(WhoWhatWhenWhyHow)

Who: Chelsa Lauderdale What: Writings and Thoughts When: Daily (fingers crossed) (Why?): (why) not How: the only way I can

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Margaret Cho: Trolls Who Call Me ‘Fat And Ugly’ Are Admitting Defeat

Margaret Cho has a simple philosophy for dealing with degrading comments about herself: If you’re debating a woman and you stoop to calling her “fat” or “ugly,” you’ve already lost the argument.

The comedian explains how to turn misogynist attacks into a “more palatable and pleasurable” experience.

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Petition for work and school to be cancelled on gloomy rainy days. Mandatory rest day, everyone stay at home all day and read books and watch Netflix.

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Update!

So clearly, you haven’t heard from me for a while, but ta-da! I’m not dead or anything. Things are really getting stirred up on my end, I just quit the first job I ever had for two new, very different ones, so lots and lots of changes are happening! If you miss me all that much, I’ll be writing blog posts for Mrs. Dalloway’s which you can check out at clarissasbooks.tumblr.com. 

In the mean time, I’ve been reading quite a bit these days and here’s some YA book recs for ya’ll!

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

Truly, truly, a science fiction marvel. Card crafts this intense world that sucks you in and spits you out again, and again, in tiny little pieces. It’s hard not to read this book and empathize with Ender, and through that, to empathize with his enemies as well. I have not seen the movie as of yet, though, after reading the book I’m not sure I want to because I know there’s no way the movie could capture the same feelings. Looking forward to picking up another book in the series soon to see where it all goes (and where it comes from apparently, since the series wasn’t written in any way chronologically). 

Gabi: A Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero

Picked this up from Dalloway’s the first week and spent every minute of my new, exhausting schedule aching to finish it, and when I did I wished I hadn’t, just to spend a little more time figuring out life and love alongside Gabi, the main character. Quintero’s debut novel won the William C. Morris award for breakout YA novel, and all you have to do is read the first page to understand why. Not only is this novel amusing, tumultuous, and insightful, it also blends English and Spanish so seamlessly that if you don’t know any Spanish in the beginning, you will for sure by the end. Most importantly I think, though Gabi is characterized as a “fatgirl” the novel itself gives way to issues in her life that are far more important, and I love that Quintero’s debut books tells women that whether you’re chubby, a stick, white, brown, whatever, there are always going to be things in your life that should be more important than what other people think about you, and that what’s most important is what you think about yourself.

Famous in Love by Rebecca Serle

Though all of the books I’ve read recently are considered YA novels, Famous in Love was the only one that made me feel like I was back in high school again, curled up on the couch completely ignoring everything in the world but the pages in front of me. It’s that kind of teen romance novel that sucks you in like a tornado, and while you’re begging for a break in the storm to let you out, you also realize that the view is quite beautiful right where you’re at. While I can’t say this novel is groundbreaking or life altering, it is that perfect rainy-day teen romance novel, when all you want to do is forget about your life and be pulled into the drama of someone else’s. Additionally, I loved that this book is kind of like what would happen if, when they were making the Twilight movies, they decided to cast Bella as some unknown girl. It’s interesting reading it in that light because, while half of the time it feels like cheesy fanfiction, you know, somewhere in your mind, that you would be doing the exact same thing if put in the narrators shoes. 

Since I’ve posted these in threes, why not add in a little extra fun. Fuck, Marry, Kill. If I had to, marry: Ender’s Game, Fuck: Gabi: A Girl in Pieces, Kill: Famous in Love (but not before devouring it cover to cover first). 

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We Are Your Friends

With electronic music quickly becoming one of the biggest genres of music in the world, it was only a matter of time before someone decided to make a movie about it. We Are Your Friends blends drama, romance, and more than a little dance music to make a surprisingly enticing flick about the highs and lows of the DJ scene. - See more at: http://www.mediumraretv.org/review/we-are-your-friends/#sthash.YULvF4y7.dpuf

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Cooking For One

I am in no way a fine chef. Simply put I’m a Safeway Girl as opposed to a Whole Foods Girl. I could live my entire life on Chef Boyardee and Lean Cuisines for a month. In fact, I have lived on frozen pizza for more than a month, but that’s beside the point. The point is I live my culinary life by one simple motto, “I don’t have to go grocery shopping yet...” I am a connoisseur of the fridge dump and the canned combinations. If you’re like me and find yourself staring desperately between your bank account and your fridge, here’s a fast meal that may not be one for the health cookbooks, but it’ll get you through an 8 hour shift without passing out.

