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Having lived in small towns and large cities in the Pacific Northwest, Southwest, and Midwest, and after spending a year traveling around the U.S. with my family, I’ve seen first-hand that Americans have much more in common than not. I’ve also gotten to experience some of the cultural differences, subtle and not-so-subtle, real and not-so-real, that exist in various parts of the country.

Some of those differences are being discussed in a viral thread on Twitter. Self-described “West coaster” Jordan Green kicked it off with an observation about East coasters being kind and West coasters being nice, which then prompted people to share their own social experiences in various regions around the country.

Green wrote:

“When I describe East Coast vs West Coast culture to my friends I often say ‘The East Coast is kind but not nice, the West Coast is nice but not kind,’ and East Coasters immediately get it. West Coasters get mad.

Niceness is saying ‘I’m so sorry you’re cold,’ while kindness may be ‘Ugh, you’ve said that five times, here’s a sweater!’ Kindness is addressing the need, regardless of tone.

I’m a West Coaster through and through—born and raised in San Francisco, moved to Portland for college, and now live in Seattle. We’re nice, but we’re not kind. We’ll listen to your rant politely, smile, and then never speak to you again. We hit mute in real life. ALOT.

So often, we West Coasters think that showing *sympathy* or feeling *empathy* is an act of kindness. Sadly, it’s really just a nice act. Kindness is making sure the baby has a hat. (s/o to breenewsome and BlackAmazon)

When you translate this to institutions or policy, you’ll see alot of nice words being used, & West Coast liberals/radicals are really good at *sounding* nice. But I’ve seen organizers & activists from other places get frustrated because nothing happens after ALOT of talk.

u201cWhen you translate this to institutions or policy, you’ll see alot of nice words being used, & West Coast liberals/radicals are really good at *sounding* nice. But I’ve seen organizers & activists from other places get frustrated because nothing happens after ALOT of talk.u201d

— Jordan K. Green (@Jordan K. Green)
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Nothing happens after the pronoun check-ins and the icebreakers. It’s rare we make sure that people’s immediate needs are addressed. There’s no kindness. You have people show up to meetings hungry, or needing rides home, and watching those with means freeze when asked to help.

As we begin to ‘get back a sense of normalcy’ or ‘re-calibrate’ to what people in Blue States™ think is Right™ and Just™, I want us to keep in mind the difference between Niceness and Kindness. If something sounds nice, doesn’t mean that it’s kind.”

Of course, there are genuinely kind and surface nice people everywhere you go, so no one should take these observations as a personal affront to them individually. Generalizations that lead to stereotypes are inherently problematic, and broad strokes like “East coast” and “West coast” are also somewhat meaningless, so they should taken with a grain of salt as well.

In reality, a small town in South Carolina is probably more culturally similar to a small town in Eastern Oregon than it is to New York City, and there are some strong differences between various subregions as well. A more specific cultural comparison, such as “big cities on the West coast vs. big cities in the Northeast” might be more accurate as far as generalizations go, but regardless, many people related to Green’s observations based on their own experiences.

To kick things off, a slew of responses poured in from people describing how New Yorkers can be cold on the surface while simultaneously reaching out their hand to help you.

u201c@SikePiazza @jordonaut Stand at a flight of stairs in the NYC subway with a stroller. Someone will grab the other end, help you carry the stroller, and then walk away without saying a word.u201d

— Jordan K. Green (@Jordan K. Green)
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Several people explained that the hustle required to afford the expense of living in New York explains why people skip the niceties. It’s about valuing people’s time; wasting it with nice words is ruder than just quickly helping out and then moving on.

u201c@mcgowankat @MikeDeAngelo @SikePiazza @jordonaut Yeah, this is the kind of thing people who have’t spent time in NYC don’t really grasp. Someone will be like, “Hey, you fucking yo-yo! You’re money’s falling out. Why the fuck is it in your back pocket? Get your shit together,” and saved you all the cash in your pocket.u201d

