This week’s odds and ends.
“Action is the real measure of intelligence.”
- Napoleon Hill
This week’s odds and ends.
Ever want to try Yoga, but don’t quite know all the moves yet? It’s tough to be a new person in a yoga class, considering it’s basically like entering a whole new world. There are stretches and positions you’ve only see a contortionist perform. I’ve totally been “that person” in a class who has no clue what they are doing, holding up the class because the instructor has to come over and help me. Oh well, you have to start from scratch sometimes right?
In case you want to save yourself some embarrassment ahead of time, there is an app called Yoga Stretch that guides you through the poses;, pictures and all, so you are able to learn before you attend classes.
The application comes with an instructor and you simply choose how long you would like the session to be. Then, the instructor informs what to do next and how long each position should be. It will then give you more information about the pose, and can even alert you if you are doing it wrong and inform you how to do it correctly.
If that doesn’t lure you in, it allows you to choose meditative music that plays in the background, creating a calm and peaceful environment no matter where you are. In addition, on the screen you are able to see the physical benefit of the particular pose, as well as the mental benefit.
I wish I knew about this app before I attended my first yoga class. When the class ended, all I heard were whispers saying “ugh that new girl that came in ruined the class.” All you can do is put a big fat smile on your face, and maybe find a new yoga studio. Or just get this app!
-KB
For over a year now, I have been following Jonathan Lewis and watching his tutorials and explanations for DJs as “Ellaskins” on YouTube. Little did I know that his mother actually lived a few doors down the road – small world! So, this week I was fortunate enough to meet Jonathan himself, which was funny but weird and I am still getting over it. Anyway, I came up with some questions for Jonathan and here is what he had to say.
Before we get into the questions, I would just like to thank Jonathan for taking his time to speak with me.
Sean Edwards: Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?
Jonathan Lewis: My Name is Jonathan Lewis, also known as “Ellaskins” on YouTube. I was born in Aberystwyth, Wales. As well as Dj’ing and pursuing a career in music, I run a “rustic” furniture company called welsh-oak.co.uk.
SE: How did you get into DJing?
JL: I have always been into different genres of music, and used to ask a friend (DJ) if i could listen to his record collection when I was about twelve.
SE: Do you have a musical background? Do you play other musical instruments?
JL: My family have always been into music; my mother teaches the piano and I’m more into drums and percussions.
SE: What are your musical influences? What are your favourite genres of music now?
JL: I love all types of music. Stevie Wonder is an all-time favourite with mine, but to be quite honest I love anything with soul.
SE: How old were you when you got your very first gig?
JL: My very first gig was in school; I was about thirteen or fourteen. Good times!
SE: How about your first gig in a nightclub?
JL: I got to play for the first time in a club when I was in Norway back in 1997.
SE: What is your motivation?
JL: I always strive to inspire and help people who need help the most.
SE: What is the largest crowd you have played to?
JL: Hmm, I would say that was in my home town Aberystwyth. I played in front of 5,000 people .
SE: What is the best place you have played?
JL: I actually played at London Zoo, ha ha. That was pretty cool!
SE: How do you prepare for your set? Do you still get nervous when your about to go on?
JL: I don’t prepare a lot. I always stay open minded and I always adapt to the way the crowd is reacting to the music — very important.
SE: Has anything ever gone embarrassingly wrong? Like when Calvin Harris ejected the CD that was playing…
JL: Yeah totally. I was actually playing at a wedding once and the amplifier stopped working … whilst the bride and groom where having their first dance!
SE: Do you have any ambition to produce your own music?
JL: Yeah, I’m taking the Ableton Live course with the guys at Pointblank. Watch part one of the Ellaskins basic Ableton Live tutorial with Danny J Lewis here.
SE: How did your Youtube account “Ellaskins” take off?
JL: i was the first DJ in the world to give free advise/tutorials in depth. I was the first person in the world to upload FREE, in depth tutorials and videos. People seem to like it; it’s all about giving!
SE: How did you get into reviewing equipment for companies?
JL: A few companies saw the videos I was producing online and decided to send me free equipment for my videos.
SE: Which companies do you review products for?
JL: Oh, I have reviewed lots of products, Anything from headphones, turntables, CDJ’s to Sony cameras.
SE: What is your favorite piece of equipment?
JL: My favourite all time piece of equipment must be the Technics sl1200mk2.
SE: Do you have any advice for young teenagers wanting to get into the DJ’ing scene or teenagers wanting to get out on the web?
JL: Always be who you are, do not try to be who you are not. It’s all about giving; if you can give as much as you can, one day you will receive.
SE: Any parting words?
JL: Always help others! Oh and before I forget … practise and n-joy!
You can watch Jonathan’s DJ tips and tutorial at youtube.com/ellaskins
You can also follow him on on Twitter @ellaskins
“Adopting the right attitude can convert a negative stress into a positive one.”
- Hans Selye
This week’s odds and ends.
Oh, smartphones. Much like the rest of the world, I own one and can’t imagine life without it. I’m constantly checking emails, social media and getting reviews on restaurants nearby. It accompanies me wherever I go and I feel lost if I leave it behind. This time of year though, there is a problem — water.
Bringing your phone (a/k/a your life) around water is a dangerous task in which not many choose to partake. I’m a clumsy little girl and have been known to accidently (or drunkenly) drop my precious phones in water, or glasses of lemonade. Either way, it’s ruined and leaves you phoneless until you get areplacement. There are some cases that claim they are waterproof and protect from damage, but I never trusted those, until I saw this one. Although it’s not made for everyday use, it protects during activities such as boating, kayaking, and even swimming.
Introducing the Keystone Eco MarineCase. I mean it has Marine in the name — I’m sold. This promises a waterproof case that still allows you to use the phone underwater! You can videotape or take pictures and directly post it to the Internet before you even reach land again. It also states you can go to a depth of twenty feet and it will still perform, which means you no longer have to leave your phone behind while you splish splash in the ocean or pool.
This takes snorkeling to a whole new level, being able to capture pictures and videos of any creatures that are swimming with you! Makes me want to plan a trip to the Caribbean and test this case out. Hopefully that money tree in my backyard blooms this summer.
-KB
There is a new website getting some buzz called Huge Fan. What is it? It’s a website wherein you send in wishes for events with somebody of whom you are a fan and they try to make it happen. In the other direction, those who feel they have the requisite fan base can offer to make events happen. Money exchanges hands a voila! You have your wonderful experience. Sounds neat. Well, here is why I am not a fan yet. I liked this idea more when it was called BlazeTrak.
Okay, the two are not completely similar, but it is for the main difference I prefer BlazeTrak, namely that they have a mutually beneficial point beyond PR. BlazeTrak allows you to send videos to entertainment professionals (DJs, producers, entrepreneurs), pay a fee and be guaranteed a video response. The goal is to foster collaboration and mentorship within a system which ensures (via money) that things keep moving. And it works. The aspiring get their art or idea heard and the established get to interact with the next wave — things get done.
Huge Fan seems to me to be missing that key element. What gets done? Take a look at the most recent “wishlist” of submitted ideas (below). They are mostly novelties. Who has time to care about novelties for very long? These are busy people and frankly, the part of the yearly pie chart devoted to novelty fan interaction is probably better allocated to the Make A Wish foundation, whose core principle is wish-granting and not money-making.
Bottom line, too good to be true always is and they have done nothing to temper expectations or explain what is reasonable, which leads me to believe they don’t know what is reasonable, in which case their goals are clearly misplaced. There is probably some functionality to be found here, but for now, I guess it just all seems a bit vapid to me.
- JO
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