#i’d use it but my grandad follows me on instagram

[secretagentsagainstwhatever]

‘have to send her ‘ therapy

she got a e cup bra, a lot on her chest’

[musicarenagh]

Fumez Delves Deeper In His Personal Life And Sheds Light On His Latest Album 'Phase Two' Welcome ladies and gentlemen, join me as we dive into the world of Fumez as we uncover who is his behind the stage name, and uncover the man behind the music. From the story behind his unique moniker to his sources of inspiration, we get a glimpse into what makes Fumez tick. But before we delve into his music, let us explore the life that shaped this artist, Fumez is from a musical family and he shares more of this in a recent interview with Mister Styx of Musicarenagh Although he lives in the present, he still performs under the moniker he used in his past life, the name Fumez was derived from fumes, literally from smoke, he admits during a phase of his life he used to smoke, but not anymore. His style is a mix of Hip-Hop with a dash of UK Grime and pop, creating a genre-bending sound that's all his own. He also touched on his latest album which he titles “Phase Two,” a continuation of his previous album “2009”, “Phase Two” has a total of 12 songs that delves into the intricate phases of relationships and friendships. In the interview he takes us through his creative process and what goes on during that process, he also shares the inspirations that fuel his lyrics, and the artists who have influences the type of music he produces. Listen to Phase Two below https://open.spotify.com/album/1AIRaDNQqbafT2XzJhBexY Follow Fumez on Twitter Spotify Toutube Instagram Tiktok “What is your stage name Fumez Is there a story behind your stage name? I used to smoke when I was younger, I’ve given up now but that’s where the name came from Where do you find inspiration? I find inspiration from music of all different genres, my writing comes from groups such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones & The Bee Gees, and my production/arrangements I take inspiration from bands such as The Divine Comedy, and then from UK grime artists such as Dizzee Rascal & Ruff Sqwad, so a right mix there What was the role of music in the early years of your life? I would listen to music pretty much all day every day while growing up, I only took a break whilst at school, listening to it has always been a big part of my life Are you from a musical or artistic family? A few family members would play the guitar, my grandad was heavily into music & would constantly be listening to something, he would listen to jazz groups like War, then take a U-Turn and put on Eminem! Haha Who inspired you to be a part of the music industry? I can’t quite remember what inspired me to be apart of it, I’ve just know that I’d always wanted to do something within the industry How did you learn to sing/write/to play? I was initially taught how to mix by one of my friends, and when I say taught, he showed me how to place vocals and loops into Magix & told me to get on with it, he gave me a copy of the programme so I could practice at home, when it comes to writing, one of my friends decided to write a few verses for me in a song, I had been mixing for a while but they wanted me fully involved, i then started writing my own material from then onwards What was the first concert that you ever went to and who did you see perform? I genuinely can’t remember the first concert as it was so long ago, but the first live act I can remember watching is The Lightning Seeds. How could you describe your music? My style of music is Hip-Hop, with elements of UK Grime and pop [caption id="attachment_52412" align="alignnone" width="1500"] My style of music is Hip-Hop, with elements of UK Grime and pop[/caption] Describe your creative process. It varies from project to project, With my album Phaze Two I was writing about things that were going on around me at the time, one example is I had an argument with a friend, i then went home in a rage and wrote the song Halfway To Hell, I also wrote the song It Doesn’t Matter based on tension within my group of friends at that time. The song Just Be Yourself

was the same, I witnessed a friend of mine change due to hanging around with someone they looked up to, they ended up becoming someone they wasn’t just to impress this particular person. What is your main inspiration? Life, and music in general, I could listen to a particular song, hear a certain lyric then write an entire song based off that one lyric What musician do you admire most and why? I’ve always admired John Lennon & Paul McCartney, I’ve taken a lot of my writing skill from them, the influence they and The Beatles had on music has been written many times, even today’s artists like Taylor Swift have been said to be influenced by Paul McCartney from the Beatles. Did your style evolve since the beginning of your career? My writing, producing, arranging and mixing process has evolved a lot and matured over the years. Who do you see as your main competitor? Honestly there’s no competition here, we’re all out here to do our own thing. What are your interests outside of music? I like gaming, both playing and collecting, Ive streamed on twitch in the past too, I’d like to get back into that at some point. If it wasn't a music career, what would you be doing? Exactly what I’m doing now, your typical 9 to 5 job What is the biggest problem you have encountered in the journey of music? The change! When i started back in the late 2000’s we had MySpace music, that was it, as crazy as it sounds, it was easier to get noticed back then than it is today, I would go round the local independent record shops and ask them to sell copies of my album, which they would, people would go out and hunt for new music, they would pick a copy of your album up and give it a listen, if you left contact details on the sleeve sometimes they would drop you a message on MySpace telling you how great, or how terrible your album was! Although it’s easier to release music today, it’s so much harder to get noticed, anyone with a microphone and basic music creating software can release a single on to streaming platforms worldwide! A lot of independent shops have closed down, the listening public go for what’s familiar, they don’t tend to branch out these days which is a shame! If you could change one thing in the music industry, what would it be? The pay per stream ratio, artists don’t get paid enough for their creations. It’s a shame. Why did you choose this as the title of this project? My first project was titled 2009, I was initially going to title this 2010 (the year it was originally released), as this was a concept album and completely different to what I had released before, I changed it to “Phaze Two”, it’s a completely different phaze within my music career. https://open.spotify.com/artist/0G8OAQAoqZjL2GoXxtwLUZ What are your plans for the coming months? We have the vinyl of Phaze Two coming at the start of 2024 so at the moment I’m focused on getting that finished, I’ll also be doing a reissue of the CD as that’s now sold out. Do you have any artistic collaboration plans? I will continue to work with the guys who worked on phaze two with me, Calmar who produced some of the tracks and acted as executive producer on the album, Charleigh Jayne who provided some fantastic vocals, and PJ Vice who performed some rapping with me, we have formed a group called SouthSystem, all new collaborations will be released under this name, we will also still continue with our solo careers too. What message would you like to give to your fans? I would like to thank all of my fans for buying the album and streaming it, thank you to the original fan’s who have stuck around since the early days, and thank you to all my new fans I’ve gained since the re-release of this album and also thank you for all of your kind words, without you guys I wouldn’t be where I am now! So thank you all so much! It’s really appreciated.

