#this was A CHALLENGE to say the least but once i got in the rythm... very zen | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

chappedandfadedvds · 3 years

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Nov 1st, Sunday 09:11

Rain pounding against the window. A slow steady rythm. And a hazy greyish tint lay over the serene room of the awoken boy in bed, buried under thick covers. He blinked his heavy eyes open, not yet having caught enough sleep to feel the energy to do anything more than that.

It took him a moment to recall the date, sunday. Given it was still pretty dark inside his room, he guessed it to be fairly early. Or maybe the clouds outside his window just didnt allow for more light. And he would be lying if he didn’t appreciate hiding in a halfshadow, as he looked into the calm sleeping face of Lucas.

Jens didn’t remember them falling asleep that close to each other, after they all had basically stumbled tired and worn out into bed last night. Time and curfew forgotten and all of them deciding on a spontaneous sleep over. He barely had been able to catch a glimpse of Lucas pulling off his socks and jeans, before crawling into bed, while Jens got his sister her beloved pillow to cuddle.

There was some rustling coming from the foot of the bed, on the floor, on three matresses from Lotte and their mom, Milan, Sander and Robbe had made themselves comfortable. He listened carefully in order to pick out if someone else was awake like him, but figured that they in fact were still fast asleep, leaving Jens to appreciate that this moment was his only.

It came daringly close to how he felt waking up next to Jana, without the low guilt of cheating on Britt, that had broken them up in the end. Instead there was a different feeling of sadness settling in his heart. It wasn’t really sadness though, it was something else, but then it wasn’t and Jens couldn’t find a word to settle on to describe it.

He watched the face of Lucas. He shouldn’t find a boy’s face as attractive as he did. Not that he couldn’t appreciate a beautiful man, but it didn’t came with a desire to touch or kiss said man. Jens really tried hard to think back to an instance in his life, where he might have pushed these thoughts away in favor for falling for girls only. Some sort of internalised fear of feelings for people of his own sex. But there weren’t any and it drove him crazy. It meant it shouldn’t be any different to waking up to all his other male friends. And yet...

Jens closed his eyes and imagined all the mornings he woke up next to Robbe, they were the closest friends for years, constantly touching and hugging, did he ever felt attracted to him in that way? He thought his friend looked good, yes. And that he felt some love for him, yes. Would he want to kiss Robbe? Probably not. Would he have kissed Robbe back if his friend would have tried to? Maybe, but than no, no he didn’t think so? It was confusing to reconstruct old memories.

As Jens pulled himself out of his thoughts with a pained expression on his face, he found the worried blue eyes of Lucas watching him thoughtfully, biting his bottom lip as he so often did in contemplation.

„Nightmare?“ Came the faint whisper and than an attentive hand from under the blanket to brush away a strand of hair on his forhead.

Jens fortunetely remembered that breathing was a crucial part of living and tried to do just that, before shaking his head slightly.

„Good.“ Lucas mouthed with a vague smile on his lips not yet convinced, his hand sinking onto the pillow between their faces, next to Jens’s. So why the fuck wouldn’t he move his fingers slightly over. If Lucas would have been a girl, he wouldn’t have thought twice about it. He probably would have taken him out on wendsday already. The first step is the hardest. Jens’s mind provided this stupid universally applicable line, that sounded cheesy and overused and nonethelss true.

He was a coward he knew that, but even stretching his hand out, so that their plams flat on the soft fabric below would cause their little fingers to touch, seemed like a huge accomplishment right now. They weren’t even close to hold hands. This as well may just have been a sheer accident.

Lucas’s open blue eyes darted surprised towards their touching fingers and back up at Jens searching for his gaze, with a question between them, both didn’t dare to ask. Not even in the comfort of an early quiet morning. Rather Lucas lifted his little finger to intertwine them, swallowing nervously, as he did so with caution. He was scared, Jens knew, because he was just as much afraid of crossing a line. The beating of his heart, and the blood rushing through his body swallowed up any sound of the rain, he had heard so clearly a minute ago.

There was just them, and them almost holding hands.

Jens curved his finger around Lucas’s, putting some pressure in it, just to reassure the boy that he wants this too. And it seemed to work, as the tension in their bodies diminished, leaving them to study each other faces in a comfortable silence.

There didn’t need to be words to understand each other in this second. Jens knew that it would leave him restless once they would leave this moment behind them. He knew he would have to seriously start question his sexuality, and everything that would probably happen from here on out. But for now he could push the panic in the back of his mind off to deal with later.

Good luck to future him.

„Ow. Fuck“ Jens cursed under his breath wincing, not wishing to wake anybody else, but it did catapult both of them back into the reality of this room they shared with four other people, oblivious to this promising discovery between them.

Lucas’s gleeful snort let Jens send him a pissed off look, before he turned his head as far behind him as he could without letting go of the merest gentle touch between them. He saw his sister with his phone in his hand watching him innocently. As if she hadn’t dug her tiny sharp knee into his back just now.

„You are awake. Can we have breakfast?“ Lotte quietly asked, blinking up at him, knowing she already had won this. Apparently she also was convinced she had woken him up and that was just fine with Jens. He didn’t need his sister to belabour him with questions. Especially if he didn’t really know the answers to them himself.

„How late is it?“ He whispered and was promptly presented with his bright lit up phone screen.

9:43

He guessed it was actually an approbiate time to have breakfast and nodded.

„Alright, let’s go.“ The words barely left his lips, when his sister was sitting up and out of his bed, tip toeing around his room to get out, without stepping and waking the three boys on the floor.

Jens looked back at Lucas who smiled and whispered delighted: „I’m actually getting quite hungry myself, so I think Lotte has great timing. And after the pumpkin soup from last night, I can only imagine what feast we are gonna have today.“

„You are an idiot, you know that.“

„Yes.“ Lucas affirmed happily smiling away. This was unfair. Now Jens felt the explicit need to actually dish out a great breakfast and impress this dumb dutch boy.

„Fine.“ Jens agreed, feeling weird breaking off the shared bare minimum of human contact, as he withdrew his hand in favor of getting up. As did Lucas behind him, stretching and about to collect his things from the floor. When he was hit by a pair of grey sweats, that Jens had thrown in his general direction, putting a pair on himself. He shrugged at Lucas, trying for a nonchalant look, while moving over to his room door, that stood slightly open from Lotte’s escape.

