Being one of the most famous and most wide-spread chain of restaurants, McDonald’s is the first choice of many when it comes to fast food.
Most of its restaurants are located in populated areas. Well, nearly all of them.
Recently, McDonald’s sparked controversy after someone noticed they are opening a restaurant at a remote place with no electricity at 8075 Avenue Marcel-Villeneuve in Saint-François, Laval, Quebec.
“Officially open for business. Our staff awaits you at our new restaurant at 8075 Marcel-Villeneuve, Laval,” the restaurant wrote on Facebook.
McDonalds’ Jéremy Lévy shared the excitement over the new location, saying: “I am delighted to be involved with the community of Saint-François on the occasion of this opening. Growing up with a father who is also a McDonald’s franchisee, I have had the opportunity to see him actively involved in the communities in which he operates his restaurants.
“Today, I am very excited to follow in his footsteps and get involved in the same way.”
The new restaurant vent viral after a TikTok user filmed it and shared it on the social media. @thumbs.up.canuck. expressed his confusion regarding the location. “It’s literally in the middle of farm field. It’s surrounded by farm, and there’s not even electricity yet. They’re running the damn place on a generator! That’s crazy!” he could be heard saying.
In no time, the video was re-shared by a huge number of users who started a series of speculations and conspiracy theories.
Martin Lewis, the MoneySavingExpert.com founder, discuss “unpleasant” money issues, such as the one related to one’s assets after their passing.
Lewis explained that when a person dies their spouse is entitles to their belongings, but the same isn’t true if the couple wasn’t legally married. So, unmarried couples don’t possess automatic rights to their partner’s assets in the event of death no matter how long they had been together or whether they have children or not.
This, however, can change in case of existence of a will, which represents a legally binding document.
“A special point to anyone who is cohabiting – you’re not married and you’re not a civil partner. If you’ve been living together for 30 years and you’ve got nine children, it still means nothing in law, when it comes to a will,” he said on his Martin Lewis Money Show Live broadcast on ITV.
“Your partner wouldn’t get anything under the intestacy rules which dictate what happens when you die without a will. A will is crucially important to you.”
In case of a passing of a person who hadn’t left a will, their estate is distributed under intestacy rules, meaning those who inherit are the married or civil partner and some close relatives only.
In England and Wales, for example, the married partner is the first to inherit. Based on intestacy rules, they receive initial £322,000 of the estate. If the value is higher, then the spouse gets half of the remaining assets and the rest is divided among surviving children.
According to Lewis, the best way to settle who inherits what is to get a gold standard solicitor-drafted will. Further, he provides information on where and how to get this for free.
Free Wills Month is held twice a year, in March and October, for those aged over 55 and provides a free will in return for a charitable donation after death. The donations are around £300 to £500.
Will Aid, which happens annually, encourages donations to charities for basic “mirror wills” in a similar manner as Free Wills Month.
Basically, Lewis’ advice is that every person, married or not, should have a will.
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Travis was to attend the work Christmas party, but knowing that he’s a light drinker, his wife, Micaela, decided to do something fun that the could could laugh about later.
On his chest, she wrote, “This is my husband—touch him, and you’ll pay- M.”
Her husband got ready and headed to the party, assuring her he would be home early. She wished him to have fun and couldn’t wait to see if someone would actually read the message.
However, the following morning, she was stunned to see that someone added, “Keep the change,” under her writing.
At first, she thought someone was pranking her, but as she wasn’t as ease, she decided to seek advice from her mother.
Her mother told her that she should follow Travis, just to make sure he wasn’t actually cheating on her, and that’s exactly what Micaela did.
She tracked Travis’ car with a GPS, and suspicions arose when she noticed he wasn’t going to work one day as he claimed, but headed to another direction.
Micaela followed after him. When he entered an apartment, she was quick to enter the place as well, seeing her husband with another woman.
“So, you’re the woman who left a message on my husband?” she asked. The other woman didn’t seem too concerned, and simply said, “Husbands like this deserve to be treated like spare change.”
That incident marked the beginning of the end of Micaela’s marriage to Travis. She was aware she deserved better than that and filed for divorce.
Eventually, she met someone new and is now happier than ever.
Below are some of the comments under Micaela’s story of how she caught her husband cheating.
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Before Christmas, the Princess of Wales visited the Evelina London Children’s Hospital. While meeting the children, she recalled some of the ‘nerve-wracking’ hospital visits that involved her three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.
