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Animal Planet's Puppy Bowl returns with an exciting change.

Championship-caliber football is fun.

Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton. Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images.

Halftime shows and mind-bogglingly expensive commercials have their place at the Super Bowl.

Your Super Bowl 50 halftime show performer, Chris Martin (and presumably the other guys in Coldplay). Photo by Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images.

But can we all just admit that this Super Bowl weekend, we're most excited about the puppies?

"I'm just here so I won't get fined." Photo by Amanda Edwards/Getty Images for Discovery Communications.

This Sunday is Puppy Bowl XII (that's 12 for those of you who don't speak football).

Puppy Bowl is Animal Planet's annual competition celebrating the agility, quickness, and strength of adolescent dogs. Alliances are formed and tested as "quarter-barks" and "wide-retreivers" leave it all on the gridiron for this, their one shot at glory.

I'm kidding, of course.

It's two glorious hours of puppies in bandanas playing with assorted squeaky toys.

Photo via Discovery/Animal Planet, used with permission.

The Puppy Bowl is the very definition of carefree fun.

Photo via Discovery/Animal Planet, used with permission.

No ego, no poor sportsmanship, just lots of fierce competition.

Photo via Discovery/Animal Planet, used with permission.

There are even cameras under the water dish and so you don't have to miss a moment of the action.

GIF via Puppy Bowl/Animal Planet.

Speaking of action, don't sleep through the kitten halftime show. Or the chicken cheerleaders.

Those little guys are ready for their 15 minutes of fame too.

Photo via Discovery/Animal Planet, used with permission.

I know what you're thinking: "But what about egregious puppy-related fouls?"

Don't worry, the Puppy Bowl has a "rufferee." He's human, but don't hold that against him.

His name is Dan Schachner and this is his fifth time officiating the game. According to his official Puppy Bowl biography (I know, this whole thing keeps getting better), Schachner's favorite penalties to call include“Ineligible Retriever Downfield,” "Paws Interference," and "Illegal Napping."

Dan Schachner hard at work on the best job ever. Photo via Discovery/Animal Planet, used with permission.

While Puppy Bowl is a carefree (and non-CTE-causing) way to enjoy the Super Bowl, it also supports pets in need of homes.

While the event is a fun and adorable tradition, first and foremost, it's a big adoption campaign.

The dogs and cats you'll see on Sunday come from 44 animal shelters across 25 different states and Puerto Rico. The dogs are all eligible for adoption, and given their athletic prowess (and major adorability), they should have no problem finding forever homes.

Photo via Discovery/Animal Planet, used with permission.

This year, for the first time, the Puppy Bowl is lending a paw to the Puppy Bowl Hall of Famers — adult dogs who need homes.

Puppies, with their sleepy faces and chubby little legs, are highly desirable candidates for adoption. Adult and senior dogs, on the other hand, often end up under the care of shelters when their caretaker moves, passes away, or can no longer afford medical care.

Older dogs have a more challenging time getting adopted, and many end up languishing in shelters, where their health often suffers.

"People shy away from adopting senior dogs due to worries about additional medical costs that sometimes occur with an older pet," Zina Goodin, president and co-founder of Old Friends Senior Dog Sanctuary, told Upworthy.


An elderly dog takes a break at a pet store. Photo by Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP/Getty Images.

Puppy Bowl teamed up with the Pro Football Hall of Fame to encourage people to consider adopting these "veteran" dogs.

Think there aren't many perks to adopting an older dog? Think again.

"Some people think of senior dogs as lethargic and too set in their ways," Goodin said. "On the contrary, senior dogs do everything that younger dogs do, without the drama."

Photo by Michelle Tribe/Flickr.

"Adult and senior dogs are past the chewing phase," she said. And "adult and senior dogs sleep when you sleep, they won’t keep you up all night. Many are already trained and housebroken, and they're usually a little bit calmer than their younger counterparts."

With those factors in mind, adult and senior pets are actually a better fit than puppies for many individuals and families. All they need is a moment in the spotlight, which a few lucky dogs will get this Sunday.

So this weekend, save your loudest cheers (and a little bit of that bean dip) for a few deserving dogs.

Because when animals in need find a safe place to call home, everybody wins.