On the floor was Milan rolled up into a ball of a body and a blanket, only his head sticking out. And right beside him Robbe tangled around Sander, who didn’t seemed to mind loosing all his senses in his body apparently. Or maybe he was just different, because Jens could very well recall all the times his arms and legs had fallen asleep under the weight of a girl half on top of him.

Jens smiled at them regardless, maybe one day he could have that too again. He kinda missed it.

„You coming?“ He heard Lucas whisper at him from the doorway, looking very pretty with his untidy bed hair and in Jens’s sweats. He seemed to be just as happy watching the couple to Jens’s feet as he waited for Jens to follow him down to the kitchen.

The were almost there when Jens felt Lucas taking his hand, squeezing it before letting go again, to help Lotte, who was about to climb on the counter to get some tea cups out.

„Wait, wait! I can do that. I get the plates and stuff and you can set the table instead, okay?“

Jens stood there for the moment it took him to work through his storm of emotions again. Why did he feel just so much these days, be it good or bad? This wasn’t normal. But he seemed to feel every emotion just double as much as usual. Everything triggered a whirlwind of thoughts and it scared him. What if this would never stop?

He swallowed it down, settling for a smile instead and went over to join them.

„Say, can Mister Chef here also do some american pancakes for his dutch starving guest?“

„You bet.“ He smirked at the challenging amused look Lucas threw him over the shoulder. Playfully smacking the boy’s head, Jens shoved him away from the oven, in order to prepare the best breakfast the six had in their lives.

Well at least as great as their fridge and pantry allowed for.

#week 2 #wtfock #skam #vds #jens stoffels #lucas van der heijden #chapped and faded #blissful mornings

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swae-walker · 5 years

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As a student of the Fine Arts Design and Cultrural Communication and the Associate degree program offered by the St. Vincent and the Grendines Community College during the summer break we are required to do the 2E: Mural Arts: Urban space enhancement meant to teach us as artists what we should know in order to create a mural from scratch. My class of 7 students, including myself under guidance of our lecturer Mr. Dane Jack had the task of creating and designing a mural. Process of creating the mural from start to finish took 23 days or just over 3 weeks to complete and over all was a very fun experience that I regret not doing sooner.

There are several different stages to creating a mural, some were obvious like asking our client specific questions to figure out what exactly they want done so they can be pleased with the end result, so we can finish quickly and efficiently when it came time to paint. other steps I was only aware of as the design was finished and it was time to create one large coherant story on the mural site. I would break this process down into 7 seperate stages as follows:

Inquiry/ Conceptualization

Measurment and Documentation

Colour Studies

Juxtapositon

Griding/ Scaling

Colour Pallete/Outlining

Painting the mural

Inquiry/Conceptualization

This stage is simply me and my other class asking the our host and customer Mr. Sardo Sutherland questions about what we wants to go on the wall, what subjects we wants portrayed on the wall and how much of the wall he wants us to get do. The concept he had was very interesting. Mr. Sardo is a descendant of the kalinago people native to St. Vincent and the Grenadines before the British settled here. The concept of the mural is meant to be about our people as I am a vincentian aswell and want to do a good job in their representation that others will see. The mural from what we understood would be about them and their life, which includes what they hunt, how they travelled around the island, how they fought the foreigner that came to conquer them and most importantly how they lived in connection to the environment.

A map of St. Vincent showing where battles bewteen the British took place. The locations of the battles are in red.

Measurement and Documentation

The same day we took to inquire about specific details regarding the concept was also the day my class took the measurements of the wall that we would need later to be able to do a grid on the wall that would be important in the later stage when we have to transfer our design onto such a large scale. The wall is about 30 feet long in total and 6 feet tall at the highest point. we carefully measured and documented what we measured with the intention to do the justaposition and griding as with little margin for error. This was done on the 17th of June.

Colour Studies

Now the fun part of this course began with the studies. Mr. Sardo already had a number of reference pictures for my class and I to use when painting and using pastel to create and recreate the aspects from the images that were relevant to communicate what Mr Sardo wanted communicated through what we were doing.

This process was much more free and loose than when I normally have to do colour studies during the semester because there was no written analysis coming between each study I had to do. the flow from painting to a pastel drawing and then back to painting was seemless and made the pressure of normal studies go away. I could see the same for some of my classmates, where the speed and amount of work they produced seemed to be a little above average in the amount of time that had passed since we started doing the studies that would be apart of the mural. This stage at this point lasting about 7 days total.

The studies that I did during the colour study stage.

Juxtaposition

Now in the late stage of the mural process, this stage involves bring the strongest studies that everyone did and then combining them to create an image that we can show Mr. Sardo and make changes before we begin doing the grid lines to guide us when painting begins. we started by choosing the studies as a group that we thought we should include and arranging them on the ground, followed by doing a large scale mock drawing on a sheet of britol board using the walls at the sites exact dimensions. The measurements we took were then used to make a recreation of the wall again but this time in Adobe Photoshop using the scale 2 inches for 1 foot. This photoshop creation was then showed to Mr. Sardo to see what he says and he was pleased with what we had done meaning we could now move to the griding. Thejuxtapositon stage was fairly short as we got it completed in less than 2 days.

Me and my class juxtaposing our work together.

Griding/Scaling

The grid lines were something I didn’t initially anticipate but when the mural actual began being painted, these lines made significantly easier to do. Using 1 foot spacing both vertically and horizontally me and a few others were able to line the entire wall in preparation for painting from Monday July 1st. This stage for difficilt as the measurements had to very accurate. any misalignment could throw the entire mural off. this was also the first experience of what the conditons would be like working on this mural. After it was over felt very accomplished seeing framework that I would need to do this mural and do it well.

Colour Pallete/Outlining

The paints we used were purchased by Mr. Sardo in 4 colours, Red, Blue, Yellow, and white. we were asked by Mr. Jack to bring empty bottles a few days in advance and carefully analizing the juxtapostion to figure out what colours are present and mixing these colours in seperate bottles that we brought to make it easier to paint without interruption. We also took the time to outline the subjects we would be drawing. Messy as it maybe this process was a big help in not slowing us down as a class to finish on time. This took alot of the guess work and made it very easy to just come to the site and start working in the coming days.

