Know what your life needs right now? A direwolf, obviously. However, seeing as how they’re in really short supply right now (cries forever), getting your hands on a pup might be harder than it looks. So how about instead, you buy a whole collection of stuffed direwolves??

Good idea, or BEST IDEA?

With this year’s Comic-Con right around the corner, details are spilling out as to what goodies you’ll find down in San Diego this year. Factory Entertainment has just revealed some of their OMG products for this year’s line-up, and our favorite product is by far the collection of direvolves. ALL SIX OF THEM! FOR ALL SIX STARK CHILDREN!

The Stark direwolves come in three sets, priced depending on how many direwolves you’re getting for your dollar. The first set is $30, and includes Shaggydog, Summer, and Lady. Set two is $40 and now includes GHOST! The last set, and the best set, has all six dogs for a steal at $55. You’ll get Rickon’s Shaggydog, Bran’s Summer, Sansa’s Lady, and now also Arya’s Nymeria, Robb’s Grey Wind, and of course, Jon’s Ghost.

Let’s be real, we need them all. Half because they’re adorable, half because we’re running out of things to cuddle and cry with when Game of Thrones wrecks our hearts.

You can go ahead and pre-order the direwolves right now, and either pick them up at Comic-Con (if you’re lucky enough to be attending) or they’ll be shipped to you after the con ends, on July 24th. It’ll be the best purchase you make this week, PROMISE. You were meant to have them.

The post You can buy “Game of Thrones” stuffed direwolves at Comic-Con, and they are THE cutest appeared first on HelloGiggles.

Meet P-48-through-52

It’s a tough life for the mountain lions of Southern California—filled with murder, inbreeding, and perilous freeway crossings. But try not to think about that as you enjoy this video of kittens recently discovered by National Park Service researchers in the Santa Susana Mountains

The first litter of kittens are the offspring of P-35, recently seen chowing down on some deer meat and leaving her leftovers behind for a pair of bears. Park Service biologists have named her two female kittens P-48 and P-49 (the "P" stands for Puma). The second litter was born to P-39 and consists of two males (P-50 and P-52) and one female (P-51). Researchers believe the father of all five kittens is the territorial P-38, who chased another lion (P-32) across Highway 126 last summer. P-32 was later struck by a vehicle and killed while attempting to cross I-5.

Researchers expect that before long, these adorable kittens will have to face similar struggles. "The real challenge comes as these kittens grow older and disperse, especially the males," says Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area biologist Jeff Sikich in a press release. The male mountain lions will have to contend with a number of potential rivals, including their own father. Sikich says that "road mortality and the possibility of poisoning from anticoagulant rodenticide" are other dangers the kittens will run into as they grow older. For now, though, they seem quite content hissing at cameras and snoozing in their den.

• Video: Inside the Hard Lives of Los Angeles Mountain Lions [Curbed LA]
• Meet the Murderous, Inbred Mountain Lion Family of the Santa Monica Mountains [Curbed LA]
• LA Wants to Protect Mountain Lion Trails From Development [Curbed LA]

A pit keyboardist in the Boston Crusaders Drum and Bugle Corps has become our newest shero after a video of her intense, inspired, and (dare I say) beautiful performance was posted to Facebook and subsequently went viral.

In the footage, this master of the form is seen serving her goddamn face off, reacting and dancing to the music as if it was a part of her very soul.

The Crusaders are currently touring their 2016 show, Quixotic, a “reflection of the masterpiece The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha.”

According to the corps’ website:

On a field of windmills, the show opens with an interpretation of The Impossible Dream” and “I, Don Quixote” from the Broadway musical. The corps travels the entirety of the field, in itself a challenging musical and visual feat, reflecting Quixote’s quest “to travel the world, righting all wrongs.” The heart of the program presents a series of juxtaposed visual and musical events, non sequiturs reflecting the hero’s various adventures, battles and visions. Solo performers, small ensembles, mixed large ensembles, percussion interludes, guard layering and interruptions present full sensory “quixoticism.” The production climaxes with “tilting at windmills” (literally) ((or are they giants?)), the definitive image of Don Quixote.

In a video diary posted to the Crusaders’ YouTube page, a laughing member talks about her bandmate’s newfound fame, saying, “Someone came to the show just to watch [the keyboardist] and her faces.”

