Disney princesses are a magical thing, sometimes most of all for the princesses themselves.
Amber Shaddock Roberts used to visit Disneyland every year as a child. And from ages 2 to 15, she stopped to say hello and take pictures with the woman who was dressed as Snow White.
Amber Shaddock Roberts/Facebook
Amber Shaddock Roberts/Facebook
Roberts says the park employee remembered her by name each year, something that made her annual visits even more magical.
Fast forward several years and Roberts heard that the woman who portrayed Snow White was still working at Disneyland, only now portraying the Fairy Godmother. Roberts was able to track her down and brought her photo album of their shared memories in tow. What ensued was pure, magical bliss. As Roberts wrote in her Facebook post:
When I was 2 years old, I met Snow White. Every single time I saw her until I was 15, she recognized me and knew me by name. She made my Disney childhood so incredibly magical. I haven’t seen her in person since, but I knew she was now the Fairy Godmother. Today I tracked her down & got to hug her neck. Best day ever!!(And yes I cried!)
Amber Shaddock Roberts/Facebook
Amber Shaddock Roberts/Facebook
Amber Shaddock Roberts/Facebook
We hear you, Amber. We hear you. Is that fairy dust in our eyes?
And so does the world. The post has barely been up on Facebook for 24 hours and has already been shared more than 80,000 times with no sign of slowing down.
As if a Canada goose named Arnold isn’t endearing enough, his partner who came looking for him when he was injured is warming hearts and having us root for this sweet feathered couple.
“We often have people ask if they can visit the patients they dropped off, but today we had our first animal visitor!” they wrote. “For the safety of our patients we do not accommodate visitation requests, but in this case we had to make an exception!”
Arnold is a Canada goose that lives on a pond near the facility and is part of a mated pair of wild geese that have been together for several years. The center said the geese usually keep to themselves, but one of their staff noticed that Arnold was walking with a “significant limp” and kept falling over. They were able to capture him and bring him into the hospital for examination.
“Upon exam our veterinary team found that he had two open-fractures on his foot,” they wrote. “This means that the tissue and skin has been pulled away leaving the bone exposed. Our best guess is that a Snapping turtle or other predator attacked him while swimming.”
To save his foot and help him survive, the staff knew they had to amputate one of the digits and suture the other wound closed. They gave him antibiotics and pain meds and prepped him for surgery the following morning.
Then his mate came knocking.
“Today, as we prepared to sedate Arnold and get him ready for surgery, we heard a faint tapping at the clinic door,” the center wrote. “We turned to see that his mate had waddled up onto the porch and was attempting to break into our clinic! She had somehow located him and was agitated that she could not get inside. She remained there throughout the entire procedure, watching us work, never moving from the doorway.”
Aww.
Surgery went well, and once Arnold woke up the staff decided to let him recover by the doorway so he and his mate could see each other.
“We opened the door and gave Arnold his flow-by oxygen in the doorway. His mate immediately calmed down and began to groom him through the door. They both seemed much more at ease in each other’s presence.”
AWWWW.
“Arnold will likely need several weeks of treatment in our hospital before he is ready to rejoin his mate in the wild,” they added. “He will need to be kept inside for the majority of this time in order to keep his wound sterile and prevent infection. We will do our best to get him back out quickly and will perform bandage changes and treatments in view of the doorway when possible so that his mate can check up on him. ❤️”
While attempting not to anthropomorphize too much, it’s so sweet to see animal partners show such genuine care for one another. Canada geese mate for life, and they are known to mourn in seclusion when they lose a mate. Seeing Arnold’s mate coming to find him and comfort him during his treatment is just too lovely.
Feel good story of the day, indeed. Wishing you a speedy recovery, Arnold!
Somebody call the Gazpacho Police: Marjorie Taylor Greene read a book! OK, so she watched the movie version of a children’s book — but even that seems suspect, given the analogy she attempted to make between The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and the allegedly jubilant feeling that has overcome Greene and her fellow members of Congress.
On Wednesday night, former federal prosecutor Ron Filipkowski posted a video of the conspiracy theory-loving Georgia congresswoman, in which she attempted to paint the halls of congress as the happiest place on Earth now that Republicans managed to flip the House. But what Greene is describing isn’t just a case of Republicans versus Democrats; she implied that members of Congress on both sides of the aisle are practically skipping down the halls knowing that Nancy Pelosi’s reign is coming to an end. She even went so far as to compare it to “Narnia.”
