Have you heard? Anja and I are getting a dog. It was up in the air for a little while, but we got the confirmation yesterday that we’ll get first pick of a nest of eight adorable little Pembroke - Cardigan corgi mixes. We’re meeting the puppies for the first time on Sunday. Are you crying? I’m crying.

In one of the many jubilant reviews garnered by Darren Aronofsky’s latest film The Whale, one writer concluded that we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. This was in reference to the morbidly obese main character who eventually dies, but not before we find out he developed an eating disorder out of grief. Here was a fat man who evidently had feelings despite his exterior. Ironically, I find myself doing just what the writer suggested I don’t: judge the film before I’ve seen it.

I have a feeling 2023 will be the year for weird movies that steal our hearts. Look at Triangle of Sadness and White Noise. Here you have two high-budget oddball films that I’d describe not as mumblecore but coastercore, pulling you from one weird subnarrative into another, not really making up their minds about what they are, and before you’ve formed a full opinion on it, the ride is over, but you loved it.

Recently, I’ve been making some great progress with my personal website. While I normally don’t engage in technical ballets on the goings-on of this website, I feel it’s relevant to document what I’ve learnt and done, if only for posterity.

The weather has officially reached a temperature that requires me to buy a new coat. I dread it. Unlike most other types of clothing, coats and jackets never seem to suit me, regardless of the style. To soften the blow of having to order several coats on the Internet hoping one will work for me, I granted myself three sets of retro socks.