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Dunkin’ sells small donuts they call “munchkins”; Ice Spice’s fans are called “munchkins.” Let’s face it, it was only a matter of time before these two would link up for some #brand #synergy. The Ice Spice Munchkins Drink — which is a clunky ass name, regardless of marketing alignment — has been on Dunkin’ menus nationwide for about a week now and it hasn’t taken over the world like the Grimace Shake.

That’s a good thing. Lately, we’re living in a celebrity-branded fast food hellscape. Not exactly a new thing, it’s just more prevalent now than it was a decade ago. But on the real, these new menu items are supposed to be innocuous — they’re easy cash grabs for both brands involved and aren’t meant to really win anyone over but one key audience: fans of the artist themselves.

My only issue is… do they have to be that boring? Why can’t these things actually be… good? Am I giving away the verdict on this drink already? Maybe! But really, think about how much easier it would be to make a good drink.

Just a thought… how about Spiced Ice?

It’s a fun play on Ice Spice’s name, we can lean on spicy cinnamon flavors or, hell, do something truly new like add some type of cayenne pepper or cumin into the mix. All of which pair with coffee in interesting ways. A cayenne pepper and cumin coffee drink subverts expectations — it’s the perfect drink to represent Ice Spice, who herself has subverted the expectation of what an iconic rapper looks and sounds like.

But instead… we got this. And it’s not good (another spoiler?). So let’s get into where this drink went wrong.

The Ice Spice Munchkins Drink

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Have you ever taken a slice of pumpkin pie, thrown it in a blender with some coffee, and drank the result? No? Why not? Because that would be disgusting?

I agree. But still, it would probably taste better than this. Even though that’s essentially what the Ice Spice Munchkins Drink is — Dunkin’ grabs a handful of pumpkin cake Munchkins (Dunkin’s version of donut holes), blends it up with frozen coffee, tops it with whipped cream, and drizzles caramel all over everything.

At first sip, your taste buds are inundated with an intense level of sweet brown sugar, cinnamon, and allspice flavors. Like flooded. The sweetness is so strong that it actually made me recoil. To add insult to injury, the texture is absolutely horrendous — it’s gravely and chewy. Let me tell you after half a decade as a food writer: those are two features that food taken through a straw should not have.

After approximately four drinks I was done. Look, I love sweet drinks as much as the next person, but this is too sweet to finish, it’s the sort of heavy sweetness that totally ruins your palate for the day. Maybe the week. My original plan was to drink Ice Spice’s drink alongside a Pizza Hut melt (shout out Flyana Boss) but I couldn’t taste anything after. I had to tap out.

Sweetness aside though, the worst part of this drink is by far the texture. Munchkins just have no place in a drink because they don’t melt. That means after your drink sits for about 10 minutes, and the blended drink starts to melt away into liquid, the Munchkins begin to gather in your cup and gravitate towards one another. It’s a weird bit of chemistry and just generally bad.

The Bottom Line:

Ice Spice and her fans both deserve a better drink and, most frustrating of all, it doesn’t seem like it would’ve been too hard to make one. But Dunkin’ took the absolute easiest road possible, taking a bunch of ingredients they already had on hand and throwing them together and not really caring about the result aside from the opportunity to market. I can’t help but think of Jeff Goldbum’s Ian Malcolm, who criticized the scientists at Jurassic Park’s motives for reanimating dinosaurs with this great quote:

“Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.”

Well, at least we got that gem of a commercial up there out of the whole thing. Alas, when a food brand does something for the content and not for the pleasure of the people, it’s lost its way.

Ex-second generation Scientologist has largely devoted her public image to fighting back against the organization since departing in 2013. She has revealed several disturbing incidents over the years, including the time that she and Jennifer Lopez were tailed by Scientology goons. Remini has also detailed her experiences in a bestselling memoir, Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, and hosted multiple seasons of her Emmy-award winning docuseries, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath.

