Shainaf87

This week's Showcase features Mark Hood, a contestant from this season of NBC's "The Voice," singing "Stand By Me."  Hood stopped by Tribune Tower between practices for his homecoming concert to be held at Black Ensemble Theater on Jan. 17. Hood was a frequent performer with the company before...

Recently, I have been on the hunt for gluten, paraben, and cruelty free beauty products. Through my search I came across Ecco Bella. Their beauty products range from skin and hair care to different types of makeup products. I selected a few items to see if they could be added into my beauty arsenal. Below is a review of the items I tried.

Ecco Bella FlowerColor Lipstick




The finish of all these lipsticks is semi gloss. These lipsticks applied smoothly without flaking, and my lips felt pretty hydrated all day. They are made from a simple formula of vegetable waxes, oils, and mineral pigments. I was pleasantly surprised that I have found a natural lipstick that is every bit as good as its sythetic counterparts. The colors were highly pigmented and true to the colors in the tube.

Good For You Gloss



These glosses are made from castor oil, organic palmfruit stearin, shea butter, candelilla wax, aloe vera, vanilla flavor, and complex Vitamin E. The colors were great but the staying power was just OK. Make sure you have this on hand for reapplying throughout the day. The finish on these glosses is shiny and somewhat sheer. They are great for anyone who tends to not like a lot of makeup. They provide the right amount of natural color without looking overdone.

FlowerColor Face Powder



I normally use liquid foundation and I found that this compact made a great setting powder. I use a light dusting after using my liquid foundation to ensure everything is set in place. This formula has a buildable coverage, making it also great for people who don't use liquid or cream foundations. The powder has added green tea extract, flower waxes, aloe vera and vitamin E, making it wonderful for your skin as well!

FlowerColor Treatment Serum



I have been big on face serums lately and I found this one to be one of the best I have tried. It is amazing! I use it on my face, neck, scalp, and backs of my hands. It does wonders for my skin and has a pleasant and calming scent. Depending on your skin type this serum can be used alone or under your daily cream.




For more tips and tricks follow me on Twitter: @makeupbysana, Instagram: @makeupbysanac and on Facebook: Makeup by Sana

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Workout in the morning, workin' it at night.

The post Fitbit Blaze Is a (Slightly) Slicker Fitness Watch appeared first on WIRED.

This bar features spirits that are literally not obtainable anywhere else in the city (potentially, anywhere else in the world). And there are only 8 seats. [ more › ]

This month Vulture will be publishing our critics’ year-end lists. Last week's lists included movies, albums, art, and video games. Today's all about comedy: the best sketches, specials, and podcasts. 1. “Comedy Bang! Bang!”“Comedy Bang! Bang!” has come a long way in the six years since it started on internet ... More »

When it gets too crowded at home, sometimes you just need to go out find your own crash pad.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: kittehs

sizvideos:

Tiny Birthday For A Tiny Hedgehog - Video

ABC has just announced the 28 contestants who will vie for reanimated Ken doll Ben Higgins’ heart this January. None of them are over 30 (Higgins is 26), and one listed her occupation as “chicken enthusiast.” This should go really well.

Read more...

This adorable tiny hamster has zero cares in the world. 

He's the epitome of relaxation. The face of sheer content. All he wants to do snuggle up in a blanket and chomp on a carrot that's almost as big as his face. This hamster is living his very best life. 

Today, we are all this hamster.  

H/T Laughing Squid

Also on HuffPost: 

