Category: News

Do you ever look around and marvel at the things humans can do?

Like, yes, there are a lot of terrible and tragic things out there, and we could easily spend all of our days focusing on them. But today I was looking at my living room rug and thinking about the fact that some fellow human being designed its floral pattern and coordinated the colors in a way that brings me joy. And some other human or humans, way back when, figured out how to turn sheep’s wool into fibers in order for this rug to be possible in the first place. Some other humans created machines to manufacture, wrap up and ship it. Some humans invented the vehicle that transported it to my house, and a friendly human from UPS smiled at me as he delivered it to my front doorstep.

And that’s just a rug. If we look around, we see signs of human ingenuity and creativity everywhere. It’s incredible what our species has figured and how we’ve consistently coordinated with one another to make seemingly impossible things a reality. (I mean, this computer I’m typing on? Incomprehensibly incredible.)

I like to remember such things when headlines or social media toxicity starts to seep into my psyche. We have our flaws to work out, for sure, but people are truly amazing beings with mindblowing abilities, not just for invention but for compassion, connection and delight. Yay us.

So join me in celebrating humanity with these 10 joyful reminders of our awesomeness—with a couple of adorable animal videos thrown in for good measure. Enjoy!

1. Baby elephant won’t stop tickling a local Kenyan reporter as he tries to tell a serious story about wildlife conservation.

Gotta hand it to him for lasting as long as he did before breaking. And honestly, this delightful moment probably did more than any somber warning could do to get people to care about how human actions were affecting wildlife. Read the full story here.

2. Parents ask their kids to record them dancing, but capture the kids’ reactions instead.

@thechavezfamilyy

The end 😭😭 why am I bawling at this trend?! He’s SO CUTE #momsoftiktok #momtok #toddlersoftiktok

The pure love and joy in that face! What a cutie. This is one TikTok trend worth watching, and we’ve got a whole collection of these adorable videos here.

3. Two cockatoos play peekaboo, giggle and … smooch?

u201chttps://t.co/JnMwLvuK3Qu201d

— Animales y bichitos ud83dudc3eud83cudf0d (@Animales y bichitos ud83dudc3eud83cudf0d)
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How delightful is that? Cockatoos are freakishly smart, so it’s not so surprising that they would find fun in the same kinds of games we play with human babies.

4. The way the 4-year-old imagination can make up whole entire lives.

See on Instagram

Scroll through these stories. Absolutely hilarious. The imagination of the average preschooler and their willingness to follow wherever it takes them are unmatched.

5. This pizza maker’s skill with his dough is the stuff of legend.

u201cAcrobatic pizzaud83dudc4fud83dudc4fud83cudf55nnu201d

— Tansu YEu011eEN (@Tansu YEu011eEN)
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Give him about 30 seconds to warm up, and then holy cannoli. That’s a guy who takes pride in his work. So impressive.

6. Bruce Springsteen shared an incredible story about being invited to a fan’s house and surprising his mom.

u201cIf you ever met your hero youu2019d hope theyu2019d be as cool as this!nnBRUCE SPRINGSTEEN tells GRAHAM NORTON about the time he made a fansu2019 dreams come true.u201d

— James Leighton (@James Leighton)
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Can you even imagine? You’re just out at the movies and you run into a mega rock star? And then you invite him to sit with you and he says yes? And then you invite him to your house, and he says yes?!? There are so many fun details to this story. Read the full story here.

7. The unbridled joy of a left-handed person finally getting a pair of left-handed scissors.

See on Instagram

Who knew cutting things could be so fun? Scroll through. It’s the simple things we take for granted sometimes.

8. The actor who played Biff in ‘Back to the Future’ wrote a hilarious song about all the questions people ask him.

u201cTom Wilson (Biff Tannen) was asked the same questions by BACK TO THE FUTURE fans so often, he wrote a song answering them. This is that brilliant song.u201d

— All The Right Movies (@All The Right Movies)
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Tom Wilson has been doing standup comedy and music for the past several decades and this song is one of the staples in his show. He also has a card he created that he can hand out to people answering all of the usual questions he gets asked. Check out the full story here.

9.Coach proposes on the sideline and the football team’s reaction is everything.

See on Instagram

Clearly, this is a coach with a strong connection to the kids on his team. What a fantastic celebration.

