GoneTrending

This article originally appeared on 01.31.22

Any parent knows that kids can be surprisingly astute little philosophers at the most unexpected times. One minute your child is throwing a tantrum because you sliced their sandwich wrong, and the next they are blowing you away with their deep preschool thoughts. It’s enough to give you whiplash, but it’s also one of the most fun things about being around kids. You never know what they’re going to say and sometimes what they say is just awesome.

Case in point: This 5-year-old who gave his mom some sage advice about handling her nerves.

Twitter user @Eprecipice (StressieBessie) shared the story in a tweet thread. She wrote:

“When talking about our agendas for the day, I told my 5yo I was a little nervous about a meeting I have today. He said, ‘Mama, I am nervous all the time. I know what to do.’ So friends, here is all the advice he could fit into the drive to school:”

When talking about our agendas for the day, I told my 5yo I was a little nervous about a meeting I have today. He said, u201cMama, I am nervous all the time. I know what to do.u201d So friends, here is all the advice he could fit into the drive to school:

— StressieBessie (@StressieBessie)
1643118594

1. “You gotta say your affirmations in your mouth and your heart. You say, ‘I am brave of this meeting!’ , ‘I am loved!’, ‘I smell good!’ And you can say five or three or ten until you know it.”

Okay, first of all, the fact that this kiddo knows what affirmations are is awesome. Some people have questioned whether this advice really came from a 5-year-old because of the vocabulary, but kids are sponges and affirmations aren’t rocket science. It’s become quite common for preschools and kindergartens to teach kids things like this, so it’s not actually surprising to hear him talk about affirmations. It’s just adorable to hear the ones he suggests.

2. u201cYou gotta walk big. You gotta mean it. Like Dolly on a dinosaur. Because you got it.u201d

— StressieBessie (@StressieBessie)
1643118788

2. “You gotta walk big. You gotta mean it. Like Dolly on a dinosaur. Because you got it.”

Okay, so this actually is sound advice. Researcher Amy Cuddy gave a whole TED Talk about how our minds respond to our own body language, and how using confident body language can actually release chemicals in our brains that make us feel more powerful and self-assured. So “walk big” like you mean it is legit.

4. u201cThink about the donuts of your day! Even if you cry a little, you can think about potato chips!u201d

— StressieBessie (@StressieBessie)
1643118922

3. “Never put a skunk on a bus.”

No idea what this means, but it’s definitely solid wisdom.

4. “Think about the donuts of your day! Even if you cry a little, you can think about potato chips!”

I’m genuinely not sure if this is referencing real donuts or not, which is part of what makes it delightful advice. Metaphorically, “the donuts of your day” could be the positive things that happened, and focusing on those instead of the negative is basic positive thinking. Then again, if you cry and think about potato chips, perhaps he’s just referencing comfort with food. Either way, totally feeling it.

6. u201cEven if itu2019s a yucky day, you can get a hug.u201d

— StressieBessie (@StressieBessie)
1643119356

5. “You gotta take a deep breath and you gotta do it again.”

Pretty much every therapist from every psychological school of thought will tell you that breathing exercises are one of the quickest ways to calm your body and mind. Simple, but seriously sound advice.

6. “Even if it’s a yucky day, you can get a hug.”

Even though that sounds like a pretty typical thought for a kid, it’s also good well-being advice. According to The Conversation, the chemicals released when we hug can help us manage stress, reduce anxiety and manage our emotions.

Smart kid.

He added one more piece of advice for good measure as well for those of us who tend toward distraction.

Extra addition from this afternoon: u201cDonu2019t get distracted and your feet will stay on the sidewalk and not too full of snow.u201d

— StressieBessie (@StressieBessie)
1643147180

Like a little Confucius, this one.

Seriously, if you ever want to hear some of the most oddly profound things you’ll ever hear in your life, spend some time interviewing a 4- or 5-year-old. They really do say the darnedest things. And if you’re nervous about something, just keep telling yourself you’re “brave of” it. If nothing else, it’ll bring a smile to your face remembering this delightful thread.

This article originally appeared on 3.12.22

Homelessness has been on the increase in America since 2016 and the numbers exploded in 2020. On a single night in January 2020, there were more than 580,000 individuals who were without a home.

There are many reasons for the increase in homelessness and one of the leading causes is a lack of affordable housing across the country. Housing prices have been on a steady increase and, according to PBS, we are about 7 million units short of affordable housing in the country.

So what can the average person do about this human tragedy taking place in America’s streets? Some people who would like to help don’t feel comfortable giving money to homeless people, although experts in the field say that most of the time it is OK.

“If you don’t have money or time, or capacity to donate, I still think it’s nice to be respectful and say hello,” Diane O’Connell, a community lawyer for the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, told the Chicago Tribune.

