PicoBlog

Dear Reader First up: Congratulations to my friends and fellow Brightonians at Brandwatch, which sold to Cision this week for $450 million. A demi-Unicorn emerging from our seaside stew of tech, creatives and the end of a 15 year journey for the team. I had the privilege of seeing them in action right at the start, in a co-working office on Middle Street. The CEO, Giles Palmer, is an inspiration and a lovely man to boot.

Do you know what le dollar bean (le$bean) is? It’s one of my favourite examples of algospeak. Algospeak is a kind of code. It’s a way of writing and speaking that tries to bypass social media moderation filters. There’s a whole range of topics, from abortion to Ukraine, that you can’t talk freely about on most platforms without having y… ncG1vNJzZmiemZy1tbXNoKuapJtjwLau0q2YnKNemLyue89orqGZpKh6rbGMnaalpJGneqOxwKc%3D

And honestly I fell a bit in love with her, part of me wanted to be her and the day she came into my world I dug out my denim cut-off shorts (I’m 54 in July) and revived my All Saints style combat trousers from 1999. The Tik Toker who created her described her thus for Glamour magazine: ‘The messy hot aunt is still drunk from last night, but she’ll always share the last piece of gum in her purse.

Gen Z have an uncanny ability of identifying a distinctly millennial trait, pointing it out, and making everyone deeply self-conscious with their accuracy. I am acutely aware of the millennial pause when on camera. I’ve forced myself to make a heart with my index and middle finger when prompted, lest I be outed as my actual age. I resist saying anything that could be worthy of a ‘millennial core’ edit and deemed cringe, such as describing someone as ‘smol’ (which I wouldn’t do anyway, but now it feels like the ‘smol’ slip is a genuine risk) or posting a gif reaction.

This is the Snarky Sunday edition of Snarky Senior — the newsletter from Erica Manfred, which you can read about here. If you like it and don’t want to miss an issue, you can get it in your inbox by subscribing. You are old, Father William,” the young man said And your hair has become very white; And yet you incessantly stand on your head – Do you think, at your age, it is right?

Before we begin, just wanted to let you know that I’m planning several foraging walks (security situation permitting) in the coming weeks, during and after Pesach. For more details respond to this email or write to contact@healthyjew.org.Jews all over the world are scouring their houses these days for the tiniest particles of chometz (leavened foods) - and piling their pantries with “kosher for Pesach” foods, chief among them matzah. Why for these 7 days do we say “yes” to matzah and scream “no” to chometz?

As a Directioner from the beginning, I have a right to be upset. And yes, it actually DOES drive me crazy just how fast the night changes. And last night, those of us around the world who signed up for a Paramount Plus subscription only to immediately cancel it after we watched the 65th Annual Grammy Awards sat on the edge of our seats, hoping for a few things: ncG1vNJzZmillZqwqa3MppyroaearrW0xKtlrK2SqMGir8pnmqilX6V8qK3RsmSbraRiwamxjKtkoqtdqLatsc2t

Hello and welcome to Gossip Time, a weekly guide to the stars by Allie Jones. This week: a pop star faces a brutal accusation, a model becomes a model girlfriend again, and Jeremy Allen White goes on a walk.  Ariana Grande’s new boyfriend filed for divorce from his wife on Wednesday, so that’s progress. But the situation is still a mess. Sources are arguing in the tabloids about whether or not their relationship started as an affair (lol), and now the new boyfriend’s estranged wife is speaking out, accusing Grande of being the worst thing a pop star could possibly be: not a girl’s girl.

Early access to April 8, 2024 edition Paid subscribers get full access to my interview with Arielle Isaac Norman. The first half of this episode is available to all listeners. To hear the entire conversation, become a paying subscriber here. This week, I welcome Arielle Isaac Norman, an Austin-based comedian who has opened for Louie C.K., Bobcat Goldthwait, Tim Dillon, Joe DeRosa, Eddie Pepitone and Maria Bamford, among others. Arielle, who describes herself as a “politically non-binary lesbian,” has a new YouTube special, Ellen DeGenderless, in which she discusses gender identity, sexuality, pronouns, social issues, and pop culture.