenance: It seems to have originated from Xaviera Simons via Facebook in March 2016.

Rec. #542: Revisiting Quote from a Fictional Character #42

[Originally posted August 11, 2014.]

"You see, you don't know very much about girls. The best ones aren't as good as you probably think they are and the bad ones aren't as bad. Not nearly as bad."

--- Jean Harrington,

The Lady Eve, 1941

(Rec. #129)

Rec. #541: Revisiting Quote from a Fictional Character #72

[Originally posted July 20, 2015.]

"I just need to pay the mortgage. [The Yuppie Nuremberg defense.]"

--- Nick Naylor,

Thank You for Smoking, 2005

(book: Rec. #87)

Rec. #540: French Museum Discovers More Than Half Its Collection Is Forged

What: A recent All Things Considered gave us this story of a museum overrun with fakes, which I'm sure will (and should!) be turned into a movie at some point. It is fascinating.

Representative quote: "Forcada, the art historian who first sounded the alarm, noticed buildings that appear in some of the paintings didn't actually exist in Terrus' time."

How to get it: Listen to the episode or read the article at NPR here. 

Rec. #539: Not a Wolf

What: The Twitter profile says it all: "COFFEE LOVER.GRAPHIC DESIGNER. DEFINITELY NOT A WOLF PRETENDING TO BE A MAN."

Enjoy!

Representative tweets:
"START YOUR WEEKEND OFF RIGHT BY SPRINTING INTO THE WOODS WITH NO INTENTION OF RETURNING"

"CAPITALISM KEEPS YOU IN CONSTANT COMPETITION WITH YOUR PEERS TO KEEP YOU FROM THINKING ABOUT WHAT YOUR BOSSES BONES TASTE LIKE"

"PERHAPS WHOEVER BIT BEYONCE WAS JUST EXCITED I MEAN WHO AMONG US HAS NOT BITTEN SOMEONE"

How to get it: Not a Wolf's Twitter handle is @SICKOFWOLVES

Rec. #538: New York (St. Vincent)

What: Manhattan, you've just had some seriously surrealistic weather. Here's a surrealistic video for you, with St. Vincent's "New York."

If I had a nit to pick, I'd say the video isn't quite a tonal match for the song, but I do like them both.

Representative lyrics:
And if I called you from First Avenue
Well, you're the only motherfucker in the city
who can handle me

Bonus: A swan almost makes a severe Annie Clark smile around 2:10.

Rec. #537: The Story Behind How Brooklyn Nine-Nine Was Canceled and Renewed in 31 Hours

What: At the end of last week, the whirlwind news cycle blew through with a quickly developing, dramatic story that angered, upset, and depressed many people.

For once, though, it wasn't about our crumbling democracy!! And it had a happy ending.

The delightful, inclusive Brooklyn Nine-Nine lives on, and Vulture's E. Alex Jung got the inside scoop on how it happened.

Connections to previous Wreckage: Brooklyn Nine-Nine was part of List #37, List #63, and Weekly Wreck of the Web #5.


[Bonus: This article is also now consistent about its usage of "canceled" vs "cancelled" (which it really wasn't before). FWIW, "canceled" is American and "cancelled" is British.]

Rec. #536: ABBA Unseen -- in pictures

What: Eurovision was this past weekend. How better to honor it than by strolling through some archives on ABBA, arguably the biggest Eurovision act of all time?

"ABBA Unseen" includes highlights from a recently closed London exhibition that featured photographs, costumes, memorabilia, and behind-the-scenes anecdotes.

Representative quote: "One of ABBA’s only touring indulgences was a tour doctor ... He was treated in the same generous way as the rest of the crew, such as the band not starting aftershow dinners until everyone, including stage-riggers and roadies, was ready."

How to get it: This photo series appeared in The Guardian last December.

Rec. #535: Revisiting Quote from a Fictional Character #11

[Originally posted November 25, 2013.]

"Anyhow, I shall be able to give up going to parties and things. I'll go to parties or have a baby, but I won't do both."

--- Denham Dobie,

on the silver lining of her pregnancy,

Crewe Train, by Rose Macaulay, 1926

(Rec. #84)

(See also Quote for These Times #7)

Rec. #534: Revisiting Quote from a Fictional Character #50

[Originally posted October 13, 2014.]

"Take a step forward. And another one. And another. Right leg up. Higher. What's the matter -- don't you trust me?"

--- Marina,

Me Without You, 2001

[first lines]

(Rec. #143)

(List #18: Ten Movies That Pass the Bechdel/Wallace Test)

Rec. #533: Quote from a Fictional Character #98

"Sometimes I think the lookers-on have the best of it, and to get the full savour out of life one should take firmly to the sofa early in youth and stay there, like Jane Austen."

