Updates for January 2025

Before we close out the first awful, Los Angeles-burning, Trump reinstating, American government-ruining month of 2025, let's look back at past blog posts and make a few updates.

First off, let’s start by acknowledging that Neil Gaiman and Amanda Palmer are absolutely garbage human beings. 

What song did I get obsessed with right after the cutoff for Spotify Wrapped 2024? Hozier's song inspired by Dante's Inferno, "Hymn to Virgil." I made a Destiel meme for that one, too. 

https://thatwritererinoriordan.tumblr.com/post/769533420409896960

What song am I obsessed with right now? "Devil In Me" by Gin Wigmore.

In “More Unfortunate Happenings of Past Decembers,” I mentioned the Comet Ping Pong shooter. According to a BBC Washington article posted on January 9, 2025, the man is now deceased. Pulled over on suspicion of being wanted on a warrant while driving in Kannapolis, North Carolina, the man is alleged to have pulled out a gun. Two police officers then fatally shot him. He died later at the hospital. 

On Saturday, January 25th, Mr. Elingtin and I went to Dream Palace Books for an author's reading. The author, Jaclyn Youhana Garver, mentioned Julie Powell. Garver's novel Then, Again uses parallel storytelling of the kind that Powell's memoir Julia & Julie also used. We haven't forgotten about you, Julie. You're still on our minds and in our hearts.

https://thatwritererinoriordan.tumblr.com/post/773749924165779456/thank-you-jacyln-youhana-garver-for-coming-to

On a recent episode of the podcast History of the 90s, I learned that Sarah McLachlan wrote "Angel" about Jonathan Melvoin.

The blog post that mentions Jonathan Melvoin, "More Unfortunate Happenings of Past Julys," also mentions Billie Holiday's death on July 17, 1959. Here's a random fact: There were 120 days between Billie Holiday's death and the events of In Cold Blood.

The Hanukkah Hotness, Night 8: Zac Efron

I'm going to be bluntly honest and say that I do not enjoy the music of High School Musical. This does not mean that Zac Efron is not utterly beautiful. Zac is Jewish on his father's side, and his surname is the Hebrew word for the lark.





This Hanukkah hottie is also a young prince of literary adaptations. He was in Charlie St. Cloud (a Ben Sherwood novel), The Lorax (a Dr. Seuss classic) and The Lucky One, the Nicholas Sparks favorite which I read in April.

I saw the movie in November. It's not as good as the book, and  I don't think anyone will accuse Zac Efron of being the greatest actor of his generation. He brings a lot of heart to the role of Logan Thibault, opposite Taylor Schilling as Beth Green. They do their best with these characters, but the book versions are simply more powerful. The ending that works so well in print loses much of its suspense on screen.

Zac Efron is also notorious for dropping a condom onto the red carpet at the Lorax premiere.

[2026 note: The video that was here is no longer available.]

I saw The Lorax in October. It was a pretty good cartoon, although not Despicable Me good. I didn't love the musical numbers, but I did think it managed not to garble Dr. Seuss' message.

The Hebrew word for the lark also belongs to one of 2012's saddest literary losses, the screenwriter, former journalist, essayist and New York Times best-selling author Nora Ephron. She passed away in June after a battle with leukemia. She was best known for writing the films When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle - neither of which I've seen. The Nora Ephron film I did connect with and thoroughly enjoy was her last, Julie and Julia, about Julia Child and the food blogger Julie Powell.