What we like right now that will help you right now.

WATCHES

Baby Driver

On a long boring flight back from Arizona, I was scrolling through Delta’s in-flight entertainment, looking for something, anything, that would be worth watching. I didn’t have to scroll very far until I found a movie that looked promising: Baby Driver. The film follows a teenager nicknamed Baby, a getaway driver, who has been roped into the violent world of bank heists. With around 45 songs featured throughout the movie, Baby Driver has the best use of music I’ve ever seen (heard?) in a movie. Also, it was filmed all over Atlanta, so you might recognize more than a few landmarks. I recommend this movie for babies, drivers, babies that can drive, and everyone in between.  – Maven Bolick

The Gorge 

Over the break I watched The Gorge, a romance/horror/anti-corporate/action film. It centers around two characters, Drasa and Levi, guarding the East and West Towers respectively, separated from each other by a gorge. They are charged with ensuring no creatures get out of the gorge, yet no one tells Drasa or Levi what exactly is going on. After fighting off a few attempted invasions eventually, our protagonists do go into the Gorge where they uncover many secrets about its true nature, which prompts them to act. I really enjoyed this movie, and would highly recommend it to anyone who likes movies. – Jackson Lee

Paddington: Lost In Peru

Over this break, I watched the new Paddington movie in theaters. In this third installment, you see Paddington go to Peru to find his aunt, and he ends up becoming lost in the process. By no means do I think it is as good as the first or second movies, but it was still nice. One problem I seemed to have, while minor, was a casting change of the character Ms. Brown, who was always one of my favorite characters in previous movies. Paddington still carries that whimsical energy or curiosity that people love, which is the main reason why I wouldn’t call this movie a fail. Almost every scene that didn’t have Paddington made me impatient, all I wanted was to see that adorable little bear. – Miles Forshay

Documentaries

As someone who stayed in town all of February break, I had a lot of free time on my hands and I got very tired of binging my usual shows, like Criminal Minds. I scrolled through my Netflix homepage for probably around 30 minutes before deciding to give in and watch the new documentary about the Gabby Petito case. It was three episodes, each an hour long and chronologically followed the events of the case. During each episode they would introduce new information and the whole process of the investigation from the perspective of law enforcement, family and friends. I found it a lot more interesting than a regular show, I think because there wasn’t the repetitiveness of each episode, like in Criminal Minds where they introduce a new case each episode but still pretty much do the same thing. After I finished the Gabby Petito Story, I started another documentary and had the same experience. I think it’s also more interesting because they are all about real life cases and events so they double as an educational experience. – Ella Engle

Rick and Morty

Rick and Morty is an animated sci-fi comedy that follows the unpredictable adventures of Rick Sanchez,  vengeful alcoholic genius, and his naive grandson, Morty. Together, they navigate bizarre dimensions and tackle mind-bending philosophical and hypothetical concepts, all infused with deep thought and dark humor. With an average of 1.52 million viewers per episode, its global popularity is undeniable. I was personally drawn to the way the show presented abstract concepts like love in the most austere way. Whether you’re drawn to its deep ethical dilemmas, its twisted humor, or the sheer absurdity of Pickle Rick, Rick and Morty is a show that never fails to entertain. – Tommy Liang

The Rookie

So recently I’ve been watching a show called The Rookie on ABC. The Rookie is about cops who work for the LAPD. Most importantly the series is about John Nolan a 40-year-old officer who is starting over and pursuing a career as a cop at an ancient age. At first, he is judged a lot by the other top officers but he and his fellow rookies Lucy Chen and Jackson West are all introduced in the first season and face many challenges throughout the seasons. Spoiler: Officer West dies in the fourth season after a smuggler kills him. So The Rookie follows the lives of all these officers while on duty and in their personal life and dating life which for them isn’t easy. I’ve been obsessed with the show because of how funny the actors are but also the stories the show shares. I recommend it if you like crime but also humor. – Ashley Chay 

OJ Simpson

I recently watched the OJ Simpson documentary on Netflix. I randomly decided to watch it on a whim and immediately became invested. The documentary broke down the murder of Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown and OJ Simpson’s trial. I knew of this story, but the documentary went into great detail and pointed out every aspect of the trial. While it was entertaining, it was also infuriating. The defense made the trial more about the racial aspect of the case. While this may have played a large part during the time, it has nothing to do with whether Simpson murdered Nicole and Ron. Based on the evidence presented in the documentary and the case, it seems OJ clearly killed the two people, but he was found not guilty of the murder. The biggest thing that stood out to me from this show was something Mike Gilbert (OJ’s former manager) said. He said that when he asked OJ what happened the night of the murder, OJ responded by explaining that If Nicole hadn’t opened the door while holding a knife, she would not be dead today. – Anna Kate Flood

PLAYS

NationStates

Recently, I’ve been enjoying the website NationStates. Nationstates is a website which is set up sort of like a model UN: you set up and run your own fictional country. You choose a name, flag, currency, and national animal when you start, and then every so often you are given an “issue” to solve. The way you choose to fix these “issues” is how your country is truly shaped. Each decision you make can have wide-reaching effects in a way that mirrors real-world politics, but isn’t nearly as scary. NationStates also has a “World Assembly” which mirrors the UN and allows you to talk to other countries and make policies that affect all members. The NationStates community is uniquely supportive, in a way many internet communities aren’t. The in-game chats are always active and filled with nice (usually nerdy) people who will answer questions, or just talk about really anything. Another way to engage with this community is through “regions” which are groups of countries you can join, somewhat like the EU. All in all, if you enjoy being given the power of a dictator and being surrounded by people who share a very specific interest in fictional government, I can’t recommend NationStates enough. – Maren Merkel

