#Andy Kessler Day

[mydaroga]

Fest for Beatles Fans 2024 Write-Up

In case anyone wants to know what goes on at these things, I can at least give you a run-down of what I did at this one, though as always there was far more going down than any one person could see. I tend to favor panels and discussions over bands, so I am sure I missed a lot of great music. Because the bands were great.

It was held this year at the TWA Hotel, which is part of JFK International Airport and has retained a lot of the features of when it used to be a terminal. I posted photos of it last year when I was there on a layover, and I still love it to death. They did NOT let me ride on the baggage thingy though. In addition, I was unable to secure a room at the hotel, though if they hold it here again I will be snagging one because, like I said, the place is bonkers.

Friday

I entered my cross-stitch in the art contest, because why not? While there ran into several people whom I had met last August at the Fest in Chicago.

Beatles Biography panel with Vivek Tiwary (The Fifth Beatle graphic novel) and Madeline Bocaro (In Your Mind - The Infinite Universe of Yoko Ono). Vivek comes off very passionate and sweet, very respectful of Brian Epstein and cognizant of the importance of telling his story right. Bocaro is also very passionate, but I'm afraid some of us present her personal Ono pendulum has swung too far to admit any human fault in her subject. I later bought the Brian book, but not the Ono.

First Generation Fan Panel was mostly Leslie Healy recounting her adventures, which are legion: she was at the Ed Sullivan dress rehearsal, and at Shea Stadium, and she's *also* the one who got that audio at Paul's house when she visited all four Beatles in 1967. Also, she had a Bearded Collie, which I also had growing up, so that gave me a thrill.

I entered the 60s dress up contest -- second time as Twiggy was the charm, and I won! And then there was a lot of dancing. Gogo boots, ironically, not so much made for such activities.

Saturday

Chatted with some folks because it was more interesting that listening to the speakers, oops. The guy from the Ranking the Beatles podcast is lovely and we've already been in touch since. Also Terry Crain who wrote a great coffee table book about NEMS Beatles merch, which I bought last year.

Went to the dealer's room and bought silly buttons, like TO HELL WITH THE 'BEATLES' and I ❤️ PAUL. There were butcher covers and all that jazz, and horrid dolls, and all the lovely awful things, none of which I could ever afford. But I can buy buttons!

Lovely friends entered the talent contest and proceeded to the finals, and they kicked so much ass and I am so proud of them.

Academic panel with Ken Womack, Christine Feldmman-Barrett, and Andy Nichols was pretty good, a lot of talk about how subsequent generations get hooked and sort of the state of Beatles fandom/academia today. Which feels fairly positive, in the sense that all present felt there is more respect now than there was--though still room to improve on that score.

As a side note, all of my interactions with Womack convince me he's a great guy, very passionate in his love for the Beatles and very devoted not only to doing this right but in elevating lesser-heard voices. He's a very likable man.

Speaking of, next he interviewed Laurie Kaye, who did the radio interview with John on his last day. Her story was very moving.

Tried to dance again this evening after the talent show but unlike the previous night, everyone thought we were weird and stared forbiddingly at us from their seated positions.

But my PAUL IS DEAD / IF YOU WANT IT / HAPPY CHRISTMAS FROM JOHN & YOKO shirt was a hit. Finally.

Sunday

Saw Jude Southerland-Kessler talk about the "birth of the beatles" but sadly it was NOT about the tv film of the same name. So I went to chat with Adrian Sinclair and Allen Kozinn instead, which they later tweeted about.

Beatlemania in the 21st Century panel was about, well, what it says. Next was Women's History of the Beatles which was also interesting and involved various writers, teachers, fans, podcasters, etc. I got to meet Erika from BC the Beatles which was very cool.

Then came the Laurence Juber and Steve Holley panel which I have mentioned elsewhere.

Jenny Boyd talked about fashion and the Apple Boutique, hosted by a lady who wrote a book about Beatles and fashion I would like to read.

Fantastic band with great additional harmonies, which I knew who they were.

I did not win the art contest. I did get a participation ribbon. I'm not even a millennial.

We then found a quiet place to chat, of which which the hotel had many, and then I needed to go to bed so I could be bad in like five hours for my flight.

I've probably forgotten lots of things but that is the general run down. There was also a video room, two stages for bands, more art, authors and guests at tables all weekend, and Mickey Dolenz, whom I did not meet but it's cool he was there.

[darkmaga-retard]

It is better to appear dumb than to open your mouth and remove all doubt

Murray Sabrin

Aug 23, 2024

The Mises Institute’s Circle will meet in Fort Myers on November 9.  The theme, Elections and the Economy: Do They Really Matter? will feature speakers Tom DiLorenzo, Mark Thornton, Wanjiru Njoya,  and yours truly.  To register please visit this page. 

Order a free copy of Rothbard’s money and banking classic monograph.  Or, you can read it online here.

Kimberley Strassel on the devious Sen. Schumer.

The ignorant Sen. Warren on price gouging.

Andy Kessler’s WSJ column on government failure and Rothbard’s classic essay on the public sector. 

Dr. Joseph Sansone interviews me about the economy, war, and more.

****************************************************************

To compel a man to furnish funds for the propagation of ideas he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical. Commerce with all nations, alliance with none, should be our motto. Thomas Jefferson

WAR is a racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives. ― Smedley Butler, War Is a Racket

The first panacea for a mismanaged nation is inflation of the currency; the second is war. Both bring a temporary prosperity; both bring a permanent ruin. But both are the refuge of political and economic opportunists.  Ernest Hemingway

[callmebrycelee]

9-1-1: LONE STAR REACTION

This reaction is for the season 4, eleventh episode "Double Trouble" which originally aired April 4, 2023. The episode was written by Jamie Kessler and directed by Bradley Buecker. Spoilers ahead!

***LAST TIME ON 9-1-1: LONE STAR***

The future of Tommy, Nancy, and TK's jobs are on the line when Pearce Risher (Andy Favreau) makes his return to the show. Tommy's old nemesis is now working for Paragon, a private paramedic service that prioritizes profits over patients. When Paragon's cutting corners results in the near-death of Pearce and a patient, Tommy and her crew step in to save the day. Meanwhile, the 126 hosts a Stand Up to Cancer event at the firehouse. Owen hooks up with a very wealthy donor and receives a generous donation for his services. Or so he believes. 

Now that we're all caught up, let's discuss episode eleven - DOUBLE TROUBLE.

We begin the episode over at the Ryders'. Wyatt (Jackson Pace) is back and he is here to drop some major bombshells. He's brought his girlfriend, Leigh Ann (Jessi Case) to meet his dad and stepmom. Fun fact: Jessi Case and Julian Work, who plays Mateo, starred in an installment of the Hulu horror anthology series Into the Dark. Another thing I like to point out is I love Judd's good-natured teasing of Wyatt. I love how Judd has truly embraced being Wyatt's father and it's proof that it's never too late to have a relationship with someone as long as you're willing to put in the work.

Anywho, Grace asks to hear the story of how the two lovebirds met and we learn that Wyatt being sexiled (love that word) by his roommate resulted in him meeting Leigh Ann in the common room of his dorm. Leigh Ann says that she is an early education major and Wyatt points out that she has a 4.0 GPA. When Judd asks about his GPA, Wyatt drops his first bomb and says that he has dropped out of school. Judd is furious and Grace tries to calm him down. She reminds Wyatt that if his course load causing him to have second thoughts about school that he can just drop some of his classes. Wyatt assures her that it's not that; he says he doesn't need a degree for his new aspiration.- being a firefighter. He asks Judd if he would call the chief to put in a good word for him. Judd is clearly rattled by Wyatt's revelation and asks him what the real motivation is for wanting to become a first responder. We get bombshell #2 when Wyatt announces that he and Leigh Ann are having a baby! Lawd, have mercy! I was not expecting this. Not at all! Poor Judd! Just last season he learned he already had a kid, or rather another kid (can't forget baby Charley) and now he's discovering he's going to be a grandfather. Wowser!

Cue title card!

Marjan interrupts a game of Catan at the firehouse to share the chore list she created for her teammates. She is still on light duty after being shot a few episodes ago and much like Evan (Buck) Buckley (Oliver Stark), she is letting her new role go to her head a bit. Mateo gets a FaceTime call from his troublemaking cousin in LA. The last time we saw Marvin Chavez was during the earthquake episode of the OG series. Mateo introduces Marvin to the crew and they all think he's playing a practical joke on them since he and his cousin are practically identical a la The Patty Duke Show.

Paul: "Is that a real whole another person?" Mateo: "Yeah, this is my cousin from Cali, Marvin." TK: "That's your twin?" Mateo: "No, not twin. Identical cousin." Marjan: "That is not a real thing."

Mateo introduces Marvin to Nancy which I thought was super adorable. Marvin asks if he can speak to Mateo privately. Marvin informs him that he's currently incarcerated for grand theft auto, leaving the scene of an accident, and evading arrests and he needs bail money. When Mateo asks how much, Marvin tells him $25,000. Mateo tells him he doesn't have that kind of money but Marvin guilt-trips him. Mateo says he'll see what he can do. 

We next see an older woman named Marge Mooney (Gigi Bermingham) working in her backyard. Two brothers - Sampson (Aidan McGraw) and Tanner (Liam Risinger) are playing in their yard next door when they accidentally toss a baseball into Marge's yard, decapitating one of her creepy gnome figurines. The two boys apologize for the ball ending up in her yard and ask for it back. Marge refuses to give it back and Tanner calls her 'Mean Marge'. The two brothers climb up into their treehouse and they see Marge's stash of balls that she's collected from all the neighborhood children who have accidentally tossed them into her yard. Sampson and Tanner lament that it was their last ball in a moment very reminiscent of one of my all-time favorite movies - The Sandlot. Sampson says he has something better than a ball. He gets his dad's hunting bow and aims an arrow to hit one of Ms. Mooney's yard gnomes. At the last moment he is distracted by his dad and misfires the arrow. Cue 9-1-1 call.

Tommy, Nancy, and TK arrive on the scene where Carlos is already mediating between Marge and the boys' father, Zach (Mickey Casab). We see that Marge has an arrow going through the middle of her neck but surprisingly there's very little blood. Tommy does her assessment and asks Marge when she's last seen a doctor. Ms. Mooney says she doesn't do doctors. Tommy tells her there's a large lump in her neck, possibly cancerous, that prevented the arrow from hitting her carotid artery. Marge asks if she's going to die. Tommy tells her she needs to get it checked out and reminds her that the two boys' mischief has possibly saved her life. As Marge is being transported, she has a change of heart. She apologizes to Sampson and Tanner and asks Carlos to go into her backyard, open the large bin and return the boys' their belongings. She also asks that the next time the boys hit something in her yard to come over for a glass of juice. Sampson tells her that they can do that. What a sweet ending to a really horrific accident. 