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There are two kinds of people at every Thanksgiving meal: the hosts and the guests.  The hosts have the more difficult job in planning, preparing, cooking, and cleaning, and it is made even more challenging when they are forced to deal with a Shitty Guest. If you are going to be somebody’s guest this Thanksgiving, here are 12 tips to ensure you are not a Shitty Guest. 1. Bring the God damned food you say you are going to bring Most Thanksgiving dinners these days are old-fashioned potlucks.  The host typically takes care of the turkey, the stuffing, and the gravy, and they rely on the guests to do the rest.  So if you offer to bring cranberry sauce, bring the God damned cranberry sauce.  Or if you are delegated you to bring something like, say, the mashed potatoes, and you try to push your kick-ass creamed corn, you’d better not show up with anything but the fucking mashed potatoes. Period. 2. No surprises, asshole So you stuck with your assigned dish, and then you went and got clever. Not advised. Do not surprise your host with something you weren’t supposed to bring, like your mom’s famous traditional onion dip.  Chances are, hors d’oeuvres are already covered, and that 15,000 calorie-per-tablespoon dip you thought was so kitschy and vintage will fill up the entire household before they get to the dinner table. Flowers?  Fuck that, because all it means is that your host needs to stop what they’re doing and find a fucking vase while you remind them the stems need to be trimmed before they go in water.  So unless you bring your pre-cut stupid flowers already in a vase with water, just stick to the food and bring the damn food you say you’re gonna bring. 3. That food had better be ready to eat Okay, so you’ve offered to do the Brussels sprouts because you have an AMAZING recipe that you googled like ten minutes ago. The recipe calls for walnuts, bacon, red wine vinegar, two sticks of butter, a stupid cinnamon stick, and of course Brussels sprouts.  You do the shopping and you’re ready to go.  Good for you!  Next, and this is very important, do everyone a favor and COOK THE FUCKING FOOD AT HOME.  Do not show up at your host’s place with two Whole Foods bags of shit and then request a cutting board, the sharpest knife in the house, the biggest pot they have, and a burner on the stove top, because that is a sure-fired way of making your host hate you for the rest of your life. Not only are you taking up valuable kitchen real estate, you’re creating dirty dishes that you undoubtedly will not be washing, you asshole.  Even if your food is sitting out for two hours and tastes like garbage after it’s been microwaved, that is a thousand times better than showing up with raw fucking ingredients. 4. Bring your shit in a container that can be thrown away There’s an aisle in every grocery store that has these foil metal containers that cost less than a pack of cigarettes.  If you’ve never been down this aisle or aren’t willing to look for it, then you have no right to attend someone else’s Thanksgiving dinner.  When your host sees that you brought the green bean casserole in a foil metal tray, you may actually give them an orgasm.  There are clinical studies dating back to the first Thanksgiving that show the reduction in a host’s dishwashing time is a proven aphrodisiac.  Look it up.  But if you absolutely insist on bringing your own casserole dish, then not only should you volunteer to wash your own dish, you’d better wash every God damned dish in the house.  You may be stuck washing dishes while everyone else is enjoying pie, but it’s your own damn fault. 5. If you think you’re being sweet by offering to help, go in with a plan Assume your host is stressed out.  Assume your host started regretting hosting Thanksgiving dinner seven hours ago.  When you show up, your instinct will be to set down your foil metal tray of food in an appropriate place and then ask your host something like “So what can I do to help?” or worse, “I’m all yours, put me to work!”  Your host is trying to remember when he or she last basted the turkey, they’re whisking the roux for the gravy, they’re rolling the crescent rolls onto a sheet pan, they’re getting ready to set the table – they’ve got a thousand things going through their minds, and the last thing they want to do is think about your needs. Instead, stand outside the kitchen, politely lean your head inside, wait for the exact right moment, and ask something specific and helpful like, “May I open the wine?” or “Can I offer you a Vicodin?” Their yes or no answer requires no thought, and their appreciation will show when they stick the “I’m-all-yours-put-me-to-work” asshole in the overflow metal folding chair at the table and you get the proper dining chair. 6. Keep your suggestions to yourself This one’s pretty straightforward. You are a GUEST in someone else’s house.  Do not offer suggestions or tell your host what to do.  Even if they are doing something completely wrong like carving into the meat without letting it rest for at least 30 minutes, or if you see them break out the gravy packets instead of making a true turkey-drippings gravy, keep your trap shut unless you want to get stabbed. 7. Don’t shit on their Thanksgiving day parade Yes, it is commonly known that Thanksgiving is about the 4 F’s: Food, Family, Friends, and Football.  However, be prepared for the slim chance your host will not be showing the football game on the living room flatscreen.  Perhaps it is tradition in this household to play the fucking DVR’d Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade over and over again until dinner is served.  Or maybe they need to drown out the kids with a screening of “Frozen” and no one thought to set it up on the basement TV.  Don’t insist on turning on the football game, because it’s not your decision to make.  You are a guest, so if you absolutely need to know how your fantasy team is doing, then check your phone like everyone else. 8. Wear some decent fucking clothes This should go without saying, but unfortunately there’s always That Guy who arrives in shorts and his beloved Señor Frogs tee shirt.  If you’re That Guy you need to know you look like an asshole.  Just because there’s football on doesn’t mean you don’t have to wear pants, and would it kill you to throw on a shirt with a collar on your coveted day off?  It’s Thanksgiving dinner, for chrissake. Treat it like a dinner party, even if it’s at your mom’s house. 9. Compliment the turkey The turkey you eat on Thursday night will likely not be the greatest turkey you’ve ever tasted in your life.  The fact is, turkey is not the most flavorful meat around.  Even at its best, it’s hardly a top-five meat.  Nobody goes to a restaurant and suggests, “Try the turkey, it’s the best in the city!”  Honestly, if the pilgrims served a ribeye roast at the first Thanksgiving, how much more would we be looking forward to Thanksgiving dinner every year?  So no matter how bland or dry or tough the turkey is, be sure to compliment your host, because they just spent a full day out of their lives cooking it.  You can choke down anything with the right amount of gravy. 10. Don’t assume you’re taking home any leftovers There could be three more meals worth of food on the table after everyone’s gorged through two platefuls, but your hosts got first dibs on the leftovers.  Don’t insist on taking home some turkey and stuffing and mashed potatoes and gravy because they do not belong to you until your hosts hand them to you.  Want to increase your chances of bringing home Friday’s lunch?  Go to that same aisle where you got the foil metal trays and grab a stack of those Glad disposable tupperware deals because if you think you’re gonna take your host’s leftovers, do not assume you can rob them of their fucking tupperware, too. 11. Don’t be a snob Sure, your hosts might have purchased a chemically-injected frozen turkey for 11 cents a pound.  Okay, they went with the chalky powdered gravy.  And yes, they pulled out the four-month-old Reddi-wip and actually set it down next to the pumpkin pie.  Just remember, nobody likes a snob.  If you are seriously averse to Reddi-wip as opposed to freshly whipped cream, then don’t put it on your fucking pie.  Just don’t let anyone see you wrinkle your nose at the flavored non-dairy whipped topping like an asshole. 12. Make sure there is enough alcohol If you don’t agree with any of these tips and you plan on being an asshole at someone else’s Thanksgiving dinner, you still have a chance at redeeming yourself.  On your way to your host’s house, take an extra ten minutes and stop at a liquor store.  Buy three or four extra bottles of wine and leave them in your trunk.  Why?  Because there is nothing worse than having too little alcohol.  Statistically, most of the booze gets drunk before dinner is even served, and dinner will inevitably start later than the scheduled 4:00 p.m. sit-down, so that means there could be fewer bottles of wine on the table, or worse, you could disastrously run out of wine before you start into your meal.  When that happens, calmly excuse yourself, go to your car, and get those bottles.  