the screen queen

addicted to the internet. sometimes i venture outside and talk to people.

[thescreenqueen-blog]

The cool new kids on the block.

Echosmith @ King Tut’s Glasgow 26 April 2015 The Los Angeles siblings played the iconic Glasgow venue to a sold out crowd in this fun, chilled out set.

On the back of their hit single Cool Kids, which has had massive success in their native US, the quartet have been touring non-stop with bands such as Twenty One Pilots and Neon Trees.

But this was their last stop on their first UK headline tour, with both the Birmingham and Glasgow dates being sold out.

The night began with the upbeat Let’s Love before leading into other rockier tracks from their debut album Talking Dreams, including Safest Place and their latest single Come Together.

The band is startlingly young – the talented drummer Graham was born in 1999, and the lead guitarist Jamie (who also does backing vocals) is just 22 years old. The only moments you realise they might be new to any of this is the multitude of selfies and videos the band took on stage… but then again, isn’t it nice to see a band appreciate and enjoy where they are for once?

However their age definitely doesn’t hold them back – they had no problem chatting away to the crowd, especially the bassist Noah. The night had a lot of interaction with the audience, including bringing a lucky birthday girl up on stage, as well as doing some match making within the crowd by setting up a little romantic dance during the song Come With Me. The lead singer Sydney has had comparisons to Ellie Goulding within the press, and you can see there has been some influences from bands such a Fleetwood Mac when it comes to her vocal style. She handled the bands one album catalogue throughout the entire night, as well as talking away to the enthusiastic fans.

There was also a Talking Heads cover thrown in for good measure, and Sydney teased a little Uptown Funk cover before saying “Sorry guys, sorry, we’re gonna keep playing our own stuff, no more Bruno Mars tonight I promise…”

The bands hit single Cool Kids was their second last song of the night before coming back on stage (after the obligatory chants from the crowd of “one more tune!”) to get everyone to join in with the highly sing-a-longable track Nothing’s Wrong, with the fans singing of “We walk, we walk, we just keep walking…” heard echoing throughout the venue. Overall, a nice, casual and fun set from the LA indie rock siblings. With hopefully some bigger second album success, these guys could join a new generation of blood-related bands along the likes of Haim, Kings of Leon and Hanson.

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Praise be! Panic! at the Disco have blessed us with new music

The new single dropped early this morning, with a hint that something new was coming posted on the patd tumblr a few days back...

Hallelujah (no, not another Jeff Buckley cover to add to the thousands already out there) is a catchy, upbeat, gospel-esque song from the now two-piece.

It’s been a turbulent ten or so years for the band, with the departure of drummer Spencer Smith a few weeks ago leaving singer Brendon Urie the only original member left. But this seems to be a new start for the new Panic! And perhaps the arrival of something special – their first single quite literally has them arriving to the sound of trumpets after all…

“All you sinners stand up sing hallelujah”

The catchy chorus seems to be a love song written for the outcasts – sinners banding together to shout out loud. Perhaps a sneaky reference to the Westboro Baptist Church releasing a homophobic cover of one of their songs last year, to which the band decided to raise money for the Human Rights Campaign as a wonderful counter response. Urie seemed to confirm this with the message he wrote alongside the audio, stating:

“Hello my fellow sinners,

First off, thank you. Thank you for always being there. For speaking your mind. For following what you believe.”

“…I lift my arms in praise of your greatness. YOU are great. YOU are beautiful. YOU are talented, and smart, and kind, and loving, and generous, and simply amazing.” So here’s to celebrating the different – with the new Panic! Line-up, it seems an appropriate time as any to do so.

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Girl power is back in the energetic, pop punk form of Charli XCX

Charli XCX @ Glasgow QMU, 27th March 2015

It was a busy night at the Glasgow student union, with fans squeezed into the venue, and extra long queues at the bar well before the gig kicked off. Gettingeveryone in the mood for a fun night out was a collection of female pop artists, with J-Lo, Britney, Pink and the like blaring through the sound system. However when Fancy (her collaboration with Iggy Azeala that reached No 5 in the charts) started playing, that’s when the crowd went wild, with everyone dancing along and singing Charli's parts extra loud. Apt then that this was the last song before Miss XCX - her name coming from her msn chat username she used when she first started as an artist - arrived on stage.