For what it’s worth, the entire team—our shero included—seems pretty psyched about it.

Via Mike O’Neil’s Facebook.

Charles Marlowe, aka YouTuber “thevegancheetah,” has fashioned himself as a critic of vegan YouTube personalities, a community to which he also belongs.

The Vegan Cheetah’s videos often involve loud (very loud) rants about frequent Vegan YouTube Drama Update subjects Harley “Durianrider” Johnstone and his girlfriend Freelee the Banana Girl. Recently, Cheetah encouraged viewers to donate to an IndieGogo campaign supporting some kind of unspecified legal action against Durianrider, who appears to have threatened violence against another vegan YouTuber, Eisel Mazard, who Durianrider apparently accused of sexually predatory behavior at the Raw Till 4 Thai Fruit Festival (after which another vegan YouTuber, Hannah Chloé, accused Durianrider of similarly sexually predatory behavior).

You don’t necessarily need to be following all of this (I barely am), except to note that at some point during our safari trek through the wilds of the vegan YouTube panopticon, things became rather dark!

The Vegan Cheetah, a recovering heroin addict and avid guitar player who used to be a loyal follower of the gospel of Freelee and Durianrider (the latter has claimed that VC took his followers’ money to buy heroin), has also accused Freelee of stealing content and having a secret relationship with her female assistant. (As a completely unrelated side-note, Freelee recently published an extremely grisly photo of the inside of her leg after it was torn open during a bike accident, framing it, rather counter-intuitively, as #inspo. “If you think adventure is dangerous then try ROUTINE, it is lethal!” she wrote underneath the gaping flesh wound.)

Anyway, although he only has about 13,000 subscribers—a fairly small number compared with those of his YouTube foes—VC has gained traction on one particular new series: “The Dumbest Vegans On YouTube.”

Dumbest Vegan #1: Sorsha Morava

In this video, which received over 76,000 views, Vegan Cheetah reacts to Sorsha’s reaction to Nicole Arbour’s video making fun of vegans.

VC explains without a hint of irony that Sorsha, who we have covered previously, “likes to do reaction videos, most of her videos involve somebody else’s name or some kind of drama,” adding that she is a “classic Freelee/Durianrider dickriding clone.” (“Dickrider” is, I believe, a made-up derogatory term for a Durianrider fan.)

After debating Sorsha’s response to Nicole Arbour, he criticizes Sorsha, “the dumbest vegan on YouTube,” for “trying to debate with a YouTube comedian, somebody that I would say is not that much of an intellectual.” VC says that Sorsha refers to herself as a “vegan activist” (in contrast he refers to himself as a “vegan YouTuber,” a designation that is apparently altogether different), and as such shouldn’t be engaging in petty drama. “How is this productive?” he asks Sorsha. Good question.

Dumbest Vegan #2: Happy Healthy Vegan

In this second video, which received about 14,000 views, VC goes in on Happy Healthy Vegan. Happy Healthy Vegan is comprised of Anji and Ryan, a cartoonishly groovy 40-something vegan couple; Ryan, VC claims, is “one of the biggest dickriders on YouTube!”

Ryan posted a video musing over whether Fully Raw Kristina is a vegan activist or not, something Ryan should not have done, in VC’s opinion, “when people in the comments section are requesting a video of your stance about Durianrider and his behavior.”

“You’re a fucking coward,” Cheetah tells Ryan.

Dumbest Vegan #3: Freelee the Banana Girl

The most recent installment of “The Dumbest Vegan on YouTube” involves our very own YouTube drama queen, Freelee the Banana Girl.

VC refers to Freelee, not inaccurately, as a “lunatic, militant vegan” selling a “bullshit permanent vacation lifestyle” who gives terrible advice to kids (in the clip he shows, she tells a young teen whose parents don’t want her to go vegan to “contact the authorities” if they try to force-feed her animal products).

“You live in a fucking fantasy world, you’re fucking stupid,” Vegan Cheetah hollers, gazing into the impenetrable black depths of his webcam. What does all this mean? We don’t know, bye!

This has been a Vegan YouTube Drama Update.

Image via screenshot, animation by Bobby Finger.

Right, bakers, this one's not too bad. All we need is "Happy Father's Day."

Aaaaand... GO.