Kate Middleton is heavily involved with a number of charities. She’s also the host of plenty of meaningful events which take place throughout the year. Among them is the Carol service at Westminster Abbey which the Princess hosts on December 8 for the third year in a row. The event then airs on TV on Christmas Eve.
This year, “the service will be a moment to thank all those who work to support babies, young children, and families in our communities across the UK and a celebration of the golden opportunity that the birth of a new baby brings,” the Palace announced.
The event significantly adds to the Princess’ popularity. “What Kate has done brilliantly is elevating her status and position within the broader royal family brand. Having a slot on Christmas Eve, it’s evidence of her appeal,” PR expert Andrew Bloch told Mirror.
As expected, the royal children were in attendance. The three siblings shared their messages and wishes for children who might be struggling with Christmas by writing them down and placing them in a special card box. They also got to enjoy singers Beverley Knight and Adam Lamberg perform.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
Their outfits were impeccable as always, but one thing that caught the attention of many was Prince George’s height.
“I know perspective distorts but isn’t George getting tall!” one person wrote.
Another added, “How fast Prince George is growing!”
“Prince George is so tall, Princess Charlotte’s hair is so long, and I can’t believe Prince Louis is only 5 years old,” a third stated.
As children grow up and attend events, there is a concern that they are overexposed, especially Prince George.
“[Kate and William] are wisely concerned at any overexposure of him [George] and of Charlotte and Louis,” royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told Express.
LONDON, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 08: Prince George of Wales attends The “Together At Christmas” Carol Service at Westminster Abbey on December 08, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Samir Hussein/WireImage)
“The younger they are, the more likely they are to steal the show with childish antics which get publicized worldwide and make the monarchy seem more relatable,” he said. Mr Fitzwilliams added that George is a particular focus of attention due to him being second-in-line to the throne.
“Whether as Page of Honour at the Coronation or blowing bubbles on a visit to Canada, whatever he does as he is the future king is of interest. We are fed titbits, that George enjoys dancing, plays tennis or likes a pizza, and we get regular photographs of him on special occasions and see him at certain royal events,” Fitzwilliams concluded, adding that William and Kate “are well aware of the need for him and his siblings to have privacy as they grow up.”
The children, however, are expected to attend certain events, some more important than other.
WINDSOR, UNITED KINGDOM – APRIL 09: (EMBARGOED FOR PUBLICATION IN UK NEWSPAPERS UNTIL 24 HOURS AFTER CREATE DATE AND TIME) Prince George of Wales attends the traditional Easter Sunday Mattins Service at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle on April 9, 2023 in Windsor, England. (Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)
A few weeks ago, Kate brought her children to a project helping families facing poverty this Christmas in Holyport near Maidenhead during which they volunteered at a “baby bank.”
George, Charlotte, and Louis helped pick out the toys children would receive for the holiday.
A video that Kensington Palace posted said “a quarter of families with a child under five” in the UK are living in poverty.
“There’s lots of people who give up their time and come and help out – and you’re the volunteers for this evening,” Kate told her children.
Rebecca Mistry, the baby bank’s co-founder, told George, Charlotte, and Louis, “What we would like you to do, is try and choose some presents for some children who are a similar age to you guys.”
Youtube/theprinceandprincessofwales
In the past, late Princess Diana did the same. She used to take Harry and William to charity events where they volunteered and felt like valuable members of the community.
This is probably the reason why helping others have become something William keeps close to his heart.
“When I left this morning, one of the things I was thinking was, ‘When is the right time to bring George or Charlotte or Louis to a homeless organization?’ I think when I can balance it with their schooling, they will definitely be exposed to it,” William told The Times.
“On the school run, we talk about what we see. When we were in London, driving backwards and forwards, we regularly used to see people sitting outside supermarkets, and we’d talk about it.”
Prince William added: “I’d say to the children, ‘Why are they there? What’s going on?’ I think it’s in all our interests, it’s the right thing to do, to expose the children, at the right stage, in the right dialogue, so they have an understanding. They [will] grow up knowing that actually, do you know what, some of us are very fortunate, some of us need a little bit of a helping hand, some of us need to do a bit more where we can to help others improve their lives.”
Charlotte Graham-WPA Pool/Getty Images
Both William and Kate can teach their children a lot about volunteering.
Since 2018, Kate has been the patron of Evelina London Children’s Hospital and she was now given the pleasure to open their new Children’s Day Surgery Unit.
