Emo Nemo

Mily

Sarah

Shaidrian Rios

Jimmy Beans

miCCwatreSSop

Julie Wynne - videos

Kapuster

Nicky Tallon

Harini Sen

Vastralaya

Evan Shively (Perseus271)

What would you do if you could pause time on a whim, freezing everyone and everything, while you wander around, without anyone seeing or hearing anything? What a fab premise for a story.Image: Frozen time (Source.)Cher famously sang that If I Could Turn Back Time, she’d strive to change and so win back her lover. In Groundhog Day, another rewinding scenario, weatherman Phil (who wakes to Cher (and Sonny) singing “I Got You Babe” each morning), tries various silly, selfish, funny, and dangerous things, before turning to good deeds and new skills (play the piano, speak Italian, sculpt ice) to earn the affections of Rita. I asked a group of friends the opening question about pausing time. Their answers included: •	Crime-fighting superhero;•	Rob banks; •	(A third person said the first two options are not mutually exclusive)•	Switch people's hats;•	Get more work done;•	Stealer of unsecured trifles;•	Stare at people's faces longer than is socially acceptable;•	Get perfect composition, light, and focus for photography (which is itself a way of freezing time);•	Go to Africa and steal all the poachers’ ammunition;•	Work through a political hit list;•	Think of a great comeback or make minor adjustments, for good or evil;•	Get Trump’s tax returns to NYT and WashPo;•	Take selfies with celebs;•	Jump queues;•	Swap neighbours' mail so they have to meet/talk to each other;•	Try on clothes without needing the dressing room;•	Put the roulette ball on their number;•	Tie people's shoelaces together - but not prevent unrelated accidents, as “that would be playing God” (huh?).None of my friends suggested checking up on a partner, prying into personal stuff of family, friends, enemies, colleagues, or celebrities, nor cheating in quizzes or tests. Nothing sexual, either, though I expect some thought of it, and then thought better of it. One did suggest debagging (pulling down the trousers) of an obnoxious colleague, but that was for revenge, rather than titillation.My favourite was: “Squish everyone’s faces into smiles, on the underground / subway. When time re-started they’d all be smiling at each other.”If only this book had a dash of such creativity, humour, and compassion. Even the political hit list is arguably better than what unfolds.Why DNF? (= Did Not Finish)This is supposedly comical literary erotica. It also has Baker’s trademark, almost pathological, attention to tiny details of movement, touch, and texture. (See my review of The Mezzanine, HERE.)Arno Strine doesn’t want to use his power for riches, revenge, love, nor even sex, and has no aspirations to do good. He flicks into what he calls the Fermata or Fold to undress women with more than his eyes, and touch them intimately. Yes, you read that right - or maybe I should say wrong. Very wrong. He figures that as they don’t know, there’s no harm in it.I kept going for a third of it (95 pages - hence no rating), in the hope of finding the promised humour or eroticism, or just to see Arno develop as a character. Also, I had been told there was a twist, and I’ve enjoyed other books by Baker, including the very sexual Vox (see my review HERE). I’m not a prude. I understand the temptation to use such an ability for smutty ends, but to do it so invasively, for more than twenty years, without any real reflection, let alone remorse… Nope. I hope karma eventually whacks Arno like a ten ton truck, but I don’t want to continue reading. Yes, it was published a generation ago, before #MeToo, and yes, Arno occasionally has a few thoughts about boundaries, but it’s just too horrid and repetitive. Even when he puts sex toys in unexpected places it’s more creepy than funny.ConsentConsent should be freely given, unambiguous, keen, and continuous. Maybe Arno eventually learns that, but in case he doesn’t, may I offer you a cup of tea? My effort and expectations, the quality of my tea and crockery, and your past enjoyment of tea are no guarantee you want a cup with me right now - even if you warmly accepted my invitation. If I want tea and you don’t, I can always have some by myself later - as could you if I withdraw my invitation.Image: “But you wanted tea last night” (Source, Buzzfeed article.)Animation of the cup of tea analogy, 2.5 minutes, HERE.It’s a bit simplistic: in particular, it ignores cultural expectations and other unequal power dynamics that might make someone say they consent, when they don’t really. Nevertheless, it’s a useful starting point to explore the subject. Film adaptation?!I was amazed to see that imdb lists a 2015 film, with a cast of four and running time of 66 minutes. However, there are no release details, nor a single rating. Maybe it never happened. A film in the 1990s (the book was published in 1994), perhaps, but in the twenty-teens? Surely not. I hope not.What would I do?If I could pause time, I’d regain what I wasted on this and use it to read something better. Then I’d squish some faces, switch some hats, and restart time. (I’m not going to admit to anything else here!)

Mortal Kombat returns to consoles after a long hiatus featuring a return to the gruesome fatalities....

A sexually frustrated suburban father has a mid-life crisis after becoming infatuated with his daughter's best friend.

1999 American drama film directed by Sam Mendes

A self-diagnosed nymphomaniac recounts her erotic experiences to the man who saved her after a beating.

Violence and mayhem ensue after a hunter stumbles upon a drug deal gone wrong and more than two million dollars in cash near the Rio Grande.

2007 film directed by Ethan and Joel Coen

Broke and alone on New Year's Eve, Wilson just wants to spend the rest of a very bad year in bed. But, when his best friend convinces him to post a personal ad, he meets a woman bent on finding the right guy to be with at midnight.

Ben is an art college student in London, whose imagination runs wild as he works the late-night shift at the local supermarket. What do he and his colleagues do to pass the long, endless hours of the night?

In Berlin, an alcoholic man, recently released from prison, joins his elderly friend and a prostitute in a determined dream to leave Germany and seek a better life in Wisconsin.

Upon arriving at Warsaw, Marcin, a young mysterious stranger from afar, enters the lives of hedonistic Ola and her liberal well-off parents. He's got a secret plan and just waits for a convenient moment to make it happen.

Set in the roaring 20s of Berlin. Hans, an old discouraged dancer, befriends with a poor kid from the streets. To flee from poverty and loneliness they teach each other a vaudeville act to have some excitement in their lives. With th

In a dystopian near future, single people, according to the laws of The City, are taken to The Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic partner in forty-five days or are transformed into beasts and sent off into The Woods.

Follows the misadventures of four irreverent grade-schoolers in the quiet, dysfunctional town of South Park, Colorado.

A well-meaning but struggling writer decides to lead a sort of double life by pretending to be a private detective using the methods he read about in old detective novels.

In a wacky Rhode Island town, a dysfunctional family strive to cope with everyday life as they are thrown from one crazy scenario to another.

BoJack Horseman was the star of the hit television show "Horsin' Around" in the '80s and '90s, but now he's washed up, living in Hollywood, complaining about everything, and wearing colorful sweaters.

An animated series that follows the exploits of a super scientist and his not-so-bright grandson.

Nine noble families fight for control over the lands of Westeros, while an ancient enemy returns after being dormant for millennia.

<p>The Gorburger Show is an American comedy television series created by Ryan McNeely and Josh Martin. The series stars T.J. Miller as Gorburger, a giant blue monster who took over a Japanese television station. The series originally aired on Funny or Die for two seasons from 2012 to 2013. Guests included Jack Black, Flea, Andrew W.K., Wayne Coyne, Carson Daly, Tegan and Sara and Eagles of Death Metal. On January 13, 2017, Comedy Central picked up the series for an eight-episode first season. The series premiered on April 9, 2017, on Comedy Central. On December 19, 2017, the series was canceled after one season.</p>

music

movies

shows

books

games

Active tastebuds