Your astrological sign is a perfect way to show off your personality through your fashion choices, including dainty constellation necklaces and bold statement tops. Ambitious tauruses and driven leos alike can display their zodiac signs with these 16 adorable astrological pieces.
Stop everything. You can now send Tyra Banks emojis to everyone on your contact list. Yep, she just released a set of personalized emojis called TyTyMojis. And guess what? You can get them for 99 cents on iTunes.
Among these hidden gems are a cup of "your tears" and a "girl bye" button. One reads "Learn something from this!" and another says "Every hallway is a runway." You can even send an envelope labeled "Tyra Mail." The emojis have perfect references to America's Next Top Model, and I can't wait to send these to my fellow ANTM lovers. There's even a "I was rooting for you! We were all rooting for you!" emoji!
We all knew Tyra was busy – she recently became a guest lecturer at Stanford—but it turns out ANTM actually helped make this Tyra project happen. The emojis are a partnership with Nyx Media and Allison Harvard, a two-time runner-up on ANTM who also appears on one of the TyTymojis.
Sounds like a win-win—especially for me because even though Tyra isn't on ANTM anymore, I can still obsess over her sassy and fierce emojis on my phone.
Every sitting president since Ronald Reagan has tucked a confidential letter of advice into the top drawer of the Resolute Desk of the Oval Office for his successor. George H. W. Bush left one for Bill Clinton, Clinton for George W. Bush, and so on. While Barack Obama is likely penning a letter to the president-elect, Donald Trump, for his first day in office, former first daughters are following in a little tradition of their own.
Barbara Bush and Jenna Bush Hager, the twin daughters of former president George W. Bush, wrote a letter, titled “Playing House in the White House,” for Malia and Sasha in 2009, as their father took office.
Published in The Wall Street Journal, the message prepared Sasha, then 7 years old, and Malia, 10 for the next four to eight years as first daughters. Barbara and Jenna, 27, advised the girls to enjoy playing in the White House, continue being children, take on as many opportunities as they could, and always “remember who your dad really is.”
Two presidential terms later, Barbara and Jenna continued in their advice-giving tradition, penning a heartfelt, open letter to guide Malia and Sasha in leaving life at the White House.
“We have watched you grow from girls to impressive young women with grace and ease,” the twins jointly wrote. “Now you are about to join another rarified club, one of former First Children—a position you didn’t seek and one with no guidelines. But you have so much to look forward to.”
The letter, published in TIME, urged 18-year-old Malia and 15-year-old Sasha to keep the lessons from the White House with them as they step out into the world, without the weight of their father’s presidency on their shoulders. It acknowledged how stressful growing up as first kids could be. “We know it wasn’t always easy—the two of you and the two of us were teenagers trailed by men in backpacks.”
However, they stressed the importance of keeping in touch with the people they met along the way—especially the Secret Service. “They put their lives on hold for us,” wrote Jenna and Barbara.
“Enjoy college. As most of the world knows, we did,” the Bush daughters wrote. “And you won’t have the weight of the world on your young shoulders anymore.”
The Bush women wrote about how their experiences as first daughters shaped their lives. Jenna is a correspondent for the Today show, while Barbara is a co-founder and the CEO of the Global Health Corps. Barbara credits her career to traveling the world during her father’s presidency. After seeing a young girl afflicted with HIV who may never have lived to see her antiretroviral drugs work, “Barbara went back to school and changed her major, and her life’s path.”
“Traveling with our parents taught us more than any class could,” the letter read.
The Obama women have bright futures ahead of them, too. Malia graduated from high school this spring, and will attend Harvard University following a gap year. Meanwhile Sasha has two more years of high school left in D.C.
“You have lived through the unbelievable pressure of the White House. You have listened to harsh criticism of your parents by people who had never even met them. You stood by as your precious parents were reduced to headlines. Your parents, who put you first and who not only showed you but gave you the world. As always, they will be rooting for you as you begin your next chapter. And so will we.” (And so will ALL of us!)
Information like your address and phone number is public record—meaning people can find out stuff about you pretty easily, and legally, from public documents. However, most websites that make it easy to search this information require you to pay for it, presenting a significant barrier to entry for most people. But there's a website that's offering public record information for free: FamilyTree Now. All you have to do is type in a person’s name, and a profile of possible aliases, relatives, age, birth month and past and present addresses appear.