No no, Happy FATHER'S day.

Close...

A little farther...

What is even happening right now.

Tell you what, just write, "#1 Dad."
Easy-peasy, pudding and...

...why?

::head in hands::

ARG, nooooo!
It's not "Day," it's "DAD!!"

I'm just not talking to you anymore.

That's right, DO WHATEVER YOU WANT, bakers.

Well, I guess I did ask for it.

Thanks to Katie M., Melissa D., Chelsea B., Michelle G., Lauren P., Krista D., Jenny W., Tyler C., Pam M., & Isabel M. for taking Dad jokes even farther.

*****

Thank you for using our Amazon links to shop! USA, UK, Canada.

When you think about fish, it’s probably at dinner time. Author Jonathan Balcombe, on the other hand, spends a lot of time pondering the emotional lives of fish. Balcombe, who serves as the director of animal sentience for the Humane Society Institute for Science and Policy, tells Fresh Air‘s Terry Gross that humans are closer to understanding fish than ever before.

“Thanks to the breakthroughs in ethology, socio-biology, neuro-biology and ecology, we can now better understand what the world looks like to fish,” Balcombe says.

In his new book, What A Fish Knows: The Inner Lives Of Our Underwater Cousins, Balcombe presents evidence that fish have a conscious awareness — or “sentience” — that allows them to experience pain, recognize individual humans and have memory. He argues that humans should consider the moral implications of how we catch and farm fish.

“We humans kill between 150 billion and over 2 trillion fishes a year. … And the way they die — certainly in commercial fishing — is really pretty grim, ” Balcombe says. “There’s a lot of change that would be needed to reflect an improvement in our relationship with fishes.”

Interview Highlights

On how we can know if fish feel pain

The most elegant study of fish pain that I’ve ever seen … was done a few years ago by a biologist named Lynne Sneddon … in the U.K. She used zebra fishes, which are very commonly used in research. And what they did was they put a group of zebra fishes — I don’t remember how many, perhaps 30 — in a complex tank that had two chambers. One chamber was enriched, it had rocks and vegetation, and the other chamber was barren. It was open. You can probably guess which chamber these fishes spent all their time in — it was the enriched one. Fishes like places to hide, they like stimulation in their environments.

And then they injected the fishes either with one of two things. One was with an acid solution, which is known to be caustic and presumably painful to these fishes, if they can feel pain. And then the other … half of the fishes were randomly selected; [they] were injected with saline, which causes just the pierce of the needle and then the pain is not going to be lasting, because it’s not acidic. And then they watched to see how they behaved, and they all remained swimming in the enriched tank. And then they dissolved a painkiller solution in the barren, undesirable chamber of this complex tank. And lo and behold, some of the fishes then started to migrate across and swim and hang out in that normally undesirable tank, and it was only the ones injected with the acid, and not the ones injected with the saline. I find that a pretty convincing demonstration of pain in fishes.

What animal sentience means

Sentience is like pregnancy. You’re either pregnant or you’re not, you’re either sentient or you’re not. And if an animal is sentient, which means some kind of conscious awareness, but particularly the capacity to feel pain, and, I would say, by extension, to feel pleasure, then, to me, that means that animal has moral traction, or it should have moral traction — that the animal is deserving of consideration of others. Because that animal can have a good day and a bad day and can have good or bad things happen to them. And that, as I say, is the bedrock of ethics.

On some reef fish appearing to recognize individual divers

There was a new study … showing individual recognition of human faces by fishes. So they probably do recognize individual divers. They come up to be stroked. It is almost like a dog. I don’t know if they roll over to have their belly petted, though some sharks will be sent into what looks like a euphoric state when they have their bellies rubbed.

On how fish use a ‘lateral line’ to sense water pressure and navigate at night

[Fish] have a couple of other pretty neat senses that are worth mentioning. One is a sense of water pressure or movement in the water that’s very acute, thanks to a lateral line.

We’re talking about bony fishes now, not the sharks and rays. … The bony fishes have a lateral line. You may notice a dark row of scales along the center line of a bony fish, and that’s actually the shadow cast by these specialized scales. Because there’s a depression in each one, and in that depression are specialized little cup-like chambers with gel in them and little hairs that stick out and they detect pressure changes. So it’s very useful for navigating at night, for avoiding dangerous things in limited vision conditions and that sort of thing.

