Look into Pi-hole. It’s an easy-to-setup DNS server which can run on a Raspberry Pi (or a Linux desktop/server if you have one.) You can then set your devices’ DNS servers to the local address where the Pi-hole is running. Since it would be running on your local network, any requests to it shouldn’t go through your ISP in the first place. I’d still recommend getting your own router anyways because this kind of ISP fuckery is more common than you’d expect. Plus, your exact configurations follow you anywhere you move. If you do end up getting one, set the local DNS server in the DHCP settings of your router to avoid having to set it on each device.

R.I.P.D. 2

Hear me out. I watched the first R.I.P.D. on a flight, expecting it to be enjoyably bad, but it wasn’t. Instead, it was just enjoyable. The whimsical lore of combining ancient prophecy with modern people and boring bureaucracy was pretty funny. Was it an absolutely fantastic movie? No, but it was good.

The sequel, however, explored none of the above any further. Instead, it tried to replace all that with a much more dramatic tone. So when I watched this one on the flight back, it wasn’t even enjoyably bad. It was just simple and dull.

A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge. I liked the prequel, A Deepness in the Sky even more.