Month: May 2024

The Philadelphia 76ers might be the most interesting team to watch in the entire NBA this offseason. Heading into the summer, only Joel Embiid and Paul Reed are under contract, while the assumption is the team is going to give Tyrese Maxey a whole lot of money as the running mate they’ve long wanted to put alongside their MVP big man.

This begs the question: What’s Philly going to do with all that money? According to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer, they wouldn’t hate to spend it on an old friend, as the team would be ready, willing, and able to give a max extension to Jimmy Butler in the event the Miami Heat trade him.

Via the Philadelphia Inquirer:

The Sixers view him as a fallback option if they are unable to sign Paul George in free agency.

And, according to sources, the Sixers are prepared to give Butler a maximum-salary extension if things align and he forces a trade out of Miami.

Butler is in a strange spot, as he isn’t able to become a free agent until next summer but he’s eligible to get a two-year max extension. Despite that, Pat Riley made it sound like he’s in no rush to pay his All-Star guard, who turns 35 in September, nor is he in any rush to try and trade Butler. As such, the ball would presumably be in Butler’s court if he wants to force the team’s hand, and if there is one thing we know about Jimmy Butler, it’s that he has no qualms about turning up the heat on a team if it helps him get his way.

Adding to the intrigue here is that Butler, of course, used to play for the Sixers, as the team acquired him in a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves after he forced his way out of there. He only spent 55 games and one playoff run with the team, though, as he entered free agency after that year and was sent to Miami via a sign-and-trade. Despite the fact he left the team, Embiid and Butler have remained complimentary of one another over the years.

Baby Reindeer‘s Netflix reign continued unabated until the release of the third season of Bridgerton (which somehow currently occupies three slots on Netflix’s most current weekly Top 10 Series list). Sandwiched in between these juggernauts, however, is a new docuseries called Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal, which is exactly what it sounds like.

The series surfaces almost nine years after the cheating website was hacked by the Impact Team, an anonymous group who was never unmasked, although the docuseries kind-of suggests that maybe this was an inside job. That was sheer speculation, but in 2015, the hackers released the email addresses and personal details about millions of Ashley Madison users. This led to an untold number of divorces, but guess who did not divorce?

That would be the series’ most showcased married couple, Sam and Nia Rader, a pair of Christian vloggers who went viral due to singing Frozen tunes in the car and streaming a “surprise” pregnancy test carried out when someone forgot to flush the toilet. (Yes, really.)

In the series, Sam was shown (in the above ^^^ still) admitting that he repeatedly lied, including to his own audience, about the extent to which he cheated on Nia. Amazingly, Nia decided to stick around, and they are still married and still have around 2.5 million YouTube subscribers.

Why did Sam and Nia decide to participate after already experiencing so much public humiliation? Netflix usually does not pay its documentary subjects due to ethical-filmmaking considerations (an exception was made for Bad Vegan subject Sarma Melngailis to receive money in order to pay back her jilted employees), so the Raders were not directly being paid to spill their souls for docuseries. Otherwise, what gives?

Well, their official reason as stated in a Daily Mail interview is that Sam wanted to “help other” people by publicly atoning for his marital sins:

“God has been preparing me for this moment. I have been surrounded by brothers and Christ to open up about these things and I owe it to them to strengthen me and be open about my betrayals. I see time and time again so many men in the same place I was and if I can help other marriages, I will do whatever it takes.”

Given that Sam showed himself to be a talented and prolific liar during his early response to the hack — and this is detailed in the docuseries — it would be naive to accept that he appeared onscreen be charitable. Earlier this month, however, Sam and Nia also coincidentally released a book called Sam and Nia | Live in Truth: Public Scandal | Secret Vows | Restored Hearts. So, there’s that possible reason: book publicity.

The first season of Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal is currently streaming. Netflix hasn’t announced a renewal yet, but it’s worth noting that Netflix hasn’t listed it as a limited series, as with Baby Reindeer on the same list.

(Via Daily Mail)

In just six days, Love Island UK will return for its eleventh series, the first output of new episodes from the original series since the summer of 2023. More recently, Love Island UK season 11 follows the release of Love Island: All Stars which aired its inaugural season at the beginning of 2024. ITV and the Love Island crew shared plans to bring back Love Island: All Stars for multiple seasons goign forward. Staying true to their word, we just received news on another season for Love Island: All Stars.

Will There Be A Love Island: All Stars Season 2?