Marge says Congress is like Narnia: “Remember in the movie ‘Narnia,’ where the witch, the Ice Queen, she was losing her power. Democrat Members of Congress – they never used to say hello to me, but are actually smiling and starting to say hello. Nancy Pelosi is the Ice Queen.” pic.twitter.com/2yK4r8buS6
Remember in the movie Narnia, where the witch, the Ice Queen, she was losing her power. And so in the land of Narnia, the ice was beginning to melt and the snow was beginning to melt, and people were becoming more brave. People were starting to be happy again and started having hope.
That is EXACTLY how it is in the Capitol and in the halls of Congress. I have noticed a difference in a lot of the staff that actually work in the building every single day. I’ve noticed a difference in the Capitol police officers. I’ve noticed a difference in even Democrat members of Congress, who used to never say hello to me but are actually smiling and starting to say hello.
See, Nancy Pelosi is the Ice Queen. And her reign is ending very, very soon.
First of all, Marge: You’re referring to The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe — a book, which is an object you may or may not be acquainted with. Yes, it was made into a movie, but even that was called The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, as tribute to the iconic work of literature from which it sprung.
Second: There is no Ice Queen in either the damn book or the movie. She’s the White Witch! And if all members of congress were polled about who the Capitol’s main antagonist is, it wouldn’t likely be the current Speaker of the House.
Third: If you’re going to talk about The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, you could at least have the decency to mention that James McAvoy makes a pretty hot Faun. So if you’re going to make movie references in the future, stick with cribbing lines from Independence Day.
.
Is it possible that Greene is telling the truth? Sure. Yes, she has been formally accused of lying under oath in the past. And didhelp to incite an insurrection that led to the deaths of several Capitol police officers. Then voted against awarding the officers who fought to upend this fatal riot. All just a month before she called the Capitol police to report Jimmy Kimmel for making a joke about her. But yes, it’s totally believable that they’re all thrilled to see that she managed to hold on to her congressional seat.
Get ready to aim your Razor Crest shifter toward Disney+ on March 1st. Mandalorianreturns with a vengeance, following a second season that ended with Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Baby Yoda (Baby Yoda) resolutely heading to the bounty hunter’s home planet. The teaser trailer Lucasfilm released in September was comprised almost entirely of Beskar-armored fighters strapped with jetpacks, but Carl Weathers are Giancarlo Esposito are returning in their respective roles, as is the rebellious leader Bo-Katan Kryze played by Katee Sackhoff.
According to Variety, Christopher Lloyd will also make an appearance in Mandalorian‘s third season, so the casting director continues a stellar win streak (shout out to Sarah Finn!).
Going by the teaser, it feels like the larger story arc will hit a lot closer to home this time around, mirroring the first season’s sewer-bound exiles. The big question is whether Din Djarin will reach Mandalore quickly or be waylaid by a series of slightly comic, western-themed side quests that pop up because the Razor Crest needs an oil change or Grogu eats the wrong eggs. The other big question is which of the other guest star characters will return. Amy Sedaris? Ming-Na Wen? Will Rosario Dawson drop by to say hello on the way to the set of the Ahsoka Tano spin-off show?
We’ll find out March 1st when Mandalorian returns.
Star-Lord is still the worst Marvel hero, as the Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 trailer seemingly confirms with giggles from Drax the Destroyer. Both of them get knocked in the head with a ball, but who did you enjoy watching while getting nailed the most?
Yes, that’s too much of a tangent, but this is gleeful madness on display. C’mon, Avengers fans haven’t even recovered from seeing that controversial Bucky joke in the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, and James Gunn is already rolling out more comic-book loving fuel, even as he toils away on that top-secret DC project. That can always wait because this trailer is worth the “We Are Groot” moment and more. It’s one last rodeo for these guys, at least while they’re together.
The trailer contains nods to Gamora and more emotion from my man, Rocket Raccoon, with accompaniment from “In the Meantime” by Spacehog. From the official synopsis:
In Marvel Studios “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” our beloved band of misfits are looking a bit different these days. Peter Quill, still reeling from the loss of Gamora, must rally his team around him to defend the universe along with protecting one of their own. A mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.
Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 arrives on May 5, 2023.
Paramore’s sixth album, This Is Why, is scheduled to drop on February 10th, 2023, and the band has been methodically teasing and dropping new music in the process. Now after a TikTok clip seemed to indicate that the next single on the way from the new album would be “The News,” the band went ahead and confirmed that via their official Twitter account today.