Back at the station, Mateo goes to talk to Owen who is listening to Winston Churchill's "Finest Hour" speech as inspiration for the toast he will deliver at TK and Carlos' wedding. Mateo asks Owen if he can borrow $25,000 for Marvin's bail. Owen asks him what Marvin did and Mateo says that he "borrowed a Ferrari" ... again. Owen asks if Marvin asks Mateo for money a lot and we learn that Mateo's already bailed his cousin out at least five times. Yikes! Owen has such a good dad moment when he asks if Mateo's ever considered the reason Marvin is a repeat offender is because he has a safety net. Mateo tells Owen that he owes Marvin and his aunt and uncle for taking him in when he came to the United States from Mexico. He says that Marvin has always looked out for him. Owen tells him there's a difference between looking out for someone and enabling bad behavior. Owen would know since he's the parent of an addict. I love that he says 'addict' and not 'former addict' because no matter how long TK maintains his sobriety, being an addict is a chronic illness. Owen doesn't give Mateo the money because he says it wouldn't do him or Marvin any favors. Marvin Chavez needs to learn his lesson this time. Great advice, Captain Strand! 

Over in the workout area, Judd is going to town on a punching bag. Tommy joins him and asks if everything is okay at home. Judd says it's been better. Tommy says that having a toddler at home can be very stressful. Judd tells her that it's not Charley - it's his 19 year old toddler, Wyatt. He tells Tommy that Wyatt's got his girlfriend 'knocked up'. P.S. - I really hate this euphemism for a woman getting pregnant because it sounds super violent and sort of dehumanizing. Can we please retire the phrase? Anywho, Tommy is such a good friend in this scene. While Judd vents about Wyatt quitting school and thus ruining his life, she listens and doesn't pass judgment. Tommy tells him that Wyatt wanting to become a firefighter isn't at all surprising considering how much he idolizes his dad. She reminds Judd that he's a great role model but Judd doesn't see it that way. Judd laments that Wyatt wants to be the bum version of himself instead of going out into the world and doing something great. Judd says he doesn't want his son to make the same mistakes he made and Tommy reminds him that Wyatt's decisions are not up to him. Tommy asks him if he could change anything that happened in his life leading up to the day he met Grace.

Judd: "No, I don't reckon I would."

Tommy reminds Judd that if he is worried about Wyatt turning out just like him then he has nothing to worry about. Aww! Tommy, you're such a good friend!!! I love the Tommy and Judd friendship so much!

In the next scene, Wyatt visits the firehouse to ask Judd if he's had any more thoughts about what they talked about over dinner. Judd tells him he won't be making a call to the chief because he believes it would be a mistake. He tells Wyatt that he's been where he's been and Wyatt reminds him that's not true. Wyatt assures him that he plans on being there for his kid which sounded harsh at first but then he tempers it by saying that he knows Judd would've been there if he knew about Wyatt earlier. Wyatt assures Judd he will not make the same mistakes as he did. Judd says he does want to make up for lost time but he won't be making the call. He tells Wyatt he thinks he's too soft to be a firefighter. Wyatt is clearly hurt by hearing this and walks away. 

Meanwhile, Mateo is attempting to sell his Pokemon cards as a means of raising Marvin's bail money. When Nancy discovers what he's doing, she sends him the money he needs because she knows how much he loves his Pokemon card collection. Mateo tells her she's a good girlfriend.

Over at the Ryders' Judd is fixing the kitchen cabinets at God knows what time of the morning. Grace joins him in the kitchen and asks him what's going on. He tells her about Wyatt coming to the firehouse and how he called him soft. Grace asks him if he meant what he said and Judd tells her he did. He says he thinks the world of Wyatt but insists that not everyone is built to do what he does every day. Grace tells him that's something Wyatt needs to find out for himself. Judd insists that he's not stopping him but Grace points out that he's not helping him either. Judd says he can't go to the chief regarding something he doesn't believe in. Grace says that if that's the case then he needs to get to the point where he believes in Wyatt. If he truly believes Wyatt is not tough enough then it's his job to toughen him up. At the end of this scene, Judd points out that Grace is the wisest woman he's ever met and that she will make a great grandmother. Grace scoffs at this and he teases her by calling her granny and memaw. This scene was super sweet because I love how Judd has these two women in his life who can make him see reason when he's being stubborn. 

Back at the firehouse, Mateo receives a call from his cousin Daniela. He learns that as soon as Marvin was released from jail, he stole another vehicle and ended up in an accident. Marvin is dead. Mateo, of course, does not take the news well and I honestly felt really bad for him. He insists that Marvin's death is his fault and Owen assures him it's not. Mateo says he should've listened to Owen because even though Marvin would still be in custody, he would at least be alive. Owen reminds Mateo that it was Marvin's choice to steal that Porsche and that it was a bad choice to make. Owen tells Mateo that he should go home since his shift is over. Mateo asks him for money so he can go back to LA for the funeral. Owen tells him he will give him whatever he needs and Mateo says that was easy. He thanks Owen and leaves.

Nancy tries to console Mateo in the locker room and he tells her he wishes she hadn't given him the money for Marvin's bail. Nancy asks if he blames her and Mateo assures her he doesn't. He tells her he's mad at himself for taking the money and worries what his aunt and uncle will do once they find out he was the one who posted the bond. Marvin leaves to go home and Nancy suggests she can go with him. He tells her no and that he wants to be alone. Nancy is so understanding at this moment.

Mateo heads home and he starts to spiral. He takes several shots of whiskey, trips, and hits his head. He is knocked out cold. When he comes to, we see a bedroom with two twin beds decorated in an old school aesthetic.

What we get next is Mateo's backstory delivered in the style of a sitcom from the 1950's, i.e. The Patty Duke Show and Leave it to Beaver. We see two identical boys - Mateo and Marvin. We learn that it was Mateo who was the troublemaker while they were growing up and Marvin was the well-mannered one. Very Goofus and Gallant. We see Mateo coming in through the bedroom window. Marvin catches him and chastises him for sneaking out overnight. Mateo's hands are pink from tagging their school. Mateo attempts to wash the paint from his hands while Marvin tells him to hurry up and get dressed so they can both get to school. Mateo tells him there's no school left because burned down.

We then get a very classic television-inspired theme song featuring not only Mateo and Marvin, but cousin Daniela (Marjan), Aunt Marisol (Tommy), and Uncle O (Owen). I loved every moment of this because I grew up watching Nick at Nite with my grandmother. That's how I was introduced to shows like Mary Tyler Moore, I Love Lucy, Dragnet, and Bewitched.

Mateo and Marvin head downstairs for breakfast where there's some funny banter between the family. They are joined by Milkman Judd. You know, Jim Parrack in all white really did it for me. Milkman Judd asks if they heard about what happened at the middle school. He tells the Chavez family that the school burned down, soliciting some nervous looks exchanged between Mateo and Marvin. To make matters worse, Officer Reyes and his nincompoop sidekick (Carlos and TK) drop by to let the family know they found a can of spray paint at the scene of the crime and they have footage of Mateo at the school. Marvin steps in and confesses to the crime because he worries if Mateo gets in trouble he will be deported back to Mexico. Marvin is arrested by the officers and taken away. 

In the next scene we see Nancy cleaning the wound Mateo sustained when he tripped and failed. Owen asks Nancy if they should take him to the hospital but Mateo says he actually needs to go to the police station. When Nancy asks why, he tells her that he needs to report a crime. Owen asks him what crime and Mateo responds by saying vandalism and arson. The very first time Marvin got in trouble was because of something he did. Mateo confesses to burning down his middle school when he was thirteen years old. He thinks it's time that everyone knows the truth because when Marvin stepped in to take the heat for his crime, it set him on a path of destruction which ultimately led to his death. Mateo asks Owen to take him to the police station. Nancy says that if he does that, he could end up losing everything. Mateo says if that happens, he deserves it. He tells Owen he needs to make things right and Owen agrees to take him to the station.

Meanwhile, Judd invites Wyatt over to let him know that he and Grace are willing to help him and Leigh Ann out until he graduates from the fire academy. Wyatt is shocked by this news and reminds Judd that he called him soft. Judd doesn't take back what he said but instead tells him that he's going to help toughen him up. Wyatt tells him that he will be starting at the academy the following week. As it turns out, he went and got the job on his own accord rather than waiting for Judd to put in a good word for him. Judd is both surprised and proud. Wyatt asks him if he still thinks that he's soft and Judd says as a baby's belly but he's going to help him change that. He gives Wyatt some workout clothes and a plastic garbage bag. Judd tells him to get changed so they can get to work. The two of them hug and they're officially my second favorite father/son relationship of the show.

Owen does take Mateo to the station but it's not the police station. When they arrive at the firehouse, Owen tells him that if he truly wants to make things right, then this is where he needs to be. 

Owen: "You come here every day and you try to save someone. You do it because you couldn't save Marvin."

Owen reminds Mateo that the debt he so badly wants to take ownership of has already been paid. Owen asks him not to throw away Marvin's sacrifice because his work with the 126 is too important. He tells Mateo he is sorry he lost his cousin but he doesn't want to lose him. This is truly Owen Strand at his best. Owen has many faults but he is truly a good man underneath all the bravado and hair product. He is also a good captain and a good father figure to TK and Mateo. Mateo thanks him.

In our final scene, we see Wyatt running while Judd is driving alongside him in his truck. What a good episode for fathers and their sons.

So, let's talk about the episode as a whole! This episode ranks very high with me and I think both storylines were done well. I think Wyatt Harris was a great addition to the show and I think it's quite interesting to see Judd learning how to be a dad to both a toddler and a grown man. The news of Wyatt and his girlfriend, Leigh Ann, expecting a baby was quite shocking to me but it adds an interesting dynamic to the show. How fun will it be to see Judd and Grace navigating parenthood as well as being grandparents. Also, does this mean Wyatt will be joining the 126 at some point?

The Mateo plot was my favorite of the episode. We have watched Mateo grow so much during the course of this show but admittedly he's mostly taken a backseat for most of this season. I'm so glad we got to learn even more about the character and I think it was a nice twist learning that he was the delinquent. This show has always been about second chances and sometimes third and fourth chances. We have seen other characters have to start over after tragedy has befell them and Mateo is no different. His cousin taking the rap for a crime he committed was the wakeup call he needed to become the man he was meant to be all along. Unfortunately it was also the beginning of Marvin's downfall but ultimately when we become a certain age, our choices are our own and we can only blame so much on circumstances. I admire Marvin for protecting Mateo but everything that came afterwards could have been avoided.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Lone Star is knocking it out of the park this season. I have truly enjoyed every single episode and we still have seven more to go. I hope we continue to get more episodes like this sprinkled throughout the rest of this season. Until next time ...

[kindahoping4forever]

Crystal, well esteemed historian, can you do a timeline post of when Ash got his tats? As far as you know, of course; not expecting exact dates (except for the star, which I know you know!). ~ Rema

@ivebeenasleepsolong There's legitimately nothing I'd rather do more 😌 I'll try not to play favorites 😂

Ash's first tattoo was the 5SOS tally in May 2014. He teased on Twitter that he'd gotten a tattoo before finally posting a pic a few days later with the sweet message: "This band means everything to me, and so do my brothers, so I got this!"