At the hospital, Kate got the chance to speak to some of the children there, as well as with their families.
In a conversation with a family whose child was to be operated, she shared how she felt every time any of her children needed a hospital visit.
“It’s always nerve-wracking as a parent. I’ve taken mine into hospital for different things. You’re always at least worried, but you’ve got a great team [here],” Princess Kate said, as per Hello! Magazine.
“It’s always a worry, though, for a parent. We have to keep our cool. It’s so hard,” she added.
Kate is truly a very special individual. It doesn’t come as a surprise that she’s loved by millions.
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First dates can either be memorable or disastrous experience. For one woman, her first date to a man she found sweet, handsome, and intelligent, turned into something she never expected only because of a mean comment he made.
She started her post writing, “After years of being single due to my workaholic lifestyle, a friend played matchmaker and connected me with Alex. Initial conversations made him seem perfect, sweet, handsome, working as an architect with a great sense of humor. Our first dinner at his favorite childhood chain restaurant took an unexpected turn when the $400 bill arrived.”
During the night, the two spoke about their lives and she revealed that she’s been saving money in order to be able to study medicine and become a surgeon.
So, when the bill arrived, she offered to contribute $200, but he insisting on treating.
Eventually, she agreed and even found his act very generous, but then, he suggested that she uses the money she was saving for breast enlargement surgery.
“Stunned, I composed myself and fired back, highlighting the audacity of his comment and recommending a ‘brain-increasing’ procedure for him. Walking out, I left $200 on the table,” the woman explained.
“Later, I learned Alex was banned from the entire restaurant chain due to our waiter’s connection. His attempts to justify the inappropriate comment, coupled with a misguided effort to get me fired, revealed his mean-spirited nature. The experience taught me to stand up against disrespect and served as a cautionary tale,” she added.
This date didn’t stop her from believing that she would eventually find the one, because she knows that not all men share Alex’s demeanor.
What are your thoughts on this? Did she do the right thing?
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When we think of powerful and successful women, one of the names that comes to mind is that of Martha Stewart.
Besides being a well-known TV personality, she’s also a self-made billionaire, a writer, a businesswoman, and a former fashion model.
Being 82 doesn’t stop this incredible woman from living her life to the fullest.
Last year, she posed for the cover of Sports Illustrated in daring swimsuits and attracted the attention of many. She was praised for her bravery, her incredible figure, and the positivity she spread.
However, during her recent trip to the east coast of Greenland, she posted some photos and one of them made her fans mad.
It shows Stewart enjoying a cocktail, and the caption says, “End of the first zodiac cruise from @swanhelleniccruises into a very beautiful fjord on the east coast of greenland. We actually captured a small iceberg for our cocktails tonight.”
Her intention wasn’t probably to anger her fans with the word “small iceberg” for her drink, but it did evoke the ire of her followers.
In no time, comments started pouring in under her post with people hitting out at the fact that she’d referenced a small iceberg when the “ice caps are melting.”
“Martha the ice caps are melting don’t put them in your drink,” one Instagram user wrote.
Another added: “I generally love Martha and the excesses of her life because he’s about beautiful gardens, homes, and food, but wealthy white people drinking their iceberg cocktails while the planet is in flames is a bit tone deaf.“
“So as the climate warms due to the profits of a couple thousand people, billionaires vacation to the melting icebergs, scoop them up and use them to keep their cocktails cold. That sounds like a line from a dystopian novel. Can’t make this shit up lol,” a third quipped.
“Global warming and melting ice caps but we need glacier ice for cocktails?! Talk about tone def. Been a fan for years but I’ve seen enough caviar lately as I struggle to buy groceries that I’m out,” said a fourth.
In general, Martha is someone who is widely loved by many.
Speaking of the cover on Sports Illustrated for which she posed, she said on the Today show, “I didn’t starve myself, but I didn’t eat any bread or pasta for a couple of months.
“I went to Pilates every other day, and that was great; I’m still going to Pilates every other day ’cause it’s so great. And I just, I live a clean life anyway – good diet and good exercise and healthy skincare and all of that stuff.”
She also commented how fans responded to the “authentic” cover during her keynote speech at the Las Vegas event.
“The response to it was really encouraging because it made women of all ages feel like, ‘If she can do it, then I can do it too,’” Stewart noted.
