We’ve all been there: you get into an exciting new relationship, and over time the sparkly, wonderful honeymoon phase starts to wane. There comes a point where you realize that her proximity, her habits, and her emotions aren’t necessarily as cute as they first appeared. In some cases, it’s because she’s attached herself so firmly to your hip that when you find yourself looking at a wonderful girl that you care about, you end up only seeing the worst about her; her neediness has become a glaring issue in your relationship and you’re considering trying to pry her off with a complex system of levers and wedges. How can you work on avoiding this emotional disaster, be it in an established relationship or with a girl you’ve just met? We’re here with a guide to the two most common types of clingy girlfriend behavior – if you can understand the psychology behind your girl’s style of attachment, you can decide the course that your relationship will follow.
Gina
On the Hook: Worse Than the Friend Zone
Dear Gina, I’ve got a problem, and I think I need some advice. There’s this girl I love- we’ve tried dating but its never worked out. It was good but there were problems, and when I went back to NYC for the summer, she stayed in Buffalo where she’s from. The distance got to us, fights occurred a lot and we broke up. But we ended up talking, and almost trying to work out the problems; my stuff wasn’t the only thing keeping her from a relationship, life just handed her too many lemons. So we would kiss, hold hands in public, cuddle, no sex and it was ok, but there were still fights…Now we just decided maybe it won’t work. I don’t know what to do. Do I move on?
It’s hard to believe that there’s anything worse than being friend zoned by a woman you want to be with, but the sad reality is that there is an even worse state…and most men will experience it at least once in their lives. I was talking with one of the other unfinished men this week about being on the hook, and I decided it was time
Pop Culture by Madeon: Killer Live 39 Track Mashup
I heard Pop Culture by Madeon a few months ago and it immediately got in my head with its crunchy synth and infectious dance styling, so when it came up in my playlist today, I decided to check for a video. When I found the official release on YouTube, I was blown away by what I was seeing. I knew it was obviously a mashup, and could pick out bits and pieces of songs I like, but I didn’t realize just how deep this rabbit hole went. The seamless editing blends 39 separate tracks from artists ranging widely from ELO and The Who to Chromeo and Nero. Watching Madeon’s fingers dancing across his Launchpad and trying to figure out how he’s keeping track of the samples and levels while playing a freestyle organ solo is nothing short of amazing. His mastery of digital dj equipment seemingly knows no bounds. And then, I found out he’s only 17 years old – queue puff of smoke leaking out my ears. Hit the jump and turn it up for a great party track, an unbelievable visual use of musical technology… and bonus utterly ridiculous dance video .
Handsome, Modern Byrd & Belle Device Cases
For those of you who are Apple users, there’s a good chance you’ve looked into a case to protect the large, fabulous, and exceptionally vulnerable screens on your technology. If you’re trying to find a simple, modern and extremely attractive alternative to the boring or tacky offerings currently on the market, check out these smart and understated felt cases by Byrd & Belle. Made for a number of different technologies, you’ll be able to find the perfect fit for your device – there are six separate styles in a range of colours. The line is the brainchild of Angie Davis, who creates every item by hand in Minneapolis out of sustainable wool and environmentally friendly dyed leather. If you don’t care about any of that stuff, the fact remains that the combination is thick, soft, reinforced, and most importantly, has killer good looks. See the full line of Byrd & Bell cases after the jump.
Boris Hoppek – NSFW Street Art or Public Porn?
German street artist Boris Hoppek does some pretty cool art pieces and installations; he paints with a whimsical, fun style. He also does some really, really weird installations. If you go looking, you’ll find pictures of waves of smiling faces hugging and laughing, or a checkerboard tiled walkway with a piece of poop on every alternating square…lots and lots of poop. He also seems to have a love for a character of his that is loosely based on “black face,” so I think you can understand that when I say that the installation after the jump is NSFW, it’s honestly really not safe for work. His minimal comic art style is often either inspiring or sexual in nature (he’s a master of disparity), but that’s nothing all that new and surprising in the world of street art installations. Hoppek took the shape of the structure he was working on, matched it with the form and grace of female anatomy and a very large photo realistic print, with some surprising results for the passerby. (We promise there’s no poop after the jump.)
Awesome Photo Manipulations by Justin Van Genderen
Justin Van Genderen gets hired to do a lot of advertisements and photo processing for big companies; his work often 
features paint splashes, light trails, and smoke effects. While most of those works are bright and exuberant, there’s something about his personal works that are darker and much more interesting to me. I’ve seen a lot of shoddily done photo manipulations in my days- lord knows Deviant Art is full of emo girls who spend hours carefully blowing out the contrast and slapping multi-hued butterfly wings on photos just this side of homegrown. Justin’s are anything but, with carefully created landscapes and environments that toe the line on the border of dark and slightly malevolent. Check out a gallery of his fascinating work after the jump.
Movember is Here… and Women Want In – Movember Girls Tribute
Movember is one of those things that started out quirky, grew into hilarity, and through that became a rallying cry for a great cause with a …