[nicknellie]

For sure, as I (believe) mentioned before music is Luke’s way of showing that he cares (Julie with bright ect) so it would make the most sense for him to be the only one who sings it to Alex.

Oh no, I was thinking that however I’m just now picturing it in my head like the last verse is just Luke because the other boys are crying so hard and Luke is as well but he needs to finish the song because Alex has to know.

Precisely, although the band wouldn’t be the same without one of them (they literally changed band names when they added Julie) it’s hard for any of them to think that they matter as much as they do.

Yes, I think that as well although Luke never intends for it to happen he is usually either the reason why fight starts are involved in them. Mostly due to the fact that as you said he is headstrong, and while I do think that he open minded sometimes with his opinions it takes longer for him to consider the other side (Him telling Julie that she needs to get back into the music program ect).

Although with Willie for Alex we see him sometimes being able to stand up for himself I feel like when it comes to his bandmates he sometimes may not have that back bone mostly because in the back of his head he’s afraid that they will kick him out. (Not that they really did anything that Alex needs to call them out for however just in general)

Depending on which fic you’re talking about I might have read it as well, but I’ve seen theories/stories about that as well.

Honestly I keep thinking that the boys met each other rather young however I completely agree, for a few years Bobby just didn’t have a lot of friends

Sadness, I’ve also saw a comment somewhere in which someone mentioned that for the boys stuff to be in the garage it was Bobby who probably put it there and that’s upsetting. (Poor Bobby)

Just randomly he sees one of Alex’s jigsaws and their random hobbies and he burst into more tears (could possibly be were he thinks that using the songs would be a good thing)

I can just see Reggie trying to lure Alex into a wild goose case just because he’s trying to get him confused (Alex is more so concerned but just moves on) Yes, that exactly how Bobby and Luke react. Also they can’t really lie to Alex so they won’t make eye contact with him, which is how Alex is able to tell that Bobby isn’t truthful.

Exactly, that’s what I was thinking as well! Bobby looks calm however he’s able to deck someone if needed, honestly after a while people just know not to mess with him however Luke still comes as a surprise because he acts like a puppy.

Wait yes!! Reggie learned art from his grandad (also partly where his love of country music comes from but none of the boys know why he started writing country music) (Luke always tries to get him to stop writing them however whenever Reggie is feeling sad they tend to play his grandads favorite country song which is the only one that Luke will accept)

Wait yes!! I was thinking the exact same thing, I could just see him taking a picture and then painting it. Reggie just makes paintings of all of them but as Luke is the most photogenic a majority of them is of him.

Yes, comfort music and poetry (also comfort baking especially for Reggie because Alex can’t say no to Reggie even though he once requested a Han Solo cake)

Precisely! For a bit of time the boys would be concerned just because they associated Alex baking with him being stressed (even if Alex says it’s nothing if they wake up and the garage smells like someone has been baking they know). I actually remember reading this fic that basically had Alex make cookies and then give them to a random stranger (Willie) and your idea kind of reminded me of that. But yes, and Alex is such a god baker that although the boys need him to go to sleep immediately they don’t protest to the immense amount of baked goods.

Completely, Reggie doesn’t seem tired however he is so active that the boys just know. (Possibly could’ve been when he thought that fixing his amp in the rain was a good idea).

Oh wait yes, and there’s no in between either just those two and Alex is always prepared.

If Trevor and Mitch were close then it definitely would’ve been easier for Trevor to help him make the charity. (It took Emily and Mitch a bit of time to recognize where they knew Trevor from because unlike the boys they weren’t able to pinpoint him immediately)

They definitely saw the boys as their sons, (depending on the time line) when Alex ran away he went to them first and Emily was one of the first adults (soon after Bobby) who Alex came out to.

Honestly I was thinking that for a bit of time Trevor wouldn’t announce who he was however I think your theory makes a lot more sense and I prefer it. Also I do feel like they could’ve been neglectful but Sunset Curve found a family within each other so it wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been that they didn’t have the best parents.

It’s the only logical explanation that she’s Julie’s mom and if she isn’t then there has to be a reason for her character outside of a worker you know. (I’ve seen some theories where they say that Caleb is behind their murder so if that’s the direction that they take and if she’s supposed to be like a spy for his club I will rage)

Yes, basically everyone thanks Rose because she is amazing.

Honestly I have quite a bit that I expect from season two but I just really hope that they touch upon those story lines also developed and spend more time on their characters (Flynn and Willie deserved better). I’d love flashbacks like that as well, and going along with your theory kind of like in unsaid Emily as the song is continuing and all the sudden we get like a flashback scene (how they did it) that’s what they should do, if the boys sit down and tell Julie about their past.

