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Teachers discover Beyonce’s ‘mute challenge’ is the perfect way to quiet their classrooms

Gone are the days of shrill whistles and obnoxious bullhorns to demand a classroom’s attention. Instead, teachers are opting for more creative calls-to-action, usually involving some kind of musicality. Clapping rhythms, singsongy phrases, even throwback song lyrics are fun ways to get distracted, rambunctious kids to quiet down and focus. No matter which delivery style a teacher uses, it has to appeal to their young audience.

So of course, a call-to-action inspired by Beyoncé is the perfect choice.


If you haven’t heard of the “mute challenge” taking over social media, it stems from a viral moment that happened during Beyoncé’s recent Renaissance tour.

After Beyoncé would sing the lyrics, “Look around, everybody on mute,” for her song “Energy,” her backup performers and everyone in the crowd would freeze.

@super_negra Atlanta Night 1 are still the “On Mute Challenge” champions. (8-11-23) ✨ #Atlanta #OnMute #Beyonce #Music #RWT ♬ original sound – Super_Negra

A few seconds of silence would go by, and then the song would resume.

You can probably see why this trend would work really well with some rowdy students. Former teacher, now actress Jackée Harry certainly did as she posted “I hope teachers start using “look around everybody on mute” to quiet their classrooms” to X (formerly Twitter).

Let’s just say—teachers were more than willing to complete their assignment. And their classes aced it with flying colors.

Check out how well they did below. Watching the look of sheer delight on each teacher’s face during the sweet silence is truly priceless.

@aminahtiyee Gotta keep the kids hip 🤣 #mutechallenge #beyonce #firstgrade #teacherlife #viral #fyp #foryou #firstgradeteacher #teachers #teachersoftiktok #classroommanagement ♬ original sound – Aminah Tiyee

@yourfavemusicteacher17 #mutechallenge #musicteachersoftiktok #chorus #singing #beyonce ♬ original sound – Adria Gainer-Smith

Part of the call-to-action’s success is that young students are equally invested in Beyoncé as the teachers are, so it’s a fun bonding moment. In a way it’s bringing the popular concert to the classroom. And it makes the kids super passionate.

Aminah Muhammad, a first grade teacher in Lawrenceville, Georgia, told Today that her kids even give a “big gasp” before they do it.

But even the super young kiddos who weren’t part of the Beyhive, and had no idea who Beyoncé was (can you believe it?) responded well to the challenge, and only needed a quick explainer of how to do it.

All in all, what’s great about this is that teachers are getting to infuse a bit of their own unique personalities into their job, and that it’s getting a great response from their students. Structure is important, but that doesn’t mean rigid formality is required.

Now—will these teachers be able to get their students to wear all silver outfits, just like Queen Bey did for her tour? Stay tuned.

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Communication coach can determine your personality using just 4 pieces of paper

Communication Coach Zac Broomfield, or @l4coach on TikTok, has shared a fun test test that he says can provide valuable insights into someone’s personality. Zac is a professional family communication expert at Level 4 Coaching.

“There’s a question I ask my clients about which piece of paper you would prefer,” Zac begins the video. “While this isn’t a scientific assessment, I have found that there are some common traits amongst folks that pick a certain type of paper.”


To begin the assessment, Coach Zac asks his clients to choose from four types of paper: lined paper, blank printer paper, a page from a coloring book, and graph paper. He then provides a detailed personality profile based on their paper preference.

@l4coach

Are your graph, blank, lined or coloring? #paper #psychology #notscience #parenting #communication #family #graph #lined #coloring #blank

Here’s Zac’s breakdown of the different choices:

Coloring book page

Zac says that coloring book people are creative, open-minded and nurturing but are looking “for folks to create a structure for them.” He adds that people with this preference often work with children or in healthcare.

Graph paper

“They prefer to create a structure for themselves,” he says. These people are logical, analytical and love organization. These are your engineers, mathematicians and architects.

​Lined paper

These people are orderly, disciplined, responsible, and tend to be reflective and thoughtful. These people are planners, journalers, readers and writers.

Blank computer paper

“These are independent, self-reliant people,” he says, adding they “can be a little bit controlling.” These folks tend to be out-of-the-box thinkers and are often innovators or entrepreneurs.

Zac ends the video by noting that the test isn’t “absolute” but that it’s a “fun question to ask,” and it gives you a “little bit of insight.”

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Little girl’s viral pink chair costume finally gets an explanation and it’s perfect

Kids are interesting, especially between the ages of early toddlerhood and first grade. They can literally fall over laughing because you ripping paper is suddenly hilarious or develop a deep connection with a mixing spoon that they insist on taking everywhere. You really never know what they’re going to do and as parents we just learn to go with it.