Painting the mural

Finally, after many weeks of preperation and design my class and I can finally put brush to paint and begin painting. It was exciting and nerve racking at the same time becuase of all the anticapation leading up this stage. Painting this mural had some challenges for me such a adjusting how quickly I had to work in order to finish. The first day painting i dont think i got much done, and with 3 other parts of the wall I could be working on I came the second day of painting more ready and willing to work. Working in such a way that I layered the midground infront the background and then the foreground infront of the midground to emphazie the depth when needed to make the mural more visually interesting. After the 3rd day I got into a pretty comfortable rythm of painting, then stepping back, painting, then stepping back, all the while looking over once in while to see how my classmates were doing. This process was the most liberating with the least oversight in my experience, where I was able to bring certain aspects of the kalinago to life in this mural. It should also be mentioned that it I did have ALOT of help in making the mural look as good as it did in the end. The textures and blending involved foil paper and sponges which my other classmates brought and were very useful. The experience of doing this mural is one I will never forget and was very well done in terms of teaching the process in great detail. Thank you to my peers, Myera, Tonya, Kelvin, Odeisha, Lanique, Jadiel and thank you to Mr. Jack for this great learning experience.

The Lifestyle of the Kalinago People As a student of the Fine Arts Design and Cultrural Communication and the Associate degree program offered by the St.

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trogersracing · 5 years

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Challenge Roth - 2019

I signed up for this (my second full distance triathlon) before having ever completed my first. I randomly saw a tweet from the race organizer that several registrants had not completed the sign up process and they were re-releasing the entries. I wrote a hasty email not thinking I’d be one of the first to respond and was amazed that I was able to nab a spot. Knowing that I could try to sign up for the race lottery for the next years and never get an entry I took advantage and decided to go for it. I though it would be a nice ‘A race’ for the summer not knowing how Barcelona would go or what else Carly and I would be getting into for travel. Fast forward a bit and I qualified for Kona at Barcelona so Roth became much more of a ‘fun’ race, but still an important tune up and experience before going to the big island. I was excited to race the distance again and experience the fabled Challenge Roth atmosphere.

Though the body seemingly had other plans, in late January/February I thought what was a strained groin turned out to be a mild hernia. Carly and I joke that I literally ‘busted a gut’ at Barcelona. The other line was that the my body was rejecting me and this was a not so sublt hint to cut this shit out. Regardless, I took quick action and scheduled the surgery ASAP knowing that I’d have a bit of downtime and then slow build back to form. I was able to maintain general fitness right up till the scheduled surgery date.

Thanks to private insurance the surgery itself was an amazing easy process and my doctor was amazing. We schedule the surgery they day I got back from a trip to the USA for work. Literally….. off a red-eye at Heathrow and into the Hospital. I was a sight. That was Tuesday, February 19th. Not knowing most people take two weeks off of work for this thing I went to work the next day. I was slow moving to say the least but it i’d go nuts sitting around the house. I took a walk a few days later and Carly forbade me to get on my bike…. for a week. On the 28th I started doing some easy rides and slowly worked into some easy runs. I got in the pool for the first time on March 17th, nearly a month later. The week of March 18th was my first week ‘back’ in building fitness. I had a mountain to climb in the ten weeks to prepare for Roth.

During the down time it was tough to see instagram filled with everyone out on the spring training camps and gearing up for earlier season racing as my fitness plummeted. But I filled the time trying to ‘think’ about some of the aspects of racing I don’t usually get to ponder and to consider a few of my gear choices.

I knew I was in capable hands and that my fitness would return and it was better to take the time now and make a proper recover and gains than risk greater damage. I slowly got back into my standard routine of cycling to work, running and eventually swimming. I had the odd sting or stretch but overall the recovery went very well. The rest was also good mentally, I knew that the summer was going to be long and that I had two very big races on my calendar that I needed to stay ‘checked into’ I was able to spend some time thinking about my racing, things that were important to me and places I wanted to develop. I didn’t pull everything I thought about into my training or racing but it was good to think about some of these things, research, listen to what others had to say and spend my time preparing and know why I was (or wasnt).

Below you can see my fitness and training (gains) from early Feb through to the race.

Feb 15th. The low point.

Race Day.

Training Volume to get to Challenge Roth

Average training hours during build. (does not count commuting)

Average (and max) TSS during build. (does not count commuting). The spike at the end is the race.

This doesn’t take account an average of 39 miles (3 hours) a week of commuting. A complete week of commuting would be 75 (5 hours) but that sometimes doesn’t happen with other work or professional commitments. I don’t count the cycling as part of ‘training’ but it doest factor into general recovery or how I’m feeling in terms of energy level. The commute is also good for bike handling skills and distressing at the end of the day.

Trips taken… work and pleasure

I fly back to the USA about every eight to ten weeks so I was able to put my next trip off till mid-april which allowed me to get into a good rythm with training before the next disruption. I made a bit of a weekend out of it and and saw some family on the weekend after which was a nice way to end the (short) trip. My parents live in rural NH so there was ample time (and space) to get a few runs under my belt.

Live Free or Die.

May was quite but June saw us traveling to the states for two full weeks for two weddings and my sisters graduation. I took the bike over and used the time to get in some long rides up into the white mountains and around Maine as well as open water swims in Sebago. We planned to take a week of ‘work’ and then a week of holiday so it was the first week that I was most concerned with continuing the gains where once I was on ‘holiday’ it would be slightly easier to find the time.

Carly’s mom organized this mural in Maine and the ‘sister’ mural in Iraq. Both painted with the assistance of young kids to show there is more that unites than divides us.

However, it was not an easy ask as we had a full slate of friends and family to see during the week. There was a fair bit of running around the eastern seaboard seeing friends and family but all totally worth it.

At the end of the weeks I had been able to put in a couple of quality longer bike and run efforts and got to race week at very nearly the same ‘fitness’ that I had with Barcelona. That summer played out much differently with more racing including London Marathon and 70.3 WC’s so the fitness was much deeper then but I was happy with how fast I was able to get my body ready.

