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Lady Gaga gets best possible revenge on ex-classmates who bullied her with a Facebook group.

Lady Gaga gets best possible revenge on ex-classmates who bullied her with a Facebook group.
via Shutterstock

We've all heard the saying "haters make me famous," but few celebrities have lived that truth as precisely as Lady Gaga.

While it's well-known by now that she believes you just need one person in a room of 100 to believe in you, this mantra isn't just PR positivity, but comes from personal experience.

During her early college years at NYU, when Gaga was regularly performing at local bars, she had a loyal crew of haters. As many college students do, NYU students created a crop of small and niche Facebook groups dedicated to everything from eyebrows to music swapping.

However, one very small and pointed group was dedicated to trash talking Gaga, then known by her real name, Stefani Germanotta.

Members of the group, titled "Stefani Germanotta, you will never be famous" regularly posted about how she was "an attention whore" and would never make it big.

Back in 2016, a former classmate of Gaga's, Lauren Bohn, made a Facebook post detailing the innerworkings of the group.

When I was a freshman at NYU and Facebook was only a year old and people created/joined groups like "I have dimples,...

Posted by Lauren Bohn on Sunday, January 17, 2016

She wrote about how Gaga's story serves as an ideal example of what happens when you lean into your drive, and not what other people project onto you.

"When I was a freshman at NYU and Facebook was only a year old and people created/joined groups like "I have dimples, f*** me" and "Fake ID, please!," I remember coming across a Facebook group that broke my heart. It's name: "Stefani Germanotta, you will never be famous.
The page housed pictures of a pretty Norah Jones-esque young 18-year-old NYU student who sang and played piano at local bars. The group was peppered with comments, sharp as porcupine needles, vilifying the aspiring musician for being an "attention-whore." Scores asked: "Who does she think she is?" I also remember one dude posting a flyer for one of her upcoming gigs at a local village bar. He had clearly stomped on the flyer, an outline of his muddy sole [soul] struggling to eclipse her name.
I couldn't shake the raw feeling of filth while scrolling down that Facebook page, but I pretty much -- and quickly -- forgot about that group and that girl with the intense raven eyes.
Until about five years later. I was on an Amtrak train from NYC to Philly, reading a Vanessa Grigoriadis New York Magazine profile on Lady Gaga. I floated somewhat mindlessly through the piece until I got to the first sentence of the second graf:
Before the meeting, I assumed that someone with a stage name like “Lady” (her given name is Stefani Joanne Germanotta) was going to be a bit standoffish..."
HOLY SHIT, I screamed to an empty car (Those who hang with me will know that I actually shrieked). LADY GAGA IS STEFANI GERMANOTTA? STEFANI IS LADY GAGA?
I was overcome with a dizzying emotional cocktail of stage-mom-at-a-beauty-pageant and nerd-revenge triumph. But also shame. Shame that I never wrote on that group, shame that I never defended the girl with the intense raven eyes -- the girl whose brave flyers were stomped on, probably somewhere near my dorm.
But again, I soon forgot about that revelation and that feeling. Feelings. They're so fleeting. Even more so, revelations. We need to constantly re-discover them every damn day. Like last week, when I woke up to this meme. I saw the muddy sole eclipsing her name. The eye-rolls. The cowardly virtual-giggles. The "Who does she think she is?""
I've got a lot of feelings, but the easiest one to articulate: gratitude. Stefani, thank you. Thank you for always thinking you're a superstar, for using your cracks to let the light come out more brightly. Humans, let's follow suit. #LadyGaga #ThatsWho"

Needless to say, Gaga got the ultimate revenge by becoming super famous and beloved. What's more, she broke barriers this year by becoming the first woman to win an Oscar, Grammy, BAFTA and Golden Globe in one year.

People are legitimately curious about how those 12 Facebook Members feel about their petty cruelty now.

Others noted how this just exemplifies that people will hate on anyone and any project, and that should never be a reason to stop.

This article was originally published by our partners at someecards.

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Parenting

Yet another school district shifts to 4-day week and parents are sounding off

So...when are we getting the matching 4-day work week?

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Students working; an empty classroom.

When talking with other parents I know, it's hard not to sound like a grumpy old man when we get around to discussing school schedules: "Am I the only one who feels like kids have so many days off? I never got that many days off when I was a kid! And I had to go work in the coal mine after, too!" I know what I sound like, but I just can't help it.

