MIRACLE IN MINNESOTA

Well that happened. Yesterday, the Seattle Seahawks tapped into their seemingly bottomless reservoir of luck and somehow stayed alive in the playoffs with a 10-9 victory over the Minnesota Vikings. The game ultimately came down to a 27-yard field goal attempt by Vikings kicker Blair Walsh with 22 seconds remaining. Despite already nailing three earlier kicks, he booted it wide left.

Weird as it sounds, Seahawks wouldn't have even been in the game had the Seahawks' center not horribly snapped a ball past Russell Wilson when down 7-0 with a sputtering offense early in the fourth quarter. The Vikings defenders broke assignments when they saw on the ground, but Wilson made a quick recovery and tossed the ball to a wide open Tyler Lockett for a 35 yard gain for the biggest offensive play of the game, setting up a first and goal which led to the game's lone touchdown. As the old adage goes, sometimes it's better to be lucky than good. The Seahawks have found a perfect blend of the two the past three seasons.

The Hawks playoff quest continues next Sunday when they travel south to play the top-seeded Carolina Panthers. The Panthers came into CenturyLink Field and notched a 27-23 comeback win back in October, but Seattle had the upper hand in last season's divisional playoff round, ending Carolina's season with a 31-17 victory. The game kicks off on Sunday at 10:05am and will be televised on Fox.

Only Russell Wilson could take a botched snap and sure-fire 20-yard loss.. And turn it into a 35-yard pass. WOW. https://t.co/Xqlty0CGqp

— NFL (@NFL) January 10, 2016

Blair Walsh's go-ahead 27-yard FG is WIDE LEFT. Richard Sherman loses it. Michael Bennett loses it. Wow. #SEAvsMIN https://t.co/GfnJlvUbGU

— NFL (@NFL) January 10, 2016

PLANET EARTH IS BLUE

The world lost a true cultural icon last night when David Bowie died at the age of 69. The legendary singer, actor, and style idol was the master of reinvention and impacted generations upon generations of creatives. He made it cool to be a weirdo. While tributes to his greatness will come like a tidal wave over the next days and weeks, perhaps the best piece written about his death actually came year's ago when Grantland's Alex Pappademas and Chuck Klosterman long form mused about Bowie's legacy after a previous death hoax.

Just days ago, Bowie released his 25th album Blackstar.  In retrospect, his now final music video for "Lazarus" that was released last week seems like a song (and accompanying imagery) from a man who knew he was on his way out.

There are thousands of great videos of Bowie's timeless songs out there, each with its own emotional power. Instead of getting emotional, let's leave on a note of blissfully cynical fun. Thanks, Bowie.

EVERYTHING THERMALS

When it comes to sonic bursts of aggressive melodic rock, few do it better than the Thermals. The Portland trio returned last Wednesday with the exuberant noise of "Hey You," the first single from its upcoming album We Disappear. Recorded in Seattle and Portland with Chris Walla, the new record thematically touches on humans' refusal to simply disappear, including modern digital attempts to create a sort of immortal public persona. We Disappear arrives March 25 via Saddle Creek records.

STAR WARS FOR AMERICA

As Star Wars: The Force Awakens continues its global box office domination, hypothetical fan theories about future plots continue to pop up across all reaches of the Internet. But (unsurprisingly) there few fantastical theories about the billions of real dollars the film is making. Enter (the aforementioned) pop culture critic Chuck Klosterman. On the The Bill Simmons Podcast last week, he presented the ingenious and entertaining (and entirely unrealistic) idea of nationalizing the Star Wars franchise in order to have it benefit the United States government.  To hear Klosterman explain the theory, jump ahead to the 34 minute mark of the podcast (it's short and sweet, ending at about 38:20).

REJOINING THE POSSE

After making one of 2014's best local records with Soft Opening, Seattle's Posse has returned with two new songs from the upcoming Perfect H 7". The two new tracks—"Voices" and "Perfect H"—both feature the band's almost soothingly minimalist and laissez faire brand of indie rock. Wharf Cat Records will release the Posse 7-inch (limited edition of 300) on February 26.