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Land O’Lakes and Clove are filling the nation’s food banks with much-needed butter and shoes
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Food banks are a community staple for millions of Americans. Not only do they provide nutritional assistance to low-income families, they’re also often one of the few places where people can get non-food essentials like diapers, toiletries, paper towels, clothing and more. For the 44 million people in the United States facing food insecurity, pantries can literally be a lifeline.
But that lifeline is at risk. Food pantries rely on donations, both from individuals and government programs, to stay stocked. Rising poverty levels and budget cuts mean that food pantries sometimes can’t meet the demands of their communities—and as a result, families go without.
No person should struggle for basic needs—which is why Land O’Lakes is teaming up with Clove in the name of comfort ahead of the 2025 holiday season.
Comfort, meet comfort.
A partnership between a farmer-owned cooperative and a modern footwear brand might seem like an unusual pairing. But the reality is that both organizations provide things that are enjoyable and much needed for American families.
You might be surprised to learn, for example, that dairy is one of the most requested but least-donated items at food banks around the nation. From a nutritional lens, dairy is a source of high-quality protein that provides 3 of 4 nutrients—calcium, potassium and vitamin D—that low-income households are at risk of missing from their diets.
But on a larger scale, dairy provides comfort. Items like butter, milk and cream are in high demand, particularly around the end of the year since so many families use these items for baking holiday treats. And while shoes can be stylish gifts, they’re also a basic necessity for hardworking frontline workers who provide care for others and spend hours on their feet. In fact, 96 million people in the U.S. spend their work shift standing.
"We are so excited to collaborate with Clove Shoes and take a moment to celebrate the color of the moment, but also our everyday favorite, butter yellow," said Heather Anfang, president of Land O'Lakes Dairy Foods. "As a company who shares our values of community, hard work and comfort, we are thrilled for the launch of their shoe but also for our shared donation to those in need in an important area for our two brands in Philadelphia."
Meaningful giving when people need it most
Together, the organizations have donated dozens of sneakers and more than 3,750 pounds of butter to Philabundance, one of the largest food banks in Philadelphia and part of Feeding America’s nationwide network of food banks, pantries, and meal programs. As they team up to donate needed supplies, they’re also helping families feel nourished—inside and out—ahead of the cold winter months.
"As a Philadelphia-based brand, we’re proud to give back to the community we call home—nourishing our city and supporting those who care every day," shares Jordyn Amoroso, Co-founder and CBO. Clove has also gifted 88 shoes to the students enrolled at Philabundance Community Kitchen: a free, life-changing workforce development program run by Philabundance.
At a time when so many are stretched thin and families are moving into the holiday season facing food insecurity, collaborations like these can provide an unexpected value—a chance to revitalize local communities, to nourish families, and show how comfort can take many different forms.
Learn more about this unexpected partnership here.
Doctors say a lot of us are showering more than we need to.
A few times in recent years, celebrities and social media influencers alike have made waves by sharing that they don't make their kids bathe every day. For some parents, that was totally par for the course, but for others, letting a child go more than a day without bathing was seen as a travesty.
Doctors have made it clear that kids don't need to bathe daily, with some going so far as to recommend against it when they are young to protect kids' delicate skin. But what about grownups? Most of us don't take baths regularly as adults, but what's the ideal frequency for showering?
According to a YouGov poll of over 5,700 Americans, just over half of respondents said they shower daily and 11% said they shower twice or more per day. That means two out of three of us are showering at least once a day.
A woman in a shower cap.Canva Photos
But according to doctors and dermatologists, that's probably overkill for most people. Unless you're doing heavy labor, exercising vigorously, working outdoors or around toxins or otherwise getting excessively dirty or sweaty, a few showers per week is enough for healthy hygiene.
In fact, Robert H. Shmerling, MD of Harvard Health says too frequent showering could actually have some negative effects on your health.
"Normal, healthy skin maintains a layer of oil and a balance of 'good' bacteria and other microorganisms," Dr. Shmerling writes. "Washing and scrubbing removes these, especially if the water is hot." He shares that removing that protective layer can make our skin dry, irritated or itchy, which can lead to damage that allows allergens and bacteria to cross the skin barrier. Additionally, our immune systems require exposure to microorganisms, dirt, and other environmental stimuli in order to create "immune memory," and if we wash them away too frequently, we might be inhibiting the effectiveness of our immune system.