Her all female band came out adorned in glittery dresses and angel wings (Charli, well done for seeing the opportunity for making a Charlie’s Angels joke and going for it) before the opening bars of Sucker started playing and the woman of the night made her way to the mic. A rowdy, fun, middle finger up kind of song, it kicked off the evening in the most appropriate way. With songs like Sucker, and Body Of My Own, Charli XCX and co feel like the new feminist pop group we've been waiting a while for. If 10 Things I Hate About You were remade for today, our modern day Heath Ledger would probably be going along to a Charli XCX gig in order to win over our modern Julia Stiles.

Our front woman was dedicated to playing the songs and getting the crowd going rather than chatting – only stopping to tell an anecdote of her last time in Glasgow “I played King Tuts... there was about three people there” - and take gifts from fans.

She also performed some of the songs she wrote for other artists, including 2013′s summer hit I Love It which gave Icona Pop a No 1 place on the charts. Her first album True Romance, a more indie/synthpop affair, also got some exposure as she performed Black Roses and Stay Away.

But it was her latest effort that got the most love from fans – a big grin could be seen on Charli's face as the crowd clapped along to Hanging Around - and later on when everyone was dancing and singing along like crazy to the super energetic Break The Rules. Doing It closed the first half of the night, before the cheers of the crowds (ie the usual Glaswegian chant of “here we, here we...”) brought her back on to perform Grins, and close the night with the song from The Fault In Our Stars soundtrack, Boom Clap. For anyone who was there, it was a good fun female fronted night. The band rocked out, Charli put on a great show, and the crowd loved it. What more could you ask for on a Friday night?

[thescreenqueen-blog]

From Hungry Ghosts, the new album from OK Go. OK Go website: http://okgo.net OK Go Twitter: https://twitter.com/okgo OK Go Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/okgo This song is amazing, and I need to hear this live. Listen to it, even if you've not heard their stuff before. It's lush.

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Album review: OK Go - Hungry Ghosts

Everyone's favourite treadmill dancing, rube-goldberg machine making band are back with a new album... and yes, they do make music.

OK Go's new album Hungry Ghosts is in stores and iTunes today, a full four years since their last effort. Apologies to the band if the title is a cool literary reference or philosophical musing, but as soon as I heard the name all I could think of was Pac-Man. Waka waka. 

Which is apt considering the album has taken on a much more electronic sound from their previous offerings. 

Whilst their last album, Of The Blue Colour Of The Sky, brought in some electronic elements, Hungry Ghosts seems to have fully embraced it, whilst still being the guitar wielding, kick ass music video making rock/indie set we all know.

Turn Up The Radio for example is the OK Go sound we're used to, with that overarching electronic influence that’s got the new album in it’s grips.

And we've even been treated to some seventies influences within Hungry Ghosts - I'm Not Through will make you want to sway along to this surprisingly sexy sounding song. The addictive guitar riff, the punchy drum line and the violins (!!!!) all work together to be one of the strongest tracks on the album.

I Won't Let You Down is a fabulously fun song - again bringing in some 70's influences - and I defy you not to want to dance along to it. The violin breakdown is one of my personal highlights of the album 

The track The One Moment is a great anthemic sounding song. The isolated guitar at the start, which then build up to the first chorus filled with crashing drums and piano and guitars and singer Damian Kulash's cries of “And this will be the one moment that matters” will leave goosebumps on your skin. A proper tune. Expect to hear the instrumental version of this being used in “highlight of the year” packages and such like.  So overall, a really great 12 track long album, with lots of interesting sounds. What I love about OK Go is that they have evolved over their albums, taking what they've learnt from the previous one to develop a newer, stronger sound. That's the sign of a band that will have a lot more exciting things to offer in the future. 

[thescreenqueen-blog]

New single alert: Marina and the Diamonds - FROOT

Marina quenches fans thirst for fresh material with her new single. Happy FROOT day everybody! That's right, everyone's favourite Welsh/Greek singing queen is back.