Southwest in a Can

Ingredients: -1 cup Dry Rice, white or brown or whatever really -Can of pre-seasoned black beans -Can of salted whole kernel corn

Directions: 1. Google how to make whatever rice product you chose. 2. Follow those directions (I still have no idea how to make rice and google it every time. You’re on your own here.)  3. Once your rice is done and you’ve “fluffed it” which is a weird term, open your can of beans, drain most of the liquid (leave some), dump the beans into your rice. 4. Open can of corn and drain, empty half of the can into rice/bean mixture 5. Add hot sauce. Whether or not you like hot sauce. 6. Add pepper to taste 7. Stir and then eat

If you make this recipe following the instructions you should end up with enough to eat for lunch and dinner. Enjoy you’re pretty okay meal!

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American Ultra

Jesse Eisenberg + Kristen Stewart + weed = Adventureland 2, right? Think again. American Ultra in theaters now! http://www.mediumraretv.org/review/american-ultra/

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Diary of a Teenage Girl

Never before have I seen a film that so embodies the thoughts, actions, and intricacies of the mind of a teenage girl. Whether you're male, female, young or old, go see this film! http://www.mediumraretv.org/review/the-diary-of-a-teenage-girl/

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Everyone loves going to the movies, just about as much as they hate long lines, overpriced food, and paying as much to see something once as they would to buy it on DVD. Here’s a few theatres that know a thing or two about the movie-going experience, with less strain on your wallet. 

http://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/california/articles/5-best-movie-theaters-in-oakland/

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A Wolf at the Door

Filmmaker Fernando Coimbra brings the drama in A Wolf at the Door in theaters today. Great pick for fans of thrillers or foreign films. http://www.mediumraretv.org/review/a-wolf-at-the-door/

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Things I’ve Learned Owning a Car in East Oakland

image source | The quarters make it easier for your money to roll away.

I, like most other college grads in this country, owe the government a ton of money, and, like other grads, have not yet be able to get a high paying (or even somewhat related to my degree) job. In fact, I still work at the same retail job I've had since sophomore year. The three essentials to human life are food, water, and shelter. On a minimum wage salary, food and water are simple enough. Water is practically free, as long as theres enough of it for the state to survive, sorry California! And Hot Pockets can be bought in mega-sized "family" packs, because who doesn't sit down with their family every night, a hot pocket in a paper sleeve in every hand, and enjoy a lovely family meal?

The shelter part is a little bit tricker, especially for the recent college grad. Generally speaking, options are pretty limited: find housing with a group of friends and hope everyone will be able to make good on rent for at least a year, or move back home. There is, of course, that third option where you pose online as a brilliant lawyer and then when you meet the man you've been chatting with move into his house and finagle your way into a live-in nanny position, a la Queen Latifah's classic Bringing Down the House. Let's be honest though, how many Steve Martins are there in the world that would open up their home to a strange convict, er, ex-college student?

What I've found in my apartment hunting adventures are that the cheapest places to live are not necessarily the safest. It's not like I've ever been done physical harm, actually all of the people I've ever met in my neighborhood have been perfectly pleasant, cat-callers not included. But if you've never run out of the house 10 minutes late already and get to your car only to see a missing tire or a seat full of glass through an empty hole where a window used to be, you don't really know what it's like to want to murder someone over a petty object.

When it comes to cars, I'm cursed, and it can't all be blamed on a few bad eggs in my neighborhood. As someone who has the worst luck with the most expensive object they own and the credit card bills to prove it, I figure I'd offer a few things I've learned about owning a car in the "hood."