As long as it’s not hurting them or anyone else, go for it. For nearly two years my daughter dressed up as Snow White every day, complete with plastic heels, only taking a break for wash days when all three costumes were dirty. So it’s not a surprise when one little girl decided she wanted to be a pink chair for Halloween.

Recently, her parents posted a compilation video on their TikTok page, Toy Story Dad, partially captioned, “This is her world and we are all just living in it,” giving an explanation on her viral chair costume.


The best part of the explanation is that it didn’t need to be explained. They just compiled videos of all of the times they asked their daughter, Scarlet, what she wanted to be for Halloween, likely thinking she would change her mind. But she didn’t, in fact, she started to look a bit miffed at them constantly asking. Every time they would ask, the little girl who looks to be about three replies, “a pink chair.”

No further explanation is needed. She was a pink chair for Halloween last year simply because she was persistent in her request and she just happened to be the cutest little pink chair out there. Commenters loved her adorable insistence and some included their own interesting costume choices their kids have had.

“The request, the persistence, the delivery, the execution (chef’s hand inserted) this little lady is going places,” one person writes.

“HER LEGS BEING THE BACK LEGS OF THE CHAIR IS SO CUTE,” another commenter writes.

“My friend has twin girls. One was a princess and the other was a crouton as per their requests,” someone says.

There were some revelations of unique costume choices in the comments. Kids dressed up as an oven, air conditioner, water bottle and even a recycling bin. Little ones are so creative but so are their parents because I’m going to assume it’s unlikely to come across an oven or chair at your local Target. But you can see her adorable costume below:

@toystorydad_

This is her world and we are all just living in it. 💕What is the funniest thing your kid has dressed up as? Or wanted to dress up as?

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Daughter explains brutal obituary she wrote for her father about his ‘bad parenting’

Everyone is entitled to a few nice words at their funeral, as the adage goes. Normally, this is a non-issue. Flaws can be ignored or overlooked for the sake of harmony and a peaceful, optimistic send-off.

But what if the flaws created too much damage and heartache to go without saying?

Sheila Smith made headlines last week with an obituary that was as honest in what can only be described as a brutal sense. Brutal for the departed, her father Leslie Ray Charping, and brutal for the family that had to endure his life and death.

Here’s the obituary in its entirety, taken from the website of Carnes Funeral Home:


Leslie Ray “Popeye” Charping was born in Galveston, Texas on November 20, 1942 and passed away January 30, 2017, which was 29 years longer than expected and much longer than he deserved. Leslie battled with cancer in his latter years and lost his battle, ultimately due to being the horses ass he was known for. He leaves behind 2 relieved children; a son Leslie Roy Charping and daughter, Shiela Smith along with six grandchildren and countless other victims including an ex wife, relatives, friends, neighbors, doctors, nurses and random strangers.

At a young age, Leslie quickly became a model example of bad parenting combined with mental illness and a complete commitment to drinking, drugs, womanizing and being generally offensive. Leslie enlisted to serve in the Navy, but not so much in a brave & patriotic way but more as part of a plea deal to escape sentencing on criminal charges. While enlisted, Leslie was the Navy boxing champion and went on to sufficiently embarrass his family and country by spending the remainder of his service in the Balboa Mental Health Hospital receiving much needed mental healthcare services.

Leslie was surprisingly intelligent, however he lacked ambition and motivation to do anything more than being reckless, wasteful, squandering the family savings and fantasizing about get rich quick schemes. Leslie’s hobbies included being abusive to his family, expediting trips to heaven for the beloved family pets and fishing, which he was less skilled with than the previously mentioned. Leslie’s life served no other obvious purpose, he did not contribute to society or serve his community and he possessed no redeeming qualities besides quick whited sarcasm which was amusing during his sober days.

With Leslie’s passing he will be missed only for what he never did; being a loving husband, father and good friend. No services will be held, there will be no prayers for eternal peace and no apologizes to the family he tortured. Leslie’s remains will be cremated and kept in the barn until “Ray”, the family donkey’s wood shavings run out. Leslie’s passing proves that evil does in fact die and hopefully marks a time of healing and safety for all.

The obituary walks a fine line between uncloaked honesty and mean-spiritedness, repeatedly falling on either side. If this obituary is to be believed (no person or account has publicly questioned or denounced this characterization), his family has a right to be both angry for his life and happy for his death. However, the controversy surrounding this obituary isn’t the survivors’ feelings, but their expression of them.