Photo via Discovery/Animal Planet, used with permission.

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Women's Peace & Humanitarian Fund
WPHF
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How one woman is breaking barriers to amplify women's voices in peace building across Southern Africa

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Vimbai Kapurura is the Executive Director of Women Unlimited, a grassroots women’s rights organization working to promote the rights and leadership of women, girls, and marginalized groups in Eswatini and southern Africa. With support from the Rapid Response Window of the United Nations Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF), she’s advocating to have more female voices in national peace building spaces to ensure women’s rights and demands are included.

“Women are peacebuilders. We are peacemakers. We have a critical role to play in crisis situations and we are very much better placed to play a peacebuilding role in any country.”

In the face of the growing political turmoil in Eswatini, where calls for the establishment of a national dialogue remain seemingly unanswered, Vimbai and her organization are stepping up, raising their voice and bringing forward innovative solutions to promote peace and stability across the country. WPHF is supporting them to amplify women’s voices and mainstream gender perspectives into relevant decision-making mechanisms.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

“We are the cradle of life. We are changemakers, movers, shakers of any area of development. We want to be engaged and involved in any area of the value chain, the complete value chain. We want to be there.”

As part of its project with WPHF, Women Unlimited – with technical support from Cordaid, one of the INGO partners of the RRW – has trained several local women-led civil society organizations in conflict resolution, conflict prevention and mediation processes, as well as carried out educational and awareness raising campaigns on the value of women’s participation in peace processes, targeting both women and men across the country.

“WPHF has really helped us a lot. Not only has the funding allowed us to engage more women in peacebuilding processes, but it’s also supported us to underscore the need for female leadership in these spaces, where we’re often left aside.”

In Eswatini, where women and girls face deep-rooted patriarchy from a very young age, undermining their confidence, autonomy and leadership, Vimbai has become an outspoken advocate for women’s equal representation in decision-making roles at all levels, from community-level and regional committees to national and global peace building spaces.

“If you gather many women toward on common goal, you are guaranteed that that goal is going to be achieved. Let us come together and be the change we want to see. No one will do it for us. But together, we can.”

A tireless leader and activist who’s influenced the lives of many women and girls in Eswatini, Vimbai is a firm believer in women’s capacity, tenacity, and adaptability to lead and drive transformative change in their communities. When she thinks about peace, she dreams about women coming together, taking up space, and walking side by side for a more peaceful and gender-equal world in which harmful stereotypes and cultural practices are left behind.

Follow, engage, and amplify the work of Vimbai's organization!

Joy

Man uses the shoe aisle to explain a troubling economic trend in middle-class American life

"The thing is, most people don’t want longevity anymore. They want new."

via Canva/Photos

Remember things being built to last?

It’s been proven that over the past few years, Americans have been dealing with shrinkflation, where food companies reduce the sizes of their products while the price remains the same at the grocery store. You see this in fast food restaurants when you pick up a burger and feel like your hand has grown a few inches, and at the supermarket when you buy a box of cookies, it weighs less than it did a few weeks ago. Companies use this strategy when they think you’ll be less likely to notice a dip in quantity than a hike in the price.

Another big trend in retail is fast fashion. People are buying cheaper garments made from low-quality materials. These products last about as long as the trend, so people throw them away and buy the next hot thing. This can be a real problem because fast fashion harms the environment and leads to exploitative labor practices.

A TikToker named Tom (@SideMoneyTom), popular for making videos about consumer products, recently went viral for a video where he called out shoe manufacturers for dropping their quality while keeping prices high. “So many of you guys want to shoot the messenger, but look, it's not my fault shoes are made out of Styrofoam and oil now,” Tom says in a TikTok with over 528,000 views. “It's literally every shoe you look at now. It's not even just the cheap ones. I can find hundred dollar plus pairs of shoes all day long with glue squeezing out of their Styrofoam cracks.”

@sidemoneytom

Replying to @Oscar Magaña shoes are done #fyp #shoes #foryou

Tom notes that recently, shoes have been made with foam soles instead of rubber. Both have pros and cons. Foam is a little more comfortable, but rubber lasts a lot longer. Rubber shoes keep shape and support over time and are much more durable. Conversely, foam shoes compress over time, losing their support and comfort. When companies sell cheaper shoes that wear out more quickly, they make much more money because you must keep replacing them.