Don't Keep Your Car on the Street

At all of the rentals I’ve lived in there have been long periods of time where I had to park my car on the street. If I were betting I would put money on this as the number one reason I've had so many car problems. If you are moving with a car to a not-so-nice neighborhood, find a place with a garage, or at least a gated parking area. Keeping the car as close as possible to where you sleep can help deter anyone from messing with it and help you hear your alarm if it goes off.

Take Preventive Measures

Sometimes you find a place that has absolutely everything you've ever dreamed of in a rental, right down to cat doors for dear Cuddles, except off-street parking. There's no way you could pass up an opportunity like that, so the most you can do is everything in your power to keep your car from getting broken into or stolen. Take a trip to Autozone and invest in locking lug nuts and a steering wheel lock. The locking lug nuts are made for every type of car and are extremely easy to install, whether you know about cars or not. They can only be removed with the specific key that comes with the set of lug nuts, and while it is possible to remove them, it takes so long that tire theives may not even want to deal with it, especially when the next car up the block did not read this article. Similarly, the steering wheel lock, also known as the "club," comes with its own special key. These are both inexpensive and invaluable ways of keeping your car where it should be and hopefully all in one piece. Unfortunately, this will not keep anyone from breaking into your car and as a result smashing a window or two but...

Windows are More Annoying Than They Are Expensive

But they are really, really, expensive. Especially when you make your living getting yelled at by teenagers. Having had all sorts of awful things happen to every vehicle I've ever owned, windows are not the most expensive thing you will ever have to buy for your car. That would be the transmission, and I will be paying that bill about as long as my tuition loans. No, the most frustrating thing about broken windows is that even if the person who broke them takes nothing, that window still has to get fixed. My dad used to tell me all the time to keep my car clean, and I just assumed he was being annoying and condescending. Then, last year for my birthday I got a failed job interview and two broken windows and the first thing I did after spending 3 hours at the glass shop was clean absolutely everything out of my car. Who would have guessed it but my car suffered no more break ins from then until we moved. I can't say if that was the reason why, but it seems like a little more than coincidence. Ive also seen many people in my neighborhood either leave their car unlocked or their car windows rolled down, which is fine if you don't mind that ghosty feeling of some stranger sitting in your car the next time you get in it. Sometimes though, as is life, there's no method to the madness and someone just had the urge to hear the sound of breaking glass. The place I go, Auto Glass Now, replaces windows for about $100-$200 usually for the side windows, and always gets it done same day. As far as I've seen, spending many an afternoon sitting in the lobby, windshields are the most expensive replacement, aside from the little immovable triangular panes that some cars have connected to their back windows. Additionally, if you can't get your window fixed right away, pizza boxes or trash bags can be cut and taped into your window to make it easier to drive around, but be careful of losing your driving peripherals.

Tires Are Also Expensive

Just about every part of a car is expensive, and if a part is expensive, the labor that comes with installing it will cost just about as much. Knowing nothing about cars doesn't help either, because it will be impossible to tell when a car repairman is trying to help or is just after money. A DIY attitude can help save a bit of cash, and it's truly surprising how easy it is to replace a tire, especially if the guy who stole it left the jack under the car. Invest in the tools and the time it takes to learn how to fix some simple problems with your car and your bottom line will thank you for it. I'm just talking little thing, like changing a tire or jump starting a dead battery. Even dealing with triple A can be more of a hassle just taking care of it yourself. Every car owner should invest at least in some jumper cables, gloves, a carjack and a lug wrench or two. There will be times when the problem is not something you can or should use a YouTube tutorial for and a mechanic is necessary. The best advice I can give is call as many places in the area as you can. When I had to get my transmission replaced I called just about every shop in a 4 city radius, and out of every single one of them there was only one person who refused to give me a quote without seeing the car, insisting that, "it might not be the transmission at all." I must have called 20 shops or more and only one person had the decency to tell me that I was essentially WebMDing my car and I should probably take it to a pro. Of course, it was my transmission, but even then the quote he gave me was less than many of the other places I had called and most importantly, he seemed like a really good guy. The most important thing in getting your car worked on is not finding the cheapest place (though that’s the true American Dream) but the place that's going to treat you and your car with respect. Paying $3000 dollars less for a part is great, but if it's not installed properly it could cause more expensive problems. Do it right the first time and, hopefully, never have to do it again.

