Visual Arts 2017

What’s this, an update to a blog?! Why yes, I’m going to rewind things 15 years and try to post something occasionally here, even if it’s only updates to this one entry. Mainly to give myself a routine, something constant for 2017, a year of change.

I really like that Steven Soderbergh keeps track of everything he’s watched or read throughout the year, so I’d like to do the same for 2017. I’ll copy his convention, which is as follows:

All caps, bold: MOVIE

All caps: TV SERIES

Italics: Book

Quotes: “Game”

1/3 – TONY ROBBINS: I’M NOT YOUR GURU
1/5 – SULLY
1/9 – BLACK MIRROR S03E02 (Playtest), DEADWOOD S03E09 (Amateur Night), DEADWOOD S03E10 (A Constant Throb)
1/10 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S07E02 (Vehicular Fellatio)
1/11 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S07E03 (The Reunion)
1/13 – BLACK MIRROR S03E03 (Shut Up and Dance)
1/15 – BLACK MIRROR S03E04 (San Junipero)
1/16 – DEADWOOD S03E11 (The Catbird Seat), DEADWOOD S03E12 (Tell Him Something Pretty)
1/17 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S07E04 (The Hot Towel)
1/18 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S07E05 (Denise Handicap)
1/19 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S07E06 (The Bare Midriff)
1/21 – DEEPWATER HORIZON
1/22 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S07E07 (The Black Swan)
1/23 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S07E08 (Officer Krupke), CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S07E09 (The Table Read)
1/24 – SUPERMARKET SWEEP
1/25 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S07E10 (Seinfeld)
1/26 – The Frozen Dead
1/28 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S08E01 (The Divorce)
1/30 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S08E02 (The Safe House), CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S08E03 (Palestinian Chicken)
2/2 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S08E04 (The Smiley Face)
2/10 – The Book of Fate
2/13 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S08E05 (Vow of Silence), FOXCATCHER
2/13 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S08E06 (The Hero)
2/15 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S08E07 (The Bi-Sexual)
2/16 – NARCOS S02E08 (Exit El Patrón)
2/18 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S01E01 (The Pants Tent), CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S01E02 (Ted & Mary), LAST WEEK TONIGHT, “Metal Gear Solid: The Phantom Pain”
2/19 – STATE OF THE UNION
2/20 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S08E08 (Car Periscope)
2/26 – CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM S08E09 (Mister Softie), CURB YOUR ENTHUSIAM S08E10 (Larry vs. Michael J. Fox)
2/28 – BILL BURR: LET IT GO
3/2 – WESTWORLD S01E01 (The Original); WESTWORLD S01E02 (Chestnut)
3/3 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S01E01
3/4 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S01E02
3/5 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S01E03
3/6 – NARCOS S02E09 (Nuestra Finca), NARCOS S02E10 (Al Fin Cayó!)
3/9 – BLACK MIRROR S03E05 (Men Against Fire)
3/10 – WESTWORLD S01E03 (The Stray); WESTWORLD S01E04 (Dissonance Theory)
3/16 – WESTWORLD S01E05 (Contrapasso); WESTWORLD S01E06 (The Adversary)
3/18 – BLACK HAWK DOWN
3/20 – SNOWDEN
3/22 – WESTWORLD S01E07 (Trompe D’Oeil); WESTWORLD S01E08 (Trace Decay)
3/26 – BACK TO THE FUTURE
3/27 – WESTWORLD S01E01 (The Original)
3/29 – WESTWORLD S01E02 (Chestnut)
3/30 – WILD
4/2 – HACKSAW RIDGE; HORRIBLE BOSSES; BLACK MIRROW S03E06 (Hated in the Nation); THE CROWN S01E01 (Wolferton Splash)
4/5 – LOUIS C.K. 2017
4/6 – BLOOD SIMPLE
4/8 – BACK TO THE FUTURE PART II; THE CROWN S01E02 (Hyde Park Corner); EASTBOUND & DOWN S01E04; JIM JEFFERIES: BARE
4/9 – BACK TO THE FUTURE PART III
4/10 – THE CROWN S01E03 (Windsor)
4/12 – WESTWORLD S01E03 (The Stray)
4/13 – FULL HOUSE S03E01 (Tanner’s Island); EASTBOUND & DOWN S01E05
4/14 – THE CROWN S01E04 (Act of God); EASTBOUND & DOWN S01E06
4/16 – THE CROWN S01E05 (Smoke and Mirrors); WESTWORLD S01E04 (Dissonance Theory)
4/19 – THE CROWN S01E06 (Gelignite)
4/22 – SUPER TROOPERS
4/25 – THE CROWN S01E07 (Scientia Potentia Est)
4/26 – WESTWORLD S01E09 (The Well-Tempered Clavier); WESTWORLD S01E10 (The Bicameral Mind)
4/27 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S02E01
4/30 – “Metal Gear Solid: The Phantom Pain”
5/1 – “Metal Gear Solid: The Phantom Pain”
5/2 – THE CROWN S01E08 (Pride & Joy); The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York
5/3 – “Metal Gear Solid: The Phantom Pain”
5/4 – JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL S01E01 (The Friends of English Magic); JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL S01E02 (How Is Lady Pole?)
5/6 – “Minecraft”; THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS
5/7 – The Book of Floating: Exploring the Private Sea; “Minecraft”; STORKS; HELL OR HIGH WATER
5/9 – JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL S01E03 (The Education of a Magician); JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL S01E04 (All the Mirrors of the World)
5/12 – “Zoo Tycoon”
5/13 – BAD MOMS
5/14 – EX MACHINA
5/16 – Steve Jobs
5/17 – OJ: MADE IN AMERICA – PART ONE
5/18 – OJ: MADE IN AMERICA – PART TWO
5/19 – OJ: MADE IN AMERICA – PART THREE; OJ: MADE IN AMERICA – PART FOUR
5/20 – OJ: MADE IN AMERICA – PART FIVE
5/21 – INSIDE OUT; PIRATES OF SILICON VALLEY
5/22 – JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL S01E05 (Arabella); JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL S01E06 (The Black Tower)
5/24 – MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL
5/25 – WEINER
5/26 – JIM JEFFERIES: I SWEAR TO GOD
5/27 – THE GODFATHER: PART II
5/30 – A Dangerous Fortune
6/1 – THE CROWN S01E09 (Assassins)
6/3 – THE CROWN S01E10 (Gloriana)
6/4 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S02E02
6/6 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S02E03; SLOW TV: TRAIN RIDE BERGEN TO OSLO; HOUSE OF CARDS S05E01
6/7 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S02E04; JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL S01E07 (Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell); THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE S01E01 (The New World)
6/8 – HOUSE OF CARDS S05E02; HOUSE OF CARDS S05E03
6/9 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S02E05; EASTBOUND & DOWN S02E06
6/10 – HOUSE OF CARDS S05E04; HOUSE OF CARDS S05E05
6/11 – ROCKET MEN
6/13 – THE JIM JEFFERIES SHOW S01E01
6/14 – THE JIM JEFFERIES SHOW S01E02; EASTBOUND & DOWN S02E07; My Struggle: Book 4
6/15 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S03E01
6/16 – THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE S01E02 (Sunrise); EASTBOUND & DOWN S03E02
6/17 – BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM
6/20 – HOUSE OF CARDS S05E06
6/21 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S03E03
6/22 – THE JIM JEFFERIES SHOW S01E03
6/24 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S03E04
6/25 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S03E05; HOUSE OF CARDS S05E07
6/26 – HOUSE OF CARDS S05E08; HOUSE OF CARDS S05E09
6/27 – EASTBOUND & DOWN S03E06
6/28 – Mindfulness in Plain English
7/2 – CLUE
7/3 – HOUSE OF CARDS S05E10; BABY DRIVER
7/4 – Norwegian Wood: Chopping, Stacking, and Drying Wood the Scandinavian Way; HOUSE OF CARDS S05E11
7/6 – HOUSE OF CARDS S05E12
7/7 – HOUSE OF CARDS S05E13
7/9 – THE AMERICANS S03E01 (EST Men)
7/10 – THE AMERICANS S03E02 (Baggage)
7/12 – THE AMERICANS S03E03 (Open House)
7/15 – “Minecraft”
7/16 – “Minecraft”; GAME OF THRONES S07E01 (Dragonstone)
7/17 – STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON; See You in the Cosmos
7/19 – “Minecraft”
7/20 – SNOWPIERCER
7/23 – OBLIVION; THE AMERICANS S03E04 (Dimebag)
7/25 – “Minecraft”
7/26 – “Minecraft”
7/27 – “Minecraft”; APOLLO 13
7/28 – “Minecraft”
7/29 – “Minecraft”
7/30 – GAME OF THRONES S07E02 (Stormborn)
8/1 – JIM JEFFERIES: BARE
8/3 – “Minecraft”; FLIGHT OF THE NAVIGATOR
8/5 – “Grand Theft Auto V”; DUNKIRK
8/8 – GAME OF THRONES S07E03 (The Queen’s Justice)
8/9 – POLAR BEAR TOWN S01E01 (Welcome to Churchill)
8/10 – GAME OF THRONES S07E04 (The Spoils of War)
8/15 – GAME OF THRONES S07E05 (Eastwatch)
8/22 – GAME OF THRONES S07E06 (Beyond the Wall)
8/23 – POLAR BEAR TOWN S01E02 (Paparazzi Alert)
8/28 – HIDDEN FIGURES, THE DEFIANT ONES (Part 1), GAME OF THRONES S07E07 (The Dragon and the Wolf)
8/29 – THE DEFIANT ONES (Part 2)
8/30 – THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE S01E03 (The Illustrated Woman); THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE S01E04 (Revelations)
9/2 – THE DEFIANT ONES (Part 3); EASTBOUND & DOWN S03E07; EASTBOUND & DOWN S03E08; An Army at Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943
9/3 – LA LA LAND; THE DEFIANT ONES (Part 4)
9/4 – THE OFFICE S01E01 (Downsize); THE OFFICE S01E02 (Work Experience); THE OFFICE S01E03 (The Quiz); THE OFFICE S01E04 (Training); THE OFFICE S01E05 (New Girl)
9/11 – THE OFFICE S01E06 (Judgement)
9/13 – Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
9/15 – THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE S01E05 (The New Normal); THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE S01E06 (Three Monkeys)
9/16 – MY SCIENTOLOGY MOVIE
9/22 – THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE S01E07 (Truth); THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE S01E08 (End of the World)
9/25 – MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL: COWBOYS VS. CARDINALS
10/1 – MOONLIGHT
10/4 – THE AMERICANS S03E05 (Salang Pass)
10/7 – WHIPLASH