Sheila, speaking to The Michael Berry Show, a radio program, stood by the obituary she wrote, claiming it was an effort to heal, forget, and minimize the residual impact his death would have on their lives. To realize this, and to fulfill her late father’s wishes, the obituary needed to be honest. She said to the show’s host, ” A week after he passed I sat down and began working on it. I was somewhat blocked and everything I was going to write was going to be a lie,” she said. “He hated a liar and he would appreciate this.”

Speaking earlier to KTRK, Sheila said that those who are bothered by this or the notion of speaking ill of the dead, are fortunate to not understand. “I am happy for those that simply do not understand, this means you had good parent(s) — please treasure what you have.”

She continued to say that whitewashing transgressions that are so endemic and undiscussed in the world, such as her father’s issues with domestic violence and alcoholism, serves no greater good.

She concluded, “I apologize to anyone that my father hurt and I felt it would have been offensive to portray him as anything other than who he was,” she also said. “This obituary was intended to help bring closure because not talking about domestic violence doesn’t make it go away!”

This article originally appeared on 05.22.19

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5 things I didn’t want to hear when I was grieving and 1 thing that helped

In 2013, I found out I was pregnant with triplets.

Image via iStock.

My husband and I were in shock but thrilled at the news after dealing with infertility for years. And it didn’t take long for the comments to begin. When people found out, the usual remarks followed: “Triplets?! What are you going to do? Three kids at once?! Glad it’s not me!”

After mastering my response (and an evil look reserved for the rudest comments), I figured that was the worst of it. But little did I know I would be facing far worse comments after two of my triplets passed away.

On June 23, 2013, I gave birth to my triplets, more than four months premature.

My daughter, Abigail, passed away that same day; my son, Parker, died just shy of 2 months old. Before then, I didn’t know much about child loss; it was uncharted territory. Like most people, I wouldn’t know how to respond or what to say if a friend’s child passed away.

Image via iStock.

But two years later, I have found that some things are better left unsaid. These comments come from a good place, and I know people mean well, but they sure do sting.

Here are my top five things not to say to a grieving parent — and the thing I love to hear instead.


1. “Everything happens for a reason.”

It’s a cringeworthy comment for those of us who have lost a child. Sometimes, there is no rhyme or reason for why things happen in life. A parent should not outlive their child. I don’t know why my body couldn’t handle my pregnancy or why I went into labor at 22 weeks.

This phrase goes along with another I often hear: “God only gives us what we can handle.” I remember talking with my childhood rabbi the night before my son passed away, and I asked her, “Why me?” Her response is something I now live by every single day. She said, “God doesn’t give us only what we can handle. He helps us handle what we’ve been given.”

2. “They are in a better place.”

Instead of comforting, this is a phrase that makes me feel down in the dumps. I longed to be a parent for so many years. And children are meant to be in the loving arms of their parents.

I think I speak for every grieving mother and father when I say, we would give anything to hold our babies again.

3. “At least you have one survivor. Count your blessings.”

I like to think of myself as a positive person. But even two years later, my heart still aches for Parker and Abby. And on the most difficult, dark days of grief, it’s hard to “count my blessings.”

Yes, I am blessed. I have a gorgeous miracle child who is the light of my life. But Peyton should be playing with her brother and sister in our home, not just waving to their pictures and blowing kisses to heaven.

4. “You are still young. You can have more children.”

It doesn’t matter whether or not our biological clock is ticking. Many people have no idea what couples go through to have a child: Some can’t have children of their own; others may face years of infertility or miscarriages. And for people like me, trying for more children may be something too scary to even think about. I came close to death after delivering my children — that’s enough to scar me for life.

5. “I don’t know how you do it. I couldn’t imagine losing two children.”

Some days I don’t know how I do it either. But we learn how to live with it. We learn a “new normal,” and in those tough moments, we celebrate that we survived the day. This comment is a difficult reminder of our grief and the children who were sent to heaven.

So, what should you say to a grieving parent?

There are no words to take the pain away, of course, but simply letting that person know you are there for them is more than enough.

For me, the best thing someone can do is to talk about my angels. Say Parker and Abby by name, and don’t be afraid to ask questions about them.

While they were only here for a short time, they left a huge imprint on this world. I love talking about my angels, and simply hearing someone else mention them by name is enough to wipe away the grief and warm my heart for days.

This article originally appeared on July 15, 2016

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People are sharing things teachers did in the ’80s and ’90s that would ‘never fly’ now

The typical kid’s experience in school is a lot different today than it was 30 to 40 years ago. It’s hard to say whether things are better or worse, but there’s been a sea change in how children are raised.