Two years after her concept album Electra Heart was released, and one broke record label later, Miss Diamandis has unleashed more music upon the world. 

It's just as well, after a short glimpse of any of  the comments on her instagram pictures, anybody would start to worry about what would happen to her legion of Diamonds if they didn't get something new soon.

Clicky click below to listen: 

It definitely feels like a throwback to her older Family Jewels material, but with the slick production of her sophomore effort.  Personally I think it could do with a stronger and more obvious chorus, but hey it'll grow on me... (get it? like fruit? no?!) Considering how different her last 'first release' was in comparison to the rest of the tracks on the album, it'll be interesting to see how Froot fits in with her new material. Either way, we can't wait to hear what she's got in store for us!

[thescreenqueen-blog]

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Here are Chvrches, here’s the Barrowlands, open the doors and you’ve got a very happy crowd of people.

CHVRCHES @ Barrowlands, 8th March 2014. 

Playing their home town, in one of their cities most iconic venues off the back of an amazing 2013 for the band, this was always going to be a special gig for the Glaswegian three piece.

The venue filled up slowly, with people trickling in bit by bit, but by the time the band was on stage you were fairly cosy to your fellow gig goer, with the show being sold out.

 “Sink” kicked off the night, and the songs line “we lift our love” seemed a pretty apt way to start, as for the rest of the night the crowd certainly showed their love for the band by pretty much lifting the roof off the Barrowlands.

 Singer Lauren Mayberry has a quiet confidence about her, and this shows in her performance – it's not about being a show woman, it's about showcasing her vocal talents, all whilst displaying her ability to still be able to kick ass. Let's just say that what Miss Mayberry said to two guys who booed her after wishing everyone a happy International Women's Day isn't exactly publishable... but as synth player and vocalist Martin Doherty said, Glasgow really is the only place you could get away with it.

 Mayberry was on form all night, with her distinctive voice echoing around the ballroom as the band made their way through their hit debut album The Bones of What You Believe. "Night Sky", "Science/Visions" and "Gun" all went down well with the crowd, and it was nice to see Doherty make his way so confidently into the microphone to lead the crowd into "Under The Tide"

The love of their hometown was highlighted throughout the night, with Mayberry reminiscing about her first concert at the Barrowlands: “I went to see Jimmy Eat World and got kicked in the head” and Doherty expressed just how much it meant to be playing at their world famous home venue. 

And the crowd definitely appreciated their homecoming – the dancing, singing and loud screams from the audience all night hopefully showed the same amount of love right back. "Recover" whipped the place into a  frenzy, and after "The Mother We Share" finished and it came to the wait before the encore, the feet stomping, clapping, cheering and screaming from the fans was the loudest I'd ever heard at the venue. The crowd were certainly hungry for more.

 Unfortunately they only played material from their one and only album, which was a little disappointing because the covers we've heard so far from these guys have been great. It would've been nice to hear something new, from the electro-pop three piece, as the night seemed far too short without it.

This gig should be a good starting point for the rest of their packed year, as they play the legendary Coachella  festival and then make their way home to Scotland for T in the Park, and hopefully back to just as rowdy a reception.

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Fair play for gay athletes?

Dutch snowboarder Cheryl Maas shows her support for her fellow gay athletes.

Gay rights in sports has been in the spotlight for the past couple of years, but it has been most prominent over the past couple of months thanks to the Sochi Winter Olympics. A controversial anti-gay propaganda law was passed in Russia just weeks before the Games kicked off, which lead to questions being asked of how safe it would be for openly gay athletes to compete.

However there was an overwhelmingly positive response by the competing counties, most of whom have publicly shown their support for their gay athletes. Channel 4 broadcast the hysterical parody advert Gay Mountain, and the Canadian Institute of Diversity and Inclusion produced an innuendo ridden advert involving the Luge that said “The Games have always been a little gay.”

