A gay man in Vegas was approached by a 40-year-old stranger seeking advice on raising his son.

By
Monica Pop
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Musician Jack Remmington has an awesome story to share. An encounter he had with a friendly man in his 40s warmed the hearts of people across the country and the world. As Jack and his best friend were having some fun time in Vegas, playing on the Mariah Carey slots, the man sat on the machine next to them and tried to engage into a conversation. His first question was whether Jack and his friend were a couple. When they said no, he proceeded asking if they were gay. Jack assumed it would be one of those chats where people judge them for their choices, but he was so wrong. The man was actually trying to talk to a gay person and seek advice on how to communicate with his son whom he though was a gay himself but was probably still in the closet. The two friends were pleasantly surprised and were willing to offer a helping hand, as that man was one caring and supportive father. Who wouldn’t want a parent like that? After sharing the story on Twitter, it spread like a wildfire. “Ok I just experienced the nicest exchange with a stranger and think it’ll help to share: I was playing on the Mariah Carey slots in Vegas (naturally) and a friendly circa-mid-40s ish guy sat down to play on the machine next to me,” Remmington wrote.
I was sitting with @marcoalessifilm, both wearing pink (naturally) and after chatting a little to the guy about Vegas, he nervously asked if he could ask us a question. I knew where this was gonna go as it always does so did a bit of an inner eye roll but indulged him anyway He then asked if we were together so we said no (we’re best friends and he has a fab bf) and he asked if we were gay, so we said yes. He then said he thinks his 13 year old son might be gay and wondered if he could ask us how best for him to navigate that He lit up when talking about his son, and I nearly started crying at how much he clearly loved him. The guy wanted to know how to make his son feel most comfortable about himself whilst not being too overt and glaringly obvious in forcing a conversation about his sexuality This man is SO sweet. From rural Arkansas and said whilst things are so much better now, he still just wants the world to be totally equal for his son. Marco and I said he sounds like he’s doing all the right things and that making his son know he’s loved is the best he can do We both gave a couple of anecdotes from personal experience, largely relating to condoning abstract things when you see them like normalising conversations around gay kisses on TV or calling our family conversations that might shame potential queerness We also mentioned not accidentally policing things so as to shame him – for instance, often out of a sense of protection and love parents can frown on a child’s behaviour or outfit because they’re worried for their safety when on a night out etc. But we stressed that if this was their feeling it’s important to vocalise this exactly, rather than leaving the child ruminating over the parent’s intentions and second guessing why they said what they said So in terms of advice to friends or relatives of a potentially queer person, what would fellow queers advise is the best way to make it known they have their love and support without causing an uncomfortable conversation that might force someone to come out before they’re ready?
Although Jack was there to provide support and advice, it’s sad that not everyone has a safe space to educate themselves on certain questions they have related to LGBTQ.
“My first impression was that he seemed nice as he chatted which is more than what tends to happen with people you sit next to in Vegas at the slots. That said, I didn’t expect it to take this turn at all,” Remmington said in an interview with Bored Panda.
“The relationship between him and his son has a 100% future – he was a wonderful and caring man, despite what he said was quite a difficult town to grow up in if you’re at all different. I wish all fathers could be like him.”

School’s disgusting lunch goes viral, superintendent stood up for staff

By
Monica Pop
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Students spend a great amount of time at school attending lessons and gathering knowledge on different subjects and life in general. During that time, they are taken care of. They are engaged in fun activities, get breaks from learning, and of course, are supposed to have lunch that would give them the energy for the day. 

But what are our kids served in the educational institutions? A photo of a school lunch that was posted on Facebook and took the Internet by storm raised the question of the quality of food students are offered. After Daily Mail shared the story behind the photo, local TV station WJACTV picked it up and it really became a viral sensation. 

When you take a look at what’s on the plate, it may take you a couple of minutes to even figure out what it is. It’s definitely not appealing and doesn’t look delicious as spots of grease are visible on the surface. 