Next was the heart tattoo in January 2016. Again, he teased on Twitter, this time by posting a pic of himself getting tatted, with only a ❤️ emoji for a caption. A couple weeks later (on Valentine's Day no less 🤓) he finally revealed the tattoo in an Instagram post, again with a ❤️ caption. In the 5SOS Tattoo Break Down video for GQ, he explains he got it as a reminder to stay loving and soft-hearted.

The California condor (😏) came a few months later, in June 2016. He posted a photo on Instagram with a jokey caption (that he blamed on Calum 🤭) but also in the GQ video, he describes this piece as representative of the band making a new life for themselves in CA

Those were his only tattoos until May 2018 when he got the blood moon phases (I swear I post the video of him in the chair all the time but here it is again just because 🤡). He never made an "official" post about them and I don't think he's ever really talked about them either.

Then we jump to 2019 where things really ramped up! He got the snake, the rose, the 1994, the Late Late and The Star all in the span of 4 months 👀

In June, a London tattoo artist posted a pic of Cal's dagger tattoo - this wasn't too surprising since if you were following 5SOS's photographer at the time, Dusty Kessler, you would've seen a "freshly tatted" Cal with his arm wrapped up. What was shocking was when the same artist tagged Ash in a pic of a giant snake tattoo and it was a whole ~thing~ where fans weren't sure if it was real or not. The next day was when Ash did that live gallery painting and when he took off his suit jacket, the snake was hard to miss 😌

He later posted a pic from the event on his Instagram, simply titling it "The Red Belly Black Snake." He hasn't talked about this tattoo at length but that type of snake is native to Australia and so it's presumably a reminder of home.

In July, the rose tattoo was also "leaked" by his artist, this time in Sydney. Shortly after, 5SOS appeared on the Fitzy & Wippa radio show where Ash showed off the tatt and explained it was for his sister, Lauren Rose. There wasn't really an "official" photo of it until about a week later when the band visited Manila for promo.

This content was also where the 1994 tattoo was first spotted (though there was discrepancy for a while over what the tattoo said) so I assume he got these done around the same time, if not the same session. The 1994 tattoo has never been discussed but it is his birth year so that feels like an easy explanation.

Another easy explanation is the Late Late tattoo which took place in September. The band appeared on The Late Late Show with James Corden and participated in a game called "Tattoo Roulette". Ash "lost" and had to get the show's name tattooed during the episode.

THE STAR came next in October ⭐👄⭐ - during a night off on the World War Joy tour, 5SOS's photographer/creative director Andy Deluca posted on Instagram that he'd gotten a tattoo and Ash reposted it to his story. No one thought anything of it and then the next night on stage, Ash had a giant star on his giant bicep. Though often seen (👁️👄👁️), the tattoo has never been addressed by Ash; the widespread belief is that it could be a tribute to David Bowie, whose final album was titled Blackstar.

Next came the coin and the greyhound, though the timeline here is a bit convoluted. Towards the end of July 2020, a LA tattoo artist tagged Ash in a picture of a "mortality coin" that reads Memento Mori, a Latin phrase that roughly translates to "remember that you will die." THE NEXT DAY, pictures came out of Ash getting coffee, showcasing a tattoo of what we now know is a greyhound (and which we now know is inspired by his own song but at the time we had no clue about the design or the song).

Here's why the timeline is weird: in the music video for Skinny Skinny, he has the greyhound but not the coin. He was photographed twice the previous month and didn't appear to have the tattoo yet so the greyhound must have happened between late June and late July. 🧐

Which brings us to February 2021 😌 It appears as tho Ash may have gotten new ink on the top of his left wrist, though it's hard to tell what it is since in both videos where it's visible, he refuses to sit still 😂 The leading guess so far seems to be that it could be an eye, which I think seems likely given how prevalent eye imagery was during the Superbloom era (the most obvious example being on his "ai" logo, the letter i is literally dotted with an eye).

If/when we get confirmation of this tattoo - or news of any others (manifest the back tattoo) 👀 - I will be sure to update this post! 😌

[jennathearcher]

idol horror: a playlist for a variety show as performed by the stars of the horror renaissance

1. eyes open - taylor swift (grace le domas, ready or not) 2. listen - beyonce (veronica henley, antebellum) 3. set it all free - scarlett johansson (dani ardor, midsommar) 4. your song - ewan mcgregor (danny torrance, doctor sleep) 5. rewrite the stars - zac efron & zendaya (thomas sharpe & edith cushing, crimson peak) 6. towards the sun - rihanna (adelaide wilson, us) 7. where is my mind? - yoav & emily browning (briar lockhart & hannah von reichmerl, a cure for wellness) 8. my immortal - evanescence (thomasin woods, the vvitch) 9. happier (stripped) - marshmello & bastille (peter graham, hereditary) 10. which witch - florence + the machine (susie bannion, suspiria) 11. rockstar sea shanty - nickelback & the lottery winners (ephraim winslow & thomas wake, the lighthouse) 12. my way - andy black (maud, saint maud) 13. wrapped up - natalie portman (nina sayers, black swan) 14. devils don’t fly - natalia kills (grace marshall, the lodge) 15. we will rock you - in this moment ft. maria brink, lzzy hale, and taylor momsen (tree gelbman, happy death day; allyson nelson, halloween; millie kessler, freaky)

[listen]

[spaceaceathena]

nancy drew name meanings

so this is the work i’ve been doing over the past couple days, I want to give you guys a heads up that list will contain spoilers for some of the characters/games so please be aware of all of that. if this garners interest, i’ll do maybe the penvellyn family tree (that thing could not fit in here) or last name origins!

Main Cast

Nancy Drew: Grace (Hebrew)

Bess Marvin: god of plenty (English)

Georgia “George” Fayne: farmer (English)

Edward “Ned” Nickerson: wealth, fortune, prosperous OR guardian, protector (English)

Joe Hardy: god will increase (English)

Frank “Franklin” Hardy: free landowner (English)

SCK/SCKR

Jacob “Jake” Rogers: supplanter (Hebrew)

Daryl Gray: open, from Airelle (English, French)

Connie Watson: strong willed, wise (Irish)

Hal Tanaka: army ruler (English)

Hector “Hulk” Sanchez: holding fast (Greek)

Mitch Dillon: Who is like God, gift from god (Hebrew)

Detective “Steve” Beech: crown, garland (Greek)

STFD

Mattie Jensen: lady, mistress of the house, might in battle (Aramaic or German)

Richard “Rick” Arlen: brave ruler (English)

Dwayne Powers: swarthy (Irish, Gaelic)

Lillian Weiss: lily, a flower (English)

Millie Strathorn: industrious (German)

William Pappas: resolute protector, strong willed warrior (German)

Ralph Guardino: counsel wolf, famous wolf (Norse, English)

MHM

Rose Green: rose, a flower (English)

Abby Sideris: father’s joy (Hebrew)

Charlie Murphy: free man (Charlie)

Louis Chandler: fame, warrior, famous in battle (French)

Hannah Gruen: favor, grace (Hebrew)

Emily Foxworth: rival, wily, persuasive (Latin, Greek)

TRT

Professor Beatrice Hotchkiss: she who makes happy, bringer of joy, blessings (Italian, French, Latin)

Dexter Egan: right handed, fortunate, one who dyes (Latin)

Lisa Ostrum: God’s promise (English, Hebrew)

Jacques Brunais: supplanter (French)

FIN

Brady Armstrong: spirited, broad (Irish)

Joseph Hughes: he will add (Hebrew)

Nicholas Falcone: victory of the people (Greek)

Simone Mueller: god has heard (Hebrew)

Maya Nguyen: good mother (Greek)

Eustacia Andropov: fruitful, productive (Greek)

Sherman Trout: shearer of woolen garments (English)

SSH

Joanna Riggs: god is gracious (Greek/Hebrew)

Alejandro Del Rio: defender of mankind (Spanish)

Taylor Sinclair: tailor (French)

Henrik Van Der Hune: ruler of the home, lord of the house (Swedish, Danish)

Franklin Rose: free landowner (English)

Poppy “Penelope” Dada: weaver (Greek)

Prudence Rutherford: prudence, good judgement (Latin)

DOG

Red Knott: person with red hair (English)

Jeff Akers: pledge of peace (English)

Emily Griffin: rival, persuasive, wily (Latin, Greek)

Sally McDonald: princess (Hebrew)

Vivian Whitmore: lively (Latin)

Mickey Malone: who is like god (Hebrew)

Lucy: as of light (English, French)

Iggy: fiery (Latin)

Vitus: lively (Latin)

Xander: defender of man (Greek)

Yogi: one who performs yoga (Indian, Hindu)

CAR

Harlan Bishop: army land (English)

Ingrid Corey: beloved, beautiful (Norse, German)

Elliot Chen: with strength and right, bravely and truly, boldly and rightly (English, Breton)

Joy Trent: joy, happiness (Latin)

Paula Santos: small (Latin)

K.J Perris: Petros-> the rock (Greek)

Tink Obermeier: love (English)

DDI

Jenna Deblin: white shadow, white wave (English, Welsh)

Katie Firestone: pure (English, Greek)

Andy Jason: manlike, brave (Greek)

Holt Scotto: woods, forest (English)

Casey Porterfield: vigilant, watchful (Irish, Gaelic)

Dr. Irina Predoviciu: peace (Greek)

Hilda Swenson: battle (Norse)

SHA

Dave Gregory: beloved (English)

Tex Britten: from Texas (American)

Mary Yazzie: bitter, beloved, rebelliousness, wished for child, marine, drop of the sea (Aramaic, Hebrew via Latin and Greek)

Shorty Thurmond: a short person (American)

Bet Rawley: god is my oath (Hebrew)

Ed Rawley: wealthy spear, protector, guard, frend (English)

Sheriff Hernandez: son of Hernando (Spanish)

Dirk Valentine: famous ruler (German)

France Humber: free one (French, English)

Meryl Humber: shining sea (English)

CUR

Linda Penvellyn: beautiful, pretty, cute OR clean (Spanish/Portugeuse, Italian)

Mrs. Leticia Drake: joy, gladness (Latin)

Jane Penvellyn: god is gracious/merciful (English)

Nigel Mookerjee: champion (Irish, Gaelic)

Ethel Bossiny: noble (English)

Hugh Penvellyn: mind, spirit (English)

Mrs. Petrov: petros-> rock (Greek to Russian)

CLK

Emily Crandall: rival, wily, persuasive (Latin, Greek)

Jane Willoughby: god is gracious/merciful (English)

Richard Topham: strong in rule (English, French, German, Czech)

Jim Archer: supplanter (English)

Carson Drew: son of marsh dwellers (Scandinavian)

Gloria Crandall: glory, fame, renown, praise, honor (Latin)

Marion Aborn: star of the sea (French)

Mrs Farthingham: a house supplying food (Scottish)

Josiah Crowley: god has healed (Hebrew)

TRN

Lori Girard: bay laurel (English)

Tino Balducci: little, junior (Italian)

Charleena Purcell: free man (German)

John Gray: graced by god (Hebrew)

Jake Hurley: supplanter (Hebrew)

Camille Hurley: helper to the priest (French)