Roth itself….

As soon as I entered I held a spot at a hotel in Nuremberg and began looking for an Airbnb closer to the race start. I knew that many stayed in Nuremberg so it wasn’t ‘bad’ but staying in Roth or Hipolstien was far better. Luckily enough, after much checking I snagged a great place in Hipolstien next to the train station and was able to cancel the hotel. As a whole house it had more than enough space for Carly and I to enjoy the weekend and the race atmosphere and made it very easy to get to/from Roth on the train for briefings and to/from the race finish.

Carly and I flew into Munich Thursday evening and after a quick car rental pickup were shooting north very, very, quickly on the Autobahn to Roth. We stopped for a quick bite to eat that evening on our way up and crashed once we got in. Friday morning I woke and walked down to the swim start for a short swim in the canal during the allocated trial time. Afterwards, Carly and I met up for a food shop and I assembled my bike. Once assembled I was out for a ride to test everything out and short run to get the legs moving. During the ride I went to check-in and crossed that off the list. The check-in process on Friday mid day was very easy and I was in/out in ten minutes. Very well managed.

I spent the remainder of the day Friday and Saturday preparing my gear and setting up the my prototype hydration bladder for the bike (more on this later). Once prepped it was a decent amount of relaxing and just enjoying ourselves around the house and small town.

Beer!

and sausage!

Saturday I had a quick ride and run followed by dropping my bike off at T1. The race also requires you drop off the run bag so that it can be transported to T2. I had scored an amazing rack spot right at the end of a row and next to the pro’s so my run out of T1 was very easy and no searching for my bike!

Dimonds get the best settings.

Saturday was very hot so we spent the rest of the day relaxing around the house trying to avoid getting dehydrated. I spent a bit of time prepping my bottles for the next day and double checking everything I could.

Get in my belly!

Race day….

Up at 4:30, had a Honey stinger wafer and banana and some PH. Out the door by just before 5 am to walk to T1. Got to T1 as a rain started but before the majority of crowds so was able to get easy access to bathrooms and sort the bike quickly and drop off the bike bag. I spent a few minutes chilling under a tree with Carly trying to avoid the rain but soon enough it was time to dawn the wetsuit and get this party started. I felt fueled, hydrated and ready.

I made my way back into T1 and over to the starting pen. As I had indicated a Sub 9:00 hour goal I was placed into a distinct starting group just after the pro men and women start. I was a bit psyched (nervous) about this as it would leave the roads a bit more clear for the first loop of the bike and make it a bit easier to pace and see where I was for the race in terms of place.

Swim

Washing machine.

I started at about the middle of the starting line 2-3 people back from the front. I was terrified that I’d get kicked in/around my incision during the swim so my primary goal was to make it through the swim unharmed. Once the cannon fired it was an instant washing machine. Definitely the most hectic swim start I’ve ever participated in and given that all the people there were quick it continued on for a while. I have no illusions of fast swimming to tried to just stick to my race and my pace and get into a good rhythm. Being in a canal the swim is calm and course simple. Down with the current and then back against with a quick out and back the other way just before the finish. I was consciously ‘pushing’ but not killing myself. I know that sometimes i allow my mind to wander when swimming so I kept checking in to keep focus and maintain pace. I wanted to get a sub 60 swim and thought that with the ‘easier’ course versus the rough seas on Barcelona it would be doable.

Just. start. running.

On exit I glanced at my watch 60:41… fuck.. pretty much the exact same time as Barcelona. Not a bad time by any measure but I had been hoping (expecting) a slightly quicker swim. Oh well, no time to dwell on it and right into T1. The volunteers are amazing and had my gear dumped and sorted quickly. Socks and number on and out to the bike. I momentarily grabbed my bike and started running before I realized I didn’t have my helmet on which was on the bars. Big no no…. stopped and helmet on before any harm done (officials saw).

ignore the time. next job.

Swim – 60:41 – 251st OA

Out to the start line and on the bike…

Bike

I wanted to give a solid effort on the bike here and shave time off the 4:49 from Barcelona. The course is rolling but giving the amazing road surfaces you always have the ability to move fast.

The bike course is stunning and it passes through some lovely german countryside and towns. There are people lining the entire course cheering which makes the atmosphere even better. Every hill you’re treated with cheering fans on both sides.

With the prototype bladder my goal was to take in the just under 2 liters in the bike as well as two (and a half) bottles on the bike for a mix of fluids and fuel. I’d supplement this with half a honey stinger wafer every 30 minutes or so for some ‘real’ calories.

The bladder worked amazing well and it was great to be able to take small swigs while in aero position or whenever desired. I supplemented that with bottles when it started to run dry or I wanted to larger draw of fluid. Overall it worked really well and I was able to move over and ignore all the aid stations. I don’t think this really saved me any time but it certainly goes to a level of confidence that I can have everything I need for a full distance race right on my bike and not be beholden to the aid stations and be carrying it in a very aero manner (inside the bike). Certainly if it had been hotter (or I had lost a bottle) I would have taken water or other from the stations. I’ll continue to refine my fueling mix and the bladder itself to maximize the volume and make sure I’m getting the type of energy I need during the bike.

The highlight of the bike was easily Solar Hill. Rolling through Hipolstien you round a small corner and there is just a mass of people in front of you. They’re screaming and making noise and right in your face. Its hard not to push up the hill and takes a fair amount to ride the hill ‘like a triathlete’. I clocked through the second loop at around 2:20ish and felt happy with the pace though wanted to be a bit quicker.

The second loop I kept on the gas and took a bit of solice in that I saw two Freespeed athletes come up to me about halfway through the second lap. I rode with them for a good portion of the remainder of the race and felt it was a good indicator that I was moving along well and where I sat in the overall leaderboard.

I did over cook one decent through a small town and had to bunny hop the bike up on the curb at about 30 mph and then back off to keep from hitting the shoulder. I scared a good portion of the crowd who must have thought I was a gonner… also got my heart going…. really didn’t want to be ‘that American’ who couldn’t keep it right side up.

