Ally J. Shivka 💖💜💙

I'm in absolute awe of that costume

Torgashev on the ice, he wears a black outfit with sparkles on his shirt, pants and at his wrist

Torgashev's outfit has these sparkle details that elevate what could have been a simple black outfit to something really fun and eye catching

What an all-timer of a halftime show

I can't believe we're back to crypto ads at the superbowl have we not suffered enough

My 'MELANIA' Experience Melania, 'MELANIA,' and Me

I wrote about 'MELANIA' johnpaulbrammer.substack.com/p/my-melania...

I don’t want to hear anything from an elected official unless it’s a plan to defund the DHS and impeach Noem, Bovino, etc. No texts. No emails. No talk about the economy. Step up or step off.

Memory is a fragile thing in this moment, so it is important to keep in mind that Hakeem Jeffries refused to whip his caucus against ICE funding earlier this week.

A yellow metal lunchbox with a groovy, flower power aesthetic around the outside, and illustrations of various character faces from Laugh-in

Day #199: Laugh-In (1968)

Split image: movie poster for "Morocco" with illustrated images of stars Gary Cooper and Marlene Dietrich on the left; on the right, a black-and-white film scene with Dietrich wearing a tuxedo seated on a rail before an audience.

Before the Hays Code slammed the door, Hollywood told bolder stories. Morocco (1930), now in the public domain, preserves a fleeting vision of a Hollywood before the hammer of the censor fell.

Learn why pre-Code films still matter ⤵️
blog.archive.org/2026/01/20/i...

This continues to get lost, but Miller is sinking massive resources into boosting the sheer numbers of deportations (to shift the ethnic mix of the country) at the expense of public safety.

This is empirically the case. It's almost never explained this way.

www.theunpopulist.net/p/stephen-mi...

If anyone is planning to visit Philly before September 6th, she has an exhibit titled Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design at the African-American Museum on 7th & Arch St!

I went on a late night research bender and this morning I couldn't remember why I had twenty tabs about medieval cheesemaking open

Renee Nicole Good’s queerness isn’t an aside—it’s a key part of her story | Xtra Magazine We can’t ignore the misogyny and homophobia baked into Good’s killing—and erasing her wife does just that

For my @xtramagazine.com column this month, I wrote about the simultaneous mainstream media erasure of Renee Good's queerness and the right wing amplification of it as a post hoc justification for her murder. xtramagazine.com/power/activi...

You’ve Heard About Who ICE Is Recruiting. The Truth Is Far Worse. I’m the Proof. What happens when you do minimal screening before hiring agents, arming them, and sending them into the streets? We're all finding out.

A few months ago, ICE hired me

I didn't sign and submit any paperwork. I almost certainly failed the drug test. I'm real outspoken about my opposition to the Trump administration, and I am extremely googlable

And yet, there it was, in plain English. "Welcome to ICE!"

My latest for Slate

On my way to the Supreme Court where I'll be proud to support 15-year-old Becky Pepper-Jackson, West Virginia's only transgender athlete, as she opposes the state's effort to ban her from playing as herself.

Win or lose, Becky and her family are heroes for standing up for what's right

January 6 is the birthday of Barry Lopez (1945-2020), a unique person & writer.

I wrote about Lopez, pottery, poetry, politics, queerness, and the suffering of the world in my little (open access) book ABOUT THAT LIFE from @punctumbooks.bsky.social:

punctumbooks.com/titles/about...

Russians won't represent their country at Winter Olympics even if Ukraine war ends, IOC chief says Russian athletes at the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics will not be able to represent their country even if a peace deal is reached with Ukraine, International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Covent...

Just yesterday, IOC president Kirsty Coventry said that Russian athletes can't compete under their flag in next month's Winter Olympics because their country invaded another country.

Sure will be interesting to see how these same guidelines will be applied in 2028

Sapphic Book Bingo 2026. Depicted are two bingo cards, one with 25 squares and the Hidden Gems card with 12 squares.

Happy New Year!

With the new year, the Sapphic Book Bingo 2026 has started!

Our year-long reading challenge is a fun way to find new favorite sapphic books & authors and win prizes.

Download a bingo card on my website & start reading:
jae-fiction.com/sapphic-book...

How Did Final Fantasy Turn Shiva Into a Literal Ice Queen? — Thrilling Tales of Old Video Games Why Hindu gods in video games might read differently than Greek, Norse or Egyptian ones.

Sometimes a stray comment from @shivambhatt.bsky.social gets you thinking "Wait, why is Final Fantasy's sexy female ice elemental named after a Hindu god?"

www.thrillingtalesofoldvideogames.com/blog/how-did...

It's the most wonderful time of the year–songs hitting the public domain that I can practice arranging

Original 1930 illustrated cover of The Little Engine That Could: a small blue steam engine pulls a curved train uphill through snowy mountains, hauling brightly colored red and yellow cars filled with toys and animals—including a giraffe, elephant, and teddy bear—under the bold title text “THE LITTLE ENGINE THAT COULD” at the top.

⏰ 12 HOURS TO GO 👀

When the new year begins, so does #PublicDomainDay2026.

At 12:00 a.m. ET, iconic books, films, and music move into the public domain—and we’ll be sharing highlights #here all night long.

🔔 Set your reminder ➡️ blog.archive.org/public-domai...

I went to Song Sung Blue on Christmas and it's been Neil Diamond hours here ever since

I actually haven’t heard of elf on a shelf you presumptuous bitch

Every year I try to listen to Last Christmas in December as much as possible. I call it Wham-bration.

Merriam-Webster’s human editors have chosen ‘slop’ as the 2025 Word of the Year.

NEW SHRIT https://dashare.zone I WILL NEVER PASTE WITH FORMATING ,DO NOT FORMAT MY PASTE!!!!!!! - dashare.zone ADMIN

NEW SHRIT dashare.zone I WILL NEVER PASTE WITH FORMATING ,DO NOT FORMAT MY PASTE!!!!!!! - dashare.zone ADMIN

..and also doesn't touch on the elements only a handful of adaptations get to (Martha Cratchit, the depiction of Ignorance and Want)

None of this makes Muppet Christmas Carol a lesser movie. To me, it is perfect! But it does grate my pedantic heart when people say it's the most accurate.

Let me preface this with: I love the Muppet Christmas Carol

But! It is incorrect to say it's the most book accurate adaptation! While it does directly quote the source, it entirely does away with Fran Scrooge which is a subplot that usually makes it to adaptations...

Just say its a soft reboot and get on with it

They pulled the "everyone thought Bond died but he's alive" several times in the franchise. They did it in the Craig era! Which was also a soft reboot that said "actually we're now at the start of his career even though in the film canon before he met Judi Dench's M in the middle of his career"