— Jordan K. Green (@Jordan K. Green)
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u201c@jordonaut In the South, politeness takes the form of “I will talk to you and inquire as to your day; I will give my time to you”; but in New York that CAN NOT WORK. In New York, politeness is “I will not waste your time”u201d

— Jordan K. Green (@Jordan K. Green)
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Many people chimed in with agreement with the original post (even some Canadians confirming that their East/West differences aligned with ours).

u201c@candaceforpdx @jordonaut I used to travel to the West Coast a lot for work. Everyone was u201cnice,u201d but they had no sense of urgency and didnu2019t give one fuck about inconveniencing everyone around them. Iu2019m from the DMV. We get shit done. Smiling!u201d

— Jordan K. Green (@Jordan K. Green)
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“No sense of urgency” is definitely a West coast vibe, but is generally viewed a positive out here. And “inconveniencing everyone around them” might be a subjective observation. Maybe.

Plenty of people with bicoastal experience weighed in with their stories of how their experiences lined up with the basic premise of the thread, though.

u201c@jordonaut I am blunt, I cuss, I call shit like I see it, and if you need it I’ll give you the shirt off my back, and that’s East Coast culture.u201d

— Jordan K. Green (@Jordan K. Green)
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u201c@KLDoorC @jordonaut This. Iu2019m from Pgh and talking to my friend in Seattle.. She lives by herself and needed some help moving something. I said why donu2019t you ask your neighbors? She quickly replied we donu2019t do that around here. Itu2019s frowned upon. I just couldnu2019t live like thatu201d

— Jordan K. Green (@Jordan K. Green)
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Though certainly not universally true, the tendency for West coasters to be more hands-off might extend back to the frontier days. The pioneer and gold rush mindset was necessarily individualistic and self-sufficient. In my experience, West coasters assume you don’t need help unless you directly ask for it. But people don’t ask because of the individualistic and self-sufficient thing, so automatic helpfulness just hasn’t become part of the dominant culture.

Things got even more interesting once the South and Midwest entered the chat.

u201c@jamieleefinch @jordonaut @yumcoconutmilk Moving from the Midwest to the south my experience tells me this is true. If you drive your car into a ditch a Southerner will offer to call someone for you. The Midwesterner will jump into the ditch to help push you out.u201d

— Jordan K. Green (@Jordan K. Green)
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But the takes on warm/nice/kind thing varied quite a bit.

u201c@jamieleefinch @jordonaut @yumcoconutmilk Midwest is warm/kind of you are or LOOK like youu2019re u201cfrom around here.u201dnnThe other difference is that East/West coasts will never think of you again, while the South & Midwest will gossip about you til the end of time.u201d

— Jordan K. Green (@Jordan K. Green)
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u201c@alexschiff @zsr5 @jordonaut I moved to Michigan after spending my whole life on the East Coast. It took me MONTHS to make friends. People were nice but already had friends from their old neighborhood, high school, college, church, kids’ playgroups…they didn’t need any more friends and didn’t reach out.u201d

— Jordan K. Green (@Jordan K. Green)
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One thing that seems quite clear if you read through the various responses to the thread is that specific states and cities seem to have their own cultures that don’t break down as simply as East/West/Midwest/South. There’s an entire book about how the U.S. can actually be subdivided into 11 different regions that are almost like nations unto themselves. Even this map from 1940 included 34 different cultural regions in the U.S.

u201cCultural Regions in the United States, 1940. https://t.co/RGGBgP5OzOu201d

— OnlMaps (@OnlMaps)
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And don’t even get a Californian started on the differences between Northern CA, Southern CA, and the Central Valley. “Culture” can even be narrowed down even to specific neighborhoods, and people’s experiences and perceptions vary for all kinds of reasons, so once again, generalizations only go so far before they fall flat.

If you’re curious about what the data says about all of this, a cursory search of surveys about which states are the kindest brings up a fairly mixed bag, but people seem to find Minnesota quite friendly. A Wallethub ranking of charitability by state based on 19 factors including volunteerism also placed Minnesota at number one, followed by Utah, Maryland, Oregon, and Ohio. Pretty hard to make a regional generalization with those states.

