We Recommend: Your Friday Freebies

Featuring a talking bulldog, sleeping on planes and Kendrick Lamar lyrics on priceless works of art.

by Junkee 4 July 2014

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Each Friday, our contributors send in a bunch of (legally) free stuff they’ve come across this week to help you waste your weekend. You’re welcome.

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Tumblr: ‘Fly Art’ Is The Perfect Combination Of Art And Hip Hop

Recommended by: Katie Booth

A project “born out of boredom, frustration, and the internet” has given us a Tumblr which will send you down an Internet rabbit hole. Fly Art mashes up classic art with hip hop lyrics and it’s just simply a perfect match. Genius!

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Web: 17 People

Recommended by: Jeremy Cassar (“Five Films You Should Never Watch On A Plane”)

Rabid fans of Aaron Sorkin’s The West Wing refuse to acknowledge that the Emmy-hogging drama series finished almost a decade ago. These bi-yearly rewatching, ‘Bartlet For America’ button-wearing telephiles just can’t seem to let go. One such fan has devoted an entire website to deconstructing a single hour of Sorkin-era TWW – Season Two’s ’17 People’ – through a crisp use of illustration and text.

Whether or not you like the show, you’ve gotta give the guy credit for his dedication.

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Read: “I Punched The Man Who Broke Into My Home” By Gia Milinovich

Recommended by: Michelle See-Tho (“Junk Explained: Who Are ISIS, And Why Are They Taking Over Iraq?”)

This woman faced a problem I’d only ever thought about in an abstract “what-if” sense. It’s the kind of situation you’d ask your friends about at sleepovers, along with Would You Rather and Truth Or Dare.

UK writer Gia Milinovich actually had to face a break-in. Because she’d had self-defence training, she was able to punch the man who broke into her home — and she is no longer afraid of being attacked:

“Having spent most of my life feeling vulnerable to being attacked by a man, I now feel a great sense of freedom. Being strong and knowing how to punch has brought me something I wish every woman could feel: for the first time in my life I feel like a full human being. I am not a victim. I am not afraid.”

Having an intruder in your house sounds terrifying in itself, but it can be a gender issue, too. As Milinovich points out, women tend to think that they should be skinny and delicate. It translates into vulnerability, especially when a male attacker is present. She argues that women should overcome the fear that often comes with threatening situations.

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Pics: ‘Airplane Sleep Positions’ by Demetri Martin

Recommended by: Katie Booth

Trying to find a comfortable position to sleep on a plane is pretty near impossible. Thanks to comedian Demetri Martin, you might find some more inspiration from these illustrations posted on the Tastefully Offensive tumblr.

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YouTube: Poochinski

In many ways the spiritual godfather to David Simon’s The Wire, Poochinski (1990) tells the story of a Chicago cop (played by Taxi Driver’s Peter Boyle) who is brutally murdered during a routine stakeout. At the funeral, Poochinski’s partner is shocked to discover that the policeman’s soul has been transported into an English bulldog.

Exploring themes of identity, justice and flatulence, Poochinski was well ahead of its time. Perhaps too far ahead, as the series only ever ran for one episode. The entire pilot is available below.

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App: Day One

This journal app is now free on the iOS App Store and is a most excellent way of jotting down your thoughts, feels, emotions and favourite bits of Junkee that you’ve read. It was previously $6.49 but due some sort of miracle (or terrible business decision) the developers have made it free for iPhone or iPad. No-one can be bothered carrying around a chunky fat book anymore (unless it’s a Moleskin, I guess), and this is the next best thing.

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Music: ‘Too Old’ by Bad Dreems

Recommended by: Alex McKinnon (“Australia Was ‘Unsettled’ Before 1788, According To Tony Abbott”)

Once upon a time, a bunch of hairy, sweaty men thrashing themselves into oblivion over a couple of cheap guitars and a beat-up drumkit was the pinnacle of Australian culcha. No longer. Thankfully, a group of scruffy dickheads from Adelaide called Bad Dreems are keeping the flame of ‘Strayan pub rock burning with songs like ‘Too Old’. Highlights of the film clip include a giant, awfully-made Australian flag, crusty old men sitting in a grandstand with their arms folded, and at least two solid minutes of footballers with mullets beating the absolute piss out of each other.

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Video: ‘Independence Day by Pug Puppies’

Recommended by: Katie Booth (“Ukrainian Astronomers Have Named A Star “Putin Is A Dickhead”)

This two-minute cut of Independence Day showcases the acting talents of a few very cute pugs. The guys at The Pet Collective have done this sort of thing before; Schwarzenegger’s got nothing on these adorable pugs.