Actress Jennifer Garner, 49, shared a great idea on Instagram for those who would like to help homeless people but aren’t sure how to do so.

The actress posted a video where she filled zip-up plastic bags with everyday items that homeless people need.

See on Instagram

“Random act of kindness: gather these essentials in a quart sized ziploc bag and keep them in your car to give away when you see someone in need,” she captioned the post. “A pair of thick socks. Kleenex. Hand wipes. Disposable toothbrushes. Chapstick. A couple of granola bars. I forgot this time, but like to add feminine hygiene products, too. Add $5, $10, $20 and a smile.”

For those not comfortable giving money, they can put a gift card in the bag for a local restaurant. O’Connell says that one thing most homeless people desperately need is a hot meal.

“Simple, cheap foods like bagels and doughnuts aren’t that helpful,” O’Connell said. “People who are homeless can usually buy things like that for themselves.” Often what people experiencing homelessness need is a hot meal, she said, because that’s more difficult for them to buy.

Greendrop says that the items most commonly requested by homeless people are socks and undergarments. Homeless people are always walking and have a hard time accessing laundry facilities so their socks and undergarments are often dirty or falling apart.

Here are some other items that will help make homeless people more comfortable:

Shampoo and conditioner

Toothpaste

Hair brushes and toothbrushes

Soap

Lotions

Nail clippers

Feminine hygiene products

Reusable containers

Garner’s Ziploc bag tip is a great idea because it’s a simple way for people to lend a hand when they encounter someone on the streets. How many times have you been driving around, saw someone in need, but didn’t have any way to help? This way you can easily brighten someone’s day when you see them at a freeway on-ramp or in a parking lot without having to ask yourself whether you feel comfortable giving them money.

August 26 is shaping up to be a busy new music Friday. Not only is JID releasing his long-awaited third studio album The Forever Story and Meechy Darko his solo debut, Gothic Luxury, but DJ Khaled is also set to drop his own lucky album number 13, God Did. After sharing the video for the Drake and Lil Baby featuring “Staying Alive,” Khaled revealed his cover art for God Did, which features a closeup of DJ Khaled looking skyward and shedding a single tear — presumably one of gratitude for whatever God did.

Apparently, it occasionally takes an act of God to get his featured artists to turn in their verses on time — not to mention a little light B&E, as he recently revealed during a new episode of Drink Champs. He claims that in order to get Bryson Tiller’s contribution to their record-breaking 2017 Rihanna collaboration “Wild Thoughts,” he nearly had to hop the Louisville crooner’s fence.

“I’m calling Bryson, my album comes out in like in two weeks,” he said. “‘Yo bro, I need you need to cut the vocals over. You know that Rihanna’s vocals is in, you hear that, right? Everybody’s excited.’ He’s not picking up his phone… I need this done. I got f*ckin’ Rihanna vocals. One of my biggest records in my career. He not picking up the phone… He has a gate. I’m flashing my lights, honking my horns, sending texts. Nobody’s replying… Eventually, Bryson comes out, they open the gate — I was already climbing the gate.”

I guess that puts the question of what DJ Khaled actually does to bed at long last; he gets the job done, that’s what he does.

God Did is out 8/26 on Epic/We The Best. Pre-save it here.

A lot of horrible things have happened in the last few years, but MoviePass shutting down its operations in 2019 was surely a dark day for movie lovers everywhere. Sure, there were some good memes about the end, but at what cost? Then, the pandemic happened and it seemed like MoviePass, and going to the movies in general, was gone forever. Until now.

Insider reports that the movie ticket subscription service will have a triumphant return and launch a beta version on Labor Day, September 5th. In order to join the service, prospective users are required to sign up on the waitlist before launch. The price will depend on different variables like location, but the service will have various price tiers, ranging from $10 to $30 a month.

Late last year, the company was bought back by cofounder Stacy Spikes after its parent company went bankrupt. Spikes has been working on bringing back the popular service for some time, which now has partnerships with 25% of movie theaters in the US.

Perhaps the most jarring change in the company is the fact that they are doing away with the iconic red card and replacing it with a sleek, slightly cult-like black card. Hopefully, the company will stick around this time.

(Via Insider)

HBO Max crashed during Sunday night’s premiere of House of the Dragon, and it’s starting to become clear why: A whole lot of people were here for some more Game of Thrones action. In a now viral video on Twitter, a sizable chunk of tenants in an apartment building in Brooklyn were clearly watching the premiere at the same time as evidenced by the lights from their TV changing within seconds of each other, if not simultaneously.

It was such a cool moment, that the House of the Dragon Twitter account retweeted the video on Monday with the caption, “All the dragons roared at one.”