Then again, there’s the whole “Minnesota nice” thing, which brings us full circle back to the original thread.

u201c@SejalShahWrites I’m from Minnesota, where we have a whole theme of how “Minnesota Nice” means only on the surface.u201d

— Sejal Shah (@Sejal Shah)
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So many elements go into the culture of a place, from population density to the history of settlement to the individual personalities of the people who make someplace their home. And nothing is set in stone—the atmosphere of a place can change over time, as anyone who’s visited a city a decade or two apart can attest.

One thing that’s true, no matter where we live, is that we play a role in molding the culture of our immediate surroundings. If we want where we live to be friendlier, we can be friendlier ourselves. If we want to see people help one another, we can serve as that example. We might stand out, but we also might inspire others who yearn for the same thing.

“Be the change” might seem a bit cliche, but it truly is the key to shifting or world in the way we want it to go, no matter what part of the country—or the world—we live in.

This article originally appeared on 01.22.21

The city of Buffalo, New York is called the “city of good neighbors.” And with a blizzard that has dumped more than 50 inches of snow on them, the world is getting to learn how they earned that name.

A woman named Sha’Kyra Aughtry went viral on Facebook after she reluctantly put out an emotional plea. Aughtry went live on the platform explaining that she heard someone calling for help outside, so she sent her boyfriend out to see who needed assistance. Turns out, it was a 64-year-old developmentally disabled man by the name of Joey White, who was stuck in the cold snow. Aughtry’s boyfriend helped the man out of the snow and physically carried him into the house.

White was so frozen that they had to use a hair dryer to melt the ice off of his pants that were frozen to him. The couple also had to cut his socks off along with the bags he was carrying, which were stuck to his hands. White was in a dire position and Aughtry, a mom of three preparing for Christmas, was desperate.

The woman said during the live video, “I’ve called the National Guard. I’ve called 911. I’ve called everybody – they just keep telling me I’m on a list. I don’t want to be on a list. I don’t care about nothing else. This man is not about to die over here.” It was clear to her that he needed immediate medical attention, but conditions were so bad, help never came. According to CNN, at least 31 people have died in the winter storm that pummeled the state.

Aughtry realized no one would be coming to her rescue any time soon, and the following day after FaceTiming a doctor that confirmed the severity of White’s condition, she made a last ditch effort. In the two days that she was caring for Joey, she was without her children for the holidays until a friend walked them home. Aughtry explained that White had the mental capacity of a 10-year-old, but he was able to remember his sister’s phone number and the number for his job.

The good samaritan called White’s sister to inform her that he was safe at her home and she was attempting to get him help. According to Sweet Buffalo, White was trying to get home from work when he got stuck in the storm. His sister credits Aughtry for saving her brother’s life.

During the live Facebook video, several people volunteered to come and help the man get to the hospital after seeing how severe his frostbite was. Aughtry relayed that the doctor that did the video call with them explained he could lose his fingers, or worse, if treatment wasn’t provided immediately. The frustration and desperation in her voice was palpable, and at one point, White innocently asked if he was going to die. Aughtry assured him he would not.

Within a short period of time, someone who saw Aughtry’s video came by with their snow plow to clear a path, and others showed up with a pick up truck to transport White. Since he was not only physically vulnerable but mentally vulnerable, White’s temporary caretaker insisted on riding with him to make sure he got to the hospital safely. The men that came to help had to carry White into the hospital due to his condition.

Thankfully, White received the care he needed and is currently being treated in the ICU at ECMC Hospital for fourth degree frost bite. And as a thank you for saving White’s life, North Park Theatre, where White works, set up a Go Fund Me that has reached over $100,000 in donations for Aughtry. There was also one set up for White. Buffalo really is the city of good neighbors.