10/8 – Customer Success: How Innovative Companies Are Reducing Churn and Growing Recurring Revenue
10/9 – THE AMERICANS S03E06 (Born Again)
10/10 – THE AMERICANS S03E07 (Walter Taffet); THE AMERICANS S03E08 (Divestment)
10/12 – RUN LOLA RUN
10/14 – THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE S01E09 (Kindness); THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE S01E10 (A Way Out)
10/16 – JERRY BEFORE SEINFELD
10/18 – THE STAIRCASE – CHAPTER ONE (Crime or Accident?); THE STAIRCASE – CHAPTER TWO (Secrets and Lies)
10/19 – THE STAIRCASE – CHAPTER THREE (A Striking Coincidence); THE STAIRCASE – CHAPTER FOUR (A Prosecution Trickery)
10/20 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E01 (Pilot)
10/21 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E02 (Flying); PARKS AND RECREATION S01E01 (Pilot); PARKS AND RECREATION S01E02 (Canvassing)
10/22 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E03 (Tahani Al-Jamil); THE GOOD PLACE S01E04 (Jason Mendoza)
10/23 – PARKS AND RECREATION S01E03 (The Reporter); PARKS AND RECREATION S01E04 (Boy’s Club)
10/24 – THE STAIRCASE – CHAPTER FIVE (A Weak Case); THE STAIRCASE – CHAPTER SIX (The Prosecution’s Revenge)
10/25 – THE STAIRCASE – CHAPTER SEVEN (The Blowpoke Returns); THE STAIRCASE – CHAPTER EIGHT (The Verdict)
10/27 – PARKS AND RECREATION S01E05 (The Banquet); PARKS AND RECREATION S01E06 (Rock Show); PARKS AND RECREATION S02E01 (Pawnee Zoo)
10/28 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E02 (The Stakeout); PARKS AND RECREATION S02E03 (Beauty Pageant); VALHALLA RISING
10/29 – MEAN GIRLS
11/3 – Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ
11/6 – The Tales of Beedle the Bard
11/9 – Rework
11/10 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E05 (Category 55 Emergency Doomsday Crisis); ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY
11/11 – PATTON; MIDNIGHT COWBOY
11/16 – SHALL WE DANCE (1937)
11/17 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E04 (Practice Date)
11/18 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E05 (Sister City)
11/20 – THE FOUNDER
11/22 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E06 (Kaboom); PARKS AND RECREATION S02E07 (Greg Pikitis)
11/23 – WEDDING CRASHERS; TRADING PLACES
11/24 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E06 (What We Owe to Each Other)
11/25 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E07 (The Eternal Shriek); LIFE
11/26 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E08 (Ron and Tammy)
11/29 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E09 (The Camel)
11/30 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E10 (Hunting Trip)
12/1 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E11 (Tom’s Divorce); PARKS AND RECREATION S02E12 (Christmas Scandal)
12/2 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E13 (The Set-Up); PARKS AND RECREATION S02E14 (Leslie’s House)
12/3 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E15 (Sweetums); PARKS AND RECREATION S02E16 (Galentine’s Day); PARKS AND RECREATION S02E17 (Woman of the Year)
12/5 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E18 (The Possum)
12/6 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E19 (Park Safety)
12/7 – ARRIVAL
12/9 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E8 (Most Improved Player)
12/9 – RICK AND MORTY S01E01 (Pilot); RICK AND MORTY S01E02 (Lawnmower Dog); RICK AND MORTY S01E03 (Anatomy Park); RICK AND MORTY S01E04 (M. Night Shaym-Aliens!; JIM JEFFERIES: BARE; RICK AND MORTY S01E05 (Meeseeks and Destroy); RICK AND MORTY S01E06 (Rick Potion #9);
12/10 – RICK AND MORTY S01E07 (Raising Gazorpazorp); RICK AND MORTY S01E08 (Rixty Minutes); RICK AND MORTY S01E09 (Something Ricked This Way Comes); DIE HARD
12/11 – THE AGE OF ADALINE
12/12 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E20 (Summer Catalog); PARKS AND RECREATION S02E21 (94 Meetings); PARKS AND RECREATION S02E22 (Telethon)
12/14 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E9 (…Someone Like Me as a Member)
12/17 – THE SANTA CLAUSE; BABY DRIVER
12/18 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E10 (Chidi’s Choice); RICK AND MORTY S01E10 (Close Rick-counters of the Rick Kind); RICK AND MORTY S01E11 (Ricksy Business);
12/21 – TIME CODE; PARKS AND RECREATION S02E23 (The Master Plan)
12/22 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E11 (What’s My Motivation); THE GOOD PLACE S01E12 (Mindy St. Claire)
12/23 – THE GOOD PLACE S01E13 (Michael’s Gambit); STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI
12/25 – THE HOLIDAY
12/26 – PARKS AND RECREATION S02E24 (Freddy Spaghetti)
12/27 – THE AMERICANS S03E09 (Do Mail Robots Dream of Electric Sheep?)
12/30 – BILLIONS S01E01 (Pilot)
12/31 – WILDLIFE SPECIALS: THE SPY COLLECTION (4. Polar Bear: Spy on the Ice, Episode 1); BILLIONS S01E02 (Naming Rights)