When you’ve got an entire NYC building in a sea of many streaming the premiere as soon it became available, it’s no wonder that HBO Max crashed. In fact, it was the only technical snafu of the night. As the official HBO Max account made a quip about the outage, it received an automated response from the HBO Max support account genuinely asking if it needed help streaming the show. Via Variety:

The @hbomax account, about an hour after the 9 p.m. ET premiere of the “Game of Thrones” prequel series, had tweeted, “The only thing that could tear down the House of the Dragon was itself. #HOTD”

Less than half an hour later, @HBOMaxHelp replied with a polite, obviously canned query: “Hi, we want to help. Could you please let us know what device you’re using?”

The awkward moment was deleted, but as everyone online knows, screenshots last forever. In the meantime, the HBO Max outage reportedly only affected Amazon Fire TV users and the streamer is working to resolve the issue.

House of the Dragon airs new episodes Sundays on HBO and (in theory) HBO Max.

(Via Variety)

JID’s third album, The Forever Story, is less than a week away from release. Naturally, it’s a perfect time to share the album’s tracklist. However, it looks like the Atlanta rapper wants fans to focus on checking out the music rather than worrying about guest stars. So, the tracklist he posted on his social media feeds only shows the guests we already know from the previously released singles “Surround Sound” (21 Savage, Baby Tate) and “Dance Now” (Kenny Mason). It also cleverly has the title of the removed outro song “2007” crossed out.

Being especially tuned into the musicality of his production though, JID does choose to highlight the beatmakers that participated in the album’s completion. Along with JID’s go-to producer Christo, The Forever Story also includes production by 2One2, Aviad, Badbadnotgood, Benji, Cardiak, Childish Major, DJ Khalil, DJ Scheme, Groove, Hollywood Cole, James Blake, JD Beck, Monte Booker, Thundercat, and more. As far as those guest features are concerned, it’s probably safe to assume that at least some of them will be members of his Dreamville and Spillage Village families. It’ll be fun to see who the obscured names belong to, especially after JID theorized that “bigger artists” are “scared” to work with him. Did any of them rise to the challenge? I suppose we’ll see this Friday.

The Forever Story is out 8/26 on Interscope/Dreamville. You can presave it here. Check out the tracklist below.

1. “Galaxy”
2. “Raydar”
3. “Dance Now” feat. Kenny Mason
4. “Crack Sandwich”
5. “Can’t Punk Me”
6. “Surround Sound” feat. 21 Savage & Baby Tate
7. “Kody Blu 31”
8. “Bruddanem” feat. ???
9. “Sistanem”
10. “Can’t Make You Change” feat. ???
11. “Stars” feat. ??? & ???
12. “Just In Time” feat. ??? & ???
13. “Money”
14. “Better Days” feat. ???
15. “Lauder Too” feat. ???
16. “2007”

For years, Tiger Woods’ PGA Tour video game with EA Sports was the golf game on the market, but after EA dropped Woods in 2013 and the series lasted just one year with Rory McIlroy on the cover before the plug got pulled completely.

It took five years for another PGA Tour simulation video game to hit the console market, as PGA Tour 2K21 came out in the fall of 2020, built on the same engine as The Golf Club video game and it garnered solid reviews, particularly for its golf course design and online club formats. The thing that needed to be beefed up was its PGA Tour player connections, as the 2K21 edition was relatively light on players they’d gotten on board, and, by design, featured stock swings and little in the way of unique traits from golfer to golfer.

On October 14, the upcoming PGA Tour 2K23 will release with Tiger Woods back on the cover and in the game, along with 14 PGA and LPGA Tour pros on board for launch. How much the game has taken a step forward in bringing unique swings and personality to those players remains to be seen, but the folks at 2K have added a non-PGA pro as a playable character that figures to be very popular.

A Michael Jordan Bonus Pack will be available for those that pre-order the game, allowing you to play with the basketball legend whose love of golf is well-known. We can only hope that playing with Jordan also unlocks a special “Cash Game” mode, but it’s a cool crossover from 2K, which has a special Jordan Edition of NBA 2K23, and will surely boost some of their presale figures as fans will want to have access to basketball’s GOAT alongside golf’s.

Amazon Music has its sights set on locking down the concert streaming market and with incredible partnerships with Dreamville, Guap (formerly known as Guapdad 4000), Kanye West and Drake, and 88rising’s Head In The Clouds festival to its name, it’s off to a great start. Next up, Amazon and Long Beach rapper Vince Staples are inviting fans on a “Walk Through Ramona Park” to commemorate Vince’s latest album, Ramona Park Broke My Heart with a live stream of his upcoming show at The Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles tomorrow (August 23).