According to The Washington Post, a warning from Enough is Enough, a popular Facebook group about law enforcement officer safety, warned families of police officers that the website could potentially be used to target them. The website does not specifically state whether an individual is a police officer or not.
The Post tried to reach Dustin Weirich, who lists himself as the founder of the website on his LinkedIn profile and is the only manager listed in California public records for FamilyTreeNow LLC, to find out why this website was created. Weirich, however, did not respond to request for comment, and his LinkedIn and FamilyTreeNow profiles have since become inaccessible.
While this website is very concerning, the good news is that it appears that you can opt out of having your information displayed on the website. Go to this page on FamilyTreeNow to see the steps.
The website says that it will take approximately 48 hours for the information to be removed.
Trump ended Thursday evening with a tweet of congratulations to the GOP-controlled Senate, which passed a budget blueprint that effectively cleared the path to repealing Obamacare without the threat of a Democratic filibuster. He also congratulated his cabinet nominees on “looking good and doing a great job” as they perform for the Senate in order to be confirmed.
All of my Cabinet nominee are looking good and doing a great job. I want them to be themselves and express their own thoughts, not mine!
But then Trump’s unusually pleasant tweets took a turn for the worse. The New York mogul lashed out in response to some of the controversies surrounding his soon-to-be-official presidency. First he addressed the dossier, published in detail by The New York Times, which has unsubstantiated accounts of Trump’s ties to Russia. These include connections to Russian prostitutes, bribery through real estate deals and possible coordination of Russia hackers to help Trump win the presidency.
The dossier was compiled by British spy Christopher Steele, who the Times described as someone who has “an excellent reputation with American and British intelligence colleagues and had done work for the F.B.I. on the investigation of bribery at FIFA, soccer’s global governing body.”
Trump took to Twitter to shut down the allegations, which were provided to Trump, Obama and the F.B.I., about the information Steele says Russia possesses.
It now turns out that the phony allegations against me were put together by my political opponents and a failed spy afraid of being sued....
The president-elect continued from there with his Twitter rant. More than two months after the end of the election, he is still attacking Hillary Clinton. On Thursday, the Justice Department inspector general decided to investigate F.B.I. Director James B. Comey over his actions regarding possibly incriminating Clinton emails in the final days of the election.
The investigation will focus on figuring out why Comey sent a public letter to Congress announcing the F.B.I.’s reopening of the Clinton email investigation days before election day. The F.B.I. discovered more unchecked emails on the laptop of Clinton aide Human Abedin’s husband, Anthony Weiner.
A few days after Comey’s announcement, he then said the laptop had no incriminating evidence against Clinton.
That didn’t stop Trump from calling Clinton “guilty as hell,” in another ranty series of tweets.
What are Hillary Clinton's people complaining about with respect to the F.B.I. Based on the information they had she should never.....
Everybody remembers the panic of trying to raise money for college, but Allie Dowdle took a different approach after it became clear her parents weren’t going to help out with her tuition costs. When Dowdle’s parents refused to fund her education supposedly because her boyfriend was black, the Tennessee teen turned to GoFundMe for strangers’ help, raising over $15,000.
The GoFundMe page, titled “Say No to Racism,” explains that Dowdle is a star student at a private school who values her education. When she showed her parents a picture of her new boyfriend, Michael, a rift formed between them.
“My dad did not give me an option,” Dowdle wrote. “He told me that I was not allowed to see Michael ever again…because of skin color.” After her parents met Michael, things changed for the worse. “My parents have chosen to no longer support my future…leaving me on my own to pay for college.”
Dowdle claims that her parents’ decisions are entirely based off of her dating Michael, but her father, Bill, tells The New York Daily News differently, saying “it was never about race.” The Dowdles are apparently frustrated with their daughter because she started seeing both Michael and a past boyfriend secretly.
“It became obvious that she needed to go out in the world and grow up,” Allie’s father said. However, he did add that his daughter dating a black man was not his "preference"—so maybe it has more to do with race than he's admitting.
Despite the campaign’s success, other people also believe that Allie’s intentions aren’t exactly a fight against racism.
One commenter, Susan Martin, wrote on her GoFundMe, “Dating a black man and sending a privileged white girl to college who can’t get a job because her parents took away her car is absolutely ridiculous…This campaign is an absolute insult to the millions of people who have been supporting themselves for years.”