You might have been a shitty guest all night, but you’ll probably get laid now, because everyone loves a hero.There are two kinds of people at every Thanksgiving meal: the hosts and the guests.  The hosts have the more difficult job in planning, preparing, cooking, and cleaning, and it is made even more challenging when they are forced to deal with a Shitty Guest. If you are going to be somebody’s guest this Thanksgiving, here are 12 tips to ensure you are not a Shitty Guest. 1. Bring the God damned food you say you are going to bring Most Thanksgiving dinners these days are old-fashioned potlucks.  The host typically takes care of the turkey, the stuffing, and the gravy, and they rely on the guests to do the rest.  So if you offer to bring cranberry sauce, bring the God damned cranberry sauce.  Or if you are delegated you to bring something like, say, the mashed potatoes, and you try to push your kick-ass creamed corn, you’d better not show up with anything but the fucking mashed potatoes. Period. 2. No surprises, asshole So you stuck with your assigned dish, and then you went and got clever. Not advised. Do not surprise your host with something you weren’t supposed to bring, like your mom’s famous traditional onion dip.  Chances are, hors d’oeuvres are already covered, and that 15,000 calorie-per-tablespoon dip you thought was so kitschy and vintage will fill up the entire household before they get to the dinner table. Flowers?  Fuck that, because all it means is that your host needs to stop what they’re doing and find a fucking vase while you remind them the stems need to be trimmed before they go in water.  So unless you bring your pre-cut stupid flowers already in a vase with water, just stick to the food and bring the damn food you say you’re gonna bring. 3. That food had better be ready to eat Okay, so you’ve offered to do the Brussels sprouts because you have an AMAZING recipe that you googled like ten minutes ago. The recipe calls for walnuts, bacon, red wine vinegar, two sticks of butter, a stupid cinnamon stick, and of course Brussels sprouts.  You do the shopping and you’re ready to go.  Good for you!  Next, and this is very important, do everyone a favor and COOK THE FUCKING FOOD AT HOME.  Do not show up at your host’s place with two Whole Foods bags of shit and then request a cutting board, the sharpest knife in the house, the biggest pot they have, and a burner on the stove top, because that is a sure-fired way of making your host hate you for the rest of your life. Not only are you taking up valuable kitchen real estate, you’re creating dirty dishes that you undoubtedly will not be washing, you asshole.  Even if your food is sitting out for two hours and tastes like garbage after it’s been microwaved, that is a thousand times better than showing up with raw fucking ingredients. 4. Bring your shit in a container that can be thrown away There’s an aisle in every grocery store that has these foil metal containers that cost less than a pack of cigarettes.  If you’ve never been down this aisle or aren’t willing to look for it, then you have no right to attend someone else’s Thanksgiving dinner.  When your host sees that you brought the green bean casserole in a foil metal tray, you may actually give them an orgasm.  There are clinical studies dating back to the first Thanksgiving that show the reduction in a host’s dishwashing time is a proven aphrodisiac.  Look it up.  But if you absolutely insist on bringing your own casserole dish, then not only should you volunteer to wash your own dish, you’d better wash every God damned dish in the house.  You may be stuck washing dishes while everyone else is enjoying pie, but it’s your own damn fault. 5. If you think you’re being sweet by offering to help, go in with a plan Assume your host is stressed out.  Assume your host started regretting hosting Thanksgiving dinner seven hours ago.  When you show up, your instinct will be to set down your foil metal tray of food in an appropriate place and then ask your host something like “So what can I do to help?” or worse, “I’m all yours, put me to work!”  Your host is trying to remember when he or she last basted the turkey, they’re whisking the roux for the gravy, they’re rolling the crescent rolls onto a sheet pan, they’re getting ready to set the table – they’ve got a thousand things going through their minds, and the last thing they want to do is think about your needs. Instead, stand outside the kitchen, politely lean your head inside, wait for the exact right moment, and ask something specific and helpful like, “May I open the wine?” or “Can I offer you a Vicodin?” Their yes or no answer requires no thought, and their appreciation will show when they stick the “I’m-all-yours-put-me-to-work” asshole in the overflow metal folding chair at the table and you get the proper dining chair. 6. Keep your suggestions to yourself This one’s pretty straightforward. You are a GUEST in someone else’s house.  Do not offer suggestions or tell your host what to do.  Even if they are doing something completely wrong like carving into the meat without letting it rest for at least 30 minutes, or if you see them break out the gravy packets instead of making a true turkey-drippings gravy, keep your trap shut unless you want to get stabbed. 7. Don’t shit on their Thanksgiving day parade Yes, it is commonly known that Thanksgiving is about the 4 F’s: Food, Family, Friends, and Football.  However, be prepared for the slim chance your host will not be showing the football game on the living room flatscreen.  Perhaps it is tradition in this household to play the fucking DVR’d Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade over and over again until dinner is served.  Or maybe they need to drown out the kids with a screening of “Frozen” and no one thought to set it up on the basement TV.  Don’t insist on turning on the football game, because it’s not your decision to make.  You are a guest, so if you absolutely need to know how your fantasy team is doing, then check your phone like everyone else. 8. Wear some decent fucking clothes This should go without saying, but unfortunately there’s always That Guy who arrives in shorts and his beloved Señor Frogs tee shirt.  If you’re That Guy you need to know you look like an asshole.  Just because there’s football on doesn’t mean you don’t have to wear pants, and would it kill you to throw on a shirt with a collar on your coveted day off?  It’s Thanksgiving dinner, for chrissake. Treat it like a dinner party, even if it’s at your mom’s house. 9. Compliment the turkey The turkey you eat on Thursday night will likely not be the greatest turkey you’ve ever tasted in your life.  The fact is, turkey is not the most flavorful meat around.  Even at its best, it’s hardly a top-five meat.  Nobody goes to a restaurant and suggests, “Try the turkey, it’s the best in the city!”  Honestly, if the pilgrims served a ribeye roast at the first Thanksgiving, how much more would we be looking forward to Thanksgiving dinner every year?  So no matter how bland or dry or tough the turkey is, be sure to compliment your host, because they just spent a full day out of their lives cooking it.  You can choke down anything with the right amount of gravy. 10. Don’t assume you’re taking home any leftovers There could be three more meals worth of food on the table after everyone’s gorged through two platefuls, but your hosts got first dibs on the leftovers.  Don’t insist on taking home some turkey and stuffing and mashed potatoes and gravy because they do not belong to you until your hosts hand them to you.  Want to increase your chances of bringing home Friday’s lunch?  Go to that same aisle where you got the foil metal trays and grab a stack of those Glad disposable tupperware deals because if you think you’re gonna take your host’s leftovers, do not assume you can rob them of their fucking tupperware, too. 11. Don’t be a snob Sure, your hosts might have purchased a chemically-injected frozen turkey for 11 cents a pound.  Okay, they went with the chalky powdered gravy.  And yes, they pulled out the four-month-old Reddi-wip and actually set it down next to the pumpkin pie.  Just remember, nobody likes a snob.  If you are seriously averse to Reddi-wip as opposed to freshly whipped cream, then don’t put it on your fucking pie.  Just don’t let anyone see you wrinkle your nose at the flavored non-dairy whipped topping like an asshole. 12. Make sure there is enough alcohol If you don’t agree with any of these tips and you plan on being an asshole at someone else’s Thanksgiving dinner, you still have a chance at redeeming yourself.  On your way to your host’s house, take an extra ten minutes and stop at a liquor store.  Buy three or four extra bottles of wine and leave them in your trunk.  Why?  Because there is nothing worse than having too little alcohol.  Statistically, most of the booze gets drunk before dinner is even served, and dinner will inevitably start later than the scheduled 4:00 p.m. sit-down, so that means there could be fewer bottles of wine on the table, or worse, you could disastrously run out of wine before you start into your meal.  When that happens, calmly excuse yourself, go to your car, and get those bottles.  You might have been a shitty guest all night, but you’ll probably get laid now, because everyone loves a hero.

