#Jamie does some woodworking

[frasers-of-my-heart]

From First to Home

Ch. 8: Uncommon Ground

An opportunity arises for Claire that makes her wary. Jamie has something special in the works.

Read it here

[cuddlytogas]

So I accidentally almost got into an argument on Twitter, and now I'm thinking about bad historical costuming tropes. Specifically, Action Hero Leather Pants.

See, I was light-heartedly pointing out the inaccuracies of the costumes in Black Sails, and someone came out of the woodwork to defend the show. The misunderstanding was that they thought I was dismissing the show just for its costumes, which I wasn't - I was simply pointing out that it can't entirely care about material history (meaning specifically physical objects/culture) if it treats its clothes like that.

But this person was slightly offended on behalf of their show - especially, quote, "And from a fan of OFMD, no less!" Which got me thinking - it's true! I can abide a lot more historical costuming inaccuracy from Our Flag than I can Black Sails or Vikings. And I don't think it's just because one has my blorbos in it. But really, when it comes down to it...

What is the difference between this and this?

Here's the thing. Leather pants in period dramas isn't new. You've got your Vikings, Tudors, Outlander, Pirates of the Caribbean, Once Upon a Time, Will, The Musketeers, even Shakespeare in Love - they love to shove people in leather and call it a day. But where does this come from?

Obviously we have the modern connotations. Modern leather clothes developed in a few subcultures: cowboys drew on Native American clothing. (Allegedly. This is a little beyond my purview, I haven't seen any solid evidence, and it sounds like the kind of fact that people repeat a lot but is based on an assumption. I wouldn't know, though.) Leather was used in some WWI and II uniforms.

But the big boom came in the mid-C20th in motorcycle, punk/goth, and gay subcultures, all intertwined with each other and the above. Motorcyclists wear leather as practical protective gear, and it gets picked up by rock and punk artists as a symbol of counterculture, and transferred to movie designs. It gets wrapped up in gay and kink communities, with even more countercultural and taboo meanings. By the late C20th, leather has entered mainstream fashion, but it still carries those references to goths, punks, BDSM, and motorbike gangs, to James Dean, Marlon Brando, and Mick Jagger. This is whence we get our Spikes and Dave Listers in 1980s/90s media, bad boys and working-class punks.

And some of the above "historical" design choices clearly build on these meanings. William Shakespeare is dressed in a black leather doublet to evoke the swaggering bad boy artist heartthrob, probably down on his luck. So is Kit Marlowe.

But the associations get a little fuzzier after that. Hook, with his eyeliner and jewellery, sure. King Henry, yeah, I see it. It's hideously ahistorical, but sure. But what about Jamie and Will and Ragnar, in their browns and shabby, battle-ready chic? Well, here we get the other strain of Bad Period Drama Leather.

See, designers like to point to history, but it's just not true. Leather armour, especially in the western/European world, is very, very rare, and not just because it decays faster than metal. (Yes, even in ancient Greece/Rome, despite many articles claiming that as the start of the leather armour trend!) It simply wasn't used a lot, because it's frankly useless at defending the body compared to metal. Leather was used as a backing for some splint armour pieces, and for belts, sheathes, and buckles, but it simply wasn't worn like the costumes above. It's heavy, uncomfortable, and hard to repair - it's simply not practical for a garment when you have perfectly comfortable, insulating, and widely available linen, wool, and cotton!

As far as I can see, the real influence on leather in period dramas is fantasy. Fantasy media has proliferated the idea of leather armour as the lightweight choice for rangers, elves, and rogues, a natural, quiet, flexible material, less flashy or restrictive than metal. And it is cheaper for a costume department to make, and easier for an actor to wear on set. It's in Dungeons and Dragons and Lord of the Rings, King Arthur, Runescape, and World of Warcraft.

And I think this is how we get to characters like Ragnar and Vane. This idea of leather as practical gear and light armour, it's fantasy, but it has this lineage, behind which sits cowboy chaps and bomber/flight jackets. It's usually brown compared to the punk bad boy's black, less shiny, and more often piecemeal or decorated. In fact, there's a great distinction between the two Period Leather Modes within the same piece of media: Robin Hood (2006)! Compare the brooding, fascist-coded villain Guy of Gisborne with the shabby, bow-wielding, forest-dwelling Robin:

So, back to the original question: What's the difference between Charles Vane in Black Sails, and Edward Teach in Our Flag Means Death?

Simply put, it's intention. There is nothing intentional about Vane's leather in Black Sails. It's not the only leather in the show, and it only says what all shabby period leather says, relying on the same tropes as fantasy armour: he's a bad boy and a fighter in workaday leather, poor, flexible, and practical. None of these connotations are based in reality or history, and they've been done countless times before. It's boring design, neither historically accurate nor particularly creative, but much the same as all the other shabby chic fighters on our screens. He has a broad lineage in Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean and such, but that's it.

In Our Flag, however, the lineage is much, much more intentional. Ed is a direct homage to Mad Max, the costuming in which is both practical (Max is an ex-cop and road warrior), and draws on punk and kink designs to evoke a counterculture gone mad to the point of social breakdown, exploiting the thrill of the taboo to frighten and titillate the audience.

In particular, Ed is styled after Max in the second movie, having lost his family, been badly injured, and watched the world turn into an apocalypse. He's a broken man, withdrawn, violent, and deliberately cutting himself off from others to avoid getting hurt again. The plot of Mad Max 2 is him learning to open up and help others, making himself vulnerable to more loss, but more human in the process.

This ties directly into the themes of Our Flag - it's a deliberate intertext. Ed's emotional journey is also one from isolation and pain to vulnerability, community, and love. Mad Max (intentionally and unintentionally) explores themes of masculinity, violence, and power, while Max has become simplified in the popular imagination as a stoic, badass action hero rather than the more complex character he is, struggling with loss and humanity. Similarly, Our Flag explores masculinity, both textually (Stede is trying to build a less abusive pirate culture) and metatextually (the show champions complex, banal, and tender masculinities, especially when we're used to only seeing pirates in either gritty action movies or childish comedies).

Our Flag also draws on the specific countercultures of motorcycles, rockers, and gay/BDSM culture in its design and themes. Naturally, in such a queer show, one can't help but make the connection between leather pirates and leather daddies, and the design certainly nods at this, with its vests and studs. I always think about this guy, with his flat cap so reminiscient of gay leather fashions.

More overtly, though, Blackbeard and his crew are styled as both violent gangsters and countercultural rockstars. They rove the seas like a bikie gang, free and violent, and are seen as icons, bad boys and celebrities. Other pirates revere Blackbeard and wish they could be on his crew, while civilians are awed by his reputation, desperate for juicy, gory details.

This isn't all of why I like the costuming in Our Flag Means Death (especially season 1). Stede's outfits are by no means accurate, but they're a lot more accurate than most pirate media, and they're bright and colourful, with accurate and delightful silks, lace, velvets, and brocades, and lovely, puffy skirts on his jackets. Many of the Revenge crew wear recognisable sailor's trousers, and practical but bright, varied gear that easily conveys personality and flair. There is a surprising dedication to little details, like changing Ed's trousers to fall-fronts for a historical feel, Izzy's puffy sleeves, the handmade fringe on Lucius's red jacket, or the increasing absurdity of navy uniform cuffs between Nigel and Chauncey.

A really big one is the fact that they don't shy away from historical footwear! In almost every example above, we see the period drama's obsession with putting men in skinny jeans and bucket-top boots, but not only does Stede wear his little red-heeled shoes with stockings, but most of his crew, and the ordinary people of Barbados, wear low boots or pumps, and even rough, masculine characters like Pete wear knee breeches and bright colours. It's inaccurate, but at least it's a new kind of inaccuracy, that builds much more on actual historical fashions, and eschews the shortcuts of other, grittier period dramas in favour of colour and personality.

But also. At least it fucking says something with its leather.

[scapegrace74-blog]

New Ways of Turning into Stone, Chapter 4

A/N  Some strong reactions to the last chapter, which I admit caught me by surprise.   Writing is a funny craft, where you spend a lot of time and effort trying to show your reader exactly the picture you have in your mind, but then also have to surrender to each reader’s interpretation of what you wrote.  That said, some interpretations miss the mark entirely, and for that reason this chapter is entitled “False Assumptions”.   Trigger warning for childhood disease.

Jamie’s weekly appointments continued through the grey slumber of late April and into the wakening month of May.  Thursday became Claire’s favourite day of the week, for reasons she didn’t care to scrutinize too closely.

With regularity came a certain brand of predictability.  Their appointments took one of two forms, she realized.  Some days Jamie was full of life, witty and exasperating by turns.  He would spin long yarns about some trivial aspect of his life, fascinating tales that turned out to be nothing more than surface reflections, revealing little of the murky depths beneath.  He was also adept at using his considerable verbal charm to draw her into divulging more about herself than she ought.  Those visits left her equally frustrated and challenged.

The rest of the time her patient arrived with a weary slump, the thousand watt bulb of his personality dimmed to an occasional flicker.  Given his offhand comment about whisky and women, she tried not to ponder if he was hungover or suffering from the effects of an all-night hook-up.  From a diagnostic point of view these days of low ebb were beneficial because Jamie was far more likely to offer some nugget of inner revelation, truth sneaking out through the cracks of his weakened defences.

“I was away on business, in Hong Kong, when my Da passed,” he said on one such afternoon, the skin below his eyes drawn tight and the copper in his hair somehow muted.

“Did it happen suddenly?” 

“No’ really.  Jen had been at me fer months tae come hame, sayin’ that Da was workin’ himself tae death.”   Jamie looked out the window, eyes reflecting the overcast skies beyond.  “I ignored her.  Too wrapped up in my own grand self tae pay any heed.  Twas Ian, my brother-in-law, who called tae say Da had dropped in the pasture.  Massive coronary.  I caught the first flight back, but he was gone before I landed.”

She watched Jamie’s face closely as he spoke, but beyond the understandable emotion of reliving the sudden loss of a parent, he remained inscrutable.  The urge to draw him out overcame the deference she paid to Jamie’s well-defined boundaries.

“Do you think you’re to blame for his death?” she asked, half-expecting to be met with silence or a nimble deflection.

Jamie shook his head ruefully.

“Nah.  I dinna think I’m tae blame.  I ken it.  I was the only surviving son, ye see?  In the Highlands, tradition is everything, an’ a Fraser man had worked those lands fer generations.  I was only meant tae complete my studies abroad, an’ then return tae Lallybroch and take o’er from Da.  Instead, I left my sister an’ Ian tae watch o’er the farm while I played the business tycoon.”

“Is Lallybroch still in your family?” she wondered aloud, the name rolling about in her mouth like marbles.  

“Jenny and Ian couldna keep it.  I wasna well enough tae object, an’ they sold tae a developer.  It’s some kind of corporate wellness retreat now,” he finished with a distasteful grimace.

For every disclosure Jamie made, two more questions arose in its wake, like hacking away at a many-headed Hydra.  She wished she could delve further, but the chime from her computer announced the end of the session.

“Will I see you next week, Jamie?” she asked as he reluctantly rose to leave.

“Aye,” said with a sad smile.  “I’ll be here.”

***

The following Tuesday, Claire took the afternoon off work to perform an errand she’d long been avoiding.

Her departure from the Royal Hospital for Children had been so precipitous, she hadn’t filed the necessary paperwork to close her employment file.  The Human Resources department had been pestering her to complete the process for months.  The threat of holding up the transfer of her accreditation finally forced her hand.

To her great relief, the personnel offices were nowhere near the actual wards.  They lay at the end of a long white hallway broken by large windows looking into a series of meeting and activity rooms.  Her plan was to get in, sign the damn forms, and leave without running into any former colleagues or patients.   

The sun slanting into one of these sparsely furnished rooms glanced off the top of a bent head, causing it to glow like a freshly minted penny.  She stopped and stared, trying to reconcile the image of James Fraser seated in a too-small plastic chair, surrounded by a group of hospital-gowned children.

He must have caught sight of her while she stood gaping.  Running to the door before she could find the motor function to turn around, he called out joyfully from behind a blue hospital mask.

“Doctor Beauchamp!  Fancy meeting ye here.”

She mumbled something incoherent, damning herself for the blush she felt enveloping her cheeks.   Behind Jamie, a row of dewy eyes watched on.   She recognized the paper-thin skin and missing hair of chemotherapy patients, and a salty knot rose in her throat.

“Can ye spare a few minutes? Ye’re jes the pair of steady hands we need.”

She longed to decline, to disappear, to come up with a plausible excuse why she couldn’t enter that room.  Her heart thumped angrily in her chest, warning of its fragile state.

Seeing her conflict, Jamie extended a welcoming hand.

“Come, Sassenach.  The lassies would love tae meet ye.”

The space smelled of sterile laundry and sawdust.  With a habit borne of years of practice, Claire disinfected her hands in the small utility sink and donned a spare mask from the nearby dispenser, all while wondering what the hell she was doing.

The children were seated on colourful chairs arranged around a low table, its surface covered in pieces of pre-cut lumber, colourful pots of paint, a glue gun and all manner of cheap decorations such as you would find at a craft store.  The little girls ranged in age from pre-school to young teen, but they all looked at Jamie as though he’d hung the moon as he addressed them.

“Ladies, I’d like ye tae meet Doctor Beauchamp.  She’s a braw doctor but I bet she kens next tae nothing about woodwork.  Ye’ll have tae show her how it’s done.”

A chorus of nervous giggles was the only response.  Claire knew from experience that being a medical professional wasn’t going to endear her to children who spent much of their lives being essentially tortured in the name of science, hoping for some kind of miracle.

“Hello, everyone,” she waved meekly.  “You can call me Miss Claire, if you like.  Now, whatever are you doing with all this wood?”

It turned out that Jamie was supervising the construction of a half-dozen birdhouses.  He had pre-cut the lumber for easy assembly, but was assisting each girl to create a custom masterpiece that would hang outside her hospital window.  With the patience and steady manner of a primary school teacher, Jamie led the group through each step.  

A waifish girl of perhaps six sat directly to Claire’s left, her bare scalp covered by a brightly coloured bandana, offset by a huge pair of peacock-blue eyes that glimmered above her mask.  Eyes that were the mirror of the ones that visited her office every Thursday.  Something heavy settled inside her ribs.

“What’s your name, sweetie?” she asked in a low voice as she pushed an open pot of sky blue paint away from the table’s edge.  Small hands busied themselves pulling apart a package of cotton balls that looked suspiciously like the ones kept in the hospital’s supply cabinet.

“Margaret Murray, Doctor, errr, Miss Claire,” came the timid reply.  

Not Fraser, then.  But that didn’t necessarily mean anything.  She snuck a glance across the table at Jamie, who was just then teasing the youngest girl by tickling her cheeks with a fake feather.  Despite her heavy thoughts, she couldn’t help but smile.  That smile faltered when she noticed that the inside of Jamie’s elbows bore a matching set of fresh bandages.   A series of puzzle pieces tumbled into place.