In the video, Tom adds that many companies that used to have shoes made with rubber heels, such as Carhartt and Timberland, have switched to foam. This is an interesting choice for brands that pride themselves on selling durable products.

Cora Harrington, a writer and lingerie expert, says that companies aren't entirely to blame. Americans don’t want to pay higher prices. “People don’t exactly want to pay more for all that stuff,” Harrington told Vox. "So what has to happen if everything is more expensive and the customers still want to pay the same price, something has to be cut and that’s often going to be the quality of the garment.”

“There is an entire generation of consumers at this point that doesn’t actually know what high-quality clothing feels like and looks like,” Harrington continues. “It gets easier, I think, for consumers to just not know any better.”

@sidemoneytom

Replying to @donkles #shoes #fyp #sketchers #nike

Many commenters have noticed the decline in shoe quality and praised Tom for pointing it out. "I am so happy I’m not the only one who is baffled by shoes being made of styrofoam and then being upcharged for them," one commenter wrote. "When shoes started being named some version of 'Air Light Cloud float,' my thought was it was because they went from quality rubber to cheap foam and less materials,” another commenter added.

Tom believes the decline in shoe quality is an example of a more significant trend affecting American consumers' products: quality is decreasing while prices remain the same. “The quality of everything is going to hell, and the prices are going up," Tom concludes his video. "The problem is, so many of us have just become used to it that we keep buying it, and we basically allow them to dumb down the quality of everything. Everything in our lives. These shoes are just the tip of the iceberg. Start thinking about it in your life. What are you gonna allow to be garbage quality?

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O Organics
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Dad's heartfelt lunch message shows how simple, everyday acts can change lives

You can make a huge difference by using O Organics.

via Meg Sullivan (used with permission) and Canva/Photos

A volunteer hands out food in a food bank and Meg Sullivan shares her dad's kind gesture.

When we consider people who have had a positive impact on the world, we often think of those who have made grand gestures to improve the lives of others, such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Greta Thunberg, or Mahatma Gandhi. Unfortunately, that type of effort is out of reach for the average person.

However, O Organics would like to remind everyone that they can positively impact the world through small, consistent acts of kindness that add up over time. Much like how a small creek can create a valley over the years, we can change lives through small, consistent acts of kindness.

O Organics is dedicated to the well-being of all by nourishing people everywhere with delicious organic foods grown by producers who meet USDA-certified organic farming standards.

Upworthy's Instagram page recently posted a touching example of everyday kindness. Meg Sullivan shared how her father, Tom, peeled oranges for her lunch just about every day from kindergarten through high school. But on the final day of her senior year of high school, he sent his 17-year-old daughter unpeeled oranges with a touching note about how she’d have to start peeling them for herself.



“It’s Time Baby Girl,” he wrote on a wikiHow printout on how to peel an orange with a drawing of himself crying. For the father, this daily ritual was about more than just making lunch; it was about showing that he cared by going the extra mile. “I could have put money on her lunch account,” Tom told Today.com. “But it’s one of those little things I thought was important, that she knows somebody’s taking the time to take care of her.”

The small, daily gesture taught Megan an essential lesson in kindness.

The post reminded people how their fathers’ small acts of kindness meant so much to them. “My dad peeled my oranges until I graduated high school, too. Now, I peel my daughter’s oranges and will for the next 7 plus years,” Katie wrote in the comments. “Love this. My dad peeled mine, too. When I moved out, he gave me an orange peeler gadget,” Mary added.

o organics, albertson's giving backO Organics has a wide array of foods and flavors covering almost everything on your shopping list.via Albertson's

Did you know that every time you go to the supermarket, you can also change the world through small gestures? O Organics not only allows you to feed your family delicious and nutritious organic food, but each purchase also gives back to help people and communities facing food insecurity.

Through contributions from customers like you, O Organics donates up to 28 million meals annually. The company’s contribution is essential when, according to the USDA, 47.4 million Americans live in food-insecure households.