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The age old question from every dog owner... What people food can my dog eat? If your dogs are like mine, they are at your feet when you're eating or cooking. What if something drops? Can they eat it? I know grapes and chocolate are bad for them... but what about bananas?

Well fear no more... we have 21 golden retriever puppies happy and willing to put the questions to rest. Watch them eat eight people foods that are actually good for them.

This may not be the best diet for all pups, so always check with your vet :)

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Remember Arnold from the '90s Nickelodeon cartoon "Hey Arnold!" -- the city kid with a weirdly oblong head who lived with his quirky grandparents in a boarding house? 

Arnold was voiced by a kid named Lane Toran (also known as Toran Caudell), who also played smaller characters on other shows like "Recess" and "7th Heaven." He's now 33, still pursuing acting along with music, and he looks like this:

His head isn't even shaped like a football! Here's another angle, captured by photographer Gilbert Pereda:

There's no word on whether he will appear in the upcoming "Hey Arnold!" made-for-TV movie Nickelodeon is planning. But Lane Toran is keeping busy. In addition to acting, recording music and modeling, he's apparently a capable handyman, having remodeled a living room, master bedroom and bathroom in his own flawless image. 

Just hope he doesn't shave the beard.

H/T BuzzFeed

Also on HuffPost:

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Tidal said in an announcement that all ticket proceeds would support charities.

Adnan Syed from the infamous Serial podcast is back with a new hope to get him off in the murder of Hae Min Lee—unreliable phone records.

Read more...

Times music critics discuss the intention of the song, and its possible yearning to override predetermined systems of songwriting, technology and artistic persona.

The Afropunk festival in NYC gave life to people of all races, sizes, genders, and cultures. For all of those who missed out, here are some recaps of the distinct black festival goers in all their fly gear captured by Lauren O'Neil.