In Georgia where I live, we have a shorter summer break than some other parts of the country. But my kids have the entire week of Thanksgiving off, a week in September, two whole weeks at Christmas, a whole week off in February, and a weeklong spring break. They have asynchronous days (during which they complete assignments at home, which usually takes about 30 minutes) about once a month, and they have two or three half-day weeks throughout the year. Quite honestly, it feels like they're never in school for very long before they get another break, which makes it tough to get in a rhythm with work and career goals. Plus, we're constantly arranging day camps and other childcare options for all the time off. After a quick search, I can confirm I'm not losing my mind: American kids have fewer school days than most other major countries.

 school's out, school days, school week, work week, schedules Schools Out Fun GIF by Pen Pals  Giphy  

So, it caught my attention in a major way when I read that Whitney Independent School District in Texas recently decided to enact a four-day week heading into the 2025 school year. That makes it one of dozens of school districts in Texas to make the change and over 900 nationally.

The thought of having the kids home from school EVERY Friday or Monday makes me want to break out in stress hives, but this four-day school week movement isn't designed to give parents a headache. It's meant to lure teachers back to work.

Yes, teachers are leaving the profession in droves and young graduates don't seem eager to replace them. Why? For starters, the pay is bad—but that's just the beginning. Teachers are burnt out, undermined and criticized relentlessly, held hostage by standardized testing, and more. It can be a grueling, demoralizing, and thankless job. The love and passion they have for shaping the youth of tomorrow can only take you so far when you feel like you're constantly getting the short end of the stick.

School districts want to pay their teachers more, in theory, but their hands are often tied. So, they're getting creative to recruit the next generation of teachers into their schools—starting with an extra day off for planning, catch-up, or family time every week.

Teachers in four-day districts often love the new schedule. Kids love it (obviously). It's the parents who, as a whole, aren't super thrilled.

 school, kids, teachers, instruction time, classes, schedule Class in session Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash  

So far, the data shows that the truncated schedule perk is working. In these districts, job applications for teachers are up, retirements are down, and teachers are reporting better mental well-being. That's great news!

But these positive developments may be coming at the price of the working parents in the communities. Most early adopters of the four-day week have been rural communities with a high prevalence of stay-at-home parents. As the idea starts to take hold in other parts of the country, it's getting more pushback. Discussions on Reddit, Facebook, and other social media platforms are overrun with debate on how this is all going to shake up. Some parents, to be fair, like the idea! If they stay-at-home or have a lot of flexibility, they see it as an opportunity for more family time. But many are feeling anxious. Here's what's got those parents worried:

The effect on students' achievement is still unclear.

The execution of the four-day week varies from district to district. Some schools extend the length of each of the four days, making the total instructional time the same. That makes for a really long day, and some teachers say the students are tired and more unruly by the late afternoon. Some districts are just going with less instruction time overall, which has parents concerned that their kids might fall behind.

Four-day school weeks put parents in a childcare bind.

Having two working parents is becoming more common and necessary with the high cost of living. I know, I know—"school isn't daycare!" But it is the safe, reliable, and educational place we send our kids while we we work.

Families with money and resources may be able to enroll their kids in more academics, extracurriculars, sports, or childcare, but a lot of normal families won't be able to afford that cost. Some schools running a four-day week offer a paid childcare option for the day off, but that's an added expense and for families with multiple kids in the school system, it's just not possible.

This will inevitably end with some kids getting way more screentime.

With most parents still working five-day weeks, and the cost of extra activities or childcare too high, a lot of kids are going to end up sitting around on the couch with their iPad on those days off. I'm no expert, and I'm certainly not against screentime, but adding another several hours of it to a child's week seems less than ideal.

Of course there are other options other than paid childcare and iPads. There are play dates, there's getting help from family and friends. All of these options are an enormous amount of work to arrange for parents who are already at capacity.

Working four days is definitely a win for teachers that makes the job more appealing. But it doesn't address the systemic issues that are driving them to quit, retire early, or give up their dreams of teaching all together.

 teachers, stress, education, work, job Season 3 Running GIF by The Simpsons  Giphy  

A Commissioner of Education from Missouri calls truncated schedules a "band-aid solution with diminishing returns." Having an extra planning day won't stop teachers from getting scapegoated by politicians or held to impossible curriculum standards, it won't keep them from having to buy their own supplies or deal with ever-worsening student behavior.

Some teachers and other experts have suggested having a modified five-day school week, where one of the days gets set aside as a teacher planning day while students are still on-site participating in clubs, music, art—you know, all the stuff that's been getting cut in recent years. Something like that could work in some places.

As a dad, I don't mind the idea of my busy kids having an extra day off to unwind, pursue hobbies, see friends, catch up on projects, or spend time as a family. And I'm also very much in favor of anything that takes pressure off of overworked teachers. But until we adopt a four-day work week as the standard, the four-day school week is always going to feel a little out of place.