In their latest TikTok post, Paramore actually played a snippet of “The News,” along with a video of singer Hayley Williams writing the 12-8 release date on a CD that she put in a package to be sent out. The post was tagged with the handle for user @gwizzle, a fan account that the video makes it seem will receive the package with the recording of the track before it drops. You can hear Williams singing the tune over math rock drumming as the track plays and just as you’re sucked into it, the music stops. This is what we call an effective teaser.
Looking at the tracklist for This Is Why, we see that “The News” is the second track off of the upcoming album. It follows the already released, opening title track, “This Is Why.”
Whether they’re being baked for your loved ones (or just yourself), the one thing we should all be able to agree on is that holiday treats go better with a warm beverage sipped straight from a steaming mug. And while this list will certainly up your stocking game, we won’t blame you if you give these gifts a little early (or stick them in your own stocking). Plus, each of our top picks are from ethical, sustainable, incredibly unique brands who have all agreed to donate 10% of sales made through this gift guide to Feeding America, to help alleviate hunger for people in need this holiday season.
Peace Coffee – Organic and fair trade, in addition to being women and LGBTQ+ led, Peace Coffee brings freshly roasted small-batch coffees straight to your door. Gift their Decaf French Roast to serve after the holiday dinner, or a Seasonal Coffee Subscription so dashing, beans will be brewed as soon as they’re pulled from the stocking. And if you feel like you need to give yourself a little boost to get through this holiday season, check out their signature blends like Birchwood Breakfast Blend or Black Squirrel Espresso.
Verdant Tea – Sustainable, small family, farm-to-table Verdant Teas are unmatched in quality and taste. Perfect for the foodie or travel bug, these teas bring the very best of China’s tea country straight to your door. Gift something unique like a tea tasting kit featuring six individual farmers, or a 2018 white tea aged with mandarin peel from the Wu Family. And for those bigger stockings, consider adding a Golden Ginko Glass Brew Mug or Long-Handle Contemporary Glass Teapot.
Javamelts – Enjoy gifting these naturally-flavored sugars that bring your morning cup of joe or holiday baking to that gourmet level. The French Vanilla and Mocha sugar packets are ideal for traveling, and if it’s your S.O.’s first time meeting your family, the least you can do is sweeten up their morning coffee after a restless night sleeping on your mother’s lumpy couch. Or, if you’re hosting the holidays, make this show-stopping caramel chai martini, because isn’t it more fun to drink your desserts?
Burlap & Barrel – These premium, ethically-sourced spices have never been available in the US before Burlap & Barrel partnered with farmers from different regions around the world. Give the foodie in your life the Chef’s Collection, which includes spices like Black Urfa Chili and Tomato Powder. For the home cook, give the Salt and Pepper Collection, with blends like Black Lime and Chili Salt. Feel like giving a bit of both? Build your own set of spices and move this present from the stocking to the box under the tree.
Behrens – You may need a real heavy-duty stocking, but if you have a sustainable-loving chef on your list, you can always gift them Behrens’ indoor kitchen composting pail. Not only does it compost any food scraps quickly and effectively, but it looks great on your kitchen counter doing it. And if your chef is lucky enough to enjoy a warm, outdoor holiday season, consider giving them some of Behrens fantastic gardening and party products to throw an outdoor holiday get-together that’ll make all their snow-dwelling friends jealous.
Gem Joy – While the baker on your list is waiting for their next treat to come out of the oven, why not gift them the fun of a Gem Joy augmented reality bracelet? These beautiful gems allow you to feel like a sorceress and have enchanting encounters like flying with dragons and riding with unicorns. Play games, learn, and explore new worlds any time you want a little break from the holiday commotion.
Upworthy has earned revenue through a partnership and/or may earn a portion of sales revenue from purchases made through links on our site.
A handy guide to answering the age-old question “Is the bartender flirting with me?” went viral on social media this week, and we’re here for it.
Titled “Why the Female Cashier Is Being Nice to You” and offering two possible answers (either “She is uncontrollably sexually attracted to you” or “Because that’s literally her fucking job you cretin”), the entire pie chart was filled in to mark the latter answer at 100%.