One negative development is that teachers tend to think parents are more likely to side with their kids over faculty in disputes than they were decades ago. On the positive side, corporal punishment is on the decrease, so students are much less likely to be physically punished for breaking the rules.

A Reddit user with the username u/theSandwichSister asked the ‘80s and ‘90s kids on the forum, “What’s something a school teacher did to you that would not fly today?” A lot of the responses were about the type of physical punishment and humiliation that used to happen in schools that would never happen these days.


There were also a lot of posts about teachers who smoked around their students. Can you imagine a kindergarten teacher lighting up in front of their students these days? They’d be fired in a flash.

Overall, the responses show that schools are a lot more concerned with the mental and emotional health of their students these days, which is a wonderful improvement. Schools also seem to be much more friendly environments to students who are people of color, LGBTQ or have disabilities.

Here are 17 of the best responses to the question, “What’s something a school teacher did to you that would not fly today?”

1.

“Not a teacher, but school one. If you read enough books during the year in elementary school you got to have a sleepover in the library. Like we brought sleeping bags and slept on the floor. In the morning they had griddles out and we made pancakes. I know, total nerds, but it was my favorite elementary school memory.” — 7askingforafriend

2.

“My elementary school principal would pull loose teeth. You could go to his office, have him pull your loose tooth and he would give you a lollipop.” — snowfuckerforreal

3.

“I told my biology teacher that I wasn’t feeling too well, he said that I didn’t look sick, and as punishment made me stand in the corner until I fainted.” — AustrianReaper

4.

“In high school, we would sometimes play knee soccer which was in our wrestling room (wall to wall wrestling mats) and was really just handball but on our knees. The PE teacher (football coach) let us play rough since it was an all male class and we were on our knees and couldn’t do too much damage. During the game, two of the students were grappling for the ball and as these things go, one of them accidentally knocked the other a little too aggressively. The kid that got hit (an known asshole of the school) got pissed and stood up and kicked the other kid.

The PE teacher (225lb jacked military hair cut) stormed over and shoved the kid who flew about 10 feet before crashing to the ground. The kid gets up ready to fight whoever shoved him and the teacher had closed the gap and started screaming at him. Then the teacher lectured the entire class about sportsmanship and honor. The teacher never got in any trouble.” — hangingonwith2fingers

5.

“In 5th grade, I was called to the office at my public school. I was a goody two-shoes so I had no idea why I was called, so I started tearing up thinking something bad must’ve happened to my family. Eventually, I was ushered into a room as my two best friends left. The principal and 2 other staff members then sat me down and showed me a piece of paper. It was a silly poem I wrote one of my friends about a good witch who granted wishes by mixing together some mundane ingredients. Apparently, their mother found the poem and complained to the school. Their response was to interview my friends about MY RELIGION.” — ktbunny

6.

“6th grade teacher Ms. Sullivan would take 3 kids every Friday to McDonald’s for lunch. She was cool as hell. Smoked during the drive and everything.” — SigP365SAS

7.

“My 3rd grade teacher had the whole class camp in her backyard after the last day of school. She took us to see the original TMNT movie in the theater, then we stayed up late telling ghost stories. One of my absolute fondest memories.” — Cambot1138

8.

“Yeah, there are a lot of negative things in this thread, which makes sense, but there are some ‘cool teacher’ things that we lost too. I got a ride home from school once from a male teacher in middle school (I’m female) when it was pouring rain and my mom wouldn’t come get me, but I bet that’s not allowed these days.” — rabidstoat

9.

“English teacher in high school used to cuss kids out for being noisy in class and if that didn’t work, he’d throw the blackboard eraser at us. I wasn’t on the receiving end of the eraser. That chalk would leave marks on kid’s backs for the rest of the day so everyone knew who pissed off Mr Charvet.” — Roscoe_Cracks_Corn

 

10.

“7th-grade science class, the teacher walked around with a beaker full of mercury and told us to stick a finger in it to feel how dense it was. Then he gave us each our own penny-size drop of mercury to play with at our desks, so we could see how it moved. I’m sure we were poisoned that day. Nowadays if a thermometer breaks they clear the school.” — weirdkid71

11.

“Not something done to me per se, but my 3rd grade teacher had a little office with a door inside our classroom, and she would smoke cigarettes in there while we were at lunch/recess.” — HutSutRawlson

 

12.

“Cheese Day in the Midwest. It was in first grade. For an entire day, all you ate was cheese. Cheese puffs, curls, sticks, slices, balls, and Doritos. Drank orange Hi-C as well. For 10+ years, smelling that fake cheese made me gag. After her wedding, and the birth of her son, my sister says Cheese Day the best day of her life. Wasn’t Wisconsin either.” — 2_Spicy_2_Impeach

13.