ITV and Love Island announced today that season two of Love Island: All Stars will premiere in 2025. An exact premiere date was not shared at the time of the announcement, but we can assume that season two will debut around January 2025, the same point in the year that Love Island: All Stars season one began.

The news comes after Mike Spencer, Creative Director at Lifted Entertainment, shared his desire to make Love Island: All Stars an annual series. “I would love it to stay like this and do All Stars in winter and then the regular series with new islanders in the summer,” he said. Now his wish ca

“What a perfect way to celebrate a decade of Love Island, by bringing back another all star class of Islanders for what will I’m sure be another vintage year of romance, drama and relationships,” he said according to Radio Times.

‘Love Island: All Stars’ will return in 2025. Season 1 is now streaming on Peacock.

Have you ever wondered where sitcoms get their zany ideas? Sometimes it seems like they pulled nonsensical scenarios out of thin air because they’re so unbelievable. One of those moments happened out in the wild recently and it was caught on film, but not because it was written into a script.

Two people captured the moment on their cell phone, promptly uploading the video to the TikTok channel Jordan Floam Official. In the video you see one man struggling to fold a seemingly impossible to fold stroller. The back door is open so it’s assumed there’s an infant in the backseat who was sitting in the stroller at some point.

The dad pushed buttons, yanks on the stroller, flips it upside down dislodging the seat, all in an attempt to get it to fold onto itself. Much to his relief an assumingly more seasoned dad walks up to lend a hand. Except, that doesn’t go as planned either.

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It is obvious that the people filming this failed stroller folding are tickled by what they’re witnessing, though by the sounds of their commentary, they also have no idea how to fold the thing. As the video goes on it’s clear that the stroller isn’t closing when a third, older man shows up to help the other two guys bang on it. But just as the three men seemed to be reaching exasperation, an older woman walks over, grabs the stroller with one hand and it immediately collapses into the folded position.

No, it wasn’t wizardry, just a seasoned parent more than likely. Most commenters got a kick out of the woman’s smooth execution while others wanted to add the sturdy baby buggy to their list.

@jordanflomofficial

How many Dads to collapse a Stroller? 🤣 #dad #mom #stroller #baby #funny

“That eye contact with the camera tells me she heard y’all roasting them and saw her moment to flex for the girls,” one person surmised.

“Dad here. THEY EVEN MADE IT A DIFFERENT COLOR THAN THE REST OF THE STROLLER FOR YOU. Come on man, you’re making us look bad,” a dad retorts.

“The way he is manhandling a $500 stroller is giving me hives,” someone sobs.

“This is like the episode of the office when Dwight is safety testing Jan’s stroller,” another writes.

Well, moms-to-be, if you were looking for a sturdy stroller, this one looks to be just what you need and it has a large button right in the middle for you to fold it one handed.

When Bobby Wesson posted a love letter to his wife on Facebook under a beautiful photo of her sleeping next to their son, he must have known she would love it.

What he couldn’t have known was that it would go completely viral, and now more than 680,000 other people love it, too.

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In Wesson’s touching letter, he applauds his wife’s dedication to her work as a nurse and all the love and sacrifice she puts into that difficult job every day. His final line perfectly sums up his feelings: “My wife is a nurse. My wife is a hero.”

Check out the beautiful photo and complete letter below:

This is my wife taking a nap. In an hour she will wake up, put on her scrubs and get ready for work.

The tools and items she needs to perform her job will be gathered and checked meticulously—her hair and makeup will be done quickly. She will complain that she looks awful. I will disagree, emphatically, and get her a cup of coffee.

She will sit on the couch with her legs crossed under her and try to drink it while happily playing with the toddler that’s crawling all over her.

She will occasionally stare off blankly as we talk; silently steeling herself for the coming shift. She thinks I don’t notice.

She will kiss the baby, she will kiss me and she will leave to go take care of people that are having the worst day of their entire lives. Car wrecks, gunshot wounds, explosions, burns and breaks – professionals, poor, pastors, addicts and prostitutes—mothers, fathers, sons, daughters and families—it doesn’t matter who you are or what happened to you.

She will take care of you.

She will come home 14 hours later and remove shoes that have walked through blood, bile, tears and fire from aching feet and leave them outside.

Sometimes she will not want to talk about it. Sometimes she can’t wait to talk about it. Sometimes she will laugh until she cries and sometimes she will just cry – but regardless of those sometimes she will be on time for her next shift.

My wife is a nurse. My wife is a hero.

This article originally appeared on 08.14.18

Pregnant.