Fatima: captivating, shining one (Arabic)

DAN

Minette: star of the sea, love, will helmet, protection (French)

Heather McKay: evergreen flowering plant (Middle English)

Jing Jing Ling: perfect essence (Chinese)

Dieter von Schwesterkrank: army of the people (German)

Jean-Michel Traquenard: god remits (Hebrew)

Lynn Manrique: pond, lake, pool, waterfall (Welsh)

Hugo Butterly: mind (German)

Zu: knowledgeable and voracious reader (French)

Tammy Barnes (Minette): palm tree (Hebrew)

Noisette Tornade: hazelnut (French)

the n*zi will not be appearing on this list

CRE

Pua Mapu: flower (Hawaiian)

Big Island Mike Mapu: who is like god, gift from god (Hebrew)

Dr. Quigley Kim: descendant of Coigleach or maybe messy hair (Irish)

Dr. Malachi Craven: messenger of god (Hebrew)

ICE

Ollie Randall: olive tree (Latin)

Yanni Volkstaia: god is gracious (Greek)

Bill Kessler: resolute protection (English)

Lou Talbot: renowned warrior (French)

Guadalupe Comillo: river of the wolf (Spanish)

Chantal Moique: stone (French)

Elsa Sibblehoth: pledged to god (German)

Freddie Randall: elf, magical counsel, peaceful ruler (English, German)

Isis: throne (Egyptian)

CRY

Henry Bolet Jr.: house ruler (French)

Dr. Gilbert Buford: bright pledge/promise (French)

Lamont Warrick: the mountain (French)

Renee Amande: reborn, born again (French)

Summer: season, half-year (German)

Bruno Bolet: brown (German)

Bernie: strong and brave bear (German, French)

Iggy: fiery (Latin)

VEN

Colin Baxter: whelp, cub, young creature (Irish, Scottish, Gaelic)

Margherita Faubourg: daisy (Italian)

Helena Berg: light/bright (Greek)

Enrico Tazza: homeowner, king (Italian)

Antonio Fango: priceless one (Spanish, Italian)

Sophia Leporace: wisdom (Greek)

HAU

Kyler Mallory: bowman, archer (Dutch)

Matt Simmons: gift of god (Hebrew)

Kit Foley: bearing Christ (Greek)

Donal Delany: world leader (Scottish)

Alan Payne: precious (German)

Fiona Malloy: white, fair (Gaelic)

RAN - Her Interactive refuses to acknowledge this game and so will I.

WAC

Corine Myers: maiden (American)

Danielle Hayes: god is my judge (Latin)

Mel Corbalis: council protector (English)

Megan Vargas: pearl (Greek)

Izzy Romero: god’s promise (Hebrew)

Leela Yadav: play OR night beauty (Sanskrit or Arabic)

Rachel Hubbard: ewe, one with purity (Hebrew)

Kim Hubbard: of the clearing of the royal fortress (Old English)

Rebecca Sawyer (Nancy): join, tie, snare (Hebrew)

Rita Hallowell: pearl (Spanish)

TOT

Scott Varnell: from Scotland, a Scotsman (old English)

Debbie Kircum: bee (Hebrew)

Tobias “Frosty” Harlow: god is good (Hebrew)

Chase Releford: to hunt (French)

SAW

Shimizu Yumi: reason/cause, beauty; abundant, beauty; evening, fruit; tenderness, beauty (Japanese)

Shimizu Miwako: child of beautiful harmony (Japanese)

Shimizu Kasumi: mist, clear, pure (Japanese)

Nagai Takae: filial piety, obedience and large river (Japanese)

Aihara Rentaro: dependant on kanji used (Japanese)

Savannah Woodham: treeless plain (Spanish)

CAP

Karl Weschler: free man, strong man, man, manly (German)

Anja Mittelmeier: grace (German, Russian)

Lukas Mittelmeier: man from Lucanus (German, Greek, Swedish)

Renate Stoller: Reborn (Latin)

Markus Boehm: dedicated to Mars (Latin)

ASH

Chief McGinnis: son of Angus (Irish)

Deirdre Shannon: broken hearted, sorrowful (Irish, Gaelic)

Brenda Carlton: sword (Norse)

Alexei Markovic: defender (Russian)

Antonia “Toni” Scallari: priceless, praiseworthy, beautiful (Roman)

TMB

Abdullah Bakhoum: servant of Allah (Arabic)

Lily Crewe: lily, a flower

Jamila El-Dine: beauty (Arabic)

Dylan Carter: son of the sea, son of the wave, born from the ocean (Welsh)

Jon Boyle: God is gracious, gift of Jehovah (Hebrew)

DED

Victor Lossett: winner, conqueror (Latin)

Ryan Kilpatrick: descendant of the king, little king (Irish, Gaelic)

Mason Quinto: one who works with stone (English)

Ellie York: shining light (Greek)

Gray Cortright: color, black mixed with white (English)

Niko Jovic: people of victory (Greek, English, Slavic)

GTH

Jessalyn Thornton: he sees (Hebrew)

Clara Thornton: clear, bright, famous (Latin)

Wade Thornton: to go, ford (Anglo-Saxon English)

Harper Thornton: harp, son of the harper (Scottish, Irish, English)

Colton Birchfield: swarthy person, coal town, settlement (Old English)

Charlotte Thornton: free man, petite (French)

Addison Hammond: son of Adam, son of Addi (Old English, Scottish)

SPY

Alec Fell: defender of the people (English)

Bridget Shaw: power, strength, virtue, vigor, noble or exalted one (Gaelic, Irish)

Ewan Macleod: born of the mountain (Scottish, Gaelic)

Moira Chisholm: destiny, share, fate (English)

Kate Drew: pure (English)

Samantha Quick: listens well, as told by god (Aramaic, Hebrew)

MED

Sonny Joon: son (English)

Patrick Dowsett: nobleman, patrician (Latin)

Leena Patel: young palm tree, tender, delicate (Qunaric Arabic)

Kiri Nind: skin, bark, rind (Māori)

Jin Seung: rise, ascent, victory, excel, inherit (Sino-Korean)

LIE

Xenia Doukas: foreigner, outlander, welcomed guest, hospitality (Greek)

Niobe Papadaki: fern (Greek)

Thanos Ganas: immortal (Greek)

Grigor Karakinos: vigilant (Greek)

Melina Rosi: honey, god’s gift (Greek)

SEA

Soren Bergursson: severe (Scandinavian) 

Dagny Silva: new day (Old Norse)

Elisabet Grimursdottir: pledged to god (Hebrew)

Magnus Kiljansson: great (Latin)

Gunnar Tonnisson: fighter, soldier, attacker, brave and bold warrior (Nordic)

Burt Eddleton: bright, glorious (Old English)

Alex Trang: man’s defender, warrior (Greek)

MID

Mei Parry: beautiful (Chinese)

Teegan Parry: special thing, little poet (Cornish, Gaelic)

Olivia Ravencraft: olive, olive tree (Latin)

Judge Danforth: hidden ford (Old English) [Last name]

Lauren Corey: laurel tree, sweet of honor, wisdom (English, french)

Alicia Cole: noble natured (Germanic)

Jason Danforth: healer (Greek)

[thebeastofblackmoor]

Nancy Drew Asks- Send me a Suspect!

Since it seems everyone is cooped up at home, I figured I’d make an ask game of my own to help the Clue Crew combat boredom... Send me a suspect and rb!

Daryl Gray: What kind of car do you drive? Connie Watson: Are you a part of any clubs? Hal Tanaka: Have you ever cheated in school? Hector “Hulk” Sanchez:  Do you play any sports? If so, which one(s)? Detective Beech: Do you keep a journal? What’s in it? Mitch Dillon: Have you ever blocked your number and if yes, why?

Mattie Jensen: Describe the plot of the last TV show you watched. Rick Arlen: What’s your favorite kind of chocolate? Lillian Weiss: What’s the worst way you’ve ever broken up with somebody? Millie Strathorn: Would you consider yourself cluttered or organized? Dwayne Powers: Do you hold a grudge? Ralph Guardino: What is your job?

Rose Green: Do you talk with your hands? Abby Sideris: What is your star sign? Louis Chandler: What’s the oldest thing you own? Charlie Murphy: How many different places have you lived?

Dexter Egan: Did you get in trouble a lot as a kid? Professor Hotchkiss: Early bird or night owl (hoot hoot)? Lisa Ostrum: Do you speak another language? Jacques Brunais: Would you rather have a big or small wedding?

Brady Armstrong: What was the worst job you ever worked? Simone Mueller: Has anyone ever climbed out of your wardrobe? Nicholas Falcone: Have you ever been to a protest? Joseph Hughes: If you had to move away to live with family in another state, who would it be and where?

Joanna Riggs: What’s your favorite exhibit at the museum? Henrik van der Hune: Are you attracted to Henrik? this is a serious question I know a lot of you are or at least used to be.. what was the deal with that.. Alejandro del Rio: What country are you from? Taylor Sinclair: Do you have a nickname?

Red Knott: What’s your favorite animal? Emily Griffin: If you owned a store, what would it sell? Jeff Akers: Do you have any pets?

Harlan Bishop: Have you ever gotten into trouble with the law? Ingrid Corey: If you suddenly got a lot of money, how would you spend it? Joy Trent: Do you consider yourself an optimist or a pessimist? Elliot Chen: If any, what kind of art do you do?

Katie Firestone: What is your favorite kind of sandwich? Holt Scotto: Political alignment? Andy Jason: Sharks or whales? Jenna Deblin: Starbucks or local coffee shop?

Dave Gregory: You got a steady back home? Tex Britten: Have you ever ridden a horse? Shorty Thurmond: Are you a good cook? Mary Yazzie: Have you ever had a secret relationship?

Linda Penvellyn: Are you married? Jane Penvellyn: Favorite mythological creature? Mrs. Drake: Do you have plants? Ethel Bossiny: What period in or piece of history fascinates you the most? Nigel Mookerjee: Do you scare easily?

Emily Crandall: When was the last time you stayed in your pajamas all day? Richard Topham: Have you ever seen a psychic? Jane Willoughby: What kind of accent do you have? Jim Archer: Are you good with money?

Lori Girard: Favorite celebrity? Charleena Purcell: What was the last book you read? Tino Balducci: Do you exaggerate stories?  John Grey: What’s the cheesiest TV show you watch?

Minette: Do you have any tattoos? JJ Ling: Most outrageous lie you’ve told? Heather McKay: Do you care about fashion? Dieter von Schwesterkrank: How many people have you dated? Jean-Michel Traquenard: Where do you do your best work?

Dr. Quigley Kim: Bugs: yay or nay? Big Island Mike: What’s your favorite meme? Pua Mapu: Have you ever been surfing? Malachi Craven: Do you take compliments well?

Ollie Randall: Have you ever been hunting? Freddie Randall: Do you like winter weather? Bill Kessler: Name a place from your childhood that holds a fond place in your heart. Yanni Volkstaia: Winter or summer sports? Lou Talbot: What did you major in or what would you like to major in, if applicable? Guadalupe Comillo: Did you have a “wolf phase” growing up?

