Ah, toast. A staple of breakfasts, poor students, busy people in need of a bite, and of course, millennials everywhere (but only when topped with avocado). Just a slice of bread, heated by the magic of a toaster until it becomes warm, filling, crunchy, and the perfect way to get all kinds of delicious toppings into your mouth. Simple.
Less simple, of course, is the other kind of toast. The kind where someone has to get up in front of friends and family and say a few words. Ideally, words that are kind, funny, interesting, illuminating…and not too long. So in honor of National Toast Day on February 23, we’ve rounded up some of the most memorable toasts in pop culture, whether they're good, bad, or awful!
There are plenty of pets in pop culture. Movies, TV, books, and comics are filled with furry (and not so furry) friends. However, there are only a handful that take the task of being a good boy to the next level. The pets that are so much more than just faithful companions. These beasties have superpowers, pocket dimensions, the ability to talk (and drink), and so much more. Who needs a boring old dog when you could have one of these goodest pets in pop culture?
Handwriting is fast becoming a lost art. As technology becomes more and more advanced and accessible, people simply don’t write things by hand as often anymore. Everything goes on laptops, tablets, and smart phones (and with voice-to-text technology, we don’t even have to type half the time!). However, there are still some people who love the feel of putting pen to paper…and writers are definitely top of that list! Whether it is jotting down notes, plotting your novel, or *gulp* actually writing a book by hand, authors love to write, and we bet we can tell a lot about them by their handwriting.
Can you tell something about yourself from these famous authors’ handwriting, based on whose is most similar to your own?
For the new year, Netflix blessed us with the charming new series Tidying Up With Marie Kondo, a reality show based on the KonMari method and hosted by Marie Kondo herself, that sees clutter-hoarders transform their spaces (and themselves) by clearing everything out. The series may have a simple premise, but it’s been winning hearts with its sweet approach to tidying, including greeting the home and focusing on joy. However, one aspect that has been bringing bookworms more anxiety than joy is the idea of clearing out their bookshelves — because bookworms are hoarders, and there is little more satisfying than gazing out on a wall of neatly stacked shelves. It’s enough to make any reader feel all warm and fuzzy inside…but Marie Kondo believes that at least some of these have to go.
Of course, she’s not a book-hater. The simple fact that Kondo devotes an entire section of her method to books (and only one to a combo of kitchen, bathroom, garage, and miscellaneous) shows that she has real respect for the bookworms among us and how daunting the idea of clearing out a bookcase can be. However, we’ve got some ways for you to understand some of her more controversial opinions, clear the shelves and still feel good about it.
Looking for more villains like these? Check out The Legion of Regrettable Supervillains by Jon Morris!
The best villains are the ones that are truly scary. The bad guys who make us quake in our boots, who leave us terrified and truly convinced that becoming their enemy would be the worst possible scenario. Take Amy in Gone Girl, a woman who isn’t at all physically threatening, but whose meticulous scheming and total lack of a conscience make her utterly terrifying. Or consider Thanos, the recent big bad of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There’s a villain who may be bright purple, but who is physically intimidating and emotionally unperturbed by wiping out half the living things in the universe in a single snap.
These are the villains that are true nightmare fodder, that all other villains aspire to emulate. Of course, there are also the truly sympathetic villains — the cool kids, the guys who may want to raise hell, but are so charming that we’d probably just let them do it. And then…there are these guys. The ones who may dream of being true villains, but who barely make it out of laughing stock level who couldn’t make a chihuahua tremble if they tried.
[SPOILERS AHEAD]
Do you think you are a good person? If hit series The Good Place has it right, your deeds on Earth might land you in a magical place where everything is catered to your deepest desires, and you get to meet your one true soul mate…or, if you aren’t quite worthy of all that, you might end up being tortured by Ted Danson! A devil pretending to be an angel, Danson’s Michael is a brilliant addition to the award-winning series, perfectly executing his diabolical plan to torment his victims by having them drive each other crazy in a fake "heaven." The show is sharp, funny, and eminently relatable as four people examine their wicked (and not-so-wicked) ways, and Michael is far from the only devil character that we want to watch again and again.