O Organics has a wide array of foods and flavors covering almost everything on your shopping list. “Over the years, we have made organic foods more accessible by expanding O Organics to every aisle across our stores, making it possible for health and budget-conscious families to incorporate organic food into every meal,” Jennifer Saenz, EVP and Chief Merchandising Officer at Albertsons, one of many stores where you can find O Organics products, said in a statement.

O Organics now offers over 1500 items, from dairy products such as eggs and milk to packaged meats and breakfast staples such as cereal bars, granola and oatmeal. You can also enjoy affordable organic produce with O Organics’ fresh salads and fruit.

Everybody wants to make the world a better place. With O Organics, you can feed your family healthy, organic food every time you go to the market while paying it forward by contributing to the company’s efforts to end food insecurity nationwide. That’s a small, daily gesture that can amount to incredible change.

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Joy

Funny music video perfectly parodies aging millennial cringe, wide-brimmed hats and all

Sorry, millennials, you had your time. Here's what you did with it.

via KyleGordonIsGreat/YouTube

Kyle Gordon and friends singing "We Will Never Die."

Every generation has that moment when fashion, music, and attitudes suddenly go out of style and begin to look a bit embarrassing. Baby boomers (1946 to 1964) had to deal with the death of the disco scene and the subsequent years when polyester suits and the Bee Gees were the butt of a joke that neve felt like it would end. (That is, until the Gen X-led disco revival of the mid-’90s.)

Gen Xers (1965 to 1980) had to quietly pack up their flannel shirts and Doc Martens when the grunge era gave way to the nu-metal and the pop resurgence that took over in the late ‘90s. However, everything that was old is new once again, and Gen Z would come to embrace all things grunge. Now, you’ll see as many Nirvana shirts at a high school as you did in 1992.

Sorry, millennials (1981 to 1996), it’s your time in the barrel, and the signature styles and songs you embraced a decade ago are starting to look, as Gen Zers (1997 to 2002) would say, a bit cringey and cheugy. If you haven’t embraced the inevitable yet, this is a warning to please pack up your wide-brimmed hat, take all of the word art off of your walls, and remove “We are Young” by Fun from your Spotify playlist, at least for the next decade or so. Time waits for no one, and sorry, millennials, it’s time to leave your “whoop” in the past.


To put the final nail in the millennial coffin, comedian Kyle Gordon (with the help of Kody Redwing and the Broken Hearst) has taken dead aim at peak cheugy with his song “We Will Never Die” and filmed in Brooklyn in a neighborhood that looks straight out of “Girls.” All that is missing is Lena Dunham. The video takes dead aim at this 2012 Fun anthem “We are Young” and the millenial catchphrases, styles, and attitudes that defined the era.

Warning: You may find the amount of people wearing super skinny jeans with flannel tops or jean jackets disturbing,

- YouTubeyoutu.be

The video is also filled with a list of catchphrases that are beginning to sound a bit passe:

“Yup, we did a thing.”

“Adulting”

“Said no one, ever.”

“Not today, Satan.”

“Ur my spirit animal.”

“Spread kindness like confetti.”

“Free hugs.”


Gordon’s song has all the hallmarks of a 2012 anthem with a big group of people singing “Hoooo-oh-oh-oh-owe-owee-ooh,” in the hook, a mandolin that pops up for no reason, and a plodding rhythm track that sounds like it was lifted straight from Mumford and Sons. Sadly, whoever played that mandolin will probably be out of work for some time, unless he moves to Nashville, because, just like the banjo, the instrument is no longer needed in pop music.

It has to be sad for some millennials to see their glory days have now become the subject of satire. But, if his story has shown us anything, it’s that once generation trends go out of style and are mocked for about 15 years, some high schoolers will find them nostalgic and they will come back in style again. So, after Gen Z is done mocking millennials for being chuegy, a Generation Alpha (2010 to 2024) kid will eventually see a wide-brimmed hat and a piece of artwork with something cheeky written in chevron font at a thrift store and say, “Hey! That looks cool.” Then, they will throw some LMFAO on Spotify and feel pretty cool, just like their mom did in 2011.

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Dad invited 24 kids to a birthday party. 0 RVSPd. Then they all showed up and trashed the place.

Parents are giving brilliant tips for tweaking invites so these catastrophes don't happen.