And yet it is still difficult for athletes to come out. Michael Sam, if he is drafted for the NFL, would be the first ever openly gay player in America's biggest professional football league. A sport that has players who have been involved in various scandals, including an accusation of DUI vehicular manslaughter, seems to be questioning whether they could accept a gay player, because he might be too “controversial” highlights the backwards attitudes of some parts of the NFL.

And it seems that certain sports are still a no-go area for players coming out – British football is one of those areas. Justin Fashanu was the first player in English football to come out publicly, and sadly later took his own life. Thomas Hitzlsperger, former Aston Villa midfielder recently came out, but only after retiring from the sport. It seems that the more seemingly “masculine” the sport is, the more difficult it is for athletes to come out whilst they are still competing with some players making close minded remarks about being uncomfortable sharing a changing room with a gay player. If your masculinity is threatened by a gay man, that says a lot more about you than it does about your openly gay team mate.

But why is it important that athletes come out? Actor Sir Ian McKellen and gay rights activist, in an recent interview encouraged those who were still in the closet to come out, and said that being open about your sexuality is important for your mental health. “I feel sorry for anyone who feels the need to lie about themselves. That’s not good for you. It doesn’t lead to a happy life. And I’ve never met a gay person who came out and who regretted it. Never. So, my advice to anyone in the closet — it doesn’t matter whether they’re a teacher, or a politician, or a priest, or an actor — come out. Join the human race."

Hopefully after the rainbow filled love and support displayed throughout the Sochi games, gay athletes can feel more comfortable about coming out to their team mates, and know that it's their performance in their sport of choice that is what really matters.

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Review: The Lego Movie

Phil Lord and Christopher Miller could be the new hotshot directors of animated film thanks to this beautifully crafted, modern and witty love letter to a childrens toy.

The Lego Movie, when first announced, attracted a lot of skepticism. But thanks to a great script, a strong cast and a love of the product, this American answer to the stop-motion magic of Wallace and Gromit is quite possibly the most charming release of the year.

We follow the story of Emmet Brickowoski (Chris Pratt), an ordinary construction minifigure who finds himself mistakenly thrown into a quest to save the world he lives in from being glued down by the evil Lord Business (Will Ferrell).

Although a star-studded cast in animated films is usually irrelevant, the voices provided by the likes of Will Arnett as the hilariously arrogant Batman and Morgan Freeman playing the prophet delivering Vitruvius, really add to the comic and loveable characters.

What is so evident is that this film was made by people who love Lego, and the philosophy of the company (Lego got it's name from the Danish phrase leg godt, which means "play well") is well and truly enshrined in the film. It's all about playing, being creative and mixing things up.

But it's the attention to detail that is what really makes this film so wonderful. The minifigures and lego bricks are transformed into a universe of different characters, franchises and themes. From the Wild West, to Middle Zealand (I can't lie, I guffawed at that) to Cloud Cuckoo Land, every little thing has been meticulously planned out. You'll spend a lot of time you staring at the screen in wonder as you take in the Lego smoke, Lego flames, and even Lego water.

Although the animation is slickly done, it still has a little bit of home-made feel to it: from the obviously human made choog-choog-choog noises of a ship sailing away, to the way the horses move as if a giant invisible hand is forcing them to make a “clip clop” motion, to the blatant string hanging from a ghosts back, these are just some of the things that gives you a feeling that it's actually just bunch of kids playing out this well developed and reference filled story.

The nods to all the franchised spin off's of Lego toys are also done well – batman features heavily, but cameos by characters from Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars (fun fact: C-3PO is voiced by the actual C-3PO, Anthony Daniels) and a bunch of DC comic characters (Superman, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern for example) will please the biggest of geeks, and yet still not go over the head of the casual moviegoer.

This is a film for people with kids, and for those who are a child at heart. By the end of it you'll want to go dig out the big box of Lego's from your childhood and get building.

Compared to the run of the mill cheap CGI and regurgitated scripts of the other films that were previewed before the feature started, The Lego Movie shows that lovingly crafted animation and a great script can become family film reality.