10. Let’s strive to live life with the perseverance of this playful kitten.

u201c”Your attempt to win this game shall prove futile, human” –Kitty, probablyu201d

— Madeyousmile (@Madeyousmile)
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Hope that brought a few smiles to your face! Come back next week for another collection of smileworthy finds. And if you want to get this post in your inbox each week, sign up for Upworthy’s free newsletter, The Upworthiest, here.

It’s hard to decide which indie album released in 1997 was the best since there are so many great ones to choose from. There’s Elliot Smith’s Either/Or, Yo La Tengo’s I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One, and Built To Spill’s Perfect From Now On. But this week on Indiecast, hosts Steven Hyden and Ian Cohen are looking back on 25 years of an album that meant a lot to both of them at the time: Modest Mouse’s The Lonesome Crowded West. They reflect on that era of indie music and decide if Modest Mouse are underrated, overrated, or properly rated at this point.

In terms of indie news this week, Indiecast would be remiss if they didn’t discuss the Grammy nominations this week. Plus, Steven and Ian talk about the Taylor Swift/Tickemaster bungle and give a thoughtful tribute to Low’s Mimi Parker, who sadly passed away earlier this month.

In this week’s Recommendation Corner, Ian gives a shout out to Japanese emo band Injury Tape, whose debut album came out earlier this year. Meanwhile, Steven suggests listeners should check out Guma, whose album A List Of Sightings dropped in February and has been compared to Steely Dan and ’70s soft rock.

New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 115 here or below and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and Twitter for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.

Ten full days after the midterms, we still don’t know whether Lauren Boebert will be rootin’ and tootin’ in D.C. for another day. Given that she’s in such a nail-biting race in such a red-leaning district, this does not bode well for a lengthy political career, but Boebert doesn’t see those alarm bells ringing. Instead, she’s simply happy to be barely leading Adam Frisch, who was unknown to nearly everyone until he ran on the “Not-Boebert” platform in Colorado’s 3rd district. Going into Friday morning, the Colorado Sun reported that Sarah Palin 2.0 led by a mere 543 votes. Only 200 were left to be counted, although such a close race is subject to a mandatory recount.

Boebert previously exclaimed, “Winning!” That was when she led by less than one percent of the vote, and now, she’s gone ahead and posted a victory video. “We won!” she tweeted on a day that might very well see Twitter’s last dying breath. “I am so thankful for all of your support and I am so proud to be your Representative!”

Let’s get real: there’s a strong likelihood that Boebert will pull off a squeaker in the recount. It’s not enough to justify her tweets about “losers” because Republicans are clearly pushing back at being represented by such a heckling menace and Ted Cruz’s BFF. So, people are still here to point out that Boebert truly has nothing to celebrate, and she probably hasn’t learned anything from this experience. And Twitter users are here to let the recount commence.

(Via Colorado Sun)

Weezy F Baby and the ‘F’ stands for — “feelings?” Over his nearly-30-year career, Lil Wayne has maintained a tough exterior with his brash lyrics and nonchalant attitude. However, during a sit-down interview with journalist Megan Ryte, the “Lollipop” rapper peeled back one of his many layers to expose one of his areas of vulnerability.

With several hit songs to his name, the Young Money leader has amassed a broad fan base which includes 10-year-old Donovan ‘DJ’ Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick, who has hypoplastic left heart syndrome, joined the rap star on stage at his annual Lil Weezyana Festival thanks in part to the Make-A-Wish foundation.

Emotional about meeting DJ, the on-air host asked the importance behind that moment, to which Lil Wayne replied, “I’ve never been a part of a Make-A-Wish situation, but I know all about them. Those kids — their days are so important. Their days are so vital. So, one of you wanna spend one of your days with me?”

He continued, “After the show, I was able to look him in his eyes and tell [DJ], ‘You know, no matter how many people were out in the crowd tonight — no matter how many people were standing to my left and to my right on stage — it was you.’”

This year’s Lil WeezyAna Festival featured performances from Rick Ross, a guest appearance by Drake, and tragically, the last performance from the late Takeoff alongside Quavo.

To watch the full interview of “Impact” by Nightline, click here to stream it exclusively on Hulu.