The King Of Queens star recently sued Scientology for “harassment” as well as “psychological torture” and “surveillance.” She now alleges that, after filing the lawsuit, the organization’s harassment has grown even more intense, and she has amended her legal filing, via NBC News:

Remini says attacks by the church and its leader, David Miscavige, “have escalated to a much greater degree than ever before,” Remini said in an amended complaint filed last week in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

Since the actor’s civil complaint was filed on Aug. 2, Remini said she and her friends have been targeted with increasingly aggressive tactics by Scientology..

Within the amended filing, Remini alleges several new incidents, including hacking of several credit cards and a related business account. She also claims that her mother may have been monitored too (as a means of intimidation) and mentions an unidentified car that has been lurking near her home.

None of this has stopped Remini from pursuing her cause. As she noted on Twitter, she recently interviewed Scientology Head David Miscavige’s former camerawoman, who “escaped Scientology” and is telling her story to Remini for the first time. You can see the link to that interview below.

(Via NBC News)

The NFL season is heating up at this stage and, prior to the start of bye weeks across the league, 16-game slates provide nearly endless entertainment. That was the case in Week 2, including a Monday doubleheader, and there is another coming this week. At any rate, Week 2 was kinder than Week 1 in this space, with a genuinely profitable week at the office. Bryce Young got us home with a friendly push on Monday evening but, aside from an errant venture in Houston, the swing feels good.

Week 3 picks are on the way but, before the grand reveal, let’s take stock.

• Week 2: 3-1-1
• 2023 Season: 5-4-1

Come get these winners.

Denver Broncos (+6.5) over Miami Dolphins — Widely Available

Denver (somehow) leads the NFL in points per drive right now and things have broken against the Broncos twice. I think the market is a little bit over its skis on Miami, too, and I’d play this down to +6. Let’s ride.

TEASER: Jacksonville Jaguars (-2.5) over Houston Texans and New York Jets (+8.5) over New England Patriots — Widely Available

Key numbers galore here. We’ll take Jacksonville through two keys as the (much) better team against Houston. Also, a rookie quarterback on the road is usually an adventure, and that plays against the Texans. From there, it is easy to make fun of the Jets offense, and you’d be right to do so. However, taking New York up to 8.5 is a value side against an uninspiring Patriots offense in a game with a total in the mid-30’s.

Cleveland Browns (-3) over Tennessee Titans — PointsBet

Cleveland’s offense took a real hit with Nick Chubb going down and Deshaun Watson continues to struggle mightily. Those realities, in combination with a nationally televised loss to Pittsburgh, pushes this number down to a range we like. Tennessee just beat Los Angeles, which also helps, and we’ll buy the dip on the Browns.

Los Angeles Chargers (+1.5) over Minnesota Vikings — FanDuel

We broke the rules by taking the Chargers at home in Week 1. We’re course-correcting this time to our principles of liking Los Angeles much more away from home, where they have basically no home-field advantage. Moreover, the Chargers are just better than the Vikings and, while Minnesota has the same urgency in this battle of 0-2 teams, we’re crossing our fingers and going with talent. Hey, we still win if the Chargers lose by one.

Cincinnati Bengals (-3) over Los Angeles Rams — Widely Available

If this ends up riding on Jake Browning, I’ll hate it. I accept that. I’m banking on Joe Burrow and relative desperation from the Bengals, with a sprinkling of the Rams being overvalued following two encouraging weeks. I wouldn’t go above three but, if we knew Burrow was playing, I think the Bengals should be favored by four or more points.

You’ve heard of Love Island and F*Boy Island and even The Golden Bachelor, the new reality show where an older gentleman looks to find love over a short stack of pancakes from the discounted 55 and up menu at IHOP. But you might be aware that the next great dating show is one that’s been around forever: Jeopardy!

A recent contestant named Matt Walks returned to the blue stage for the second chance competition after he first appeared on the game show in March of 2021, which was then guest-hosted by Katie Couric. Walks didn’t Walk(s) away with much, but he did find a better prize: love in the form of a tweet sent by a viewer.

Walks retold the story to host Ken Jennings this week. “That’s right. I had a great guest host in Katie. And there was a woman in Oregon who was watching the show specifically for Katie and even though I didn’t win, I got a great consolation prize because she tweeted at me, and now we’ve been dating for two years, and she’s in the audience,” Matt shared. It would have been better if they brought her up to play against her, The Price is Right-style and she ended up destroying her boyfriend, but that didn’t happen.