Although doing anything possible to attend college is a noteworthy move on Allie’s part, and her parents’ decision may be a little extreme, using her boyfriend’s skin color as a motive behind this campaign may not have been the smartest choice. Because when you really think about it, sending a white girl to college as a statement against racism doesn't make a lot of sense.
Anxiety about safe sex tends to subside if your partner uses a condom, but what would happen if your partner went against this agreement in the middle of sex? After a French man chose to discreetly remove a condom during sex without his partner’s permission, he has been convicted of rape for the decision.
Broadlyreports that Switzerland’s Federal Supreme Court has marked the 47-year-old man’s actions as rape in a case the victim’s lawyer calls “a first in Switzerland.” When the pair began having sex after initially meeting through Tinder, the decision was consensual and involved a condom, but the French woman soon discovered that her partner had taken it off. According to The Independent, the court ruled that the man would receive a 12-month suspended sentence, meaning he may not actually serve any time for the crime.
The landmark case has been linked to the case against Julian Assange, who has also been accused of interfering with condoms during sex. UK law labeled Assange’s actions as rape.
While the decision to convict the man is monumental, such results rely on the people involved in interpreting each case.
“So much comes down to what kinds of myths or attitudes individual jurors have about women and sex and what constitutes rape and what isn’t rape,” Dr. Sinead Ring from the University of Kent told Broadly. “The law can do so much, but really it comes down to juries and getting them to make decisions that aren’t contaminated by rape myths.”
Although this case ended with rightful punishment for the man, similar situations may not end so smoothly. The verdict teaches us that there needs to be more education about safe sex and consent so that there is less judgment directed at victims in these scenarios.
After a yearlong investigation, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced that the Chicago Police Department (CPD) has violated the civil rights of Chicago residents for years. The DOJ began its investigation on the CPD after the release of dashcam video showing an officer shooting Laquan McDonald, a teenager who was shot 16 times as he walked away from police holding a small folded knife.
The 161-page, scathing report outlined how Chicago police routinely used excessive force, and had shot individuals who did not pose any immediate threat.
“We found that officers shoot at vehicles without justification and in contradiction to C.P.D. policy. We found further that officers exhibit poor discipline when discharging their weapons and engage in tactics that endanger themselves and public safety, including failing to await backup when they safely could and should; using unsound tactics in approaching vehicles; and using their own vehicles in a manner that is dangerous,” the report said.
The DOJ criticized CPD for setting up barriers to getting to the bottom of police misconduct and perpetuating a “pervasive cover-up culture.” “The procedures surrounding investigations allow for ample opportunity for collusion among officers and are devoid of any rules prohibiting such coordination,” the report said.
Vanita Gupta, head of the DOJ's civil rights division, said that investigations into police misconduct are “glacially slow” with discipline often “unpredictable and ineffective,” ABC News reports. Gupta further said that police officers do not get enough support to assist them in handling the trauma of their jobs.
According to The New York Times, Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch blamed these problems in part on the “severely deficient training procedures” and “accountability systems.” “The systems and policies that fail ordinary citizens also fail the vast majority of Chicago Police Department officers who risk their lives every day to serve and protect the people of Chicago,” Lynch said.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel said the report was "sobering" and pledged to make changes beyond those already adopted, ABC News reports. Federal authorities and city officials have signed an agreement that outlined a plan for reform, including commitments to improve transparency, training and accountability for officers.
According to the Times, Emanuel has said that police officers do not have enough supervision, and thus will increase the number of lieutenants and supervisors. Eddie Johnson, Chicago’s police superintendent, said that he is aware of the work that needs to be done and wants to expand training and mentoring for officers.
“As you can see from our actions over the past year, we are committed to continuing to make significant and much-needed reforms, providing officers with the tools and certainty they need to do their tough jobs well,” Adam Collins, a spokesman for Emanuel, said, according to the Times.
President Obama and Vice President Biden have about one more week in the White House. As they wrap up their final speeches and public appearances, we're reflecting on how close the pair are—they practically seem like you and your best friend. These are 17 times Joe and Barack behaved like two college besties.
1. When your best friend can't take you seriously
STAHP, I'm trying to do something important here.
2. When you realize their family is your family
Hi Mom, it's me, your daughter's best friend.
3. When you spend the night ranting about life and boys
Cheers to that.
4. When you make an inside joke
They know what you mean.
5. When you both promise to force each other to work out
Usually "going to the gym" means a Netflix night instead, though.