This article originally appeared in February. It has been updated.

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Psychologist explains why everyone feels so exhausted these days and it makes a lot of sense

"A gentle reminder about why you are utterly exhausted…"

Photo by Jamie Street on Unsplash

It seems like most people are feeling wiped out these days. There's a reason for that.

We're more than four years past the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it's been a weird ride, to say the least. These years have been hard, frustrating, confusing and tragic, and yet we keep on keeping on. Except the keeping on part isn't quite as simple as it sounds.

We've sort of collectively decided to move on, come what may. This year has been an experiment in normalcy, but one without a testable hypothesis or clear design. And it's taken a toll. So many people are feeling tired, exhausted, worn thin ("like butter scraped over too much bread," as Bilbo Baggins put it) these days.

But why?

Psychologist and speaker Naomi Holdt beautifully explained what's behind the overarching exhaustion people are feeling as we close out 2022, and it makes perfect sense. Holdt is a psychologist, author, and speaker with over two decades of experience, and specializes in the emotional well-being of children and young adults. She is also the author of "How to Raise Resilient Kids and Teens."

In a post on Facebook, she wrote:

"A gentle reminder about why you are utterly exhausted…

No one I know began this year on a full tank. Given the vicious onslaught of the previous two years (let’s just call it what it was) most of us dragged ourselves across the finish line of 2021… frazzled, spent, running on aged adrenaline fumes…

We crawled into 2022 still carrying shock, trauma, grief, heaviness, disbelief… The memories of a surreal existence…

And then it began… The fastest hurricane year we could ever have imagined. Whether we have consciously processed it or not, this has been a year of more pressure, more stress, and a race to 'catch up' in all departments… Every. Single. One. Work, school, sports, relationships, life…

Though not intentionally aware, perhaps hopeful that the busier we are, the more readily we will forget… the more easily we will undo the emotional tangle… the more permanently we will wipe away the scarring wounds…

We can’t.

And attempts to re-create some semblance of 'normal' on steroids while disregarding that for almost two years our sympathetic nervous systems were on full alert, has left our collective mental health in tatters. Our children and teens are not exempt. The natural byproduct of fighting a hurricane is complete and utter exhaustion…

So before you begin questioning the absolutely depleted and wrung-dry state you are in- Pause. Breathe. Remind yourself of who you are and what you have endured. And then remind yourself of what you have overcome.

Despite it all, you’re still going. (Even on the days you stumble and find yourself face down in a pile of dirt).


 tired, exhausted, wicker chair, psychology, tired woman,  A tired woman relaxing in a chair.via Canva/Photos

Understanding brings compassion… Most of the world’s citizens are in need of a little extra TLC at the moment. Most are donning invisible 'Handle with care' posters around their necks and 'Fragile' tattoos on their bodies…

Instead of racing to the finish line of this year, tread gently.

Go slowly. Amidst the chaos, find small pockets of silence. Find compassion. Allow the healing. And most of all… Be kind. There’s no human being on earth who couldn’t use just a little bit more of the healing salve of kindness."

Putting it like that, of course, we're exhausted. We're like a person who thinks they're feeling better at the end of an illness, so they dive fully back into life, only to crash midday because their body didn't actually have as much energy as their brain thought it did. We tried to fling ourselves into life, desperate to feel normal and make up for lost time, without taking the time to fully acknowledge the impact of the past two years or to fully recover and heal from it.


 tired, exhausted, wicker chair, psychology, tired woman,  A tired woman laying on the couch.via Canva/Photos

Of course, life can't just stop, but we do need to allow some time for our bodies, minds, and spirits to heal from what they've been through. The uncertainty, the precariousness of "normal," the after-effects of everything that upended life as we knew it are real. The grief and trauma of those who have experienced the worst of the pandemic are real. The overwhelm of our brains and hearts as we try to process it all is real.

So let's be gentle with one another and ourselves as we roll our harried selves into another new year. We could all use that little extra measure of grace as we strive to figure out what a true and healthy "normal" feels like.

You can follow Naomi Holdt on Facebook.

This article originally appeared three years ago.

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History (Education)

10 fascinating facts about Vincent van Gogh and his famous 'Starry Night' painting

Most of us know bits and pieces about the man and his art, but likely don't have the full picture.

Photo credit: Canva

Vincent van Gogh is famous for his striking colors and bold brush strokes.

If you were to ask people to name famous paintings, Vincent van Gogh's "The Starry Night" would surely be among the top answers. The swirling blue and yellow sky is one of the most recognizable works of Western art, and van Gogh is a household name even among people who aren't big art connoisseurs.