If you’d like to send Joey well wishes while he recovers, you can send them here:

Joe White

ECMC462 Grider Street Buffalo, NY 14215

Room #1956

If you’d like to send cards to Sha’Kyra and her family, you can send them here:

Sha’Kyra Aughtry

P.O. Box 348

West Seneca, NY 14224

This article originally appeared on 12.23.22

It’s no secret that even the most seemingly safe of public places can instantly turn dangerous for a woman. Is it fair? No. But is it common? Absolutely, to the point where more and more women are documenting moments of being stalked or harassed as a grim reminder to be aware of one’s surroundings.

Lacie (@lacie_kraatz) is one of those women. On April 11th, she was out on a run when she noticed a man in front of her displaying suspicious behavior. Things got especially dicey when the man somehow got behind her. That’s when she pulled out her phone and started filming—partially to prove that it wasn’t just her imagination, and also out of fear for her safety.

“Hello. I’m just making this video so that women are a little more aware of them,” she begins in the video. “See this gentleman behind me? Yeah, this is what this video’s about.”

According to Lacie, the two were initially running in opposite directions. But at some point after seeing her, the man stopped in the middle of the trail and waited for her to pass so that he could follow her path from behind.

“Now, I know what you’re thinking—‘Why are you suspecting that he’s following you?’” Lacie continues. “Well, let me tell you. I was just walking like this, and I look up, and he’s in front of me, and he just keeps doing a ‘peek’ like this behind him, over and over again.”

Lacie added that at one point, she even made an illegal crossing when “do not walk” sign was still up in an attempt to put some distance between herself and the man. After looking over her shoulder, she noticed that the man was visibly “speeding” to keep up.

In case there is still any doubt, Lacie then begins to run to see if the man will follow suit. Sure enough, he does.

Luckily the man eventually seems to give up, though he still seems to be watching her from a distance. Lacie ends up safe back home, but she didn’t even accomplish what she set out to do that afternoon.

“I couldn’t even finish my run,” she concludes. “I only ran like a mile and a half. I wanted to do 3 miles, but no—creepy men just had to be creepy f****** men today.”

Watch:

@lacie_kraatz #foryou #ladies #awareness ♬ original sound – Lacie

Countless women empathized with Lacie in the comments section. Clearly, this was not a unique circumstance.

“What I do when I’m being followed is act feral,” yet another person shared. “Like I’ll bark and growl really loud and flail my arms around. If you look crazy, you’re doin’ it right.”

Another added, “Man, nothing pisses me off more than men who make me feel uncomfortable doing things that I NEED to do for my health and well-being.”

Others tried to give their own tips for handling the situation, from finding nearby police or fire stations to using a variety of running trails to simply notifying the first visible passerby of what’s happening and asking to stand with them.

And of course, the resounding advice was to use the public space, and modern-day technology, to one’s advantage.

As one person wrote, “Girls we have got to normalize turning around and yelling at people following us. Let them know you know, take pictures of them, scream, make a scene.”

It’d be nice if these kinds of unsettling interactions didn’t exist. But here we are. At the very least, it’s good that women are speaking up more so that these situations are easier to spot early on and women can know how to navigate them in the safest way possible.

This article originally appeared on 4.4.23

Soooo, there’s this dog and I’m pretty sure it’s the actual Snoopy come to life. Seriously all the dog needs is a red dog house out back and a little yellow bird that follows it around. If you think it can’t be true, then you’re going to have to fight the entire internet about it because nobody can get enough of how much this sweet dog looks like the iconic cartoon character.

Snoopy is Charlie Brown’s pet from the comic strip “Peanuts” that eventually spawned several movies and cartoon series, and Bayley is a dead ringer for the black and white animated pup. Since we live in a digital age, people across the country have been falling all over themselves to get to the pooch’s Instagram account and admire her cartoonish mug.

Bayley is a 1-year-old mini sheepadoodle, which is a cross between a miniature poodle and an Old English Sheepdog. Her sweet face is something you have to see to believe and even then you may question if she’s real.

