Things of Beauty #25
Linguistics, Alex P. Keaton, and the last Lasso
There's a theme to this week's list of small joys— words and TV shows. Which I suppose are related, since it's likely that my enjoyment of the shows mentioned here is directly tied to the words written into the script.
But there's also a subtler theme— the idea of being present in the moment and asking for and accepting help (see 🎬 and ⚽️ below).
Words and stories bringing joy this week:
🔠 The Merriam-Webster Instagram account recently came onto my radar. Have you been following this? I am loving the deep dive into linguistics. How we use our words is so fascinating!
✒️ While we're on the subject of fun facts related to grammar and words, Kris Spisak offers a lot of fun content about this too! Like this article about "grey" versus "gray" (bonus: cat picture included).
🎬 The documentary about Michael J. Fox, Still (Apple TV). I grew up watching Family Ties every Thursday night. I loved Back to the Future and Teen Wolf. Fox was probably one of the first big celebrities on my radar growing up, and I've remained fascinated by his story. I read his memoir, Lucky Man, back when it came out in 2003, so I knew a lot of the history covered in the movie, but it was still a really meaningful watch for me. I appreciate his ability to accept his reality and be honest about it, while also seeming to find threads of hope and joy. I also couldn't help but think about the clear effects of Parkinson's on someone who can afford all the best treatment and care. If it's that hard on a patient with access to so much, how much more difficult is it for those without?
❤️ The Alex & Ellen storyline on Family Ties remains one of my all-time favorites. Before the magic of YouTube, I rewound and rewatched this montage on VHS, which I taped myself, by catching it on rerun and recording on the family VCR, of course. Even more inspiring is the real-life relationship between Fox and Tracy Pollan— also a highlight of the movie above, for me.
⚽️ The Ted Lasso finale. I would imagine it's a heavy lift for writers to wrap up a show with so many characters and expectations from fans. I thought the finale delivered on all of this. The standout moment for me was the Roy Kent/Diamond Dogs scene, where he expresses frustration about trying to change and being worried he never will. The advice from Higgins is (as usual) spot on: "The best we can do is to keep asking for help and accepting it when you can." I also especially appreciated that the BELIEVE sign gets glued back together with gold glitter in the final montage.
Have you come across any fun facts lately (linguistic or otherwise)? Any classic TV you love? Thoughts on the final Ted Lasso (and feel free to disagree with my take, all opinions welcome). I would love to hear what's bringing bits of joy your way right now.
Be well, find tiny joy-
Mary Chris
LOVED the last Ted Lasso. I hate to see it end, but it was a good finish. Trent Crimm turned out to be one of my favorite characters this season, I really wished for Roy and Keeley to get back together, and I enjoyed the montage of "afterward" shots at the very end. They even managed to turn my opinion of Nathan around. :)
Do you follow Kris Spisak on Instagram? She always posts fun linguistics facts.