Perhaps sensing the weight of her scrutiny, Jamie looked their way, whistling in admiration when he saw Maggie’s near-complete birdhouse.

“Tis a fine hame ye’ve built fer yer wee birds, Maggie.  What is all yon white fluff for?”

“Tis clouds, Uncle Jamie,” Maggie replied with the certainty of childhood.  “I dinna want the birdies tae miss the sky, even when they arenna flyin’.”

Claire watched the words hit him as surely as though they had been bullets.  A frozen gasp, a shudder that travelled the length of his body and the crest of tears that he tried valiantly to blink away.

“Aye, ye’re right, a nighean.  Any bird would be fair honoured tae sleep in yer skyhouse,” he managed to reply, voice bouldery with contained emotion.

When each birdhouse was complete and left along the window ledge to dry, Jamie set his small crew of helpers the task of clearing up the mess.   Claire stood next to him as he loaded his tools back into a small carrying case.

“Thanks for inviting me to join you, Jamie.  It was... well, it was unexpectedly wonderful,” she admitted.

“Ye’re most welcome, Doctor Beauchamp.  We couldna have managed wi’out yer steady hand manning the glue gun,” he teased.

“You’re not my patient here, Jamie.  You don’t need to use my title,” she said, a bit vexed by his formality.

“Aye, but it doesna feel right tae call ye by yer given name either.  An’ Miss Claire is jes weird.”

She had to acknowledge that he had a point.

“What was it you called me earlier?  Sassa-something?”

“Sassenach.  My Da woulda skelped my hide if he heard me call a lady by that name,” he said ruefully.

“Why, does it mean something terribly offensive?”  She was almost afraid to know, having enjoyed the delusion that Jamie felt as fondly towards her as she did towards him.

“Nah, tis jes an old-fashioned word for an English person in Scotland.  Seemed tae suit ye, is all.”  He shrugged, seemingly embarrassed by the explanation.

“Well then, Sassenach it is.  When I’m not on the clock, that is.”

Jamie’s eyes danced above his mask the way they did when he smiled, and she imagined hers replied in much the same way.  A long moment passed when nothing was said, neither of them looking away.

“You’re her platelet donor,” she said at last.  “Maggie’s, I mean.”

“Aye.  Every week while she’s in hospital for chemotherapy.  Tis the least I can do.”

It was an explanation that fit all the facts, but one that she never would have guessed.  Jamie had always worn long sleeves to his appointments, but she was certain the weeks when he was haggard and worn out coincided with the times he was donating the litres of blood necessary to distill into the platelet concentrate that would then be injected into Maggie’s body, helping her combat the poisonous effects of her chemotherapy.

“Whisky, women and song?” she prodded, relieved and yet frustrated that his offhand comment had kept her from seeing the truth.  “Why didn’t you just tell me, Jamie?”

“I didna want yer pity, Sassenach.  Fer once in my life, tis no’ about me, ye ken?  I didna want ye lookin’ at me like I was some kind of hero.”

She held back her reaction that his was a textbook definition of heroism, and instead asked the next obvious question.

“Are you a compatible bone marrow donor as well?”

Jamie shook his head slowly.  Although he was a close match, he explained, it wasn’t close enough.   Maggie’s older brother, Wee Jamie, was a perfect match but the law prohibited him from becoming a donor until he was at least sixteen, in seven long years.

“We’re jes tryin’ tae buy her enough time,” he said sadly before stepping out of the room, explaining he’d be back momentarily.

Claire stood in a daze, running through everything she’d assumed about Jamie in light of these newest facts.  A light tug on her hand drew her back into the moment.  Maggie was looking up at her with wide, trusting eyes.

“Are ye the Sassenach lady Uncle Jamie and my Mam argue about?”

“I suppose I might be,” she replied, curious what had been said between the siblings that Maggie had overheard.

“Are ye a heart doctor?” Maggie continued.

“Well, no.  Not exactly.  I’m the kind of doctor who helps people who are sad, and I try to find a way for them to be happy again.”  It sounded so easy when explaining it to a six year old.

“Sometimes Mam and Da talk about Uncle Jamie when they dinna ken I’m listenin’.  I’m verra good at sneakin’,” Maggie confided, and Claire couldn’t help but smile.  What a precious child.    “I’m sure you are,” she replied warmly, a hand coming to rest gently on the tiny cloth-covered head.

“Mam says Uncle Jamie is more stubborn than a mule and that he canna see past his own big heid,” Maggie continued.  Claire couldn’t say that she disagreed with that assessment.

“But Da says Uncle Jamie’s heart has been broken too many times, and thas’ why he’s given up on living.  Can ye fix his heart, Miss Claire, so that it isna broken any more?”

She couldn’t have stopped her tears if she tried.   She knelt on the floor and gathered Maggie’s thin, fragile body in her arms.

“Oh, Maggie.  I’m certainly going to try.”

[aion-rsa]

Why The Truth About Britney Spears Is So Elusive

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Britney Spears is one of the most-covered and least-known celebrities of the modern era. She is a millennial icon whose songs were the soundtrack of a generation. A choreographed contradiction from her earliest burst onto pop stardom, the singer became a blank canvass for anyone carrying a paint brush. The FX docuseries The New York Times Presents “Framing Britney Spears” is an attempt to find the artist’s place in the gallery. It is also searching for Britney’s whereabouts in general. Spears was placed into a conservatorship when she was 26 years old. That was 13 years ago this month, and she has been petitioning the court to have that changed.

Britney’s conservatorship, overseen by her father Jamie Spears, has been profitable. With a net worth of over $60 million, maybe too profitable to ever get resolved. It could be a form of life imprisonment and wannabe jailers appear to come out of the woodwork regularly in Britney’s career. Spears also currently has a restraining order against Sam Lutfi, one of her former managers.

According to “Framing Britney Spears,” court documents call the singer a “high-functioning conservatee.” Britney’s fans point out their favorite star released four albums, went on three world tours, performed a sold-out five-year residency in Las Vegas, was paid $15 million to be a judge on The X Factor, and put her name on a billion-dollar perfume line. Yet, she has been deemed incapable of taking care of her finances or life, and even when she can drive.The case is being proceeded over by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny.

For a pop queen in exile, Spears hasn’t been invisible. She’s been spotted at Starbucks with her boyfriend, Sam Asghari. She’s posted clips of her dancing, working out, painting, and giving impromptu fashion shows on Instagram during the coronavirus lockdown. Her posts, of course, only fuel the fire of conspiracy theorists, regardless of their apparent mood or meaning. Spears’ song titles like “Work Bitch,” “I’m a Slave 4 U,” and “”Out from Under,” could also be read as messages concerning her career. 

Spears commands loyalty, and her fans love her. This is poignantly evident in Chris Crocker’s viral 2007 YouTube plea to “Leave Britney Alone.” The #FreeBritney movement rose up spontaneously after the conservatorship. The fan-produced podcast “Britney’s Gram” has dedicated itself to getting information to the public. Miley Cyrus shouted “Free Britney” during a performance. Paris Hilton and Rose McGowan have shown support. Britney’s mother Lynne Spears has been known to “like” comments with the #FreeBritney hashtag. 

Samantha Stark, the director of The New York Times Presents: Framing Britney Spears, freelanced as a choreographer while making the two-step into video journalism. Writing at The New York Times for the past 8 years, she also produced and directed episodes of The Weekly. Stark spoke with Den of Geek about the difficulties of reporting on Spears’ conservatorship, and the future of journalism in a changing media climate.

Den of Geek: What drew you to Britney, of all the cases?

Samantha Stark: We started filming this before a lot of these court filings about the conservatorship started happening. The original concept was to look back at media coverage of her through this 2020-then-lens, post-MeToo and post when things like talking about mental health are more mainstream. There’s not as much stigma. Looking back at the media coverage of her from the early 2000s feels so shocking now. That was the original concept. Then while we were filming, these court filings started pouring in.

Could you have picked two better names for this case than Wallet and Judge Penny?

Right? There are a lot of similar names that run throughout it. You have Jamie Spears and Lynn Spears and Jamie Lynn Spears. You have a lot of Kevins, just like a ton of Kevins running throughout. There are a lot of Sams also in Britney’s story. There are a lot of re-occurring names. But yeah, Andrew Wallet.

What’s the first misconception “Framing Britney Spears” will clarify for the casual Britney Spears fan?

A huge misperception of her, that I had going into the project, is a lot of people think that the creation of her image and the music that she does and the way her shows are and the outfits she wears are other people’s decisions. But what I learned over and over again was how much of a say in her early career, including “Baby One More Time” at the very beginning, she had in her image and the way she was presented. How involved she was creatively in every show she did and every music video she made, particularly at the beginning of her career. I think a lot of people think she’s this puppet that was sexualized as a teenager and didn’t know it. And I think, from talking to the people who worked with her then, that that was her. She had a really big say in that.

From my unscientific survey, asking everyone I came into contact with “what’s the first thing they think of when they think of Britney Spears”: A lot of people say, “Oh, that time she shaved her head,” or “the picture where she shaved her head.” One of the reasons it’s called “Framing Britney Spears” is there seems to be these very few still-image frames in our collective subconscious, that burned into us when we remember her.

We went into it wanting to figure out how we could learn what was behind the frame, outside of the frame. I think a lot of people don’t realize all the different factors that were leading up to that point. A lot of people don’t realize that she was going through a custody battle then and how important her role as a mother was to her, or is to her still. There’s a lot of pulling back the curtain we could do.

Danny Ramos, the photographer we interviewed, was one of the only people doing video during the big paparazzi explosion. We wanted to talk to him and use his video, so you could see what was happening outside of the frame. He describes the time with the umbrella, that’s another big photo that people remember, like the head shaving. What people don’t realize is how upset she was that day because she was trying to see her kids and wasn’t able to. And how much he pushed her buttons before that happened, some deep buttons. So that’s outside of the frame. 

Another one is the central mystery of our film. I think a lot of people don’t know that Britney Spears is still in a court-sanctioned conservatorship and that, for most of the 12 years, her father was the one in charge of her personal, medical, and economic decisions. He controls what happens with her money. The central mystery of our piece is something that Joe Coscarelli, one of our reporters, says in the film: “She’s living the life of a busy pop star, and yet we’re told she’s at risk constantly.” How is someone who can live the life of a busy pop star also be so at risk that she can’t make basic decisions for herself like medical-care decisions, where she lives, contracts, what to do with her money?

Britney’s lawyer, Adam Streisand, mentions a health report he wasn’t allowed to see, and was told by the judge it was justified withholding. I’ve seen a lot of reported diagnoses on the internet. Do you have any idea what that report said specifically?

Absolutely not. I think that’s important. Part of the difficulty with reporting on conservatorships, Britney’s and also any conservatorship, is that a lot of it has to do with medical records. Also, they do have court investigators that go out and interview the people involved. They have different kinds of people who submit reports about the person, and they’re protected under HIPAA and also allow the person some privacy.

Britney has signaled recently through her court filings that she doesn’t want her records to be sealed, that she wants people to be able to see them. But that’s particularly with her estate, which is different from the medical records. Who knows if she would want people to see that report also? But her conservators and lawyers in the past have decided it’s against her best interest. That’s something else interesting about conservatorships, is that other people decide what is in the person’s best interest. As Britney is performing in Vegas, other people are deciding for her what’s in her best interest all the time.

Since we don’t know anything about that report, we don’t know if Britney has a mental health diagnosis. She could not, there could be nothing actually in that realm. A lot of people like to speculate what kind of mental illness she might have, but we don’t know if she even has one. I think that’s important to remember.

Britney’s request for an outside independent party taking conservatorship seems like the most rational solution to the situation. Why is this so difficult?

That is the question. It seems as if Britney requests, “I don’t want my father in charge of being a conservator of the estate. I want this trust, Bessemer Trust, instead.” Yet her father is still in charge. That is legal. The judge made that decision. We don’t know why. A lot of questions about the conservatorship system, as a whole, have been brought up during this process. When someone is under a conservatorship, they are under a conservatorship because it’s considered that they cannot act in their own best interest. Conservatorships are mostly given to the elderly with Alzheimer’s, because a lot of people try to take advantage of people with Alzheimer’s and get them to sign over their money or their wills. And this was put in place to protect those people, which is really necessary.

It’s confusing because Britney is not. It’s a very unique situation, they always say, but we don’t know why.Jamie’s argument is that he has been doing a good job on this for the past 12 years. Her estate has grown, and that if he gets taken off and a whole new company takes over, it can harm her. Bessemer Trust does this professionally. They manage people with gigantic estates’ money all the time. So, the merits of that argument are questionable. But the judge decided that way. She’d left the door open. She didn’t decide he’s definitely staying on. She didn’t do an emergency suspension. That’s what they were asking for. They could still file to remove him.

These legal processes take a really long time, and as they’re happening, everybody’s getting paid. Britney’s estate pays the lawyers on both sides. She pays for her own lawyers, and then she pays for the lawyers arguing against her own lawyers, as well as the conservators’. That is oftentimes what happens with the conservatorship system. That’s also a place where people point to as something that could be a systemic issue in conservatorship systems: are these lawyers always acting in her best interest while also getting paid as long as the conservatorship is in place?

Is Britney a hostage, or is this a self-imposed exile?

I have no idea. We don’t know. Another really hard part of reporting this is there’s such a strong circle around Britney, seemingly controlling who she interacts with, because of the conservatorship, that we can’t talk to her. And she has not said anything publicly on her social media. Through her court documents, she said she appreciates the long “informed support” of her fans and that she “doesn’t want this battle hidden away like a family secret.”

Those were quotes from her court documents written by her lawyer, Sam Ingham, who legally is responsible for speaking for her since she’s not legally necessarily supposed to speak for herself. She could. So, that’s a mystery. Why isn’t she saying anything? Is it because there are people around her stopping her, or is it because she doesn’t want to say anything? Maybe Britney doesn’t want to talk to anyone about this. We have no idea. It makes it very frustrating to report on.

Just because you report on something doesn’t mean you agree with it. Do you think Spears speaks in code on her Instagram posts?

I don’t know. I have looked at every post since 2015 and some before that. It’s really fascinating to look at. Something about her Instagram that I love was this period of time where she was posting a lot of herself with her kids. It was just so beautiful to see her as a mom, because I know from talking to people close to her, that’s the number-one thing she’s ever wanted, to be a mom and to be seen as a mom. So those are really moving to me. Whether or not she’s speaking in code with other things, it’s so hard to tell because they’re always so surprising what she puts up there.

It seems she’s been doing it consistently, even in her songs throughout her career.