On the electrical senses that some fish have

Some fishes, including sharks and I think rays as well, are electro-receptive. They can detect electrical signals from other organisms.

There’s also electro-producing fishes. The knife-fishes of South America and the elephant-nose fishes … they’re both electric-producing, so they have E.O.Ds, which are electric organ discharges, and they use those as communication signals, and they communicate in some pretty cool ways. They will change their own frequency if they’re swimming by another fish with a similar frequency, so they don’t jam and confuse each other. They also show deference by shutting of their E.O.Ds when they’re passing by a territory holder. You don’t want to piss off the territory holder, so it’s probably better to go “silent” during that time.

The perceptions and sensory abilities of fish, they’re the product of over 400 million years of evolution, so it might not surprise us that they’ve got some pretty cool ways of sensing their environments.

On fish using flatulence as a means of communication

There is one really curious example involving herrings that I can’t resist mentioning. I think if you were to come up with a phrase that best captures it, at least a delicate phrase, “flatulent communication” would be perhaps the right phrase. They live in big schools and they omit gasses from the anus in large numbers, and it makes a sound. And they appear to use this as a communication device to maybe signal to others that it’s time we moved up or down in the water column, because it’s that time of day when the predators are coming out and this sort of thing. The researchers who studied it use the more technical term “Frequent Repetitive Ticks.” and I’ll leave it to the listener to make an acronym out of that, which is quite appropriate to the behavior.

On the aquarium trade and the popularity of the blue tang, the fish featured in the movie Finding Dory

Some of the methods to catch [blue tang] are pretty awful. Cyanide poisoning, which often kills many of the fishes being targeted, or ones not being targeted, and explosive devices are sometimes used. And then you have the vicissitudes of transport, where they’re shipped over continents and the mortality rates are quite high. …

Dory [in the new Pixar film Finding Dory] is a blue tang. And they are probably going to be very popular in the aquarium trade because of the fact that this film will draw a lot of attention to that species. Well, unfortunately, blue tangs are caught in the wild, and they are subject to some of the ills of the industry. So we are campaigning actively to try to discourage … people from buying these fishes, because … when you purchase a product, you tell the manufacturer to do it again, and we don’t really want that happening.

Copyright 2016 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air.

Filmmaker Zach Both got creative when it was time for him to hit the road for work last year. Needing to hit various locations around the U.S., 23-year old Both bought a 10-year old Chevy cargo van off of Craigslist and converted it into a mobile studio. This gave him complete freedom to work wherever the project took him, while giving him a comfortable place to live and work.

Once he bought the van, Both renovated the interior, taking inspiration from modern architecture. Despite having zero carpentry experience prior to this project, he completed all of the woodwork himself using reclaimed wood from a 19th century church in Cleveland, Ohio.

The interior might be small in size, but it comes with a futon bed, a kitchen with a stove, and solar panels on the roof to provide power for the fridge and a home theater system.

Having learned many lessons along the way, Both decided to share the entire process in a detailed, step-by-step guide at TheVanual.com. He’s also included tons of tips and tricks for living on the road in a van.

Before

Taco Bell fans, listen up. You can make today your own personal Taco Tuesday. . . for free.

It's #TacoTuesday! Get A FREE Doritos Locos Taco At @TacoBell Today #StealATacohttps://t.co/M0sVfPA7A0

— 97.1 The Ticket (@971theticketxyt) June 21, 2016

As part of its #StealATaco promotion, our fave taco franchise will be giving away FREE Doritos Locos tacos today. Why? Because the Golden State Warriors won game 4 of the NBA Finals in Cleveland, and Taco Bell is *pumped*. And let’s be real, even if you’re not a basketball fan, any celebration involving tacos is always a great one.

If you want to claim your free taco, you can go to Taco Bell’s site to find a participating location near you. But make sure to jump on this quick, because they’re only available from 2 to 6 p.m. local time today . . . while supplies last. So get going!

We’re majorly happy Taco Bell loves basketball so much, because WE love tacos. Happy Taco Tuesday!

The post Here’s how to get free Taco Bell today! appeared first on HelloGiggles.