6. When you have to take care of your drunk BFF
"Okay Joe, let's get you some water."
7. When you let them set you up on a date
Please, help me out.
8. When you can't keep it together in public
"Remember that time when…"
9. When you get all mushy on them
We basically belong together.
10. When you spend all your time together eating
Always up for that late-night food.
11. When your friend tells you this quarter they will focus on school more
Lol we both know you'll be going out next week.
12. When they text you "Hey what are you doing rn?"
Yes, the answer is yes, whatever we're doing, yes.
13. When you know each other a little too well
I gotchu fam.
14. You sometimes get a bit annoyed with each other…
15. …but the PDA is real
*wife steps aside*
16. When you're proud of your bestie
I can't contain it.
17. When you tell your friend how much they mean to you
Obama gave Biden the Presidential Medal of Freedom ;-;
The only thing cuter than Ryan Gosling is Ryan Gosling as a child. The La La Land actor appeared on The Graham Norton Show last night with costar Emma Stone, and Graham surprised him with a seriously embarrassing video of himself when he was younger.
In the video, Ryan is dancing to the '90s classic hit "Touch Me" by Cathy Dennis, performing for Elite Dance Studio in a Canadian talent show. After explaining he was "old enough to know better," Ryan hilariously watched himself showcase some super smooth dance moves in his very stylish silver hammer pants.
"I wish I could say that someone said, 'Here you have to wear this,' but that was my idea. I thought, 'I have a vision for this number with something simple and silver hammer pants,'" Ryan says.
Watch his sick moves—and his LOL-worthy reaction—below!
Singer Robin Thicke and his ex-wife, actress Paula Patton, have had relatively amicable relations since their divorce in March 2015. However, that relationship might be changing since TMZ reports that a custody war is brewing between the two. Patton is alleging that Thicke spanked their 6-year-old son Julian so hard that he informed his mother and his school.
The school handed the incident over to the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services to further examine the situation. In legal documents obtained by TMZ, Patton addressed Thicke, saying, "Julian is scared of you."
There were also claims of other instances of violence, with a school official telling the court that Julian says Thicke “punches” him.
However, Thicke’s reply in the court documents suggests that not only was spanking a form of discipline the pair agreed on when they were married, but Patton is also lashing out after not being invited to his father Alan Thicke’s funeral following his sudden passing on Dec. 13. “Paula did not have a positive relationship with my father and often made negative comments to me about my father,” Thicke says. “As such, she was not welcome at his funeral.”
TMZ reports that while a judge did not agree to Patton’s request to change her joint custody agreement, the DCFS is still interviewing the family. Hopefully these two can settle the issue for Julian’s sake.
We just can't stop the feeling with this super adorable couple! In a recent interview on the The Late Late Show with James Corden, Jessica Biel reveals that she knew husband Justin Timberlake was "the one" from day one.
During the segment, Jessica mentions that after she and Justin met they "talked on the phone for hours like preteens" since he was on tour. Because of all the phone calls, Jessica wrote an email to her producer, Michelle Purple, that pretty much foretold her entire romantic future.
"It was literally, like, 'OK, I can't make that meeting so we'll have to cancel,'" Jessica says. "'Also, I know I'm gonna marry this man, you can't tell anybody but your husband.'"
Jessica admits in the interview that she can't remember what Justin did that day that made her write that email, but from that day forward, she knew she was going to marry him. Cutest story ever.
When she is not being nominated for countless awards or filming a new movie, actress Jessica Chastain advocates for women’s rights and other important issues. Last night, Chastain tweeted about her disappointment in the United States government's lack of concern for protecting women’s reproductive rights.
#BirthControl is no longer covered by health insurance. Congrats USA, you're doing your part to keep women out of the work force. #smfh
Chastain took the high road and ignored Garza's tweet. Rather than engage in a Twitter feud with him, she further explained her stance to all her followers.
If you are not ready to provide for a family, if you want to finish school, if you want to build a career, protect yourself. #IUD@PPact
While Garza's response alone was bizarre, it's even more out of line for a man to think he has to lecture a woman about birth control and reproductive rights. Keep speaking up for women, Jessica! We respect you and believe in your message.
If you’re reading this, you’re probably in the stage of life most commonly referred to by collegiettes as “adulting.” Besides having to make your own meals, schedule your own doctor’s appointments, and do your own laundry, there’s something else that you have to face — applying for jobs.