He is such a family man, honestly if anything I just don’t really feel like they developed Trevor enough to tell what he is like as a parent however I just don’t see him as someone who doesn’t care because he had quite a few examples of not so great parents growing up, (not being supportive, neglectful, not accepting their kid and fighting in front of them jus to name a few) that he never wanted to be like them.

So I’ve been thinking about this for a bit so I’ll bring it out now, in stand tall when Carrie makes a comment before the show we see his face kind of scrunch up and I feel like season two could have a scene where he talks to her about her behavior and could possibly be how they do her redemption arc (?). Because he loves her so much, and although he may not be the best at showing it (now that he lost the boys it’s been hard for him to get close to people even his own daughter due to the fact that he’s afraid of losing them)

Exactly, it feels like they don’t care about the fact that they died. For some people it does take longer to react to things end it could just be that they’re still processing it however we get no insight to the fact that they’re even mildly thinking about it. I do think part of it is that although even has changed they still have each other and therefore they can try to get through everything that they possibly could.

Alex is such a sweetheart, and that’s exactly what he would do because he genuinely enjoyed helping people also the fact that Bobby means so much to him just made him feel like he was on cloud nine.

That’s exactly the song, The boys are so concerned and Alex and Luke at one point turns to Julie and is like that’s why I didn’t want him to know about Jar-Jar, I can’t believe he’s done this again (occasionally Reggie brings out heavy metal and no one knows why)

(So I’ve never seen Star Wars either, honestly I just said that character because he is adorable)

Julie is just concerned about them in general however during this moment she’s just so confused (I feel like Carlos is a huge Star Wars fan, part of why Reggie likes him so much so due to that fact she’s also a fan) however they spend the next 20 ish minutes talking about how much the franchise has changed ect.

It would totally be their thing, and although Alex isn’t into photography as much as Reggie is, they both just love the experience and spending time together. Also they loved having Luke and Bobby there as well, surprisingly Bobby knows a lot about photography as well or at least the developing stages so if the boys are there then Reggie and Bobby usually take over doing the developing and Luke and Alex just watch.

Yes, this is how Reggie gets into lots of scrapbooking conversations (also randomly gets stickers from people) for the fact that he’s so well known for how much he loves scrapbooking.

That’s exactly how the shoot for the deme photo went. One of the photos has Reggie out of place and the boys in movement and since Reggie thought it was the last one he almost burst out into tears (they quickly discovered that there was another picture which became the cover).

Yes, Reggie just keeps giving Julie scrapbooks of Luke. (Reggie is the embarrassing mom friend that would pull out baby pictures just to spite someone)

Instagram account- yes, and his followers are sometimes confused as to how he could possibly get those pictures without being seen but they just accept it as Reggie being Reggie. For sure, Flynn and Reggie would be the best friendship duo and the photos are insane. (Luke is photogenic but Flynn is a whole level because she will gladly do a 2 hour photo shoot)

Luke would definitely let Reggie have the wrappers, and that’s precisely what Alex‘s reaction would be.

That’s what I was thinking as well, he’s just so shaky and the writing is so blurry to him because he has so many tears in his eyes and eventually he just can’t look at it anymore (that’s why the photos are not in the scrapbook but just placed inside because although he knew how much it would mean to Reggie, Bobby didn’t have the strength to make a new page)

Yes Luke would definitely wrap the gifts in tinfoil (‘I have more class than that Luke’ ‘Reggie, you wrap your gifts with newspaper’)

Everyone just takes Alex’s hoodies, even Julie.

You described that beautifully that is exactly what their relationship is.

The hoodies are essential during movie nights because Luke and Reggie have enough room to pull the hoodies over their face so they don’t have to see what’s on screen. Over time Alex isn’t scared by them however (despite seeing the film like four times) Luke let out a gigantic scream once at a film and it terrified Alex. Ah I love that you included Willie (who is the king of stealing hoodies much to Alex’s sadness) and that is exactly what would happen.

Yes, and Alex takes his job as a choreographer very seriously (honestly it’s just for entertainment because Alex is very amused) The picture that Owen posted somewhere buried in the scrapbooks there is a similar one of sunset curve in similar costumes that Luke has tried to get Reggie to burn. Also although Luke is not interested he is the best dancer and it’s very normal thing to walk into the garage and see them waltzing with each other.

I love the way that you said this and I completely agree, it’s one way that Alex and Julie bond (also she finds that picture of Luke and Alex waltzing and she forces him to teach her how to waltz)

Honestly at one point I was going to say I love how all of this started because of a jigsaw.

I’m sorry this took me so long to get to but as I predicted I’ve been writing my response for a whole hour and I’m hoping it’s worth it 😂 oh god I loved literally all of this, more under keep reading :)))

Ok so originally I started bullet pointing everything and I planned to put it all into a big thing like I did before, then I accidentally started putting more detail into the bullet points and just stuck with it 😂 the first few aren’t as detailed but it gets better the longer it goes on. That’s also why they’re all numbered lmao

1. Luke’s voice breaking as he holds the last note at the end of the song and him desperately trying to make it all the way without crying so Alex can see how much he cares

2. All of them knowing they’re like family but also constantly feeling like they’re stepping on eggshells because they’re so used to making mistakes within their own homes that they think it’ll be just as easy with all their friends

3. Interesting that you mentioned the music program - implies he always thinks that his ideas aren’t necessarily the best but they’re for the best and he struggled to change his mind to see other sides of the argument which is where the fighting started

4. Alex was usually the mediator because whenever there was a problem he would lay the facts out in his mind and sort through all outcomes to the best possible solution that would hopefully please everyone - generally everyone agreed after Alex intervened and it was rare he was involved in arguments himself