Photography by Lauren O'Neil
http://www.lauoneil.com
Instagram: @lauoneil

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Quentin Tarantino has spent most of 2015 making a movie of his own, so he hasn't had time for many other ones: “I didn’t see anything this year,” he told me in our interview for New York's Fall Preview issue. “I loved The Kingsman. I really liked It Follows.” The latter, David Robert Mitchell's ... More »

Here we have a newsworthy version of the classic moment when a bunch of women see a kitten and squeal with delight. They had a really good reason- this kitten’s life was saved from a storm drain full of rising water during a storm in Charleston, South Carolina. Dorella Tuckwiller of the Itty Bitty Kitty Committee went head first into the drain to pull the kitten out. Firefighter Galeena Wileman held a rope tied to Tuckwiller’s foot in case the attempt went bad.  

(YouTube link)

There were three kittens in the drain when the storm began. The mother cat removed one, another kitten drowned, and the third was rescued. The rushing water was much worse before the video began. Firefighters and volunteers built a makeshift dam upstream from the drain to lower the water level for the rescue. The kitten, named Stormy, spent some time in an animal hospital and is now is doing well in a foster home. -via Laughing Squid

By: Lee Breslouer


Credit: iStockPhoto/ Jennifer Bui/Thrillist

I'm not a cheapskate. I'm just a Jewish guy (correlation does not imply causation!) who hates giving money to companies that make billions of dollars in profits. And because I hate paying those monthly bills, I decided to find out if I was just another sucker who corporations were able to take extra money from. It turns out, I was. But no longer: after a phone call to all my major service providers, I lowered (most of) my bills.

More: 11 People You Aren't Tipping, But Should Be


Credit: Flickr/Janitors

The cell phone bill
While I was on hold for a rep, my call dropped. NOT A GREAT START. After I told the rep I was moving over to T-Mobile, since they'll pay my termination fee, the rep immediately started offering discounts. She noticed I wasn't getting close at all to using my data for the month, and said that she could drop me from 3GB to 2GB per month and reduce my bill by $15. Oh, and because I was a loyal customer, she threw in an additional $25 credit.

Money saved: $205 per year
Time spent on the phone: 17 minutes, 23 seconds
How you can do this: Call your cell phone provider and say you want to switch to another provider because they're offering you a lower monthly bill and a free phone. See where your current company can chip at your monthly payment by taking away stuff you don't need (like that extra data I wasn't using).


Credit: Flickr/David Winer

The Internet bill
I get my Internet through Comcast. It costs me $88 a month with taxes, because I pay for modem rental and BLAST speed, which basically means "the Internet is fast enough that the YouTube video I want to watch of a guy getting hit in the nuts won't freeze every 30 seconds." It's an outrageous price, but it's also the cheapest plan. Or so I thought. When I got a rep on the phone, I told her I planned to switch to CenturyLink, since they're the competitor in my area. After she told me their Internet speeds are garbage, she also repeatedly reminded me that I'm already at my lowest rate. I refused to give in. She finally offered me a $44.99 rate without an Internet telephone. I had no idea I could unbundle the Internet phone from my package.

Done deal, right? Well, she screwed up. Apparently the unbundled/phone Internet isn't available in my area, but since she offered it to me... she can't take it back.

Money saved: $240 per year
Time spent on the phone: 38 minutes (two phone calls)
How you can do this: Find a competitive rate from a local Internet provider. Call your current provider and say you're switching. They should give you a promo rate for six to 12 months. And ask about unbundling options.


Credit: Flickr/Ryan Merritt

The TV bill
DirecTV is the luxury car of cable. It's the best, hands down. And I have it because I watch a lot of TV, and there is no better service. Unfortunately, it's also expensive. I called and said I wanted to lower my bill. I didn't even say I was switching, because the rep would have heard the inevitable waver in my voice and realized I'm a liar who is about to cry at the thought of losing his cable. Without any further prompting, the rep immediately cut my HBO bill in half for six months, and then chopped off $12 a month -- also for no reason. He was my favorite rep.

Money saved: $204 per year
Time spent on the phone: Eight minutes, 19 seconds
How you can do this: Either bundle your cable + phone bill if you have Verizon, or call your cable provider and tell them you're moving to DirecTV. They hate that, and will throw discounts at you. If you have DirecTV, just say you want a lower bill and apparently they'll take money off like it's absolutely nothing.

But wait! To find out how to cut your energy bills and more, head over to Thrillist.com!

More from Thrillist:

The 10 Most Beautiful Neighborhoods in America, Ranked

24 Essential Cooking Tools That Are $50 or Less

Like Thrillist on Facebook: www.facebook.com/Thrillist

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A powerful exhibit is making its way to The American University Museum and it's comprised of pieces made from the donated blood of gay, bisexual and transgender men that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) won't accept. 

Called "Blood Mirror," the exhibit, opening Sept. 12, intendeds to draw attention to the FDA's discriminatory policy through the use of the blood donations and stories of nine queer men. The curators of "Blood Mirror" hope the exhibition will contribute to a larger conversation about the lives that could have been saved if the FDA's policy on blood donations from men who have sex with men (MSM) were not in place. 

Also featured in the "Blood Mirror" exhibit will be the above short film by Leo Herrera, a collaborative "Blood Flag" by fashion designer Jonny Cota of Skingraft and a sculpture called "Untitled," which is made from the blood collection tubes and blood bags of the nine men who donated.

Last year the FDA proposed altering its full ban on blood donations from MSM individuals to one that only requires men to have not engaged in sex with other men for 12 months prior to the date of their intended donation. However, many are still angered by this policy and feel that the ban should be lifted entirely.

