Ok like. Imagine life without ads. You wake up, check your messages across a variety of apps, no ads. You get up and put on the tv while you prep your breakfast, no ads. Maybe you drive somewhere and switch on the radio, no ads. Maybe you drive a long distance, yet somehow, not a single billboard on your path. You pick up a newspaper or magazine to pass the time, no advertisements only articles. You turn on your game console, the home screen is just about your games, no ads to buy more. You open a streaming app, you don't pay extra for no ads, there's just no ads ever.
Think about how much of your time is spent looking at ads. "Download ublock" yeah I know, I have. But that doesn't change that the world is covered with endless advertising. Imagine never seeing that again. How much better our lives would be.
i said this elsewhere, but ASH was really a father for an entire generation. we see this in every tribute, every outpouring of grief, and so many of the beautiful words people are sharing right now.
i think a fantastic component of his time on buffy to draw attention to here is when he was fired from the watcher’s council and still chose to stay with buffy and guide her. this, as an adjacency to buffy’s parents getting divorced and her dad actively choosing not to stay in her life resonated with so many kids who grew up with dads who weren’t around, parents who weren’t physically or emotionally available.
this man, through his work, was a father, a mentor and a guide to all of us; he made weird kids feel seen. he gave life to so many characters, characters that have since become such an integral part of our cultural lexicon. he encouraged people into getting interested in theatre. he was a staunch and proud ally for lgbtqia+ people across the world. the man carved out a niche in media that will always be uniquely and unequivocally tied to his legacy. and you know what? i’m damn sure he made people respect their local librarian a little more.
my heart really goes out to his family; the amount love the world had for him and his work was truly extraordinary. we lost a real legend today; he’ll be our watcher forever and always.
I'm sure my customers never think about it, but these snapshots are their little stands against the flow of time. The shutter is clicked, the flash goes off...and they've stopped time, if just for the blink of an eye. And if these pictures have anything important to say to future generations, it's this...I was here. I existed. I was young. I was happy, and someone cared enough about me in this world to take my picture.
Two comedians I enjoy are coming to a nearby* comedy club in the next 2 months. This club is pretty well known at least locally, but I've never been there.
*nearby means about 40 miles away
I was considering going to one or both shows since they're near my birthday, as presents for myself.
With fees and such, cheap tickets are just under $30 for comedian A and under $40 for comedian B. Not bad.
But. The club has a 2-item minimum, Per Person. Drinks or snacks.
Driving 40 miles home at night, I'm not drinking alcohol. I barely drink now anyway. Especially not 2.
Their food options (pretzel bites, nachos [chips and liquid cheese, topping extra], or popcorn) are stale and/or cold according to reviews.
The absolute cheapest combination of items you could get is two bottles of water at $4 each. Those should be be gallon jugs at that price, but I know they'd be 16 oz bottles from bulk packaged Great Value water at best. "Buy 2 waters and take them home!" according to the club's responses on reviews. 🙄
PLUS required 18% gratuity. Additional tip to server is also expected. Cuz I should tip for being handed a bottle of water. So bare minimum, add $11 to your ticket cost.
And they apparently hold on to your ID/credit card to prevent walkouts. Uh, No thank you. I don't want to automatically open a tab. They cash out at the end of the show (wait extra time for everyone to pay before you can leave!) and give you a little ticket showing you paid so you are allowed to leave. To quote a reviewer, "What are we, twelve?"
Add in overcrowded, uncomfortable seating in close quarters with strangers. Probably drunk strangers! Parking lot is small to begin with, and is shared with a bar in the same building. So get lucky or park on the street. I looked at it on street view, and yikes.
Allegedly 100% of ticket sales go to the performer and the club makes their money off of food and drink sales. I understand all that. Buuuut then the club talks in reviews about how they would have to raise ticket prices to make the seating better...?
Why not just charge more money upfront. I don't want to buy overpriced drinks or bad food. argh
...This sounds like a nightmare, no matter how much I like the comedians. I'll stick to the rare theater appearances I guess.
Happy 20th Anniversary of Neil Banging Out The Tunes!!!!!
More rarer images of Neil, my beloved:
20 years.
I find it so beautiful that this little rat's life has been remembered with love for 20 years and will be hopefully for decades to come. Truly a marvel of the internet.
germansingergirl
gamechangershow
vaporwave
theartofmadeline
amandla
turnnoffyourmind