5. Totally right about Alex not standing up for himself (see “And you can’t make us either! ...Sir” to Caleb) and that’s why he was hardly ever involved; when he did argue he could actually get kind of nasty which made him feel awful

6. Yeah same I think he just seemed like a bit of a loner and let’s be real kind of intimidating despite his chill personality and the guys were the first to break down his walls

7. I’ve seen stuff like that - like it was probably him who had to identify the bodies and take their stuff back and that’s a horrible weight for a 17-y-o to bare and it makes me wonder how people can dislike Bobby based on actions and choices he made when he was grieving for his family

8. Omg he goes through each of their bags after he’s taken them back to the studio that night (not Luke’s bc Mitch and Emily have it) and he finds the tiny easy jigsaw Alex uses before shows and a half completed crossword book in Reggie’s stuff

9. Also!! Reggie does sudokus too! I kept forgetting what they were called and wanting to add them in, but sudokus!! He loves them

10. Yes lmao Reggie starts off with a really confusing lie that makes Alex asks more questions - it once ended up with the completely false story that Reggie was planning to climb Mount Everest and they weren’t telling Alex because he was afraid of heights

11. I love thinking that the boys just can’t lie to each other because we see in the show they can’t lie (high-pitched ummmm and “we were looking for the kitchen...?”) so tiny things like that are perfect I’m so in agreement

12. Exactly yes!!!! Luke is friends with everyone he speaks to until they say something that rubs him the wrong way and he just kind of explodes (unless it’s someone he’s close to)

13. YES OMG I didn’t even think of that being where Reggie’s love of country music came from but YES omg totally

14. Because I love Johnny Cash I’m claiming Reggie’s favourite country song as Ring of Fire because it’s quite upbeat and I can see him and his grandad jamming out to it in the old days - other favourites were I Walk The Line and A Boy Named Sue

15. I feel like Reggie’s art style would swing between very realistic like when he paints the boys and also kind of similar to Booboo Stewart’s art

16. Alex tried his hardest to deliver with the Han Solo cake and it definitely could have turned out worse! Reggie helped decorate because he couldn’t wait until it was finished to see the result

17. Yes omg like the boys trying to say like “you good buddy?” through huge mouthfuls of cake and the whole effect of concern being lost - Alex eventually starts baking even when he’s fine so it’s harder to tell when he’s stressed, but baking always cheers him up so they don’t mind

18. That fic sounds really sweet omg 🥺

19. Absolutely omg! It’s like the middle of the night, full-on storm outside, and Reggie just thinks “oh yeah I gotta fix my amp, no time like the present” and it didn’t go well obviously

20. Yes and now you’ve said that I kinda feel like Emily was the second person he told who took it well? Like Bobby was first, then his parents reacted badly, and then he went to Luke’s house - Emily asked if he wanted to see Luke but he kind of broke down and asked if he could talk to her instead

21. He told her everything and she was incredibly supportive - because for a while Alex wanted to keep things on the down-low Luke didn’t even know he stayed at his house that night

22. Yeah I just need more found-family 90s Sunset Curve moments along with the found-family present day Julie and the Phantoms moments 🥺

23. idk if you saw but the book confirmed that Rose is her mother!!!! It’s officially canon!!! So no worries about her being a spy for Caleb, I think Rose is way too nice for that (oops sorry if you’re avoiding book spoilers 😬)

24. Omg louder for the people in the back Flynn and Willie deserved better!!! They deserved so much more screen time, Flynn deserves her own storyline (personally I’m rooting for her to be the first to reconnect with Carrie and I’m a hardcore Flarrie shipper so that would be cool, but I’d settle for them just being friends again) and I’d love to see Willie dealing with the emotional baggage and realisations that come after Caleb’s stamp gets lifted

25. Exactly!! This!! He loves his family so much, probably blames himself a little for the boys’ death (for not going with them, even though there was nothing he could have done, or for encouraging them to go) and he doesn’t want to lose his family!

26. Omg I’ve never considered that but I love it! I want more Trevor and Carrie moments in general and him showing some good parenting by helping her be better would be totally perfect yesssss

27. Yeah I get that, like the main thing is that they have each other and as long as they have that they’ll be fine - although like you said because it takes some people longer to process it I’d love to see either Luke or Reggie start thinking about it when they realise that Julie and the others are growing up but they’ll be 17 forever

28. Ajakkffjsl YES Reggie just randomly writing heavy metal songs, either about something he hates or just. Totally for no reason other than he likes the freedom of screaming (but he doesn’t like listening to it as he doesn’t like shouting)

29. That’s Gizmo??? Omg yes oh my Lord idk what that thing is but I would die for it and so would Reggie

30. Carlos and Reggie having lightsaber fights. That’s it. All Carlos can see is a floating lightsaber but they both have the time of their lives/afterlives

31. Omg what if Bobby learnt about the developing thing bc as we’ve established Reggie is not that careful but Bobby is very gentle and it’s something you need to be gentle for so he learns it just to help Reggie

32. For most famous bands or whatever they get asked for autographs or whatever but not Reggie - he gets given stickers and people ask to take photos, then make him keep the photos and ask them to put them in his scrapbook; even though Sunset Curve were still relatively small he had a whole album dedicated to photos with fans

33. Lmao yeah they just couldn’t time it right and thankfully got the photo on the very last try - Reggie literally cried with happiness

34. Yes!! This!! Oh my god!! Whenever Luke is being particularly annoying Reggie just calls Julie over and sits her down with a photo album - the best ones are the photos of Luke stuck in weird places (idk I feel like he’d do stupid things and get stuck a lot. He once got his head stuck in a train door and instead of helping the boys just laughed at him. That happened to me one time which is why I thought of it)

35. Hell yeah Reggie’s photography account blows up, especially when Flynn starts managing it. And those two hour shoots are almost always her idea - she’ll just show up at the studio with a bunch of outfits and shout to the air “Reggie get your camera ready!”