The dog’s perfectly groomed curly fur makes her face look fluffy and cartoon-like. Once you add in her black ears and black button nose, that honestly looks more like a smooth lump of coal than a dog nose, then you have the perfect Snoopy doppelgänger. Bayley came into her viral fame after Doodle Dogs Club shared her photo on their Instagram account that has over 230,000 followers, and just like that, she was “famous.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Doodle Dogs Club 🧸 (@doodledogsclub)

The introductory post of the live version of Charlie Brown’s best friend racked up over 1.4 million likes and 10.3K comments. The comments ranged from people reminding others that the fictional dog was a Beagle to people demanding Bayley star in the live action version of Charlie Brown.

Whether Snoopy was a Beagle or not, there’s no arguing that Bayley looks more like the cartoon canine than real life Beagles. This probably has a lot to do with cartoons being…cartoons. Everything tends to be a bit bubbly and over exaggerated with cartoons.

Charlie Brown was supposed to be between the ages of 4 and 8 years old according to PeanutsWiki, who busted out the comic strip receipts. If cartoons looked exactly like real life, poor Charlie Brown would have a hard time walking with his oversized noggin.

Bayley’s curly fluffy fur gives her an advantage over actual Beagle’s when it comes to the ability to look like the famous cartoon character. It’s something she probably couldn’t care less about, unless every time she got compared to Snoopy equaled a dog treat. Otherwise, I’m sure the black and white sheepadoodle is perfectly happy just being a dog wondering why suddenly her mom keeps taking pictures of her.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by B A Y L E Y 🐾♥️ (@bayley.sheepadoodle)

Since Bayley’s debut on Doodle Dogs Club, the animated dog come to life has climbed up to over 240k followers and her fanbase just can’t get enough of her. To make people love her even more, the dog’s mom uploads videos of Bayley using audio that makes it sound like the pup is a toddler trying to tell a story.

Check out some of the love Bayley gets on her Instagram account.

This article originally appeared on 4.17.23

When you’re an able bodied person it can be easy to forget that caring for yourself isn’t something that comes easily for those that have physical limitations. Sometimes the limitations are due to injuries, pain, genetic and autoimmune disorders or due to missing limbs. Having these limitations don’t mean that you can’t care for yourself, sometimes it means you have to do things differently or you need the assistance of someone else to help you.

One husband wanted to make sure that his wife’s disability wouldn’t stop her from having her hair fixed the way she liked it. According to the salon, Happy Hair House, who posted the incredibly sweet video to Instagram, the man’s wife is no longer able to lift her arms to style her hair due to losing muscle function in both of her arms.

In the video the stylist starts blowdrying the woman’s hair while using a round brush to style it at the same time and the husband watched her movements intently.

Before long the husband was given the brush and blowdryer to continue the job while receiving instructions from the stylist. While he might have been nervous, it certainly didn’t show because he looked like he was determined to get it right. The moment was so sweet that the stylist recording the video said she was holding back tears. Commenters were also emotional about the heartwarming gesture.

“This is the form of intimacy I look for in a husband. He’s taking his time with her in sickness & mastering it,” someone reveals.

“See ladies, gents, and non-binary friends: A true moment of “If he wanted to, he would,” another commenter writes.

“This is so beautiful. It made me cry. What a great man,” one person says.

See on Instagram

Hopefully whatever is causing the loss of muscle function will subside but in the meantime, it looks like she’s in the best possible hands. Someone grab a box of tissues.

Have you ever gotten a gimmicky gadget that you thought for sure you’d use but ends up sitting in a drawer or cabinet for years until you finally decide to ditch it? Or how about the opposite? Have you ever gotten a gag gift that turned out to be something truly useful and beloved?

Giving someone a funny present can be hit or miss, but when you manage to strike the balance between grin-inducing and practical, you’ve got a winning gift on your hands.

A person in the Grown and Flown parenting group on Facebook asked what dumb, gimmicky gifts parents had given their teens and young adults that they actually use and love. The responses started pouring in, and soon a treasure trove of fun gift ideas that might actually be worth it was created.

Here are 12 of the most hearted items people shared, and the best thing is most of them are under $20.