Before you call your mom freaking out, hear us out on this — it doesn’t have to be that bad, especially if you possess the right skill set. While it’s self-explanatory that an editor needs to be knowledgeable in copyediting, a computer programmer needs to be proficient in coding and a nurse needs to know how to administer shots, there are skills that people applying to all of these jobs should have.
In every job, you will have to communicate effectively with other people, whether it’s your co-workers, boss or customers. It’s important to be able to listen, speak and write clearly.
Gautam explains, “As far as communication goes, it is one of the most important soft skills that an employee can possess. Nowadays especially, employers are looking for well round individuals that not only possess the technical skills, but interpersonal skills to be able to work in any environment. It does not matter what job or position it is for because in any situation, an employee will come across various instances of human interaction that they need to be capable of handling and handling it well.”
According to McIntosh, practicing effective communication skills can come as simply as maintaining effective correspondence with your fellow co-workers. This can range from responding to emails in a timely manner, following up with individuals, and having the confidence to ask questions.
Most job settings require some form of cooperation with coworkers, sometimes taking the form of teamwork. Employees should not only be able to work in a team towards a common goal, but also bring out the best in other team members.
In regards to teamwork, Gautam says, “Many companies and employers are gearing towards an environment in which each team has a diverse group of employees with different skillsets to bring to the table in order to efficiently complete tasks and reach goals.”
The classroom provides a perfect environment in which collegiettes can work on their teamwork skills. Although we may dread group projects, they are good opportunities to learn how to work with others to achieve a common goal — receiving a good grade and passing a class. However, teamwork skills aren’t limited to just the classroom. Intermural, club, and varsity athletes also have great opportunities to learn how to work together to meet the end goal of winning games.
3. Analytical and problem solving skills
As ingenuity and independence are highly valued in the workplace, any employee should be able to think of creative ways to solve problems from different angles.
In Gautam’s experience, employers look for individuals with these skills so they could not only have the sharpest minds on their teams, but also to ensure that these employees don’t need as much guidance to accomplish their tasks.
But how exactly can collegiettes practice analytical and problem solving skills? An important aspect of problem solving is to focus on the solution rather than the problem. Doing this will prevent any negative “emotional blocks” from getting in the way of finding a solution. Additionally, it’s important to be open minded, especially knowing that there can be more than one solution to a given problem.
4. Leadership
Although you may not jump into a managerial position right after college, you should never hesitate to show off your girl boss talents! These qualities include being able to delegate tasks, motivate others and cultivate passion for your company.
Gautam encourages that collegiettes exhibit their leadership abilities, saying, “Strong leadership skills mean that individuals are well-rounded. It shows that they are able to motivate their coworkers to do their jobs and be passionate about it.”
Need to practice or enhance your leadership skills? One good way to do this is through an executive board position in an extracurricular activity or student organization! Use these four (or more) years in college to be a leader on your campus.
5. Flexibility and adaptability
Not everything in your workday will always go as planned. For example, a meeting may get cancelled at the last minute or your boss may ask you to rush a report to his or her desk. Being flexible and able to adapt to such changes shows that you are prepared and reliable.
When it comes to flexibility and adaptability, McIntosh says, “No matter what type of work environment you are involved in, there will be times when things will change suddenly and abruptly, and truthfully in many situations it’s impossible to ever be fully prepared to tackle these unforeseen obstacles. However, employees who have confidence in their skills, their team, and most importantly themselves to make the right decisions are more likely to succeed within their organization.”
6. Self-motivation
Your supervisor won’t always be hovering over you to do your work or stay motivated to complete a task in a timely manner. Being productive with little supervision shows that you are able to work independently and that your boss can trust that you’ll get the work done.
Gautam stresses that employers want individuals that are willing to help the company reach its goals, as well as go beyond what is expected of them.
7. Technical literacy
We live in an age of growing technological dependency — nearly everyone has a smartphone and computer, many daily tasks are becoming computer-automated and companies use social media as means to tap into new clientele and publicize their successes. With such a prevalence of technology in the workplace, employees should have a basic background in computer skills, as well as an understanding of how to use technology to advance their professional performance.
As a start, McIntosh suggests becoming proficient in “fundamental” technology programs such as Microsoft Suite (i.e. Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Outlook) as well as being able to conduct basic research via search engines (e.g. Bing, Google, Internet Explorer, etc.).