36. Omg don’t do that to meeeee 😭 he couldn’t make himself flip through the pages and stick the photos in because he didn’t want to relive all the memories that had suddenly turned painful 😭 so he just carefully slips the photos inside and never looks at them again

37. Julie in Alex’s hoodie is possibly the greatest mental image I’ve ever had - he can’t find it, and usually it’s Luke or Reggie, and nowadays Willie tends to take it too, so Alex marches into the studio and asks which one of them has it, at which point he sees Julie huddled up in it for warmth and he just melts because she’s freaking adorable and he can’t believe how lucky he is to have her as a best friend

38. Lmaooo Reggie and Luke hiding under the hoodies is PERFECT and yes Luke is such a scaredy-cat no matter how tough he tries to act

39. Alex looks forwards to their dance sessions every time lmao and YES he got them all matching costumes and Luke despises the photos

40. Sunset Curve (and later Julie and the Phantoms) dancing with each other was not something I knew I needed in my life but I’m so glad you said it because YES

41. Kinda considering buying a custom JatP jigsaw from somewhere because now I feel like I deserve one

[universitychallenged]

University Challenge 2020/21, Episode 9

How do you film socially distanced UniChall? One of my insider snouts informs me that the first round was filmed pre-plague, but Round Two onwards will be delayed. Will the teams be in a bubble for two weeks beforehand (good way of cramming in extra revision on metal alloys and Brueghel the Elder)? Or will Jez point accusingly at contestants for removing their masks to confer? I await with bated breath (which I will not exhale on anyone).

***STOP PRESS! See a tweet from legendary announcer Roger Tilling below!***

Anyway! I couldn’t resist this one, because – GASP! – it was my alma mater (York) versus husband Andy’s most recent alma mater (King’s). I stood in front of Andy, fists clenched, leaping on my toes in prancey boxing-style and roaring lustily about bands of brothers, before remembering that it’s only a game and none of it matters (except it DOES).

York: 100

King’s College, London: 170

Team Vibe:

York: adorable little Yorkshire puddings

King’s College London: hanging out at the South Bank, reading Sebald and eating poke

Grandad Count: King’s had a couple of olds, taking Andy right back to being nearly twenty years older than many of his Masters peers in 2018 and trying to fit in by saying ‘lit’ and ‘savage’ (he didn’t really do this).

Gender Diversity Count: 2/8, aka:

Style News: No contest here: even if I wasn’t completely biased in favour of music students from York, dear Ridout would have run away with it. Killer shirt! Awesome necklace! Beige turtleneck! Singular hair! Hipster glasses! If I didn’t know better, I’d have assumed it was open mic night in Kreuzberg, Berlin, 1998.

Cult Hero Of The Episode: Today’s love-to-hate figure is Triggs, of King’s! By love to hate, I mean all the dopes who get riled into Twitrage if someone doesn’t smile politely and answer neutrally, with no character or individuality. Triggs (who also brought good shirt/T-shirt game) had a whole slouchy, grouchy insouciance going on, buzzed in several confident wrong answers as well as many correct ones. I, naturally, love him with nary a whit of hate, because those who doted on Imperial’s Brandon last season know that contestants are shitting themselves underneath any apparent swagger (see Tweet evidence below). He also had a very similar-to-Brandon Thinking Man pose!

Handsome Person of the Episode: York’s Walker had VERY dreamy eyes, but I’m giving it to lovely Captain Parsons, for her wide-eyed answers and fine cord dungarees.

Horror Bonus Round: 'Your bonuses are on Central Asia. In each case, name the country in which the following cities are located.’ It’s the ‘-stan' pot-luck round that comes around every five episodes! Sadly, we guessed Turkmenistan for each one.

For Captain Jackson of King’s, the horror round was definitely the Dickens one, in which he answered, confusingly, ‘Martin Chizzlewick’ three times running, ah hahaha.

Regular Music Fail By Composition PhD-owning Composer, Kerry Andrew: Singers crooning in different languages, ooo, spicy! Stevie Wonder I got, though I can honestly understand the discombobulation of hearing him sing in Spanish. Got The Supremes, but not Martha Reeves or the Temptations, because I changed my mind and blurted The Four Tops instead. Fantastic lack of classical music questions, yay! No one likes them (especially moi).

Dream Bonus Question Round: Producer Rick Rubin, yasss! We got Red Hot Chili Peppers, Johnny Cash and Metallica betwixt us. As an aside, it’s about seven and a half years and lots of whisky before Captain Jackson becomes Rick Rubin:

Jezza-Watch: Grumpy old goat versus unreadable millennial! ‘Milton?’ buzzed in Trigg, casually, correctly, with a vulnerable half-scowl. ’You always look as if you can hardly be bothered to answer,’ Jezzo groused. It’s literally the world encapsulated in one exchange.

Kerry and Andy’s Score: 19 points, fairly equally.

Brain Food: Salmon, pea puree and a potato waffle, YUM

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12 tips for organizing your work space

New Post has been published on https://nexcraft.co/12-tips-for-organizing-your-work-space/

12 tips for organizing your work space

The following is an excerpt adapted from Tips and Tales from the Workshop: A Handy Reference for Makers by Gareth Branwyn.