Riding High? Not for Long

My first car was a hand-me down from my dad. An early 2000's Toyota Tacoma with a louder than life sound system and tires so big there was an extra step between street level and passenger seat. Being 5'2, riding in a car like that gave me a view of the world that I would never normally see, i.e. looking down on things instead of up. What I didn't realize is that there are people out there who specifically target cars like that, and specifically their catalytic converters. Catalytic converters transform your car's toxic emissions into less toxic emissions, and driving without one is like cruising around in a big, grumbling monster vomiting volcanic ash into the street in it's wake. Also, you guessed it, they're expensive! They can be sold by thieves to metal recyclers for $50-$250 dollars, but cost upwards of $1000 to replace. Trucks and SUVs are targeted because they are higher off the ground so it's easier for thieves to crawl underneath. When I got mine replaced after it was stolen, the mechanic offered to weld pieces of metal over parts of the underside of the car to help prevent this from happening again. You can also buy a catalytic converter protection device, but those can be more expensive than the labor of welding scrap metal over it.

Cops Don't Care About Your Car

I called the police once about my car being broken into and it was a bigger waste of time then waiting at the DMV and realizing when your number is called that your license actually expires next year. It's not entirely their fault, I live in East Oakland, I hear gunshots every day and I would hope that wherever those shots are coming from takes precedence over a row of cars with missing windows in my block. That's right, a row of them. I called them because one night, after plenty of nights of individual car crises between my roommates car's and mine, someone decided to go on a spree and hit almost every car on the street. I called them because I lived across from a high school and I figured that they might have some security footage that could help find the person who did it, because shit is that messed up. And do you know what they told me when I called? To fill out a form online. So now, not only am I filling out a multi page piece of paperwork online, every click of the next button reminds me that someone's going to take one look at this and throw it in the "oh well" folder I'm sure every police department computer has. Like I said, there are much more pressing issues in my neighborhood that I hope comes first, but are you really telling me, Oakland PD, that you don't have a grunt working clerical that could at least shoot me a follow up email. Walmarts have social media specialists and you can't hire someone to sit at a desk and answer emails?

The point is, no one's going to care about your stuff but you. Taking care of your car is great, but you can't protect it all the time. Learning just a little bit more about your car and what to do in case of emergency can save you tons of time, effort, and tears. Lastly, try as hard as possible to set aside money in case of a car emergency. Calling your family to see if anyone can make a contribution to the broken window fund is more painful than paying the money itself.

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Amy Schumer: Celebrities to Watch

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In the last couple years, Amy Schumer seems to have appeared from nowhere to be one of the most lauded female comics of recent times. Her Comedy Central show "Inside Amy Schumer" is in its 3rd season, she has travelled around the country on a number one comedy tour, and next week her first feature film that she wrote and starred in is hitting major theaters. So who is Amy Schumer, and how did she get to the top so quickly?

Before her TV show premiered in 2013, Schumer was building her stand up career, doing a few comedy central features and roasts before getting her own hour long special on the channel called "Mostly Sex Stuff." Fans of standup will appreciate Schumer's blunt style and take no prisoners attitude, when she makes a joke she jumps right in, and she's not afraid to turn the tables back on herself, making her an astoundingly likable stage presence.

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Likewise, her TV show features much of the same style. Presented in the same vein as other CC sketch comedy shows (Chappelle's Show, Key & Peele) Inside Amy Schumer combines scripted sketches, satirical music videos/commercials, stand-up, and interviews with the strangest blend of behind the back and in your face female-centricity. Amy Schumer is a sneak attack feminist, commenting on issues of race, sex, gender, etc. in a completely over the top, sometimes abrasive way, that will make you laugh but still make you shudder at the horrible world we live in.

This is why I'm so excited for her upcoming film Trainwreck, coming to theaters July 17th. From trailers and last week's Comedy Central Town Hall about the film, Trainwreck is a fictionalized account of Schumer's life. It centers around her character Amy, a woman in her 30's who was told at a young age by her father that monogamy is bullshit, leading her life to become a never ending string of one night stands. That's just how Amy wants it to be, until she hooks up with a man (Bill Hader) who, strangely enough, isn’t interested in just sex.