The Offbeat Bride: Amy, artist

Her offbeat partner: Jake, chemist

Date and location of wedding: Cold Spring Tavern, Santa Barbara, CA — May 6, 2016

Our offbeat wedding at a glance:

We didn't have a rigid theme or color palette throughout our planning process but allowed ourselves to be inspired by our gorgeous venue, which was established in 1865 as a stage coach stop. We love living by the beach in Santa Barbara, but we both grew up in wooded/mountainous areas and that was the kind of scenery we wanted for our wedding. We're pretty casual people and aimed for a beautiful yet unpretentious event with great food and music. Cold Spring Tavern provided the perfect atmosphere for our day.

Tell us about the ceremony:

Our friend Lucy played a beautiful rendition of "God Only Knows" on piano for the processional. We opted not to have a wedding party and instead had our immediate families make a special entrance. Then Jake and I escorted each other to the altar, upon which hung a gorgeous floral garland designed by Jake's aunt (who also did my lovely bouquet).

Our friend Shaheen officiated the ceremony, which included details about how Jake and I met in college and that our wedding was our eight-year anniversary together. Jake's dad read a Jewish blessing, and we ended the ceremony with the Jewish tradition of breaking the glass. The recessional song was "Once in Love With Amy," which my grandpa used to sing to me when I was little.

Tell us about your reception:

I'll never forget how Jake and I returned to cocktail hour after stepping out to take couple portraits and were absolutely mobbed by our amazing wonderful guests with endless hugs and snapshots. We had long, banquet-style tables so everyone could be close together during dinner, and the tables were topped with more floral garlands and old fashioned kerosene lanterns which Jake and I had DIYed to look weathered with a copper chloride solution (chemist husband FTW!).

It started to rain during dinner and our guests handled it SPECTACULARLY. There was nonstop laughter as everyone suited up in big black trash bags to cover their clothes. I never thought I'd appreciate rain on my wedding day but it ended up adding such a fun element. The hilarious and heartfelt speeches that our siblings and best friends gave were a highlight of the evening (one speech touched on the fact that we found a LIVE POSSUM in our bedroom the night/early morning before the wedding — yes, you read that correctly — which a Google search revealed to be a good wedding day omen!).

We had an awesome vintage-inspired paper moon photo booth that we got on Etsy for our guests to take pictures with between dances. From cocktail hour to dinner to dancing, our music was curated by us using Spotify. We're both music freaks and spent hours putting the playlists together, which ranged from The Beatles to Django Reinhardt to Leon Bridges.

What was your most important lesson learned?

I personally had a hard time delegating. As an artist, I can be particularly control freak-ish about aesthetic stuff. I have to say, letting go on that a little bit and accepting some help paid off in spades. One of my favorite memories of my wedding day is seeing all of Jake's family working together the morning of to assemble the long floral garlands used throughout our venue. The garlands were stunning, but more importantly, I felt so humbled by the show of love and support. It was also critical that we assigned day-of tasks to family and friends to help everything flow. We couldn't have done it without them!

Vendors

• Photographer: Alyssa Armstrong
• Dress: ASOS
• Faux fur stole: Rosa Bridal
• Groom's jacket: Saks Fifth Avenue
• Groom's pants: Topman
• Venue: Cold Spring Tavern
• Guest transportation: Jump On The School Bus
• Paper moon photo booth: DAPPSY
• Florals: Kathy Moen of Espanola, NM
• Invitations: Bride

Gallery

Recent Comments

• Amy: Thanks Cat! I was really impressed with the quality of the faux fur. Rosa Bridal (an Etsy shop) did a… [Link]
• Amy: Thank you, thank you! Nothing wrong with wrapping up in a blanket, but I gotta admit, the stole was REALLY… [Link]
• Amy: Thank you so much Jessica! It was difficult when we were in the thick of planning to envision exactly how… [Link]
• Amy: Hi Jessie! Thanks for the kind words. The possum thing is one for the books, that's for sure ;)… [Link]
• Cat: Yeah, I loved the fur stole too! It looks so snuggly and warm, and it goes perfectly with the theme.… [Link]

+ 3 more! Join the discussion

Sadly, it seems to be unpermitted—arrrrrrrrr!

