Greetings Webtaculators! Guess what? You basically made it another year! Hooray! Hopefully, this one was enjoyable for you all, and the next one will be just as good. Or better! And, if it happened to be not such a good one, remember, it couldn’t be that much worse than 6th grade. 6th grade was awful. On to the news.

STORY OF THE WEEK (5 min. read)
What: Not A Bad Year
Why: Because even though all we seem to get is bad news, it turns out that humanity, on the whole, is on the up and up. That’s a good thing.

ECONOMIC THING OF THE WEEK (5 min. read)
What: … But It Still Isn’t Great Being A Woman
Why: Because even though this knowledge isn’t necessarily new, the study by the New York City Group of Consumer Affairs really highlights how disparate the pricing of the basically same item is.

LAW THING OF THE WEEK (5 min. read)
What: Bad Bail
Why: Because bail can be expensive, and through the use of bail bonds, can be even more expensive if you can’t afford it in the first place.

SCIENCE THING OF THE WEEK (3 min. read)
What: Sticking The Landing
Why: Because SpaceX successfully landed their first stage rocket, potentially making future space flight up to 75% cheaper.

SPORTS THING OF THE WEEK (4 min. read)
What: The Greatest (Of 2015)
Why: Because watching Steph take the Warriors to such great success is what sports is all about.

MOVIE THING OF THE WEEK (5 min. read)
What: One Of My Favorite Christmas Related Things
Why: Because they’re muppets. Also, Star Wars broke more records, but that’s no surprise.

MUSIC THING OF THE WEEK (35 sec. watch)
What: The Beatles Finally Join Modern Music
Why: Because the entire Beatles catalogue is now available on your favorite streaming websites.

PHOTOGRAPHY THING OF THE WEEK (10 min. look/read)
What: More Of The Best Of The Year
Why: Because even pictures of awful things can be beautiful.

LITERATURE THING OF THE WEEK (longer read)
What: A Small, Personal Confession
Why: So. As many of you know, I read. A lot. I mean, that’s partially why I compile Webtacular every week. Usually, this reading also includes books. The reason why I said “usually,” is because this year, I didn’t read one. “What?” you’re probably asking yourself. “Why on earth would you do that? That puts you in the 28%!” Reading books to me is basically a drug (I got in trouble in 4th grade since I was reading multiple books at once; and would often stay up way past my bedtime reading them). However, more recently, I realized that I was no longer enjoying reading books. Even books that I should love, like Super Sad True Love Story, Jim Henson’s Biography, or even A Game of Thrones, just weren’t doing it.

The true turning point was The Circle, which came out to still unbelievable rave reviews. It is the worst well-regarded book I have read in my life (Atlas Shrugged is the worst book I have ever attempted to read, but was so bad I never finished, so it doesn’t count). The characters are awful caricatures of what real people might be, the message is flat and obvious, and the words inside some of the heaviest handed metaphors I have read. Basically, David Eggers is the reason I haven’t read for a year. If you’re reading this, Dave, shame on you for writing that awful book.

But it wasn’t a terrible outcome! First, I found more ways to enjoy something that I love. I have a few Murakami novels lined up that I know I will enjoy, because I recently experienced Kafka On The Shore, and images and ideas presented in the book were interesting and unique. The wonderful thing about modern technology is that more books than ever are available in audio formats, which is both a really interesting way to take in a novel and a great way to ignore fellow bus passengers. Second, I am actually excited to read again, which isn’t something I have been able to say for a while. Sometimes, taking a break from something really lets you appreciate it on a basic level. Just ask any Jew about their thoughts on food on Yom Kippur.

In retrospect, a year hiatus is a little on the extreme side, now that I’m actually acknowledging how long it has been in words. However, I don’t think the experiment nonsensical as it sounds. I put aside my previous, unjustified audiobook prejudice, and gained more appreciation of what makes reading a novel a “novel” experience. (Sorry). Of course, if you haven’t read a book recently – go read one. It’s good for you.

VIDEO GAME THING OF THE WEEK (10 min. read)
What: More Games You Should Play
Why: Because this is another good eclectic list.

INTERNET THINGS OF THE WEEK (∞)
What: Dive, Dive, Dive!; Good Ads; Terrifying Robot Future
Why: Because Internet.

THING YOU SHOULD GET BRIAN OF THE WEEK
What: Any Of These
Why: Because Brian deserves it.

Webtacularly yours,
Brian
Managing Editor, Webtacular World
The Internet You Didn’t Know You Needed™