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Babylon: Episode 1 Channel 4, Sunday, 9pm The Olympics Director and Peep Show team tackle the world of police spin. There were big expectations of this show from the very beginning. Written by Peep Show creators Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong and directed by Danny Boyle, Babylon couldn't really afford to fall flat, and luckily for the audience it didn't. The drama comedy (dramedy?) centres round the story of the newly drafted director of communications for London's police force, Liz Garvey (Brit Marling). It just so happens that on her first day, there is a sniper on the loose across London. So not much time for a tour of the building then. We first meet Garvey delivering a TED talk as a technology based PR guru who's selling point is honesty, and due to this, has to deal with criticism, wariness and office politic playing from her colleagues. Controlling the perception of a company that let's us share pictures of our food and filter our selfies is a little different to restoring the publics faith in the police. For fans of The Thick Of It, Babylon will be a nice way to fill the void - just don't be disappointed by the lack of the almighty sweary Malcolm tucker. What we have instead is a media savvy American female in one of the oldest established British institutions.... and what could possibly go wrong there? The sixteen strong main cast doesn't really seem to have any wasted characters - James Nesbitt puts in a stellar performance as Commissioner Richard Miller and Adam Deacon shines as the ever troublesome Officer Robbie, who is probably the last person you would want responsible for any kind of weaponry. Throughout the 95 minute long drama we follow different stories from different segments of the force - from the specialist sniper group to the Territorial Support Group members who are the newest stars of the police publicity films - as well as everything going on at HQ. There's a sense of uneasiness whilst watching the comic relief of her other groups, as you are sure they will be dragged into the sniper situation at some point. What was great about Babylon was the contrasting, and very typically Peep Show moments. There is a sniper on the loose in London, and staff are having a debate about the use of the word scrote, or ensuring a protester doesn't hang a sign on a lamppost. In the final tense scenes where officers have surrounded the snipers house, we cut to the Commissioners assistant requesting 'gluten free' nibbles for him. If there's anything writers Bain and Armstrong are good at, it's highlighting the banal and surreal moments in everyday life. Babylon joins a new group of programmes showcasing a different perspective on cops - with a television market over saturated with 'serious' crime series such as Inspector Morse or cheesy one-liner filled CSI franchises, shows such as Babylon, Charlie Brooker's A Touch Of Cloth and Golden Globe winning Brooklyn Nine-Nine are putting a wittier spin on the usual gritty dramatics.

[thescreenqueen-blog]

I am so glad I made this. Hitting shuffle gives me strength for the day ahead...

[thatgracecox-blog]

Where do all the female journalists go?

I was surprised when I heard the news that 78% of front page news stories are written by men.  Well, my first reaction was surprise and then I thought about it for two tenths of a millisecond and then I realised that no, that probably seems about right.  I think we all know that there are more men in the newspaper industry than women but wouldn’t you agree that even that percentage seems a bit steep.  It does however reflect findings that were made last year which showed that, again, 78% of bylines in the national newspapers were attributed to men. 

Read More

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Grab the tissues - the trailer for The Fault In Our Stars is here

The movie adaptation of the best-selling novel will arrive in cinemas this summer.

HEY. Hey you! Are you in need of a good cry? Have you read The Fault In Our Stars by John Green? (If you haven't go do it. NOW.) Do you have access to some sort of internet enabled something  (I'm hoping you do since you are reading this). Well grab your tissues and make sure you aren't in a public place because the first trailer for the film has arrived.

It's always nervewracking when a well loved book is turned into a film - very rarely does the movie do the novel justice. It's difficult to achieve: from envisioning the characters in a different way, to missing out little parts from the book, it's often hard to please dedicated fans. And with a fan base as big as the one for this book, it was always going to be a challange. However, the trailer does not dissapoint. Chock full of references to major moments in the novel (the swing set! the orange tulips! AMSTERDAM!!!) it's a pretty emotional couple of minutes as we see the little infinity love story of cancer patients Hazel Grace Lancaster and Augustus Waters take them on an amazing journey. Shailene Woodley looks set to be a perfect Hazel, and after her great performance in last summers The Spectacular Now, I'm sure she'll do the character justice. Ansel Elgort as Augustus and Nat Wolff as Isaac round off a strong cast of up-and-coming young actors. 