Bike 4:46 – 82nd OA

Marathon…

Rolling into T2 I saw a lot of bags still on the ground around my number so knew I was in ‘decent’ position but had some work ahead of me. A very quick transition saw my shoes and PH hat on and I was out the door. I think I had the 9th fastest T2 of the day…

I had a goal of wanting to run sub 3 for the marathon and knew the splits I needed to run to achieve that. I started out feeling strong and set off a bit under that pace hoping to build a buffer. The course brings you first through a bit of town before putting you on two out-n-backs along the canal.

Starting the first I saw Carly which put a bit of pep in my step and I was feeling good. I knew my swim was solid and I had bike taken some time off my bike so I was in good position. Running a sub 3 marathon would really put me across the line with a decent finishing time. I saw the pro women coming back towards me on the first out and back and started to see a number of the fast AG’s as well so knew I wasn’t too far off the lead guys.

I was quickly running with another racer and after a chat realized he to was looking to run about that time so we linked up for the next few miles. After a few aid stations though he dropped back and I continued on at pace. As I passed Carly the second time to start the (longer) out and back to the north of the canal the wind picked up and the sun came out. It started to heat up a bit and my body started to feel tired. Over the next few miles my mind went from ‘sub 3’ to I need to make sub 9 overall. My legs really started to weight and at each aid station I started to go for the coke and fruit. Going for that stuff before mile ten was much earlier in the race than I usually begin going for that sort of thing.

By the time I turned back around and was heading off the canal for Roth I was feeling wrecked. I saw Carly and indicated no joy and tried to get my head into the game. ‘Common man, you’re more than halfway done… suck it up’. The nice bit was that running through town there was way more fans and support which kept the spirits up. It was a bit easier to push and find that energy reserve to keep moving. That said, this was, personally, a very, very rough run. I really felt like throwing in the towel and calling it a day. I felt slow, my legs were like limp sausages. After a couple hours of pushing my body to keep going my mind was also starting to throw in the towel. Failure creeped in and took hold.

But I kept on pushing forward. ‘Just keep moving’ I told myself. If I kept going I would finish, and finishing at the time I would, even if outside my goal is an accomplishment many spend an entire career trying to achieve. Don’t to that dishonor by throwing in the towel now. Keep going.

Hurting. Hard.

By the time I made it to the turn around pond with three miles left I knew I’d finish the race and gave it one last go for the downhill miles back to Roth. Back into the crowds I found the last bit of reserve and pushed through the town and into the finish stadium. It was a pretty epic finish scenario with the announcers and crowd in the stands and an experience I’ll not forget.

Don’t trip now.

Run – 3:07 – 57th OA

I crossed the line exhausted but finished. I knew I hadn’t made my place or time goal I had wanted but it was a quality race effort in an amazing venue. I can’t be mad with the performance. Into the recovery tent I went over to the timing services to see how I placed. 8:57… I was amazed, I had (somehow) bested my Barcelona time by a minute and slid in under the 9 hour mark. Given my training leading up to the race this was a great time and an affirmation of my underlying fitness.

The only hit on this race was the post race food. For the last few miles all I could think about was getting some good german sausages once finishing. The smell of fans cooking (and eating) them was thick the last miles. Certainly, I thought, this to would await for me at the finish. However I was disappointed on finish and the food options were rather lack luster. They were well stocked with the offerings they did have and there were some nice options but just not what I (or my body) had in mind at that moment. So after downing a few chocolate milks and pastries I left the tent to find Carly. On finding me she promptly fixed the problem and supplied currywurst and beer which instantly made me feel better. We chilled for a little while and then, with not much more reason to hang around left to find the bus replacement back to Hipolstein. After a short wait and bus ride I was home and showered. We went into the little town and had a quality dinner (avoiding the chaos of Roth) and relaxed with some beers.

At around 8pm we jumped in the car and went back to T2 to pick up my bike and gear. After which we found a place to ditch the car and went to the finishing stadium to cheer on the late finishers and watch the fireworks. It was really something to watch the racers who had been out there for 13/14/15 hours come across the line and receive their medal. I cant imagine being out there and racing for that long… The mental toll (outside of the obvious physical effort) is mind blowing. The fireworks at the end of the evening were the perfect ending to the day and it was nice to get some fireworks in over the 4th of July weekend!

The race provided a number of valuable experiences and I was able to take away some great lessons from both the prep and overall experience.

Good:

2nd Full distance race, 2nd sub 9 hour finish (and on 11.5 hours a week of training)

500 euro back for finishing sub 9 hours

fitness coming back after the surgery with no post race issues

hydration bladder prototype worked well

overall weekend was much more ‘low stress’ than my first full race and gave me a good level of confidence for the distance in Kona

Bad

swim not as expected, if only by a minute or two

biked uneven (in retrospect) and paid the price on the run

run sucked, but with mid 20 mile weeks averaging leading up it is not surprising that a sub 3 marathon didn’t happen

Please let me know if there is anything about the race (or training) you’d like to know or for me to expand on. I’m happy to share my experience and help others have a great day out at Roth. Its an amazing event!

Challenge Roth – 2019 was originally published on Rogers Racing

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shawoluvs · 3 years

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dkb and shinee!

DKB

do i already stan them? yes | only for the music | attempting to | no

my bias + bias wrecker: Based purely on our shared birthday, Yuku, the sweetest sunshine boy, is my bias~~~~~ And they're all wreckers, every single one of them, they're A LOT

first time i heard of them: I heard of them just after they debuted! I'm pretty sure it was through tumblr too, I got a suggested post from a blog that announces kpop debuts and I was like "oh they look cool I'll check them out" and I was just hooked from 'Sorry Mama'.

when i became a fan: Debut era~ When they debuted I was just a little in awe of them, honestly, not because they were necessarily better than other groups debuting at the time but for me 'Sorry Mama' didn't really sound like anything else that had been released. I thought it was really cool and interesting for them to use female vocals in their debut song at the end, it's usually a lot later that kpop groups have other artists involved like that (if ever, really) but that made the song really stand out and then I started watching some of their Dakcumentaries and just really liked them~

favorite (and least favorite) title track: My favourite title track is 'Still'! It was such a change up from 'Sorry Mama' but they did it so well, for me their debut really let the rap line shine but 'Still' was all about the vocalists and they did it so well!!! My least favourite title track is probably 'Sorry Mama'... ejrgberhge which ok yes I do love it but it's just my least favourite of the title tracks, I think they've grown a lot since their debut and while I do love the song it also has some of the worst line distribution so...

