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Have you ever been on vacation and realized you need something you wished you’d brought? Unless you travel frequently, it’s inevitable that you’ll have some packing regrets, either over things you packed that you didn’t need or things you didn’t pack that would have come in handy.

Someone who was planning a long trip to Southeast Asia asked in the /travel subreddit, “What do you regret bringing or not bringing when you have travelled? (so I can learn from your mistakes lol)” and experienced travelers delivered a goldmine of wisdom from their personal packing lists.

Here’s a roundup of some of the most helpful things to bring along on any trip, and the one thing savvy travlers say not to pack.

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A Sharpie with duct tape wrapped around it—yes, really

It sounds strange, I know, but Sharpies are always good to have on hand and so is duct tape. (Fixing a broken strap in a pinch, mending an unexpected tear in a bag, using a tiny bit to keep a chip bag closed, stopping the vent from rattling in the hotel room—so many uses.) No one wants to pack an entire roll of duct tape, though, so wrapping a length of it around the Sharpie gives you a usable amount without taking up any precious packing space.

A Ziploc bag full of Ziploc bags and rubber bands

My family recently traveled to Europe, and on our way out the door, I grabbed a handful of Ziplocs and rubber bands, just in case. I’ve traveled enough to know I always want a Ziploc for something, and the rubber bands were just a whim because they were within eyesight and they weigh almost nothing.

We ended up using every single Ziploc and rubber band I grabbed during our travels. They’re useful for so many things. Opened a packet of nuts or chips and want to save what’s left? Ziploc or rubber band. Favorite beaded necklace broke and you need a place to keep the beads together so you can fix it when you get home? Ziploc. Your travel lotion lid suddenly leaks after never leaking before? Ziploc. Want to keep track of whose glass is whose in the place your rented? Rubber bands. Bought a fragile souvenir? Wrap it up in a piece of clothing and put a rubber band around it. So many uses.

Universal adapters and extra long charging cables or an extension cord for devices

Along with a universal adapter (a must if traveling internationally—take two in case you lose one), it’s a good idea to pack an extra-long charging cord for your devices in case electrical outlets are located in inconvenient places. An extension cord works too, but takes up a bit more space and weight in your luggage.

A waterproof bag (aka dry bag) that can be used for multiple purposes

Not only does a waterproof dry bag handy keeping your stuff protected during water adventures, but it’s also how you can keep the wet swimsuit you inevitably end up with from touching the rest of your luggage. It can do double duty as a laundry bag and you can even use it as a makeshift washing machine for a few small items you want to wash—just toss in part of a laundry detergent sheet, some water and your clothes, and shake. (These come in a variety of sizes, so decide which size you’ll need.)

Laundry detergent sheets

At some point in your travels, someone in your party is going to need to wash something, and it’s super helpful to have your own detergent on hand. These laundry detergent sheets look like paper, take up practically no room and weight almost nothing, plus no liquid messes to worry about. Just toss a few into a Ziploc bag and you’re good to go.

A clothesline—but not just any clothesline

Theoretically, you could use any kind of string or cord for a clothesline, but these braided ones are ideal for travel for a few reasons. One, the suction cups make it easy to use in a shower. Two, the clips make it easy to use wrapped around poles or trees. Three, the braided cords eliminate the need for clothes pins because you can just tuck a bit of fabric in between the cords to hang things.

A small container of over-the-counter medications and electrolyte/hydration packets

Even if you’re not someone who usually takes pain reliever or needs extra hydration, traveling can do weird things to your body, especially when you’re visiting another country where everything is unfamiliar. Plus, a lot of over-the-counter medications we’re used to may not be easy to find elsewhere, and you definitely don’t want to be trying to figure out how to find antidiarrheal medicine when you desperately need it. As for electrolytes, people swear by powdered hydration packets like Liquid I.V. for getting over jet lag quicker, but they’re also good to carry especially in places that are hotter than you’re used to, where it’s easy to get dehydrated.

Thin, compact, reusable grocery sacks

Specifically, ones like these BeeGreen sacks that fold down super tiny, taking up almost no packing space, come in super handy for shopping, laundry, beach, souvenirs and more.

Leave the extra sweater at home

What do people regret bringing? Too many clothes, across the board.

Sometimes it’s a matter of being overly prepared, thinking you might need a sweater while you’re in Indonesia, only to be met with the reality that it’s always a million degrees and a thousand percent humidity there. Sometimes it’s a matter of thinking you need more shoes than you do or that it will be harder to wash things than it is. Sometimes it’s realizing that you want to buy the cheap, beautiful clothing you find at your destination but don’t have room in your luggage to bring them home.

