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upworthy
Heroes

A seafaring man wants to know what an energy company is hiding from him and his ocean community.

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The Wilderness Society

A dolphin spotter has spotted a problem.

Andrew Neighbour is a born and bred Kangaroo Islander. He relies on a clean ocean for his livelihood as a charter boat operator. He operates those boats as a dolphin spotter — a job its name exactly suggests. (Way to make good life choices, Andrew.)

He's one of just around 4,000 residents on this island off the coast of South Australia. I'd never heard of Kangaroo Island. After learning about the abundant wildlife and sealife, I'd jump at the chance to leave my home in San Francisco and visit the beaches and sea cliffs where Andrew grew up working on boats.


Andrew knows how tides work. And where a likely oil spill would go.

Having grown up on Kangaroo Island and the sea around it, Andrew can easily forecast what would happen in an oil spill. He says:

"Any oil, if it comes this way which it will with tidal movement, it's going to get us north and south. You're not going to get away from it. If a spill happens, it'll be devastating."

The island, surrounded by an oil spill that should be left in the ground.

Another Deepwater Horizon? No thanks.

The picture Andrew paints of the drilling risk reminds me of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Five years on, we're still learning about the repercussions of the largest accidental marine oil spill ever.

The problem is BP's relentless search for oil.

Right now, BP is looking for spots to drill for oil in the pristine wilderness of the Great Australian Bight. (A bight, by the way, is a big open-mouthed bay. Kangaroo Island is nestled in the curved coast of South Australia.)

There it is, Kangaroo Island. Population 4,417. Four thousand people, that is. I didn't count the kangaroos. Image via OpenStreetMap.

We should definitely leave this oil in the ground (the ground under the sea).

The Wilderness Society has this to say:

"The future of Kangaroo Island, and many other coastal communities, is in danger as BP prepares to start exploratory drilling for oil in the Great Australian Bight. This is a risky process at the best of times, with 80-90% of all oil spills happening during this phase. But in the remote, wild waters off South Australia it is even more complicated."

And these “wild waters" are very alive. Kangaroo Island, though remote to many, isn't some blank canvas dead zone.

"The Bight is home to an amazing array of marine life, including many threatened and endangered species: great white sharks, humpback, blue and southern right whales, southern bluefin tuna, Australian sea lions, white-bellied sea eagle and albatross. These waters are an important marine nursery for the Australian sea lion colonies to raise pups and southern right whales to nurture their calves."

Folks, there is a *baby whale nursery* here.

That whales are choosing to give birth near Kangaroo Island is a big deal because they are Southern Right Whales.

"Hunted almost to extinction in the 1800s but now protected in Australia, the population is still recovering. Over 200 were observed along this stretch of coastline in 2014, mostly mothers and calves."

Andrew is excited in the video that the whale numbers are increasing. Out on his boat, I bet he's witnessed that increase personally over the years.

Do whales pick their birthing spots by jumping on them? I kinda hope so. I imagine the momma whale leaping free of the water, splashing down and thinking "MINE." All GIFs via The Wilderness Society.

Help Andrew be a good guardian of his island.

Help Andrew and the other few thousand people on Kangaroo Island keep our beloved ocean alive.

Stop another Deepwater Horizon from happening. Here's a great resource for learning more and a place to donate.

Pop Culture

Here’s a paycheck for a McDonald’s worker. And here's my jaw dropping to the floor.

So we've all heard the numbers, but what does that mean in reality? Here's one year's wages — yes, *full-time* wages. Woo.

Making a little over 10,000 for a yearly salary.


I've written tons of things about minimum wage, backed up by fact-checkers and economists and scholarly studies. All of them point to raising the minimum wage as a solution to lifting people out of poverty and getting folks off of public assistance. It's slowly happening, and there's much more to be done.

But when it comes right down to it, where the rubber meets the road is what it means for everyday workers who have to live with those wages. I honestly don't know how they do it.

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Joy

5-star Scottish resort offers whimsical afternoon tea experience with 'naughty sheep'

Cameron House's Woolly Wellness retreat includes tea in the garden with adorably rude guests.

Cameron House/Naughty Sheep

Cameron House's Woolly Wellness retreat includes a unique sheep encounter.

Remember when "goat yoga" was all the rage? And then "cow cuddling" and "turkey cuddling" made everyone's bucket lists?

Now we can add "nuzzling with naughty sheep" to the mix, but with a fancy Scottish twist.