Check these out:

1. Motion-activated toilet bowl night light

Nobody wants to turn on a light in the bathroom when they stumble to the toilet in the middle of the night, and the plug-in night lights don’t always light up the toilet enough to help with aim. Problem solved.

Find the motion-activated toilet bowl light on Amazon.

2. BlueTooth Sleep Mask Headphones

If you’ve ever tried to sleep on your side with earbuds in or headphones on, you’ll immediately see the usefulness of this. But it’s also great for working out in the cold if you use it as a headband/ear warmer instead of a sleep mask.

Find the BlueTooth Sleep Mask Headphones on Amazon.

3. Croc Headlights

Love them or hate them, Crocs have made a comeback with all kinds of accessories to decorate them. These headlights might come in handy during a power outage or just if you’re looking for a little extra safety when walking in the dark.

Find Croc headlights on Amazon here.

4. That Shirt Folder Thingy

This simple device creates a perfectly folded shirt in just a few seconds. It’s fun to use and makes you feel like a laundry superstar. And since it lies flat, it can easily be tucked under a bed or behind a dresser or bookcase when not in use.

Find the shirt folder on Amazon.

5. Battery-operated Handheld Milk Frother

With 4.5 stars out of over 200,000 reviews, you can’t go wrong with this kitchen gadget. Frothy foam feels like a luxurious treat atop a coffee or hot cocoa, and this frother makes it quick and simple without taking up a bunch of space on the counter.

Find the milk frother with stand on Amazon.

6. Giant Tortilla Blanket

Turn yourself or your loved ones into a fluffy burrito with this 71-inch tortilla blanket. I know it looks strange. But 4.8 stars out of 65,000 reviews on Amazon and rave reviews by the Grown and Flown folks are solid testimonies. Apparently, it’s very soft and cozy.

Find the tortilla blanket on Amazon here.

7. Blue IKEA Bag Rain Hat

IKEA’s big blue bags are famous for their cheap, durable, weatherproof usefulness for moving lots of stuff—particularly among college students. This kitschy rain hat is no less weatherproof and useful in addition to being a conversation piece. People love it.

Find the IKEA rain hat on Amazon.

8. Remote Kindle Page Turner

If your first thought is “Why does it need to be easier to turn the page on a Kindle when it’s just a click,” you’re not alone. But the mom who shared this said her daughter loves it because she likes to read in bed with her arms all cozied up under a blanket. This allows her to turn the page without exposing her hands. Works with iPads and other tablets as well.

Find the Kindle remote page turner.

9. Electric Fly Swatters

Last year we had an out-of-the-blue fly problem that required the big guns. These are the big guns. So much more effective than a traditional fly swatter.

Find the electronic fly swatter 2-pack on Amazon.

10. GripStic Reusable Bag Clips

People rave about these things. One reviewer wrote, “ABSOLUTELY keeps food fresher for longer! Worth every penny!” and another said they work even better than Ziploc bags. With 10,000 reviews and 4.8 stars, it’s a surefire hit.

Find the GripStic bag sealers on Amazon here.

11. Pet Hair Remover

I can personally vouch for this one since I bought one myself. This thing gets hair that the vacuum misses. Super helpful for getting cat and dog hair off of furniture lickety split, and getting the hair out of it is really easy.

Find the pet hair remover on Amazon.

12. The Clapper

It’s a classic. Clap on! Clap off! It’s like the OG smart device, only without the concerns about corporations spying on our conversations. Convenient and simple. Can’t go wrong.

Find The Clapper on Amazon here.

Hope that helped with your holiday lists and white elephant gift exchanges!

TikTok is a wonderful hub of ingenious hacks, and that goes double for holiday decorating.

With Christmas just around the corner—and plenty of folks already infusing that Christmas aesthetic into their homes—this viral tip for hanging garland might be a gamechanger for those who love to get festive but hate tedious labor.

Not only is this hack easy to do, it requires zero drilling, eliminating any potential damage to the walls (apartment dwellers, rejoice).