A healthy coat of dirt.Giphy
Dermatologists who spoke to Vogue had similar advice about shower frequency. Board-certified dermatologist Deanne Robinson, MD, FAAD told the magazine that you can skip showering for the day if you haven't engaged in rigorous activity. Mamina Turegano, a triple board-certified dermatologist, internist and dermatopathologist. agreed. "I think that showering three to four times a week is plenty for most people,” she said.
Of course, everyone is different and what is good for one person's skin isn't good for another's. Showering frequency and health also depend on what kinds of products you're using, what temperature of water you're using, and how long your shower is. There's a big difference between a quick pits-and-privates rinse-off and a long, hot everything shower.
While scorching yourself and steaming up the bathroom may feel luxurious and relaxing, especially if you've got sore muscles, dermatologists say it's not good for your skin. Hot showers are especially problematic for people with skin issues like eczema.
"Any skin condition characterized by a defective skin barrier can be worsened by a hot shower," board-certified New York City dermatologist Shari Marchbein told Allure. "[It] strips the skin of sebum, the healthy fats and oils necessary for skin health, and dehydrates the skin."
Maybe cool it on the hot showers. Canva Photos.
In fact most dermatologists recommend keeping showers lukewarm. That sounds like torture, frankly, but who's going to argue with the experts?
A lot of people, actually. Modern humans are pretty particular about our shower preferences, and judging from the comments on cleanliness discussions, some folks are dead set on the idea that a daily shower is simply not negotiable. Even with the experts weighing in with their knowledge and science, a lot of people will continue to do what they do, advice be damned.
But at least the folks who've been judged harshly by the daily shower police have some official backup. As long as you're showering every couple of days, you're golden. As it turns out, there really is such a thing as being too clean.
This article originally appeared last year. It has been updated.
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Math teacher assigns class to come up with punny math jokes and they did not disappoint.
Dad jokes are the best. Okay, that's just my personal opinion, but hear me out: Dad jokes are always clean and are generally reliant on some sort of pun or very obvious reality, which makes them nearly irresistible to find amusing. The person on the receiving end may not double over in laughter, but they likely cracked a smile while planning to save that joke for another day.
Terrica Taylor Barlow, a math teacher in Birmingham, Alabama, recently assigned her class to come up with dad jokes: math edition. The students really embodied the entire process of telling a punny joke, complete with the look of embarrassment over the absurdity of it all. But every time the joke landed, laughter erupted, and those who were sheepish about their dad jokes smiled the smile of victors.
Kids enjoying learning together with a laptop.Photo credit: Canva
These jokes weren't just the corny ones you'd see on the front of a Conversation Heart. These jokes were top-tier math puns, and some kids even gave their best math pickup line for their assignment. In the very first few seconds of the video, the viewer knows they're in for a treat of silliness and laughter. The little girl who tells the first joke starts by saying, "I got another math joke." After getting the go-ahead from her teacher, she launches into it: "Parallel lines have so much in common," she says. "It's a shame they'll never meet."
She immediately covers her face in embarrassment as the entire class bursts into laughter.
Joyful student aces math class!Photo credit: Canva
One of the students decided to go with the long-lasting relationship between fractions and decimals, saying, "Why did the fraction break up with the decimal?" A very good question, to which the student answered, "Because they couldn't see the point."
In another peek at fractions, a student asks, "Which king likes fractions?" (Insert Jeopardy music here), "Henry the 8th." The laughter was so loud after that one, the girl covered her ears.
Measurements are not lost on one student. He asks, "Why can't a nose grow 12 inches?" After a dramatic pause, the student answers with, "Because then it would be a foot."
Puns make the world go round, and these kids will be dad joke connoisseurs by the time they have children of their own. While these jokes aren't coming from a parent teasingly embarrassing their child with their ridiculous jokes, they do serve a purpose. They require each child to critically think about the math concepts they've learned, the social setting they'll be in when the joke is told, as well as become more resilient to embarrassment in front of classmates. It's a multipurpose assignment that carries the students into the weekend on a high note.