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While this may seem like a relatively standard plot for a romantic comedy, my least favorite genre of all, there are a few key things that make this movie seem more exciting then the next Nicholas Sparks adaptation. Firstly, while Trainwreck's script is all Schumer, it was produced and directed by Judd Apatow. That's right, the guy who gave us such genius as Freaks and Geeks and wrote Pineapple Express. So it's undoubtably got to be sliding more to the comedy side of the whole romcom spectrum. The cast is half SNL cast members and half celebrities you wouldn't expect to find there, Vanessa Bayer and Bill Hader in the same movie as Ezra Miller and Tilda Swinton sounds like an interesting clash of worlds, especially when you throw John Cena into the mix.

What I'm most excited about with this film though, is that it's a movie written by a woman about what it's like to be a woman starring the woman that it's actually about. It's a film that will speak to adult women of any age, especially if they've ever had a moment where they felt like their dating days were never going to end. A story for any woman who's ever dealt with rejection or insecurities or people attacking their lifestyle, and the best part is you won't have to sit there for an hour and half watching someone like Rachel McAdams tell it. Not that there's anything wrong with Rachel McAdams, but I'm really supposed to believe that she can't keep a man?

If this movie was made by any other person I probably wouldn't have even given it a second thought. Amy Schumer isn't just bringing a physical realness to it, but a mental one too. I'm just praying she's going to throw THIS IS WHAT IT'S REALLY LIKE FOR WOMEN all in everyone's face like she does in her standup and on her show, because sometimes it feels like movies are still trying to tell us women should be seen not heard and it’s 2015! It’s not like it’s impossible to make a movie about women and actually have the characters behave like real women. So far, Amy Schumer has refused to bend to the idea of what a “lady” is in any respect, and Trainwreck, hopefully, is going to bend the idea of what a romantic comedy is. 

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Tips for Enhancing your Ability to Learn and Remember

Pay attention. You can’t remember something if you never learned it, and you can’t learn something—that is, encode it into your brain—if you don’t pay enough attention to it. It takes about eight seconds of intense focus to process a piece of information into your memory. If you’re easily distracted, pick a quiet place where you won’t be interrupted.

Involve as many senses as possible. Try to relate information to colors, textures, smells, and tastes. The physical act of rewriting information can help imprint it onto your brain. Even if you’re a visual learner, read out loud what you want to remember. If you can recite it rhythmically, even better.

Relate information to what you already know. Connect new data to information you already remember, whether it’s new material that builds on previous knowledge, or something as simple as an address of someone who lives on a street where you already know someone.

For more complex material, focus on understanding basic ideas rather than memorizing isolated details. Practice explaining the ideas to someone else in your own words.

Rehearse information you’ve already learned. Review what you’ve learned the same day you learn it, and at intervals thereafter. This “spaced rehearsal” is more effective than cramming, especially for retaining what you’ve learned.

Source: http://www.helpguide.org/life/improving_memory.htm

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IF YOU EVER NEED SOMETHING TO READ READ THIS

OK ARE YOU EVER IN NEED OF BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS BUT DON’T KNOW WHAT TO READ NEXT?

I present to you, straight from the internet, whichbook:

Here’s how it works: You click the link, and choose four categories and the extent to which these categories matter:

Then click “go” and it’ll come up with a number of books you might like.

DON’T LIKE THE CATEGORIES? NO PROBLEM - see this little thing:

THIS LITTLE THING WILL TAKE YOU TO THIS SLIGHTLY LARGER THING WHERE YOU CAN CHOOSE A BOOK BASED ON THE FOLLOWING:

YOU NOW HAVE NO EXCUSE TO NOT BE READING SOMETHING BECAUSE WHATEVER YOU WANT THIS SITE WILL COME UP WITH IT.

… Apart from bisexual retired alien dudes. No books on that. Yet.

