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Mayor Pete was given a sign language name. His response was perfect.

Mayor Pete was given a sign language name. His response was perfect.

Receiving a sign name is a very special gift within the Deaf community. The name usually comes from a member within the community and often reflects the person’s character or unique qualities.

YouTuber Andy Pleasants, a deaf craniofacial disability advocate, recently came out in support of Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg and gave him a sign name.

Buttgieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, has ostensibly come out of nowhere to become a top-tier Democratic candidate in 2020.

Given his new logo includes the imagery of a bridge and “build bridges, not walls,” his sign name is P bridged across the chest to B.

Mayor Pete responded to the touching gift with a heartfelt video where he responded in American Sign Language (ASL). "Hi Andy, appreciate your support! Thank you," Buttigieg signed.

Peasants was “overwhelmed” by the response because he had never seen a presidential candidate speak to his community in ASL.

“Hey Pete, pleasure's all mine! Honestly, when I first saw this video I felt overwhelmed with emotion, I almost cried. I've never seen someone running for president use sign language before. A lot of politicians speak about inclusivity, but very few talk the talk and walk the walk or in this case, sign the sign and walk the walk.

To see you put in effort to try to start to learn and use a language that’s crucial to how I and many see others communicate, participate, and identify in this world, is just another example of why I'm thrilled to keep supporting and helping to spread your message. I hope you continue to learn about different cultures and communities, and include them in your vision."

He then shared his sign name with Mayor Pete and offered to help him learn ASL.

Mayor Pete’s understanding of the importance of language shouldn’t come as a shock to his supporters. Buttigieg is a Harvard and Oxford graduate who speaks eight different languages: English, Norwegian, Spanish, Italian, Maltese, Arabic, Dari, and French. He took up Norweigan just so he could read one of his favorite authors in their native tongue.

Buttigieg’s attempts to relate to the disabled community stand in stark contrast to the current president.

Donald Trump mocked a disabled reporter while on the campaign trail in 2016. He’s also proposed a policy that would monitor disabled people on social media for benefit fraud.

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Facebook group brings people together IRL to make meaningful friendships

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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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In 125 years, millions of people have looked at this painting. No one really saw it until recently.

Van Gogh saw something it took scientists another 100 years to see.

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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?

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Women do better when they have a group of strong female friends, study finds

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Women do better when they have female friends.

Madeleine Albright once said , "There is a special place in hell for women who don't help other women." It turns out that might actually be a hell on Earth, because women just do better when they have other women to rely on, and there's research that backs it up.

A study published in the Harvard Business Review found that women who have a strong circle of friends are more likely to get executive positions with higher pay. "Women who were in the top quartile of centrality and had a female-dominated inner circle of 1-3 women landed leadership positions that were 2.5 times higher in authority and pay than those of their female peers lacking this combination," Brian Uzzi writes in the Harvard Business Review .

Part of the reason why women with strong women backing them up are more successful is because they can turn to their tribe for advice. Women have to face different challenges than men, such as unconscious bias, and being able to turn to other women who have had similar experiences can help you navigate a difficult situation. It's like having a road map for your goals.

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3,700-year-old Babylonian stone tablet gets translated, changes history

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Dr. Daniel Mansfield and his team at the University of New South Wales in Australia have just made an incredible discovery. While studying a 3,700-year-old tablet from the ancient civilization of Babylon, they found evidence that the Babylonians were doing something astounding: trigonometry!

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They also have enough experience to take some pride in decisions that, in hindsight, were the right moves.

The good news is that at 40 there is still plenty of time to learn from our successes and failures to set ourselves up for a great second half of life. These lessons are also valuable to the Gen Zers coming up who can avoid the pitfalls of the older generation.

A Reddit user who has since deleted their profile asked millennials nearing 40 “what were your biggest mistakes at this point in life?” and they received more than 2,200 responses. The biggest regrets these millennials have are being flippant about their health and not saving enough money when they were younger.

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Identifying the folks who create unnecessary drama in our world is important. But calling them a “Karen” isn’t the best way to solve the problem. There are many reasons to have an issue with the “Karen” stereotype. First, it’s terrible for people named Karen, and it’s also a connotation that many feel is racist , sexist and ageist.

Further, according to a new study by Trustpilot , the stereotype isn’t accurate. A recent survey by the online media site found that the people who leave the most one-star reviews aren’t female, and the women who do it the most aren’t named Karen.

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