Some studies suggest that organization leads to clearer, more productive thinking and creating, while others claim the opposite. You likely already have your own work and organizational style, and not much is going to change that. I’m basically a mildly messy person with periodic bursts of organizational energy. For years, I beat myself up over my chaotic ways, but then I decided that this was my basic organizational style and that I have still been able to be productive and successful.

One thing I’ve found that helps motivate me to be organized is really clever, thoughtful, and time-saving ideas. Reading a great organizational tip or about some cool organizational technology can inspire a burst of reorganizational energy. Here are a few of my favorite ideas.

1. Organize for first-order retrievability

This tip can help reduce the time it takes to find and grab your tools and materials. Arrange your workspace so that the more commonly used the tool or material is, the closer it is to you. Conversely, put more occasional tools farther away. This way, the shop is designed so that you can easily find what you need as you need it. Via Adam Savage

2. Arrange cords with binder clips

Use a row of binder clips on the edge of your desk as a cable organizer.

3. Take advantage of equipment dead space

Jay Bates shared this useful shop-organizing tip in one of his YouTube videos. For most of us, space is always at a premium. When setting up a shop, you want to carefully think of the workflow around the machines and how you can optimize operational efficiency and tool and material retrievability. Jay suggests that you plan to use the dead space of each machine (the side that you never interact with) to your advantage by grouping these edges together.

4. Keep track of small parts

Use double-sided tape to hold small parts in place while you disassemble or reassemble something. Affix the tape to a piece of paper and write where each part goes.

5. Apply stretch wrap to organize straps

If you have toe straps and ratchet straps in your shop or in your truck, you can quickly bundle them using stretch wrap. Just use a few loops of wrap and your rolled straps are good to go. You can even reuse the wrap for multiple strap-wrappings. Via Jay Bates

6. Mark your tools

From Caleb Kraft: “My grandfather was handy with tools (weren’t they all?). He had a small woodshop and a collection of miscellany that had been acquired through years of working on various machines. At some point he worked on trains; at another, he repaired vacuums.

“When you’re working in shops with other people, it is always smart to mark your tools so that you know someone else won’t end up with them. My grandpa’s mark was five little notches or slashes.

“I inherited many of grandad’s tools when he passed away. They’ve outlived many of the cheap, modern versions I’ve acquired during my workshop explorations. Those five marks have become something of a sign of quality in my mind.

“Maybe I should begin marking my favorite tools. How would a CNC mill look with five notches on the side?”

7. Label cables with bread tags

Here’s a tried and true method of cable labeling that I have used for years: plastic bread-bag tags.

8. Make your own pocket notebooks

I’ve been using Moleskine Cahiers pocket notebooks every day since 2006. I have dozens of volumes of them filled with article ideas, design sketches, notes on my day, and various other scribblings. They’re fun to go back through to see where my mind has been over the years. I often find buried gems I can use today. As much as I love Cahiers, they aren’t cheap. And while I customize mine with cover art, stamps, and stickers, it’s just not the same as if I’d made them myself.

Bob Clagett of I Like to Make Stuff makes his own (see his Pocket Notebooks how-to on YouTube). When you make them yourself, you have something that’s infinitely customizable using your preference of cover paper stock and design, internal paper (or combination of paper types), pockets, size, and so on. I’ve made a few of my own over the years and they definitely hold a special “inspired object” status in my collection.

9. Give your notebook a keyword index

I was so thrilled when I ran across this notebook hack, allegedly from Japan, on Instagram. I fill up lots of notebooks and frequently use a single journal for work ideas, personal projects, and domestic planning (trips, meals, shopping, and so on). Finding things in makers’ notebooks across volumes, and within volumes, can be a real chore. The only real way of fixing this access problem is taking the considerable time to index everything.

The following simple approach allows you to fairly quickly build a back-of-book index of significant content as you go (you could build it in the front of the book, too).

Here’s how it works:

First you start off with your content. In this example, Adam, who runs the blog High Five, is making a recipe book. Here’s his first recipe.

He creates a listing of recipe types on the final page of his recipe notebook.

Based on his index of recipe types, he puts the appropriate marking on the outside edge of the page for this Chinese recipe.

Next, you can see that by placing corresponding marks on the edges of the pages that map to the recipe index in the back, Adam has organized his recipes for much easier access.

I’m definitely going to start doing this in all of my notebooks. Via Adam at High Five Blog

10. Order cables with toilet paper tubes

Use empty toilet paper rolls to hold bundled personal electronics cables and other cords together.

11. Hold cables with zip ties

This trick is from Donald Bell of Maker Project Lab: “This is an easy, useful way to stand-off cables across a length of conduit using zip ties and cheap vinyl tubing. It’s a way to tidy up electrical wiring, fuel lines, data cables, pneumatic tubes, and bicycle brake lines.”

Cut off a ¾-inch section of clear vinyl tubing. You can get this stuff cheap as aquarium air pump tubing.

Run your zip tie through the small section of tube, leaving it sitting midway down the zip tie like a ring.

Take the pointy end of the zip tie and wrap the smooth side around whatever you’re trying to wrangle.

Shoot the pointy end back through the ring of vinyl tubing. You should now have a looped cable on one side of the tube. On the other side, you should have the two ends of your zip tie with the smooth sides facing each other.

Cinch up the loop by adjusting the vinyl tubing ring toward the cable, creating enough length for the ends of your zip tie to be secured around whatever you’re fastening it to.