Exeter’s Beer Cellar shared the photo alongside a message asking men to please stop trying to kiss their female bartenders’ hands.
u201cThis is definitely our favourite sign in the bar. Also if dudes could stop trying to kiss our female bartender’s hands that would be great.u201d
“[As a woman,] you’re obviously pressured to give A+ customer service, and loads of people would interpret common hospitality as romantic interest,” Charlotte Mullin, the sign’s designer, told Mashable. “I wanted to make it clear that female staff are nice to you because they have to be! And, of course, most of us are decent human beings and would be nice to you anyway, but in no way does this mean we’re dying for your dick.”
That pressure to give “A+ customer service” is partially because bartenders and wait staff rely on earning tips from customers. This kind of harassment is just one more reason to get rid of tipping altogether.
@BeerCellarExe “what does not paying people a livable fucking wage and making them work for tips look like?” – for $800— Ara T. Howard (@Ara T. Howard)1495764814.0
Beer Cellar made sure people knew that yes, their employees get paid a living wage.
u201cAlso for those saying we should take harassment for increased tips a) we get paid a living wage and b) we have a v professional tip jaru201d
The Girl Scouts’ guide to help parents talk to their daughters about weight and body image is kind of amazing.
The guide, titled “Yes, Your Daughter Just Called Herself Fat,” written by Girl Scouts’ developmental psychologist, Andrea Bastiani Archibald, includes a step-by-step look at responding to your child should they come home one day from school saying, “I’m fat.”
u201cHow to Deal When Your Daughter Calls Herself Fat: https://t.co/tSydjTX5C4u201d
First of all, it breaks down just how prevalent fat-shaming is in our culture:
“According to studies, a whopping 80 percent of 10-year-olds are afraid of being fat. Why? Because they’re constantly surrounded by both subtle and direct messages that curvier or heavier girls aren’t as well liked, aren’t as likely to succeed in business, and in general, aren’t going to have as much fun or happiness in their lives.”
Second of all, it explains why the knee-jerk response “You’re not fat. You’re beautiful!” that so many of us have actually isn’t helpful.
Honestly, this part is so good that I’m just going to include the whole thing (which in its own awesome way, features the only reference to “The Dress” that won’t make you want to scream):
“[I]f she really sees her body in a certain way, simply telling her to stop seeing it that way isn’t going to help much. Remember that infamous dress on social media a few years back that some people thought was blue and some thought was gold—and how frustrating it was when those who saw it differently insisted that you were seeing it wrong and tried to get you to see it their way? That’s kind of how your girl is going to feel when you tell her that her body simply isn’t the way she thinks it is. …by essentially telling her that she’s not fat, she’s pretty, you’re reinforcing the idea that fatter, rounder, curvier or heavier bodies aren’t beautiful — which simply isn’t true. There are endless ways to be beautiful, and your daughter will grow up with a much healthier relationship to her body if you teach her that in a genuine way from a young age.”
This is such an important message that we don’t hear often enough. Calling someone fat isn’t bad because being fat is inherently bad, but it is bad to call someone fat as an insult because it implies that there’s something wrong with larger bodies.
Fat is just another type of body, andall types of bodies are OK.
The guide also features some great steps parents can take if their daughters feel negatively about their body fat.
1. Don’t assume you know where she’s coming from.
“A better approach is to pause for a moment and ask your daughter why she thinks she’s fat,” the guide advises. “Is it because her clothes are fitting differently than they used to or that a size she used to wear doesn’t feel comfortable anymore?”
Maybe her discomfort has to do more with the bodies of her classmates or what she’s seeing in the media. Or maybe she is fat, and really just needs you to tell her that’s OK too. Getting to the root of what’s causing body image issues is an important first step.
Again, the guide warns against those knee-jerk reactions: “If she says she thinks her legs are bigger or her tummy is rounder than those of her friends, those may actually be correct observations — and there’s nothing wrong with acknowledging that.”
2. Set a good example for her!
Kids pick things up from their parents all the time and internalize those messages even if parents aren’t trying to pass them on. This is just as much about setting a good example as anything else.
“Another reason your girl might call herself fat is because she’s heard you do the same to yourself,” reads the guide. “Your daughter listens to everything you say — and if you’re picking yourself apart in front of the mirror or complaining about your weight, there’s a good chance that she’ll follow in your self-disparaging footsteps.”
u201cModel Positive Self-Esteem and Body Image for Improved Self-Confidence http://t.co/RT48qvSzzMu201d
That means giving yourself a bit of a break too. Just as you don’t want her to have to try to live up to unrealistic beauty standards, remind yourself that you don’t have to either.
