CanadianPhil

"people who don't know anything"

YouTube video by Hal Leonard Choral Merrily We Roll Along (SATB Choir) - Arranged by Jason Robert Brown

I don't know what choral director hears the title song from Merrily We Roll Along and thinks "my choir has to sing this!" but I'm kind of obsessed with this arrangement by Jason Robert Brown.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulQv...

It starts with knowing the truth. Don’t allow yourselves to be gaslit into believing this is a real question.

Can reconfirm.

100-125

New things I get to watch this weekend include i) GP Final in figure skating, ii) the 3rd episode of Heated Rivalry, and iii) the filmed version of Merrily We Roll Along with Jonathan Groff and Daniel Radcliffe. I have rarely felt so well and truly served.

DEBUT Ellie visits her comatose mother every weekend. That is not enough for her older sister, Chris, who reminds Ellie constantly she will never live up to Chris's own filial piety, which seems to include using random people to harangue Ellie and repeated assassination attempts. When Chris sends Ellie into the skunkworks-the physics-defying apparatus that creates and maintains universes—for a minor issue, it turns into a cascade of discovered problems, which include her cousin Daniel finding a device that is keeping Ellie's mother alive but creating destabilizing errors that jeopardize the universe. As Ellie and Daniel investigate the source of the illicit device, they find that their family's past is much more convoluted than known, and Ellie may need to choose between saving her family or the universe itself. Intricate worldbuilding, generational trauma, and reports relayed as food are woven into a story that has great action and engaging characters. VERDICT Chu finds a delightful and poignant intersection between the multiverse, family dysfunction, and dim sum in his debut novel. Reviewed by Kristi Chadwick, Dec 01, 2025

(Repost with screenshot)
The Subtle Art of Folding Space got a starred review from Library Journal!
"Chu finds a delightful and poignant intersection between the multiverse, family dysfunction, and dim sum in his debut novel."

So excited for this, and for John!

Today is World AIDS Day

The disease has killed 44 million people

The State Department:

“The US Government will not be commemorating World AIDS Day this year.”

It’s disrespectful to everyone who lost their life. Everyone who lost a friend, partner or loved one. Everyone currently living with HIV.

Tomorrow is #GivingTuesday, the global day of giving.

Your donation is eligible for a 2:1 match from the Kitchen Table Society and will PHA’s vital programs, including over 150 support groups, 107 accredited PH Care Centers and a 24/7 patient-to-patient support line.

Donate now: buff.ly/WzBRvWH

The annual “will they all fit on the tree” challenge begins. This isn’t even everything.

a green cartoon character with a blue background ALT: a green cartoon character with a blue background

The older I get the more I understand why the grinch wanted to stay home with his dog.

Browsing museums, galleries, libraries, bookstores have been some of the best hours of my life, but yes, its not instant gratification and its designed to take time

For me, it’s a two-way tie between Stoppard’s Arcadia and Tony Kushner’s Angels in America.

I don't think there is a digital replacement for this experience.

The death of browsing is part of the reason art is the way it is now. Our opinions are largely fed to us by algorithms. Spending a spare 15 minutes wandering around a bookstore or comic shop or video rental place was how you found stuff you wouldn't ordinarily pick up and thereby expanded your taste

This is a huge problem for anyone with chronic illness. Do I buy tickets for a holiday concert? But I don’t know how I’ll feel that day. But if I don’t buy tickets in advance, all the good seats will be gone. Never mind whether or not to book a vacation (when not booking means not going away.) 😬

Barbara Cook It's Better with a Band recorded live in concert album cover

Honestly, one of the greatest live albums I've ever heard.

My recs: The two Xmas albums from the Mormon acapella group Eclipse are extraordinary, even for an atheist like me, and I believe everyone should own the Ella Fitzgerald, Rosemary Clooney, and Lena Horne holiday albums. (Yes, I am old school.)

Argh. Just got a call. The doctor who is my favorite of all the specialists I see is moving to another state at the end of the year to be closer to family so I’m going to have to switch to someone else. People without #chronicillness don’t get how distressing this is.

At the end of the day, don’t we all just want a bookshelf with a rolling ladder?

YouTube video by HBO Max Heated Rivalry | Official Trailer | HBO Max

Good news for U.S.-based romance fans: Crave's TV adaptation of Rachel Reid's Heated Rivalry is coming to HBO Max at the end of the month!

Keep Books with Pictures Alive: Donate Now, organized by Katie Pryde Dear friends: I need your help. I’m proud of everything Books with Pictures… Katie Pryde needs your support for Keep Books with Pictures Alive: Donate Now

It's been said by many already, but I will say it again: @bkswpicspdx.bsky.social is not just a store, it's a community and an inspiration and some of the best people you'll ever meet. And right now, they need our help:
www.gofundme.com/f/keep-books...

On a webinar, a former CDC scientist just described the new HHS #MAHA approach as a switch from evidence-based decision-making to "decision-based evidence-making." #science #health #publichealth

Someone asked me yesterday why I was talking so much about diabetes. I said, "Because today is World Diabetes Day, because I have it, because someone you know has it, and because someday YOU might have it. Any other questions?"

Black text on a yellow background - This is Alice's friend Sandy Ho, posting. Per Alice's wishes, this message is being shared at the time of her passing. Hi everyone, it looks like I ran out of time. I have so many dreams that I wanted to fulfill and plans to create new stories for you. There are a few in progress that might come to fruition in a few years if things work out. I did not ever imagine I would live to this age and end up a writer, editor, activist, and more. As a kid riddled with insecurity and internalized ableism, I could not see a path forward. It was thanks to friendships and some great teachers who believed in me that I was able to fight my way out of miserable situations into a place where I finally felt comfortable in my skin. We need more stories about us and our culture. You all, we all, deserve the everything and more in such a hostile, ableist environment. Our wisdom is incisive and unflinching. I'm honored to be your ancestor and believe disabled oracles like us will light the way to the future. Don't let the bastards grind you down. I love you all.

“Don’t let the bastards grind you down. I love you all.”

COVID Isn’t Going Anywhere. Masking Up Could Save My Life. "When I am in public spaces and see most people unmasked, I feel like an expendable burden not worth saving."

Respect Alice Wong’s call here:
“When I am in public spaces and see most people unmasked either because they think the virus is a hoax, that masking is virtue signaling & a sign of weakness, aren't thinking about it, or that they simply don’t care, I feel like an expendable burden not worth saving.”

Hard agree. Des has frequently commented that she’d be down for a competition in which everyone just skates in black tights rather than their costumes so people could actually see their body lines and focus on skating and musicality.

I’m sure I saw Kurt Browning in practice sessions making up footwork to other guys’ music while it was playing…and both his footwork and musicality were almost always better than theirs!

Insulin Rationing Persists Despite Policy Changes, Study Shows Yale researchers have found that despite new policies addressing insulin costs, the proportion of patients who ration insulin due to cost remains unchanged.

A reminder this #WorldDiabetesDay that insulin rationing is still very much a problem in the United States, despite recent policy changes and PR moves by pharmaceutical companies. One in four patients in the U.S. still ration insulin.