The listing for this 1920s Craftsman in Silver Lake starts off pretty straightforward—"on the market for the first time in decades," "shows an incredible amount of pride of ownership," etc.—but things start to get a bit more interesting by the second sentence, which explains that while the 1,450-square-foot bungalow is officially considered a two-bedroom, one-bath, a bonus room has been converted sans permit into a bedroom, "with a bed suspended from the ceiling via chains."

Gathering steam, the listing then goes on to introduce the home's basement, which contains three rooms, one of which is "adorned" with "box logos of high end spirits," being that it's being used "as a personal pirate dungeon and den." Well shiver our timbers! Asking price for the versatile property, which occupies a 7,340-square-foot lot a block north of Sunset, is $875,000.

1635 Maltman Ave [Estately]

Summer, summer, summertime.

The multiplicity of one’s identity goes hand in hand with the multiplicity of one’s style representation. Because I’m constantly doing the most, and realized I am everything at once, I decided to create this Steph Linn–inspired display-case tube top. This way, you can adorn your top with whatever you see fit that day. Fill your pouch with confetti, flowers, or nothing at all/the void. You can represent your ever-changing self through your ever-changing decorations.

What you’ll need:

• A tube top
• Clear vinyl
• Scissors
• Fabric strips or cording
• Needle and thread or hot glue

How to do it:

Step One

Cut an even square of clear vinyl.

Step Two

Position your vinyl at the center of your tube top, lining it up evenly (or make it uneven—free yourself).

Step Three

Now, if your fingers are strong enough to pull a needle and thread safely through vinyl, go for it! If your sewing machine needle is strong and sharp enough to sew through it, go for it! But I used a hot glue gun and Beacon 527 Multi-Use Glue around the perimeter of the vinyl. The important thing: Leave the top open! To finish, I lined the edges of the vinyl with the fabric cording.

Step Four

Press the glue firmly and allow it to dry (or secure with stitching). Then stuff, according to your emotions!

Mix it up and hit the streets! ♦

A mummified 2,500-year-old "Siberian ice maiden" is set to go on public display in a museum near her original burial site despite many who believe her body carries a dangerous curse.

The skeleton was first discovered nearly perfectly preserved in permafrost on the Ukok Plateau in the Altay Mountains in 1993, where the woman had been buried alongside a team of six horses, RT reports. Estimated to have been 25 years old at the time of her death, the so-called "Princess of Ukok" has intricate, modern-looking animal tattoos covering her arms. She was found with a small stash of cannabis, among other artifacts.

DNA testing appears to link her to Scythian nomad ancestry. "Regarding the tattoo, they always say that it is made in the so-called animal style. Fighting animals. The Scythians are warriors. Their life is a constant struggle. They struggle for life, for good," Rimma Erkinova of the Anokhin Museum told RT.

However, council elders in the Altay region fear the excavation has been the cause of natural disasters in the area. "The dead cannot be disturbed, and especially they cannot be held on public display and carried out around the world. After she was dug out, we immediately saw earthquakes, floods, and hail which were not known previously," one Teles group leader told The Siberian Times. "[The ice maiden] stood as a guard at the gates of the underworld, preventing the penetration of evil from the lower worlds. However, after archaeologists removed the mummy, it has lost its strength and can no longer perform its protective function. So evil started to penetrate, natural disasters and human conflicts began."

In 2014, the region's council of elders voted for her body to be returned to her grave. A court overruled their decision earlier this year.

As a woman slurred in my face last weekend, “It’s the season for rosé!” Close, but not quite: it’s frosé season, pals.

Every type of drunk is different. Red wine is melancholy, champagne giddy, and rosé knocks you on your fucking face. For a long time I worked as a caterer and wine flowed freely, if illicitly. Nothing’s more beautiful than helping someone celebrate their special day—especially when you’re barely able to hold up a family size plate of gnocchi because you’ve had an entire bottle of pink wine.

Now, I no longer need to inhale an overflowing glass while my captain’s back is turned, and can maturely sip on the rooftop bar of my choosing, but that’s boring. Let’s make something disgusting (frozen, plus sugar) instead. This Frosé recipe from Bon Appétit begins as you might imagine, with you freezing a bottle of “full-flavored, full-bodied, dark-colored rosé.” Yum.