“They told us Pluto was a planet.” — Representative-Fig96

14.

“Best math teacher ever made us say numerator/denominator in Schwarzenegger voices as we were learning fractions.” — kittensington

15.

“High School, we were on campus, drove a van to the locker rooms because I was with The QB, Linebacker and a couple of linemen who needed to get crap from their lockers. We were drinking beer in the van, it was 1:30, the football coach sees us, stops the van, looks inside and sees the beer, and shook his head and told us to be careful and get off campus. I don’t think that would fly today.” — kentro2002

16.

“A lot of people are posting bad stuff, so let me share a good one. In 9th grade, in 1984, I had a class analyzing lyrics in pop music. Students brought in records by Led Zep and John Cougar and we’d discuss what they meant. Seriously a life-changing class. It makes me sad that younger students in America are so caught up in the rat race that they never had experiences like that.” — Adventuresphere

 

17.

“I had an awesome teacher who would send one of us to the shop (just a minute’s walk away) with enough money to get ice creams for everybody whenever it was hot and she didn’t feel like teaching.” — wanderingsteph

This article originally appeared on 08.30.22

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We Tested Taylor Swift’s Viral Sugar Cookies Against The Internet’s Other Top Recipes

Taylor Swift took the food corner of the internet by storm over the last week with a … resurfacedsugar cookie recipe. It’s a pretty simple but very unique sugar cookie riff that has people on X and TikTok baking cookies left and right. And we’re jumping on the wagon too to see what all the fuss is about.

To really test the strength of Swift’s recipe, we’re baking three other beloved sugar cookie recipes to pitt against her take. And then we’re going to rank them all, so that Swifites can destroy us in the comments and on every other social platform forever if we fail to pick hers as #1.

Once the recipes were sorted out, I kept the process and baking all the same. I made the four dough varieties, properly chilled them, and then baked them according to their respective recipes. To keep this tasting even more equal (and to really test the mettle of the actual cookie), I’m also icing them all the same way, following Swift’s instructions. This will give me a chance to really keep the playing field as equal as possible while judging the greatness of the cookie beneath it. Amazingly, my local grocery store is already stocking eggnog, so I was able to re-create this recipe exactly.

Here’s Taylor Swift’s icing recipe to get us started:

“just mix 1 cup powdered sugar with 1/4 T-spoon of nutmeg, 1/4 T-spoon of cinnamon and 3 TAYblespoons <—-(I’m so annoying, it astounds me sometimes) of milk or eggnog if you can find it this time of year. The more milk/eggnog you add, the more your icing will become a glaze. But glazes are legit too so basically just LIVE YOUR LIFE.”

Here’s how it looks once mixed:

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

Okay, let’s dive into whether or not Taylor Swift really does have the best sugar cookie recipe ever!

Check Out These Other Recipes From Flavored For You:

4. Classic Betty Crocker Sugar Cookies

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

This is the most classic sugar cookie recipe out there. It’s so old-school it uses potassium bitartrate (cream of tartar) as a secondary leavening agent. It’s a standard and almost feels like the control group cookie for this taste test.

Ingredients:

  • 2.5 cups AP flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. cream of tartar
  • 1 cup softened unsalted butter
  • 1.5 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 0.5 tsp. almond extract
Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

What You’ll Need:

  • Stand mixer or hand mixer
  • Mixing bowl
  • Cookie sheet
  • Parchment paper
  • Plastic wrap
  • Rolling pin
  • Cookie cutter

Method:

Prep:

  • Combine the sugar, egg, butter, vanilla, and almond extract in a mixing bowl and combine until creamed.
  • Sift the flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar together, and then slowly add to the creamed mixture until a dough ball forms.
  • Divide the ball into two flat discs and wrap each one in plastic wrap. Place in the fridge for at least 2 hours (up to overnight).

Bake:

  • Preheat the oven to 375F.
  • Roll out one of the chilled discs to about 1/4-inch thick. Use a cookie cutter to cut out cookies.
  • Place the cookies on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and bake for 7 minutes.

Bottom Line on the Betty Crocker Sugar Cookies:

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

These are fine. They taste nice as a plain sugar cookie but are full-on crunchy. That’s fine but there’s not much more to savor here without the icing coming in to save the day.