Jennings, remarked, “It takes a lot of confidence to be watching Jeopardy! and think, ‘I’m going to slide in that contestant’s DMs.” It also takes a lot of confidence to return to the show after only gathering $1,599 in winnings, but Walks seems to be doing okay now. It also takes a certain type of confidence to cross a picket line, but that’s a different story.

(Via TVInsider)

On Feb. 19, 2023, “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” turned 55 years old. And the internet was feeling feelings over it.

After premiering on Canadian TV in 1963, Fred Rogers’ beloved children’s program debuted in the U.S. in 1968, inspiring generations of kids across North America to be more thoughtful, kinder neighbors.

One person feeling the feels on the show’s anniversary was model, author, and Twitter goddess Chrissy Teigen.

Teigen tweeted the most delightful anecdote about why Rogers would often announce that he was feeding the fish during the show.

Mister Rogers would narrate himself feeding the fish each episode with u201cIu2019m feeding the fishu201d because of a letter he received from a young blind girl who was worried the fish were hungry. Love you, Mister Rogers.https://twitter.com/pbsds/status/965596450733228032u00a0u2026

— chrissy teigen (@chrissy teigen)
1519089788

“Mister Rogers would narrate himself feeding the fish each episode with, ‘I’m feeding the fish,’ because of a letter he received from a young blind girl who was worried the fish were hungry,” she wrote. “Love you, Mister Rogers.”

Aaaaaand I’m crying.

Rogers included the text of the girl’s letter in his book, “Dear Mister Rogers, Does It Ever Rain in Your Neighborhood?” published in 1996.

As he noted in the book (emphasis added):

One girl and her family wrote to tell us there was a special reason why she wanted me to talk about feeding the fish each day.

Dear Mister Rogers,

Please say when you are feeding your fish, because I worry about them. I can’t see if you are feeding them, so please say you are feeding them out loud.

Katie, age 5 (Father’s note: Katie is blind, and she does cry if you don’t say that you have fed the fish.)

This downright adorable clip from the series shows Rogers reassuring little Katie that the fish were always well-fed:

Sylvia Earle brought her underwater microphone to Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood so children could listen to the fish in the aquarium. When the fish don’t make…

“I need to feed the fish right away,” Rogers said in the episode, before shaking the container of food above the tank. “I have some friends who get very concerned when I forget the fish during our visits.”

Aaaaaand I’m ugly crying.

Rogers showed us how simple it often is to be a more compassionate friend.

“I just wanted you to know that even if I forget to feed them when we’re together, I come back later and feed them, so they’re always taken care of,” Rogers concluded. “It’s good to know that fish and animals and children are taken care of by those who can, isn’t it?”

Yes it is, Mister Rogers. The world needs more neighbors like you.

This article originally appeared on 02.20.18

You know that feeling you get when you walk into a classroom and see someone else’s stuff on your desk?

OK, sure, there are no assigned seats, but you’ve been sitting at the same desk since the first day and everyone knows it.

So why does the guy who sits next to you put his phone, his book, his charger, his lunch, and his laptop in the space that’s rightfully yours? It’s annoying.

All you want to do was walk in, sit down, get out your notebook and (try to) pay attention. But now? Now you’ve got to talk to a stranger about moving their stuff and there goes your day, already bogged down with petty annoyances.

Sound familiar? It should.

We’ve all got so much to do these days that interacting with people we see every day — not our friends, but our classmates, fellow commuters, co-workers, the people in line for coffee with us every day — can feel like a burden.

So, when these people do something we perceive as annoying, like putting their stuff on our desks, we don’t have the time or the energy to assume their intentions or think about the lives they’re leading.

But if we stepped out of ourselves for a second, we might just realize that we’re all much more connected than we think, that our preconceived notions of others are usually just that — preconceived. And, often, inaccurate.

That’s why this Twitter story about a guy who learned an important life lesson from a classmate he was frustrated with is going viral.