There it was, clear as day, two blue lines staring back at me from the small pregnancy test I had just purchased.

I double-checked…

One line = not pregnant.

Two lines = pregnant.

Photo via iStock.

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Yup, I was definitely pregnant.

My heart was pounding.

My head was spinning.

My stomach was churning.

I was nervous, excited, scared, and ecstatic all at the same time.

This was actually happening! After years of dreaming, preparing for, and anticipating this day, it was finally here. I was going to be a mother.

Little did I know that in nine short months, I would begin the most exhausting, life-changing, heart-wrenching, but indescribably rewarding journey of my life.

In nine months, I would learn the price of motherhood firsthand. I would know exactly what it takes to be a mother. I would gain a whole new understanding of and gratitude for the beautiful woman I call Mom.

I would learn about things mothers experience that their children often know very little about.

Here are 10 things your mom never told you.

1. You made her cry … a lot.

She cried when she found out she was pregnant. She cried as she gave birth to you. She cried when she first held you. She cried with happiness. She cried with fear. She cried with worry. She cried because she feels so deeply for you. She felt your pain and your happiness and she shared it with you, whether you realized it or not.

2. She wanted that last piece of pie.

But when she saw you look at it with those big eyes and lick your mouth with that tiny tongue, she couldn’t eat it. She knew it would make her much happier to see your little tummy be filled than hers.

3. It hurt.

When you pulled her hair, it hurt; when you grabbed her with those sharp fingernails that were impossible to cut, it hurt; when you bit her while drinking milk, that hurt, too. You bruised her ribs when you kicked her from her belly; you stretched her stomach out for nine months; you made her body contract in agonizing pain as you entered this world.

4. She was always afraid.

From the moment you were conceived, she did all in her power to protect you. She became your mama bear. She was that lady who wanted to say no when the little girl next door asked to hold you and who cringed when she did because in her mind no one could keep you as safe as she herself could. Her heart skipped two beats with your first steps. She stayed up late to make sure you got home safe and woke up early to see you off to school. With every stubbed toe and little stumble, she was close by; she was ready to snatch you up with every bad dream or late-night fever. She was there to make sure you were OK.

She stayed up late to make sure you got home safe and woke up early to see you off to school.

5. She knows she’s not perfect.

She is her own worst critic. She knows all her flaws and sometimes hates herself for them. She is hardest on herself when it comes to you, though. She wanted to be the perfect mom, to do nothing wrong — but because she is human, she made mistakes. She is probably still trying to forgive herself for them. She wishes with her whole heart that she could go back in time and do things differently, but she can’t, so be kind to her and know she did the best she knew how to do.

6. She watched you as you slept.

There were nights when she was up ’til 3 a.m. praying that you would finally fall asleep. She could hardly keep her eyes open as she sang to you, and she would beg you to “please, please fall asleep.” Then, when you finally fell asleep, she would lay you down, and all her tiredness would disappear for a short second as she sat by your bedside looking down at your perfect cherub face, experiencing more love than she knew was possible, despite her worn-out arms and aching eyes.

7. She carried you a lot longer than nine months.

You needed her to. So she did. She would learn to hold you while she cleaned; she would learn to hold you while she ate; she would even hold you while she slept because it was the only way she could sometimes. Her arms would get tired, her back would hurt, but she held you still because you wanted to be close to her. She snuggled you, loved you, kissed you, and played with you. You felt safe in her arms; you were happy in her arms; you knew you were loved in her arms, so she held you, as often and as long as you needed.

Her arms would get tired, her back would hurt, but she held you still because you wanted to be close to her.

8. It broke her heart every time you cried.

There was no sound as sad as your cries or sight as horrible as the tears streaming down your perfect face. She did all in her power to stop you from crying, and when she couldn’t stop your tears, her heart would shatter into a million little pieces.

9. She put you first.

She went without food, without showers, and without sleep. She always put your needs before her own. She would spend all day meeting your needs, and by the end of the day, she would have no energy left for herself. But the next day, she would wake up and do it all over again because you meant that much to her.

10. She would do it all again.

Being a mom is one of the hardest jobs anyone can do, and it will take you to your very limits sometimes. You cry, you hurt, you try, you fail, you work, and you learn. But, you also experience more joy than you thought was possible and feel more love than your heart can contain. Despite all the pain, grief, late nights, and early mornings you put your mom through, she would do it all again for you because you are worth it to her.

So, next time you see her, tell your mom thank you; let her know that you love her. She can never hear it too many times.