Why I Won’t Renew Hulu Plus

I recently signed up for a one-month Hulu Plus trial by linking my Facebook account. I had high hopes that Hulu would let me finally cancel cable, but so far I’ve been very disappointed. It looks like we’re still a long way from straightforward and logical TV and movie streaming options; the content owners and distributors really need to get their act together to make this less confusing and frustrating for the consumer.

  • Some shows are only available through the content owner’s website, mainly CBS: Amazing Race, The Good Wife
  • Some are only available with a paid subscription to another service, such as HBO and Showtime: United States of Tara, In Treatment, Treme, the list goes on and on here.
  • Some shows can’t be found at all: Homicide
  • I thought one benefit of Hulu Plus would be access to prior seasons, but several shows appear to only have the most recent season listed: Modern Family, Parenthood, Friday Night Lights
  • The Hulu Plus app on our Sony TV stinks. If you search for a show, there isn’t a way to modify or cancel that search, you have to restart the app. Once you find a show, it isn’t obvious which season and episode you’re opening. I haven’t been able to figure out how to play or queue an entire season, starting from the first episode.

As of now, I don’t see a good reason for continuing Hulu Plus at $7.99 a month. I’m standing on the sidelines and sticking with Netflix discs until the networks, studios, and distributors can all start pulling together.