It’s the perfect example of that “don’t judge a book by its cover” adage we should have all learned in preschool but sometimes forget. And it starts the exact same way as this post — with a college student groaning on the inside as he sees someone’s stuff on his desk.

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If not for this one day running late, McFall may have never realized what his classmate was trying to do. And he may have continued to think of him as annoying, maybe telling others about “the weird guy who was always trying to take up my space”… when all the guy was really trying to do was be kind.

We all misinterpret the actions of others sometimes. It’s easy to do that!

But if there’s one thing this story reminds us, it’s that it’s important to stop and remember that while you’re living your life, other people are living theirs, so assuming best intentions can do us a great favor.

That’s why we should step outside of our bubbles and engage with the world on a regular basis.

You could make a new friend. You might brighten someone’s day.

But most importantly, getting out of your own head, checking your own biases, and giving others the benefit of the doubt will make you a more compassionate person.

You don’t have to engage with everyone you meet, but the next time someone smiles and offers you a high-five?

Maybe just take them up on it.

This article was originally published on April 16, 2018.

Let me start by saying that young adults these days absolutely do have economics stacked against them. There’s no question that stagnant wages, the unaffordability of housing, outrageous college costs, post-pandemic inflation and good ol’ American corporate greed have all combined to create a tough financial reality for us all, but particularly for the millennials and Gen Zers who are starting off their adult lives feeling already underwater.

If you’re in that boat, allow a Gen X auntie to give you some sage advice. Absolutely, rail against the man and shake your fist at the skyscrapers and vent on TikTok if it makes you feel better. But also, none of that is going to change super soon, so you’ve got to own what you actually have control over, and that’s managing the money that you do have (however little it may be).

When my kids were little back in the early 2000s, my husband and I were living on one not-at-all-amazing income. I had been raised quite frugally, so I was comfortable penny-pinching as needed, but I was looking for more creative ways to stretch our dollars.

I had no idea how much one book would change my entire view of saving money—or how much money it would actually save me over the years.

“The Complete Tightwad Gazette,” by Amy Dacyczyn (pronounced “decision”) is exactly what it sounds like—a newspaper for tightwads—only in this case “tightwad” isn’t used as an insult. From 1990 to 1996, Dacyszyn published a newsletter about frugal living as a lifestyle called “The Tightwad Gazette,” and this book is a compilation of her life’s work.

The book offers a combination of overarching mindset shifts and specific tips for saving money on specific things. Some of the advice is outdated now (“Do I really need a computer?” is a no-brainer question in a way that it wasn’t in the early 90s, for instance), but the principles underlying pretty much everything in the 959-page tome still ring true. Now that my kids are young adults with their own financial experiences, I find myself passing along a lot of Dacyczyn’s frugal wisdom to them.

Here are a few of the helpful bits of wisdom it contains:

1. Pennies matter a lot more than you think.

If I told you I was going to hand you $200 in cash every year on your birthday, you’d probably be thrilled. But if I gave you three pieces of advice that each saved you 20 cents a day, would you be as excited? Probably not. But the latter would actually put more money in your pocket (the equivalent of handing you $219 on your birthday) in the long run.

Lots of small amounts add up to a large amount, and when you wrap your head around that concept, small money-saving decisions start taking on greater importance. Pennies really do add up—both positively and negatively.

2. Think of saving money as income—literally.

“A penny saved is a penny earned” is an old saying, but a useful one to help us understand the value of going out of your way to save a few cents.

Let’s say your closest gas station sells gas for $4.39 a gallon. A station down the street, two minutes away, is selling it for $4.29 a gallon. To fill a 15-gallon tank would only cost $1.50 less at the second station—not even enough to buy a cup of coffee. Is that really worth your time?

Let’s calculate. If you think of saving money as earning income, you’re taking two minutes to “earn” $1.50. That’s $0.75 a minute—translate that into an hourly income, and you’ve earned the equivalent of $45 an hour, simply by driving two minutes to save 10 cents a gallon. Even accounting for the gas it took to drive a few extra blocks—less than 10 cents—you still come out with a hefty hourly wage.