But pretty much everyone who said they regretting bringing anything said clothes. So pack light on the clothing, heed the “must haves” above, and you’ll be golden wherever you end up traveling.

We live in a society… where The People’s Joker is finally being released in theaters.

It was announced today that Altered Innocence has acquired the rights to Vera Drew’s film, which follows Joker the Harlequin, a trans woman (played by Drew) trying to make it as a comedian in Gotham City. It premiered to rave reviews at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival but later screenings were pulled after Drew received “an angry letter” from “a media conglomerate” (Warner Bros. Discovery owns DC, the universe where Batman is set).

“This movie started as a DIY community project for queer artists and I made it with my friends to process what it was like coming out as a trans woman working in the film and TV industry,” Drew, who makes clear that The People’s Joker qualifies as parody, said in a statement. “It has been a long road freeing The People’s Joker and finding a release plan that rings true to the queer, anarchist spirit we had while making it. What better home than among Altered Innocence’s catalog of gorgeously gay and deliciously edgy films.”

The People’s Joker is described as an “absurdist autobiographically-inspired dark comedy” about “a painfully unfunny aspiring clown (Vera Drew as Joker the Harlequin) grapples with her gender identity while unsuccessfully attempting to join the ranks of Gotham City’s sole comedy program in a world where comedy has been outlawed. Uniting with a ragtag team of rejects and misfits, Joker the Harlequin forms an illegal anti-comedy troupe that puts her on a collision course with the devious caped crusader controlling the city.”

The People’s Joker will open at New York City’s IFC Center on April 5, 2024 (that makes two Joker movies coming out next year). More dates will be announced in the future. You can find out more information here.

Twenty-five years before director Todd Haynes (rightfully) gained a lot of attention for his true crime-influenced melodrama May December, he released an audacious glam-rock drama that was at its core David Bowie and Iggy Pop fanfiction delivered through a Citizen Kane-esque framing device. That film was Velvet Goldmine, which somehow still feels as rebellious and revelatory today as it did in 1998. It’s a bisexual masterpiece, complete with tons of queer characters, a glitter-covered Ewan McGregor gyrating nude, and even Mother herself Toni Collette doing a bit of riffing about her perineum. And that’s not even getting into the soundtrack, which saw some of the biggest names in British alt-rock create fake supergroups for the film’s two onscreen bands. What’s not to love?

It’s hard to deny Velvet Goldmine’s queer status, as it follows reporter Arthur (Christian Bale) as he tries to investigate the faked death of 1970s British pop star Brian Slade (Jonathan Rhys Meyers), remembering his own journey of sexual discovery at the time, spurred on by Slade’s music. At one point he remembers seeing Slade on TV talking about sexuality, and he points and jumps up and down, shouting at his parents, “that’s me!” It’s hard not to immediately identify with this ruddy-faced youth, exuberant that someone out in the world feels an attraction that’s outside of gender norms. Slade even announces to the press that “everybody knows most people are bisexual,” and explains that he and his wife Mandy (Collette) feel the same way so there’s no issue. This does not impress more conservative members of the press or Arthur’s parents, but it rockets Slade to glam-rock superstardom as his alter-ego, Maxwell Demon. (Just think of Demon as the Ziggy Stardust to Slade’s Bowie.) Then he meets out-of-control Iggy Pop-analogue Curt Wild (McGregor) and falls in lusty love, which spells the beginning of the end.

All of that’s pretty fabulously queer, but then Haynes gave his story a fantastical, supernatural element that’s a kind of wish fulfillment, making The Portrait of Dorian Gray author Oscar Wilde the recipient of extraterrestrial magic in the form of a stone brooch. The brooch is passed from queer artist to queer artist, helping them to share themselves with the world, until it’s stolen by Slade just prior to his ascension to fame. Velvet Goldmine doesn’t just give us a peek into the life of a queer rock god, it also creates its own fabulous queer mythology. It’s not all roses and love songs, though, as we also see the darker side of rock ‘n’ roll excess and the challenges of being authentic to yourself in a homophobic, puritanical world. The latter can be painful, like when Arthur is forced to leave home after his father discovers him masturbating to one of Slade’s albums, but it does make the movie feel more lived-in and authentic.