Yeah. It is interesting to listen to some of her songs now that we’ve seen all this come out in court. Even the song “Overprotected.” Listening to that now, wow. It has such a different meaning knowing that she does not want her father to be “protecting” her. A lot of her music videos and music has this bondage theme. Britney is often seen in chains or in cages. Also, a lot of themes of people taking from her, like “Gimme More.”

I think people haven’t taken that seriously, but when you look at it and you think of these as art and expression, even if she doesn’t have a song-writing credit on the songs a lot. Felicia [Culotta], her assistant and friend, who’s been with her for most of her career, said she would go into the studio and talk to the people who were writing the songs about what was happening in her life. And they would often write songs based off of what she was saying, which I guess is standard in the industry. I didn’t know. But we can draw our own conclusions to why there is such a big theme, yeah, of bondage and of people taking stuff from her.

Britney was a trendsetter musically. She explored dubstep, and she really is the face of the millennials. Do you think the #FreeBritney movement will also become a millennial icon?

Well, one of the things I find so compelling about the #FreeBritney movement is talking to Kim Kaiman, who was the marketing director at Jive Records. She was the person who met Britney when she first came in at 15, and decided how to market her, what her image was going to be. She very much expressed that she wanted it to be based off of who Britney actually was as a person. She describes her as “your friend that you kind of idolize a bit and look up to, but is the same as you, has the same hopes and dreams as you have.” And the 12, 13-year-old preteen age was who they were marketing her towards, I think she really connected with that.

Kim says she captured so well the dichotomy of what a teenage girl is. Teenage girls want to be grown women, but they’re also kids. It’s this wanting to be sexy and in control feeling that she captured that really spoke to these young people. Almost everyone in #FreeBritney who I talked to was in their late 20s or early 30s. So they were that age then. They were those kids that she was being sold to. I feel like the idea that she’s your friend really carried over, because they’re like, “This is my friend that they’re doing this to. I have to go stop it,” from what they said to me.

When they were that age, she was sold as this perfect, all-American girl. Kevin Wu, who’s one of the #FreeBritney organizers, says this in the film. He was saying finding out that she wasn’t perfect, that time where she was super vulnerable to people, and she was having public issues. I hate saying meltdown because I really don’t know what it was. But the vulnerability that she showed there really, really speaks to this group, and also, I would say, that age bracket in general.

I keep quoting people, but Felicia, it’s not in the film, said “Britney was judged and criticized for who she was. Even when she came out as a teenager, she was judged and criticized for being too sexy. A lot of people who are kind of these outsiders or people who were bullied or LGBTQ people, they were judged and criticized for who they were when they were younger, and so there’s this connection. They can relate to each other.” She said, “Britney relates to them as well.”

There’s kind of this counterculture fandom that the #FreeBritney people are like the people who were bullied when they were younger. And it is kind of millennial. We want to be more open talking about mental health. We don’t want bullying. We want diversity. I do think that it really speaks to that.

You worked extensively with the #FreeBritney movement players. In the review, I wrote you treated them like stringers. How do you rate them as journalists?

I would not say that we treated them like stringers because we did all our own reporting ourselves. We have our own journalists. Liz Day, who’s featured in the piece. Everything that they were finding out and bringing up we independently investigated and verified, absolutely. But I will say, I think they became their own investigators for themselves. There weren’t people doing investigations into it when they first started in 2019. And so, they definitely became their own investigators trying to dig up court documents. But we definitely did that ourselves.

But part of the story is that they became these investigators, so we do feature that in the story. It’s fascinating. Some lawyers are involved with #FreeBritney, and they know how to find the publicly available court documents. They would take them and put them online and highlight them. And as soon as a new court document would come out, like if Sam Ingham, Britney’s court-appointed attorney, would file something new, they would know immediately and post it online and dissect it. But we did that ourselves too.

It’s so much easier for us to do it because we have a full infrastructure set up for it. These people were spending so much time. The reason they started doing the investigating is because there wasn’t any media covering it, and they really wanted that. They wanted people to look into this. And so, they started doing it themselves, and it got a lot of attention. Then the media did look into it.

We had an investigation into her conservatorship in 2016, so we were one of the only people to be looking at it in that way. It was by the reporter who’s in the film, Joe Coscarelli. They did this “Is Britney Spears Ready to Stand on Her Own” questioning: is she ready to not be in this conservatorship? A lot of people are interested in it because of what they started digging up.

I see it similar to the hijacking of right-wing hashtags by the K-pop stans or what’s happening right now with the GameStop stock. The community is bringing the attention and journalism is keeping up with it.

The fact also that the age of a lot of these people means they’re so adept at internet culture and social media culture. They are using social media in a sophisticated way to get people to pay attention to them, for sure.

Do you think Britney had any idea how creepy the Star Search Q&A with Ed McMahon was, or was she just blindsided by the stupidity of it?

I think you can look at her face and be the judge of that. She was 10, but she handled it very well. I think it boded for the future of men asking inappropriate things to her. She just kind of like, “It depends. Boys are mean. It depends.” She kind of shook it off quite well as a ten-year-old.

And you see her in our piece later, when there are men asking her inappropriate questions, she sidesteps it in a really good way, in a really way that’s interesting to watch.

The shocking one was her being told about a mother saying that she wanted to shoot her because she was a bad influence.

The wife of a governor, by the way. That’s the kind of thing that you look at and you wonder would it happen now? I think we’ve come some way of not trying to shame people for their sexuality, but who knows?

There’ve always been persistent dark rumors about Britney, along with other celebrities who reach a certain tier. Why do you think people are so eager to demonize them?

Well, I wonder if that is still true today. I feel like it was very true during this height of the tabloid era, like 2004 to 2009. We’re not as eager to enjoy celebrities’ crashing and burning. If they’re going to rise, they have to fall, that kind of narrative. I feel like our culture is not as into that now. I think we’re less mean-spirited. And I don’t know. That’s what I was trying to figure out this entire time making this piece. Like, why? Why Britney? Why are we, as a culture, consuming all of this?

The reason that there was paparazzi around her all the time is because it sold. We consume that. It sold the magazines better than any other light “storylines.” I don’t know why. I mean, just my opinion, maybe the idea of what could be beautiful in society and perfect in society was so narrow that people were resentful of that. The majority of the US Weekly readers were women, so the majority of people buying those photographs were women. Is it because this ideal was so narrow back then that people became jealous and resentful of her? Now, I think the standard of beauty has opened up much wider, but that’s just my guess.

One of the experts says she’s never seen anyone successfully terminate a conservatorship. If Britney does succeed, will that upset the guardianship designation in the future?

Only time will tell. Who knows? I mean, if there are issues within the system that need to come to light, I think it would help them come to light.

Just because we’re Den of Geek and you’re from The New York Times, I have to ask, are you at all related to Tony Stark?

You know, I get that question a lot, and the true answer is we don’t know.

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The New York Times Presents “Framing Britney Spears” debuts Feb. 5 on FX and FX on Hulu.

The post Why The Truth About Britney Spears Is So Elusive appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3tA8XTC

[mymelodyheart]

Highland Destiny Chapter 17 ~Highland Shenanigans Part 1~

Jamie had noticed that fleeting look Stephen had given Claire the previous night. It may have been brief, but it spoke volumes. At that point, he knew the extent of Stephen's feelings for Claire went beyond fondness and wondered if she was aware of it. He hadn't liked it one bit the way she had flung herself into Stephen's arms, the way she had leaned forward to listen to every word he had said, and the way she had smiled and laughed at a shared memory. Jamie wanted to be the reason for her joy, and the sparkle in her eyes, to be the one she shares her innermost thoughts, memories and secrets with. Irrationally, he wanted her pregnancy to show soon so that the world can see that he had done that to her - and that she was his.

After Stephen had left their table, they had hastily finished their meal, eager to be on their own again. After leaving the inn, Jamie had hoisted Claire on his back and weaved their way through the open fields to The Boat House, laughing and screaming. At the threshold, he had carried her into his arms, coaxing her to close her eyes. Inside, she had been enraptured at the rusticity of the modest dwelling as she beheld her surrounding, admiring the craftsmanship of the unembellished woodworks. He was charmed as she took joy in the simplest things as if he had laid the most precious jewels at her feet. 

"Sassenach, what do ye think were ye born to do? Do ye think it is to be a highly accomplished and successful Neurosurgeon? Or...to be a wife of a nomad to spend the rest of yer days sleeping under the stars? Or...do ye see yersel' as a lady of the manor with people to serve you at yer disposal? Or...how about a mother with many children?" Jamie had asked as he held her close.

Claire had simply answered, before kissing him softly on his lips, "I was born to be with you, James Fraser."

He knew that it was never easy for her to put into words her true feelings, but her reply was the nearest thing to expressing her love. So he basked in the light of this admission, his heart exulting in the knowledge she had chosen him.

Although tired, they had made slow passionate love that night with the moonlight streaming through the huge window that overlooked the loch. He loved how the glow had painted her body in shades of silver, her pale skin beaming out luminescence as they moved in tandem to their coupling. He savoured the intoxication of her scent; sunshine, lemon, sweet herbs and wildflowers. He delighted in the sounds that she made at every touch, stroke, and caress; even more, when she cried out his name, clawing his back, her heels pressing into his arse. He wanted all of her, every atom and molecule that made up her body, every thoughts and dream. He yearned to brand her and to leave his imprint, making his claim unquestionable and true. 

As he found his release in her arms, he had groaned into her ears like a dying man. "You are mine, mo nighean donn. Mine alone. Do ye understand me?" 

Then he realised, after uttering those words, that he could never ever possess her soul without losing his own.

..........

Before setting off for Skye, Jamie and Claire breakfasted at the edge of the loch wrapped in tartan pattern blankets with a teapot of Oolong tea and generously buttered rolls. Although it was a glorious spring day and the sun was out, the air was still chilly and crisp. They had sat in silence enjoying each other's company and the surrounding, content in their own thoughts, afraid if they spoke, the peacefulness and tranquillity of the scenery would be disturbed.

The drive to Skye was smooth and traffic-less, and they had made a pit-stop at Eilean Donan Castle in Kyle of Lochalsh to enjoy the scenic view of the lake and rugged surroundings. Jamie had explained how the castle was destroyed by British Naval Warships in 1719 because it was a stronghold of Jacobite rebellion under Clan Mackenzie and their allies. Although the location was stunning, they didn't stay long, and they were only too happy to leave as the first tourists-filled coaches started to arrive.

Claire had been surprised when Jamie suggested, after they have checked-in into their cottage, to visit her friends Philip Wylie and Stephen Bonnet in the Cuillin Hotel in Portree that day. He hadn't been overly keen the previous night when Stephen had extended the invitation, and Claire had already decided she wouldn't press the matter again. Seeing that he was genuinely enthusiastic about it, she had dismissed his change of heart to male-bonding over sports and rugby.

It was early afternoon when they arrived at the hotel with their camper van, after calling Stephen to warn him of their arrival. As Jamie and Claire strolled hand in hand into the grounds, they could see a flurry of activity on the lawns, awnings and canopies erected, and tables and chairs spread about. The air smelled of roasting meat and bbq and fresh grass, and there was music playing subtly in the background. The service staff scurried about refilling chafing dishes with food, offering dainty hors d'oeuvre in silver platters and serving aperitifs from trays. Further afield, there was a game of Tug O'War about to commence with men on both teams all wearing their respective clan's kilt.

As they approached nearer to the festivities, Claire saw Stephen waving his arm animatedly at them. Still, they didn't hurry and took their time to read the signpost of the upcoming nuptials and programme of the next few days' forthcoming events. Claire waved back at Stephen who was already alerting Phillip Wylie of their arrival. 

She felt Jamie stiffened in her hand.

"What is it, Jamie?" she asked distractedly as her focus was divided between reading the notice in front of her, Jamie's reaction to something he read and the approaching Phillip Wylie with fiancee.

Jamie turned to her. "Sassenach, there is something I must tell ye before we go..."

"Is it important, Jamie?" she asked, as she waved to the approaching couple, oblivious to his mounting trepidation.

"Sassenach listen to me...this is important!" he asserted impatiently, his face turning white as the couple came nearer.

Finally, sensing his distress, she turned to face him exasperatedly. "What is it, Jamie?"

"Th-the bride of yer ...friend Phil," he winced and swallowed hard, dreading Claire's reaction, "She used to be a former lover."

Claire let out a sigh as she reached out to touch his face. "It's alright, Jamie...I get it. You have a past and so have I...everyone does." She smiled at him in reassurance. "Actually, I have something to tell you too. Stephen was my..."

Claire was about to finish her sentence with "my first kiss" when the hosts arrived.

"Stephen was yer what?!?" Jamie hissed in her ears, his face turning from chalk white to a thunderous red.

"Claire! So good of you to come!" A smiling Phillip Wiley interjected, pulling a stunning woman eagerly by his side.

Claire ignored Jamie and turned her attention to the beaming couple.

"Phil!" she squealed, her arms already open wide for an embrace. "So good to see you. Of all places...here in Scotland!?!"

Phil took Claire in his arms and squeezed her warmly, laughing and babbling in her ears how happy he was to see her.

When they finally let go, Phil turned to the woman next to him. "Pardon me, sweetheart for getting carried away, but I'm just so thrilled to see an old friend of mine from Oxford. Claire meet my bride, Mary...Mary MacNab."

Smiling broadly, she shook the woman's hand. "Nice to meet you, Mary. I'm Claire...Claire Beauchamp. Phil and I used to be teammates in our local pub dart competition during our university days. We were the best team ever," she enthused, laughing. Claire noted, although stunningly beautiful, Mary McNab looked much older than Phil, and she just caught her in time stealing glances at Jamie, recognition apparent in her eyes.

"The pleasure is mine, Claire," Mary purred with an enigmatic quirk of the lips. Then her eyes flashed as she glimpsed the engagement ring on Claire's finger and cocked an eyebrow at Jamie as she turned to him. "Jamie, darling, nice to see you again." She placed a hand intimately on his arm before offering her cheek for a kiss.

Claire noticed Jamie was rigid and reserved as he leaned down to kiss Mary and introduced himself to Phil formally. He was not his usual lively self, and obviously, something else was bothering him. She almost felt sorry for him that they came, especially that she knew Mary was his former lover. She took his hand and gave it a tight squeeze, but he didn't respond. 

"Aaah James Alexander Malcolm Mackenzie Fraser, of course. The kingpin of Scotland's finest whisky. Mary had insisted on your  usquebaugh  gracing our bars...what an honour to have you as our guest," Phil exclaimed, shaking Jamie's hand overly vigorously and looking at Claire with  I-never-knew-you-knew-him  eyes.

Jamie smiled weakly. "Thank ye for having us here, Phil...now that ye mentioned a bar, I think I need a stiff one."

Claire was about to remind Jamie that he was driving when Stephen suddenly showed up from nowhere, pumped up and sweating from some rigorous activity and too jolly for Jamie's liking.