This article originally appeared on 05.27.16

Inequality has gotten worse than you think.

An investigation by former “Daily Show” correspondent Hasan Minhaj is still perfectly apt and shows that the problem isn’t just your classic case of “the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.”

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As much as we hear about wealth inequality these days, one disparity remains mostly ignored: the gap between the wealthy and the ridiculously wealthy.

Minhaj spoke to Richard Reeves, an economist with the Brookings Institute, who painted a dark picture:

The study Reeves refers to points to the growing wealth of the top 10th of the top 1%:

“The rise of wealth inequality is almost entirely due to the rise of the top 0.1% wealth share, from 7% in 1979 to 22% in 2012 — a level almost as high as in 1929. The bottom 90% wealth share first increased up to the mid-1980s and then steadily declined.”

And no one’s paid any attention.

Between the cries of the 45.3 million people in poverty and a dwindling middle class in every state, the voice of the average millionaire is all but drowned out.

But not all millionaires are worried about growing inequality in the top 1%.

In his search for a concerned millionaire, Minhaj met Morris Pearl, a retired investment banking director and member of an organization called The Patriotic Millionaires. Minhaj was baffled by what Pearl had to say:

What about trickle-down economics?

Trickle-down theory was popularized under Ronald Reagan’s presidency. The idea was that clearing a path for the rich to make more money would spur more private investment, which would lead to more jobs and higher wages for all workers.

Reagan put trickle-down theory into practice in two basic ways: by lowering taxes for the wealthy and by freezing wages for the poor.

In 1981, he cut the top marginal income tax rate — which only applies to the highest-income households — from 70% to 50%. Then in 1986, he more than doubled-down by slashing the rate to 28%. (The current rate is 39.6%.) And under Reagan’s leadership, the minimum wage was frozen, even as costs of living were rising.

Pearl and other so-called Patriotic Millionaires think top one-percenters like themselves should pay more taxes.

Not only that, they believe raising the minimum wage is critical to reducing inequality.

OK, maybe not everyone — including millionaires — are convinced that giving more money to the rich will fix the economy. So why do our policies do just the opposite?

This article originally appeared on 3.23.15

When Lily Evans set out to walk her dog, she had no idea the story of that walk would later go viral on the internet.

When she took to Twitter to recount her experience, she opened with a simple question, one that many men have probably wondered for a long time — though women already know the answer.

(Before you click through to the thread itself, note that Lily’s Twitter account is expressly for adults and may be NSFW.)

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The walk started off normal enough. Until she ran into a seemingly friendly stranger.

A man eating on a nearby bench offered her dog, Echo, a treat.

He eventually asked her if she lived in the area — which could be considered slightly intrusive — but all in all, it was just small talk.

But then she ran into him again shortly after.

Evans says his friendly banter — maybe innocent, but more likely not — was making her incredibly uncomfortable.

And yet he continued to linger.

Then he invaded her physical space with an out-of-nowhere hug.

“I was terrified,” she wrote.

Evans hurried home, petrified the man would follow her.

He didn’t. But the experience left her shaken and upset. Worst of all, she says, she has been through this many, many times before.

Her story went viral in a hurry, with over 44,000 retweets, 68,000 likes, and thousands of comments.

“The response from other women has been pretty heartbreaking,” Evans writes in a Twitter exchange with Upworthy. “Many, many women have used this as an opportunity to share their stories of harassment, assault, or even just being very frightened.”

The replies to Evans’ tweet thread is littered with similar stories — seemingly “nice” guys on the street or public transportation who push small talk far past its acceptable boundaries.

Though she’s glad her story made other women feel more comfortable coming forward with their own experiences, Evans hopes it also leaves an impression on men who read it.

“I had several guys ask me how they can be more non-threatening, and that’s exactly what I was aiming for.”

“I got a lot of replies from men saying, ‘Oh, I’m so sorry that happened, but we aren’t all like that! Some of us are nice guys,'” she says. “And while that’s true, my point was that strangers cannot know what your intentions are until it’s too late.

She hits on an important point: It’s not inherently wrong or creepy to strike up a conversation with a stranger, but women truly never know when a simple “hi” is going to turn into them being followed and harassed.

“I had several guys ask me how they can be more non-threatening, and that’s exactly what I was aiming for,” she says. “I just want men to be more self-aware and understand that when a woman they don’t know is skittish, it’s nothing personal. We’re just trying to be safe.”

This article originally appeared on 07.18.19

These days, we could all use something to smile about, and few things do a better job at it than watching actor Christopher Walken dance.