The 90-minute stream will encompass 30 songs from across Vince’s catalog including some of his earliest songs. The show will be available to stream beginning at 8 pm PT via the Amazon Music channel on Twitch, the Amazon Music mobile app, and Prime Video.

Meanwhile, Vince’s star continues to rise, as Deadline and Variety recently reported on a pair of upcoming acting roles. In addition to joining Jack Harlow in the remake of White Men Can’t Jump (if he doesn’t mention going to Sizzler, I will riot), he was also cast in a Showtime pilot based on The Wood. He also recently released his Z2 comic book Limbo Beach after being forced to postpone his Limbo Beach Carnival due to overwhelming demand.

“HUGE.” “Ugly.” “Assymetric.”

No, I’m not describing the Papa Bowl. That’s how author George R.R. Martin envisioned the Iron Throne, an important piece of iconography in the Game of Thrones universe (the typo should have been clue that butts are involved). “The HBO throne has become iconic. And well it might. It’s a terrific design, and it has served the show very well. There are replicas and paperweights of it in three different sizes. Everyone knows it. I love it. I have all those replicas right here, sitting on my shelves. And yet, and yet… it’s still not right,” he wrote in 2013. “It’s not the Iron Throne I see when I’m working on THE WINDS OF WINTER. It’s not the Iron Throne I want my readers to see.”

That’s not an Iron Throne. This is an Iron Throne. (I see you’ve played Iron-y Throne-y.)

(A semi-related tangent: the Game of Thrones series finale gets a lot of deserved scorn, but one very good moment in the episode is Daenerys seeing the Iron Throne for the first time and it not living up to her expectations. “When I was a girl, my brother told me it was made with a thousand swords from Aegon’s fallen enemies,” she says with semi-disappointment. “What do a thousand swords look like in the mind of a little girl who can’t count to twenty? I imagined a mountain of swords too high to climb. So many fallen enemies, you could only see the soles of Aegon’s feet.” The House of the Dragons throne isn’t at 1,000 swords, but it’s closer to what Dany imagined. Also, kids are dumb.)

One of the biggest differences between House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones, besides the number of dragons (more) and people named Hot Pie (less), is the look of the Iron Throne. On Thrones, it’s “big, yes, but not nearly as big as the one described in the novels,” Martin wrote. But on House of the Dragon, it’s a jagged, melted playground of swords. The design change was due, in part, to Martin not being thrilled by the original Iron Throne, but it also shows the expensive extravagance of the Targaryens.

“We went into the series knowing that this was a time of high decadence,” co-showrunner Ryan Condal explained to Vanity Fair. “We consider this the apex of the Targaryen empire, so we really wanted to communicate this idea of wealth and prosperity and the fact that there had been six years of peace. The Targaryens really were able to develop all the nice things that happened: peacetime, statues and art, and roads and fountains.” And thrones made of swords.

Condal continued:

“I think [original Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss] created this very iconic thing. Just the silhouette of that shape, everybody now knows what it is. [The Iron Throne is] as iconic as a lightsaber in Star Wars. What we wanted to do is honor that, but also tell the story of a more decadent time, and also communicate that 200 years has passed. If you look very closely, you’ll see that the original throne is there. It’s just added to and augmented, which suggests that history changes things at some point in the intervening time.”

There’s a lot of changes in the years between the reigns of Viserys Targaryen and Robert Baratheon — and House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones. The Iron Throne is only the beginning.

(Via Vanity Fair)

After two years away from the spotlight, Korean pop quartet Blackpink came roaring back with their new song “Pink Venom,” the lead single for their upcoming sophomore album, Born Pink. The time away apparently didn’t do much to dull enthusiasm for the new single, either; according to Variety, the “Pink Venom” music video had the biggest YouTube premiere of 2022, and the platform’s third biggest ever.

YouTube announced today that “Pink Venom” had officially hit 90.4 million views in the first 24 hours, surpassing the record previously held by the girl group for their 2020 single “How You Like That,” which had 86.3 million views. Meanwhile, K-pop still owns the top two spots; BTS’ “Butter” and “Dynamite” both cleared 100 million in their first 24 hours with 108.2 million and 101.1 million views, respectively. YouTube updated its view-counting method in 2019, excluding paid advertising videos to ensure that the numbers reflected what fans actually watched on their own.

It’s a pretty big accomplishment for Blackpink ahead of their second album, and bodes well for the eventual reception of Born Pink. They’re going all-in on the rollout for the album; they’ll perform their new song on the MTV VMAs on August 28, then hit the road for the Born Pink World Tour starting in October and running through next summer.

Watch Blackpink’s “Pink Venom” video above.

Born Pink is out on 9/16 via YG Entertainment and Interscope.