"Hey, Jamie, how about that rugby game you promised? You still in it?" he asked, winking at Claire. "It's five against five, and we're missing one. You'll do to play forward for the defending team with your muckle size. So are you in?"

Jamie didn't need further persuasion. He was already taking off his jacket before Stephen could finish his sentence. "Aye, I'll be there. I'll just need to change my clothes in the camper," he answered, his jaws clenched and his face set in determination. He deposited his jacket in Claire's arm and turned around without saying anything as he headed toward their vehicle.

"Ooooh, this should be interesting! I love watching Jamie play sport. C'mon, darling let's find a seat near the field. I can't miss this for the world," Mary MacNab chimed in, already stirring Phil away who looked at Claire with an apologetic shrug.

"What's up with him?" Stephen wondered, pointing at Jamie's retreating figure.

"God knows, Stephen, God, knows!!! He's probably got chilis stuffed up his arse for all I know," Claire grumbled irritably as she turned around and walked towards the dessert buffet.

..........

Claire piled dainty petits fours onto her plate mumbling to herself and not bothering as the other women near her gasped at her sugar-laden dish. She stole a sideways glance at a group of girls and checked out their outfits. She knew she was under-dressed for the occasion, but she was beyond caring.  Well, at least I'm warm in my jeans and sweatshirt...I can't be prancing about on the lawn in high heels and flowing dresses, like these bunch of hoity-toities . She refused to take further notice at the glances thrown her way as she found a seat in the sun at the edge of the field, waiting for the rugby to commence.

Although it was sunny, the breeze was biting. Claire had put on Jamie's leather jacket and smiled to herself as she noticed the length of it almost covered most of her thighs.  All the better to keep warm, lass!  She was about to bite into her sweet treat when she felt someone put a tartan scarf over her shoulders.

It was Stephen smiling down at her. "I saw you shivering and took this from my hotel room. It's wool, it should keep you warm."  

"Thank you, Stephen, that's really kind of you." Knowing how well Stephen plays rugby and that Jamie will be playing on the opposing side, she jokingly, cajoled, "Go easy on Jamie, will you."

"Oh, my sweet darling missus," he began with a grin. "I know the likes of James Fraser...they have it too easy in life. So no, I will not make it easy for him. He needs to earn you even if it's just with a game of rugby. I saw how he looks at you, so I'm betting my bottom penny he'll be showing off today." 

Claire laughed as he blew her a kiss and turned to run towards the field. She knew perfectly well how provocative Stephen can be when playing with opponents. He has had a few split lips and damaged eye retina in the past as testament to those provocations. She just hoped that he had outgrown those habits, for both his and Jamie's sake.

Lost in her thoughts, Claire nearly missed the tittering, giggling and gasping from the nearby group of girls. She turned towards the source, and he saw Jamie running to the field in his team's plain black t-shirt and sweatpants while Stephen's side was in all white. Both teams were priming for a warm-up before the game as the players did some stretch exercises and lunge twists.

"Oh my God, it's Jamie Fraser! I can't take it!" she heard one say not too subtly as the others from the group shrieked excitedly.

Inwardly Claire rolled her eyes and stuffed one confectionary morsel into her mouth, shoving it in with her forefinger.

"Hungry much?" asked a voice in a very posh English accent.

Claire turned to the seat next to her and saw a woman dressed in a very expensive pantsuit. In fact, everything about her was expensive; her perfect hair extension, well-manicured fingernails, Chopard sunglasses, Hermes handbag, Christian Louboutin high heels and a light Burberry coat. Even her scent smelled expensive.

"Oh, sorry, hi," Claire replied with a mouth full of cake, wiping her right hand on the side of her jeans to shake hands, "I'm Claire...Claire Beauchamp. Sorry, these cakes are just so good." Her voice sounded muffled as she extended the plate with her other hand to the woman next to her. "Want some?"

The woman ignored her offer of handshake and cake. "Hi, it's Geneva, Geneva Dunsany and sorry, I don't do carbs. It's not really good for the waistline," she responded off-handedly.

Claire ignored the barbed remark and focused her attention to the men on the field warming up, as she put the last piece of cake into her mouth.

As if she couldn't help herself, Geneva piped up again. "An excellent piece of arse that James Fraser have don't you think?"

There was a moment of silence before Claire answered, as she put her empty plate to the ground. "Oh, I've seen it a multitude of times, and I have to agree, it is an excellent piece of arse indeed," she said keeping a straight face as she took a massive gulp of orange juice offered to her by a waiter.

Disregarding her reply, Geneva added, "Well, I've met him in London before, at a gala dinner for Food and Drinks Presentation Award. He seemed interested in me then, but we never got to talk further because he had a lot of interviews lined up that night. I plan to get reacquainted with him again today. I think he'd be thrilled to see me."

"If that's the case, I can arrange a meeting for you with him. He's my boyfriend," Claire pointed out casually, not looking at the woman next to her as she groped for a tissue she stuffed in Jamie's jacket.

Geneva turned to Claire, pulling down her sunglasses and raising her eyebrows at her. "Well, every girl can dream, so they say," she said in false cheerfulness, as she looked at Claire up and down. "Dream on, Claire, you're not his type."

Claire, still not looking at her, agreed, smiling to herself, "Yes, that's definitely true, every girl can dream."

..........

The whistle blew as a signal that the rugby game was about to commence. The players quickly left the field to remove their sweatpants to reveal sports shorts underneath. Surprising Claire, Stephen ran up to her to kiss her on the forehead.

"I know you'll be cheering for your lad, missus but I've come to give you a peck for luck. Wish me well, lass!" He huffed, giving her a mischievous wink.

Not giving Claire a chance to reply, Stephen was gone as quickly as he came, leaving her in stitches. And before she could recover from laughing, Jamie too was running in her direction, sweatpants in his hand and his face still looking like thunder.

Geneva Dunsany suddenly straightened up and smiled. "Oh, hi, Jamie!"

Jamie didn't notice the girl nor the greeting. He purposely advanced towards Claire, leaning down to grab her neck, not too gently, to give her a long bruising kiss. Claire could hear a lot of drawing in of breaths and gasps from nearby, as Jamie continued with his silent amourous admonitions. When he finally raised his head, he whispered in a warning tone, stormy blue eyes boring into her, "We'll talk later, Sassenach." And then he was off leaving Claire to deal with the trail of shocked onlookers.

..........

Claire could hardly contain the heat on her face after Jamie's ardent display. She knew Jamie was well known for his whisky among the socialites and celebrity circles even if he tried his best to downplay it. But Claire had never imagined being pulled into it. She had heard phone cameras snapping, audible whispers of  who-is-that-girl,  and even felt the sudden dislike towards her person from some women, during and after Jamie's punishing kiss.  Damn you, Jamie!

So she was glad when an incensed Geneva left without saying a word, and her seat was taken by Phil.

"Oooh, that was some kiss, Claire," he remarked with a shake of his head before pointing toward the field," And that game is becoming like a two-men rugby game. I do not like the look of it."

She smiled weakly at her friend, glad of his presence and distraction, as he sat down. "They're both a couple of Neanderthals if I may say so myself. Stupid bloody oafs! They could beat each other for all I care," she retorted, glowering at the two giants on the field intentionally body-slamming and tackling each other even if neither of them possessed the ball.

Phil and Claire winced as they witnessed an illegal high tackle by Stephen on Jamie sending him flat on his back, and then they grimaced when Jamie swung an arm on Stephen as he retrieved the ball during a scrum. They both agreed Stephen and Jamie were very well matched when it came to stamina and endurance that even the rest of the players began to off-load the ball to them regularly. Ignorant of the game's rules, the majority of the spectators thought battering and pummelling were part of the game, and they cheered exuberantly at every hit and fall.

"Crikey, they're going to kill each other!" exclaimed Phil, who was already signalling one of the men to stop the game. "That's not even funny anymore."

More bodies crowded the outer field as they yelled and applauded, inciting both men, like bloodthirsty spectators of Ancient Rome. Some of the players had already stopped playing, and instead, they watched in astonishment as Stephen and Jamie grappled with the ball, ignoring the sound of the whistle

Instantaneously, as more people rallied the game, Claire began to feel sicker and sicker in her stomach. Not because of watching the brutality of rugby, but she felt a rather rapidly building nausea in her guts, and her skin started to feel clammy and cold to the touch. A sudden tautness assailed her middle, and her stomach felt like it was carousing with her kidneys. She gripped Phil's hand to keep from falling. "Ph-Phil, I think I have the collywobbles," Claire said hoarsely before collapsing to the ground.

[architectnews]

Rozenprieel Building, Haarlem Holland

Rozenprieel Building, Haarlem, Amsterdam Housing Development, Dutch Architecture, Images Netherlands

Rozenprieel Building in Haarlem

7 July 2021

Design: M3H Architects

Location: Haarlem, Amsterdam, the Netherlands

Rozenprieel Building, Haarlem

The Rozenprieel-project in Haarlem has a living facade! The unique, specially designed brick adds some extra green to the neighborhood and gives this project a social layer. Together with designer Chris Kabel we have devised a new facade that is brought to life by the residents.

The stone, from St Joris – Beesd, has a protruding part with a hole through where a steel wire is stretched. This helps climbing plants to grow upwards and to create a green facade. Residents can plant flowers here and thus make the neighborhood greener together. The green facade contributes to the quality of life in the area and refers to the historic estate Rozenprieel. Which was an inspiration for this project.

Our design is fitted into an existing building block from 1920 and houses twelve new homes. The houses have their own front door to the street, of which the four attic apartments also have their own entrance. Although we designed a new building, we see it as a repair of the city. The design does not imitate the old building, we carefully translated the historic characteristics into a contemporary design.

The continuous bands, the keystones and the roof molding form a dotted pattern in the facade together with the white stones. The dotted facade tells a story about the handicraft. Specially designed ceramics replaces the traditional woodwork. For the facades we chose a reddish brown wasserstrich stone, Mingo Falls van den Daas from Azewijn, Wienerberger. This stone fits well into the atmosphere of 19th century architecture, but is also contemporary. The perfect stone for a project that needs to be integrated into an existing environment!

How is the project unique? This project has an special feature. The facade is a planter! Plants can use the special designed brick to climb up and give the building a green facade. Residents can use the unique bricks for their plants, and thereby contribute to a greener environment themselfs. It is an insipiring way to activate the community to make the city greener.

Key products used: For the facades, we opted for a reddish-brown washer-strich stone, Mingo Falls from van Den Daas Brickfactory in Azewijn, Wienerberger. This stone blends in well with the atmosphere of 19th century architecture, and is also contemporary. The white stone designed by Chris Kabel was fired and glazed by St Joris from Beesd. The facade tells a story about the craft. Ceramics specially designed and made for the site replace the traditional woodwork.

Rozenprieel Building in Haarlem, Amsterdam – Building Information

Architect: M3H Architects

Project size: 1 m2 Site size: 835 m2 Completion date: 2021 Building levels: 2

Images: Luuk Kramer and Naomi Jamie

Rozenprieel Building, Haarlem images / information received 070721 from M3H Architects

Location: Harlem, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, western Europe

Amsterdam Architecture

Netherlands Architecture Designs – chronological list

Amsterdam Architecture News – selection below:

Amsterdam Floating Home, Schoonschip Design: i29 architects photo : i29 / Ewout Huibers Floating Home

Sluishuis IJburg Building in Amsterdam Design: BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group and Barcode Architects image courtesy of architects Sluishuis IJburg Building

Amsterdam Walking Tours

Amsterdam Architecture – contemporary building information

Dutch Buildings

Comments / photos for the Rozenprieel Building, Haarlem, Holland design by M3H Architects page welcome

The post Rozenprieel Building, Haarlem Holland appeared first on e-architect.

[njsnumberonesuppstore]

Whoa! So earlier this evening I sat down with a friend of mine to talk about life. This is my second interview I’ve done since I lost Jamie. But this is the first one to release. Richard Kaufman asked some great questions and even dropped some new ideas into my brain. A good interview does that. Thanks to Robert for helping push me into share my story, thank you to mi amigo Mark for the support and encouragement. Thank you Annette, Kelly, Amyrose, Tammi, Daniel, Donald, and the many other friends and fellow business owners that helped support me through my grief. Without this network or love God has put into my life, I’d be lost. Wow this episode this is life changing and if you listen to the last two minutes it’s an eternity changer. From troubled youth in Juvenile Detention to getting expelled from school to Army Veteran and still helping and serving veterans to this day. To losing his Angel and Bride Jamie to a tragic health crisis. And now being a wonderful Dad and business owner. His story is an amazing one of tragedy and triumph. Thank you to our sponsors Kurt Ballash Ballash Woodworks and JD Tierney Southpaw Laser Concepts and Lisa Bowers of Office Allies Business Consultants https://www.facebook.com/OfficeAlliesVA/ https://anchor.fm/richard-kaufman/episodes/Never-give-up-in-life-and-business-with-Veteran-Entrepreneur-Kurt-Ballash-ejobra #podcast #veterans #success (at North Arlington, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFOBRJmJR2-/?igshid=1ngeoyni48ers

[sexatoxbridge]

Sorry but am I the only one SOBBING after Louis' interview???? So much of it just hurt my heart but a lot of it just made me even prouder and jfc I have too many emotions rn pls tell me I'm not alone

...I mean...I liked the pictures? 

I’ve been thinkin about this a lot. So I’m going to elaborate.

When it comes to just about anything to do with Louis this is 100% me

And while there were definitely parts of the interview that had me wanting to cry in a very not so cool way, a lot of it just didn’t quite sit well with me. I’m not surprised with how they’re marketing Louis, since this is the same incompetent “team” that’s been behind his PR for years, but the content of the interview just had me like  

Let’s focus on the positive for a moment...he looks incredible.

Like

But then as you start to add headlines to these photos it’s gets a bit...eh

Louis is so incredibly talented as both a a singer and songwriter and this narrative is disappointing because when you’re trying to launch someone’s solo SINGING career, exactly what good does it do to begin a headline with “Not the best singer”? 

Which is why when people praise this article saying how great it is I’m like

There are certainly very honest and raw moments in this article, and I do think it was well written. The parts of actual dialogue are gripping, but the way in which they’re framed sells Louis short in my opinion. I can’t sit here and say, “Wow this part was great and I’m just going to ignore all the other bits that kind of stuck out as odd to me.” 

They are using the same, and I mean the EXACT same, marketing tactics that they used with One Direction.

They’ve always tried to sell him as this working class Donny lad figure, which I’m pretty sure is why his relationship with Jamie Vardy has been so heavily publicised (aside from the rumours that he’ll play him in the biopic), but they’ve really made it sound like if he hadn’t made it into One Direction that he’d be mining coal somewhere right now...

And as ever, his image is tightly wound around a heterosexual “he’s taken” narrative. 