And it seems as if the fans has faith in the film too, with the hashtag #tfiostrailer trending on Twitter since a segment was first shown on NBC's The Today Show. 

Now all we have to do is wait until June 6th to see the emotional story come to life on the big screen. 

Okay? Okay.

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Love music? Love Glasgow.

With the recent loss of the HMV Picturehouse, it became apparent that Edinburgh was seriously lacking in decent places to go see live music (and just as one venue dies in the capital, a new one rises in it's place over on the west coast in the form of The SSE Hydro.) The thing is, when it comes to live music, Glasgow is the place to be. 

(Calvin Harris at The Hydro Dec 22 2013. Photograph by Drew Ressler)

The city has received a lot of recognition when it comes to it's music scene - Glasgow was appointed an UNESCO City of Music back in 2008 (with Liverpool being the only other UK city with this accolade); it's the only city outside of London to have hosted the MOBO awards, and this year the city will host the 2014 MTV European Music Awards.  We've bred some legendary musical talent here too, with Angus and Malcolm Young from AC/DC, Alex Harvey and Frankie Miller all hailing from Glasgow.

And it's also been the place where many famous bands have started their careers - Deacon Blue, Belle and Sebastien, Jesus & Mary Chain, Teenage Fanclub, Franz Ferdinand, Travis, Glasvegas and Churches, to name just a few... 

(Katy Perry brings her first tour to The Barrowlands in 2009, with tickets only costing £13 - how times have changed) 

This is all thanks to the variety of music venues available in the city, from Pivo Pivo to the Hydro, there is no band too big or too small to play here. I spoke to Jamie Moffat, guitarist in indie rock band Suce Mon Beat, who said that Glasgow as a city is somewhere that encourages music. "We have so much to help us here. You've got an abundance of rehearsal studios of varying price and quality, and there's such a large number of indie promoters for you to use, as well as the big boys at DF Concerts (who are responsible for King Tut's and T in the Park)"

"Plus because the number of small gig venues suitable for DIY gigs is much higher than anywhere else I know. As long as you can bring your own amp and aren't worried about getting paid you can have a gig in minutes with just a couple of phone calls"

"What's cool is that its a mixing pot for all kinds of tribes meaning you can find like minded musicians from any genre"

This melting pot of musical taste is another great feature of the city - no matter what your taste, there will either be a local or visiting band playing your kind of music. Even the nightclubs reflect this. Lke club/dance? Head to The Arches. Rock/metal fan? The Cathouse is for you. ABC is the place to be for everything indie. And if you love a bit of chart music then The Garage, Scotland's largest night club is definitely for you. 

(Fall Out Boy travelled from Reading & Leeds festival to play their only UK headline gig in 2013 in Glasgow) 

But why do so many different artists decide to come here? The people of course. The overwhelming answer to the question "What do you like about Glasgow's music scene" involves us Glaswegians. "The atmosphere is just so different at Glasgow gigs compared to other places...like, everyone jumps about and has fun and has a good time" Karyn McAlpine, student. "It's the people that make it so great. Glaswegians are just known for their good vibes and energy and we have world renowned venues and nightclubs. Also, who can forget our infamous 'HERE WE, HERE WE, HERE WE F****ING GO' chant?" Stuart Bland, student. 

It seems Glasgow has earned itself a reputation as a city every band should play in. Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, when asked what one of his favourite places to play live was replied "the Barrowlands". And many other artists wouldn't think twice about having a Glasgow date as part of their international tour. Although bear in mind, we are a fiesty bunch. We've thrown a shoe at Harry Styles from One Direction and heckled U2's Bono after all...

But really, no matter if you are a new band, a big name, or just enjoy going to gigs, there is no other place to be if you love music. 

So go out, jam out and enjoy it for all it's worth!