Now that you know what will make you a better employee in any job, you can get to working on these skills before you turn in your next application or go to your next interview. May the odds be in your favor in your job hunts and show employers how much of a girl boss you really are!
With her nose in books and a library card in her purse, the girl who loves to read is in a league of her own. While it may seem like the girl with a book clutched in her hand and a pencil behind her ear is unapproachable, mysterious or maybe even aloof, she secretly just may be a hopeless romantic with a lust for turning her life into something out of a storybook.
When you date the girl who reads, you date the girl who’s learned about different cultures, traveled through time, solved murder mysteries and so much more—when you find this girl, she will prove to you time and time again the many reasons why you should always date the girl who reads.
1. She craves adventure
A girl who reads is constantly on a quest for adventures -- both in her books and in her life. She loves hearing about all the places she could go, things she could see, and she’ll stop at nothing to ensure she’ll make it there.
2. She’ll want to have conversation, not small talk
In the depths of her mind are stories of love, life, fantasy, adventure, and she’ll be much eager to talk about that than the weather or “what’s up.” Witty banter and deep conversations are imperative to the girl who reads, creating better and more interesting conversation for the person dating her.
3. She never wants to stop learning
Avid readers are also avid learners. They seek to broaden their horizons and never stop gaining knowledge and wisdom through their reading. She’ll never stop seeking wisdom, and whether you realize it or not, she’ll teach you more than you ever thought you’d learn.
4. She’s patient
Readers are not quitters. If she can read a novel cover-to-cover, despite how many times she’s wanted to put it down, she has the capacity to deal with your shortcomings.
5. She’s articulate
Reading undoubtedly expands your vocabulary and diction. A girl who reads is not only expressive, but eloquent in the manner she speaks, good for you when you want to bring her home to mom -- but bad when you try to argue with her, because the graceful way words slip off of her tongue will always triumph.
6. She leaves her heart in her books
A girl who reads falls more in love with stories than with people. Books will fill her with joy, break her heart, and doubtlessly make her fall in love before you ever will -- which may seem daunting to the one trying to win her affection, but you’ll grow to admire the way she quotes her favorite authors and finds so much beauty in how words are turned into sentences, sentences are turned into ideas, and ideas to stories.
7. She appreciates symbolic romantic gestures
While chocolate and flowers are admirable to many, the girl who reads is more easily impressed by symbolic gestures of affection and the meaning and thought behind tokens and affection. While big teddy bears and fancy gifts are pleasing to the eyes, women who read seek romance that is pleasing to the mind.
8. She’ll be comfortable with spending the night in
She’ll go out with you, but a girl who reads will also see the value of staying in, getting cozy and having deep, meaningful conversations.
9. She may not agree with you, but she’ll hear you out
Those who read are masters at listening to the opinions and statements of others while still retaining their own viewpoints. Women who read are above fighting -- they would rather have logical discussion that leads to respectful discourse. She won’t dismiss your ideas completely, instead she’ll compile a well-thought out list of reasons why you’re wrong.
10. She has a greater appreciation for the world
Books have the ability to take you places without ever leaving home. Those who read learn about history, culture, different lifestyles, various ways of thinking and more -- giving them a broader understanding of life, and a heightened appreciation for the little things this world has to offer.
11. She’ll be ecstatic about dates at the bookstore
A perfect date for the lady bookworm involves roaming around the noisy city while seeking solace inside a quaint little bookstore, full of new books she’s never encountered.
12. She’s effortless to shop for
Anything literary themed is a winner in her book.
13. She’ll turn you into a reader too
Whether it’s her adamancy that you read the latest book with her, or your own curiosity for what book she’s got her nose in now, slowly but surely, you’ll learn to fall just as in love with reading as you do with her.
14. She’ll never get bored
A good story is all a reader needs to be entertained. She doesn’t care about the superficialities of gossip, or parties. Instead she relishes relationships and memories, and spends too much time in her own thoughts to ever get "bored."
15. She’s constantly inspired to do something and be something
What else would you expect from someone who spends their free time reading about heroes and heroines? The girl who reads aspires to do something big, and become someone greater than who she is today. The girl who reads has big dreams, and while others may tell her they are unrealistic, she knows that real life is far more unpredictable than fiction.
16. She’ll turn her life into a story, with you as the main character
The girl who reads is also the girl who seeks to make her life mimic the glamorized ones in the tales that she reads. She seeks adventure, romance and comedy -- and what story is complete without an unexpected love interest?