Just as Haynes uses the elements of melodrama to make May December’s reality feel both heightened and grounded at the same time, he uses the trappings of glam rock to tell a story both deeply specific and utterly universal in Velvet Goldmine. Other than the possibly unknowable Slade, who only really exists through the way the other characters remember him, the characters are wonderfully human. They’re not caricatures of the men and women they’re supposed to represent, especially not Arthur, who remains incredibly relatable from beginning to end. Whether he’s trying not to smudge his eyeliner while first learning to put on makeup or staring at his computer screen dejectedly in his crummy journalist-salary apartment, Arthur is exceptionally vulnerable for a character that basically serves as an audience surrogate, especially when compared to the people around him who are mostly Slade’s jaded emotional collateral. It’s hard to blame any of them for being burnt out by rock excess, however, and we see moments of their humanity, especially when Wild and Arthur have a romantic rooftop romp of their own.

Each of these characters is a fully formed person whose bisexuality is integral to who they are without defining them, something that’s still often rarely seen on-screen more than two decades later. Velvet Goldmine’s depiction of sexuality feels especially bold now, as it’s depicted and discussed explicitly in a way that would launch a thousand thinkpieces if it were released in 2023. These characters aren’t just bisexual, they say the word bisexual! Often sexuality is reduced to the binary of “gay” or “straight,” erasing bisexual identities, and to not only see it represented by such a variety of fascinating characters but to actually hear it spoken aloud is deeply validating.

Velvet Goldmine begins with a voiceover about Wilde and the young Jack Fairy, whom Slade will one day steal the brooch from. After Fairy is beaten by some bullies, he stands before a mirror and uses the blood on his lip to rouge them, then smiles as the voiceover explains, “Until one mysterious day, when Jack would discover that somewhere there were others …quite like him. Singled out for a great gift. And one day… the whole stinking world… would be theirs.” When it ends, in the 1990s of the film’s present-day, it’s clear that those days either came and went with the glam-rock era, or they have yet to truly come to pass. The final sequence is of queer couples throughout the U.K. as a cover of one of Slade’s songs plays, hinting at the idea that the best for LGBTQ people is still yet to come. Twenty-five years later, we have seen improvements and setbacks both for queer folks, but that hope still feels incredibly vital to hang onto.

You’ve seen a ton of year-end lists by now; We just published the Uproxx Music Critics Poll for 2023, in case you missed that. If you have an appetite for one more ranking, let’s take a look at 2023’s most-liked Instagram posts.

This information isn’t readily available in an official capacity, so the best available data appears to be Wikipedia’s list of the 20 all-time most-liked posts, with figures accurate as of November 4. According to that, the year’s biggest posts came from entertainment multi-hyphenate Selena Gomez, soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo, and a photographer who captured a colorful sky.

The top post on that list from 2023 is a reel of a vibrant sunset from user @jiangzhibin24, which has about 34.5 million likes. That makes it the most-liked reel/video post in Instagram history, as all the posts above it in the all-time ranks only feature images. It’s the sixth most-liked post ever overall.

The next two 2023 posts on the list are both from Ronaldo. Both feature action shots of Ronaldo during games, and both posts have just short of 28 million likes each. The posts are No. 14 and 15 on the all-time list.

The final 2023 post on the list, at No. 19 all-time and No. 4 this year, comes from Gomez. The post was shared on March 13, is captioned “Violet chemistry,” and includes two selfies of Gomez, in which she’s not wearing makeup.

Unless Taylor Swift finds a cure for cancer or Beyoncé announces she’s running for president in the next few days, that is where the 2023 ranks will likely remain for the rest of the year.

It makes sense that Gomez made the list, considering she was once the most-followed person on Instagram, and is currently the most-followed woman, musician, actor, musician, and person from North America on the platform. She has the No. 4 most-followed account overall: The official Instagram account is No. 1, followed by Ronaldo at No. 2 and fellow soccer icon Lionel Messi at No. 3.

Alan Ritchson might not have been able to pass that note to Tom Cruise, but the “new” Jack Reacher is doing just fine. See, he says so himself…

To that end, Amazon has already announced that the second season of Reacher, which has only released three episodes thus far, is already whooping tush and tossing punches all over the streaming charts. As Deadline relays, the three episodes not only “surpassed the entire Season 1 audience by 50% in the first three days,” but the show is now the top-viewed in for all Amazon Originals released in 2023. Here’s more:

Season 1 already seemed like a home run for Amazon, racking up 1.84B minutes viewed across all eight episodes in the U.S. (which were released all at once) during its premiere weekend in March 2022, according to Nielsen streaming data. Since Nielsen only measures domestically, that wouldn’t give an indication of how the series is performing internationally.

Exact Nielsen figures from this season will be delayed, as is customary, for around a month or so, but so far, Amazon is at least thrilled that their own internal figures are perking things up for 2023, which hasn’t had this many streaming minutes racked up since the September 2022 premiere of Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Of course, the first Reacher season from February 2022 didn’t do so shabbily, either. And there will be weekly Reacher episodes through January 19, along with a third season that’s already in the works. Details matter!

