So, I’m watching The Librarians on TNT, which is similar to Warehouse 13, except with more well-known actors. It’s based off a series of TV-movies starring Noah Wyle as the Librarian, a person tasked with gathering dangerous magical artifacts so they are not misused by others. The new series doesContinue Reading
Every semester a student asks me this question: how long did people live in ancient times? Was it really only 35 years? General life expectancy across the world for most of history was, indeed 35. However, “life expectancy” is a terribly imprecise term, giving the impression that any particular personContinue Reading
I have had a very hard semester, which is why I’ve been so quiet the last month. That should change in another week once classes end. In the meantime, here’s one of my history-nerd rants: “Duchess Kate” does not exist. As described in this article, “Duchess Kate” is in theContinue Reading
On October 28, 2014, Time magazine published Jennifer Latson’s “Why Witches on TV Spell Trouble in Real Life,” a look at why the witch has become so commonplace in pop culture, as well as the long-standing morality lesson taught by studies of the historical witch-trials, which gave us the phraseContinue Reading
Season 8’s two-part finale, “Dark Water”/”Death in Heaven” was easily my favorite story of the season, which has been plagued by an odd combination of ideas and performances that frequently never quite gel. Moreover, it’s only the second time a season finale has left me satisfied, the first being SeasonContinue Reading
This semester is running me ragged, so frequently the last thing I want to do when relaxing is do even more writing than all already am. So, one of the ways I’m relaxing is getting back into artwork. The first image (above) came out of a friend’s Master’s thesis inContinue Reading
I’m preparing for TeslaCon this weekend, so I’m being brief. This is the finished costuming project I’ve been blogging about, complete with small wire horns. You can get more info on the project here: Costuming Project: Steampunk Loki Jacket Part 2, Color, Fabric and Trim Part 3, Sleeves and ShouldersContinue Reading
After Keanu Reeves’ horrific Constantine movie, I think pretty much everyone cringed at the idea of a TV version. They needn’t have worried. Both myself, with my academic occult knowledge, and my husband, a huge comic book aficionado, came away from the pilot episode unconditionally pleased. The general premise isContinue Reading
Every few years, a TV series decides to tackle the topic of Wicca, particularly around Halloween. This year, the offender is CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. Often, the point of such episodes is to defend Wicca (albeit usually with watered down versions of actual beliefs), but the bizarre mix of misinformation,Continue Reading
We’ve heard it in the news. First, there was fear of Ebola reaching the US, then two infected doctors were brought to the US under quarantine, then a traveler from Africa developed symptoms after arriving in the US, and now one of his nurses has contracted the disease. Are weContinue Reading