3. Zach’s Bourbon-Soaked Sugar Cookies

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

This is my take on the whole thing. I do make a mean chocolate chip cookie but rarely make sugar cookies. That said, I’m going with my strengths here and using spirits as flavoring agents with more white sugar and a 50/50 split of brown and room temp unsalted butter.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups AP flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 0.5 tsp. cream of tartar
  • 0.5 tsp. kosher salt
  • 0.5 cup brown butter
  • 0.5 cup unsalted butter (room temp)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 0.5 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp. bourbon
  • 1 tsp. amaretto
Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

What You’ll Need:

  • Stand mixer or hand mixer
  • Mixing bowl
  • Cookie sheet
  • Parchment paper
  • Small pot
  • ZipLock bag
  • Knife

Method:

Prep:

  • Add the butter to a small pot on medium heat. Melt the butter (stirring occasionally) until the fats just start to brown. Remove from heat immediately and place the butter in a small bowl in the freezer for 10 minutes to bring back to room temp.
  • Sift the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt in a bowl and set aside.
  • Add the butter, sugars, and egg in a mixing bowl and mix until creamed. Add the bourbon, amaretto, and egg and continue to mix until well integrated.
  • Add the dry ingredients slowly while mixing until a dough ball forms.
  • Roll the dough into a log, place it in a ZipLock bag, and refrigerate for at least two hours (up to overnight).

Bake:

  • Preheat the oven to 350F.
  • Cut the log into 12 pieces and roll each one into a small ball.
  • Place the ball on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and gently press each one down until it’s about half as tall as it was as a ball.
  • Bake for 8 minutes.

Bottom Line on the Bourbon Sugar Cookies:

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

This does have a nice flavor profile and the brown butter takes this one to new heights. But there’s a crunchy texture to the cookie that holds it back. The middle was a tad chewy but I’ll have to make these again and just leave them thicker to get a true sense of chewiness.

Overall, the flavor was dialed otherwise with a nice hint of spice and almond next to a deep brown butter finish.

2. Taylor Swift’s Sugar Cookies

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

Taylor Swift’s sugar cookie recipe is based on Joy Baker’s classic recipe. The twist with Baker’s recipe is that she uses powdered sugar and granulated while also using oil with the butter (most recipes call for just butter). This helps add to the chewiness of the cookie. Swift’s big change is that she adds a sachet of chai tea — literally the spiced tea leaves from a tea bag.

It’s interesting and really adds a great seasoned flavor profile to the cookie.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups AP flour
  • 0.5 teaspoon baking soda
  • 0.25 teaspoon salt
  • 0.5 cups unsalted butter (room temperature)
  • 0.5 cup vegetable oil
  • 0.5 cup granulated sugar, plus extra sugar for topping
  • 0.5 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 vanilla bean (just the seeds)
  • 1 bag of chai tea
  • Cinnamon
Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

What You’ll Need:

  • Stand mixer or hand mixer
  • Mixing bowl
  • Cookie sheet
  • Parchment paper
  • ZipLock bag
  • Knife
Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

Method:

Prep:

  • Combine the butter, oil, and sugars in a mixing bowl and cream until well integrated. Add the egg, vanilla bean seeds, and chai tea into the creamed sugar and mix until well integrated.
  • Sift dry ingredients together in a separate bowl and then slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients until a dough forms. Scoop out the dough ball and form into a log. Put in a ZipLock bag, seal, and place in the fridge for at least an hour (up to overnight).

Bake:

  • Preheat the oven to 350F.
  • Once chilled, cut the log into 12 pieces and roll them into small balls.
  • Place the balls on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and gently press each cookie ball down into a disc (you want it to be about 1/4-inch thick still). Sprinkle each cookie with fresh white sugar.
  • Bake the cookies for 9 minutes.
  • Ice once the cookies come out of the oven.

Bottom Line on Taylor Swift’s Sugar Cookies:

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

Okay, these are really good cookies. The base cookie is soft and chewy. The chai tea bag (I had to quadruple-check that this is what’s called for) is a bit baffling, though. As a flavor profile as it doesn’t ~quite~ meet the eggnog cinnamon icing. It’s just a touch wrong, in my opinion.

1. Brown Butter Sugar Cookies (Sally’s Baking Recipes)

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

This recipe from Sally’s Baking Recipes is a classic brown butter base sugar cookie. Using brown butter always made sense to me but it does change the consistency of the cookie dough. Still, you’re adding a wonderfully deep and nutty flavor profile thanks to browning that butter in a pan.

Quick note: I always like to use brown butter in cookies (and baking in general) as it adds so much more flavor (deep nutty and buttery flavor notes). It’s also very easy to prep. You’ll need a shallow pan or pot over medium heat to gently simmer the butter for no more than five minutes (or until the fats just start to brown). To get it even deeper, take it to it’s boiling and bubbling point and remove it the moment those bubbles fade — but that means you need to watch it closely. That’s it!

