Thoughts from the Recorder: On Grantland

Image of Grantland.com logo

I wanted to write about the World Series on Monday. I wanted to write a wrap-up about the culmination of the Royals journey, a journey that started last October and ended on November 1st with Kansas City sitting on top of the world. I wanted to write about the sheer joy of seeing a team come together, about the sheer joy with which that Royals team played baseball, about the fact that even in the most dire of moments, this team always felt like they would rise above everything.

But I didn’t. Because my heart was broken a few days earlier when ESPN announced that they were shuttering Grantland for good.

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City on the Hill: Living in Minas Tirith

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So, by now, you’ve all seen the trending topic on Facebook/Twitter/theonering.net/wherever. Basically, a Lord of the Rings fanatic cum architectural profession has, along with a bevy of colleagues/friends, started an Indiegogo fundraiser titled “Realise Minas Tirith“. Their goal – to build a living, working real-live version of the fantasy city from Tolkien’s epic trilogy.

I’m sure this has raised some questions amidst the neophytes and non-architecturally inclined. Fortunately, as the Recorder’s resident Tolkien scholar (insert grain of salt here), I can provide answers to these questions.

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American Legacy: Triple Crown and Mentos

American PharoahOn Saturday, American Pharoah (intentionally misspelled and all) won the Belmont Stakes, becoming the first horse-racing Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978. Having won the Kentucky Derby in a thrilling race and the Preakness in muddy track conditions, it was particularly exhilarating to watch Victor Espinoza ride to the front and never look back. It was such a dominating performance that it bordered on anti-climactic. Then again, being the first Triple Crown winner of a generation’s lifetime could never be completely anti-climactic. It was an impressive spectacle.

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A Great Day For Pop Culture

This article is short but very sweet. Andrew and Jill

I’ve known Jill Pantozzi (her name is her twitter handle) since 2011, and she is one of those people who fill your spirit with delight every time you see them. Jill has spent her life writing about pop culture, mostly comics and sci-fi/fantasy media, for a variety of websites, and in everything she does, she brings the analytical insight of an expert and the passion of someone who loves even the most infinitesimal minutiae (yes, minutiae THAT small) of her chosen subjects. And she does it all from a motor scooter due to her muscular dystrophy. Every single time I read about the continuing misogyny against and harassment of female comics and genre fans (and you all know my reaction), I think of Jill. She is living proof of what idiots they are.

For the past two years, Jill has been Associate Editor of The Mary SueA Guide to Girl Geek Culture, a fantastic news site concentrating on genre entertainment from a feminist perspective. It’s one of the best and most readable sights on the web. And today it merges with Geekosystem: Your Geek Guide to Internet and Tech Culture, into one giant website covering every topic the two covered separately. And Jill will be Managing Editor of this new edition of The Mary Sue. I cannot fully express what a great decision this is: the result will be a source for everything important happening in the “nerd” culture that is informative, inclusive, and handled with the best of care…and, I believe, a force to help transform the culture in the ways people like we at the Addison Recorder long to see it transform, in a way that leaves prejudices and threats behind and embraces the viewpoints of all fandoms. And so I wish Jill Pantozzi and The Mary Sue nothing but the very best as this begins, and urge anyone who loves space, monsters, fairy tales, technological advancement, steampunk, and gender equality to make it a regular part of your online day.

Or the results won’t be pretty.