“I wanted to create a sculpture that would become a time capsule, documenting this moment in time, while showing that this blood could have been used to save lives," Jordan Eagles, artist and curator, said in a press release. "This discriminatory policy is part of our gay history and part of our nation’s history, and the sculpture asks us to reflect on discrimination in our country, as well as the homophobia that exists around the world. For me, the sculpture is a work in progress; it will never be finished until the FDA’s blood donation policy is fair for all people."

The "Blood Mirror" exhibition will run at The American University museum Sept. 12 - Oct. 18. Head here for more information.

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Master improviser Kristen Wiig joined forces with her former "SNL" colleague Fred Armisen on "Late Night" Thursday to show off a new favorite hobby of hers: lip-dubbing. The actress, who is off shooting Paul Feig's "Ghostbusters" at the moment, told Meyers that she's also been busy creating some voice-over for Meyers' own program for Australian viewers. “The show’s already in English,” Meyers said. “Why would you dub it into English? And also why would you change the words?” “It’s a different sensibility … It’s a different sense of humor. Fred knows what I’m talking about,” Wiig said. Watch the clip courtesy of NBC below: Master improviser Kristen Wiig joined forces with her former "SNL" colleague Fred Armisen on "Late Night" Thursday to show off a new favorite hobby of hers: lip-dubbing. The actress, who is off shooting Paul Feig's "Ghostbusters" at the moment, told Meyers that she's also been busy creating some voice-over for Meyers' own program for Australian viewers. “The show’s already in English,” Meyers said. “Why would you dub it into English? And also why would you change the words?” “It’s a different sensibility … It’s a different sense of humor. Fred knows what I’m talking about,” Wiig said. Watch the clip courtesy of NBC below: Master improviser Kristen Wiig joined forces with her former "SNL" colleague Fred Armisen on "Late Night" Thursday to show off a new favorite hobby of hers: lip-dubbing. The actress, who is off shooting Paul Feig's "Ghostbusters" at the moment, told Meyers that she's also been busy creating some voice-over for Meyers' own program for Australian viewers. “The show’s already in English,” Meyers said. “Why would you dub it into English? And also why would you change the words?” “It’s a different sensibility … It’s a different sense of humor. Fred knows what I’m talking about,” Wiig said. Watch the clip courtesy of NBC below:

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D’Angelo is free.

Watching him sing (and growl and scream) and move around the stage last night at the Showbox—between his glittery, silver guitar and keyboard, through choreographed dance moves with his back-up singers (including a few perfectly executed mic stand tricks), in and out of various capes and large fedoras—was to watch a grown-ass man fully inhabit his body with palpable joy. Black liberation is urgent and real.

Whatever psychological and physical demons D’Angelo has battled over the last 15 years, they weren’t holding him back last night. Halfway through "Ain't That Easy," the opening track on Black Messiah which he and his band the Vanguard performed a rousing, 12-minute rendition of to open last night’s show—I turned to Larry Mizell Jr. and said, "I'm not sure where we even go from here."

Where exactly D’Angelo went is impossible for me to fully describe. It was as much a feeling as a physical place, and the journey was long and satisfying. Every song on the (relatively short) setlist was drawn out into feverish, 10-plus-minute spells filled with slow builds, plenty of teases, and multiple climaxes. Grown women (and men) were reduced to wailing puddles.

To be honest, whenever I listen to Voodoo or Black Messiah, the production leaves me a little frustrated. I always want more D’Angelo. Unlike 1995’s Brown Sugar, his honeyed voice sounds buried in layers, just another instrument among many, no more or less important than the filthy bass line of "Devil’s Pie."

But at the end of the night, for the last bars of “Untitled,” which lasted either fifteen rapturous minutes or forever, it was all D’Angelo. One by one, each member of the ten-piece Vanguard walked off stage, leaving him alone at his keyboard, his unmistakable voice asking the darkness, one final time, “How does it feel?”

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The Journal Of Marketing Research recently released the article "The Effect of Fitness Branding on Restrained Eaters' Food Consumption and Post-Consumption Physical Activity". In the article, the authors looks into the effects of food branded as "fitness" food, specifically investigating whether people who were trying to lose weight and who were given trail-mix style snacks marked either "Fitness" or "Trail Mix" would approach both the snack and their exercise differently depending on whether they perceived the snack to be fitness food. The trail mix marked as the official "Fitness" mix, which was no different than the regular trail mix in terms of ingredients, but just labeled differently, even had a picture of running shoes on the front of it.

The results were nearly humorous. People given the fitness-labeled snack mix not only ate many more calories of the fitness snack mix, but they exercised less after eating the fitness snack mix, apparently convinced that the act of eating something associated with increasing health or fitness somehow justified less exercise. Interesting, eh?

And here's the deal: even if you do have self control and you actually eat less or the same amount of a food that you perceive to be health food or fitness food, the fact is that many of these foods still contain ingredients that aren't doing you any favors in the fitness, fat loss or health department. Here are four popular fitness foods and so-called health foods that you should consider limiting or avoiding:

1. Fruit Juice

While I'm not really on the "fruit is toxic" or "fructose is toxic" bandwagon, I definitely agree with the research that shows that fructose-sweetened foods and drinks like high fructose corn syrup containing energy bars, fructose filled soft drinks and, yes, even those apple and pear jam-packed green juices at your local healthy grocery store can cause serious metabolic problems and big elevations in triglycerides if accompanied by excess calories. And frankly, it's quite often that I see people consuming even the healthiest of fruit drinks, fruit juices and fruit smoothies not exactly living in a calorie deficit. Once your body has had it's fill of fructose (no more than about 400 calories per day), even the healthiest of juices can become metabolically damaging.