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups AP flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 0.5 salt
  • 1 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
  • 0.75 cup granulated sugar
  • 0.75 cup brown sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

What You’ll Need:

  • Stand mixer or hand mixer
  • Mixing bowl
  • Cookie sheet
  • Parchment paper
  • Small pot
  • ZipLock bag
  • Plastic wrap
  • Knife

Method:

Prep:

  • Add the butter to a small pot on medium beat. Cook until fully melted (stirring occasionally) and the fats just start to turn a dark beige. Kill the heat and let set as the fat in the butter turns a deep brown. Place the butter in a small bowl and put in the freezer for 10 minutes to cool back down to room temp.
  • Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt and set aside.
  • Combine the butter and sugars in a mixing bowl and mix until creamy. Add the egg and vanilla and continue to mix until well integrated into the creamed sugar.
  • Slowly add the dry ingredients to the creamed sugar until a dough forms.
  • Form the dough into a log and place it in a ZipLock. Chill in the fridge for at least an hour (up to overnight).

Bake:

  • Preheat the oven to 350F.
  • Cut the cookie dough log into small balls (about 20). Place the balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and chill in the fridge for another 30 minutes.
  • Place the balls on a new cookie sheet (also parchment lined) and bake for 12 minutes.

Bottom Line on the Brown Butter Sugar Cookies:

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

This had the perfect balance of a crunchy bottom and a soft and chewy middle. The icing made a great addition to the overall vibe. But the real star of this show was the cookie flavor. The depth of the brown butter added was lightyears beyond the non-brown butter version. Where the other cookies sort of just petered out on the palate, this cookie kicked into high gear on the finish with a deep, nutty, and salted butter end that adds a wonderfully soft texture and finish to the overall experience.

Winner, winner.

Final Thoughts on the Sugar Cookies:

Taylor Swift Sugar Cookies
Zach Johnston

I feel certain that the best cookie recipe on earth is hidden in this post. Will an intrepid Swift fan make it and share it online? I’d take the base of Taylor Swift’s cookie and replace the softened butter with brown butter. And then maybe remove the chai tea bag and replace that with bourbon and amaretto (or a capful of almond oil). I think that’s the sweet spot.

Or keep everything about Swift’s recipe and add some brown butter. That might be the key takeaway here — “brown butter” is killer for cookies!

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Anderson Cooper Struggled To Maintain Composure After An Israeli Woman Talked About Her Kidnapped Relatives

Reporters do their damndest to keep composure while reporting the news, but war can break even the most unflappable. On Monday, on the third day of the conflict between Hamas and Israel, no less than Anderson Cooper became so emotional during a particularly wrenching segment that he briefly broke down.

Per Mediaite, CNN had interviewed Yifat Zailer, a woman whose cousin’s family, among them an infant and a three-year-old, had been kidnapped by Hamas. During her interview, Zailer was distraught, choking back tears, pleading for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as the leaders of Turkey and Egypt, to help save her relatives. “I’m sorry I’m so emotional,” she said.

When they cut back to Cooper, he was visibly floored. It took him several seconds to patch himself together to continue with his reporting. He even briefly turned his back to the camera. Even when he was able to speak again, his voice quaked with emotion over what he’d heard. He then asked a reporter on the scene in Jerusalem about new threats Hamas had made about civilian hostages.

On Saturday morning, Hamas, the Palestinian militant group, attacked Israel by land, sea, and air, killing over 1,000. Among the places attacked was a music festival in Re’im, a village in the south. Netanyahu was quick to declare war.

(Via Mediaite)

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‘People think it’s really weird’: Ed Sheeran is prepping for his death by building a crypt

Pop singer Ed Sheeran is getting a leg up on most 32-year-olds by building a chapel, which includes a crypt, at his 16-acre estate in Framlingham, England, known as “Sheeranville” by residents.

Local authorities have approved his application to build the chapel that would be used to celebrate key events, such as christenings, social gatherings and marriages. It also appears that the chapel will be used to celebrate Sheeran’s passing when it occurs.

The chapel has a 9-foot by 6-foot crypt accessible by a stone slab. It’s believed that the crypt is large enough to fit two people. “It’s a hole that’s dug in the ground with a bit of stone over it, so whenever the day comes and I pass away, I get to go in there,” Sheeran told GQ. “People think it’s really weird and really morbid, but I’ve had friends die without wills, and no one knows what to do.”


The decision to build a final resting place at such a young age comes after the “Perfect” singer’s recent brush with serious heartbreak. His wife, Cherry Seaborn, was diagnosed with a tumor in 2022, and his friend Jamal Edwards died the same year.

