Monthly Archive:: December 2019
Dec 31 2019
Keep Warm This Winter with Reusable Heat Packs
January tends to be the coldest month in Minneapolis, especially with the delightful polar vortexes that have been dipping down into Minnesota in recent years. Chemical heat pads and electric blankets are both helpful for retaining all your fingers and toes when the temperature drops well below zero,…
Dec 30 2019
Office Ladies Is an Insider Retrospective on a Comedy Favorite
A new wave of fans of The Office has crashed upon us: the show is being rediscovered by a younger generation, and that’s impressive. It somehow captured lighting in a bottle with its simple concept of a mockumentary following the daily lives of a paper company, and six years after the series finale,…
Dec 29 2019
This Week in Geek (12/30/19–1/5/20)
Welcome to This Week in Geek, your guide to events of interest to the Minnesota geek community for the week of Monday, December 30, to Sunday, January 5.
Winter Break Camps
What: Family, Educational, Science & Technology
When: Monday, December 23, through Friday, January 3
Where: The Works Museum…
Dec 25 2019
5 Anime Series I’m Excited to See in 2020
As the end of the year (and of the 2010s) approaches, many people are looking back on all their accomplishments and welcoming the new year with open arms. While that’s all well and good, what I plan on doing is looking forward to all the new anime releases that will ring in 2020! Whether they’re…
Dec 25 2019
30 Romance Authors of Color You Should Be Reading
In no particular order. For no particular reason.
1. Beverly Jenkins
A grandmaster in her field and everyone’s first suggestion, Ms. Bev has written a whole bunch of historical romances featuring Black protagonists, and she’s the immediate go-to to counter the idea that you can’t…
Dec 24 2019
Minnesota Researchers Develop Shape-Changing Textiles Powered by Body Heat
In what can only be described as a fashionable discovery (that’ll be the only pun, I promise), new research out of the University of Minnesota is aiming to change the way we think about clothing.In partnership with NASA, researchers from the U of M have developed a new temperature-responsive…
Dec 23 2019
Cats Is a Fever Dream of Catnip-Fueled Bizarreness
Few films have left me at such a loss for words as Cats. The very premise of the musical is strange enough: cats dance and sing for the chance to ascend into a better life. But then add in the special effects of transforming a human cast into cat-like creatures and the film is already a strange mess of visuals…
Dec 23 2019
Twin Cities Shops Focus on Building in-Person Community
We’re almost at the end of the gift-buying season that began with the holiest of days for the holiday shopper, Black Friday. Millions of Americans have been storming retailers looking for deals on TVs or the hottest video games, toys, and games in search of the perfect gift for that special someone…
Dec 23 2019
Greta Gerwig’s Little Women Is a Modern Spin on a Classic
Nostalgia is a very effective marketing tool. Speaking as a millennial, nothing gets me more excited than something from my childhood being brought back or remade, if only for that initial rush of momentarily feeling like a kid again. When I sat down to watch Greta Gerwig’s Little Women, there were plenty…
Dec 22 2019
Spend Christmas with the Dark Knight in Batman: Noël
Around this time of year, I find myself revisiting holiday favorites. The Nightmare before Christmas and How the Grinch Stole Christmas are common films in my household, but as a comic-book fan and contributor, there is one graphic novel that this reviewer finds himself reading every holiday season.…