Zip it up, trim off the extra, and repeat as needed.

Also from Donald Bell: “I came across this tip as a way to harness spark plug cables in your engine. It’s a great way to gather up any group of thick cables, while simultaneously keeping them separate from one another.”

Lay your cables down parallel to one another and count them. The number of zip ties you’ll need is equal to the number of cables.

Loosely attach one zip tie across the entire bunch of cables like a collar, leaving plenty of slack.

Tie loose, perpendicular rings completely around the first zip tie between each cable, parallel to the cables.

Tighten the first zip tie, and then move on to the small rings. Now, trim the excess.

12. Manage your cords

On his YouTube channel, homesteader Dirt Farmer Jay offers a tip for a superior, less kinky way to store your heavy-duty power cords.

The basic steps are:

Plug the male end into the female end.

Grab the doubled cord below the loop that marks the halfway point and flip it over so the loop is facing down.

Push the doubled cord through the loop and grab it with your other hand.

Repeat to form a chain.

Gareth Branwyn is a well-known writer and editor, and a pioneer of both online culture and the maker movement. He is the former editorial director of Make: Magazine, was a contributing editor to Wired for twelve years, and a senior editor of Boing Boing (in print). Gareth is the author and editor of over a dozen books, and is currently a regular contributor to Make, Boing Boing, and other online and offline publications.

This excerpt was adapted from Tips and Tales from the Workshop: A Handy Reference for Makers by Gareth Branwyn, June 2018 Maker Media. Published with permission.

Popular Science is delighted to bring you selections from new and noteworthy science-related books. If you are an author or publisher and have a new and exciting book that you think would be a great fit for our website, please get in touch! Send an email to books@popsci.com.

Written By Gareth Branwyn

[lizeindisneylandblog]

If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know that it was my birthday back in March, but I waited until my Disneyland trip in April to spend my birthday money. I realise it’s now June and you’re like, well your birthday was months ago, why should we care what you bought? But trust me, I bought some beautiful things.

If you’d like to see what I got for my birthday, click here. As well as my birthday money, I’m also going to include what I bought with a Disney gift card I won, and my work’s annual bonus.

From my Auntie Audrey, Auntie Julie, and cousins Jennifer and Kathryn: I bought this gorgeous Disneyland Alex and Ani bracelet, because I’d had my heart set on it for quite some time. I’ve also bought the Disney California Adventure bracelet to match, and I want to get them for Epcot, Animal Kingdom, Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios, too.

From my Grandad: My Grandad has a very impressive collection of caps, so with my birthday money from him, I wanted to buy one of my own. I was getting a very sunburnt scalp, and I saw this beautiful vintage Disneyland cap and I just had to have it. I’ve since worn it to Alton Towers, and it’s probably the most sensible purchase I made on the entire trip. Thank you Grandad, I hope you like it!

From my Auntie Vicki: I saw this beautiful Haunted Mansion bag, and I knew that I had to have it. It looks like a Dooney and Bourke, but it’s actually more beautiful than all the Dooneys that were available while we were there.

From Amy, Gary, Ethan, Elliott and Josh: My best friend and her children love my Disney collection, so of course, I had to buy something else to add to it with the birthday money I was gifted by her family. This Minnie Mouse is dressed in a Pirates of the Caribbean outfit, and she’s super cute!

From Alexa, who gave me a $25 Disney gift card for winning her giveaway: Naturally, I needed the Mickey to match my Minnie, so I used the gift card I won from my friend Alexa’s giveaway to buy this beautiful Pirates of the Caribbean Mickey Mouse.

With my bonus: I bought this beautiful Disneyland dress, which has the Disneyland castle – there is a Walt Disney World version too – and the main attractions. It’s absolutely beautiful and I can’t wait to have an excuse to wear it.

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please like, comment or follow me to let me know I’m doing a good job. See ya real soon!

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The Disney items that I bought with my birthday money! If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know that it was my birthday back in March, but I waited until my Disneyland trip in April to spend my birthday money.

[kekoaskorner]

The Rolling Stones hype reached its peak at Wednesday night’s concert at Letzigrund Stadion. The four musicians landed in their own jet on Sunday and since then all the Swiss people could talk about was this gig. The horrendous pricing prevented me from buying my tickets in the first place but I was lucky enough to score a pair in front of the stadium.

The Struts

We got in and the support act called The Struts started. They’re a band from Derby, UK and I really loved them. If you want to know more about them keep following Kekoas Korner. Another thing that I noticed was that somehow more people were walking around. People of all ages, families, rock’n’roller but the band shirt contest goes clearly to Guns N’ Roses – which surprised me.

At 8.20pm red fire was lit up and the four lads took the stage with a “Tu Tu” (“Sympathy for the Devil). “It’s only Rock ‘n’ Roll (But I like it)” and “Tumbling Dice” followed. I have to say I was impressed to see them since everybody knows their story and they are just living legends. I am blessed to have seen them live. After only 3 songs you could already see that they enjoy what they are doing and they are brilliant at it. Four awesome musicians joined by a fairly big band.

oznor

oznor

  Mick Jagger announced a surprise for us. We were the first audience to hear “Hate to see you go” off their newest record “Blue & Lonesome“. I loved the country vibe and that Mick Jagger himself played the harmonica. Luckily we got another new one called “Ride ‘Em on Down”. Absolutely loved that part and will buy their newest record.