(Via Deadline)

We’re getting to the point in the NFL calendar where the coaching carousel starts spinning, which can only mean one thing: There are rumors about Jim Harbaugh returning to the league. Harbaugh, the former San Francisco 49ers head coach who currently coaches at the University of Michigan, is apparently one of the names that has piqued the interest of the Los Angeles Chargers as they look to find a replacement for the recently fired Brandon Staley.

The news of this interest comes by way of Jordan Schultz from Bleacher Report, who added the caveat that it’s unclear if Harbaugh would want to leave his alma mater to coach the Chargers.

It is worth mentioning that Harbaugh is a bit busy right now, as the Wolverines are the No. 1 team in America and are headed to the College Football Playoff for the third year in a row — they have a date with the Alabama Crimson Tide in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1. Harbaugh returning to the NFL rumors have been around for years, and Michigan has always been able to convince him to stick around in Ann Arbor, although in a fun twist on this one, ESPN’s Mike Greenberg recalled a recent conversation he had with Harbaugh in which he spoke glowingly about Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.

The Chargers opted to part ways with Staley after two and a half years following a Thursday Night Football drubbing at the hands of the Las Vegas Raiders last week. During his tenure in L.A., Staley registered a 24-24 record, but got fired while the team sat at 5-9 during the 2023 campaign.

Harbaugh has amassed an 84-25 record at Michigan, which has included three consecutive Big Ten championships and three straight berths in the College Football Playoff. Prior to becoming the head coach in Ann Arbor back in 2015, Harbaugh spent four years with the Niners and led the team to a Super Bowl appearance in 2012.

With Jonathan Majors handed a guilty verdict for the assault and harassment of his ex-girlfriend, which led to Marvel immediately firing the actor, the next step in the process is sentencing. While Majors could face jail time, attorneys who spoke to The Hollywood Reporter do not believe that will be the case.

“Since it’s the defendant’s first conviction, although technically he faces one year of jail, the judge will 99 percent give him three years probation, anger management and possibly some community service. Mr. Majors is not getting jail time,” Manhattan-based attorney Cary London said.

The chances of Majors getting jail time decrease even further when you factor in his attorney’s intention to the appeal the verdict, which could result in the conviction being overturned due to some unorthodox steps taken during the already unusual trial. At issue are the damning text messages from a prior incident that made their way into evidence:

Several attorneys said they believe an appeal is likely based on the fact that this misstep from the defense team reversed the Molineux ruling protection and allowed this evidence to be introduced. Lance Fletcher, a criminal defense attorney in Manhattan and a former prosecutor, also pointed to the texts as an issue. “Obviously, this kind of thing can sound very bad to a jury and Majors may argue that the jury should not have heard about them, especially since they were not specifically discussing the assault he was on trial for,” Fletcher said.

Regardless of the appeal process, Majors is toast at Marvel. The studio is reportedly making plans to pivot away from his character, Kang the Conqueror, and whatever you do, don’t ask John Boyega if he’s taking over the role. That’ll be a hard pass.

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

Much has been written about the recent power pop revival. But one project, Bory, has recently emerged as an exciting new voice in the genre, thanks to a co-sign by fellow artist Mo Troper.

Bory, the music moniker of Portland power-pop prodigy Brenden Ramirez, released his debut album Who’s A Good Boy just in time for year-end list season (thus making a shortlist appearance on Steven Hyden’s Favorite Albums Of 2023 list). Whether it’s the pastoral “Feel The Burn” or the splendid, reverb-drenched “Five-Course Meal,” Who’s A Good Boy debut full-length project shows some major potential for Bory to earn the title of Next Big Thing in the genre.

To celebrate the release of his debut album, Ramirez sits down with Uproxx to talk Diet Coke, cooking, and Fyre Fest 2 in our latest Q&A.

What are four words you would use to describe your music?

Loud guitar soft voice.

It’s 2050 and the world hasn’t ended and people are still listening to your music. How would you like it to be remembered?

Fondly!

Who’s the person who has most inspired your work, and why?

Mo Troper. He’s a really good friend of mine who has given me so much guidance and support since starting my band. I also look up to him as a songwriter. He’s a crazy talented and prolific songwriter.

Where did you eat the best meal of your life and what was it?

Probably one of those combo meals at BCD tofu house.

Tell us about the best concert you’ve ever attended.

I saw Kero Kero Bonito play once at a very small college festival and I was surrounded by so many good friends and it rocked my world.

What song never fails to make you emotional?

“Liverpool 8” by Ringo Starr.