Unsplash & Canva Photos

This party was tragically a perfect storm of everything that can go wrong, will go wrong.

Kids birthday party culture is definitely having a moment in the public discourse. For one thing, parties have become outrageously expensive. Renting a lane at the bowling alley and getting some pizza for a dozen kids used to be the cheap party. Now that same experience will probably run $500 or more. If you tack on custom desserts (and not a Costco sheet cake), goodie bags, and a premium venue like a trampoline park or arcade, you could be looking at a bill of close to $1000! That's madness!

RSVP etiquette is in crisis, too. Social media is rife with stories of no one RSVPing, RSVPers no-showing on the day, and others sorts of rude or bizarre behavior from parents that turns parties sour and, sadly, ruin kids' birthdays.

One dad's recent story of a birthday party gone horribly wrong, though, definitely takes the cake.


toddler in a pink dress eating cakePlanning a kid's birthday means expecting the unexpected. Giphy

"My son's birthday was recently and we decided to throw him a party at a local place that was kid focused and amazing," the dad writes in a Reddit post. Due to classroom rules and wanting to pass the invitations out through school, the family invited all 24 kids from their child's class.

"Not a single parent RSVP'ed. Not a single one. My name, my phone number, AND my spouse's phone number was on the card. I'm literally staring at one ... that I handwrote and this was included on the invite. I handwrote every card so I know for a fact what was on there," he says.

Not wanting to cancel the birthday party (and traumatize his son), the dad began inviting kids from other branches of his network. Friends' kids, coworkers kids. Basically anyone with a warm body so that they could throw a proper party. In the end, the family planned and paid for 15 kids to attend the party, including a resounding zero from class.

And then everything went haywire.

"Party was yesterday night. ... We get there, get settled in, and start seeing kids come in. A few of his classmates began showing up. I was fine with that and was excited kids started showing up for him. And then more kids started showing up. One family brought 7 kids total; 3 teens, 2 slightly older kids, a girl from his classmates, and their cousin. Another family brought their son AND one of his friends because 'they didn't know if their son would know anyone there so we wanted to make sure he had a friend to play with'. So many of them brought siblings."

The numbers quickly got way, way out of hand. Organizers at the venue told the dad he was going to have to pay for all the extra kids that showed up. So the OP unfortunately had to tell anyone who brought uninvited kids, or failed to RSVP, that they would have to pay their own way for all the crafts and activities available at the venue.

A few families apologized and ponied up, but... "I had multiple parents tell me that they didn't know they couldn't bring their other kids and promised to pay before they left. Some asked for my Cashapp/Venmo/Zelle so they could reimburse me later since they couldn't afford it right now. Some just left, a few taking their presents with them."

With so many kids running amok, the party took an unfortunate turn. Kids started being mean to an animal that was brought out for entertainment and its handlers had to put it away. Trash went flying everywhere. Kids climbed on tables and got kicked out. It was pandemonium.


gif of woman jumping on a table and it collapsing beneath herKids at the party climbed on and broke furnitureGiphy

In the end, dad had to pay an extra cleaning fee, pay for damage done to the venue, and pay for all the extra kids who showed up whose parents left before chipping in. Worse yet, his son was devastated at how the party turned out.

"I was in tears. My son is really upset that there were so many mean kids. He said this was the worst party ever and asked to not have a party for next year."

The obvious question coming out of this story: Why are people so awful?!

Stories like this one sadly aren't rare. The cynical take is that parents are ruder and more self-absorbed than ever, that our socially disconnected society has diluted our sense of community and obligation to be kind to each other.

The slightly more optimistic and probably more accurate take is that today's parents are completely overwhelmed and have their hands full coordinating handfuls of events that are months away, responding to dozens of daily emails from school and teachers and daycares, being engaged and hands-on in every aspects of their kids lives, etc. So RSVPs sometimes slip to the bottom of the list and get forgotten. The behavior in this dad's story is appalling, but probably not intentionally malicious.

Still, social media users were furious on behalf of the child and his parents in the story.

"This is unacceptable behavior," wrote one commenter.

"People suck and kids parties bring out the worst in people!" added another.