[poedamnerontrash]

A Reddit user going by the handle “european_douchebag” posted a surreptitious photo of a Sikh woman with the caption “i’m not sure what to conclude from this.” The user’s apparent confusion stems from the fact that the woman—bound by her religion not to cut her hair or alter her body—has an abundance of dark, untrimmed facial hair. The mind of european_douchebag was SO INCREDIBLY BLOWN by the fact that women have hair on their bodies—and, yes, faces—and that some women are bold, self-assured, and pious enough not to cave to western beauty standards (and gender expectations), there was nothing for him to do but post her photo online and wait for the abuse to flood in.

But then something totally lovely and unexpected happened. The woman in the photo responded:

Hey, guys. This is Balpreet Kaur, the girl from the picture. I actually didn’t know about this until one of my friends told on facebook. If the OP wanted a picture, they could have just asked and I could have smiled :) However, I’m not embarrased or even humiliated by the attention [negative and positve] that this picture is getting because, it’s who I am. Yes, I’m a baptized Sikh woman with facial hair. Yes, I realize that my gender is often confused and I look different than most women. However, baptized Sikhs believe in the sacredness of this body - it is a gift that has been given to us by the Divine Being [which is genderless, actually] and, must keep it intact as a submission to the divine will. Just as a child doesn’t reject the gift of his/her parents, Sikhs do not reject the body that has been given to us. By crying ‘mine, mine’ and changing this body-tool, we are essentially living in ego and creating a seperateness between ourselves and the divinity within us. By transcending societal views of beauty, I believe that I can focus more on my actions. My attitude and thoughts and actions have more value in them than my body because I recognize that this body is just going to become ash in the end, so why fuss about it? When I die, no one is going to remember what I looked like, heck, my kids will forget my voice, and slowly, all physical memory will fade away. However, my impact and legacy will remain: and, by not focusing on the physical beauty, I have time to cultivate those inner virtues and hopefully, focus my life on creating change and progress for this world in any way I can. So, to me, my face isn’t important but the smile and the happiness that lie behind the face are. :-) So, if anyone sees me at OSU, please come up and say hello. I appreciate all of the comments here, both positive and less positive because I’ve gotten a better understanding of myself and others from this. Also, the yoga pants are quite comfortable and the Better Together tshirt is actually from Interfaith Youth Core, an organization that focuses on storytelling and engagement between different faiths. :) I hope this explains everything a bit more, and I apologize for causing such confusion and uttering anything that hurt anyone.

And then, THEN, something even more miraculous happened—the original poster apologized:

I know that this post ISN’T a funny post but I felt the need to apologize to the Sikhs, Balpreet, and anyone else I offended when I posted that picture. Put simply it was stupid. Making fun of people is funny to some but incredibly degrading to the people you’re making fun of. It was an incredibly rude, judgmental, and ignorant thing to post.

/r/Funny wasn’t the proper place to post this. Maybe /r/racism or /r/douchebagsofreddit or /r/intolerance would have been more appropriate. Reddit shouldn’t be about putting people down, but a group of people sending cool, interesting, or funny things. Reddit’s been in the news alot lately about a lot of cool things we’ve done, like a freaking AMA by the president. I’m sorry for being the part of reddit that is intolerant and douchebaggy. This isn’t 4chan, or 9gag, or some other stupid website where people post things like I did. It’s fucking reddit. Where some pretty amazing stuff has happened.

I’ve read more about the Sikh faith and it was actually really interesting. It makes a whole lot of sense to work on having a legacy and not worrying about what you look like. I made that post for stupid internet points and I was ignorant.

So reddit I’m sorry for being an asshole and for giving you negative publicity. Balpreet, I’m sorry for being a closed minded individual. You are a much better person than I am Sikhs, I’m sorry for insulting your culture and way of life. Balpreet’s faith in what she believes is astounding.

Holy shit, internet, I don’t even know you anymore! I never thought something would come out of the seeping necrotic abscess that is Reddit that would actually make my day better, but wow. MY HEART GREW THREE SIZES THIS DAY.

((CREDIT: HERE))

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Because I think after feeling a little depressed at the trending of #FreeBeiber and #WeWillAlwaysSupportYouJustin after the Beibs puts peoples lives in danger and yet his fans still stand behind him, it's good to be reminded that people on the internet can learn from their mistakes and realise they were in the wrong. 