favorite (and least favorite) b-side: For me DKB have such a solid discography so early on, honestly, they went for very distinct concepts for all their albums and those concepts are carried through into every b-side so everything flows so well~ But my faves are: Fondue (like seriously guys... seriously... idk what it is... is it e-chan with his soft vocals or Junseo being given the credit he deserves??? idk but yes to all of it), Flower Less (again like!!!!!! yes!!!!!), Go Up (so cute, so wholesome), Rose (she classy, she a little bit sexy, she a subtle bop, we love her). I don't really have a least favourite b-side but I'll just say Youth because it's technically just like the album opener and it's too short at 1:43. OK and if I had to pick probably 'Samsung', because it's just idk it's funny??? I don't dislike it but it's pretty much just a promo for Samsung and as a Samsung user I relate to thinking the phones are pretty good but ejhrgbejre the song is just funny, if there was any song of theirs I'd occasional skip it would be that one.

favorite (and least favorite) mv: Favourite MV is 'Work Hard'! It's just colourful and cute, I love like the three different distinct groups the members are divided up into with completely different aesthetics and just the overall styling of the MV is so good, Lune with that golden-blonde hair??? YES. My least favourite MV is probably 'Sorry Mama' just 'cause it's not my favourite aesthetically, it's quite flashy from what I can remember and you canny see Junseo's face literally the entire time, like what was with the bucket hat????

favorite (and least favorite) album: 'LOVE'! It's my favourite of the debut mini series, all the songs are so good and so on concept, it's such a change up from their debut and such a good first comeback album, it's just flawless~~ My least favourite is probably 'The Dice is Cast' and it's literally only because it's their first full album but it's actually just a repackage of all their minis... and yet they didn't include every song??? Like song-wise it's brilliant 'cause I just think most of their songs are great but idk it just defeats the point of repackaging if you don't include all the songs?? I would've just liked a huge mega-repackage where they included all 18 songs on it but there's only 10...

a concept i wished they’d try: I'm not entirely sure, I think obviously a suit concept... 'cause I like suits and that's just the whole truth, if ever idol group wore suits every era I wouldn't be mad about it. I think I'd love to see them go really summery too though???? I think there are some members in particular who'd suit the concept really well (sunshine concept for my sunshine boy pls) and idk a song along the lines of like Astro's 'Baby' or Seventeen's 'Pretty U' or Golden Child's 'Pump It Up' or The Boyz 'Bloom Bloom' like something just fun and summery??? It's not something they've really done 'cause they've gone with different sounds but I think they've got the talent to pull it off and might be a good challenge for them.

what i like most about them: I think they just give off a lot of positive energy? I know we don't know anything really about these idols and honestly that's kinda how it should be, those boundaries are important, but together they seem to have a really good energy. They really hype each other up, they seem really hard working and ambitious, all of them are really willing to put in the work to get better at what they do and I think in an industry like theirs it's important to be motivated but also have people around you to build you up and encourage you, which is what they seem to do for each other.

SHINee

do i already stan them? YES | only for the music | attempting to | no

my bias + bias wrecker: I love all of them equally but Taemin was my first bias!

first time i heard of them: I heard SHINee for the first time in about 2012, at the time I was watching a lot of anime (anime mvs on youtube too haha good times) and listening to a lot of the osts on youtube, then one day Sherlock was recommended to me, I clicked on it and I have been a sucker for them ever since.

when i became a fan: I pretty much became a fan immediately, they drew me in so quickly and once I'd heard Sherlock I was watching all their previous stuff, listening to their b-sides and finding out a lot more about them! They're pretty much the only kpop group I've listened to consistently since 2012, it took me a good while to get into a lot of other groups beyond casual listening but I heard those 5 shining boys and I was gone~

favorite (and least favorite) title track: My absolute favourites are: Replay, Love Like Oxygen, Juliette, Ring Ding Dong, Lucifer, Hello, Sherlock, Dream Girl, Why So Serious?, Everybody, View, Married to the Music, 1 of 1, Tell Me What To Do, Good Evening, I Want You, Our Page, Countless, Don't Call Me and Atlantis! And I don't believe there is any to dislike~ Also a shout out to their Japanese discography 'cause I only mentioned their Korean ones but tracks like DxDxD and Get the Treasure and Sing Your Song are also everything~~

favorite (and least favorite) b-side: I can't manage what I did above where I list every single b-side and to be fair they're probably not all my favourite, even though I love them all, so off the top of my head (and I literally mean just what I can remember this second) my faves are: Area, Body Rythm, Hitchhiking, Aside, Electric, Chemistry, Undercover, Colorful, Runaway, Excuse Me Miss, Love Sick, I Really Want You, Marry You, Heart Attack, Don't Stop, Feel Good, Forever or Never and Savior~ and unsurprisingly there aren't really any b-sides I don't like, depending on my mood there's always something SHINee's done that will work~ Again I mainly did their Korean discography here too but their Japanese music is incredible songs like ABOAB, LUCKY STAR, Tell Me Your Name, Diamond Sky, Downtown Baby, Colours of the Season and 君のせいで, to name just a few, are amazing!

favorite (and least favorite) mv: I love most of their MVs but of course Replay, View, Atlantis and Married to the Music come to mind~ Also Your Number isn't technically an MV but it's literally one of my favourite videos of all time, I could (and perhaps have) watch it a billion times! There's not really MVs I can think of that I don't like, even the ones that are a bit dated now are so iconic that they hold a special place in my heart~

favorite (and least favorite) album: At the moment I won't deny the Atlantis repackage is probably one of my favourites, simply because it's still so fresh and I have listened to the others a billion times. I do really love 1of1 too! I don't really have a least favourite album, my absolute favourite songs tend to be scattered on all different ones so... canny pick one~

a concept i wished they’d try: Gosh, what haven't they already done? I guess it'd be interesting to see them do a darker concept because they've not done a lot of that, something quite intense with I guess Tell Me What to Do vibes but a bit more... I don't wanna say horror based but I don't know how else to describe it????