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Mary and Carver stopped halfway down the staircase as Mary and Greg made eye contact that was strong enough to blow a fuse box. It felt like if you concentrated hard enough you could see a thread of electric wire firing like synapses between their pupils. "Mary, I-." Mary cut him off with a wave of her hand, never breaking the static eye contact. "Don't even say it, I'm over it." She uttered a heavy sigh and turned to look up at Carver, squeezing his hand and smiling. "Okay. I'm in. Let's kill my boyfriend." -excerpt from Accident Prone (my novel)

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Eden

Fans of electronic music may be interested in checking out Mia Hansen-Løve's "Eden," a film that traverses the garage and house scenes of early 90's Paris told through the eyes of an aspiring DJ. http://www.mediumraretv.org/review/eden/

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Which Streaming Site Will Give You the Most Bang for Your Buck?

We are truly reaching the death of cable television. All you need nowadays is a computer or tablet, HDMI cord and the right blend of subscriptions and you’ve got all the TV you need without paying cable money and getting a hundred extra channels you’ll never watch. Even HBO is making it possible to pay just for their “HBO Go” app, which was previously only available for free with the HBO cable package. It’s only a matter of time before television ceases to exist as it has been and molds itself completely around the internet structure. Hell, even Youtube is charging for movies now, making it impossible to watch those obscure DCOMs that used to be there in full for free.

With the massive upswing of subscription based streaming sites, how do you decide which one is going to have all of the things you want? Truthfully, it’s a lot like choosing a cable package, you’re going to end up with a lot of things that you don’t want just to get the stuff that you do. The most important thing is to make sure the wanted outweighs the unwanted. As someone who’s happened into just about every possible streaming site there is, I’m going to give you the lowdown on which ones will be the best for what you want. 

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Netflix

Quick points:  - $7.99/mo unlimited streaming  -1 month free trial -watch on nearly all internet capable devices -Cancel subscription anytime -Uninterrupted viewing (no commercials) -Different personalized profiles for each viewer -2 streams at a time

Netflix could be considered the mother of the subscription streaming generation. As far as I know it was the first of its kind, originally offering unlimited instant streaming and to-your-snail-mail DVD’s for about $15 a month. Now that DVD’s are nearly obsolete as VHS tapes, Netflix cut their membership fee in half if you choose to only subscribe to their streaming service. Netflix was also the first to try out the binge-watching platform with their original shows, allowing viewers to watch new seasons all at once instead of weekly. 

Netflix offers the best selection of movies of all the paid streaming sites, including Disney flicks (which are incredibly hard/expensive to obtain the rights to) and features a wide range of genres that are sometimes ridiculously specific, like psychological thrillers featuring a strong female lead and no animal deaths, which I just made it up but is an entirely plausible Netflix genre description. They also manage to attain rights to newer movies, sometimes before they even make it to DVD.

In addition to all of that, they have a pretty decent selection of TV shows and Kids TV. From classics like Twilight Zone and The Munsters to American staples like Friends, even new hits such as Breaking Bad and Sons of Anarchy. With a subscription you’ll also get access to Netflix originals, like Jenji Kohan’s award-winning and buzzworthy Orange is the New Black and the much talked about House of Cards. Netflix is definitely the site for the movie lover, as their selection of movies far outweighs their TV shows, though their originals are definitely worth more than $7.99. 

Things to check out on Netflix: Orange is the New Black, Wreck-It Ralph, 22 Jump Street, Sherlock, Heathers, Daredevil, Raid 2, Hobbit Desolation, American Horror Story.

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Hulu

Quick points: -$7.99/mo unlimited streaming -1 week free trial -watch on nearly all internet capable devices -cancel anytime -1-4 30 second ads per video -Activate on any # of devices, but only 1 stream at a time -Plays endlessly, doesn’t ask to continue

A Hulu Plus subscription, while the same cost as Netflix, has a lot of limitations that other sites do not. Most deplorably the ads in every video except for kids TV, and the fact that only one person can watch at a time. However, Hulu is a TV lover’s dream, offering complete series from almost every major cable channel, and new episodes of your favorites as the air on TV. 