Henry Bolet: Are you more goth, jock, nerd, or prep? Renee Amande: Do you have a secret stash of food in your room? Lamont Warrick: Do you have allergies? Gilbert Buford: Describe your best friend.

Margarita Fauberg: Do you prefer to spend time inside or outside? Helena Berg: What’s your favorite city in the world? Colin Baxter: Do you give a single shit about tesserae tiles?? Enrico Tazza: Favorite card game? Antonio Fango: Do you work in an office?

Kyler Mallory: Do you know much about your family history? Matt Simmons: Do you enjoy playing practical jokes? Kit Foley: Have you ever gotten into a physical fight? Donal Delaney: Favorite drink, alcoholic or otherwise? Fiona Malloy: What was your favorite toy as a kid?

Johnny Rolle: Favorite Halloween costume you’ve ever worn?

Corine Meyers: Did you get good grades in high school? Izzy Romero: Were you popular in high school? Mel Corbalis: Do you play an instrument? Rachel & Kim Hubbard: Do you have any siblings?

Scott Varnell: What are you really passionate about? Debbie Kircum: Are you a hard worker? Frosty Harlow: Do you like photography? Chase Relerford: Have you ever stolen from a store? Pa: Do you do any theater?

Yumi Shimizu: Would you consider yourself bossy? Miwako Shimizu: Are you timid or assertive? Takae Nagai: Do you have any traditions you honor? Rentaro Aihara: Are you technical-minded? I was gonna ask if you like puzzles but, um, this is the friggin clue crew

Karl Weschler: Are you a leader or a follower? Anja Mittelmeier: Have you or would you lie on your resume?  Lukas Mittelmeier: Do you like to cause trouble? Renate Stoller: Tell us the best story you’ve got.

Deirdre Shannon: Do you get jealous easily? Brenda Carlton: Are you just the fucking worst? (HINT: No, because you’re not Brenda) Toni Scallari: Do you talk about people behind their backs? Alexei Markovic: Do you break things often?

Abdullah Bakhoum: Do you have high self-confidence? Lily Crewe: Favorite board game? Dylan Carter: Are people inclined to believe you, even when you lie? Jamila El-Dine: Do you believe there are aliens on other planets?

Victor Lossett: Are you strict? Ryan Kilpatrick: What’s your favorite kind of candy? Mason Quinto: Do you consider yourself a logical thinker? Ellie York: What “percent scientist” are you? Gray Cortright: Would you work a night shift?

Clara Thornton: Tell us a story you haven’t told almost anyone. Apparently “have you ever accidentally gotten someone killed?” isn’t an appropriate question for tumblr dot com Wade Thornton: Do you believe in ghosts? Jessalyn Thornton: Do you think spending a night on a haunted island with your best friend sounds like fun? Harper Thornton: What’s your favorite book? Colton Birchfield: How would you get the attention of someone you liked?

Alec Fell: Are you especially witty? Moira Chisholm: Again, since “have you ever accidentally gotten someone killed?” isn’t gonna cut it, I’ll go with: What are your hobbies? Ewan Macleod: What piece of spy gadgetry would you pick if you got to take one home? Zoe Wolf: Do you like to break the rules?

Sonny Joon: Do you doodle? Patrick Dowsett: Are you a good swimmer? Leena Patel: How did you meet your best friend? Kiri Nind: Why did you dedicate your life to being on trashy TV? Do you watch reality TV?

Xenia Doukas: Which fictional character do you relate to on a personal level? Niobe Papadaki: Are you a good public speaker? Grigor Karakinos: If you had to make up a fake identity for yourself, what first and last name would you pick and why? Thanos Ganas:  Do you think you’re intimidating?

Elisabet Grimursdottir: Are you a cat or a dog person? Dagny Silva: What’s your sexuality? Soren Bergursson: If you were a villain, what would be your weapon of choice? Gunnar Tonnisson: What stands out about your physical appearance?

[peterstanslizzie]

Re-watching Lizzie Mcguire: Episode 1.4 (Pool Party)

The Actual First Episode

A classic Lizzie Mcguire episode

- For some strange reason, this episode was considered episode #4 and the fourth episode to air even though the production code for this episode is '101′. Meaning that chronologically, this is episode #1 and probably the series pilot. It’s no wonder that all the kids look a lot younger here than in other episodes.

- That being said, let’s begin my episode recap. Lizzie is running through an obstacle course during P.E. class and she’s having a miserable time; I can definitely relate. Side note: Coach Kelly is played by Dot Marie Jones, who also played Coach Beiste on the hit Fox television series, Glee.

- Cartoon Lizzie, who is Lizzie’s conscience gives us a brief commentary on the different social circles in her gym class and she describes herself as someone who doesn’t fit in any category. I can also relate to her in that aspect just because during high school, I didn’t fit into any sort of clique. And that’s fine because having multiple interests and friends from different walks of life was beneficial to me.

Introducing Lizzie’s BFFs and Classmates

This is so pure, I love it

- Babies! They look so young here for real. Miranda is first introduced as Lizzie’s best friend and they basically confide in each others secrets. But more about Miranda later on.

Gordo is so cute but extremely wise for his age

- Lizzie knew Gordo since she was a day out of her mom’s womb. She describes him as “smart, funny, creative and right about everything”. That’s our Gordo for sure.

Kate looks quite different here and it’s not because of the face she’s pulling

- Kate Sanders, as you all know is Lizzie’s frenemy but former best friend because she hit puberty and became popular because of that. I kinda need more info on how that happened. Did the other girls suddenly look up to her? Or did Kate suddenly develop a lot of confidence and a mean attitude to pair?

Danny Kessler was more visible at the start of the series. I wonder what happened?

- I believe Danny was meant to play a larger part in the show; However, his character just kind of faded into the background later on only to be somewhat replaced by Ethan Craft, who is a far better character in my opinion. He serves the purpose of being the hottest boy in school who girls go gaga for and that’s about it really. Danny invites Lizzie and Miranda to a pool party on Saturday and they lose their minds from the invitation. 

The Mcguire Household

Lizzie vs Dad and Matt lol. Jo as referee.

- I found this scene, which introduces us to Lizzie’s parents and brother to be a little chaotic; Lizzie tells her family that she’s been invited by the ‘hunk-in-training’ of the school to a party. We also get mentions of spit-swapping and strip poker as well as her dad thinking she has been kissing Danny and having second thoughts on allowing her to go to this party.

- Well, Lizzie doesn’t have to worry about it because she can’t go either way because her Nana’s 80th birthday party falls on the same day. Lizzie gets mad and storms off. I’m guessing her Nana lives out of town and so, it isn’t possible to go to her birthday party and also come back for Danny’s party on the same day.

Miranda’s Betrayal

- Lizzie vents to Miranda and Gordo about not being able to make it to Danny Kessler’s pool party and because of that, being the best friend Miranda is supposed to be, she tells Lizzie that she too won’t be attending his party either in order to show her support for Lizzie.

Side note: Knowing that this episode was written by Terri Minsky, I made the connection that Gordo’s parents who are shrinks is similar to Andi Mack Cyrus’s parents and step-parents being therapists too.

- Kate approaches Miranda and asks her a favor to ask her mom to draw some fake, temporary tattoos on her and her friends for the upcoming party. Miranda accepts and agrees to hang out with Kate after school, which pretty much means she’s re-attending the party and hence, betraying Lizzie in the process.

Miranda is disliked by most fans because of instances like this

- I honestly cannot be too hard on Miranda because she’s only 13 and everyone at school keeps talking about the pool party. Plus, she has a crush on Danny. So, I can’t fault her for ditching Lizzie but she could have at least asked Kate if Lizzie could come along to her house.

- However, I didn’t like how Lizzie was sitting by herself in the same school bus as Miranda and Kate and Miranda did not bother to ask her to sit with them. Even if Kate isn’t willing to let her, she should definitely stand her ground. Poor Lizzie has to sit with this one kid who proudly picks his nose and flicks it.

“Eww! Ya Nasty!” *in Raven Baxter’s voice

Obligation vs Being Forced to do things

- Jo Mcguire is on the phone talking to someone about trying to get out of volunteering to write for a newsletter. Lizzie overhears this and confronts her mom for being hypocritical as she is forcing Lizzie to attend her Nana’s birthday party whilst she herself is trying to come up with an excuse to get out of doing something else.

- I get what Lizzie means; how is it okay for her mom to make excuses while she can’t? Well, Jo is an adult, so excuses are something that she is able to make and bear the responsibilities that come out of it. Lizzie is still a kid and I believe that her old grandma’s birthday is more important than some middle school party.

Heart to Heart

- After Lizzie confines herself in her room, Jo deploys her husband, Sam to try to get Lizzie to open up by asking him to use a simple yet complicated technique known as the ‘hairbrush routine’, which is making an excuse to look for something in the room and proceed to talk about a neutral topic and only engage with the questioning at hand when she makes eye contact and speaks in full sentences. Lol, that’s a mouthful.

- Luckily, we did get this beautiful moment in the end:

Give me some tissues :(

Gordo is the Man

This is some good acting imo

- Can we first talk about that long stare between Lizzie and Miranda in the hallway when Miranda, Kate and her crew were walking past Lizzie by her locker? Their expressions were so believable; I can almost read the dialog between their faces alone.

- Lizzie complains to Gordo and accuses Miranda for being a hypocrite but Gordo tells Lizzie that she shouldn’t be mad at her because the party was something Miranda really wanted to go to.

- Ughh, it’s hard. The position Miranda was put in is so difficult. It’s either she doesn’t go to the party to show her loyalty or she does go and have the best time of her life but risk having her friend hate her because of it. Either way, I think Lizzie shouldn’t be mad at Miranda regardless. There are plenty more episodes for that in the future.

- Gordo delivers the final blow when he says that he wasn’t even invited to the party and that pretty much cancels out all of Lizzie’s arguments.

Another cute Lizzie x Gordo moment

Lizzie makes up with her Mom and Miranda

- Jo enters Lizzie’s room and tells her that her Nana is going to Las Vegas to play poker and so, Lizzie is free to go to the pool party. What a grandma haha! I’m happy they hugged it out. I don’t like Lizzie being mad at her mom.

- Lizzie decided to skip the party (good for her!) and she and Gordo played in the backyard and made art by dipping a huge piece of cloth in some color dye to create a really cool effect.

- Miranda unexpectedly shows up at Lizzie’s backyard after leaving the pool party and turns out, she had a bad time because Kate’s ankle swelled up from the tattoo and she had to sit with her in the locker room. She also admits being a bad friend to Lizzie for blowing her off.

- Lizzie doesn’t hold any grudge and she and Miranda are back to being besties!

Overall Thoughts

- There was a lot to talk about in this episode from Lizzie’s relationship woes with her best friend to her feeling like her opinions and thoughts are not seen as valid by her family. I do think that for how Lizzie was so upset at Miranda, she kinda forgave her too easily. But I don’t think I would want to see them continue to not be on speaking terms for more than 1 episode.