what i like most about them: Without going off on an emotional tangent, what I love most about SHINee is that their music cheered me up during some really tough times in my life. I really think music can be a very powerful thing and all different people have different relationships with music, for me SHINee was just one of those influences that always made me feel better. They were a great source of motivation, as individuals they've all overcome a lot and the fact that we had people like Jonghyun who talked about his struggles and offered support to his listeners, really making music for not only himself for them too, it meant a lot. I also just love that at this point they're so comfortable and confident in who they are, they're no longer making music for wins and to stay on top of other groups, they've worked hard and accomplished so much, they have a supportive and consistent fanbase and I think they can really just enjoy the whole thing a lot more? The music they make is fun and powerful and interesting, they push boundaries as individuals and a group, and they just get better and better~ They set the standard, honestly~

#ask things #[ love and letters ]#I wrote so much I had to put it under a read more ejrgbergbejgeh #thank you for the ask though~~~#and forgive my ramblings~~~~

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bowiebwe-blog · 6 years

Text

Bowie’s Favorite Albums Of 2017 Big List! (#20-5)

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20. Paramore - After Laughter

Nah guys, this is still definitely Paramore. And that’s a very good thing. I *loved* their 2013 self-titled album, and though this album doesn’t hit me at quite that level, it’s in the same ballpark(ish). They got groovier and yeah, a but pop-ier, but their heart is still definitely there. And it’s one of the most thematically cohesive albums of the year. You wanna know who I think one of their low-key influences is this time around though? Their good buddies/label mates Twenty One Pilots. I’m not so sure they would have dared take the route they did with the lyrical themes of this album without Twenty One Pilots paving the way into the mainstream first, even if Haley needed to say it. But now that it’s been said, I hope their next album goes into what comes after; hope, and all that good stuff.

*Hard Times, Forgiveness

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19. Liam Gallagher - As You Were

Straight up, I wasn’t expecting Liam to show up and make an album this good. I dunno how much help he had in making it happen, but here it is, it happened. This album rivals late Oasis and even his brother’s excellent post-Oasis projects. The grit here is real, and Liam backs up his incredibly large ego with some great songs. Easily one of the best rock albums of the year. Now let’s please have an Oasis reunion sometime soon as you were LG x

*Wall Of Glass, I’ve All I Need, Chinatown

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18. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds - Who Built The Moon?

Noel Gallagher is one of the very best British songwriters of all-time. I don’t ever flinch or stutter when I say that. He knows how to make a song full of heart be catchy while still pushing the boundaries of what songwriting can be, and all without overcomplication. It’s a fascinating thing to behold. Oasis was built on his back, and they were rightfully massive. And now he’s back with his wee Flyin’ Birds and making another great album. He once again shows he’s not afraid to reach out and find new avenues of songwriting, and somehow he seems to always find the sweet spot. It’s definitely once again a change of sound, and it almost makes me believe he changes it either to challenge himself or because he’s bored. Whatever the case, this is a great album with more great songwriting from an incredible artist.

*Dead In The Water, It’s A Beautiful World

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17. Eminem - Revival

I recently found out that Eminem used 69,000 pieces of paper during the writing of this album, so it’s no wonder to me how he came to be what I easily consider to be the greatest rapper of all-time. His golden days as off-the-wall Slim Shady might be in the past, but his undeniable passion and flow are still strong here. Eminem knows how to deliver, and pretty much everyone who knows rap knows it. He’s the greatest. And as a side note, “Arose” might easily be one of the most powerful Eminem songs ever. It’s like being the dying man fighting for his life and his mourning family at the same time, and it’s amazing to see Eminem be able to still deliver on that. Anyway, Eminem once again brought out greatness in this album. Fantastic.

*Arose, River, In Your Head

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16. PVRIS - All We Know Of Heaven, All We Need Of Hell

I listened to both of PVRIS’ albums for the first time on the same walk, and let me tell ya, I was instantly converted into being a fan. Their songs and albums are high-quality modern rock albums with a very open feel to them. And the vocals! My goodness. They go from ice water to like having a hot Twilight vampire sink their teeth into your neck like butter. Not much changed tonally between this album and their debut, but like Royal Blood, if it ain’t broke, you don’t always need to fix it. Especially with rock. So many rock bands get so caught up in trying to become relevant electronically that they lose where they came from in the first place. PVRIS is a force to be reckoned with, even if they don’t ever get incredible commercial success (it’s just the world we live in). Great album.

*Heaven, What’s Wrong, NOLA 1

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15. Logic - Everybody

Peace, love, and positivity! We should have all listened to Logic sooner. I decided once he released this album to listen to all of his previous albums before listening to even a single song off his new release, and folks, he’s the real deal. His flow is amazing, his beats are creative, and he’s genuine. This album definitely backs all that up. He’s one creative mother goose, and his art is full of those good vibes we love in music. He also gets more honest and personal than ever here with mental health issues (not just in “1-800…”), so it’s somewhat of an important album even just on that note.

*Hallelujah, 1-800-273-8255

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14. Ed Sheeran - ÷

This album was one of my most-anticipated of the year, and it largely lived up to the high expectations, but not completely. There are some songs I loved, some songs I really liked, and some songs I honestly could’ve done without on here. But here’s the thing… Ed Sheeran’s an amazing songwriter. These songs are all good. Like, even though “Shape Of You” might be one of my least favorite on the album because of that trendy finger harp bounce rythm thing I can’t stand, if you listen in the background you’ll hear very ‘Ed Sheeran-y" guitar-percussion sounds that make the song fascinating to listen to. So sometimes it seems like these songs are too polished for the radio, but it still has a lot of heart and fantastic songwriting. I don’t like it quite as much as I loved 'X’, but I still really liked this album. Mr. Sheeran is constant quality and I’m sure he’ll be a superpower for years to come.

