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Joy

Young woman surprised grandma for her birthday by dressing up like her and recreating her old photos

mom recreates grandmas old photos

All screenshots from @lakynbowman on TikTok.

It was Grandma’s 71st birthday, and granddaughter Lakyn Bowman came up with the cutest, cleverest and most thoughtful way to honor the occasion.

Bowman (@lakynbowman) shared in a TikTok video that after going through old photos, she realized just how much they both looked alike. And so, to thank grandma for passing down the good genes, she decided to recreate each signature look. After a few rounds with curling iron, some pale blue eyeshadow and throwing on some charming floral prints (plus some filter wizardry to give the pics that retro look) the resemblance is just uncanny.

People were delighted to see such a loving tribute. The video quickly racked up over 8 million views, with more than a few comments talking about how emotional the tribute made them. Can’t say I blame 'em.

But how did grandma feel about it? Well, in a follow-up video, we see a genuine ear-to-ear smile. Suffice it to say, the idea was a hit.

As one person wrote to Bowman, “you’ll never be able to top this gift.”

It certainly helps that Bowman is vintage savvy. She even helps others find amazing secondhand items through her company Lakyn Thrifts. So getting the clothes and accessories was a piece of old-fashioned pineapple upside-down cake. And the results were just as sweet. Take a look below:

@lakynbowman Happy birthday, Grandma! Thanks for the good genes. 💕 #recreate#photoshoot#birthdayphotoshoot#vintage#grandma♬ What Once Was - Her's

This video is not only an instant dash of joy, it’s also a heartwarming reminder that our elders provide the prologue to our life stories. Honoring them can be as simple or creative as we want them to be. But include them. As we can see with this grandma-granddaughter duo, it’ll mean the world to them.

Joy

28-year-old buys cruise ship apartment because it's less than renting and he can see the world

An all-expenses-paid life for about $50,000 a year? Sounds like a deal.

A cruise ship floating on azure waters.

Living the rest of your life on a cruise ship seems like the dream of the ultra-rich. You wake up every morning and have an all-you-can-eat breakfast. Spend the afternoon hanging out by the pool or touring a fantastic city such as Rome or Dubrovnik.

At night, have a drink in the lounge watching a comedian or a jazz band, then hit the sack and do it all over again the next day. Seems too good to be true for the average person, right? Think again.

Twenty-eight-year-old Austin Wells of San Diego told CNBC that he can make it happen because it’s cheaper than living onshore in Southern California and he gets to see the world. “The thing that most excites me is I don’t have to upend my daily routine, in order to go see the world,” Wells told CNBC.

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"Titanic" director James Cameron.

Twenty-five years ago, James Cameron released his epic “Titanic,” achieving a rare feat in Hollywood: a box office smash that was also loved by critics. “Titanic” won 11 Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director, and raked in $1.8 billion at the box office, making it the third-highest-grossing film of all time.

Even though his film is one of the most acclaimed in Hollywood history, Cameron still can’t help himself from getting involved in the great debate about the film. Did Leonardo DiCaprio’s character, Jack Dawson, die unnecessarily at the end of the film?

Specifically, could Jack have fit onto the door Rose floated on instead of getting hypothermia and drowning?

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Joy

The best and brightest come together to tackle society’s toughest challenges

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative is working to eradicate disease, improve education, and address the needs of their local community.

True

Have you ever wished you could solve some of society’s toughest challenges? That’s exactly why the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) was founded.

Established in 2015 by Dr. Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg, the organization’s mission is to build a better future for everyone. CZI is working to eradicate disease, improve education, and address the needs of their local community.

Since its launch, CZI has awarded around $4.8 billion in grants to organizations whose work aligns with these values.

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Pop Culture

You've never seen ‘Little Drummer Boy' performed quite like this

For King & Country took the sweet, classic carol and made it epic.

For King & Country's "Little Drummer Boy" being played live.

Since it was popularized in the 1950s, the Christmas carol "Little Drummer Boy" has been performed by the likes of Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby and David Bowie, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts and more. It's a sweet, beloved classic that tells the story of a little boy who was invited to go see baby Jesus but had nothing to offer as a gift except his drumming.

But in all of the renditions of this song, there's never been one quite like this.

For King & Country's live performance of "Little Drummer Boy" takes the carol to a whole other level. If you like big sound and big drums and big lights, this will be a treat for you.

(And if anyone knows what that funky accordion-piano instrument the lead singer plays is, do tell.)

For King & Country (stylized as "for KING & COUNTRY") is a Christian rock duo from Australia composed of two brothers, Joel and Luke Smallbone, who we see singing lead here. The platinum-selling duo have won four Grammy awards for their music. Their Christmas album, appropriately titled "Drummer Boy Christmas," also includes other classics such as "Joy to the World," "O Come, All Ye Faithful" and "Silent Night," as well as two original songs.

If you'd like to hear the studio version of the duo's "Little Drummer Boy," here's the official music video for it. No flashing lights for this one, but it does include an actual little drummer boy:

Science

How grocery chain Kroger aims to create hunger-free communities by 2025

Since 2018, the Zero Hunger | Zero Waste Foundation has directed more than $48 million toward the huge amount of food thrown away needlessly in the US.

Kroger, one of the country's largest grocery store chains, is addressing food waste.

It’s no secret that food waste is doing a number on both our wallets and our planet. Food is the single largest contributor to landfills. Plus, producing all of that wasted food uses more than 20% of the U.S. supply of freshwater, and it creates as much greenhouse gas emissions as 33 million passenger cars.

As if all this weren’t bad enough, it’s awful (and absurd, really) to think that while this surplus of food literally rots, families go hungry.

Many people are taking it upon themselves to offset this issue, whether that’s incorporating everyday lifestyle changes or hosting pop-up dinners for those dealing with food insecurity. While these individual efforts are great, corporations also need to implement solutions. This is especially true considering U.S. retail stores generate about 16 billion pounds of food waste every year.

Kroger, one of the largest grocery chains in the country, established its Zero Hunger | Zero Waste Foundation back in 2018 with a simple mission in mind: to create communities free from hunger and waste by 2025.

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Joy

These award-winning alcohol-free spirits let you cut back on alcohol without cutting back on flavor

The Boisson Non-Alcoholic ‘Stock The Bar Bundle’ has everything you need to become a dry mixologist.

Via Unsplash

Have you been thinking about reducing your alcohol consumption? If so, you’re not alone. These days more and more people are trying to reevaluate why they drink, and the myriad ways alcohol affects their lives. And, not surprisingly, more and more people are deciding to cut back on booze all over the world.

Of course, not that long ago, anybody who wanted to cut back on alcohol basically had to give up on beer, wine, and cocktails altogether because there weren’t a lot of non-alcoholic options worth drinking. But that is not the case anymore. Today there are a ton of outstanding alcohol-free wines, beers, and spirits that make it easy to cut back on alcohol without cutting back on life’s simple pleasures. There are entire stores dedicated to the art of dry mixology.

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