Octavia Spencer decided to kick off Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend by giving back in a major way: Entertainment Weekly reports that the actress bought out Friday night's 8 p.m. screening of her new film Hidden Figures at a theater in Baldwin Hills, California, reserving the seats for families who might not otherwise be able to afford a trip to the movie theater.
Spencer announced the gesture on her Instagram, saying her mother and other single parents were her inspiration for paying it forward.
"Tomorrow I've bought the 8pm showing of #hiddenfigures the rave Baldwin hills," her caption read. "If you know a family in need that would like to see our movie but can't afford it have them come. It's first come first served. My mom would not have been able to afford to take me and my siblings. So, I'm honoring her and all single parents this #mlkweekend"
A photo posted by Octavia Spencer (@therealoctaviaspencer) on
Spencer stars alongside Janelle Monae and Taraji P. Henson in the Golden Globe-nominated film, which is an inspiring true story of the three African American women who were instrumental in the first moon landing - making it the perfect family movie opportunity for Spencer to offer up to those who might not normally have been able to see it.
We all know that college dorms are really a giant petri dish, so you're probably upping your germ-fighting game because you know that the moment someone on your floor gets sick, everyone else is next. Maybe you’re washing your hands more often or purposely avoiding those who might be getting sick, but do you know about the disturbing number of germs that lurk in some of your most simple habits?
We spoke with Dr. Darria Long Gillespie, executive vice president of the health and wellness platform Sharecare, about the icky topic, and she doled out some seriously useful advice to help you steer clear of bacteria while not having to go sterilization crazy. If you’re wondering just how easy it is to spread germs, check out these habits that you probably do every day!
1. Talking on your cell phone
At some point or another, you've probably heard a news report that suggests your cellphone is dirtier than a toilet. Given how attached we are to our mobile devices, it's not surprising that these reports have some truth to them.
Aside from sparking breakouts, germs that come in contact with your face can cause much more harm. Cellphones can be home to bacteria like E.coli and MRSA.
Dr. Gillespie, who is also an emergency physician at Emory University Hospital, advises wiping your cellphone down regularly with an alcohol or Lysol towelette. "Cell phones can get really gross," she says. "Think of all the places you set your phone down—the restaurant table, a taxi cab seat—and then think of how often you put it up to your face and mouth!”
So next time you’re in a public space, you might want to think twice about putting your phone down on any old surface!
2. Using public pens
When you pay for a meal at a restaurant, signing your name on the receipt is almost second nature. The moment the piece of paper and pen are placed in front of you, you know what to do, which is probably why the cleanliness factor never crosses your mind.
If 50 people before you had used the pen, it's almost as if you've shaken hands with every one of them. Dr. Gillespie suggests carrying your own pen around with you and making a habit of using it at stores, restaurants and banks.
Though a public pen is not home to one specific germ, using it is a surefire way of increasing your risk of catching the common cold. Who knows if the people before you were wiping their noses with their hands or coughing into them?
3. Doing the dishes
You would think that the kitchen sink is free of germs since, after all, it's where cleaning takes place, right? Wrong. Surprisingly, the kitchen harbors more germs than any other room in the home, and it's your trusty sponge that remains one of the biggest culprits. After much repeated use, sponges become clogged with bacteria like E.coli and salmonella.
So when you think you're cleaning your favorite mug, you could really be spreading germs that may have belonged to any of your roommates, or worse, germs that stem from contact with raw meat or eggs. The next time you go to do the dishes, think back to the last time you replaced it. If your sponge is more than a few weeks old or looks like it's falling apart, toss it.
Dr. Gillespie also advises keeping two sponges for different purposes. "Sinks themselves can get really dirty, so don't wash your dishes with the same sponge you wiped the sink down with," she says. "Keep one for food-carrying products and another for cleaning the actual sink."
For further defense against bacteria, Dr. Gillespie says that popping your sponge in the microwave works as well. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, nuking a wet sponge for just 60 seconds can decrease bacteria by 100 percent.
While you can bring your own pen to the store to avoid sharing the same one with tons of shoppers, there's really no good way to get out of touching questionably dirty money and swiping your credit cards through PIN pad machines. Dr. Gillespie says the best thing you can do is to use hand sanitizer right afterwards so you don't forget and end up touching your face or eating with dirty hands.