What’s next? Sugar. This momma bee likes it sweet:

Meanwhile, bring sugar and ½ cup water to a boil in a medium saucepan; cook, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes. Add strawberries, remove from heat, and let sit 30 minutes to infuse syrup with strawberry flavor. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl (do not press on solids); cover and chill until cold, about 30 minutes.

You then put all that plus ice and frozen rosé into a blender and voila! An alcoholic beverage for an adult who will never grow up. I am officially declaring “Frozé” the Song of Summer.

Flocks of birds. Swarming locusts. Schools of fish. Such self-organizing behavior in nature tends to evoke both fear and fascination, emotions that photographer Thomas Jackson taps into with his beautifully surreal series Emergent Behavior.

Cups no. 2, Saratoga, Wyoming, 2013 | (Thomas Jackson)

Inspired by the creatures and critters that gather and swarm en masse, Jackson creates intricate, hovering installations in breathtaking settings, from California to New York. Working with unnatural and often surprising materials, from plastic cups and tutus to hula hoops and junk food, Jackson arranges the items on location, modeling their mob-like behaviors after those found in nature.

Cheese Balls, Nananoch, New York, 2012 | (Thomas Jackson)

Tutus no. 1, Montara, California, 2015 | (Thomas Jackson)

Jackson's images may appear Photoshopped, but they are as real as the sandy, rocky, and lush landscapes they are built upon. Though the artist won't divulge his process, he said it took him about a year of trial and error to figure out how to technically and seamlessly create the installations without any digital intervention.

"I realized [this] would add a new layer of intrigue to the work and perhaps add something to the ongoing conversation about authenticity in photography, and whether it matters at all, particularly in our digital age," Jackson said in an interview.

"Creating images that appear 'fake' at first glance — but are in fact 'real' — is my mischievous little contribution to the debate."

The series is ongoing, which means Jackson is constantly innovating his technique to fit the material or the location. In striving to capture "an image that feels simultaneously discordant and harmonious,” he imaginatively inserts bursts of color, whimsy, and mystery into the natural world, challenging viewers to look a little closer and figure out his tricks.

Straws no. 3, San Francisco, California, 2015 | (Thomas Jackson)

Hula Hoops no. 1, Lee Vining, California, 2015 | (Thomas Jackson)

Cups no. 3, Novato, California, 2014 | (Thomas Jackson)

**Thomas Jackson's Emergent Behavior will be on view this November at the Miller Yezerski Gallery in Boston. To see more of his work, check out his website and Instagram.**

It’s no secret that model and beauty conoisseur Jony Sios is absolutely amazing at makeup. After all, it’s one of the things that has shot him to Instagram stardom. And when you’re really, really good at something, sometimes you want to challenge yourself. . . which is exactly what Jony did by doing a flawless contour job with a hammer. Yes, seriously.

This week, Jony created a Bob the Builder-themed look (which looks *way* more glamorous than it sounds). The finished product included a bold blue lip and a stunning contour along with a construction hat and the tools he needed for the job — a hammer.

🛠CAN WE FIX IT? YES WE CAN 🛠 #jonysios __________________________________________ ▫️ @sigmabeauty Premium kit brushes! Literally the best brushes Use code JONYSIOS for 10%! ▫️ @hudabeauty mink lashes in Bridget ▫️ @glitterinjections Pressed glitter in Paradise ▫️ @makeupgeekcosmetics eyeshadows in Corrupt, Stealth and Concrete jungle ▫️ @jeffreestar Blue Velvet ▫️ @brian_champagne @vegas_nay @allmodernmakeup @wakeupandmakeup @liveglam.co

A photo posted by ﾉ◊иyѕι◊ѕ (@jonysios) on Jun 3, 2016 at 8:42am PDT

The post This Bob the Builder makeup look actually used a hammer for contouring appeared first on HelloGiggles.

Our friends over at Pop Sugar have introduced us to the Australian food staple known as “fairy bread,” and we wants it — we wants it now!

The writers at Vice’s food blog Munchies describe this wonderful phenomenon perfectly: “To the non-initiated i.e. the rest of the world, Fairy Bread is triangles of white bread covered with butter and topped with multi-coloured “hundreds and thousands”—the Australian term for sprinkles.”

Yes — that’s right. Buttered bread with sprinkles. It doesn’t get any better than that. Also —hundreds and thousands? What a great phrase for sprinkles.