Since getting (or rather borrowing) Hulu I have been able to catch up with new seasons of my favorites, like Once Upon a Time and even cartoons like Sanjay and Craig that I’ve found practically impossible to stream elsewhere, and got hooked on new favorites, like Rob Thomas’ iZombie. I’ve also found that kids TV shows do not have ads like the rest of the shows offered, so Hulu is perfect for zombie-watching hours of cartoons, especially because the video player never stops to ask if you want to continue watching or even if you’re still alive. 

While Hulu’s TV selection blows other streaming sites out of the water, their movie choices just blow. They do have a nice selection of indie and criterion films, but don’t expect to see the new Hunger Games movie, or cult favorites listed here. Hulu also offers new movie trailers to see what up and coming films might be worth checking out, but so does Youtube, and you don’t have to pay to see them there. Recent excitements in Hulu land are the recent addition of the entire series Frasier, and the announcement of the addition of Sho Time’s catalogue to Hulu’s streaming. 

Things to Check Out on Hulu: Steven Universe, iZombie, Frasier, Inside Amy Schumer, Bob’s Burgers, Star Trek, Cosby Show, Muppets Take Manhattan, The Birdcage, The Blob, Robocop, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Scandal

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Amazon Prime

Quick Points: -$99.00/yr unlimited streaming -1 month free trial -watch on nearly all internet capable devices -cancel anytime, refund available only if you haven’t used the 2 day shipping amenity -Uninterrupted viewing -Activate on up to 4 devices -Additional amenities: free two-day shipping, free same day delivery, free music, unlimited photo storage, access to Kindle Owner’s Lending Library

While Prime offers the most amenities of any of the streaming sites, it is the one I least recommend people to get when it comes to the actual movie/TV streaming. Truthfully, Amazon Prime is the most worthwhile if you frequently order things from Amazon as the 2 day shipping is free and can come in handy for the online shopping enthusiast. Amazon Prime’s TV and movie selection is really secondary to it’s other amenities, however there are a few TV shows and movies that are unavailable anywhere else. 

Before I get into that though, the most important thing to know about Prime is that if you are interested and sign up for the free trial make sure you cancel before the month is up. As soon as you decide that Prime isn’t worth it, cancel the membership or you will be charged the $99 in full and will go through a hell of a time trying to get the money back. This isn’t the only, excuse my French, dickery that Amazon has tried to pull on its customers. In January last year they lost or gave up the rights to a number of streaming shows, and neglected to tell customers so some people ended up paying for episodes of shows that they had previously been watching for free. The reason I don’t recommend Prime to a lot of people is because of stunts like this.

That being said, Amazon Prime does offer a number of benefits. My favorite so far is the invention of the Amazon Firestick and similar devices. This is essentially a thumbdrive that you can plug into capable TV’s that enables you to directly stream video/movies/games from not only Amazon, but Hulu, Netflix, etc. and the stick is only $30! A prime membership is not essential to the Firestick, but it does come in handy, especially when you give up trying to find a stream for free and settle on just paying for it. 

Personally, the only thing I can think of that I regularly watch on Amazon is America’s Next Top Model, because they have just about every season available on streaming. Before that I also watched Degrassi but due to the dickery mentioned above, that’s no longer an option. Most of the time when I watch something on Amazon I’m surprised that it’s even there. Looking through their genre categories and full selection never seems to offer up anything worthwhile, but every once in a while I’ll search a movie or show on Amazon and lo-and-behold there it is! Does that happen often enough to pay $99 dollars for it? No. Maybe if it was presented as $8.25 a month it would be a different story, but something about that $99 lump sum just has a way of turning me off. 

Things to Check Out on Amazon Prime: Downtown Abbey, America’s Next Top Model, Justified, Oz, Sopranos, The Wire, Orphan Black, The Machinist, Cloud Atlas, Attack the Block, The Bling Ring

[ringo-obsession]

Turn your handwriting into a font

I discovered this by accident and I thought it was really funny and cute:

1. Download the template from MyScriptFont website

2. Write out the alphabet and numbers in your style, using a black marker (felt pen). This is mine:

3. Scan the template  4. Upload to the MyScriptFont website, name it, set the format and click “send file” 5. Download it to your computer and install

And check out my result!

[traumbelrum-deactivated20240801]

reblogging for writers that want to invent their own font.