Although washing your hands is preferable, realistically you're not going to run to the bathroom every time you touch something that's potentially filthy. Of course, not everyone is going to get into the habit of Purelling after every transaction, so just be mindful of what your hands last touched until they’re clean.
5. Serving yourself food at the dining hall
If you see food servers at your dining hall wearing gloves and washing their hands often, you would think you're in the clear from germs, right? Not necessarily, it turns out, especially if your dining hall is buffet style.
If you just finished your plate of food and want to go back for more, it's smartest to get a new plate. By returning to the salad bar and accidentally touching the serving utensil to the plate you've already eaten off of, you are spreading your germs to anyone else who will later use that utensil. For the benefit of others, grab a new plate if you go back for seconds.
Dr. Gillespie says that during flu season, she will grab a napkin and use it to hold the serving utensils. "It may seem neurotic, but it's kept me from getting sick [when everyone else is]," she says.
As another precaution, Dr. Gillespie says that whenever food is being served in a shared environment, it's best to get in the habit of either washing your hands or using hand sanitizer before eating.
Because of all the sweating that goes on, the gym can be considered a pretty gross place to begin with even before you factor in the germs. But if you think of all the nasty sicknesses you can catch from gym equipment, like the stomach flu or MRSA (which causes tough-to-treat infections), you may start to consider it just downright scary.
As a germ-fighting tactic, many gyms have placed hand sanitizer and wipe dispensers around their facilities. Some even hang signs on the walls asking gym-goers to wipe down machines after they're done using them, but there's really no way of knowing if your equipment was cleaned before you hop on.
Dr. Gillespie recommends wiping down your equipment before using it because not everyone remembers to clean their machines, even if they had intended to. "Be sure to let [your] equipment air-dry, as that gets rid of the germs best," she says.
While you don't want drive yourself crazy and start being that person who sprays Lysol on everything in sight, it's good to be aware of where germs hide and how easily they spread. These germ-infested habits can be worrisome, but there’s no need to lose sleep over them. As long as you keep Dr. Gillespie’s tips in mind, you should have nothing to fear when it comes to these pesky germs!
Considering it's only been 66 days since Donald Trump was made president-elect of the United States and many of us are already tired of seeing him everywhere we turn (er, click?) on the Internet, it's going to be a long four years - except fear not, because this Google Chrome extension is here to save us from the struggles of Trump innudation.
Aptly named, "Make America Kittens Again" it automatically replaces every photo of Donald Trump in your browser with pictures of adorable kittens, "because f*** that guy," the extension's download page reads. In an update, the developer has also made it so users can, "Use the options page to additionally block Mike Pence, Nigel Farage, Marine Le Pen, Geert Wilders, or the whole awful bunch of them." So basically, it's everything our post-election selves ever needed.
In case you were wondering, this is what your New York Times front page could look like with "Make America Kittens Again"according to Business Insider:
While the app unfortunately doesn't work on Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites (yet?), it definitely makes browsing essential news sites a lot cuter - and with the inauguration coming up, we've never needed it more.
We're pretty sure there isn't a single person on this earth who isn't obsessed with the adorable romance between Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling's characters in Crazy, Stupid, Love - and their re-creation of that famous Dirty Dancing lift, to be specific.
You know the scene:
Anyways, it turns out Emma Stone herself was not such a big fan. According to Refinery29, on a recent appearance on The Graham Norton Show alongside her La La Land costar Ryan Gosling, Stone opened up about how the lift actually terrfied her and basically made her go into, "full meltdown," mode. Apparently, a childhood incident is to blame.
"When I was seven years old, I was in gymnastics class and I was on these parallel bars and my teacher was holding me by the ankles," she said. "Somehow or other, she let go. And I was standing on this bar and I felt myself beginning to tip forward and I fell six feet to the ground and I broke both my arms."
Ouch. So it's no surprise then that she wasn't exactly keen on the whole, "Ryan Gosling raising her six feet into the air," thing.
Gosling elaborated on Stone's phobia of being lifted off the ground (with a LOL-inducing comparison to a possum, no less).
"I can only imagine if a possum fell out of a tree, landed on my head and tried to scratch my eyes out, it would be something similar!" he said, making it not-so-difficult to see why, in the end, they decided to just use a stunt double instead - and we're glad they did considering that super cute scene makes the movie one of our go-to chick flicks of choice.