Most of us know a little bit about van Gogh due to the dramatic story of him cutting off his own ear. But there's also a lot of lore and legend ranging in accuracy about the man and his art, so it's worth doing a dive into some true fascinating facts about both. A video from Great Art Explained provides a concise but comprehensive overview of who he was and how he worked, giving us a bigger picture of the legend as well as his most famous piece.

 

  - YouTube  www.youtube.com  

 

Here are some facts the average person might not know about Vincent van Gogh:

Van Gogh didn't start painting until his late 20s and only painted for a decade.

For such a famous artist, van Gogh didn't paint for very long. He didn't seriously begin painting until around age 27, but he dedicated himself fully to his art until he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest at age 37. Still, his prolific talent was legendary, as he created some 900 paintings, and over 2,000 pieces of art overall, during his decade of work. He had just begun being recognized for his artistic talents when he died, and most of his famous paintings were created in his final two years of life.

Van Gogh spent time in a mental institution, but it wasn't your typical asylum experience.

In 1889, van Gogh was admitted into a mental asylum outside Saint Remy, France. But unlike the overcrowded public mental institutions in large cities, the small asylum only had 41 patients and was run by a progressive doctor who believed in treating mentally ill people with kindness and understanding. Art and nature were seen as healing, and doctors quickly realized that van Gogh wouldn't survive if he didn't have the freedom to paint and create. He spent all of his waking hours painting and created many of his most well-known works—including "The Starry Night"—while gazing out his barred asylum window at the beautiful countryside dotted with olive groves and vineyards or wandering the purposefully planted gardens.

 vincent van gogh, painting, art, irises, master Van Gogh painted "Irises" while he as at the Saint Remy asylum. upload.wikimedia.org  

Most of the time, he was perfectly lucid and rational.

Today, van Gogh would likely be diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and his behavior during manic episodes—like cutting off his own ear and giving it to a prostitute—have planted in people's minds a picture of van Gogh as a crazed lunatic. However, he was actually lucid and rational most of the time. Not only that, but he was intelligent and extremely well-read, spoke four languages, and had lifelong friends as well as a close relationship with his brother and sister-in-law. The history-defining ear incident was not his usual modus operandi. In fact, the video notes that he was "probably the sanest patient at St. Remy."

He also had syphilis.

This fact can't really be separated from his mental illness challenges, as syphilis can cause psychiatric problems.

 theo van gogh, vincent van gogh brother, art history, illness, health Theo van Gogh, Vincent's younger brother, helped support him throughout his life.Public Domain 

Van Gogh's brother Theo was his biggest supporter.

Throughout his life, van Gogh's younger brother Theo supported him in every way: financially, emotionally, and artistically. An art dealer himself, Theo encouraged his brother to develop his painting skills. Theo paid for Vincent's treatment at the asylum and was also the one who insisted he be able to paint there. Much of what we know about van Gogh comes from letters he wrote to Theo, and the two shared a close bond. Theo was with Vincent when he died, two days after shooting himself in the chest. Theo, who also had syphilis, would die just six month later from the effects of the disease.

Van Gogh's "The Starry Night" was influenced by Japanese art.

Like many of his Western colleagues at the time, van Gogh was influenced by art from Japan, and many of his paintings reflect elements of Japanese prints. He was an admirer of Hokusai's "The Great Wave Off Kanagawa," and it's not a stretch to see how it may have inspired the swirl pattern and blue colors of "The Starry Night."

 the great wave, japanes painting, kanagawa, hakusai, van gogh, the starry night Hokusai's "The Great Wave Off Kanagawa" and van Gogh's "The Starry Night"Photo credit: Canva

Van Gogh tried to poison himself with paints and turpentine a few weeks before painting "The Starry Night."

The bright colors that marked the last five years of van Gogh's art also nearly took his life. New techniques in creating pigments in paints led to a dramatic shift from dark, brooding paintings to bright, colorful ones as van Gogh entered his peak years. But his mental health also took dramatic turns, and prior to painting "The Starry Night" in 1889, medical notes from the asylum indicate that he drank paint and turpentine as a suicide attempt.

Van Gogh became very religious but eventually lost his faith in Christianity.

Van Gogh was raised by a Christian minister father and developed a deep religious faith, even becoming an evangelical preacher himself for a time. But later his relationship with religion morphed into a belief that the divine was expressed in nature, art, and human emotion rather than the church.

Van Gogh considered "The Starry Night" a failure.