After the local outlets contacted the school and the superintendent of the school district of the area, Dr. Luke Lansberry, he took a stand that what was supposed to be a hamburger didn’t really look that bad. He said the school staff cooked it on a higher temperature than they were supposed to, otherwise, it was a nice lunch. 

“Food service workers cooked the hamburgers at 170 degrees, when typically they are only required to cook at 155 degrees,” Lansberry said to WAJC TV.

“There’s a pretty good chance that hamburger was overcooked and a lot of the internal ingredients surfaced from that level of heat.”

Although he claims the hamburger wasn’t really that bad, and the school staff is doing their best to cook the food the right way, he said he would ask for this type of food to be off the menu in the future.  

“Our food service director has contacted the state and told them about the situation and made it clear we will no longer accept that product in the district, just to make sure that we have good quality food,” he said.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you believe the lunch served at school cafeterias meets the standards of healthy food? What are your kids served while at school? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below. 

Marine Is Forced To Share a Room With a Snoring Air Force Guy. What He Does Next Is Genius.

By
Monica Pop
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How a Marine dealt the situation with the snoring guy he had to share a room with is going to make you laugh. By the time a Marine pulled into a little town, every hotel room was taken. “You’ve got to have a room somewhere,” he pleaded. “Or just a bed, I don’t care where.” “Well, I do have a double room with one occupant, a Navy guy,” admitted the manager, “and he might be glad to split the cost. But to tell you the truth, he snores so loudly that people in adjoining rooms have complained in the past. I’m not sure it’d be worth it to you.” “No problem,” the tired Marine assured him. “I’ll take it.” The next morning the Marine came down to breakfast bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. “How’d you sleep?” Asked the manager. “Never better.” The manager was impressed. No problem with the other guy snoring, then?” “Nope, I shut him up in no time.” Said the Marine. “How’d you manage that?” asked the manager. “He was already in bed, snoring away, when I came in the room,” the Marine explained. “I went over, gave him a kiss on the cheek, said, ‘Goodnight, beautiful,’ and he sat up all night watching me.”

Mom Writes Her Daughter a Touching Letter About Getting Old. This Is So True It Hurts.

By
Monica Pop
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Getting old is part of life. When our parents reach that age when they start forgetting things or are unable to take full care of themselves, most of us seem to lack the patience to work with them and help them rediscover the world around them. But we forget how those were the ones who taught us everything about our world first.

What one mother wrote to her daughter about getting old is to true it hurts.

My dear girl, The day you see I’m getting old, I ask you to please be patient, but most of all, try to understand what I’m going through. If when we talk, I repeat the same thing a thousand times, don’t interrupt to say: “You said the same thing a minute ago”… Just listen, please. Try to remember the times when you were little and I would read the same story night after night until you would fall asleep. When I don’t want to take a bath, don’t be mad and don’t embarrass me. Remember when I had to run after you making excuses and trying to get you to take a shower when you were just a girl? When you see how ignorant I am when it comes to new technology, give me the time to learn and don’t look at me that way … remember, honey, I patiently taught you how to do many things like eating appropriately, getting dressed, combing your hair and dealing with life’s issues every day… the day you see I’m getting old, I ask you to please be patient, but most of all, try to understand what I’m going through. If I occasionally lose track of what we’re talking about, give me the time to remember, and if I can’t, don’t be nervous, impatient or arrogant. Just know in your heart that the most important thing for me is to be with you. And when my old, tired legs don’t let me move as quickly as before, give me your hand the same way that I offered mine to you when you first walked. When those days come, don’t feel sad… just be with me, and understand me while I get to the end of my life with love. I’ll cherish and thank you for the gift of time and joy we shared. With a big smile and the huge love I’ve always had for you, I just want to say, I love you … my darling daughter.

Angry Mom Calls Local News Station After School Forces Her Daughter to Remove the Medical Mask

By
Monica Pop
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Mikayla Smith is a freshman high school student from Oklahoma who had undergone a tonsils removal surgery just recently. Since she still had scabs in her throat, her mother bought her a mask because she feared the girl could be exposed to germs when around other students. 

