The Seated View

There are times when I dream of living in a cabin in the woods, far from away from civilization and the noise (and okay, people). Waking up to fresh air, birdsong, and the wind in the pines would be my idea of heaven. And then there’s reality. For the past week, I have been obsessively watching Life Below Zero , a documentary/reality show that follows several people who live in the Alaskan wilderness. Like waaaaay out in the wilderness. This series is as much about these people as it is about the absolutely stunning nature — you might say that Alaska itself is a character in the show. The first season takes place during the depth of the Alaskan winter and let me just see say this: we have no idea when we complain about cold. The people that you get to know are fascinating, sometimes unfathomable (living on the tundra – why??), often funny, and their lives are equally fascinating, sometimes heartbreaking, and at times really scary. (Have a bit of patien...

I have been vaguely aware of the TV show Scandal: The Complete First Season for some time, but never watched. That is until about a month ago when “enjoying” the consequences of having zoomed through writing the draft of the next book in the Your Life with Rheumatoid Arthritis series . In other words, my mind was mush. At the end of one day, when my mind had become even mushier that it was when I got up, I needed a very particular form of entertainment. Something that would grab my attention, without actually making me think. Enter Scandal. This turned out to be the perfect televised popcorn to consume while my brain slowly knitted back together.   I am not ashamed to say that in the last four weeks, I have binged on the first three seasons of the show. And I have learned a few things, especially from that third season (other than a) I love Mellie; and b) all the women need a sandwich). Be forewarned: there are a few spoilers ahead. 1. Olivia has terrible taste in ...

There are three bluewhale carcasses on beaches in Newfoundland and people are worried that they’re going to explode at any minute. I hope someone sets up a WebCam. Every time I see another article or video breathlessly explaining what’s going on inside the whales that makes them expand so and what this means for the ever-increasing chances of explosion, I think of sending off an email suggesting they watch the second episode in Season One of Inside Nature’s Giants . The one about the fin whale. But I should start from the beginning. I’m a geek who geeks out about a lot of different things. Nature is high on the list and so is finding out how things work. In a stroke of genius, The Boy got me the first season of Inside Nature’s Giants . This is a British show in which veterinarians and biologists perform dissections on large animals, paying particular attention to unique parts of each animal and the evolutionary history or reason for the development of certain bodily str...