• fairy bread • #home #kids #fairybread #heart #sprinkles #100sand1000s #yummy #party

A photo posted by Paper Daisy (@paper__daisy) on Jan 19, 2016 at 2:41pm PST

And it seems that people in Australia are still enjoying this tasty snack. Hugh Jackman has admitted that he still serves it to his daughter, and a quick search on YouTube finds a video of Russell Crowe enjoying fairy bread with Jimmy Fallon. Apparently, fairy bread is sort of a national treasure for Australia, one that is often enjoyed at children’s birthday parties.

Well, we may no longer be children, but we want to try this delicious treat! It just looks so darn tasty, regardless of the eater’s age.

Champagne and fairy bread #classy #happybirthday @aliens_at_earth56789 #fairybread

A photo posted by @nancy_on_ig on Jan 29, 2016 at 10:24pm PST

Breakfast of champions. #FairyBread  : Activations Assistant @ajparker179

A photo posted by mamamiaaus (@mamamiaaus) on Mar 10, 2016 at 12:31pm PST

So I made #fairybread for breakfast and a Dutch have their bread with chocolate rice sprinkles...they do...its yuummmm. But, for the chocolate rice sprinkles I spread some #reesespeanutbutterspread. Sooo good... #bread #sprinkles #foodies #foodgasm #foodporn #foodlovers

A photo posted by nurulhuda (@nurulmnor72) on Jun 2, 2016 at 7:29pm PDT

For the longest time, I thought #fairybread was a thing that Australians made up to fuck with foreigners bc so many people (especially Americans) will eat anything if they think it will make them look "cultured". But I think this is like, a legit thing people feed their kids. So I made it. And, legit or not, this shit is good. But I'm a #sprinkle person.

A photo posted by Hiomy (@bitchouttahell) on May 30, 2016 at 3:50pm PDT

Made some#fairybread #hearts Throwback to childhood before my job interview School was but now I'm home Tackled #fearfood Of #bread marge and #sprinkles hopefully I'll crush it

A photo posted by Lily (@wandering_lil) on May 29, 2016 at 10:12pm PDT

Lucky for us, there are plenty of recipes for fairy bread on the internet. Though, honestly, white bread + butter + rainbow sprinkles — how can you go wrong? What a perfect staple to add to tea parties, pity parties, days when you just want to watch Sleeping Beauty and feel like a princess, or just a Tuesday morning breakfast. Let’s get on this one and get it trending so sprinkle-toast is the newest thing on the menu at any restaurant!

The post Australian “fairy bread” NEEDS to be a trend appeared first on HelloGiggles.

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**Check out last week's best photojournalism**

Viceland’s live broadcast from the Governors Ball music festival this Saturday night was a sloppy, sexist (I mean, “edgy”) mess, and the only person who seemed to notice was one very pissed-off host.

Amidst rain delays and soaked TV equipment, three Viceland employees were brought in front of the cameras to waste time until The Killers performed. The hosts—production assistant Jake Lawson, equipment manager Dan Meyer, and former intern Taji Ameen—were reporting on the giant puddles of water pooling at their feet when shit got real.

Lawson—inhabiting the role of a safety inspector, crossed with a men’s rights activist, topped off with a skinny tie—attempted a flaccid comedy bit with co-host Ameen. The duo gave viewers a “sex-ed class” with Lawson’s mic serving as makeshift banana-and-or-dildo.

This juvenile display upset Meyer, who delivered the following exquisite diatribe amidst shouts of “you gotta pinch the tip” and “we’re gonna bring it on down.”

Whose idea is this? It isn’t funny…there’s enough dicks on TV already…I hate this, I’m just gonna say full-on that this is stupid…I can say what I think, I know how to do this…You know, we’ve been struggling with the fact that we’re considered a sexist company because we only have men on TV and now we’re doing dick jokes? This is embarrassing. I don’t think we should even be doing this at all. And if our viewers are too stupid to…you want sincere, honest advice about safety? Why don’t you talk about the fact that we’re standing in water surrounded by electronics.

Meyer had a lot of great lines that night, in fact. He kicked off the segment saying, “I just want to thank Viceland for having the faith in me not to say something that would completely bankrupt their entire enterprise. Which I very well could do.”

Meyer later apologized to Lawson on TV.