After Mikayla entered the school wearing the mask, school officials asked her to remove it because it violated the dress code policy.

When she got home that day telling her mom what had happened, she got really frustrated. After trying to explain the officials how her daughter wore the mask as a health precaution, she was told the rules said no masks allowed. 

Mikayla’s mom asked to review the school’s handbook, but she didn’t find any written policy regarding wearing medical masks during lesson time. Meanwhile, Mikayla was removed from classes. 

The school then told the Smiths how they would offer Mikayla an actual medical mask, as the one she already had apparently wasn’t used for medical purposes. 

“A medical mask has three layers including a paper filter. The district health coordinator provided a box of surgical grade medical masks to help protect the student from sickness. A ‘rave’ mask is just cloth, similar to pulling a t-shirt over your mouth. It won’t protect from germs. When a judgement is to be made regarding distractive items or dress code, a site principal will make the decision. Mid-Del Schools provided a medical mask for a student to wear while at school.”

The mom didn’t want to accept what the school had to offer, so she called the local news outlet instead and hoped her story would spread. Her purpose was to change the school policies regarding wearing medical masks. 

Many people do wear masks when they feel threatened by viruses, or when they are sick and don’t want to spread the germs on others. These masks, however, are thin and usually white or light blue in color. Mikayla’s mask was thicker and black. Her mom also admitted how she was the one to decide her daughter should wear a mask. The girl wasn’t advised to do so by the doctor. 

In cases wearing a mask is prescribed by a doctor, then teachers and students should get clearance from school administrators. It’s unclear whether the Smiths asked for one before Mikayla went to school with her mask that day.

You can take a look at the whole story in the video below.   

Do you think she should have been allowed to wear the mask? What are your thoughts on wearing medical masks at school or in the public places?

Girl With Tourette Syndrome and Her Family Got Kicked Out of Movie Theater

By
Monica Pop
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Emily, a 15-year-old from Oklahoma who is absolutely in love with the Marvel’s movie got a surprise from her parents. She was about to go to the opening night of Avengers: Endgame. Both her and her family were looking forward to a night full of fun. 

However, their plan didn’t turn out as expected because of Emily’s Tourette syndrome. This disorder is characterized by repetitive, stereotyped, involuntary movements and vocalizations called tics. These movements, squawks, and grunts come on suddenly and are hard to control, although Emily manages to do so very often. 

Before the premiere showing, the girl tried letting the tics so that she could stay as silent as possible while the movie was on. But despite her efforts, and despite the fact the movie wasn’t on yet, people complained because of the noises she made. 

When the manager told the family to step out into the hallway, Emily’s mom assured him that her daughter would be quiet once the movie starts. The manager then said that it would be for the best if they simply leave the place. 

Hearing this, Emily’s mood changed and she felt heartbroken. Her mom, however, was determined to stand up for her and refused to leave. 

Take a look at the whole story in the video below. 

Interracial Family Gets Shocking Letter from Racist Neighbor

By
Monica Pop
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On May 1, a family from Vacaville, California found a letter in their mailbox, and now the whole nation is speaking about it. The words typed on that piece of paper shook Marc Yu and his family to the core, because they never thought they would be unwelcome in the neighborhood where they moved recently only because of their race. The latter said it was written on the behalf of the whole community.

Apparently, their neighbors didn’t want them near by and told them to move places. The letter was offensive and full of racist comments. The Yus couldn’t believe there were still people out there who were bothered by someone’s race and skin color.

“The community is making this request that you find another place to live,” the note read. “… your interracial family is not welcome here.”

The person or people writing the letter said how the place was having certain standards and this interracial family simply didn’t fit any of them. 

“The Meadowland is an older neighborhood with established residents living in this area for over 20 years,” it continued. “We pride ourselves for the cleanliness and quiet atmosphere in the area. Very little crime as well. The community is making this request that you find another place to live. Renters like yourselves cannot possibly afford a home in our area … This is not the ghetto.”