[thescreenqueen-blog]

Why I Love Living A Life Online

Hands up, who thinks the internet is awesome?

*throws hands up in air, throws my hands up, in the air*

Ryan Gosling and sharp looking kitties, courtesy of the interwebs. 

Despite what Fox News and the Daily Mail might be trying to tell you, it's not all filled with Nigerian Princes trying to scam us, or fifty year old dude perving on teenage girls. In fact, if you've spent any time on tumblr, you'll know it's actually the opposite - there is a lot of silver fox love out there. But honestly, guys, the internet is actually quite awesome. Especially for someone like me who is quite happy to spend some quality time by myself and chill out. And without the internet I'd probably have to, y'know, do my dissertation. Or exercise. Or clean or something. Which brings me to my first point perfectly really: 1) Sick days are AWESOME now.  Sick days before we had all the cool stuff we have online? Well, they would really just consist of lying in your duvet watching Jeremy Kyle and despairing at humanity: Why does Jeremy Kyle think he is God? Why do these people think it's okay to air their dirty laundry on national television? Why are these people being exploited like this? Why am I watching this oh good god bugger this I'm feeling better, it's fine, just let me go to work I can't take any more of this. 

But now? You don't even need to leave your warm bed. Curl up with your laptop baby, we have so much to catch up on. You can spend hours watching films and tv programmes on Netflix. You could look up diy projects that "you are totally going to make time for" on Pintrest (and then lose faith when you see how many thing you are going to buy - who OWNS a glue gun?! What kind of "together" life do these people lead that they own a glue gun?!!) You could spend hours scrolling through pictures of Ryan Gosling and cute kittens wearing bow ties. You could even get your medicine and chicken noodle soup delivered to your door without having to talk to anybody!!! This is the future kiddies! Never mind hover boards or flying cards, we've made it y'all!!!

2) Sharing memories is super easy. The amount of times I've seen people just whip out their phones to show grandma pictures of their holiday, or their new baby, or whatever, 'cause all the photos are on flickr or facebook, right there, ready to show people instantly... isn't that awesome? Imagine having to carry round all your photographs with you. Taking ages flicking through them all. Getting paranoid about finger marks, or losing them? Not now. I get to see my cousins in the States grow up thanks to Google Albums - I'm there to see trips to the beach, or school recitals... all with a click of a button. And it's great to reminisce too - my generation has had their teenage years documented and put online. Could you imagine what it'd be like to see all your parents bad fashion choices or drunken nights out? That's going to be us. Everything is there to be embarrased by. But heck, we should embrace it. Some of the best nights I've had has involved going over to a friends house, getting drunk, reminiscing about old times, and then somebody will suggest it. "I remember that, oh my god, I think those pictures are on LiveJournal/PIczoBebo/MySpace!!!" Cue hysterical laughter as our 13-17 year old lives are right there, like a time capsule. We look stupid but we had fun. And it's nice to look back on that. 3) Almost everything ever is on here. I can listen to pretty much every album I would every want to on Spotify. I can watch nearly any tv programme or movie ever made. I can find out nearly anything about everything on Wikipedia. You can track your family history too. Have a question? Quora. Don't know what to cook with what you've got in your cupboard? Supercook. Wanna learn how to cut your hair a la Hannah from Girls (bit risky, would not recommend - maybe stick to make-up tutorials)? YouTube that nonsense. Got an essay to write but need some motivation - there is a website that will reward you with a kitten every 1000 words you type. Need to know how to turn an orange into a candle for an.. orange candle emergency? Pintrest has got your back. You could even meet your future husband/wife on here. The internet is your resource. Look at how many are open to teaching millions of other people for as cheap as free - the internet is a collective learning machine. We're all invited to jump in and use what we need to. Isn't that a wonderful thing?

So here's to you internet. For entertaining me when I'm unwell. For helping me avoid human interaction when I need to, and helping me connect to others when I want to. For documenting nearly every embarrassing thing I've done. And for helping me out with the things I probably should know by now, but still don't. But at least you are willing to teach me. C'mere you sexy sonofabitch *hugs router, hugs laptop*