--- Henrietta,

Henrietta's War, Joyce Dennys, 1939

(Rec. #344)

(Quote for These Times #1)

Rec. #532: Endless Screaming on Twitter

What: Endless Screaming (@infinite_scream) is absolutely the most retweetable account on Twitter.

Representative tweet: "AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH"

Rec. #531: The Unexpected Beauty of China's Bicycle Graveyards

What: The Guardian presents this series of photographs showing some of the millions of dockless share bikes in abandoned and collected in cities across China. Beautiful, mesmerizing, and vaguely depressing.

Rec. #530: All the Umbrellas in London

What: "All the Umbrellas in London" is a very Magnetic Fields-y song from The Magnetic Fields. You've got wry, bitter lyrics wrapped around a ponderous, synthy melody, all drenched in a kind of bittersweet melancholy. Yes, please.

Representative lyrics:
All the umbrellas in London couldn't stop this rain
And all the dope in New York couldn't kill this pain
And all the money in Tokyo couldn't make me stay

How to get it: The song is from the 1995 album Get Lost.

Connections to previous Wreckage: For generally peppier output from Stephin Merritt et al., see Rec. #299: Love at the Bottom of the Sea.

Rec. #529: Uncomfortable Art Tours

What: Alice Proctor runs gallery tours (in the UK) that highlight the silent, problematic framework propping up a great deal of the art. Her "Uncomfortable Art Tours" focus on colonialism and the ongoing influence of genocide and empire on how museums handle collections.

Seems like very necessary context to have.

How to get it: If you're not in the UK, you can still check out Proctor's website, follow her on Twitter, and read a Guardian feature about the tours.

Rec. #528: Revisiting Quote from a Fictional Character #56

[Originally posted January 12, 2015.]

"Actually, depravity can be terribly boring if you don't smoke or drink."

--- Gabrielle Simpson,

Paris When It Sizzles, 1964

(See also List #41: Audrey Hepburn Runs Around Paris)

Rec. #527: Revisiting Quote from a Fictional Character #87

[Originally posted April 19, 2016.]

"Surely there must be some compensation in the next world for the loneliness in this one. I've lived as long as the century, and I can count on one hand the years I've been loved."

--- Frederick Ashton (fictionalized),

"A Midsummer Night's Dream," White Swan, Black Swan: Stories,

Adrienne Sharp, 2001

(Rec. #53)

Rec. #526: The Women Running in the Midterms During the Trump Era

What: Let's close out this week on a relatively hopeful note. The New Yorker recently took a glance across the landscape of 2018 female candidates for House, Senate, and gubernatorial races.

You get a smallish selection of individual profiles, but more intriguing are density/party affiliation maps. They're interactive -- check you out, New Yorker.

How to get it: The New Yorker published "The Women Running in the Midterms During the Trump Era" online on April 18. 

Rec. #525: The Car Chase in What's Up, Doc?

What: Broadly speaking, I find action sequences almost mind-numbingly boring. (My brain goes, "But ... nothing is *happening.* No one is talking.")

What's Up, Doc? -- a screwball comedy throwback from 1972 -- features an exquisite car chase sequence that even I adore. It includes: a cab, a large pane of glass, treacherous San Francisco hills, several stolen vehicles, grocery-delivery bystanders, costumes, and a Chinese dragon.

How to get it: See this clip from the Warner Archive for the beginning of the chase sequence, but be aware the clip ends before the Chinese dragon and certainly before the Big Wet Finish. You really should just watch the whole movie.

Connection to previous Wreckage: What's Up, Doc? (Rec. #38) was also part of List #42: In Praise of the American Screwball Comedy.

Rec. #524: Giant Days

What: Giant Days is an ongoing comic series that follows Esther De Groot, Susan Ptolemy, and Daisy Wooton through their time at university. It began as an offshoot of John Allison's Scary Go Round-verse, but you need no prior familiarity to jump in head first.

Opening character descriptions:
"Home-schooled and naive, Daisy Wooton is 50% hair and 100% not ready for this mean old world."

"Esther De Groot is pale and interesting. Maybe too interesting. Her high school sweetheart lasted eleven days into her university career."

"I, Susan Ptolemy, am a human common sense silo. Without me, they'd probably both be dead, in jail, or dead and in jail."

Connections to previous Wreckage: Allison is also the creator of Bad Machinery (Rec. #138).

How to get it: You can grab the individual issues as they appear (issue #38 today!), but I personally like getting the collected editions (we're up to Vol. 7).

Rec. #523: Sorry You're Sick

 

What: Ted Hawkins brings all of his blues-rasp to bear on this song about comfort and doing what you can. (It would be kind of nice to have someone around to offer to go to the store for me when I'm sick. Something sour, please.)

Representative lyrics:
I'd swim the ocean or the deepest canal
to get to you darling just to make you well.
There's no place on Earth that I wouldn't hasten to go
to cool the fever; this I want you to know.

How to get it: "Sorry You're Sick" is on the album Watch Your Step.