Marc is of Chinese and Filipino descent and his wife Sandy is a Mexican American. But this family isn’t any different from the rest of the 17 percent of mixed-race families in the U.S. They’ve never experienced anything similar before, where they would be judged based on their appearance and heritage. This came as a shock especially because it happened in California, where the greatest number of interracial marriages are registered. 

“We may sound harsh,” the letter continues, “but your interracial family is not welcome here. We will contact your landlord and tell them to evict you if you don’t vacate in the next 60 days.”

Marc believed what was written wasn’t what everyone though of them, as most of the neighbors seemed very welcoming and nice. He though he should share the letter on Facebook after which it went viral. Along with it, Marc wrote, “It’s 2019. This is what came in the mail sticking out my mailbox. I own my home, so I can’t wait for them to contact the ‘Landlord, I can’t believe this sh*t still happens.” People were equally shocked by the content of the letter as the Yus were. 

Some of the comments were that what the neighbors did was “despicable, irresponsible, and un-American.” Someone even advised Marc to contact the authorities. 

Fox 40 spoke to some of the neighbors and they all had nice words to say about Marc and Sandy. One of them even said how they are amazing and generous people as they once welcomed “homeless grandparents and a grandson, along with two women who struggled to find a place to live.”

“We just try to keep our kids to understand the raw value of things and understand what’s right and what’s wrong,” Yu told the outlet. “Not everybody is a bad apple. There’s more good people than there are bad people.”

What are your thoughts about this story? Do you believe that we, as a country, still have a long road to go before we get rid of racism completely?

Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below. 

Young Gymnast’s Routine Becomes 2019’s Most Watched Sports Video

By
Monica Pop
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ESPN announced the performance of the young gymnast Katelyn Ohashi to be the most watched and most shared clip of 2019. The video spread all over the social media like a wildfire and when you see this girl’s crazy moves, you’ll know why. 

Honestly, we haven’t seen such a precise and vibrant performance in a long period of time. Katelyn brought a breeze of freshness in the gymnastics world and people were able to recognize her amazing talent the moment she stepped foot on the floor. 

Katelyn, who is 22 years old, competed for the University of California, Los Angeles and she was regarded a true champion in the making. 

She’s a six-time All-American and four-time member of USA Gymnastics Junior National Team, and the 2011 junior national champion. She won the American Cup in 2013.

This time, she gave the judges and the audience a routine to remember and got the perfect 10 score for the fourth time in her career. The video was taken during Katelyn’s performance at the 2019 Collegiate Challenge in Anaheim, California. 

You can take a look at her mesmerizing moves in the video below. 

The video has been seen and shared more than 34 million times.

And as we are all very aware of the strength, flexibility, balance, control, power, agility and coordination needed to perform a routine, watching Katelyn doing it makes it all look pretty easy. Her movements are simply flawless. 

She combines the gymnastic acts with music and dances to the rhythm as she performs the demanding tasks. She really is fun to watch. Everything she does is accompanied with music from renowned artists such as Aretha Franklin and Prince.  

You don’t need to be lover of this sport in order to enjoy what she does. 

Although her performances look effortless, it really took her a lot of hard work to get to where she is today. She shared with The Players’ Tribune how she’s gone through tough training, suffered injuries, and struggled with self-image and had to overcome the pressure of being the best in the field. 

But we have to agree that it all paid off at the end as she’s now a famous name in the world of gymnastics. 

This awesome young lady didn’t limit herself to performing only, but she took a full advantage of her position in order to become a valuable member of the community. She is spreading messages of empowerment for women and stands with survivors of abuse. This makes her not only a great sports person, but an amazing human being too. 

“This is a dream come true for a coach to see a student-athlete mature through celebrity,” said one of Katelyn’s coaches, Kondos Field. “She has been inundated with media requests and having to keep up with school and having to be a great team player and not being able to be late for work out. And she’s maneuvered everything so well like a pro.”

Katelyn has the support of her coaches, her teammates, and her parents who always cheer her during her spectacular routines. 

ESPN commentators praised her ability to spread happiness and joy while on the floor. Katelyn is indeed a very special girl. 

Take a look at her perfect routine in the video below. 

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