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Laura woke up the morning after she returned from a business trip and saw her husband was still asleep. As usual, she went to the kitchen to make herself coffee, but before that, she went to check on her daughter Emily who was supposed to be in her room, sleeping.
When Laura entered Emily’s room, the bed was perfectly made and everything was well organized but Emily wasn’t there. After checking the bathroom and the rest of the house and realizing her daughter was nowhere to be seen, Laura panicked.
This wasn’t the first time that Emily wasn’t home. Being a teenager who wanted to hang out with her friends and attend parties, she sneaked out before, but Laura’s gut was telling her that it was different this time.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Shutterstock
“Rick, wake up!” Laura returned to their bedroom and tried to wake up her husband, who was Emily’s stepfather. “Emily’s missing!”
“Let me sleep, Laura,” Richard replied with groggy. “She’s a teen. She must have snuck out to meet those friends of hers. Relax.”
“This is serious, Rick. Her room is spick and span! This isn’t like Emily!”
Richard, however, didn’t seem too concerned probably because he believed Emily would appear any time soon.
But Laura knew something wasn’t right, and just when she returned to the kitchen she received a text message which read, “If you want your daughter alive, bring $100,000 to the address below…”
The entire situation went from bad to worse and everything felt like a bad dream.
Laura immediately called the police. In no time, a group of cops and detectives were at Laura’s door. She explained to them what was going on and they assured her everything would be alright and that they’d do all in their power to find her daughter.
When the cops arrived, Richard woke up and went downstairs.
“Laura? What’s going on? What are cops doing here?”
“Someone kidnapped Emily!” she replied tremblingly. “The kidnapper is demanding ransom.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Shutterstock
“Are you sure it isn’t one of Emily’s games?” he asked as he joined her in the living room.
“Of course it’s not, Rick!” she cried. “We have to find her!”
The cops, Laura, and Richard entered Emily’s room.
“Anything missing from here?” Detective Harris asked Laura and Richard.
“The carpet!” Laura now noticed. “It’s not here.”
“You got any idea about it?” Detective Harris looked at Richard.
“Uh, yeah, I took it to the dry cleaner,” Richard replied.
Detective Harris made a note. “I’ll need the dry cleaner’s address, please.”
“Yeah, I’ll get it. One second,” Richard said and left the room.
At that moment, Laura received another text message that read, “If you involve the cops, you’ll never see your daughter again.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Shutterstock
“Let’s drop the ransom, Mrs. Dennings,” Detective Harris suggested. “We can set up around the drop-off location. It’s the best chance of getting your daughter back and catching the kidnapper.”
“No way!” Richard protested as he returned with the address. “That’s too risky. We should just give the ransom, and then maybe the bad guys will let her go.”
“But Richard, what if they take the money and run away?” Laura shook her head. “No. I think the detectives are right.”
A decision was made for undercover officers to be positioned around the ransom drop-off point.
The following day, Laura drove to the drop-off point and her only hope was to see her daughter. She waited and kept looking at the rear-view mirror of the car, but no one approached the oak tree where she placed the money. When the night came, the detective knocked on the car’s window and told Laura to go home because the kidnapper probably change their mind.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Shutterstock
Devastated, Laura returned home and went straight to Emily’s room. She then noticed the carpet was there.
“Doesn’t the carpet look like it’s new?” her husband asked her.
Laura kneeled on the carpet. It was a carpet Emily chose herself just a few months ago.
“How could it be so new?” Laura asked confused.
“A good cleaner can do wonders, honey,” Richard replied almost too quickly.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Shutterstock
Ten years have gone by, and there was no sign of Emily. Everyone moved on and got used to the fact that she won’t be coming back. Everyone but Laura. This mother could never stop hoping that she would see her daughter again. She never stopped trying and praying to God for Emily’s safe return.
One day, Laura got the idea to place banners with Emily’s face on them around the city. She visited an agency and told the woman working there her story. The two agreed to place three huge banners at the busiest streets in the city.
“The design was simple—a blown-up version of Emily’s photograph, her smile frozen in time, and the words ‘Forever missed, forever loved’ in bold, impossible-to-ignore letters. Beneath that, ‘If you know something, say something,’ followed by a hotline number.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Shutterstock
Richard wasn’t happy that Laura placed the banners. He accused her of wasting their money. “All our savings are gone, Laura! Just because you plastered her face all across the city!” he told her.
But at that particular moment, there was a knock on the door.