- I am glad that there was no unnecessary sub-plot involving Matt and Sam in this episode. His story-lines are really a hit or miss to me. I prefer the ones where his relationship with his friends and family are tested as well as when he faced situations that gave him character development. I don’t like the goofy, comic-relief ones like last episode’s cooking fiasco.

[baileye]

In Darwin’s Dangerous Idea (1995), I argued that natural selection is an algorithmic process, a collection of sorting algorithms that are themselves composed of generate-and-test algorithms that exploit randomness (pseudo-randomness, chaos) in the generation phase, and some sort of mindless quality-control testing phase, with the winners advancing in the tournament by having more offspring. How does this cascade of generative processes get under way? As noted in the last chapter, the actual suite of processes that led to the origin of life are still unknown, but we can dissipate some of the fog by noting that, as usual, a variety of gradual processes of revision are available to get the ball rolling. The prebiotic or abiotic world was not utter chaos, a random confetti of atoms in motion. In particular there were cycles, at many spatio-temporal scales: seasons, night and day, tides, the water cycle, and thousands of chemical cycles discoverable at the atomic and molecular level. Think of cycles as “do-loops” in algorithms, actions that return to a starting point after “accomplishing” something—accumulating something, or moving something, or sorting something, for instance—and then repeating (and repeating and repeating), gradually changing the conditions in the world and thus raising the probability that something new will happen. A striking abiotic example is illustrated by Kessler and Werner in Science 2003. These stone circles would strike anyone as a highly improbable scattering of stones across the landscape; it looks “man-made”—reminiscent of the elegant outdoor sculptures by Andy Goldsworthy—but it is the natural outcome of hundreds or thousands of mindless cycles of freezing and thawing on Spitsbergen in the Arctic. New England farmers have known for centuries about frost driving a “fresh crop” of stones up to the soil surface every winter; stones that have to be removed before plowing and planting. The classic New England “stone walls” we still see today along field edges and marching through former fields now reforested, were never meant to keep anything in or out; they are really not walls but very long narrow piles of boulders and small rocks hauled to the nearest part of the edge of the cultivated field. They are clearly the result of deliberate, hard human work, which had a purpose. Ironically, if the farmers hadn’t removed the stones, over many cycles of freezing and thawing the stones might have formed one of the “patterned ground” phenomena illustrated here, not always circles, but more often polygons, and sometimes labyrinths and other patterns. Kessler and Werner provide an explanation of the process with a model—an algorithm—that produces these different sorting effects by varying the parameters of stone size, soil moisture and density, temperature, speed of freezing, and hillslope gradient. So we have a pretty good idea how come these phenomena exist where they do, and anybody who encountered these stone circles and concluded that there had to be a purposeful artificer behind them, an answer to the what for question, would be wrong.

Daniel Dennett - from bacteria to Bach

[darkmaga-retard]

The delegates "love Joe" after he is thrown under the bus by the party's elites.

Murray Sabrin

Aug 20, 2024

The Mises Institute’s Circle will meet in Fort Myers on November 9.  The theme, Elections and the Economy: Do They Really Matter? will feature speakers Tom DiLorenzo, Mark Thornton, Wanjiru Njoya,  and yours truly.  To register please visit this page. 

Order a free copy of Rothbard’s money and banking classic monograph.  You can read it online here.

Andy Kessler’s WSJ column on government failure and Rothbard’s classic essay on the public sector. 

Dr. Joseph Sansone interviews me about the economy, war, and more.

****************************************************************

To compel a man to furnish funds for the propagation of ideas he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical. Commerce with all nations, alliance with none, should be our motto. Thomas Jefferson

WAR is a racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives. ― Smedley Butler, War Is a Racket

The first panacea for a mismanaged nation is inflation of the currency; the second is war. Both bring a temporary prosperity; both bring a permanent ruin. But both are the refuge of political and economic opportunists.  Ernest Hemingway

[callmebrycelee]

9-1-1: LONE STAR REACTION

This reaction is for season 3, seventh episode “Red vs Blue” which originally aired on February 21, 2022. The episode was written by John Lowe and Jamie Kessler and directed by Chad Lowe. Spoilers ahead!

Y’all, Lone Star, after this episode, got me in my feelings. Watching Tim get obliterated by an errant lava bomb last season was rough. Tommy coming home after an eventful shift to find her husband Charles dead was utterly heartbreaking. Finding out Gwen is dead at the end of this episode was like a punch to the gut. I honestly have no words, which is sort of ironic since I’m writing this reaction to this latest episode. Let me just start at the beginning and maybe by the time I get to the end, I can find the words to talk about the bomb that was dropped on us this episode.

We start at the scene of a horrific accident with a fatality. I thought the fatality was going to play a bigger role but the accident only served to introduce this episode’s antagonist - Sgt. Ty O’Brien (played by the oh so handsome Mr. Neal McDonough). Owen and Sgt. O’Brien immediately butt heads when the latter informs the 126 that they need to move their truck which is blocking interstate traffic. Owen, being the manly man that he is, doesn’t take kindly to being bossed around and ends up getting ticketed by Sgt. O’Brien. Owen rips up the ticket in front of Sgt. O’Brien and the whole thing is caught on camera.. This marks the beginning of an epic beef between the two.

Judd, being our sage elder of the 126, informs the rest of the squad that there is rivalry between the boys in blue (law enforcement) and the boys in red (firefighters). Carlos drops by the 126 to let them know that Owen’s antics were caught on tape by the local news station who was on the scene of the accident. A whole debate erupts about who is more important, the police or the firefighters. Judd posits that the police are jealous of the firefighters because they are the ones saving the day. Carlos suggests that to a lot of cops firefighters are lazy. Carlos also tells them that since the video of Owen ripping up the ticket has been released, Sgt. O’Brien and the other boys in blue are going to have it out for the 126. 

It doesn’t take long for Sgt. O’Brien to enact his revenge against the 126. When Judd, Paul, Marjan, and Mateo are out getting lunch one afternoon, their truck gets towed. Naturally this angers everyone, including Tommy who is grateful the truck is returned to the house before there is any kind of emergency. Our fearless leader decides to put an end to the silly rivalry before someone gets hurt and signs his crew up for an interdepartmental softball league, the same league that Sgt. O’Brien plays in. Determined to beat the cops, Owen and Tommy spy on one of their practices and discovers that their current lineup isn’t going to cut it against O’Brien’s squad.

Next we get the return of a character from season two - Pearce Risher (played by Andy Favreau, brother of Jon Favreau - no, not that Jon Favreau, but the host of Pod Save America). In case you don’t remember him, shortly after the death of Tim Rosewater, Pearce joined Tommy and Nancy, briefly, but decided that the 126 was not for him after witnessing Owen and TK’s daring rescue of two teenage boys trapped in the middle of a minefield. Owen and Tommy recruit Pearce who agrees to join their team only after Owen acquiesces to his demands.

On the day of the game, the 126 is getting trampled by the Austin Police Department. Pearce is late to the game because he is conveniently, or rather inconveniently, pulled over by the police and then held in the back of one of their cruisers. Now that Pearce has arrived, the tide turns for the 126 and even underdog Nancy manages to manages to get in a nice hit. On her way in to home plate, one of the players for the APD trips her resulting in her being out. Owen disagrees with the call but O’Brien isn’t having it which leads to a frustrated Owen punching him in the face. The others players for the 126 and for the APD jump into the fight and the entire brawl is caught on film by the local news once again. 

With the beef between the 126 and the ABD being caught on camera, neither side is looking particularly good. Pearce quits, again, and says that he is never coming back to the 126 due to the “cowboy culture” which Owen fosters. A few days later a building containing a bunch of cannabis plants catches on fire and the 126 arrive at the scene to save the day. The Austin Police Department have already arrived and most of the officers seem … high. When Owen inquires about Sgt. O’Brien, one of the officers tells him that he is still in the building. Owen ends up saving the day and O’Brien is grateful for being rescued. The beef between the red and the blue is finally squashed when Owen invites O’Brien to the house for dinner. 

Whether you’re team blue or team red, I think we can all agree that behind every great police officer, firefighter and paramedic is a great dispatcher. Grace drives the other plot in this episode. She is back at work after being on maternity leave. When she arrives at her desk, she sees there is a guy already sitting there. Now Grace does admit that there’s no assigned seating at the dispatch center but she has pretty much sat at the same desk for the last couple of years. When Grace gets the guy’s attention, he introduces himself as Dave and tells her that he usually works the graveyard shift but is working for another dispatcher. Grace decides to play nice and sits at another desk.

In the break room during lunch, Grace goes looking for the potato salad that Judd made and she is horrified when she notices that Dave is eating it. To make matters worst, Dave intervenes on a phone call involving a young boy who is being terrorized by his father who doesn’t recognize him and believes he is an intruder. When Dave finds out that the boy’s father recently was involved in an accident, he tells Grace that the dad has some head trauma which is preventing him from being able to see his son. Dave coaches Grace through the call and things are settled before anyone gets hurt. Later on, Grace tells Judd all about Dave eating her lunch and usurping her call and Judd reminds her that at the end of the day, everyone was safe. He also tells Grace that she is super competitive which makes her really good at what she does.

During their next shift, Grace witnesses Dave take a call from a father of two who has taken a bunch of sleeping pills to kill himself. Dave is visibly shaken by the call and seems to be recalling his own childhood trauma of losing his dad to suicide so Grace being the amazing woman and dispatcher that she is, steps in to help him. Dave ends up having a heart attack and Grace has to finish the call. Thankfully the paramedics show up in the nick of time and Nancy informs Grace that while the dad is okay, his rug which the dad threw up all over is not. 

Grace and some of her coworkers visit Dave at the hospital where they learn that he expected to make a full recovery. Grace tells him that she is sorry about what happened to his dad and Dave admits that he made the story up. He then announces that he will be working the day shift from now on and you know what, I hope we get to see more of Dave. I really liked him. Aside from him eating Grace’s potato salad - by the way, who does that - I really like him. 

Now we’ve come to the bummer part of the episode. So, after Owen and Sgt. O’Brien squash their red vs. blue beef, everyone sits down to have dinner. When TK gets a phone call, Carlos notices something is up. P.S. - I love how in tune they are to each other. When Carlos asks TK if he’s okay, TK tells him that it’s his mom. Carlos tells him to tell Gwen that he says hello. Then TK breaks all of our hearts when he announces that Gwen is dead.

You know what, I had a feeling something like this would happen. The scenes between TK and Gwen during the snowstorm episodes never really sat right with me. I could never really decide if Gwen was just a figment of TK’s comatose imagination or if they were both on some sort of plane between life and death. Then Gwen showed up during the reopening of the 126 house with her new baby in tow and I figured that it must have all been in TK’s head. To make matters worst, there have been smaller pockets of the fandom who have been fantasizing about Gwen and Enzo dying and TK and Owen having to raise TK’s little brother. Personally, I’m weirded out by those segments of the fandom. These are the same kind of people who celebrated when Shannon was killed off the OG series. If you’re championing the death of a female character in order to bolster the narrative of a male character, that’s pretty bizarre to me. 