A few years back, some genius at HuffPo Entertainment put together a clip featuring Walken dancing in 50 of his films, and it was taken down. But it re-emerged in 2014 and the world has been a better place for it.

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Walken became famous as a serious actor after his breakout roles in “Annie Hall” (1977) and “The Deer Hunter” (1978) so people were pretty shocked in 1981 when he tap-danced in Steve Martin’s “Pennies from Heaven.”

But Walken actually started his career in entertainment as a dancer. He took his first dance lessons at the age of three. “It was very typical for people—and I mean working-class people—to send their kids to dancing school,” he told Interview Magazine. “You’d learn ballet, tap, acrobatics, usually you’d even learn to sing a song,” he later explained to Interview magazine.

As a child, he also studied tap dance and toured in musicals. He even danced with a young Liza Minelli. “I’d been around dancers my whole life, having watched my parents make musicals at MGM, and Chris reminded me of so many of the dancers I knew growing up,” Minelli said according to Entertainment Weekly. “He’s talented in every way.”

Craig Zadan, Executive Producer of “Peter Pan Live!,” agrees with Minelli. “I think that if he had been around in the heyday of MGM, he would have been a big star of musicals on film,” he told Entertainment Weekly.

His dance moves were put center stage in 2001 in Spike Jonze’s video for Fatboy Slim’s song “Weapon of Choice.” Walken says he did it because one day he’ll be too old to cut a rug. “You think, ‘Well, do it now!’ You know, you get too decrepit to dance,” he told Entertainment Weekly.

This article originally appeared on 02.15.22

A viral video from England has struck a chord with viewers worldwide. It’s proof that even children are not immune to the pain of inflation and price gouging. In the video, which has over 19 million views, 8-year-old Marnie passionately expresses her discontent with an ice cream man’s prices while her twin sister, Myrah, stands by in full support.

The video is going viral because of the girls’ honest frustration and Marnie’s adorable northern accent. The girls are from Burnley, a small city outside of Manchester.

“Girls, what’s just happened,” their aunt Karis Lambert asks innocently at the beginning of the TikTok video. “So, there’s an ice cream van there, selling just two ice creams with two chewing gums in it for bloody nine pounds ($11.50) for two of them!” Marnie says incredulously.

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The girls wanted to buy 2 Screwballs, a classic English slushy with a gumball at the bottom. “Nine quid — he’s going to get nowhere with that, no he ain’t, he should know,” Marnie continued.

Cost of living really taking its toll on marnie🤣 

@karislambert

Cost of living really taking its toll on marnie🤣 #foryou #fyp

Marnie had 10 pounds in her pocket and was almost about to overspend on two Screwballs when the ice cream man added that he doesn’t accept cash, only cards. At that point, Marine and Myrah were done. “And he only does bloody cards—[I’m] stood there with my cash, bloody hell,” she said.

“Bloody well, bad,” she exclaimed.

Millions of people have watched Marine’s rant, and at the time, and she had no problem if the ice cream man heard her, too. “Bet he can hear me!” she said, rolling her eyes toward the van. She later admitted that she hadn’t expressed her displeasure to the ice cream man directly.

“Even the kids are affected by this cost of living,” @bby wrote in the comments on TikTok. “I’m with her on this I wouldn’t stand for £9 either,” Lily added. “Does she offer services by the hour? I’ve got a water bill I don’t agree with and I think she could handle the situation better than me,” Josh joked.

“Where do we acquire spicy British kids to adopt?” itllBuff wrote.

@jeremyvineon5

Meet the twins going viral for their ice cream protest #icecream #9quid #twins

Marine’s rage even caught Stephen Colbert’s attention. “I have never been so intimidated by a little girl,” he joked after playing the video on his show.

In an interview posted by Jeremy Vine and Storm on Channel 5’s TikTok account, the girls’ aunt admitted that she was happy the video went viral so other people could enjoy their fantastic sense of humor. “They’re so funny. I was so glad everyone saw that video because they’re both hilarious, and I’m just glad everyone else seems to say it,” she said. “They got so many comments on that video and everyone just thinks that they’re brilliant.”

On an appearance on ITV Live, Lambert admitted that the video had probably put the ice cream out of business and the girls said they were “proud” of how it had taken off.

After the video went viral, people began saying that their girls should go into politics, to which they gave a resounding yes. Their first job after becoming co-Prime Ministers? “Change the prices” on ice cream, Marnie exclaimed.