The difference between the use of “girlfriend” and “partner” is significant in that it implies permanence and adding fatherhood to that really shows how aggressively they’re veering away from targeting a young female audience demographic in terms of traditional marketing. They managed to put all that information into this article without any actual words from Louis.

The unfortunate thing about this article, is that the two things Louis actually talked about the least are now becoming the focal point of the narrative. 

Like, okay. We get it. He is doing the sex with the women. And all these seemingly random pap shots and snapchat cameos are suddenly coming out of the woodwork and they still can’t get a new quote about it...

What concerns me is that they’ve used their first opportunity to market Louis’ solo career this way. The end of the article is oddly dark and unsettling...

What the hell even was that? Like a pat on the back and a “Good luck kid,” as he chain smokes into the sunset? The vibe was very

And yeah, there have been some aggressive injustices in Louis’ life, no one should have to lose their mother that young and that suddenly, and I thought that part of the article was extremely well handled and verbalised. But, as someone who has appreciated Louis’ talent for years now, this article really didn’t have to make his insecurities the focal point. He didn’t have to diminish his existing collaborations by saying that he couldn’t get “big names” in the studio with him, therefore now isolating himself from pretty much everyone in the music industry. And the fact Simon Cowell got a nod in the article was like, “Hi! I’m a red flag!”

Like, Jesus Christ, he was put in a boy band, not sent to war. And if you’re telling me that Simon Cowell can’t pick up the phone and get big name writers into a room with Louis Tomlinson then I don’t know what to say. What bothers me the most is that this entire article sounds like a regurgitated speech from Simon Cowell that he probably used to manipulate Louis over the past five years. Despite his HUGE fan base, which has made him the most engaged with celebrity on Instagram, someone is still telling Louis he isn’t a frontman, when he has a global audience telling him the exact opposite. This article makes it sound like Syco is taking some kind of chance on one of the most successful musicians of the last decade. Louis wrote more of One Direction’s songs than any other member and there’s absolutely no reason to make his debut album sound more dramatic than Dunkirk. Like, “In a world where no one believed in him...Louis Tomlinson had to learn to believe in himself...COMING SUMMER 2017!” 

Ugh. It just...   

Anyway, I’m crying in a cool way over how gorgeous Louis looks here as a dramatic cat lady. 

And now it’s time to sashay away. Thanks for listening!

[purple-comet-hurricane]

okay hi my name is jamie and me and @dedede-get-ipad made a high school au for TFA because some folks in the tf rp chat are making a general high school au, since me and whirlibird rly like TFA rn we decided to make a TFA centric one

Optimus Prime is a sophomore with a really nice charismatic attitude who’s captain of the school’s basketball team.

Ratchet's a senior who's currently job shadowing the nurse in the main office so he's usually found in there volunteering and helping out. but he has a super shitty attitude, school has taken so much out of him and he just wants to Graduate and never have to wake up early ever again. 

Bulkhead is a junior and like that kid in the back of the class who's playing video games. Fell behind in all of his classes except for woodwork and excels in that. His teachers know he’s trying his best but he still has 5 F’s. 

Prowl is a sophomore and is the resident anime nerd who watches naruto in class instead of doing his work. Constantly naruto runs in halls. Somehow seems to turn in all his work on time regardless.

Bumblebee is a freshman who thought he could make quarterback on the football team. He didn’t. He got kicked out of the football team due to accidentally launching a ball at Megatron and joined the basketball team out of spite.

Ultra Magnus is a senior who’s been basketball captain for all but one year, which Sentinel was for a time and then Optimus came around. Expects a lot from Optimus. Hangs out with Sentinel and tries to keep his ass in line since he ain’t a senior yet and can’t be making fun of the freshmen.... Yet. 

Sentinel Prime was the previous basketball captain in freshman year, super pissed that he isn’t this year especially since he’s a junior and will be a senior soon. Gives Optimus a bunch of shit for because of it. Likes to make fun of underclassmen

Jazz is a junior and also an anime nerd, he’s president of anime club and will literally pay you 100 bucks for a racer miku figurine. 

Blurr is the school senior track champion who's won the state championships 3 times in a row since he was a freshman. He talks really fast and is actually a brainiac. Everyone thinks he’s running off some kind of energy drink of coffee, no. He’s just like that.

Grimlock, Swoop, and Snarl are the school furries/scalies who constantly pretend to be dinosaurs and everybody avoids them at all costs. 

Wreck-gar is a freshman and the resident trash kid who’s locker is full of papers and fallen pens and looks like a mess. He rarely takes a shower and always blurts out the answer out in class (albeit it wrong). He’s hyperactive and doesn’t really know what he’s doing with his life but he’s having a good time

Megatron however is a senior who’s captain of the football team and has been since he was a freshman, but Optimus showed up and has been one-upping him for two years and he’s getting pretty sick of it

Blitzwing and Lugnut are Megatron's lackeys. Bliztwing is a junior and is that one kid with a temper problem but despite his shitty temper he's like the class clown, always cracking jokes and saying stupid answers. Someone says the word ass because they were reading the passage from the book? Bliztwing sneers loudly and causes everyone else to laugh. However at times Bliztwing is known to stay quiet and avoid talking to people. Nobody knows why.

Shockwave is a sophomore and the school's resident outcast who seems to get along really well with Megatron. The two have known each other since childhood and Shockwave recently went through a whole new personality and look make over for high school, however only Megatron knows who the real Shockwave is. 

Lugnut is a freshman who's been going to the same schools as Megatron since elementary and basically has seen his rise to glory as a hella good football player and is like 'DO YOU NOT KNOW WHO MEGATRON IS??? HE'S BEEN THE CHAMPIONSHIPS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. HE'S AMAZING SHUT YOUR MOUTH.' 

Starscream is a junior running back who’s pissed that for the third year in a row Megatron was voted as team captain over him and has been actively trying to sabotage Megatron for years and have him get into an ‘accident’ during practice so he can be voted as temporary captain as Megatron’s in the hospital. (This however fails and he ends up in the hospital instead.)

Black Arachnia is a sophomore who used to be Optimus's girlfriend back in 6th grade but because of an accident she had to move away. she recently transfers back to school with them but now she's a goth. that accident being she got bullied hella hard and Optimus was too much of a wuss to go and help her despite Sentinel thinking he could square up but Optimus was like 'it's no use we'll all get beat up', and she's super pissed about it still. 

Waspinator is a freshman who used to be one of the ‘cool kids’ on the football team. However due to an accident involving Megatron and a rake, he was kicked off the team and suspended from school. Having been grounded by his parents he basically went silent for a month. When he came back to school however he was a changed man. He was a lot more antsier and wanted to take out his problems on Bumblebee, who is the reason he got suspended and grounded in the first place.

Thundercracker, Skywarp, Ramjet, Sunstorm and Slipstream are Starscream’s siblings. They’re sextuplets who Starscream absolutely despise and they despise him in return. Welcome to Osomatsu-san seeker edition. Thundercracker is the second oldest and the snarkiest of them all, often gloating about how much better he is than Starscream. Skywarp is the third oldest and middle child, very timid and often the one to keep his siblings from fighting. Ramjet is a compulsive liar and is constantly lying whether it be stretching the truth of a story or outright denying doing anything shady. Sunstorm often times kisses up to Starscream to get favors, actually he does this to everyone to get favors. Especially Swindle. That favor being free weed. Sunstorm is a stoner. Slipstream is the youngest of the sextuplets and is overall the most logical one out of all of them. She’s the one who makes sure all of her brothers stay in line and don’t go off doing something stupid.

Swindle is a junior who sells stuff from his lockers. Pens, test answers, snacks, energy drinks, you name it. All for a fair and reasonable price of course. You can catch him hanging around his locker during lunch or passing period with somebody passing him money and he fishing something out of his Mary Poppins-locker. However if you have the money to buy it, Swindle can sell you some booze in water bottles or a bag of weed. However when the drug dogs come sniffing he’s always first to get busted and is constantly suspended because of it.

Soundwave is a freshman who's entire character is basically built by Megatron. He was a nobody who started hanging around Megatron and through his influences he became a little punk who likes to listen to his music a little bit too loud. 

Lockdown is the school bully, but not in a conventional way. People pay him to beat up other kids. He doesn’t care, he usually gets sent to the principle’s office because of it but he always finds a way to worm himself out. He uses the money to buy weed from Swindle.

i’ll add more characters as i see them, i’m still watching TFA so i haven’t gotten to everyone yet.

[ntrending]

Adam Savage's definitive guide to every kind of glue

New Post has been published on https://nexcraft.co/adam-savages-definitive-guide-to-every-kind-of-glue/

Adam Savage's definitive guide to every kind of glue

The following is an excerpt from Adam Savage’s new book, “Every Tool’s a Hammer.” Read or listen to it below.

The glues in my shop

Everyone has glues that they prefer, and I’m no exception. Over the years I’ve learned about and incorporated many glues into my arsenal of adhesive solutions, and I’m excited to share them with you. Just please take into account that my knowledge of these glues and their functional properties is just that—functional. They are the conclusions of an experimental generalist. I am not a chemist, nor a physicist, nor a material scientist. And there are exceptions to every single rule I outline below. You may meet someone who tells you there’s a better solution to every use case I outline. Go ahead and take their advice seriously and try it out for yourself. You may justifiably disagree with some of the glues for which I have great affection. That’s fine! It simply betrays, in the best way, the limitless land of possibilities when it comes to the developed ingenuity of humans to modify their world.

Air-dry glues

This is the biggest category—glues that, when exposed to air, dry out to create a bond. These can be water-based, like PVA glues (Elmer’s, basic white glues, wood glues) or solvent-based, like many “all-purpose” glues.

PVA glues are awesome and incredibly useful. Wood glue is one of the few things that does what it says it does just as well as you imagine it might. It produces a solid bond, with high strength and flexibility. White glues, like Elmer’s, are also phenomenal when using them on the porous materials for which they’re best suited—stuff like lightweight paper and corrugated cardboard. A new, thinner formulation of PVA glues (a main brand is called Mod Podge) has become invaluable for people who make things—props, costumes, models—out of foam. These glues are waterbased, which means they have no noxious chemicals that stink up your house, and are easy to clean up.

All-purpose glues

These are a constant source of disappointment to me. I’ve been let down so many times by “all-purpose glues” that they deserve only the briefest mention here. Sometimes they’re plastic solvent-based, like Duco Cement, sometimes they’re silicone-based, but they’re almost always in my opinion a temporary solution. Some people swear by them, I’m not one of them. Your results may vary.

Contact cements

I really like contact cements. These rubber-based glues also flash off their solvent base to dry, but are applied in a different way. Contact cements are mostly used by applying the glue to both surfaces being joined, letting the glue set for a short while, but not too long, and THEN joining the surfaces together. Blow-dryers are good for accelerating the drying process with contact cement. I use them all the time in my one-day builds for Tested.com when whatever I’m building involves a fair amount of glue-up.

When properly applied, this stuff can work miracles. They put shoes together with it. That should tell you something. Indeed, this family of glue makes tough, strong, yet flexible bonds suitable for everything from shoes to foam to attaching posters on board. For porous materials, I often use two coats of the glue on each side. In the right application, this can be one of the most powerful glues for gluing dissimilar materials together as well. Contact cement comes in tubes, cans, and even spray cans. I’ve used them all. My favorite contact cement is called Barge glue. A favorite among leatherworkers, I’ve found it to be properly tenacious. However, the cheap generic contact cement you get from your local mom-and-pop hardware store has rarely failed me, either.

Hot glue

Hot glue is a thermoplastic substance. That means it is highly reactive to heat and cold and moves a lot with temperature variation. At room temperature it is a moderately flexible plastic that comes in stick form. When you feed the glue stick into a glue gun with a heating element, it comes out as a thick, hot, honeylike liquid. As it cools, it sets.

For quick and dirty builds, hot glue can’t be beat. For anything that you want to last, I would tend to avoid hot glue like the plague. (I’ve had things that were hot-glued together just fall apart while mounted on a wall, for instance.) Hot glue works best for porous things like wood and cardboard—it’s AMAZING for cardboard—and terrible for nonporous things like metals and glass.

Hot glues most often come in a clear or translucent form, but can also be bought in colors. I’ve used red hot glue for doing fake wax seals on theater props like old-timey envelopes. There are also low-heat variants of hot glue, which can be great when you’re gluing something like Styrofoam or foamcore board that melts easily. Hot glue can also be used to make castings. I know of a theater show that needed chicken legs for a dinner scene and the scenic department used hot glue squirted into a silicone mold made from an actual chicken leg. While I’m certain it didn’t taste just like chicken, the end result weirdly felt just like chicken.

Epoxy 2-part glues

These are thermoset glues wherein you use two separate liquids—a resin and a hardener—and mix them together to create an exothermic (heat-generating) reaction that chemically sets the mix. Two-part epoxies are often brittle glues, but there are more flexible formulations out there as well. They often come in the classic “5-minute” glue form in a pair of tubes with a plunger. Unlike a thermoplastic glue, epoxies are permanently set once they’ve hardened. They cannot be remelted with the application of more heat.

Epoxies are a great nonsmelly product to use with fiberglass. Boats around the world are built using glass matte and epoxy resin. All the ships in the original Star Wars were put together largely with epoxies. The big downside of epoxies is that they can be quite bad for the human body, so make sure you use gloves and work in a well-ventilated area when your project calls for it. And if you’re using large amounts of epoxies, for coating something or fiberglassing, use a chemical respirator. JB Weld is a particularly fine tube-based example of these glues. There are even (plausibly apocryphal) stories about it holding a motorcycle crankcase together long enough for the bike’s rider to get to a repair shop.

Epoxy putty

Also a thermoset adhesive, epoxy putty is a big family of glues that can join things but can also be used as a maker material in its own right. There are versions for plumbers that can be applied around leaky pipes. Others are made to repair leaks on boats. There are versions formulated specifically for metals, for woods, and for plastics. There are super lightweight versions, too. Because they come in a claylike form, they can also be ideal for one-off constructions.

Like the glues, epoxy putty has two parts, often in two different colors, each the consistency of clay. Take the two parts, knead them until you have created a third color and can’t see either of the original colors, and then put the putty to use. Some set fast, others set slow. I’ve used epoxy putty to make dollhouse bathtubs, fantasy gun grips, and even file handles. Once they’re set they can be sanded, cut, and even screwed together with common woodworking tools.

Cyanoacrylate (CA)

Often referred to by the brand name Krazy Glue, this class of glue, cyanoacrylate, is the soul of the special effects industry. It was originally formulated as emergency battlefield sutures during the Vietnam War and I know model makers who swear by CA glue for stitch-worthy cuts (I’ve never tried it). Lorne Peterson, one of the original model makers on Star Wars and an old friend, was the one who discovered CA glue as an Eastman Kodak product and introduced it to the ILM model shop. It’s import in the special effects industry cannot be overstated. CA glue is highly versatile and comes in liquid form with varying degrees of viscosity, from the super-thin (very tricky to use right) to the super-thick gap-filling kind, to the newest version, flexible CA glue, which I’m just starting to use, and like a lot. All of them can set when exposed to air or be accelerated by adding a “kicker.” Once set, it becomes a hard acrylic that tends to be brittle, so you want to be careful.