“Identify parts of your body that serve you well and make note of the things you really do love about the way you look,” says the guide. “Healthy habits like eating right and exercise are good for everyone and should be a daily part of your routine, but fixating on your body and how it could or should be different isn’t healthy for anyone.”
3. Pay attention to the kind of media she’s consuming and make sure she’s seeing a variety of body types being celebrated.
TV, movies, and advertising are chock-full of messages meant to instill shame around body appearance, especially in girls and women. A bit of emotional counterprograming can go a long way. For example, check out the upcoming children’s book “Glitter Stripes“; and for older girls, Hulu’s “My Mad Fat Diary,” Melissa McCarthy’s performance in “Ghostbusters,” and Chrissie Metz in “This Is Us,” and Lynn Champlin on “My Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” are great body-positive/fat-positive representations in the media.
Video of plus-size blogger posted on Girl Scouts Twitter page below:
The guide advises parents to “go the extra mile to compensate for some of the less-healthy messages your daughter may be getting from other sources” by exposing them to accomplished women of all shapes and sizes.
“She needs to know you don’t have to be a certain size or shape to make it big in life.”
Other topics include how to raise your children to be leaders, how to stand up to bullying, and how to be the best they can be in school. They’re all great in their own ways, but the body image article stands out especially.
Thanks to the Girl Scouts, parents can now feel equipped to handle this potentially difficult conversation.
Sometimes, life takes us on unexpected detours. One day you follow an impulse and suddenly you have a brand new purpose.
Such was the case for Isimeme Udu (who also goes by Naomi), who not only managed to become an overnight musical success on TikTok, she did it while pursuing a Master of Science degree from Dartmouth College.
Her musical persona, Hemlocke Springs, came from a random-name generator site—a strategy made famous by Donald Glover (aka Childish Gambino)—and is reminiscent of pop stars with eccentric vocal stylings and bold fashion choices like Kate Bush and Marina. She jokes that people have ascribed her sound to countless genres and similar artists. If you ask her, it’s all “regular shemgular pop.”
Right now, Udu has more than 235,000 loyal followers on TikTok, something she didn’t exactly anticipate as a full-time medical student. But immediately after releasing the bridge of her then upcoming single “girlfriend,” the video amassed a million views, was used in more than 60,000 subsequent TikToks and even got the attention of Khalid, who can be seen bopping along to the catchy tune. And since the song’s release on Nov 2, it has racked up more than 9 million streams on Spotify.
The song has on more than one occasion been called an “awkward Black girl anthem” by listeners, and Udu herself has become a role model for Black women who want to let their weirdness shine.
It has also been lovingly embraced by people on the autism spectrum, who find ecstatic release in the ultra funky beat.
Udu didn’t expect anyone to even listen to “girlfriend,” much less for it to achieve such overwhelming success. She shared in an interview with People that she would previously post a song onto her SoundCloud, then ”remove it literally one minute later.” Making secret music became a habit for seven years.
When she finally decided to keep her songs up, she released a song called “gimme all ur luv,” which also caught celebrity attention from the likes of Bella Hadid and Grimes. No easy task, given the huge amount of content from aspiring artists on the platform.
Though it wasn’t part of the plan, Udu is embracing her seemingly destined career as an artist. She shared with People that she has since finished out a “hellish” final semester at Dartmouth, but fully switched gears for the time being. She has signed with a record label, is working on an album and hopes to perform live one day. “I’ve been practicing in my room with a hairbrush,” she quipped.
Hemlocke Springs, of course, isn’t the only artist to find unexpected fame on TikTok. Though the platform making music more accessible has some potential drawbacks—especially when the need for constant output and hacking the algorithm supersedes quality—it has undeniably helped people express themselves in ways that might defer from the traditional or mainstream. I mean, would this music or “goblin metal” or musical mashups of cat noises have been as widely embraced only a few years ago? I think not. And it’s a good thing that we are celebrating uniqueness. Clearly, it means a lot to a lot of people.
Also, if you’ve been looking for a sign that you should actually pursue your own weird passions—be it music or art or some kind of avant-garde gardening—this is it.
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Amber Shaddock Roberts/Facebook
Amber Shaddock Roberts/Facebook
Amber Shaddock Roberts/Facebook
Amber Shaddock Roberts/Facebook
Amber Shaddock Roberts/Facebook
(@RonFilipkowski) 