Lupita Nyong’o does not show up on screen in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever until halfway through the movie. Or maybe it’s less than halfway through, or maybe it’s more than halfway through. It’s hard to keep track when you’re watching a two-hour and forty-minute movie with multiple plotlines and a backdoor pilot for a Disney+ show starring Martin Freeman and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. The film is fine before Nyong’o is in it, but meandering. Boseman’s absence is felt, but so is Nyong’o. But once she arrives, the story comes alive. It’s still meandering, but it has an emotional focus. Nyong’o’s character, Nakia, a Wakandan spy with a very special set of skills and a love interest for T’Challa/Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman), has not been in any Marvel films since 2018’s Black Panther (she must have gotten Marvel contract advice from Bradley Cooper). Before Nakia appears in Wakanda Forever, we learn that she left Wakanda and is so far removed from her life there that she doesn’t even attend T’Challa’s (Chadwich Boseman) funeral.

When Nyong’o finally shows up, she’s wearing a flowy, coral dress and is surrounded by a hall of plants. Nyong’o’s presence is an instant breath of fresh air. No matter how messy this thing gets (MCU films seem to only get messier and messier as they go on), everything will be okay, because Nyong’o is there to ground everything, effortlessly.

In less than a decade, Nyong’o has, through her performances and her striking personal style, established herself as an icon. Fresh out of the master’s program at the Yale School of Drama, Nyong’o rose to prominence for her supporting role as Pastey in Steven McQueen’s 2013 film 12 Years a Slave, which won her an Oscar. Nyong’o’s performance was committed, human, and graceful. It is without a doubt one of the best film debuts of any actor in history.

Years later, Nyong’o shows the same commitment in any role, big or small, and her emotional power remains the same, even behind motion capture as Maz Kanata, a space pirate in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. In 2019, Nyong’o brought her emotional intelligence to her chilling lead performance in Jordan Peele’s horror film Us, a performance that should have earned her an Oscar nomination (or, better, yet, the Oscar). Although terrifying and different from her prior roles, Nyong’o’s performance in Us still has her signature emotional pull. Nyong’o will return to horror with a leading role in A Quiet Place: Day One, a spin-off of John Krasinski’s A Quiet Place series.

In Wakanda Forever, Nyong’o grounds every scene she is in – even CGI-heavy underwater scenes or chaotic action sequences – and elevates every single performance around her. Letitia Wright’s performance as Shuri, a character who is processing grief, is more raw and refined when Nyong’o is in the scene with her, particularly in a post-credit scene in which Nakia introduces Shuri to her son, whom she secretly had with T’Challa. Nyong’o delivers dry but heavy exposition with sincerity and grace, in a way that makes the language seem riveting and active. Although the role of Nakia is just a supporting role in a MCU film,

Nyong’o is as committed as she is to everything she does, from her performances in Oscar shoe-ins, work with auteurs, and her meticulous, intentional fashion.

This holiday season, expect some Halloween energy. On the day before Thanksgiving, Wednesday, the television series that follows Wednesday Addams, aka the most goth member of the iconic Addams Family, drops on Netflix. Since the series is, like so many things these days, based on an existing property, there are many things to know before its release if you’re curious. Below is a guide to everything you should know about Wednesday on Netflix, including the cast, creative team, and story.

What’s it about?

Despite its title, Wednesday is not about hump day. Netflix has kept much of the plot details under wraps, but here’s the official description for the comedy series, which gives us a little bit of context:

Who’s in it?

Jenna Ortega stars in the titular role of Wednesday Addams. Joining her in the main cast are Gwendoline Christie in all her tall glory, Riki Lindome, and Isaac Ordonez. Catherine Zeta-Jones will play Wednesday’s mother, Morticia Addams, and Luis Guzmán is playing Gomez, and Fred Armisen is Uncle Fester. Other supporting roles.

Is Christina Ricci in this?

Yes. Christina Ricci, who played Wednesday Addams in the iconic 90s Addams Family films, is in Wednesday but she is not playing Wednesday Addams. Not much is known about Ricci’s character at the moment, but her character’s name is Marilyn Thornhill, and she is brand new to the Addams Family Universe (AFU), as are several characters in the series.

When does it come out?

Wednesday comes out on Netflix on Wednesday (hahah, get it)?!, on November 23.

Anything else?

Yes! There are still interesting things to know about Wednesday. The series comes from co-creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar (they co-created Smallville and are credited on the Spider-Man 2 screenplay). The show is also executive produced by Tim Burton, who directed several episodes. Burton’s frequent collaborator Danny Elfman composed the show’s original music. Burton, a perfect match for the AFU, did not direct the 1991 film The Addams Family due to scheduling conflicts with Batman Returns. Finally, he got his chance with Wednesday.