Ed Sheeran dug his own grave in his backyard: ‘I get to go in there’ https://t.co/UeZNgyQuhX

The good news is that Seaborn is doing well after having the tumor removed, but the health scare significantly impacted the couple’s relationship and gave them a real reason to contemplate their mortality.

“I got diagnosed with cancer at the start of the year, which was a massive s—ter,” Seaborn said, according to People. “It made me massively reflect on our mortality. I would never agree to do anything like this, but it made me think, ‘Oh, if I died, what’s people’s perception of me? What do you leave behind?'”

“For Ed, the whole point is he wants to say to people, ‘I’m not just this music machine. I’m not just this robot that tries to get No. 1. I’m a father, I’m a son, I’m a friend.’ It wasn’t until this year when I was like, ‘I might die,'” Seaborn added.

ed sheeran, ed sheeran chapel, ed sheeran's house

While it may seem a bit morbid for a man that young to be building his own grave, research shows that contemplating your mortality actually makes you happier. Licensed clinical social worker Sean Grover explained that there are 5 benefits to thinking about death in Psychology Today. He says that people contemplating their own death are “more likely to” let go of resentments, live with more gratitude, abandon petty concerns, refresh personal dreams and strengthen their bonds with loved ones.

It seems that contemplating our deaths is a great way to put things in perspective and prioritize the things that matter in life. As Buddhist philosopher Daisaku Ikeda once said, “An awareness and understanding of death raises our state of life. When we are cognizant of the reality and inevitability of death we…become determined to make the most valuable use of each moment of life.”

So, for Sheeran, who lives the privileged life of a mega pop star, building his own crypt was a great way to remain grounded.

While it may seem a bit morbid for a man that young to be building his own grave, research shows that contemplating your mortality actually makes you happier. Licensed clinical social worker Sean Grover explained that there are 5 benefits to thinking about death in Psychology Today. He says that people contemplating their own death are “more likely to” let go of resentments, live with more gratitude, abandon petty concerns, refresh personal dreams and strengthen their bonds with loved ones.

It seems that contemplating our deaths is a great way to put things in perspective and prioritize the things that matter in life. As Buddhist philosopher Daisaku Ikeda once said, “An awareness and understanding of death raises our state of life. When we are cognizant of the reality and inevitability of death we…become determined to make the most valuable use of each moment of life.”

So, for Sheeran, who lives the privileged life of a mega pop star, building his own crypt was a great way to remain grounded.

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From Beefin’ Bros To Beefy Bros: John Cena Reveals The Source Of His Feud With The Rock And How They Settled It

Wrestling is filled with fake beefs, but about a decade ago John Cena and Dwayne Johnson got into a real beef. Spoiler: It all worked out in the end and the two patched things up. They even acted in movies together (though their stints in Fast X were, alas, separate). But at one point things got pretty ugly between them, which Cena has since blamed entirely on himself. Over the weekend he again apologized for ripping it up with The Rock.

A recap: Back in 2012 and 2013, when Johnson briefly returned to the WWE, Cena called him out on choosing a movie career over wrestling. The two got real angry with each other, and not in that fun, melodramatic professional wrestling way. Earlier this year Cena reflected on the bad patch, calling his actions “hypocritical” and “selfish.” His apology tour is not over.

“If you’ve been following what I’ve tried to do, especially as of late, publicly and personally to Dwayne Johnson, I’ve stated that although I thought I was trying to do what’s best for business,” Cena said on Saturday at the WWE Fastlane press conference, per Decider. “I went about it the wrong way. I violated his trust and I made allegations about his perspective that I knew nothing about.”

Cena also confessed that “deep down” he was really just a “fan” of Johnson. “I wanted The Rock back [in WWE],” he said. “I wanted to do anything to get The Rock back, but I did it the wrong way.”

Although Cena had done movies before his early teens Rock fight, since then his acting career has really taken off. So now he knows some of the reasons why Johnson, who retired from wrestling in 2004, wasn’t really able to juggle both professions.

“And I made it perfectly clear you can’t do both because of the liability insurance,” Cena explained. “If I were to try to juggle both, that’s very selfish because that would put a whole lot of people in the movie business out of work if something happened to me.”

As for Cena, he’s back on the wrestling scene because of the still ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, although he plans to go back to acting soon as it ends. Johnson has also come back to wrestling, having last month done WWE Smackdown, where he and Cena hugged it out.

So enjoy Cena shirtlessly kicking butt in huge arenas for now, because during the presser he also confessed that his last wrestling bout is “on the horizon.”

(Via Decider)