After “Dancing with Mr. D” we got a Bob Dylan cover “Like a Rollin’ Stone” which was chosen by the audience beforehand via the Rolling Stones app. Yes, the Grandad’s have an app and this isn’t the only reason why they are the coolest Grandad’s in the World. They are rocking the stage like they are in their 20’s. The routine of over 50 years in the music industry is imminent. The four of them – Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Ron Wood and Charlie Watts – know each other like the back of their hand.

oznor

oznor

We’ve moved on from the fairly new ones to a super old one “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” which was released in 1969! Even Mick didn’t remember on which album it was! 🙂 In general they didn’t talk much but if they did it was quite funny! “Paint it black” and “Honky Tonk Women” were next and by then we were half way through the set and the audience looked like they were asleep! These Mid-Seventies are rocking their socks of and the crowd barely moved their heads. I was appalled but clearly most of them were there because you had to be there just for the sake of it.

oznor

oznor

Finally Keith Richards sang his two solo songs “Happy” and “Slipping Away”. I have to admit to you guys if I was 70 years old and a cool Granny I’d fancy him! 😀 Richards was smiling and joking and jamming. The show was almost flawless until Ron Wood missed his cue and all they did was laugh about it – that’s how chilled they are! “Midnight Rambler”, “Miss You” and “Street Fighting Man” were next and still no sign of an audience.

oznor

oznor

Mick tried more than once to get everyone clapping but only the people close to him followed his lead. Finally with “Start Me Up” and “Brown Sugar” I started to see some moves and clapping. The best atmosphere was during their biggest hit “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” when we all started to sing a long. That was a highlight for me. Unfortunately the momentum was lost by the usual break before the encore. We were honoured with two encore songs “Gimme Shelter” and “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and it all ended with fireworks after 2 hours and 15 mins.

As you know this summer I’ve seen four outdoor concerts at Letzigrund. Guns N’ Roses, Depeche Mode and only recently Robbie Williams and I gotta say that this was the worst atmosphere of all of them. I am quite disappointed to be honest not with The Rolling Stones – they were great – but by the crowd. I guess sometimes it’s not the biggest or most hyped concerts that are the best.

I’d love to know your opinion and if you enjoyed the concert! Please leave a reply below or comment on facebook, twitter or instagram.

The coolest Grandad’s in the World The Rolling Stones hype reached its peak at Wednesday night's concert at Letzigrund Stadion. The four musicians landed in their own jet on Sunday and since then all the Swiss people could talk about was this gig.

[universitychallenged]

University Challenge 2019/20 Season: Episode 15

Sheffield: 165

Jesus College, Oxford: 170

Highest scoring losers! Was a backhanded compliment e’er so confusing? On the one hand, you’re brainier than almost everyone in the entire country. On the other hand: LOSER. Still, one team was going to turn that frown upside down, and it was QUITE the heart-flutterer at the end.

Team Vibe:

Sheffield: Hey, we’re off on our Duke of Edinburgh Award mountaineering day, with beer and larks! Wanna come?

Jesus: Talk to the hand.

Grandad Count: Fresh as daisies.

Gender Diversity Count: 3/8, with Jesus earning full marks for balanced team.

Style News: Shirt-tastic work from Sheffield’s Lyle! I think it was printed with hummingbirds and fruit but I might have got that wrong because my eyes exploded (this is a good thing).

Jesus’ Stevens brought another cool top to town to follow last time’s rawr-some dinosaur T-shirt. But Sweet Jesus’ Clarke! Short pink hair! Big glasses! Piercings! DPhil! She is basically me but so much better!

Cult Hero Of The Episode:  Clarke was the most badass throughout, answering questions on Plato, kidneys, and Falkirk with equal brio. Plus she dabbed in celebration at the end: BOOM. I did like Sheffield’s conversational Captain Newhouse, too. But tonight it must be Jesus’ Cashman (also this is an excellent name for a band), who buzzed in with the last two starters to haul Jesus past a politely narked Sheffield right at the death. Never were the words ‘GRECIAN URN’ so heroically uttered!

Now excuse me while I go and watch Jesus’ Cashman play their dirty garage bluegrass at The Borderline in Soho.

Handsome Person of the Episode: Captain Cook of Jesus had a scrumptiously cool air about him. But Clarke is the hero of my heart, even though she does look like the new improved version of me, and if that makes me narcissistic, then BITE ME.

Horror Starter: ‘I need the name of an SI unit here: what unit is used to express the physical quantity that is the homophone of a heavy item of jewellery worn around the neck and most used by Celtic civilisations; in its most usual form it has the abbreviation NM?’ 

Regular Classical Fail By Composition PhD-owning Composer, Kerry Andrew: DREADFUL. All five incorrect, as if I’d never heard of classical music and have been dancing in a cave banging sticks together for most of my life (actually, this is actually quite close to the truth).

Dream Bonus Question Round: Velvet Underground bonuses were good for Andy and I, plus 2/3 in the words ending in ‘kin’; shouting ‘BUMPKIN!’ at Paxo was rather satisfying. Andy was also killer on 1960s UK history (part of his recent Masters subject) and Italian art, whilst I just feebly ventured ‘Canaletto?’ incorrectly to every question.

Jezza Watch: The irrefutable highlight was Jez-man saying ‘perfect cleavage’ with a straight face.

Kerry’s and Andy’s Score: I was poor. 30 points for me, 80 for Andy, so 110. Hmm.

Brain Food: Leeks and brussels with ginger, garlic, cashews and lime, plus mash.

Tweets of the Day: 

Please feel free to share, retweet, shout about this blog. I’m mostly a musician but a writer now too, and every little helps. And here’s me on Instagram.