Super-thin CA glue deserves some extra attention here because it’s so thin (like vodka) that it flashes quickly and sets almost instantaneously, way faster than any other CA glue formulation. It’s amazing for things like ceramics, where it can wick into the porous ceramic and leave almost no trace of itself. But if you have your skin anywhere near that crack, it’ll wick underneath your finger and glue you to the very thing you’re trying to fix. The fact is, few glues can get you into more trouble more quickly than a super-thin CA glue. I have glued hero props to my own hand with super-thin glue more times than I care to admit.

It’s not just your own skin you need to worry about either. You have to be vigilant with the entire surface of the object to which you are applying it. Working on a commercial for Jamie back in the mid-90s, I spent a week making brass corners and filigree for an incredible glossy lacquered box that my colleague Lauren built out of hardwood. On the day of the shoot, while trying to hold down a recalcitrant brass corner, I used super-thin CA glue and it wicked into the joint, and then ran right down the front of the prop, on the camera side. I still remember the feeling in the pit of my stomach. Jamie was pissed, and when Jamie gets pissed, he doesn’t show it much in his voice or his manner, instead his head turns bright red. He’s like a human thermometer, with a mood head. He ended up having to use crayon wax that he mixed and formulated to match the lacquer finish to hide my glue streak from the camera, and he had to redress it for every shot. His head was bright red the whole time!

Long story short: super-thin CA glue, beware. CA accelerators are what is referred to as “kickers.” They are solvents that can be added to typical CA glues to accelerate their setting time from minutes to mere seconds. They come in spritz bottles and spray cans, and can also be applied with a needle applicator. They can be amazing when you’re doing quick and dirty model work, especially in films and commercials; you just have to remember that solvent-based CA kickers can often have a deleterious effect on paint jobs and on clear plastics (beware of kicker and polycarbonate!). So as with any unfamiliar process, do a test first on scrap material to understand a CA accelerator’s effect on your build. You don’t want to do anything you can’t fix later.

Little known fact: baking soda is also an excellent accelerator for CA glues. It kicks them almost instantaneously, and it doesn’t really smell at all. Sprinkling a little bit on glue you’ve laid down also makes it immensely stronger. I’ve used baking soda and CA glues to create gusset-like welds on the inside of styrene boxes that made them incredibly strong. I have known plenty of model makers over the years who can’t abide the smell of solvent kicker and only use baking soda.

Weld-bond glues

These are a special class of adhesive. A weldbonded glue melts both sides of the bonding equation and then dries out effectively making one part. This is why it’s called a “weld.” Weld bonds are absolutely fantastic for gluing together acrylics and other plastics. Model airplane glue is a thickened type of plastic weld bond, but it also comes in a much wetter form used for making things like acrylic boxes. The glue that plumbers use for joining PVC piping together is a weld bond. I love weldbond glues, they create strong joints, and they do their work fast. There are different formulations of weld bond for different types of plastic. There are weld-bond glues for ABS, polycarbonate, and PVC. I tend to use styrene and acrylic mostly in my shop, so my glue of choice is Weld-on 3. For styrene scratch building or putting small pieces of plastic sheet together, there’s nothing better than a bit of Weld-on 3 and a brush.

PopSci’s special Q&A with Adam Savage

Q: This book is, in many ways, immensely practical, from a taxonomy of glue to full-page reproductions of your own project sketches. But it’s also deeply philosophical. What compelled you to tackle deeper themes like creativity and self-mastery?

A: I originally thought the book would be a lot more instructional. And then as I started to examine the limits of my knowledge (which are significant), I realized that I couldn’t pretend to be an authority on many of the skills that I know, but I do feel like I am an authority on how to combine them in interesting ways in order to get a project done.

Q: You’re not the only one offering advice here. The book includes musings from Nick Offerman, Guillermo del Toro, Pixar director Andrew Stanton, and others. How did you know they’d be such founts of wisdom? What did it take to incorporate their voices in your book?

A: It was actually easy to incorporate all of their voices into this book because the interviews that I did with them are simply extensions of the conversations I have with them as friends and colleagues. Each of the contributors to this book are amazing creators in their own right and also deep thinkers about their process, and it’s delightful to talk to them about it.

Q: People who are already see themselves, like you, as “makers” will probably naturally gravitate toward this book. But what about someone who’s never tried to bring a DIY project to life? What can they learn from “Every Tool’s a Hammer”?

A: What I hope someone who is not a maker takes away from this book is the courage to jump in and make something if they want to. For me, obsession is the beginning of every project and is the gravity of making, and for people who read this book, I want their hands to itch to get building.

Written By Adam Savage

[jodybouchard9]

9 Laundry Room Must-Haves That Can Wash Away the Tedium

arselozgurdal/iStock

For some, doing the laundry sparks joy; but for the vast majority of us, washing clothes, towels, and bedsheets is simply the worst. Compounding the misery: Washing machines are often located in dank, dark basements, or crammed into an extra closet, with little care given to the decor or efficiency of the space.

But if you take some time to outfit your laundry area with the most essential (and stylish) features, this task might become a bit more enjoyable.

“If you’re lucky enough to have a real laundry room, make the space as inviting as any other in your home,” says Drew Henry of Design Dudes. This means not only considering colors and patterns that’ll enhance the space, but also including smart details that’ll make the job quicker and easier to accomplish.

Before you fold any more fitted sheets, here are nine must-haves for your laundry room.

1. A flat surface

Photo by Pinney Designs

Smoothing out wrinkles and folding clothes is infinitely easier on a flat surface. If you have space on top of your machines, you’re good to go. However, you can also install a flip-down shelf from the wall or storage closet, suggests Karen Gray-Plaisted of Design Solutions KGP. Or you might retrofit a nearby drawer with a flat insert for folding.

2. A pop of color

Photo by Andre Rothblatt Architecture

A bold laundry room can put a smile on your face—and it’ll brighten your mood despite having to do a mundane chore, says Liz Toombs, president of PDR Interiors.

“If your favorite color is teal but you’d never dare to paint the rest of your house this shade, put it in the laundry area,” she suggests.

This space is also a prime candidate for wild wallpaper, a ceramic backsplash, or decorative tiles. Afraid of the commitment? “Add wallpaper to the inside of your drawers or cabinets,” says Anna Brockway, co-founder of Chairish.

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Watch: How to Wash Your Pillows (and Why You Really Should)

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3. A way to hide it

Photo by GO LOGIC 

Washer and dryer be gone! If your laundry room is actually a laundry area, having a sliding door or a simple curtain to hide your units is priceless.

“No matter how organized you are, you’ll have detergent on the floor and clothes hanging to dry, so a set of folding doors, a screen, or a room divider does the trick here,” says Toombs.

4. Unique light fixtures

Photo by Sunday Home Interiors 

Quality lighting in a laundry room is a must for when you’re sewing on buttons or spot-treating stains. But why not install an interesting light fixture to make the space feel less utilitarian?

Toombs suggests a fashionable chandelier or a geometric pendant light. Just make sure the light output is strong enough for your important tasks.

5. Organizational accessories

Photo by Carey’s Custom Woodworking, Inc

With the right tools, laundry duty will be a streamlined and painless process. We promise! Our experts suggest equipping your laundry area with jars for holding loose change, clothespins, and buttons; a small wastebasket for lint and tags; and a set of beautiful baskets to corral detergent bottles and clothes that need mending.

Toombs suggests keeping hangers on hand to hold items coming out of the dryer or wet clothes that need to air-dry.

Jamie Novak, author of “Keep This Toss That,” keeps rags in her laundry area for cleaning the washer and dryer (yes, they need wiping down!) and a stain remover guide.

“I can never remember what you’re supposed to use to remove mustard, but I know it’s not the same as lipstick,” she says.

6. Waterproof flooring

Photo by The Neil Kelly Company 

You may have fallen in love with Brazilian cherrywood flooring, but it won’t withstand a flood of dirty laundry water. The same goes for carpeting. Nonwaterproof flooring just won’t cut it in a laundry area where there’s the potential for dripping water and excess moisture. So choose wisely.

Toombs says some of the best laundry room flooring options are ceramic, concrete, or vinyl tile.

7. Chalkboard or whiteboard

Photo by Michele Peterson Interiors

How will you remember that you’re out of detergent or fabric softener? Writing your laundry shopping list on a whiteboard will help you keep everything straight.

“You can also keep track of family events, the grocery list, and important to-do’s,” says Henry.

And you don’t need to spend a small fortune on this feature: An inexpensive dry-erase board or a swath of chalkboard paint on the wall will do the trick.

8. Artwork

Photo by Augusta Fine Homes 

A set of prints or a framed family photo will personalize the space and make it look less humdrum.

“Artwork makes the room more inviting, which means you’ll be more willing to spend time here,” says Novak.

9. A rug or mat

Photo by Crosby Creations Drafting & Design Services, LLC

Julie Coraccio, organizing pro at Reawaken Your Brilliance, recommends placing a chef’s mat in front of your washer and dryer. The cushioned surface will help support your knees and back if you’re stuck doing load after load of laundry.

Or try a natural fiber rug, says Brockway. “A durable carpet is great in this high-traffic area as it adds warmth to a room that’s bare and cold because of those big appliances,” she says.

The post 9 Laundry Room Must-Haves That Can Wash Away the Tedium appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com®.

[marcusssanderson]

50 Hurt Quotes for a Friend Who Needs Your Encouragement

These “hurt quotes” will help you encourage a friend through their dark times.

Chances are we all know someone who is currently hurting. Pain is a human experience we all go through. Whether it’s a broken heart, disease, a shattered dream, or a terrible loss, we all know what it is to endure suffering.

When those around us are hurting, sometimes it can be difficult to know what to do. But even if you have not experienced the same trial they’re going through, you can be still be a good friend to those close to you that are hurting.

How do we help a friend who is hurting? Sometimes we feel like we can’t help because what they’re enduring is something that frightens us, or something that we just don’t understand. Other times, we wan’t to ease their pain so we reach out to them.

That said, there are times when we want to be an encouragement to our hurting friends but we just can’t find the right words to express what we want to say. In such cases, sharing with them inspiring words of encouragement can help ease their pain.

In that respect, below is our collection of inspirational, wise, and comforting hurt quotes, hurt sayings, and hurt proverbs, collected from a variety of sources over the years.

Hurt quotes for a friend who needs your encouragement

1.) “You’ve gotta dance like there’s nobody watching. Love like you’ll never be hurt. Sing like there’s nobody listening, and live like it’s heaven on earth.”  – William W. Purkey

2.) “To hurt is as human as to breathe.”  – J.K. Rowling

3.) “If you spend your time hoping someone will suffer the consequences for what they did to your heart, then you’re allowing them to hurt you a second time in your mind.” –  Shannon L. Alder

4.) “Listen to God with a broken heart. He is not only the doctor who mends it, but also the father who wipes away the tears.” –  Criss Jami

5.) “The hardest thing in life is to forgive. But hate is self-destructive. If you hate somebody you’re not hurting the person you hate, you’re hurting yourself. Forgiveness is healing.” – Louis Zamperini

6.) “No one can continually insult you or hurt your feelings without your permission.” – Les Brown

7.) “You can set a boundary with your words when you are honest and when you establish a consequence for another’s hurtful actions.” – Henry Cloud

8.) “Keep in mind, hurting people often hurt other people as a result of their own pain… The last thing they need is for you to make matters worse by responding angrily.” – Joel Osteen

9.) “No matter how much it hurts now, someday you will look back and realize your struggles changed your life for the better.” – Unknown

10.) “Withhold a smile only when the smile can hurt someone. Otherwise, let it bloom forth in a riot.” – Vera Nazarian

Hurt quotes to make them feel better

11.) “We cannot choose to have a life free of hurt. But we can choose to be free, to escape the past, no matter what befalls us, and to embrace the possible.” – Edith Eva Eger

12.) “The greatest sympathy gift you can give a hurting friend or loved one is you. Your presence, compassion, patience and caring are the greatest gifts you could ever give to help them get through a difficult time.” – Michelle Pommells

13.) “When we finally repent of our sin and forgive those who have hurt us – as God calls us to do over and over again in his Word – then the light of God shines like a bright, healing beam in our hearts and clears the vision of God before us.” – Matt Brown

14.) “A pencil can correct any mistakes it makes and a person is also charged with the responsibility to make right that which has been done poorly, or to make amends if you have done wrong or hurt someone else.” – Byron Pulsifer

15.) “The best way to heal a broken heart, it turns out, is to find a way to move past the hurt.” –  Mary Kay Andrews

16.) “Never hold onto a hurt, because resentment tears you up. Resentment is like drinking poison and hoping it’s going to kill someone else. It doesn’t work. You have to decide that, before anything else happens, you are going to forgive that person.” – Rick Warren

17.) “Chances are someone has hurt you really bad and the only way you will be free from the anger is to forgive them.” – James Robor

18.) “Forgiveness is the key to unlocking all the anger and hurt, the emptiness and darkness within. To unleash love, joy, fulfillment, and light inside. Why did I wait so long? I could’ve been feeling like this all along, you say to yourself.” – Zaneta Beverford

19.) “Stop flogging yourself over the past mistakes and hurtful memories of the past.” –  Kellie Sullivan

20.) “Good people make mistakes and hurt others – then they learn from their mistakes and TRY not to make them again.” – Bob Anderson

Hurt quotes for him or her

21.) “Many of us don’t realize the power words have. The words we use impact and influence the people around us more than we realize. They can hurt, they can encourage, they can change a person, they can inspire, and they can offer support and comfort.” – Catherine Pulsifer

22.) “Broken hearts hurt but they will make you strong.” – Unknown

23.) “When hardship occurs, it is easy to focus on hurt feelings attributed to the individuals you thought would show up that don’t – but I encourage you to instead embrace all the individuals that come out of the woodwork and surprise you.” – Steph Gold

24.) “Develop compassion for someone who hurt you rather showing bitterness that will enable you to forgive them and make you feel comfortable.” – Lisa Adams

25.) “Nobody can hurt me without my permission.” – Mahatma Gandhi

26.) “Do talk about what needs to change, but try to find a positive way to go about it, this should help to lessen the chances of feelings being hurt, and still resolve the problems.” – Lesley Harriot

27.) “There are times when it seems your heart is open to hurt but remember that every heart that is real also has the ability to recover and be stronger than before.” – Byron Pulsifer