Less than an hour from Glasgow, Scotland, the Cameron House resort sits on the bonnie banks of Loch Lomond, looking as if it were plucked straight out of a fairy tale. Sprawling green grounds, gorgeous lake views and a four-story castled mansion greet guests as their "home away from home" (only better), and a perusal of the reviews show guests raving about the 5-star resort's elegance, beauty and exceptional service.

I mean, just look at this place:

drone view of cameron house grounds and lakeCameron House sit on Lake Lochmond in Scotland.Cameron House


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A pitbull stares at the window, looking for the mailman.


Dogs are naturally driven by a sense of purpose and a need for belonging, which are all part of their instinctual pack behavior. When a dog has a job to do, it taps into its needs for structure, purpose, and the feeling of contributing to its pack, which in a domestic setting translates to its human family.

But let’s be honest: In a traditional domestic setting, dogs have fewer chores they can do as they would on a farm or as part of a rescue unit. A doggy mom in Vancouver Island, Canada had fun with her dog’s purposeful uselessness by sharing the 5 “chores” her pitbull-Lab mix does around the house.

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@caitlin.the.realtor/TikTok, used with permission

Wait, so 90's fashion is in, but 90's hair is out?

Every era has its own version of what’s attractive. And very rarely does that aesthetic hold power with the following generation. In fact, it often becomes the opposite of cool.

Just think of Elvis. He might have been a universal sex symbol for a time, but it also wasn’t long before his pompadour became passé. Same goes for Paul Newman’s rugged manliness, David Cassidy’s babyface, Tom Selleck’s mustache. Indeed, for everything a season.

Which brings us to the 90s. The age of beach blonde surfer boys (real surfing skills not required, but a plus). Of flannel, lots of flannel, and super chiseled bodies. Let’s not forget this was the dawning of the term “metrosexual,” and also the time period that brought us that Calvin Klein ad with Mark Wahlburg.

How exactly would these guys measure up with the Gen Z kids today?

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popular

A wild Eurasian crow befriended a toddler and won't leave his side

Crows are so much smarter than we think.

A Eurasian crow.

A family from Denmark has created a touching video montage documenting their unique friendship with a wild Eurasian crow. This crow, affectionately named Russell, has become an honorary member of their household, forming special bonds with each family member, including the pets.

However, the crow's relationship with their son, 2-year-old Otto, is truly extraordinary. “They could spend hours just playing,” Otto’s mother, Laerke Luna, says in a video shared by The Dodo. "When Otto is outside, he will never leave Otto’s side.”

Russell, the free-spirited crow, ventures away from the family's home from time to time, but never for too long. He always comes back and announces his return by tapping on the door, swooping in to lounge on the sofa, or awaiting Otto's return from school atop their roof.

“When we are inside, he will sit inside the window because he wants Otto to go outside with him,” Laerke said.

The family’s relationship with Russell didn’t come out of nowhere. When Russell was a young bird, he had health problems so the family took him and nursed the bird back to health. Eventually, they witnessed his first attempts to fly.

Recently, Russell became friends with another family member, their second child, Hedwig. Although he does get a little annoyed with the bird’s frequent attempts to nab his pacifier.

Even though it’s rare for humans to strike up such a close bond with a crow, according to research, it’s not that surprising. Audubon says that crows are “some of the smartest animals in the world” with an intelligence “on par with chimpanzees.” They are also very social and family-oriented, so no wonder Russell loves Otto and his family.

Crow Named Russell Waits For His Favorite Kid To Get Home From School | The Dodo


Learning

Why you shouldn't throw your dishwasher pod into the bottom of your dishwasher

Dishwashers actually use the dirty water to know how to wash your dishes.

Photos by cottonbro studio and PhotoMIX Ltd. via Canva

Why your detergent shouldn't go in the bottom of the dishwasher

There always seem to be something going on with the pods and powders you're supposed to use in the dishwasher to clean your dishes. Either the pods don't dissolve completely or the powder gets all goopy and hard, never really fully dispensing into the dishwasher.

The inconsistency in product dispensing can leave you wondering if the dishes are even getting cleaned, causing some to toss the detergent pod into the bottom of the dishwasher. It would seem that placing the detergent at the bottom would allow for it to actually reach your dirty dishes. But Melissa Pateras, a domestic expert, explains that doing it that way isn't doing what you think it's doing.

Pateras actually breaks down exactly how dishwashers work to clean your dishes while explaining why putting the detergent on the bottom is ineffective.

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