Well, Gwen is dead and I’m pretty bummed about it. It looks like TK and Owen will be traveling to New York in the next episode to attend her funeral. Y’all - I am not ready to see how Gwen’s death is going to affect TK. The poor kid has been through so much and I’m not even exaggerating. We have witnessed this guy survive an overdose, a bullet, being held at gunpoint, a house fire, his dad’s battle with cancer, a breakup with Carlos, and nearly dying after being submerged in a frozen pond. Just when he was settling into his happy ever after with Carlos, now this happens. I pray TK doesn’t relapse. The last thing we need is to see him spiral out of control. I trust the writers of this show with the characters that we have but I am beyond nervous to see what happens next. Until next time ...

[orbemnews]

Meet the key members of Biden’s Covid-19 response team. The coronavirus pandemic has crippled economies, shut down travel and claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, transforming the world in ways that would have been unthinkable a year ago. The Biden administration’s first days were inevitably dominated by discussion of how his team would tackle the crisis, as the U.S. death toll continued its inexorable climb to a staggering milestone: 500,000 deaths. Here’s a look at the key figures on President Biden’s Covid-19 response team, and some of their plans to try to stop the spread of the virus and regain some semblance of normalcy. Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, chief medical adviser. The longtime head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Fauci said he accepted the president’s offer to be his chief medical adviser “right on the spot.” Considered the nation’s leading infectious disease expert, he has been an adviser to every president since Ronald Reagan, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by George W. Bush for his work fighting H.I.V./AIDS. But he became a household name only after the start of the pandemic, when he emerged as a trusted authority in countless news briefings, interviews and public appearances. Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Walensky, previously chief of the division of infectious diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital and a professor at Harvard Medical School, replaced Dr. Robert R. Redfield. She has also focused on H.I.V./AIDS in her career, and has served as chair of the Office of AIDS Research Advisory Council at the National Institutes of Health, and as an adviser to the World Health Organization. Dr. Walensky has pledged to restore public trust in the agency and to provide accurate information “even when the news is bleak, or when the information may not be what those in the administration want to hear.” Xavier Becerra, nominee for secretary of health and human services. Mr. Becerra was appointed as attorney general of California in 2017, when his predecessor, Kamala Harris, joined the Senate, and he was elected to a full term in 2018. He became known as a lead attacker in the Trump resistance, filing roughly 100 lawsuits against the administration on issues including climate change, gun control and health care. Notably, he led 20 states and the District of Columbia in a campaign to protect the Affordable Care Act. Before serving as attorney general, he spent 24 years in Congress, representing a Los Angeles district. If confirmed, he would be the first Latino to run the mammoth department, which has a budget of more than $1 trillion. He pledged at a Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday to find “common cause” with his critics, and is scheduled to appear on Wednesday before the Senate Finance Committee. Dr. Vivek H. Murthy, nominee for surgeon general. Dr. Murthy served as surgeon general under President Barack Obama — he was one of the youngest ever — and is Mr. Biden’s nominee for the same position. He is a physician who has taught at Harvard Medical School and served as vice admiral of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. Dr. Murthy has been outspoken about linking public health and wellness. His book “Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World” was published last year. His confirmation hearing is scheduled to begin Thursday. Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, chair of the Covid-19 Health Equity Task Force. A physician and public health specialist at Yale University, Dr. Nunez-Smith is leading a team of 12 experts advising the president on how to address the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 on vulnerable communities. Dr. Nunez-Smith grew up in the U.S. Virgin Islands and came from a family of health care providers. She has spoken in interviews about how seeing her father suffer a debilitating stroke in his 40s, caused by untreated high blood pressure, spurred her to work in public health. Jeffrey D. Zients, coordinator of the administration’s Covid-19 response. Mr. Zients, an entrepreneur and consultant, joined the Obama White House in 2009 and became known as a Mr. Fix-It with strong operational skills. He was tapped to untangle the messy rollout of the Affordable Care Act’s online insurance marketplace in 2013. After Mr. Obama left office, Mr. Zients joined the private equity fund Cranemere as chief executive and also served on Facebook’s board. Andy Slavitt, senior White House pandemic adviser. Mr. Slavitt, a former health care company executive, served as the acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services from 2015 to 2017. (His company was also involved in fixing the A.C.A. website before that.) Mr. Slavitt was outspoken in his defense of the Affordable Care Act during the Trump administration — and raised the alarm about the pandemic early in 2020. He’s active on Twitter, writes on Medium, and until recently, hosted a podcast about Covid. He has said that he accepted the White House job “on a short-term basis.” Dr. David Kessler, chief science officer for the Covid-19 response. Dr. Kessler, a pediatrician and lawyer who was head of the Food and Drug Administration during the presidencies of George Bush and Bill Clinton, will oversee the vaccine program. He will share responsibilities with Gen. Gustave F. Perna, who was the chief operating officer for Operation Warp Speed, the Trump administration’s program to accelerate vaccines and treatments. (The Biden administration later dropped that name.) As F.D.A. commissioner, Dr. Kessler was known for battling the tobacco industry and developing nutrition fact labels on food products. Dr. Kessler is close to Dr. Fauci; the two worked together to speed the development and approval of drugs that changed the course of the AIDS epidemic in the 1990s. Dr. Janet Woodcock, acting commissioner, Food and Drug Administration. Dr. Woodcock was the longtime head of the F.D.A.’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Review, and worked on Operation Warp Speed. The Biden administration has not yet nominated a permanent commissioner; Dr. Woodcock and Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, a former high-ranking F.D.A. official, are the apparent front-runners. Source link Orbem News #Bidens #Covid19 #Key #Meet #Members #response #team

[jobsearchtips02]

Newsletter: First Stage of Recovery Looks V-Shaped

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Chinese Consumers Fan to Factory-Led Economic Recovery.

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from Job Search Tips https://jobsearchtips.net/newsletter-first-stage-of-recovery-looks-v-shaped/

[falling-through-lost-spaces]

Books Owned But Unread

Fiction:

Joe Hill - The Fireman

Patricia Highsmith - The Talented Mr Ripley

Emma Cline - Girls

Kirsty Logan - The Gracekeepers

Seth Patrick - Lost Souls

Slyvain Neuval - Waking Gods

Mark Z. Danielewski - The Familiar Vol 1

Graeme Macrae Burnet - His Bloody Project

Austin Wright - Tony & Susan

Patricia Highsmith - Carol

Darcie Wilder - Literally Show Me A Healthy Person

Tracy Chevalier - New Boy

Andy Weir - Artemis

Michelle Paver - Dark Matter

Robert Daws - The Posisoned Rock

Laura Lam - False Hearts

Italo Calvino - If On A Winter’s Night A Traveler

Megan Bradbury - Everyone Is Watching

Sunil Yapa - Your Heart Is A Muscle the Size of A Fist

George R.R. Martin - A Clash of Kings

Sarah Moss - The Tidal Zone

Matthew Blakstad - Lucky Ghost

Toni Morrison - Tar Baby

Jeff Vandermeer - Annihilation

Colson Whitehead - Zone One

Kathy Reichs - Death Du Jour

Ann Cleeves - The Crow Trap

Ward Moore - Bring the Jubilee

Lisa McInerney - The Glorious Heresies

Chuck Palahniuk - Haunted

Michael Crichton - State of Fear

Neil Gaiman - How the Marguis Got His Coat Back

Agatha Christie - The Double Clue

James Patterson - NYPD Red 2

Maud Pember Reeves - Round About A Pound A Week

Paul Torday - Salmon Fishing In the Yemen

Jonathan Safran Foer - Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

Daniel H Wilson - Robopocalypse

Yann Martel - Life of Pi

David Wong - John Dies At the End

Lauren Weisberger - The Devil Wears Prada

James Joyce - A Portrait of the Artist As A Young Man

John Ajvide Lindquist - Let the Right One In

Gregory Maguire - Wicked

Richard Yates - Revolutionary Road

Paul Beatty - The Sellout

Jane Shemilt - Daughter

Jane Isaac - The Truth Will Out

Karin Slaughter - Genesis

S.K. Tremayne - The Fire Child

Isaac Marion - The Burning World

Adrien Bosc - Constellation

Laura Power - Air-Born

Laura Power - Earth-Bound

Keith DeCandido - House of Cards

Wayne Simmons - Flu

Harper Lee - Go Set A Watchman

Dean Koontz - The City

Charlotte Bronte - Jane Eyre

Ali Smith - The Accidental

John Burnside - Glister

Lauren Owen - The Quick

Tom McCarthy - Satin Island

Dave Eggers - The Circle

Donna Tartt - The Secret History

Robert Harris - The Ghost

Michel Faber - The Fire Gospel

Michel Faber - The Book of Strange New Things

James Patterson - Pop Goes the Weasel

Jeff Lindsay - Dexter’s Final Cut

Gaston Leroux - The Phantom of the Opera

Banana Yoshimoto - Kitchen

Sinclair Lewis - It Can’t Happen Here

Kurt Vonnegut - Cat’s Cradle

Joseph Heller - Catch 22

Mark Twain - The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Bram Stoker - Dracula

Cory Doctorow - Makers

YA/Children's Fiction:

A.S. King - Still Life With Tornado

Patrick Ness - More Than This

Andrew Smith - Stand Off

Andrew Smith - The Alex Crow

Johan Harstad - 172 Hours on the Moon

Ernest Cline - Ready Player One

Tommy Wallach - We All Looked Up

Karen Thompson Walker - The Age of Miracles

Tess Sharpe - Far From You

Leila Sales - This Song Will Save Your Life

Darragh McManus - Shiver the Whole Night Through

Rachel Cohn & David Levithan - Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist

Laura Lam - Pantomime

Laura Lam - Shadowplay

Cassandra Clare - The Bane Chronicles

Cassandra Clare - Tales From the Shadowhunter Academy

Cassandra Clare - The Shadowhunters Codex

Cassandra Clare - Lady Midnight

Cassandra Clare - Lord of Shadows

Andrew Smith - 100 Sideways Miles

Karen Nesbitt - Subject To Change

Anna Day - The Fandom

Brendan Reichs - Nemesis

Chinelo Okparanta - Under the Udala Trees

Nina LaCour - We Are Okay

Sarah Alexander - The Art of Not Breathing

Liz Kessler - Read Me Like A Book

Lisa Williamson - The Art of Being Normal

Laurie Halse Anderson - Wintergirls

Marie Lu - Legend

Eve Ainsworth - 7 Days

Lesley Walton - The Strange & Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender

Malinda Lo - Ash

Larry Duplechan - Blackbird

Makina Lucier - A Death Struck Year

James Patterson - Witch & Wizard

Jandy Nelson - I’ll Give You the Sun

Nick Burd - The Vast Fields of Ordinary

Libba Bray - Beauty Queens

Jack Cheng - See You In the Cosmos

Jennifer Niven - Holding Up the Universe

Becky Albertalli - The Upside of Unrequieted

Lauren Oliver - Replica

Ken Catran - Deepwater Black

Will McIntosh - Burning Midnight

Tahereh Mafi - Shatter Me

Libba Bray - The Diviners

Emily M Danforth - The Miseducation of Cameron Post

Carolyn Jess-Cooke - The Boy Who Could See Demons

Bali Rai - Killing Honour

Gayle Forman - If I Stay

Andre Aciman - Call Me By Your Name

E. Lockhart - We Were Liars

Katie Coyle - Vivian Versus the Apocalypse

Leah Thomas - Because You’ll Never Meet Me

David Arnold - Mosquitoland

Laure Eve - The Graces

Lisa Heathfield - Paper Butterflies

Ransom Riggs - Hollow City

Em Bailey - Shift

Francesca Haig - The Map of Bones

Rainbow Rowell - Carry On

Bryony Pearce - Phoenix Rising

Lou Morgan - Sleepless

Graham Marks - Bad Bones

Jess Vallence - Birdy

Teri Terry - Slated

Non-Fiction:

Brian Cox - Human Universe

D’Arcy Jenish - The NHL: A Centennial History

Greg Oliver - Don’t Call Me Goon

Andrew Hodges - Alan Turing: The Enigma

Susan Cain - Quiet: The Power of Introverts

Carl Sagan - Cosmos

Rebecca Skloot - The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Brian Cox - E = mc“?