This “time x money saved = hourly income” equation was a life-changing perspective shift for me. If it only takes a minute or two to save a dollar, that’s a solid hourly earning.

3. Use the absolute smallest amount necessary to do the job.

This is simple common sense when you say it out loud, but most of us don’t live this way in reality. We use more than we need of most consumable things most of the time, simply out of habit. When you pull out that string of floss, so it wraps around your fingers four times? What if you pulled out less and only wrapped it three or two times?

Start by cutting the consumables you use on a daily basis back by half—everything from toothpaste to dish soap to shampoo to toilet paper. We all get excited about 50% off sales, when we could easily save 50% ourselves simply by using less of the things we use all the time, with the same result. If you need to add a little back in after cutting back by half, go for it. But you might be surprised by how little you need to actually get the job done.​

4. Do the math to determine what’s actually cheap and expensive to eat.

Even with the cost of groceries being ridiculously high, cooking from scratch is, in most cases, drastically cheaper than eating out or getting takeout.

I know the old folks like to tease you about your affinity for avocado toast, but it’s pretty eye-opening to compare the cost of buying something like avocado toast out and making it yourself at home. With current prices at my local grocery store, it would cost less than $1.00 to make avocado toast at home, and that’s even with good bread and a generous serving of butter and yummy seasonings. Add another 30 cents, and you can slap an organic fried egg on top. We’re talking $1.30 tops for super bougie breakfast toast at home.

But even within the “cooking at home” category, some meals are way, way less expensive than others. One of my favorite Tightwad Gazette investigations focused on how various kinds of breakfasts cost per serving. Personally, I’m a huge cold cereal fan, which is bad news because it’s actually one of the most expensive breakfasts you can eat. Toast and eggs is (generally) cheaper. Pancakes are even cheaper, especially if you make them from scratch and not a mix. Oatmeal is super cheap. Oatmeal bought in bulk? Even cheaper. And the differences can be significant—again, looking at my current grocery store app, a serving of Cheerios costs 300% more than a serving of quick oats.

All of those choices add up, both positively and negatively. By doing the math, figuring out per-serving costs and choosing less expensive meals, you can cut your grocery bill by a lot.

This is just barely scratching the tip of the iceberg—there are so many tips and tricks for saving both small and large amounts of money. Since the economy isn’t going to be any kinder to us in the near future, learning how to make the most of what we do have is the best way to help ourselves. Find “The Complete Tightwad Gazette” here (or, in true tightwad fashion, at your local library, but it’s a good one to keep on hand for reference). Highly, highly recommend.

There is no greater teacher than experience. But wouldn’t life be a lot easier if we actually listened to those of us who are older and wiser so we didn’t have to learn the big lessons in life the hard way?

If only life were that easy.

A funny thing happens to many people: you think you know everything in your early 20s, but once you hit your 30s, you realize you didn’t know much at all. But by the time your 40s set in, the hard-earned life lessons begin to take hold, and if obeyed, can lead to a more satisfying life.

A Reddit user named ZombiePunkRocker asked people 40 years old and up to share some advice for younger people. If taken seriously, the advice could really help them avoid the pitfalls in life and be more carefree and happy.

One thing that many of the ideas have in common is to avoid caring about how others judge us and, instead, follow our hearts and create our own goals. The list is also a great reminder to take care of your body while you still can and to save a few bucks while you’re at it.

Here are 15 of the most popular responses to the question: “People 40 years old or more. What is some advice for the younger people?”