Commenters can't get enough of the jokes the kids tell. Many applaud the teacher for giving her students such a fun assignment and sharing the results. Some even share their own dad jokes.
Students collaborate in a lively group activity.Photo credit: Canva
One person writes, "This is just pure gold and their little expressions ❤️🔥."
Another says, "This is the kind of education that inspires and uplifts!"
Someone else chimes in, "The uproarious laughter they each get from the class is the best part."
"That teacher ADDED laughter to and SUBTRACTED boredom from learning. She MULTIPLIED student interaction and DIVIDED camera time between all students. The SUM was A GREAT TIME WAS HAD BY ALL!!!" One person applauds.
This person offered up their own joke, "I have a maths joke. 'Why was the math book so sad? Because it had too many problems.'"
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Image via Canva/Povozniuk
English words that are difficult to enunciate.
The English language is hard to master, even for native speakers. With over an estimated one million words in the language, not only are English words hard to memorize—they can be hard to properly pronounce and enunciate. Getting tripped up with pronunciation can make your communication unclear, or worse—make you sound uneducated.
As American English teacher Vanessa explains, many mispronounced words are common and used in daily conversation due to tricky consonants and vowels in English words. But by knowing the proper pronunciation, it can help you become a more confident speaker, which is why she shared 33 words that are hard for English language learners to pronounce, such as "probably," "drawer," and "sixth."
On the subreddit r/words, a person posed the question: "What's a word you've noticed many native English speakers have difficulty enunciating even though the word is used fairly often?"
Turns out, there are a menagerie of words people notoriously stumble over. These are 27 English words that people say are the hardest to enunciate.
- YouTube www.youtube.com
Tricky 'R' words
"The word I notice people struggle with is 'vulnerable'. Something about that N following an L is tricky." - common_grounder
"Rural." - Silent-Database5613
“'Nucular' for nuclear." - throwawayinthe818
"Remuneration v renumeration (first one is correct)." - RonanH69
"February. It sounds like you're pronouncing it like it's spelled Febuary. But it's spelled February." - SDF5-0, ShadedSpaces
"Mirror. Some people pronounce it 'meer'." - weinthenolababy, diversalarums
"Anthropomorphize is a word I have to use semi-frequently with limited success each attempt." - ohn_the_quain
"I can’t say the phrase 'rear wheel' without considerable effort." - ohn_the_quain
"Eraser (erasure, but they're talking about the pink rubber thing)." - evlmgs
- YouTube www.youtube.com
Multiple syllables
"Exacerbated vs exasperated." - SNAFU-lophagus
"'Asterisk'. A lot of people wind up inadvertently name-checking Asterix. I think it's best for those who struggle to use the alternative name for that punctuation mark, the 'Nathan Hale', after the American patriot who famously declared, 'I can only regret that I have but one asterisk for my country!'" - John_EightThirtyTwo
"I realized recently I have always mispronounced mischievous. It's mis-chiv-us, not mis-chee-vee-us. I don't know if I've ever heard anyone pronounce that correctly." - callmebigley"
'Supposebly' [supposedly]. Drives me up the wall." - BlushBrat
"Library. My coworker knows I hate it, so he’ll say Liberry every time." - Jillypenny"ET cetera, not 'ect' cetera. I think people are used to seeing the abbreviation etc and since there is no diphthong tc in English their mind bends it into ect." - AdFrequent4623
"The amount of people who say Pacific when they're trying to stay specific is pretty alarming. I'm not even sure if they know it's a different word sometimes." - Global-Discussion-41
"Then there was my old boss who would confidently and consistently use the word tenant when he meant tenet." - jaelith"
"Probably." - Rachel_Silver
"Contemplate. It's one of those word I hear people stumble over more than anything, often it comes out as Comtemplate, Contempate or a combination of both." - megthebat49
- YouTube www.youtube.com
Foods
"Turmeric. People drop the first R. It drives me nuts!" - Jillypenny
"Oh, and it’s espresso, no X [ex-presso]." - Jillypenny
"Also cardamom with an N." - nemmalur
"Pumpkin (punkin)." - evlmgs
sipping modern family GIF Giphy
Awkward vowels
"Crayon 👑. My ex pronounced it 'cran'. Drove me up a wall." - rickulele, premeditatedlasagna
'Mute' for moot. A good friend of mine, who's extremely intelligent and articulate otherwise, says that. Unfortunately, it's a word she likes to use. I haven't had the heart to tell her she's pronouncing it incorrectly, and it's been three decades." NewsSad5006, common_grounder
"Jewelry." - weinthenolababy
"I hear grown adults calling wolves woofs and they're not doing it to be funny." - asexualrhino
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Derek Jeter got a concerning phone call from his kids' school live on air.