The basic science goes like this: fructose is metabolized by your liver. If your liver is full of glycogen (storage carbohydrate) the fructose is then turned into blood triglycerides and fat. This can cause non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and other metabolic issues such as resistance to the hormones insulin and leptin, which can lead to obesity and diabetes.

One example of an ingredient commonly used as a high fructose corn syrup replacement in so-called health foods is "agave". Unfortunately, while regular sugar is 50 percent fructose, the fructose content of agave can be as high as 90 percent. So despite it's seemingly natural, healthy title, agave really doesn't make a juice or smoothie any healthier.

2. Whole Wheat Bread

Whole wheat is technically healthier than refined wheat, but this does not mean that this carbohydrate than many people perceive to be the holy grail of healthy bread is actually health, and to say whole wheat is a healthier bread is much like saying filtered cigarettes are healthier than unfiltered cigarettes. It's simply a lesser evil.

Why is this? Modern commercial wheat is a concentrated source of gluten in the diet, and while gluten is not a big issue in smaller amounts, in extremely concentrated amounts such as commercial whole wheat bread, it can cause both gut and neural inflammation as the immune system attacks excess gluten proteins in the digestive tract and in neuronal tissue. This inflammation can cause issues such as brain fog, damage to the lining of the digestive tract, bloating, constipation, and other unpleasant symptoms.

And, contrary to popular belief, whole wheat bread is not a "low sugar" food, and can in fact significantly spike your blood sugar. How? The glycemic index is a measurement of how quickly a food spikes blood sugar, and the glycemic index of white bread is 69. You'd except whole wheat bread to have a lower index, but the glycemic index of whole bread is 72 (and Shredded Wheat cereal is 67), while that of sucrose (table sugar) is 59.2. The glycemic index of a Snickers bar is 41, which means whole wheat bread spikes your blood sugar far more than a candy bar!

So-called healthy cereals based on whole grains and whole wheat aren't much better. For example, here's the ingredient list of Kellogg's® Smart Start® Strong Heart Antioxidants, which you can see is packed with not just sugar and refined carbohydrates, but also a host of additional preservatives and artificial additives:

Rice, whole grain wheat, sugar, oat clusters, sugar, toasted oats [rolled oats, sugar, canola oil with tbhq and citric acid to preserve freshness, molasses, honey, bht for freshness, soy lecithin], wheat flakes, crisp rice [rice, sugar, malt, salt], corn syrup, polydextrose, honey, cinnamon, BHT [preservative], artificial vanilla flavor, high fructose corn syrup, salt, honey, malt flavoring, alpha tocopherol acetate [vitamin E], niacinamide, zinc oxide, reduced iron, sodium ascorbate and ascorbic acid (vitamin C), calcium pantothenate, Yellow #5, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), riboflavin (vitamin B2), thiamin hydrochloride (vitamin B1), BHT (preservative), vitamin A palmitate, folic acid, beta carotene (a source of vitamin A), vitamin B12 and vitamin D.

3. Packaged Crunchy Foods

As I write this article, I'm traveling through several different airports, and have noticed a growing trend of "healthy food sections" in the snack aisle of many newsstands and food vendors at the airport. Upon closer inspection of many of these foods - from nori bites to low-fat popcorn to dried fruit and nut mixes - you'll find canola oil, soybean oil and other seed and vegetable based oils listed on the label, often as one of the primary ingredients.

These oils are extracted from seeds and plants using harsh processing methods which include high heat, bleaching and use of the solvent hexane. These oils also contain very high percentages of Omega-6 fatty acids, which can be inflammatory when consumed in excess. About ½ to 4 percent of the fatty acids in these oils are in the form of trans fats, which can be a major contributing factor to heart disease.

Another common ingredient in these crunchy, packaged health snacks is brown rice syrup, also known as rice malt syrup, which is made by treating cooked rice with enzymes that break down the starch into simple sugars. This means that brown rice syrup is basically pure glucose void of essential nutrients, with a glycemic index of 98 (remember, this means that the glucose in it will spike blood sugar very, very quickly).

This combination of processed oils and extremely sweet additives in packaged, crunchy health foods should inspire you to add these to your list of healthy fitness foods to avoid.

4. Gluten Free Snacks

While the gluten I referred to earlier can definitely be unhealthy, unfortunately many food manufacturers have heavily promoted gluten-free "health foods" and many people have jumped on the gluten-free bandwagon by simply purchasing starchy snacks such as gluten-free pizza and pretzels, gluten-free rice crackers, gluten-free sugary chocolates and candies, and concentrated amounts of gluten-free fruit juices and smoothies, rather than, say, switching to more nutrient-dense forms of gluten-free carbohydrates, such as vegetables, quinoa, amaranth, millet, gluten-free oats, sweet potatoes, yams, carrots, and parsnips.