With his standards for himself set impossibly high, van Gogh felt that many of his paintings were failures, including, apparently, "The Starry Night." He wrote to fellow painter Emile Bernard several months after painting it, "I have been slaving away on nature the whole year, hardly thinking of impressionism or of this, that and the other. And yet, once again I let myself go reaching for stars that are too big—a new failure—and I have had enough of it."

Van Gogh was entirely wrong about his own legacy.

Less than two months before his suicide in 1890, van Gogh wrote to a critic who had praised his work in a Paris newspaper, "It is absolutely certain that I shall never do important things." Though he had started to see some success as an artist, there was no inkling that he would become one of the most famous and iconic artists of all time. If he had lived, he might have seen the full recognition of his artistic genius in his lifetime or he may not have. But as it was, he died believing himself to be an insignificant failure.

There may be many lessons we can glean from van Gogh's story, but perhaps the biggest is to not discount our own talents, skills, or contributions. Like him, we may not be seeing the full picture.

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Job recruiter sings praises of candidate who put his 671-day Duolingo streak on his resume

It does make a statement.

@bllshfrv/Reddit, Wikipedia

Nearly two years of learning a language…something's had to have stuck.

In the age of algorithms and keywords and incredibly steep competition, people have to be more strategic and creative than ever to secure a good job. Especially when it comes to drafting a resume that stands out amongst hundreds of others.

Recently, one job recruiter was so impressed by one job seeker’s clever idea of listing their 671-day Duolingo streak—alongside a fluency in English and limited American Sign Language —under the "languages" section in their resume that he decided to share it online.

 duolingo, japanese, language learning, consistency Nearly two years of consistency says something, doesn't it?  Giphy GIF by Atrium 

According to Newsweek, the job recruiter, named Bilal Ashrafov, was pleasantly surprised, and had even considered including something similar on his own resume, “but wasn't sure if it would come across as professional.”

“Seeing someone take that first step made me reflect on its relevance,” he said, noting that “a long-standing Duolingo streak can demonstrate dedication and continuous learning,” even if the popular app only requires a minute of practice a day.

After sharing the resume onto Reddit, others seemed to agree, and commended the potential employee for their innovative approach.

from duolingo


"Imagine explaining that in an interview—'I'm not just consistent, I'm Duolingo consistent!'" one viewer quipped.

Another commented, "If I was hiring, I would definitely interview this person."

Still another said, "It got noticed, didn't it? Sounds like not too bad of an idea."

 japanese, japanese language, learning japanese, language learning Is foreign language learning on Duolingo a resume-building skill?

Considering that there are a few ways folks can keep their Duolingo streak intact without truly getting proficient in a language, like continuing to purchase streak freezes, this idea might never take on as the new resume must-have. But, on a much broader scale, this story highlights the need to bring a bit of ourselves to our resumes. As the concept of portfolio careers, or a career that includes multiple income streams, rather than a single job title, becomes more and more mainstream, we’ve seen people find great success in listing what they uniquely bring to the table, professional or otherwise.

When it comes to adding resume items that pop, and offer a true reflection for who you really are, think about including:

Soft skills:

These are personal qualities that describe how you work and interact with others, such as conflict resolution or time management, and they are not only gaining importance across the workforce, but are highly transferable across different types of work.

 soft skills, resume builders, what to put on a resume Soft skills like conflict resolution and bridge-building between people are valuable in a work environment.Photo credit: Canva

Personal projects:

Whether you got paid for these isn’t paramount here. If you led a community initiative your passionate about, or even have a long-standing blog about something that interests you, this could be included.

Technical skills beyond the job description:

Do you have a proficiency in certain programs, like coding languages, data visualization, project management, etc? Even if a job doesn’t specifically ask for these skills, they could be helpful additions.

 technical skills, computer coding, resume builders Always tout your tech know-how on your resume.Photo credit: Canva

Creative or unique hobbies:

You never know what interesting conversations your oddball pastime might inspire, if anything else. So don’t be embarrassed if you’re a wiz a Photoshopping old-timey puppy portraits or engage in recreating Scandinavian folk tunes with GarageBand.

Community involvement:

This can be your volunteering roles, and mentorship programs you might have participated in, or even charities you have close ties to.

 volunteer, charity work, community involvement Community service and charitable work helps to round out a resume.Photo credit: Canva

Academic achievements:

Include relevant published research papers or presentations, and awards or honors you received during your studies, or any significant contributions you might have made to a research project

These are just a few suggestions to get you started. Include a few, or perhaps your own impressive Duolingo streak, or something else. Just remember, sometimes it pays to think outside the box.

This article originally appeared in February

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