Stacey Schiff - The Witches

Julian Sayarer - Interstate

404 Ink - Nasty Women

Lynn Povich - The Good Girls Revolt

Michael Finkel - The Stranger In the Woods

Kent Russell - I Am Sorry To Think That I Have Raised A Timid Son

Luke Harding - Snowden

Mary Roach - Stiff

Yuval Noah Harari - Homo Deus

Bill Bryson - The Lost Continent

Naomi Klein - No Is Not Enough

Dave Cullen - Columbine

Ian Nathan - Inside the Magic: The Making of Fantastic Beasts

Bob McCabe - Harry Potter Page To Screen

Adharanand Finn - Running With the Kenyans

Aurellien Ferenczi - Masters of Cinema: Tim Burton

Steven Levitt & Stephen Dubner - Think Like A Freak

Olivia Lang - The Lonely City

Michelle Tea - The Chelsea Whistle

Simon  Singh - Big Bang

Tristan Taormino - The Feminist Porn Book

Kurt Vonnegut - A Man Without A Country

Nick Frost - Truths, Half Truths & Little White Lies

Russell Brand - Revolution

Robert M Pirsig - Zen & the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

Francis Spufford - The Child That Books Built

Dominic Hibberd - Wilfred Owen

George Vecsey - Baseball

Richard Wiseman - Paranormality

Neil Gaiman - Adventures In the Dream Trade

Nicola Field - Over the Rainbow

Jaclyn Friedman & Jessica Valenti - Yes Means Yes

Elizabeth Kolbert - The Sixth Extinction

Eddie Izzard - Dress To Kill

Stephen Smith - Underground London

Plays/Poetry/Short Story Collections:

Tom Hanks - Uncommon Type

Joe Hill - Strange Weather

Dean Atta - I Am Nobody’s N*****

Amerlle - Because You Love To Hate Me

Roxanne Gay - Difficult Women

Mark Gatiss - Queers: Eight Monologues

Graphic Novels/Manga:

Tsugumi Ohba - Death Note Vol 6

Tsugumi Ohba - Death Note Vol 7

Tsugumi Ohba - Death Note Vol 8

[juicemagazine]

Amazing day at #owlshead #skatepark #Brooklyn #nyc for Andy Kessler Day! Photos by @severedlegproductions @stevernyc @woundedkneeskateboards Thanks to @jjveronis for spinning vinyl and bringing a wall of Kessler decks + photos, and sponsors: #kcdcskateshop @vansskate #codaskateboards #woundedkneeskateboards Great to skate with you again Murf! Thanks for cleaning and drying out the bowl this am! #fun #skateboarding #skatejam #skatewithfriends #skaters #skateforfun #skatelife #skateboarder #andykesslerday #juicemagazine #nyskateboarding #repost #severedlegproductions #skatefamily (at Owl's Head Park) https://www.instagram.com/p/BpMzz0Rjpwj/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1rc5trdk2ktvn

[depechemodespiritera]

It's a position that he continues to hold to this day, having steered the band to over 100 million record sales and cementing Depeche Mode's status as one of the biggest touring acts in the world. This year the group, numbering Dave Gahan, Martin Gore and Andy Fletcher, released its 14th studio album, Spirit, and began its record-breaking Global Spirit Tour. Having sold out stadium and arena dates around the world, including four nights at Los Angeles' Hollywood Bowl, 2018 sees the tour move onto South America.  

"This is a band that continues to grow and have huge appeal internationally," the publicity-shy Kessler -- who has also worked with Sting, Neil Young, Tracy Chapman, Rod Stewart  and The Weeknd -- tells Billboard ahead of being honored at the Music Managers Forum and Featured Artist Coalition's sixth annual Artist & Manager Awards, held tonight (Nov. 14) in London.

Billboard: Going back to the start of your association with Depeche Mode, how did you make the leap from tour accountant to band manager?

Jonathan Kessler: I came out of business school and almost fell into the music business. It was not really my driving passion then. I started to work with Depeche purely as a tour accountant and as I started to do more and more with them my role increased. I would ask, 'Who's taking care of this? Or who's taking care of liability insurance?' Often no one was, so I started taking care of it. [Becoming manager] was the obvious evolution really. It was just a question of when could I bring up the M word. Because they were self-managed and they prided themselves on that -- but they weren't really. So, it just was a discussion between us to say, 'This is what I'm doing. Let's call it what it is and formalize that relationship.' Obviously, through the years a certain level of trust had grown between us. That doesn't appear right away. I remember when I first started to work them they were a very insular band. They were understandably scared of foreigners and strangers – as is true of many bands in their infancy.

Has your foregrounding in business been an important factor in helping grow them into one of the world's biggest touring acts?

Definitely. 35 years ago, the world of touring was like the Wild West. There were very loose deals in place with promoters, which were settled on the night of the show. A lot of my role then was trying to figure out what was what. Who was taking what and were the promoters that we were doing business with taking advantage? That's changed quite a bit in today's day and age. It's become a lot more corporate. A lot more sanitized and properly run financially, to a certain extent.  

What do you regard as being key to Depeche Mode's rise to stardom and lasting popularity?

At the start, it was the creativity of the band. The music that they were creating was forging new ground. One thing as a band that we are very strict at maintaining to this day is being true to ourselves and doing what we want to do. I kept that going and as we progressed together I gave them the space to just focus on the music, while I take care of everything else around them. In a band that stays together that long and keeps developing often differences between members occur. There's many stories of bands not getting along and not being able to settle those differences. And so, like in any dysfunctional family, those things have to be mediated. I think I've played a large role in helping that flow through.

As a manager, how do you help overcome those differences and ensure the group stays together?

When the differences are meaningful and pertain to important things artistically they should be expressed and confronted head on. That friction is what makes a band creative, keeps them on edge and keeps them developing and looking to do new things. Yet, often some of the differences or challenges that occur between them aren't that meaningful and get blown out of proportion. One needs to play those down and allow the ones that are serious to live and be attacked. You can't sweep everything under the rug. Eventually it is going to explode and combust. So that was really a role where I could step in and try and broker to allow things that were meaningful to play out. That continues to be the case.

The band's past problems with drug and alcohol abuse has been well-documented, particularly Dave Gahan's struggles with heroin addiction in the mid-1990s. Did you fear for their future during that time?

Those are just life problems. I refer to them now as the experimental years. I think that's a nice way of putting it. They were their experimental years and thank God that they lived through them and made it… As with any dysfunctional family, it has its moments of difficulties and challenges. But in essence [all three members] have a great relationship. There's a huge amount of respect, love and kinship between them. When you spend that much time together in a high-pressure cooker environment obviously things will get tense and difficult at times. It's inevitable. The challenge is just don't let it overflow, right?

The Global Spirit tour looks set to be the band's biggest ever. How has the band continued to grow its live business when so many of their peers from the 1980s have faded?

The live show itself is just fantastic. Dave is really one of the best frontmen and he and Martin play off each other wonderfully. The fan base is very dedicated. It takes ownership of the band, stays very loyal and therefore comes back. We are now seeing the second generation of fan's children [coming to shows]. There was also a lot of hard work done in our early days of touring in different territories. In the early days, we went to the Eastern European territories a lot and to this day that's one of the biggest markets for us. We played Berlin on the East side when the wall was up. We often played countries often like Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia when it was still Yugoslavia. And in those markets, we now have an incredibly fruitful touring business. This is a band that continues to grow and have huge appeal internationally.

You rarely give interviews and have continually remained behind the scenes throughout your management career. Is that through personal choice?  

It's definitely a conscious decision. It's not at all a reflection of my character. I'm actually quite flamboyant. But I do think that it really is about the band. I have nothing but admiration for their tenacity, perseverance and above all their creativity and artistic ability. The songs that they write, the music they create and their tenacity to keep going at it is formidable. They deserve the attention as they're the ones on the stage. It's their names on the marquee -- and it always should be. Not mine. I'm just there to push it forward and help them facilitate what they want to do.

Spirit has received some of the band's best reviews in years. Were you and the band pleasantly surprised by the critical and commercial success of the record?

The nice thing that has happened along this route is that we have continued to go up at a 45-degree angle. Recently we have taken a leap off that 45 degrees and taken a higher rise up. What's also nice to see is that the band is being recognized for being pioneers in the synthesizer and remix world. Even in the U.K. press, which is perhaps the hardest barometer, they are receiving their deserved credit finally. But it really does stem from staying true to what we do and not trying to appeal to the trends of today.

Do you have a favorite album or period in the band's history?

Personally, no. I just think it's a nice evolution. I recently saw Billboard listed the top 20 hits and I was shocked by how many there were. I guess when you're in it every day and in the mud and the thick of it, you sometimes don't quite realize the big body of work they have created. It's hit after hit after hit.

Given the complexities of the modern music business, do you think that the role of a music manager is more important than ever today?

I think it has become more elevated, yes. You have to be more of a quarterback yourself, as opposed to the record company or the promoter. We have a fantastic partnership with Sony. A fantastic partnership with Live Nation and Sony/ATV Music Publishing. But you still have to develop your own opportunities. It's a busier, louder, noisier world today than it was 30 odd years ago and you have to try to cut through the clutter of everything that's out there. One of the biggest challenges we have is just how do we let people know that we are releasing a new record and are still touring.

Following the success of Spirit, have thoughts already turned to the next album?

Right now, we're just focused on touring and we have a hell of a lot of touring still to do. We have weeks of touring in Europe plus another month of touring in South America, plus more to come. So that's pretty grueling and taxing. The band plays for over two hours every night. It's never a dialed-in performance, so that's where all the energy goes right now.

This year saw Depeche Mode celebrate their 37th year together. Can you envisage them reaching them reaching their 50th anniversary?

I don't see why not. They're in their mid-fifties and young and healthy. We'll see. They never say. 'We're going to go on [till a certain date]'. It's always a question of, 'Let's just see what happens and not plan for the future.' And inevitably Dave or Martin will send the other a piece of music, they get smitten by it and it all starts again.