All parents have experienced the uncomfortable moment when your life as Mom or Dad collides with your career. It could be the call from the school nurse in the middle of the work day, the fever discovered in the morning right before your big presentation, or your kids who are home on school break photobombing the Zoom meeting with your boss.
Being a world-famous athlete and TV personality can make a lot of these problems go away, but apparently not all of them. Even mega-celebrities sometimes struggle to balance their parental duties with career commitments. That's exactly what happened to MLB legend Derek Jeter on a recent telecast.
Jeter, a Hall of Fame shortstop, now works as an analyst on Fox Sports. During a recent game, a rain delay forced Jeter and the rest of the crew to fill three extra hours with coverage and analysis. And then his phone rang live on air.
While in the middle of speaking, Jeter's phone went off.
"Sorry. It’s a rain delay. I had a parent-teacher conference that I’m going to miss. So, sorry guys," Jeter said as he silenced the ringer.
The response from Jeter's co-analyst, former player David Ortiz, was so wholesome:
"Take it! Take it" Ortiz yelled. "Take the call, man." The gang enjoyed a good laugh at the slightly awkward broadcast miscue, but Ortiz wasn't joking. He doubled down a moment later when he said, "Kids first."
Host Kevin Burkhardt then quipped, "Derek has a parent teacher conference to go to, so we're going to take a break." At first, he appeared to be teasing, but he then admitted, "Well, we weren't supposed to be on the air, you're right! This is a surprise to all of us."
"I actually should get on it," Jeter then said, checking his phone again.
"You should go do your thing," Burkhardt said. Ortiz then added, "We got you, dawg."
The video went viral when MLB on Fox posted it to Instagram, and people couldn't say enough good things about how the men handled the situation.
"Best part is, everyone else was like 'go, that’s more important, we got your back'" one commenter said.
"The best part was all the other supporting men on that stage actually meaning when they say 'go man, take it'" added another.
"These men are the best thing to happen to sports in a long time… they’re funny, real humans and pro hands on dads!"
"A+ parenting. A+ teammates encouraging him to take it."
"The man who refused to have children until he finished playing because he wanted to be totally committed to fatherhood or the game. Way to go Derek for being an incredible father"
(That one is true, by the way. Jeter is on record with Fox News saying, ""The one thing I can say about my parents is: They were always present. It’s so hard when you have kids—I don’t care if it’s one kid; I have four kids—you want to be there, and then when you miss a day or two, you come back, and they completely change," and that he tries his best to emulate them.)
Derek Jeter Nod GIF by ESPN Giphy
The video even caught the attention of world-famous family psychologist Dr. Becky, who found the entire exchange to be an incredible teachable moment for other working parents.
She says she often speaks with parents who worry immensely about how their bosses and coworkers will react to their family obligations, causing tons of anxiety and mental strife.
Her advice was simple and pretty brilliant:
"What if people around me think I'm slacking and think I'm not doing a good job?" she said parents often worry. "You might not have [Ortiz] next to you telling you, 'Hey, we've got this, go do that thing for your kid'"
But that doesn't mean we have to feel alone and judged.
"If we are going to make up the thoughts of other people, we might as well make up that those thoughts are supportive. So the next time you're struggling ... imagine everyone in your workplace saying, 'We've got this. Go do that. We support you.'"
In a culture that rewards hustle and sacrifice and does not always do a good job accommodating people who want to have both careers and families, it's nice to see an example of what a supportive workplace atmosphere can look like.
It's great that Jeter wants to be there for his kids, but what's even better about this viral clip is the encouragement he gets from his fellow hosts and analysts that family, indeed, should come first.