The problem with popular gluten-free foods is that they're usually very low in nutrients, vitamins and minerals, and contain very concentrated amounts of starches. Instead of a gluten grain, they're made with other starches like potato starch, tapioca starch or some others. These starches are usually highly refined, void of nutrients and spike blood sugar fast, just like wheat. Take, for example, one very popular gluten-free pizza, which contains:

Low moisture part skim mozzarella cheese (pasteurized part skim milk, cheese cultures, salt, enzymes), pizza sauce (crushed tomatoes [water, concentrated crushed tomatoes], tomato puree (water, tomato paste), sugar, salt, spices, soybean oil, citric acid, dehydrated onions, garlic, romano cheese flavor [romano cheese from cow's milk (milk, cheese cultures, salt, enzymes), water, disodium phosphate, enzymes], onion powder, spice extractive), whey, tapioca starch, rice flour, pepperoni (pork and beef, salt, spices, dextrose, latic acid starter culture, oleorsin of paprika, flavoring, sodium nitrite, bha, bht, citric acid), rice starch, water, contains 2 percent or less of: yeast, vegetable oil (soybean, cottonseed, corn, and/or canola oil), vegetable shortening (palm oil, natural flavor, soy lecithin), sugar, salt, xanthan gum, garlic powder.

As you can see, you are avoiding gluten, but at the same time, getting hefty doses of starch, flour, commercial dairy, vegetable oils and sugar!

Ultimately, as you navigate the ever-growing world of fitness and health foods, ask yourself whether you're consuming real, recognizable, nutrient-dense food packed with vitamins and minerals and low in sugars and oils, or whether you're simply being fooled by clever packaging like the folks in the Journal of Marketing Research study. If you have more questions or comments about these top 10 fitness food you should avoid, please leave them below.

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Introducing Kendrick Lamar: future Broadway star. ... More »

Remember these guys from the middle of the month? They’re back. And they’re JUST as cute.
Some people say they look like Sheep, or Cows. It seems Sea Slugs and Sea Sheep and Leaf Sheep are all kinda/sorta related- whatevs, they’re awesome, no?

(Bored Panda.)

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: The Big J, WHAT! IS! THAT?

By Paula Pant

You've been planning your retirement for decades. Your last day of work is just a few months or years away, and you're ready to sit back and enjoy whatever it is retirement means to you -- traveling, catching up on favorite pastimes with loved ones or maybe simply sitting in your garden enjoying the feeling of not having to wake up to a blaring alarm clock.

Or perhaps you're 5 to 10 years from retirement and you're feeling overwhelmed by all the terminology, rules and regulations out there. You've read books and educated yourself, but you're haunted by the feeling that you may have overlooked something critical.

The sad truth is, even if you're a diligent saver all your life, you could be left high-and-dry come retirement because of one all-too-common mistake committed by people of all ages at all financial levels: Not fully understanding how your retirement benefits work.

It Takes a Lot More Than Knowing the Difference Between a 401(k) and an IRA

The world of retirement benefits is complex terrain, peppered with minefields like fine print, tricky terminology, little-known exceptions and seemingly random rules. And what you don't know can (and will) come back to bite you.

Here are just a few examples.

Did you know it's crucial to keep track of when you'll turn 70½?

If you own a Traditional IRA, you're subject to a little something known as a "required minimum distribution" or RMD. You must take this required minimum distribution from your IRA when you turn 70½, or else you'll be hit with a whopping 50 percent penalty. The first RMD can be delayed until April 1 following the year you turn 70 ½ and all future RMDs must be taken by December 31st. If you defer the first one until April 1 following the year you turn 70 ½, you have to take out two that year (the other by December 31st of that year). So if your RMD is $5,000 and you fail to mark your 70½th birthday on the calendar, you're looking at a penalty of $2,500 -- pretty harsh punishment for overlooking something most people are highly likely to miss.

Did you realize you can't necessarily depend on your benefit structure to remain as-is?

If your retirement savings plan hinges on your boss maintaining the status quo, you might face a nasty surprise.

If you belong to a "defined benefit plan," which is a plan that guarantees a specific monthly benefit at retirement (such as a pension), you might be shocked to learn that you can't depend on accruing benefits at your current pace. Your employer has the right to change the rate at which you earn future benefits (although they can't reduce the benefits you've already accumulated).

If your employer offers a "defined contribution plan," such as a 401(k), your employer is free to change its contribution structure anytime in the future. (Once again, though, they can't reduce the benefits you've already earned).

The takeaway? The future might not be the same as the past. Get ready for whatever may come your way.

Are you aware that taxes and fees could take a huge bite from your benefits?

When you quit your job, you have several options for how your retirement benefits may be distributed: you could collect a lump sum. You could roll over the balance to another retirement plan or to an IRA. If your balance is less than $5,000, your employer's plan can make an immediate distribution or rollover without your consent.

Each of these options comes with major tax repercussions, including potential penalties that could ultimately reduce the amount of money you have to live on during retirement.

In addition, each of these options has associated fees that could take a bite out of your retirement.

These are just some of the things you need to be aware of to make sure you're preparing for the happy retirement you envision. Luckily, navigating this complicated terrain doesn't have to be as difficult or scary as it sounds.

Be Prepared for Your Future

You don't need to be a financial whiz to understand how your benefits work, but it's essential that you're aware of the basics you need to have a grip on. To learn more about what mistakes to avoid, talk with a financial advisor, and be your own best advocate by searching information online, like the "7 Retirement Mistakes You Can't Afford to Make" eBook sourced for this post. With the right information, guidance and planning, you have the power to be your own retirement hero.

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.