1. You’re not special

“You’re not special, no one cares what you do and the sooner you can accept it, the sooner you can be at peace with yourself.” — Anom8675309

“This can be used a comfort to those who have anxiety about what others think of them: How often do you think about every little thing that other people do? You don’t. Right. In the same way, nobody thinks about you either, so get out of your head and live your life, because people are too busy with their own lives to care about yours.” — StaffordMagnus

2. Take care of your body

“Take care of your knees and back.” — TrailerParkPrepper

“And your teeth. My God, teeth can be such a financial drain.” — BethLP11

3. This

“Love life it is short. Be grateful for everything. The biggest burden you’ll carry are your own thoughts. Learn to live in the present, the past is just a memory and the future is just your imagination. You don’t have to accept the negative self dialogue, be the watcher of those thoughts and learn to let them go. You are braver than you believe, smarter than you think, stronger than you seem and loved more than you know.” — Unabtanium

4. Stretch

“Stretch every day or at least more than never. Stay limber and flexible because once it is gone, it’s almost impossible to get it back.” — Jjoenr

“As somebody who’s on middle age’s doorstep, I stretch 10-15 minutes daily, and lift weights several times a week. It makes a huge difference as everything gets tighter when you get older. I feel a difference if I go a day or more without stretching.” — HerbieDerrb

5. Deprogram yourself

“You have been exposed to an unbelievable amount of absolute lies in your life that colour your beliefs and your expectations about how life will go. Find ways to deprogram yourself. You know internally what values are core and humane. The rest need to be thoroughly examined. What do you really think about the way people present themselves? Do you get impressed by people wearing brand advertising all over their clothes, or driving a certain car? Does that make sense or scream sucker, really? The things people fight about, what are the underlying reasons behind it? What kinds of manipulations have people been exposed to before they hold their views? Rise above it all, become aware of the dramas people live in.” — CellPublic

6. Save your money

“Investments (good real estate, stocks) roughly double every decade. So multiply the sum of your frivolous expenses per year by 8x or 10x and that’s what you’re foregoing for retirement.” — Unselesssatirist

7. Stop comparing

“Don’t fall into the trap of thinking everyone else your age has something that you don’t and you feel hopelessly behind and like a failure. Once you’re out of school, there are no timelines anymore. You are not supposed to do anything by any particular point in your life. Everyone is different. You are not supposed to have had X number of sexual partners, had X number of relationships, be married, have a kid, own a house, have a dream job, or figure out your calling in life at any particular point — if at all. Life is very long and you will have many chances to do things. Make your own path.” — Zazzlekdazzle

8. Exercise now

“Don’t wait to get in shape. Start working out, however, is enjoyable to you so you avoid health risks later. Don’t wait to have to lose 30 lbs.” — STARoSCREAM

“Yup. I turn 44 in 2 weeks and going to the gym 4 days a week has been a game changer. I’ve lost 15lbs in a year and feel better than I did when I was a young man.” — Floppity12

9. Fail

“Fail more. Fail all the time. Set yourself up for failure. Because what you will learn is that failure is not some horrible catastrophe, it’s actually a part of a process of getting better at something or getting what you want. And going ahead into failure is often how you find yourself unexpectedly succeeding faster than you expected. And the more you fail, the more you immunize yourself against the fear of it so you can get more of it. Failure is something you actually need in your life to really get the things you want.” — Zazzlekdazzle

“Adding “Fail fast” to this list. Dont postpone the inevitable longer than you should by hoping something might change or work out. The sooner you can pivot past a failure the better!” — Asmartassgirl

10. Don’t take yourself too seriously

“Whatever you do you’ll probably look back ten years later mildly mortified at how deep you thought you were. You’re just another confused human not destined for greatness and there’s no grand scheme in which you matter one bit, so just chill. If you have issues with your self-confidence and depend on the validation of others, address that shit by whatever means are available to you. Nobody is going to do it for you and being insecure gets old fast.” — Strange Articles

11. Enjoy your young body

“Enjoy your hairline/boobs, they aren’t going to get better and you will fondly look back on where they were situated when you were younger and hotter.” — Smyley12345

12. Enjoy silence

“It’s okay and healthy to sit in silence. Put down your phone, leave your earphones in your pocket, and just be. It’s important to not constantly be stimulated.” — Yourpaljax

13. Don’t waste a day

“I’m 56. You don’t have as much time as you think you do. Don’t waste it, don’t waste a single f****** day. Do something every day even if it’s just something for yourself. Drink plenty of water and use sunscreen. Donating blood doesn’t hurt that bad. Doing something you like for a living is more rewarding than doing something that pays even exceptionally well. I’ve done both and the former is preferable in my opinion.” — Tim Renick

