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It's outrageous what these women are offering to do so that we can have paid family leave.

Paid leave to be a parent — lots of countries have healthy policies for it. Why don't we?

Not being able to take paid family leave places families in tough corners.

Many years ago, after a difficult night of trying to calm my asthmatic 2-year-old's respiratory cold, she took a turn for the worse. She began to have "chest retractions," which is what happens when the lungs aren't doing the work of bringing in and expelling air efficiently, so the torso muscles start actually pumping the lungs for survival.

This is what those look like. It's terrifying, and when this happens, oxygen levels in the blood can get dangerously low.


GIF from Liege Davis/YouTube.

Lack of paid family leave forces people to make terrible decisions.

I got her admitted to the hospital at about 5:00 a.m. and needed to report to my job at 9:00 a.m. I wanted nothing more than to stay by her side, but with her chronic asthma, I'd already exhausted my normal sick leave that year and calling in could have meant losing my job at the giant behemoth corporation I worked for. If I lost my job, I'd lose the health insurance she needed so desperately.

In one of the most gut-wrenching moments of my life, I called in a family member to take my place and tore myself away from her bedside to report to work, crying the entire way there.

My daughter made a recovery, mostly outgrew asthma, and I went on to work for an employer with much better paid leave policies (yay Upworthy!). But I never forgot that day and I never forgot how if we went through it, others are going through something similar every day.

America lags behind nearly every other developed nation when it comes to family leave.

An organization reporting for the United Nations found that, among 170 developed countries assessed, only two didn't have defined and guaranteed benefits for paid family leave — the United States and Papua New Guinea. A renewed effort to help America get up to par has been underway, but new House Speaker Paul Ryan has yet to make it a priority.

A new video from AmericanWomen.org hopes to change that. In the video, a bunch of famous women and men (like Mila Jovovich and Maggie Gyllenhaal) are asking, "Who do I have to ____ around here to get paid family leave for Americans?"

This video combines tons of celebrities, some shocking information about just how far behind America is with this, and a funny and surprising twist on how we can get there.

"Do I have to ____ the entire Senate? Because I will."

GIFS from AmericanWomen.org.

"I'll ____ them all!"

Everybody who has a family needs to see this! The time has come for no more heartbreaking choices for moms and dads when it comes to our families and livelihoods.

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Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

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Image from Wikimedia Commons.

Van Gogh’s Starry Night.



Van Gough never got to enjoy his own historic success as an artist (even though we've been able to imagine what that moment might have looked like). But it turns out that those of us who have appreciated his work have been missing out on some critical details for more than 100 years.

I'm not easily impressed, OK?

I know Van Gogh was a genius. If the point of this were "Van Gogh was a mad genius," I would not be sharing this with you.
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Family

Baby still in diapers is blowing people away with his musical ability at the piano

Young Gavrill seems to intuitively understand music, and the best part is that he does it with such joy.

Gavrill Scherbenko appears to be a musical prodigy.

Mozart blew people away with his composing abilities at age 5. Franz Liszt played piano professionally for the aristocracy when he was 9. Yo-Yo Ma played cello for President John F. Kennedy at age 7.

Musical prodigies have fascinated people for centuries with their mastery of music at unexpected ages. Most of us have the same questions: How and at what age were their abilities discovered? Is it nature or nurture or a combination of both? Can prodigies be created on purpose, or is it something no one can predict or control?

While each musical prodigy has their own unique story, one family is giving the world some early glimpses of what an innate sense for music looks like in a baby who's still in diapers.

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Christine Kesteloo has one big problem living on a cruise ship.

A lot of folks would love to trade lives with Christine Kesteloo. Her husband is the Chief Engineer on a cruise ship, so she gets to live on the boat pretty much for free as the “wife on board.” For Christine, life is a lot like living on a permanent vacation.

“I live on a cruise ship for half the year with my husband, and it's often as glamorous as it sounds,” she told Insider. “After all, I don't cook, clean, make my bed, do laundry or pay for food.“

Living an all-inclusive lifestyle seems like paradise, but it has some drawbacks. Having access to all-you-can-eat food all day long can really have an effect on one’s waistline. Kesteloo admits that living on a cruise ship takes a lot of self-discipline because the temptation is always right under her nose.

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Is it always best to be honest with friends?

A big parenting trend over the past few decades is people giving their children names that help them stand out instead of fit in. Social scientists say that a big reason for the change in America is the rise of individualism.

“As American culture has become more individualistic, parents have favored giving children names that help them stand out—and that means more unique names and fewer common names,” Jean Twenge, a San Diego State University psychology professor, told the BBC.

However, being an individualist comes with some risks. One can be an iconoclastic trendsetter or seen as desperate, inauthentic and cringeworthy.

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Pop Culture

Macaulay Culkin finally got his Hollywood star, and it was full of heartfelt nostalgia

The moment included a heartfelt reunion with beloved "Home Alone" star Catherine O'Hara.

photo by Alan Light, Wikipedia/Canva

A photo of young Macaulay Culkin and the Hollywood Walk of Fame

With Christmas just around the corner, it feels beyond appropriate that holiday icon Macaulay Culkin would be getting his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame this past weekend on Friday, Dec 1st.

It was an adorable moment filled with sweet reunions, emotional speeches and plenty of heartfelt nostalgia as the “Home Alone” actor accepted his long awaited award. Not to mention it left several fans proud to see how much the child star had grown up into a healthy adult.
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Dad walks in on couple in hilariously compromising scene

Look, sometimes we walk in on things that we just shouldn't see. Those situations can be embarrassing for everyone involved and there's never a clear way to address it depending on what exactly was seen. Sure, some situations are easier to explain than others while others may be completely innocent but no amount of explaining will make the unsuspecting party believe it.

One Italian couple was recording a video for a TikTok trend when the woman's father walked in on them. Music is blasting when the dad slowly opens the door to take a peek at what's going on. It appears he was not ready to see what he saw because he stood in the doorway looking confused and flabbergasted at the sight.

Matilde Morra and Daniele were having a good time dancing for the trend while she was wearing her partner's baggy clothes and he was wearing...her leopard print dress.

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