Whatever the cause, there are a few ways you can protect yourself and your kids from birthday party catastrophes like this one.

Don't include the specific location on the invite. The best way to stop people who didn't RSVP from showing up unannounced is to stay vague about the party venue. Just put the day and time on the invitation so people can save the date, but make them text or call before you tell them where the party will be held. That way, you can secure a commitment beforehand.

Specify whether siblings are welcome. Unfortunately, some parents have been known to use other kids birthday parties as informal daycares, dropping all of their kids off at once and taking themselves a nice break! It's not all conniving, though. It is legitimately a lot easier on some families to bring everyone along to a party rather than dividing and conquering to entertain siblings who weren't invited. Just be clear on the invite or in RSVP discussions about who's allowed to come and whether parents are expected to stay (or if it's a "drop off party").

Understand classroom rules. A lot of schools now require that, if birthday party invitations get handed out in class, that everyone is invited. That rules comes from a great place of not wanting anyone to feel left out, but it also causes a lot of problems. The inclusivity is a positive but it also means you end up inviting a lot of kids and parents you don't know very well or at all. If you're up for this logistical challenge, go for it! But if not, consider a smaller party with just your child's good friends—and invite them privately outside of school.

Finally, for anyone on the receiving end of a birthday party invitation, don't be a jerk! RSVPing either way is a much appreciated gesture. On the chance that you do forget to RSVP (it happens), don't show up unannounced. It may not seem like a big deal, but when a couple dozen sets of parents all have the same thought, this dad's viral story shows exactly what can go wrong.

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Joy

Toronto man went on 121 unique runs just to make a stickman dance in his running app

You have to see this.

Images courtesy of Duncan McCabe (@duncan77mccabe)/TikTok

Using the Strava app for animation is next level.

Some people run for exercise. Some people run for fun. Some people do both, but one Toronto runner has taken exercise and fun to the next level in a way only made possible with modern technology and a whole lot of creativity.

Like many runners, Duncan McCabe uses an app to track his runs. Strava is a popular app for this purpose, as it allows you to visually see your routes and keeps a running log of them. McCabe took advantage of both features, going for 121 runs over 10 months and logging over 1,100km (683 miles) to create an animation that is utterly mind-blowing.

Carefully planning out each route as a frame in a stop-motion video, McCabe made a stickman out of his runs and put them all together to make it dance. And not just a little wiggle—the stickman does specific dances, walks, and even flips its hat.

Check this out:

@duncan77mccabe

Strava art animation through the streets of Toronto! This took me 121 runs from January to October 2024. #strava #running #toronto #purplehat #active #run #Canada #motivation #madden25 #ncaa #purple #hat #sofitukker #sofi #tukker


People have been understandably blown away by the animation.

"At first I was like wtf, and then I was WTF. 😳"

"This is one of the coolest, most unique creative things I've seen on the internet!!"

"I hate running, but love a campy craft project. This has motivation potential."

"The level of planning for this is 🤯🫶🏼"

"When he started walking my mind was blown 🤯👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼"

Duncan has shared that the walking was his favorite part of the video to make. "I got goosebumps when I had the idea of him walking down the road," he wrote in a comment. "I just needed to run the 1,100km before I could see the finished product."

He also explained how he got the diagonal lines, which appear to go straight through buildings instead of along possible running routes.

"I had to pause then unpause the route when I got around the corner," he wrote. "Which works, but I don’t get credit for running those KMs. So it may say I ran 9km but some days but it could be closer to 10 or 11."

There was a little editing in the video post-production for the hat flip, as all segments have to connect in Strava and the hat flip visual required there to be empty space between the head and the hat. A miniscule detail in the large scheme of things, so absolutely no shade. Even Strava commented on the video on TikTok: "10/10 Strava art-ing. Kudos!"

So how did McCabe decide to create this kind of video in the first place? He didn't start with the dancing man. He actually started with animals. Here's a video he made in 2023:

@duncan77mccabe

I turned my summer runs into Strava app animations. 🦖🦒🦝🐳🦈 #Toronto #running #strava #run #stravarun #stravaart #summer #dinosaur #raccoon #giraffe #whale #narwhal #shark #foryou #tiktokchallenge #tiktok #funny #fun #tiktokcomedy #comedyvideo #adventure #lol #fitness #workout #healthy #motivation #lifestyle #animals #animalsoftiktok #video


“I love working with video," McCabe told The Guardian. "And over the years I’ve come to appreciate that one of the most powerful and underused tools is the passage of time. And motion is just time unfolding.”