28.) “Nothing feels blessed about being broken. In fact, certain circumstances in life hurt so intensely that we think we will never heal. But blessing can come in the wake of our being broken.” – Charles Stanley

29.) “When you hold a grudge, you want someone else’s sorrow to reflect your level of hurt but the two rarely meet.”  – Steve Maraboli

30.) “You cannot be with someone just because you don’t want to hurt him. You have your own happiness to think about.” –  Melissa de la Cruz

Hurt quotes to help you demonstrate care and concern

31.) “Take it from me: If you hear the past speaking to you, feel it tugging up your back and running its fingers up your spine, the best thing to do-the only thing-is run.”  – Lauren Oliver

32.) “There will always be someone willing to hurt you, put you down, gossip about you, belittle your accomplishments and judge your soul. It is a fact that we all must face. However, if you realize that God is a best friend that stands beside you when others cast stones you will never be afraid, never feel worthless and never feel alone.”  – Shannon Alder

33.) “Those who really love you don’t mean to hurt you and if they do, you can’t see it in their eyes but it hurts them too.” – Holly Black

34.) “Warriors should suffer their pain silently.”  – Erin Hunter

35.) “Yes, I understand why things had to happen this way. I understand his reason for causing me pain. But mere understanding does not chase away the hurt. It does not call upon the sun when dark clouds have loomed over me. Let the rain come then if it must come! And let it wash away the dust that hurt my eyes!”  – Jocelyn Soriano

36.) “Whatever happens to you belongs to you. Make it yours. Feed it to yourself even if it feels impossible to swallow. Let it nurture you, because it will.”  – Cheryl Strayed

37.) “People who love themselves, don’t hurt other people. The more we hate ourselves, the more we want others to suffer.” – Dan Pearce

38.) “Live and allow others to live; hurt no one; life is dear to all living beings.” – Mahavira

39.) “Yet I also believe that when you do unto others, blessings come to you as well. So if you don’t have a friend, be a friend. If you are having a bad day, make someone else’s day. If your feelings are hurt, heal those of another.” – Nick Vujici

40.) “Sadly, some folks want others to feel their pain, to hurt as much as they do – or more. My grandmother once told me to avoid colds and angry people whenever I could. It’s sound advice.” – Walter Anderson

Other comforting hurt quotes

41.) “If someone decides they’re not going to be happy, it’s not your problem. You don’t have to spend your time and energy trying to cheer up someone who has already decided to stay in a bad mood. Believe it or not, you can actually hurt people by playing into their self-pity.” – Joyce Meyer

42.) “Cruelty is all out of ignorance. If you knew what was in store for you, you wouldn’t hurt anybody, because whatever you do comes back much more forceful than you send it out.” – Willie Nelson

43.) “Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can’t help them, at least don’t hurt them.” – Dalai Lama

44.) “Holding on to anger, resentment and hurt only gives you tense muscles, a headache and a sore jaw from clenching your teeth. Forgiveness gives you back the laughter and the lightness in your life.” – Joan Lunden

45.) “Work hard and have patience. Because no matter who you are, you’re going to get hurt in your career and you have to be patient to get through the injuries.” – Randy Johnson

46.) “The turning point in the process of growing up is when you discover the core of strength within you that survives all hurt.” –  Max Lerner

47.) “Anybody who succeeds is helping people. The secret to success is find a need and fill it; find a hurt and heal it; find a problem and solve it.” – Robert H. Schuller

48.) “At the end of a marathon, it’s going to hurt whether you’re speeding up or slowing down. You may as well push.” – Summer Sanders

49.) “No matter how far life pushes you down, no matter how much you hurt, you can always bounce back.” – Sheryl Swoopes

50.) “A stiff apology is a second insult… The injured party does not want to be compensated because he has been wronged; he wants to be healed because he has been hurt.” – Gilbert K. Chesterton

Which of these hurt quotes resonated with you best?

Chances are you know someone who is currently hurting and enduring a difficult trial. When those close to us are suffering, it’s upon us to help ease their pain.

You may not have experienced the same pain they’re enduring but you can be a helpful friend to them. Hopefully, the above quotes will inspire you to be helpful to those hurting.

Which of these pain quotes resonated with you best? Do you have any other inspiring quotes to add? Tell us in the comment section below. Also, don’t forget to share and inspire others.

The post 50 Hurt Quotes for a Friend Who Needs Your Encouragement appeared first on Everyday Power.

[aion-rsa]

Why Quentin Tarantino Doesn’t Make Family Pictures

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Quentin Tarantino movies very rarely feature happy families. They barely contain any parental presence at all. One of the most memorable scenes in Pulp Fiction is a flashback. The boxer, Butch, played by Bruce Willis, remembers a pivotal moment from his childhood. The day he met a “special visitor,” named Capt. Koons (Christopher Walken), who interrupted the young boy’s cartoons to fulfill a final, personal mission. The captain had been imprisoned in the same POW camp in Hanoi where Butch’s father died.

In one of cinema’s great monologues, and helped pave the way to Pulp Fiction grossing $213 million at the box office after it won the Palme d’Or at Cannes. Yet Tarantino did not buy his father a gold watch. And even if the director gets one when he retires after his next film, he probably won’t give that either to his mother Connie Zastoupil. It’s a promise Tarantino made to himself when he was 12 years old.

During a recent episode of The Moment podcast, Tarantino explained family planning to host Brian Koppelman.

“My mom was bitching at me about [my scholastic non-abilities], and then in the middle of her little tirade, she said, ‘Oh, and by the way, this little writing career,’ with the finger quotes and everything, ‘This little writing career that you’re doing? That shit is over,’” Tarantino said. “I go, ‘Okay lady, when I become a successful writer, you will never see one penny from my success. There will be no house for you. There’s no vacation for you, no Elvis Cadillac for mommy. You get nothing. Because you said that.’”

Tarantino did cop to helping his mother when she got into “a jam with the IRS,” but that was a one-time proposition. The director is now a first-time father himself. He and his wife, Israeli singer Daniella Pick, are parents to 18-month-old Leo, who will reap the dual benefits of Tarantino’s retirement and childrearing wisdom.

“There are consequences for your words as you deal with your children,” Tarantino told Koppelman. “Remember there are consequences for your sarcastic tone about what’s meaningful to them.”

Tarantino didn’t learn any lessons at all from his father. In a recent interview with Marc Maron on his WTF podcast, Quentin said he rather liked his stepfather Curtis Zastoupil. But he doesn’t say the same about his biological father, who abandoned the family when Quentin was young.

“He had 30 fucking years to find me and he never did,” Tarantino told Marin. “But then when I became famous, he crawled out of the woodwork. It was fucking horrible. It was a drag. He tried to reach out to me. I wasn’t interested.”

Quentin is still peeved over a 1995 story his father gave to journalist Jami Bernard, author of Quentin Tarantino: The Man and His Movies.

“She does this whole interview with him, who I’ve never met. And they print it in Premiere magazine,” Tarantino recalled. “It was so fucked up. You can’t even say that he was a bad dad and that, maybe, reflected on Quentin’s life. No. He was not there. It was pretty tasteless.”

The Once Upon a Time in Hollywood writer-director might have found his own Hollywood ending if his estranged father hadn’t jumped the gun. “Had he been cool and didn’t try to horn in and actually had some class, I might even have looked him up,” Tarantino told Marin.

Quentin also hinted at how he might have made himself harder to track down. He says he only chose to keep the last name Tarantino because it sounded cool. “It had nothing to do with the family. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn’t use the name Tarantino,” he said. “If I had it to do all over again, I would use my middle name as my last name. I would be Quentin Jerome.”

Speculation is rife on what Tarantino’s final film will be. He doesn��t have a family film in his arsenal of genre explorations. He has listed The Bad News Bears as one of his favorite films. Perhaps he will pull a remake out of the deepest part of him for his son to watch.

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The post Why Quentin Tarantino Doesn’t Make Family Pictures appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3AtGz8g

[coin-river-blog]

Over the years, it’s become popular to claim that you are Satoshi Nakamoto even if you lack a shred of evidence. Although some individuals have tried really hard to prove it, they have always failed to convince the greater community. For instance, a few self-proclaimed inventors of Bitcoin have attempted to generate a signature with a message hash that’s tethered to an early mined block. After a few of these occurrences, a financial transparency startup called Albacore Labs has created a tool that will validate a signature against the genesis block, making it “easier for other people to make similar claims.”

Also Read: Another ‘Satoshi’ Steps Out of the Woodwork, Calls Craig Wright a Liar

Crypto-Babble About Digital Signatures or Hashing Should Not Be Enough

Many bitcoiners will never forget how Craig Wright tried to prove he was Satoshi Nakamoto back in 2016. It all started when the London Review of Books reporter Andrew O’Hagan spent months with Wright and allegedly saw him sign a message tied to a Satoshi Nakamoto address. There was also a series of blog posts Wright wrote that has since been scrubbed from the internet and Wright’s interaction with Gavin Andresen in London. Back in the spring of 2016 Wright also appeared on a BBC video claiming to sign a signature tethered to the first bitcoin transaction.

“My name is Craig Wright and I’m about to demonstrate a signing of a message with the public key that is associated with the first transaction ever done on Bitcoin,” the Australian native stated on May 2, 2016. “So you are going to show me that Satoshi Nakamoto is you?” the BBC reporter asked at the time. “Yes,” Wright replied.

Two men who have claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto but have yet to provide solid evidence. ‘Satoshin,’ left, and Craig Wright.

After the show aired, veteran cryptographers quickly pointed out that the BBC reporters and Andrew O’Hagan were seemingly duped. The long-winded London Review of Books story that describes O’Hagan’s experience hanging out with Wright for months shows O’Hagan had no clue what Wright was actually signing. Moreover, well-known cryptocurrency developers like Pieter Wuille, Christopher Jeffrey and Greg Maxwell showed the public how Wright pulled off his signing parlor trick.

One of the so-called Satoshi PGP keys Wright signed was provably backdated and other signature attempts have been cited as blatant forgery. Then, last year, a Twitter handle that used the name “Satoshi Nakamoto” tried to create the same signing proof with a message tied to block number 9. Finally, Bitcoin Cash (BCH) developer Amaury Séchet recently shared a hash message on Twitter and claimed to be Satoshi. However, the message was clearly a joke except a few cryptocurrency news outlets ran with the story.

Last November a Twitter handle called @Satoshi tried to sway the community with a signed message tethered to block 9.

Now Anyone Can Prove They Are Satoshi By Signing a Message Tied to the Genesis Block

Since the so-called block 9 signing, Albacore, a team that develops tools to improve financial transparency, has released an application that can tie a message to the Bitcoin genesis block so anyone can attempt to “prove they are Satoshi.”

“With everyone seemingly trying to prove they are Satoshi (looking at you Craig Wright and “Faketoshi twitter”), we’ve decided to make it easier for other people to make similar claims,” explains Albacore.

The startup’s Faketoshi website continues:

Clicking the button below will generate a signature and message hash that will successfully validate against the address that mined the genesis block, which is known to have been mined by Satoshi. Just don’t ask for the plaintext message that generated the hash…(spoiler, we don’t know it either).

Albacore’s Faketoshi tool.

A Faketoshi Signing Tool Benefits the Community by Teaching Bitcoiners to Dismiss Fraudulent Behaviour

In a post that describes the tool’s process, Albacore says people claiming to be Satoshi is nothing new, but Craig Wright is the most “recent cult” following. Albacore says this is due to a serious lack of technical understanding within the blockchain and bitcoin ecosystem. “This leads to situations where the merest mention of crypto-esque jargon like digital signatures or hashing is convincing enough,” the startup’s blog post explains. Albacore notes that people can see that the forged messages are clearly faked because the hash of the message is provided without the actual plaintext message.

“The inputs and outputs of the ECDSA signature and verification operations. Note that in both, the input is the plaintext message that is then hashed within the boxes (the ECDSA algorithm),” explains Albacore. 

“So why would the scammer provide the hash of a message and not the message itself? Albacore asks within the essay, before answers its own question: “Because they do not know the message — That would involve them actually knowing the private key and generating a legitimate signature.”

Albacore adds:

Given the one-way nature of cryptographic hashes — The only way to verify this signature is to use a non-standard ECDSA verifier that does not internally hash the message but instead accepts the hash of the message as an input.

Albacore believes the greater community needs to be more vigilant towards pretenders and faked signature attempts.

This week, news.Bitcoin.com reported on another self-proclaimed Satoshi Nakamoto who called Craig Wright a “liar” and stated he could sign a real message in due time. However, just like the slew of other Faketoshis we’ve covered in the past, this one has yet to provide any real proof to the greater crypto community. To some people, these signatures are pretty much meaningless, unless the signer can provide an actual plaintext message or literally move bitcoins that were mined in the early days with a well-known Satoshi address. Even Wright’s open letter saying that he is willing to testify in front of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is worthless because none of those regulators understand this technology.

Albacore says tools like the Faketoshi signing application benefit the community as a whole, so they can be more critical towards people attempting blockchain signature parlor tricks and instead “focus on things that advance the space as a whole.”

What do you think about Albacore’s Faketoshi signature tool? Do you think anyone has proven themselves to be Satoshi Nakamoto with these signature tricks? What would make you believe a person is really Satoshi? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Twitter, Pixabay, Albacore, Medium, and Bitcoin.com. 

At news.Bitcoin.com all comments containing links are automatically held up for moderation in the Disqus system. That means an editor has to take a look at the comment to approve it. This is due to the many, repetitive, spam and scam links people post under our articles. We do not censor any comment content based on politics or personal opinions. So, please be patient. Your comment will be published.  

Tags in this story

Albacore, Amaury Séchet, Andrew O'Hagan, BBC, BCH, bitcoin cash, Bitcoin Core, Bitcoin Creator, BTC, Christopher Jeffrey, Craig Wright, Cryptocurrency, Digital Assets, digital signature, ECDSA verifier, Faketoshi Tool, Gavin Andresen, Greg Maxwell, London Review of Books, N-Technology, PGP Key, Pieter Wuille, Plaintext, Satoshi, Satoshi Nakamoto, Satoshin

Jamie Redman

Jamie Redman is a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open source code, and decentralized applications. Redman has written thousands of articles for news.Bitcoin.com about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

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[confrontingdisaster]

I need to talk about suicide and death and loss

In light of the new Netflix series Thirteen Reasons Why, I feel the need to share a story and I just need to vent a bit. Suicide is ridiculously hard to comprehend, hard to handle and it’s just awful. I loved the TRW book when I was in high school, and I fell in love with it, it was absolutely amazing. When I heard they were making it a series I was so so excited. But it’s raw and real and so is my story.

This is going to be a long post and a real post so if you stick through this and read it all, you deserve an award and you’re an amazing human being. And if you don’t, then so be it, but I need to tell our story and get it out of my head.