Home decor blogger @thekwendyhome explains.

“Here’s a Christmas decorating hack for you: Damage free garland hanging with a shower curtain rod,” she wrote in the caption of a video posted to her TikTok channel focused on all kinds of nifty home hacks.

“I took the shower curtain from our guest bathroom and tested this out for myself,” she continued. “It has held up really well! I even put my heavy Norfolk pine garlands on and it didn’t budge. This is perfect for renters and those who don’t want to put nails in their walls. And an added bonus is that you don’t get a crick in your neck or get tired arms from decorating.”

@thekwendyhome Here’s a Christmas decorating hack for you! Damage free garland hanging with a shower curtain rod! I had to try it for myself after seeing @Letneeutro do it! I took the shower curtain from our guest bathroom and tested this out for myself. It has held up really well! I even put my heavy Norfolk pine garlands on and it didn’t budge. This is perfect for renters and those who don’t want to put nails in their walls. And an added bonus is that you don’t get a crick in your neck or get tired arms from decorating 😅 I linked everything on my LTK in my bio. Now go forth and deck those halls. #deckthehalls #christmasdecorating #christmas #christmas2023 #christmasdecor #decorhack #decorhacks #christmashack #christmashacks #garland #christmasgarland #christmasgarlandhack #homedecor #damagefreedecor #rentalfriendlydecor ♬ Twinkling Lights (Reimagined) – Auni

Her suggestions are as follows:

• Use a shower curtain rod and tighten at an entry. (Wayfair currently has an adjustable golden curtain rod for less than $20, with great reviews)
• Drape and wrap your shower rod with a garland. You might need two for a fuller look.
• Remember to fluff your garland.
• Weave twinkle light into your garland.
• Add your accent — whether that’s ornaments or an additional sparkly garland (or both).
• Raise your shower rod to your desired height and tighten.
• Then turn on your twinkle lights and enjoy the magic.

This tip quickly got millions of views, with people calling it a “genius” idea. And @thekwendyhome has even more brilliant, cost effective holiday decor tips where that came from.

Like this hack for creating the same gingerbread houses you see at Crate & Barrel for a fraction of the cost.

@thekwendyhome Let’s make these gingerbread houses on a budget! I shared this DIY last year but saw that PB is making selling them this year for $50-70 a pop so I figured I’ll share it again! You can snag these birdhouses from the dollar store or from Michaels. Spray paint them brown and the key is to use joint compound as frosting. It gives a much more realistic look and you can make those 3D drippy designs and icicles hanging off your gingerbread house roof tops! It’s super easy to make a budget friendly. This is the perfect diy for your next crafty party with friends and family. Plus you can display these year after year. #christmascrafts #christmas2023 #diychristmas #christmasdecor #christmasdecorating #homemadechristmas #homemadedecor #homeadedecorations #deckthehalls #gingerbreadhouses #kidfriendlycrafts #kidcraft #kidcrafts ♬ Home Alone – Somewhere In My Memory – Theme – Geek Music

Or some Christmas garland using upcycled tomato paste tubes.

@thekwendyhome This upcycled garland is such a beautiful diy. Let’s give a tube of tomato paste a new lease on life! @_hausimwald_ on Insta captured my imagination with this beautiful diy and now I can’t stop! It is perfect for your autumnal decor, Thanksgiving and for Christmas. It gives me all the cozy cottagecore feelings. The possibilities are endless. Imagine cutting out your own Merry Christmas garland or any letter garland. You can do little moons 🌙 and stars ✨. Or even little mushrooms. In other words, I need more tomato or mustard tubes! What other packaging can we upcycle? #christmas2023 #diychristmas #christmasdecor #christmasdecorating #diy #handmadedecor #homemadechristmas #homedecor #deckthehalls #garland #upcycle #upcycleddecor ♬ Twinkling Lights (Reimagined) – Auni

Christmas can be a time when people feel so pressured to spend money that they end up not fully enjoying the holiday. But there’s almost always a workaround, and sometimes it’s more fun to get creative than simply purchasing anyway. Bottom line: tis the season to be jolly, in whatever way feels best.