14. Choose friends wisely

“Once you’re out of school, don’t keep the friends who bring you down. You really don’t need that and the benefits no longer outweigh the drawbacks. You know what I mean, the friends who only call when they need something, the ones who make you feel bad when you fail and worse when you succeed. The friends who encourage you to do things you actually don’t want to do and discourage you from growing as a person. Focus your time and effort on your high-quality friends. It’s not about quantity anymore.” — Zazzlekdazzle

15. High school isn’t life

“Don’t worry about high school. Once you are done no gives a shit other than you getting a diploma. The drama the ‘permanent record’. Anything you did or didn’t accomplish mean nothing after you leave. If you hit 40 and still talk about high school like it was the best part of your life then you peaked early. Your greatest achievements and victories should be later in life when it matters. As always, there are exceptions, but seriously if your best was as a teen, what are you doing with 60 or 70 years you still have to go?” — Hsensei

With Doja Cat’s fourth studio album, Scarlet, just hours away from release, anticipation for the new project couldn’t be higher. While Doja’s antics during its rollout were purposely designed to throw off some fans, Doja diehards were fascinated with her edgy singles, which included “Attention,” “Paint The Town Red,” “Demons,” and most recently, “Balut.”

However, that last one has some fans confused about its meaning. Whether that’s due to its titular reference to the Filipino street dish or fans wondering how that title relates to the song’s content, many have been wondering…

What Is The Meaning Behind Doja Cat’s “Balut?”

Balut, the dish, originates in the Philippines. It’s a simple street dish consisting of a boiled or steamed fertilized duck or chicken egg. The embryo is incubated between 14 and 21 days then steamed or boiled and eaten directly out of its shell, often with vinegar or salt. The longer the embryo has been incubated, the more it looks like a bird.

Doja’s ingenious use of the term comes from the cutthroat nature of the lyrics. In the verses, she slings such pointed insults as, “I’m the shit, you a real piece of shit / I am needed, you a real needy bitch / I’m competing, you are incompetent / You are fleeting ’cause you can’t copy this.” In a post on Instagram Stories, Doja explained, “I named the song ‘Balut’ because it signifies a bird that’s being eaten alive. It’s a metaphor for Twitter stans and the death of Twitter toxicity. The beginning of ‘X’ and the end of ‘tweets.’” (The reference to “Fleets” — the short-lived copy of Snapchat and Instagram Stories — bears this out.)

Unfortunately, her explanation actually incensed some Filipino fans, who sought to correct her mischaracterization of balut. What should have been a pride-inducing moment for the culture turned into a teaching moment for Doja as fans explained that the duck embryos are no longer alive when eaten.

The Dallas Cowboys are off to an incredible start to the 2023 NFL season, as they have played the most complete first two weeks of anyone in the league, outscoring the Giants and Jets 70-10 in their first two games.

Dak Prescott and the offense unsurprisingly get a good bit of attention, but Dallas has looked like one of the most terrifying defenses in the league thus far, as Micah Parsons wrecks shop up front, a stout interior is incredibly difficult to run on, and the secondary has shut down the backend in the passing game. A big part of that secondary is fourth year star corner Trevon Diggs, who notched his first interception of the season on Sunday against Zach Wilson.

On Thursday, terrible news broke from Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport that Diggs was out for the season after suffering a torn ACL in Cowboys practice earlier in the day, handing a significant blow to a great defense.

For Diggs, it’s a brutal way to see his season end so early after starting it with the promise of yet another potential All-Pro campaign. For the Cowboys, they have lots of talent on the defensive side of the ball so it’s possible they can withstand this and still be a Super Bowl contender, but it certainly takes some punch out of their secondary and makes their margin for error even thinner in defending the passing game. Diggs is an elite ballhawk at corner and has steadily gotten better as a cover man in picking his spots to gamble to become a much more reliable corner down-by-down. Losing him shifts more pressure onto the rest of the secondary to make up for his absence, with Jourdan Lewis and DaRon Bland as those that will have to play bigger roles alongside Stephon Gilmore going forward this season.