What’s the last thing you Googled?

“Tears Of The Kingdom how does master sword work.”

Where’s the weirdest place you’ve ever crashed while on tour?

One time when I was touring in the UK with the Mo Troper Band our tour manager told us we were crashing at his place that night. I was expecting like a house or apartment or something but it ended up being this whole entire school that had been repurposed to house touring bands. It was pretty cool. There was someone already sleeping in the room we were supposed to be in. There was also a sword in there.

What’s your favorite city in the world to perform and what’s the city you hope to perform in for the first time?

LA because I have a lot of family around there that I can play for. Really looking forward to playing in Tokyo soon!!

What’s one piece of advice you’d go back in time to give to your 18-year-old self?

Please please please stop caring so much what other people think!!

What’s one of your hidden talents?

I really like to cook! I’m not sure how good I am at it though.

If you had a million dollars to donate to charity, what cause would you support and why?

Oh man, I guess whatever will get people fed. Or something that will help support people struggling with mental health.

What are your thoughts about AI and the future of music?

No thoughts, does not compute.

You are throwing a music festival. Give us the dream lineup of 5 artists that will perform with you and the location it would be held.

Fyre Fest 2:
The Beatles (with holographic John Lennon and George Harrison)
Stevie Wonder
Alvvays
Mo Troper
Diners

Who’s your favorite person to follow on social media?

q8ledgendery on Instagram.

What’s the story behind your first or favorite tattoo?

No tattoos!

What is your pre-show ritual?

I don’t have anything I follow strictly but I usually see what the Diet Coke situation is at the bar. Every venue’s soda fountain varies in taste. Some are a lot tastier than others.

Who was your first celebrity crush?

The hot fish from Shark Tale.

You have a month off and the resources to take a dream vacation. Where are you going and who is coming with you?

New Zealand would be really cool. Would love to hang out at the Shire with all my friends.

What is your biggest fear?

Maybe bugs or dying.

Who’s A Good Boy is out now via Earth Librarys. Find more information here.

Today (December 20), Drake treated fans to a music video for “You Broke My Heart,” a highlight from the recently released Scary Hours Edition of his For All The Dogs album. And there are some serious surprises.

Is Morgan Wallen Featured On Drake’s “You Broke My Heart?”

While Morgan Wallen is not featured on the song itself, viewers who started the music video will find the country singer having dinner with Drake. The two discuss the ways they were hurt by their exes but have no idea what else is in store.

Drake and Wallen go to head home from the restaurant, only to be blown up as the car explodes. The two women that play their exes then carry the rest of the video doing a lip-sync to the track.

Before Wallen’s appearance in the video, it didn’t seem he had much of a relationship with Drake. He previously took over Drake’s record of the most simultaneous entries on the Billboard Hot 100. And there was a Delaware DJ who made a viral mashup of Wallen’s “Thinking About Me” with Lil Wayne’s “Right Above It” (which features Drake). But that was the closest the two came in the news to interacting… Until now.

Check out the video for Drake’s “You Broke My Heart” above.

If you’ve spent any time on social media this year, you’ve no doubt seen reports of major retailers like Target, CVS, Dick’s Sporting Goods and others attributing store closings to an increase in shoplifting thanks to a rash of “organized retail theft.” The talking point has been particularly virulent amongst “tough on crime” Republicans.

There’s just one small problem: the numbers are bogus. The National Retail Federation conjured up the number with no data to back it up, but the organization has only recently copped to the fake stats.

Via Los Angeles Times:

The statistic, published in April by the National Retail Federation, was that “organized retail crime” — including the videotaped flash mob smash-and-grab events aired in frequent rotation on the cable and evening news shows — came to more than $45 billion a year.

Specifically, the NRF declared that organized crime accounted for “nearly half” of the $94.5 billion in retail “shrink” attributed to theft or “other causes” in 2021. The claim appeared in the latest edition of the federation’s annual report on organized retail crime.

However, as the LA Times reports, the NRF has since admitted that the retail theft estimate was a “fabrication” and it was removed from the annual report in an update. Unfortunately, the damage was already done as Republican politicians latched onto the bogus statistic. Donald Trump, to the surprise of no one, was the most aggressive and basically called for gunning down shoplifters on sight.

“We will immediately stop all of the pillaging and theft,” Trump said during a December 1 rally in California. “Very simply: If you rob a store, you can fully expect to be shot as you are leaving that store.”

The MAGA crowd ate it up and cheered at the line thanks to the over-abundance of scare-mongering headlines about a supposed shoplifting epidemic that simply doesn’t exist. So that was great.

(Via Los Angeles Times)