Some people don't believe that he actually did it. Skeptics have tried to explain away his results.

"They say that instead of running four times a week, I flew a drone, lied to my friends and family in the hopes that a novel idea takes off,” he said. “Because that’s oddly more satisfying than accepting I just ran a lot for a long time.”

McCabe doesn't even enjoy running that much, but he does it for the art of it, creatively using the pause and unpause feature to connect different points to create a diagonal line and committing to each route even in terrible weather. “Every second of animation requires one and a half marathons worth of effort,” he told Yahoo Canada. "It’s not a very effective way to make animation, but it’s the one I wanted to do.”

The video and its virality even earned him a spot on The Kelly Clarkson Show, where he said he was looking forward to doing a similar video. "Exactly what? Still working that out, but I'm motivated for whatever it is," he said.

Serious kudos. Can't wait to see what comes next.

You can follow Duncan McCabe on TikTok and Instagram.

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Humor

High school teacher gives his students a pop quiz on 90s slang words and it was 'on fleek'

Can these Gen Zers decode what "home skillet" and "phat" mean?

@austinmartinez113/TikTok

This was da bomb. No cap.

Complain all you want about “that’s sus” and “no cap,” but slang from our teen days was just as, as the kids say, cringe. Sure, they may remain joyful little linguistic time capsules of our youth, but do you really think anyone who didn’t grow up with 00s era Alicia Keys and Usher would have the same appreciation for the term “my boo”? No!

This is, after all, how teen slang works. It helps young adults form their own identity, incorporating bits and bobs from the pop culture they consume, the music they listen to, the way they observe the world around them. In short, it’s theirs to own. So no matter how much it works for that generation, others simply will not get it. Or worse, they’ll try to be hip and use it…we all know how that works out.

That said, one high school teacher is offering millennials a chance to once again be on the inside of the joke as he quizzed his perplexed Gen z student on colloquialisms of our youth. In a video posted to TikTok, Austin Martinez offered his class “extra credit” to define words used during his middle school and high school years.”

“We will give you a word of a phrase. We will also use it in a sentence. All you need to do is write a two or three word definition for what you think that means,” he told them.

@austinmartinez113 Do my HS students know slang from the 90s and early 2000s?? Let’s see! #millennial #slang ♬ original sound - Austin Martinez


Get ready to have a long lost (and likely wide brimmed hat wearing) part of your soul to be reawakened once again. Because here are the words:

“Tool”

“Home skillet”

“Deets”

“Phat”

“Swag”

“Da bomb”

“411”

“Talk to the hand”

“Holla”

“Haterade”

“As if”

*Holding hands in the shape of the letter W* -the kids thought this meant “I love you.” Aw.

“Totes”

“Bling”

“Noob”

“All that” -for this Martinez even referenced the movie She’s All That, as well as the TV show All That. And when he began a quote from one of the show’s popular skits, “welcome to Good Burger, home of the Good Burger…” some kids could actually finish the quote! Extra extra credit to them.

“On fleek”

“Boo-yah”

“Sike”

“Scrub” -obviously, Martinez has no choice but to use “I don’t want not scrub, scrub is the guy that can’t get no lovin’ from me,” as his sentence. And again, some kids could sing along! As Martinez wrote in the comments, maybe “we’re not that old!”

This is by no means an exhaustive list. Martinez could easily do a round two with “cool beans,” “sick,” “word,” "Outtie 5000,” just to name a few. Hopefully he will. And hopefully he’ll post his students’ answers so we can have a laugh.

And the funny thing is, some of the words on Martinez’s OG list don’t technically belong to millennials either. “Sike,” or “psyche,” for instance, was definitely used in previous generations to let someone know that they had just been fooled. All this to say—there are bound to be some millennial phrases that stand the test of time. Which, I mean, if ultra low rise jeans can make a comeback, why can’t “home skillet”?

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