After issuing a bizarre ultimatum that gave Twitter employees the option of working “extremely hardcore” for Elon Musk or receive three months severance, at least half of the remaining staffers reportedly chose the door. The situation deteriorated so badly that Musk reportedly locked down Twitter headquarters out of fear that the employee mass exodus would lead to intentional sabotage. However, Musk’s biggest concern should be how long the site will last now that the employees who man critical systems are now gone.

Via CNN:

A former Twitter executive, who recently exited the company, described the situation as a “mass exodus.” Asked about the situation, the former executive said, “Elon is finding out that he can’t bully top senior talent. They have lots of options and won’t put up with his antics.”

“They will struggle just to keep the lights on,” the former executive added.

As employees shared details with reporters or tweeted out screenshots of internal Slack messages on Thursday evening, #RIPTwitter started to trend along with several hashtags pointing towards an imminent collapse. Adding insult to injury, someone set up a projector that scrolled a trail of insults on the Twitter building. The text called Musk a “lawless oligarch, space Karen, mediocre manchild, worthless billionaire.”

As video of the projector insults made its way around the Twitter platform, “Space Karen” became a breakout hit despite the endless stream of users posting send-offs in the face of an imminent collapse. Even in its possibly final hours, Twitter couldn’t resist a well-made insult, particularly one aimed at the man who did so much damage in so short amount of time.

You can see reactions to Space Karen below while still Twitter is somehow still working:

(Via CNN)

Earlier this year, The Smile, which is the side project of Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood, unveiled their debut album A Light For Attracting Attention. Last night, they fittingly brought the raucous “You Will Never Work In Television Again” to late-night television.

Performing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, The Smile went all-in with this chaotic whirlwind of a song, which blends unhinged, heavy guitars with a wonky saxophone, creating an overwhelming wall of sound that ends abruptly after nearly three minutes. The track had been their debut song in January and excited a lot of fans for what was next.

The Smile just recently embarked on a North American tour that kicked off in Providence, Rhode Island on November 14 and ends in Los Angeles, California on December 21. In July, the band shared a live performance video of a song called “Colours Fly,” which they debuted at Barcelona’s Primavera Sound Festival. Yorke quoted retweeted the band’s tweet, writing, “new one … work in progress … there are a few ..” This gave a ton of fans hope of more music coming soon.

Watch their performance of “You Will Never Work In Television Again” on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon above.

There’s really only one way The Walking Dead should end. It’s not going to happen because there are spinoffs to set up, but wouldn’t it be wonderful and daring if the zombie series pulled a Six Feet Under in its final moments? That’s what star Norman Reedus is hoping for, at least.

When asked by IGN what he wants to see the series finale, which airs this Sunday, the actor replied, “Everybody dies.” He was (probably?) joking, but it’s the honest ending for a show set during a zombie apocalypse. Eventually, you’re going to run out of pudding.

The Walking Dead showrunner Angela Kang also spoke to the Los Angeles Times about Reedus’ tear-filled speech on the final day of shooting.

“On the last day, I really loved Norman’s speech. He’s not the type that gives speeches much. I thought he gave a really funny and heartfelt speech about [how] he’s gonna miss people, it’s surreal. That was really moving,” she said. “And when Cailey [Fleming, who plays Judith] and some of the kids said goodbye, because for them this was such a special experience and some of them became close friends with each other — it was moving to see everybody’s speeches and the love that flowed. It was a lot of crying and then going on to the next setup. That was the experience of the final episode.”

The Walking Dead series finale airs this Sunday on AMC.

(Via IGN)

Lil Nas X is often seen performing which much of his body exposed, which has made it clear that he doesn’t have any tattoos. He addressed that back in June, tweeting, “the reason i don’t have tattoos yet is nothing philosophical or deep i am simply just too p*ssy.” Now the rapper has apparently overcome his fear and gotten his first tattoo… although it looks like he didn’t have a great time with the process.

Last night (November 17), Nas wrote on Instagram, “juh got my first tattoo.” Attached to the post are many photos. The first is of Nas getting the tattoo, screaming in pain with his left fist in the air as the tattoo artist sports a shocked expression and works on his other wrist. Elsewhere in the gallery are pics of the tattoo itself and what it’s of: an alternate version of the Aries symbol that he used during his Montero album rollout.

Based on the timing and what’s going on in the background of some of the photos, it appears he got the ink at Barcelona’s Sant Jordi Club where he was performing that night, either before or after the show.

Check out the new ink above.