*Happier, How Would You Feel (Paean), What Do I Know?, Perfect

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13. Imagine Dragons - Evolve

Do you hear that? …that’s the sound of Dan Reynolds waking up. If their sophmore album was a necessarily dark album dealing with the regrets and sorrows of stardom, Imagine Dragons came around with their third album to make a bright, flying album that revolves around what comes after the dark times. It definitely feels alive and fresh, using a new coat of digital paint to make the color pop. It’s pretty close to exactly what the doctor ordered for them. And their songwriting keeps getting better (I love the flow of the last verse of “Whatever It Takes”). Imagine Dragons shows they’re not afraid to be around for the long run with this release, and it’s a joy to listen to.

*I Don’t Know Why, Walking The Wire, The Mouth Of The River

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12. Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit - The Nashville Sound

I love, love, love, love Jason Isbell. His songwriting to me is one form of the amazing eiptome of the human experience. Does that make sense? (…Eh, who cares.) So real. Bare. Honest. I love it. He’s back with his band this time around after a couple of solo albums that I still adore, and although this one might not be *quite* up to the level of those two for me, this is still a really, really good album. As far as folk/alt-country artists go, this guy’s a monster. Definitely worth a listen.

*Last Of My Kind, Hope The High Road, If We Were Vampires

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11. London Grammer - Truth Is A Beautiful Thing

I remember listening to this one for the first time vividly. I was walking down a dark neighborhood street at probably 12:30 AM when “Big Picture” came on. It was like as the song progressed and the music picked up the stars started to pop out, the mountains’ dark outlines became clear, and by the time the song hit its peak I felt alive and deep in the night. The album held onto that feeling. If that makes sense. It was a great walk that night. London Grammer took seemingly forever to realease this album, to the point where I honestly stopped caring for it to come out after loving their debut album, but it blew me away when it came out. It took everything great about their first album and improved it. Subtle. Calming. Aching. Enveloping. It’s easy to dive into when the time is right. Beautiful, beautiful album.

*Big Picture, Truth Is A Beautiful Thing

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10. Taylor Swift - Reputation

Were you ready for it? Once T-Swift drops a new album, there’s no getting away from hearing it. And the reason for that? She makes *dang* good pop albums, even since the days when she was still “country.” She knows her craft very well (image-wise as well as musically) and has definitely deserved her wild success. I still consider “1989” to be one of the best pop albums ever (or at least in the past two decades or so), so this one had high expectations coming into it. Well, I’d say it was a success. I mean, I could do another essay on this album. No, it’s not at the level of her last album, but she once again made a solid case for her being the current queen of pop. She dives further into production trends here, but does them better than really anyone else. Her lyrics are honest and sharper than ever, but she still has those fun moments of just being Taylor Swift in there too. So beyond all the mania building up to and during the release of this album, it’s a great album by one of today’s biggest superstars.

*Delicate, End Game, Dancing With Our Hands Tied

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9. Aaron Watson - Vaquero

This album *feels* like Texas, and I love it. I hadn’t even heard of Aaron Watson until a few weeks ago, but I was already blown away and honestly kind of emotional by the very first chorus of the very first track (“Texas Lullaby”). It’s like I was *there*. Back down South. Big calm fields, even bigger blue skies. I don’t think there are any big radio hits on this album, but the songs are so. dang. good. Ugh! This guy is genuine and obviously has a soul full of that sweet country music. Every country music fan out there should know this album.

*Texas Lullaby, Take You Home Tonight, Run Wild Horses, Amen Amigo

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8. Kendrick Lamar - DAMN.

I need to watch out here, because I could easily write an essay on this album. In my opinion, Kendrick is crazy-far ahead of everyone else in the rap world concerning beats and overall production. Kendrick always pushes the limit of what a rap song can be, finding new ways of making something innovative the new hit. I’d even say he’s already the best rap artist ever in terms of making brilliant albums, and not just making them a great collection of songs. He’s always brilliant and innovative, but never at the expense of losing mass popularity and creating disconnect between he and the average listener. Along with the brilliant songs by themseleves that make up this album, the concept and vision of the album itself as a whole is brilliant (if you don’t know, look into playing the track order in reverse). I dunno, he just constantly amazes me. Every time. Kendrick’s working his way up to legend status.

*FEEL., LOVE., GOD.

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7. Ryan Adams - Prisoner

Chances are you probably don’t know who Ryan Adams is. That’s okay. You’re not alone. It’s an epidemic. I first heard him a few years ago when he released his beautiful cover album of Taylor Swift’s 1989, and I pretty close to instantly fell in love with his music. He has a lot of heart, and he can write a heck of a song. Seems like he’s sure fighting a lot of heartache and heartbreak in this album and is learning how to move on from loss, and he tells it beautifully. I’d definitely recommend you give this one a chance.

*Doomsday, Shiver And Shake

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6. John Mayer - The Search For Everything

John Mayer is one of my absolute favorite songwritiers/artists. It just seems like he gets *it*. His songs seep passion and integrity, along with emotion and an abundance of amazing musicianship. He knows amazing skills and all that, but he understands heart, and that’s the core of his music. This album also seems like it has an extra dose of direct honesty in it as compared to his previous works. There are colors of hope, understanding, doubt, love, loneliness, and all else that paint what it means to be human in this album, and they’re bright and genuine here. It’s also cool to see him mix his almost-americana-ish influences of the past few years with the smooth coolness of his Continuum days. Another great one by one of the greatest songwriters/musicians of our generation.

*Emoji Of A Wave, You’re Gonna Live Forever In Me, Never On The Day You Leave

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5. Bleachers - Gone Now

I love this album. Straight up. One of the biggest surprises of the year, and I couldn’t be happier about it. You might not think you know Jack Antanoff (a.k.a. Bleachers), but if you’ve ever listened to any recent Taylor Swift or Lorde tracks, you do. His work as a producer is well-known (like I said, big ol’ T-Swift and Lorde tracks among others), but this is his own project from his own mouth, and it is one of my favorite albums of the year. He gets modern and experimental without sacrificing any heart from the songs, and also makes classic callbacks comparable to bands such as The Beatles (“Goodmorning”), while still managing to give them have a beautiful shiny modern polish. There’s a hidden reason T-Swift and Lorde have done so well lately. This album will tell you all about it.

*Goodmorning, I Miss Those Days, Let’s Get Married

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