Dead Rails

This week I played Roblox with my friends, one of the games I particularly liked was Dead Rails. In this game, it’s 1899 and a zombie virus broke out. You ride a train throughout the wild west to find the cure for the virus in Mexico all while zombies attack you. There are villages and houses along the way, with some being overrun with zombies. You must use the items you find here as fuel for your train or to sell for money. With the money you can buy armor, weapons, and fuel. This game even has vampires and werewolves. I liked the game, as it was fairly challenging, but also very entertaining. – Juliet Gonzalez

Dangerous Truck Driving

On Saturday night my friends and I played a couple of Roblox games. One of those games in particular, Dangerous Truck Driving, was very humorous and fun to play. The object of the game is to cross a hazardous path full of obstacles, slim roads, and tricky turns in a truck. It’s very hard as my friends and I barely got through the first check point. You can choose to drive the truck yourself, or you can sit in the passenger seats while someone else drives. The game is very entertaining and we played for at least an hour trying to beat  the game. My friend managed to glitch the truck by causing it to spin non-stop. It is a very funny and challenging game I would recommend to play. – Sasha Lapayeva

Solitaire Cash

Whenever I see an ad about Solitaire Cash or any other money-making app, I quickly click the little “x” in the corner and write it off as a scam. However, I have been truly blessed by the addition of Solitaire Cash into my life. Not only is it a lovely game that keeps my brain exercised, I have earned a grand total of $9 through the game! No, I am not gambling because I’ve never put any money into the app. I recommend downloading solitaire cash (withough putting any money in–gambling is bad!) to anyone with a phone and a lot of spare time to spend on a very lovely, slightly addictive game. – Finley Malone

Red Dead Redemption 2

My favorite part about going on break is returning to old video games to fill my free time. This break, (after waiting a day for it to redownload) I picked back up Red Dead Redemption 2. The story follows Author Morgan in the Western, Midwestern, and Southern parts of the US. The game has incredible graphics, an engaging story line, and wide variety of ways you can play the game. I have already completed the storyline once, but outcomes change based on the choices you make, so it’s fun to replay. Because the story is so long, I still have much more left, even with the hours I already put into it over break. Hopefully I will find time for myself this semester so that I can continue playing! – Noa Zilber

ACT Scores

After two weeks of anticipation, I finally got my ACT scores back. Going into my first ACT test, I was very well prepared. Around 35 hours of prep including 18 hours of an ACT prep class, I felt very good. This held out true throughout taking the test as I remained very confident. Leaving the testing room I felt like I had just won a million bucks. In my very soul, I knew I had a perfect score in at least one of the sections and I was correct. A 36 in reading, 34 in English and math, and a 27 in math, a great score considering I did not study for math. With a 33 overall score, I am in the top 2% of test takers, but now that I’ve seen how far I can go, the sky’s really the limit. That 36 is mine. – Michael Bryant

READS

Depressing Romance Novels

These past few weeks I’ve been reading a lot more consistently after numerous trips to Barnes & Noble with my nerdy (and amazing, of course) friends. During the span of four flights this past February break, I read If He Had Been With Me and The Fault In Our Stars which are both romances with lots of back and forth flirting if that’s something you enjoy reading, but (and this is not a spoiler, it is pretty known) both books are tragedies. I don’t want to drop any spoilers, but if you like romance novels and crying, I highly recommend The Fault In Our Stars, and if books aren’t your thing but you still like crying, there is also a movie based on the book that you can stream on Disney+ and Hulu. I finished these books days ago and they’re still stuck in my head. You should definitely read these novels, so long as you have waterproof mascara on. – Ellie Owens

VISITS

Brook Run Dog Park 

I have had a dog for a while and my family and I have never found a good dog park that is spacious and highly accompanied by dogs. Our neighbor who also has a dog recently introduced us to the Brook Run dog park and we have gone many times since. There is a separate area for big dogs and little dogs and the big dog area is extremely spacious filled with gravel and forest area too! There are many water-filling stations for your pup and lots of sitting areas all around the park. There are always many friendly dogs there and my dog loves to run with them. There is even a bathroom inside for humans too! It’s a very nice area with places to hold your leash, places with and without shade, etc. The entry and exit are very safe to ensure that no doggies run away. You can enter through a fence that is connected to another to give you a chance to take your dog’s leash off or put it back on. If you have been looking for a good and reliable dog park then you have to try Brook Run! – Kira Lawson 

LISTENS

The Way Out of Easy

Live albums provide crucial documents of concerts, particularly for listeners who weren’t there (or may not have even been born yet). Studio recordings tend to yield tight renditions, the best takes or over-dubbed perfection, but on stage and in front of a live audience – musicians can stretch out, take risks, let the mistakes happen, and react to the room. I could (and should) list critical live albums that should be in every collection, but today I am just writing about this 2024 double LP by the Jeff Parker ETA IVtet. Parker has been conjuring beautiful sounds out of electric guitars for decades now and all of his work is worth seeking out, but this set features next level interplay between his guitar and pedals, saxophonist Josh Johnson (though his use of effects pedals is revelatory here), bassist Anna Butterss and drummer Jay Bellerose in front of a tiny audience at ETA in West Los Angeles. The recording quality is top notch and listening to it feels like sitting in the audience that night. It’s jazz, but also not: minimal rock and heavy dub make wonderful appearances. The album features four side-long pieces written by Parker, so it gives us a chance to hear the players stretch out, build momentum, drop out and drop bombs. The Way Out of Easy rewards with every listen, welcome solace for those of us who couldn’t make the date. – Fred Avett

[Note: after the fact, I stumbled upon THIS video that captures part of the set that is features on the 2LP.]