Chris Paul‘s long-standing beef with NBA referee Scott Foster reached a new high on Wednesday night. During the second quarter of the Golden State Warriors‘ game against the Phoenix Suns, Foster called a foul on Paul while he was attempting to guard Kevin Durant, and after some back-and-forth between the two, Foster hit Paul with two technical fouls and ejected him from the game, which led to Paul calling him a “b*tch.”

While the two have butted heads time after time in the past, Foster had never actually kicked Paul out of a game until Wednesday — Phoenix went on to win the game, 123-115. All of this begs the question: What, exactly, happened here that led to things getting so acrimonious between the two? After the game, Paul dove into things a bit, and while he did not get into specifics, he mentioned that their beef is “personal” and vaguely alluded to “a situation with my son.”

“It’s personal,” Paul said. “Yeah, we had a situation some years ago and it’s personal. The league knows, everybody knows, there’s been a meeting and all that. It’s just, a situation with my son, and so, it’s…”

Paul’s voice trailed off for a moment before he hopped back into speaking how Foster officiates games.

“I’m ok with a ref talking, saying whatever, saying … just don’t use a tech to get your point across,” Paul continued. “I gotta do a better job making sure I stay on the floor with my teammates, but, yeah, that’s that.”

When asked about the situation with his son, Paul confirmed there was something that both the league and the Foster are aware of, but opted to keep things close to the vest.

“Just know I had a meeting with him, my dad, Doc Rivers, Bob Delaney, and all us … with the Clippers,” Paul said. “It was a whole thing, man. But it’s still been a thing for a while. So, I ain’t saying nothing to get fined. It is what it is at this point.”

Travis Kelce has gone from being a household name for fans of the NFL to being, well, just a household name in general. His relationship with Taylor Swift has thrust him into the spotlight well beyond football, and the Chiefs’ star has acquitted himself nicely to his new level of fame.

One of the toughest tests to pass is the old tweets test, where many an athlete/celebrity have gotten in hot water (or worse) based on things they tweeted a decade ago when they weren’t famous. Last week, Kelce got the old tweet treatment from Swifties, but instead of finding anything problematic, they just found a young himbo living his best life. On this week’s New Heights podcast with his brother Jason, they looked back at those suddenly viral tweets, with Jason loving the whole thing. Travis laughed off his “nonsense” tweets, particularly how he “spelled squirrel (squirle) like a jackass,” with Jason wanting to adopt that as the new spelling of squirrel while also digging in to some of Travis’ other classics (starts at the 17:30 mark of the YouTube video).

The Kelce brothers are truly a joy and them having a podcast during this moment when Travis is becoming a celebrity outside of football has made for some fascinating dives into what that experience is like. In this instance, it’s reliving old tweets from when no one followed you, but thankfully in a funny way and not a tragic way.

In the least surprising collection of words that will ever appear on this website, Chris Paul got into it with Scott Foster on Wednesday night. The Phoenix Suns played host to the Golden State Warriors at the Footprint Center, and during the second quarter of action, Paul did not appreciate a foul call that Foster made against him.

While Foster had never ejected Paul before this, the two have a lengthy history with one another — Paul’s reputation for being one of the NBA’s most stubborn players doesn’t mesh especially well with Foster’s well-documented hard-headedness as a referee. After the foul call, Paul jawed at Foster a bit, which led to a pair of technical fouls getting assessed and Foster sending him to the locker room.

Paul was so upset that cameras caught him screaming “you’re a b*tch” while he was trying to go up to Foster, but Steph Curry intervened and held him back. And in the aftermath of the ejection, Steve Kerr stood up for his player and received a technical foul of his own.

It’s fair to wonder if it’s in the league’s best interest to keep Foster from officiating with Paul going forward, assuming that there is some sort of personal beef between the two. But for now, we’ll just wait to see what Paul says after the game, because our hunch is he’ll have some things to say about the veteran official.