And don't forget about what needs to get done today.
The Real Downton Abbey Will Open As A Hotel
On Valentine's Day, Highclere Castle (the real name of Downton Abbey) will be opening an on-site hotel called London Lodge (despite the name, the castle and its hotel are in Newbury, West Berkshire, not in London). The estate was built in 1793 and is home to the Earl and Countess of Carnarvon and has already been open to tourists for some time. There are organized Downton-themed tours that take tourists to see the building and grounds, but this will mark the first time that visitors can stay overnight.
"And while the period charm is intact, there are modern amenities in the hotel rooms, including TVs, Wi-Fi, mini-fridges, and electric kettles available.Rooms at London Lodge begin at £350 ($540) per night."
Ummm... this is really neat. I'm a fan of the show (not a wildly big fan, but a fan) and if I were ever near this castle - I'd likely want to go on one of those tours. Paying $540 a night seems a little nutty, but for any super fans this would be the best thing in the world, I'd imagine.
Alvin & The Chipmunks Christmas Song
Is it dumb that I really miss this version of the chipmunks? I hate the new ones almost as much as I hate the really old ones. But this Christmas special they had on VHS? I still get tingles from it. There's just something about cartoon snow that really floats my boat.
Mr. Rogers Emmy Speech in 1997
If you watch this and don't get teary at his sincerity? There's the door.
Mr. Rogers
I've never seen a Mr. Rogers screen-grab I didn't love.
Girls Season Four Trailer
Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria
The Museum of the Moving Image is probably my favourite museum in New York. The main reason for that? It encourages interaction (ie. there are things you can touch and do there). And the exhibits are constantly changing, which I love. They had the tiny door from Being John Malkovich last year! And Walter White's undies!
The current Chuck Jones exhibit is even a great one to see.
Even their permanent collection's great. Some people may not consider it the classiest of museums, but its focus is on movies and television so my question to those people is, "You think you're better than getting to see Robin Williams' fat suit in Mrs. Doubtfire?"
Who wouldn't want to get a glimpse at the intricacies of The Elephant Man's head?
There's even a (classic) video game arcade area WHERE YOU CAN ACTUALLY PLAY THE GAMES. Why is this happening?! I feel like this place is a kid's version of what a museum should be.
And of course there are areas that detail the history of cameras, television, etc. but I tend to briskly walk through these rooms (partially 'cause I've already learned about all that stuff the first time I came to this museum and partially because I know where I need to go to get to the fun).
The best part of this place? This spot right here (below).
You can sit down here and make your own stop motion animation that you can email to yourself. It seems like it might be just for kids - but since there are no signs informing me of that silent assumption, I'm more than happy to plant myself here for at least twenty minutes to craft my masterpiece. It's way more fun than I'm letting on. Or wait, am I accurately emphasizing how fun it is? I feel like I might be.
There's also a sound booth station where you can go in and alter existing movies with your own voice. If that doesn't sound neat, I'm not accurately describing it - 'cause it's neat.
Anyway, I love this museum. I feel like it should be the gateway museum for when you're taking a kid to a museum for the first time. Actually, no! It'd be horrible to take a kid here for their first museum. It'll ruin them for all the others that exist in the world where you can't touch anything. Yeah, don't take them. Also, they tend to hog the animation table props whenever I'm there, so it's probably best to keep them at home.
I Don't Want To Live On The Moon
I wish I'd seen this more when I was a kid, infact I hope every kid everywhere sees it at some tiny age since it's beautiful.
The Raven on The Simpsons
The main reasons this is one of my Simpsons Halloween favourites?
- It reminds me of being a kid. Since the show went into syndication so quickly after it first aired, I remember seeing all of these older episodes over and over again so they're burned into my memory in a way that I hope never gets lost.
- I remember actually being a little scared by this at the time. I think it might have been because of James Earl Jones' ascending voice at the end, but still. It felt weird and kind of cool to have a cartoon scare me briefly.
- It's gorgeously drawn.
I always thought they got the name for the Halloween specials (Treehouse of Horror) from this specific short and loved that it was based on such a well done episode.
SNL's Booty Rap
If you’re in Canada, seach for SNL Booty Rap.