Very recently me and my boyfriend lost a very close friend to suicide. It is hard enough to lose a close friend, especially when they’re only in their twenties, but let me tell you, it is so much harder when they take their own life.

We were having a bad day already, it was snowing and the roads were awful. I drive a minivan and we couldn’t get it up our driveway and struggled with it for almost half an hour, four of our neighbors in our apartment building were down there trying to help us. We finally made it up and a cop pulled in behind us. Instant panic mode, don’t know why but cops set my anxiety through the roof. Anyway he joked with us about hoping our van stayed put now, and let us get on our way, he followed us up the stairs, stopped on the second floor talking to our neighbors while we went to the third floor. There is two apartments on each floor. When we got upstairs our neighbors were outside so I asked why the cops were at our building. Jamie, who is a friend and also my boss, said they were here trying to do a welfare check on Matt, our downstairs neighbor on the second floor. Us, Jamie and her boyfriend, and Matt have all lived together in that building for FIVE years. Commitment yo. Plus Matt and my boyfriend Tony were childhood friends and had known each other for years. When she said nobody had heard from Matt in three days, my stomach dropped with dread. Matt was always out and about, working, repairing his car, walking to the store. I thought about it a second and realized I hadn’t seen him in a few days (this was a Tuesday) but I’d been working crazy hours and so had he, we usually only saw each other in passing, especially since it’s winter in Maine. The weather is brutal.

During the nice months, Matt was always outside hanging out with Tony, working on our car with him, or they’d be working on Matts car, or they’d have some project to do. We helped him strip bark from logs and he made a bed frame out of them. He’s a whiz at carpentry and woodwork shit. Like he blows my mind with it sometimes. So when winter comes we don’t hang out as much because we all live inside instead of out. It was like this all five years, it wasn’t odd or anything like that. So back to the present.

My friend Sam was over, she too was friends with Matt from hanging out at our house together so often. Jamie told us that they were worried he had overdosed and was dead inside his apartment. Instantly, the dread in my stomach got so much worse. We had known that Matt had been using Heroin, him and Tony had talked about it in spring of 2016. He had gotten help though, he wasn’t using anymore so we all feared he got back into it. I told Tony what was going on, he was busy rolling a joint with Sam’s boyfriend so we could all smoke. He was quiet, he didn’t say anything, he just kept rolling the joint and wouldn’t even look at me.

The cop had to call our landlord to get a key or he would have to bust the door. It took her ages to get him a key, and once he had a key he had to wait for another officer to come. Buddy system and all that shit. It took forever.

Matt is an incredible person, let me start by saying that. He was always willing to help, he’d jump on it. You wouldn’t even have to ask him. He was always smiling and always laughing. He had been dealt a pretty shitty hand in life. For example, he had a girlfriend and they had a daughter. Then one day he walked into his house and found his girlfriend getting fucked by another guy in his own bed. Then more recently she wouldn’t allow him to see his daughter, she moved and changed her number and dropped off the face of the earth. I felt so bad for him sometimes, but he always, ALWAYS, had a smile on, always found the good in a situation. He worked hard and earned everything he ever got in his life. He was so damn proud when he bought his Jetta, it was his baby. And then his Nissan, then a Saturn, and then a motorcycle. He was a dedicated motherfucker, loyal as they come, and nice as could be. People like him are few and far between in today’s world. He was a breathe of fresh air.

I mean it took forever for the other cop to show up. In the meantime another one of Tony’s friends showed up, Tyler, and he had known Matt from our house as well. Our porch is the hangout spot in good weather. Tyler came up and asked what was going on so we explained and he was about as shocked as we were. At this point Tony wasn’t speaking to anyone, he was clearly upset but that’s what he does, he goes silent and doesn’t talk to anyone when something is bothering him.

Finally the second officer showed up and they went into his apartment. Sam, Jamie, and the lady from the other second floor apartment were all downstairs waiting. I stayed upstairs with Tony, Sam was texting me what was going on. Then the cops came out and shut the door behind them. The first cop looked at Sam and Jamie and all he said was “he’s in there” and walked down the stairs. The cop proceeded to walk down our driveway and began throwing up outside his cruiser (we didn’t know this at first, this was later information).

Sam came upstairs and we literally all just sat there not saying anything to anyone. I went outside for a cigarette and saw the Med-Care ambulance pull up to the bottom of our driveway. Not into our driveway, they parked at the end. No sirens. No rush. My heart sank. My stomach twisted. I wanted to cry because right then I knew for certain our friend was dead. We all assumed by the way the cops had spoken, but that finalized it. I threw my cigarette and went inside and broke the news.

We all sat around our kitchen table in silence, I’m pretty sure everyone was staring at the floor, no one daring to make eye contact. Tony left the room and went and laid on the floor in the living room. He wouldn’t speak to me, he wouldn’t uncover his face. He wouldn’t smoke any weed with us, he wouldn’t move. I felt helpless, lost, I didn’t know what to do.

Matt always came upstairs or Tony went down to his porch, and he would vent to Tony. He would bitch about work, about his roommate when he had one, and about his girlfriend. He would come and smoke us up just to vent and talk about shit. Him and Tony had known each other for so long. They’d gotten in a fight or two, it got physical once, but still they were buds, there was no denying it. Matt was one of the only true real friends Tony had, everyone else would manage to cross him or fuck him over or do stupid shit but Matt? Matt was a good fucking guy, straight up.

Someone knocked on our door. I was in a daze, didn’t know what to expect but I answered the door, it was Jamie. Relief poured over me, until I saw her face, twisted like she didn’t want to say something she had to say. “Can you have Sam and Tyler move their cars please?”-pause and deep breathe-“the coroner is here and needs to be able to pull all the way up”. I walked back to the kitchen and everyone looked at me, curious to who was at the door. I choked out the words, my voice trembled, I heard it, everyone heard it. “Sam and Tyler, can you move your cars?” -deep breathe to collect myself- “the coroner needs to pull up” that’s all I could manage to squeak out. Tyler went white, Sam grabbed her keys “oh my god” she almost whimpered, trying to stay composed “of course”.

Have you ever met anyone that just clicked? Matt just clicked, with everyone that was a decent human. He was easy and comfortable, he made you feel like you’d been friends for ages even if you’d only met him a handful of times. His brother was a mental case addicted to drugs that nobody in his family wanted to deal with. He’s been in and out of mental facility’s and rehabs, he was just on a rough path. If anything ever happened, Matts door was open to him. Matt would bitch and moan and complain about how difficult his brother was to deal with, but he always opened that door, he was always there for him when no one else was. That’s the kind of man he is.

Jamie had to call Matts girlfriend and she was the one that told her. The first words out of her mouth? “Well where’s my dog?!” Her chihuahua was there and she had been over Sunday but Matt hadn’t answered the door. I still can’t get over that, the first thing she asked about was her dog. Not anything about the fact that her boyfriend was dead. That still bothers me. What bothered me even more though, was when they brought his body out. His girlfriend was there by then, and the sounds of her screaming, crying, just horrifically screaming. That sound is going to sit with me. It broke my heart to hear that. It still makes me shudder thinking of it.

Tony did not speak the rest of the night. Not to anyone. Not one word.

The next day I woke up and Jamie texted me shortly after. I still have that text. It was three words. Three little words that rocked my world. Not in a good way. Three words that shocked my soul, made my hands tremble, and made me spend my 45 minute drive to work balling my eyes out. Her one text said “Matt hung himself”.

Matt loved kids. He had one of his own who he had been trying to find and trying to get in contact with again. He had another daughter whom was stillborn as well. He loved me and Tony’s son. He was always saying hi and talking to our son Carson and Carson would always play shy and he thought it was funny. Carson loved Matt though even if he wouldn’t talk to him! Whenever we’d go anywhere he would run right to Matt’s front door and start trying to get it open.

I didn’t want to tell Tony what had really happened to Matt, he was taking the untimely death pretty badly as it was. I didn’t want to tell him his close friend had chose to end his own life. I spent the whole morning dreading the thought, it made me not even want to go home for my break. I was wishing for something to come up to keep me busy, but of course nothing did and I got to go home. Tony still wasn’t speaking, I wanted to shake him, force him to tell me what he was thinking. I tried and tried and tried but nothing mattered, he wasn’t speaking.

“It doesn’t make any FUCKING sense” was the first thing he said and it came after he learned of the truth behind Matt’s death. That was the only thing I could get him to say, he retreated back into his shell after that much to my dismay.

I have a tweet on my Twitter that I quoted from Matt. I looked it up that night and I still do once in a while, to make sure it’s still there and to remind myself that he was alive and real even though he’s not with us anymore. It’s always there, but Matt isn’t anymore and that’s a bitter pill to swallow let me tell you. He was funny and sweet and I can’t tell you enough good about him and my chest aches when I think about this all.

Tony went three, nearly four days without speaking. When he did, he didn’t say anything about Matt, just kept going like nothing had happened. I knew it was a ruse to distract himself so I went with it, trying not to bring it up too much. I tried a few times to hint towards a conversation because I wanted to know what he was thinking and how he was feeling, I knew it wasn’t anything good or healthy for him mentally and emotionally.

The day after it happened I worked late. I got home after dark and as I was driving down our road, I could see out building perched up on the hill. Most lights were out except our bathroom and the neighbors had one on too. But they had left every one of Matt’s lights on. His apartment looked like a beacon in the dark. It made me feel sick and made me long to just see his face again.

They left his lights on for three days, until his family came to clean out his stuff. It took them the better half of two weeks to do it. More often than not they left his things and furniture out on the porch. For days on end. It snowed all over his belongings. It felt so rude, I hated walking down the stairs and seeing it all there, looking like it was unimportant and forgotten. Matt was important and won’t ever be forgotten to us.

The hardest thing was not knowing. A lot of people blame his girlfriend (who in less than a month had another boyfriend) and their theories make sense but it’s exhausting to try to find a reason why when he left no reason. And even if it was her fault, the things people were saying to her were very rude and uncalled for. I pittied her but at the same time I was angry because our friend was gone forever and he couldn’t tell us why.

He didn’t leave us a note or a reason. No explaination, he didn’t even seem weird that day, it was a normal day with nothing to explain it. Saying it was and still is hard to understand is the understatement of the year. If you have never been touched by suicide, you can try to understand. I thought I got it before, I did, but now I know how much I didn’t know, how much i underestimated how it felt to not only be effected by it, but to love someone who was effected by it worse than I was myself. I had to be strong for him when I didn’t even know how to be strong for myself.

It has been two months and twelve days since we got the news. It’s been two months and twelve days and I still look for his car on the road when I see a Nissan or a Saturn that looked like his. I still get the same sick feeling in the pit of my stomach when I realize it wont be his car. I still feel foolish when I see one and think of him. Every time I walk up and down the stairs I still avoid looking at his door, it will always be his to me. My eyes linger on it sometimes and an overwhelming sadness I can’t explain washes over me as I remember his face and his crazy antics that we’ll never see or experience again.

We are buying a house. We will be in our apartment for maybe another week, if that. I feel like we’re leaving a lot behind. I feel like we’re leaving and we’ll forget about him and everything that we went through together for the past five years. It’s bittersweet, it’s sad and just a stream of feelings I can’t explain. This is supposed to be a new chapter in our life, a happy and exciting time but the underlying feelings when it comes to leaving 36 Roxbury is indescribable.

I want to beg people, plead with people, suicide is not a joke. It’s not a light situation. Not a way to get attention or to make people pay you sympathy. It’s real, it’s raw, and it hurts. Nobody deserves to feel like they need to end their life. Nobody deserves to feel like they have no other choice. I promise you, there is always someone who cares, someone who wants to listen to you. You’re not alone, you’re never completely alone in life. There are resources, places, and people to turn to. Feeling suicidal is not something to be ashamed of and it’s not some thing to be embarrassed by and definitely not something to hide.

If there was one last thing that I could say to Matt, I would tell him how much we all loved him, and how much it has killed us to go on without him. I’d tell him that his life was worth more, and mostly, that I’m sorry. I’m sorry that we weren’t there, and that he felt that way when we were right up a flight of stairs and had no idea. I’m sorry his life had to end that way because he had so much going for him, so much more to live for. What I’d give to come home from work and see him and Tony hanging out on the porch, talking about everything and anything, usually some crazy scheme they were cooking up together. What I’d give to hear him rev his car up obnoxiously in the driveway even though I used to bitch about it all the time. They say you don’t know what you have until you loose it, and that is one of the most true statements I’ve ever heard in my life.

Rest Easy Matt. Stay lit, enjoy your red bull and smokes and don’t drink too much without us all down here. We’ll see you again someday, and man the stories we’ll have to tell. You’ll never be forgotten, not by us at least, you can bet your ass. We all love you Matt, and we miss you down here so much more than you could ever know.

If you just read all of that, I don’t care what people say, you are amazing, and wonderful. Thank you for taking the time to read it and I hope that it resonates with you and means something to you. Hold your friends and family closer. Dont be petty and don’t sweat the small stuff. Life is wonderful, and even when it’s dark, I promise you the light will always come back on for you.

[jeantparks]

McLellan Jacobs Tempting Toys

McLellan Jacobs, known for its upscale carbon-fiber kayak, is applying its smart sense of style to a paddleboard.

Five years ago, New Zealand-based designers Andy Jacobs and Jamie McLellan brought their idea for an upscale kayak to the Monaco Yacht Show.

They showed a select group of people their $25,000 standard model — with gold-plated brass fittings, teak woodwork and custom options — and explained how the ­kayak’s craftsmen were borrowed from a team doing carbon-fiber work on America’s Cup boats.

“We realized there was this gaping hole in making a beautiful craft that complements a superyacht, instead of a fluorescent orange one,” Jacobs says.

The goal at McLellan Jacobs has always been to expand their concept into a line of water toys.

McLellan Jacobs soon landed buyers among the superyacht set and added bespoke options. “We’ve done matte carbon with matte stainless [steel] componentry to match a superyacht, wooden inlays in the teak to match a logo on a yacht,” Jacobs says.

The goal at McLellan Jacobs has always been to expand their concept into a line of water toys. Both designers are boaters, and everywhere they look, they see styling improvements that could be made.

Hence their new stand-up paddleboard, which will become available this year. “We’re taking the styling of the kayak and simplifying it to make it more accessible for a lot more people,” Jacobs says.

McLellan Jacobs have designed an upscale kayak.

McLellan also does work for NeilPryde, a top board-surfing company, and is bringing that experience to the McLellan Jacobs paddleboard. “There’s going to be a screw fitting that lets you mount a mast on it and sail on it if you want to do that,” Jacobs says.

They’re thinking matte titanium and matte black with bleached teak for the paddleboard, whose price point is being determined. It will include a leash plug with a metal detail and the McLellan Jacobs logo.

“We’d love to use these products as a springboard to get into styling some tenders,” Jacobs says, “or maybe even collaborating on a bigger vessel.”

By Kim Kavin

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