Laura went to see who it might be. The moment she opened the door, she was left completely stunned. A young woman was standing on the front porch. Although ten years passed by, she immediately recognized her daughter.
It was Emily.
For illustration purposes | Source: Pexels
“Yeah, Mom! I’m home!” Emily said and then pulled away and raised her one arm to show the carpet she was holding. “This was all I had, Mom,” she said. “And I kept it.”
“Who’s there?” Richard’s loud voice could be heard from the inside of the house.
As he approached the front door and noticed Emily standing there he went pale.
“What’s wrong, Richard?” Emily sneered. “You see a ghost? He’s the one responsible for my disappearance, Mom!” Emily pointed at Richard.
“What? That’s nonsense!” Richard cried in his defense.
“Come inside, Emily,” Laura said. As Emily entered, Laura closed the front door. She looked from her daughter to her husband. What was going on?
“She’s lying, Laura!” Richard yelled. “Don’t listen to her! She’s trying to tear us apart!”
“Tell me everything, Emily!” Laura insisted, ignoring Richard.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Shutterstock
Ten years ago…
On the day of Emily’s disappearance, Laura was on a business trip and she was left with Richard.
When she returned home from school, Richard was watching TV and invited Emily to sit next to him so that they could watch the show together. She didn’t want to, but he insisted.
Scared, she sat next to him, but she then became aware of her stepdad touching her skirt’s hem. “Nice skirt,” he commented, and Emily became even more scared than before.
At one moment, he offered to unbutton her shirt and said, “Come on, Emily. You’ve grown, and it’s not like you don’t want me.”
Emily yelled “Get away!” and ran straight to her room but Richard followed her. “You don’t need to be scared, Emily!” He smirked.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Shutterstock
“What are you doing here? Get out! This is my room!” she cried. “Leave, Richard, or I’ll tell Mom everything!”
Richard burst out laughing. “And who do you think she’ll believe? A grown man or her over-imaginative daughter?”
“She’ll believe me! I know my mom!” Emily confidently yelled. She then rushed to grab her phone, but Richard pushed her away.
Emily felt sharp pain in the head and saw blood dropping on the carpet. The next moment, she blacked out.
Without even checking if she was still alive, Richard wrapped her body in the carpet and placed her in the back of his truck. He then started the truck and when he reached the river, he threw Emily there.
When he returned home, he cleaned the place so that Laura wouldn’t suspect that he’s involved in her daughter’s disappearance.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Shutterstock
Present day…
“A couple of fishermen found me, Mom,” Emily continued. “I was in a neighboring town. A kind family there took me in. They also tried to find my family, but I didn’t remember my past. It was only when I returned here and saw my face on the billboards that I recalled everything—My home, you, and the terrible…night!”
“Stop it, Emily! You’re accusing me after all I have done for you guys?” Richard screamed.
But Laura was certain her daughter was telling the truth.
She called the cops and a DNA analysis was later done to determine of the blood on the carpet was Emily’s. It didn’t come as a surprise when the results confirmed it was.
Some months later, Richard was sentenced to prison.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Shutterstock
We are so happy Emily was finally able to return home after the ordeal she’s gone through.
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Founded in 1947 by reservist Major Bill Hendricks, Toys for Tots represents a program run by the United States Marine Corps Reserve which distributes toys to children whose families cannot afford to buy them gifts for the most wonderful season of the year.
The mission of this program is to collect and distribute new unwrapped toys to unprivileged children for Christmas.
According to their website, “The Foundation provides the leadership, funding, and support needed for successful annual toy collection and distribution campaigns.”
Back in 1997, the program launched what is one of the most beautiful commercials we’ve ever seen.
YouTube
Each Christmas, this commercial is shared by a number of people who wish for the holiday spirit to be spread around.
It features a young boy with a piece of paper in his hands approaching a Marine and asking him if he’s Santa Claus.
The Marine stands still because he’s on his job and doesn’t seem to pay attention to the boy who’s talking to him.
The boy then asks the same question again and then hands the piece of paper, which turns out to be his wish list for Christmas, to the guard, hoping his wishes to be granted this season.
To everyone’s surprise and delight, the guard, without making any eye contact with the boy, opens his hand and takes the boy’s list.
The commercial is supposed to raise awareness of the importance of the mission by Toys For Tots. It is a reminder that there are children out there who would not be getting any gifts, and that each and every one of us can help make a difference in a child’s life.
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