Any adult who works with kids in the modern era knows what a minefield physical affection can be. Even if you have the purest of intentions, accepting a hug or a kiss from a child who doesn't belong to you may not be appropriate or wise, especially if you are in a position of authority. It's hard when a kid genuinely loves you and wants to show you affection, but part of caring for kids is helping to teach them what's okay and not okay. A perfect example of what boundary setting can look like with a young child was shared in a video showing Superhero Swim Academy instructor Jacob Siegel at the end of a swim lesson. The toddler Siegel was teaching hugged him and then went in for a kiss. The hug was expected and welcome—"Thank you, Mila. I love Mila hugs!" the coach said. But when she started to go in for a kiss, Siegel immediately pulled back, gently saying, "No, no kissy. No kissy 'cause I'm coach. You only kiss Mommy and Daddy, okay?" View this post on Instagram A post shared by Elevate Men | Mindfulness | Motivation (@men_being_gentlemen) The little girl looked sad and started to cry, so he quickly gave her an acceptable alternative. "Okay, hey! High five!" he said, while holding up his hand. "High five 'cause we're all done!" She calmed right down, gave him a high five, and then he moved on to clean-up time.Siegel's expression at the end of the video says it all—he knew that was a teachable moment that could have gone another way, but he handled it with professionalism and toddler-friendly expertise.“Moments like that are actually powerful teaching opportunities," Siegel tells Upworthy. "I want kids to know they can love and trust their coach, but also that some kinds of affection belong at home with family. It’s about helping them understand safety and respect through love.”People appreciated the example he set, sharing supportive comments on a Reddit share of the video:"So sweet... I sometimes have young clients who want to give kisses and it's so cute but you do have to tell them "no" because it's an important boundary to learn. Not everyone wants kisses!""On top of knowing not to do it to other people, it also teaches them for themselves that other people shouldn’t be just giving them kisses." Jake Johnson Fox GIF by New Girl Giphy "The kid is absolutely adorable but that coach is on another level. Creating the boundaries while keeping it cool and recording the whole thing so the parents are extremely comfortable. Dude is setting a hell of example.""It sounds like he's got a good balance between encouraging her growth and setting appropriate boundaries. Kids can be incredibly affectionate, and it's important to gently guide them in understanding what's suitable.""I also think it’s important for the parents’ comfort that a grown man swimming with their young girl isn’t overstepping boundaries/being predatory. From the outside looking in, it’s hard to know for sure when something is innocent or not. It’s better to just stay away from those situations as a whole.""The little girls I used to babysit always tried to give me kisses (they were between 2-5) and I had to tell them that I’m not related to you, so you can’t kiss me. You can hi-five or hug me, but no kisses! They still give me running tackle hugs when they see me!"A few commenters pointed out that some cultures see kissing as totally acceptable, as it's frequently used as a friendly greeting for people of all ages and genders. But even in those cultures, boundaries based on relationships and contexts are important to learn, and it's helpful when adults help teach those lessons so it doesn't all fall on the parents. - YouTube youtu.be In an article titled "Teaching Kids About Boundaries: Why empathy and self awareness play a major role," Child Mind Institute includes a helpful video about teaching boundaries to children, and it confirms that the coach handled things in exactly the right way. In a section entitled "Rules work both ways," the institute notes that when people model their boundaries, it's important for children to empathetically listen. "People are in charge of their own bodies," writes Rae Jacobson, author of the article and senior editor at the Child Mind Institute, "and it's not okay to touch them if they don't want you to, just like it's not okay for someone to touch [you] in a way you don't like." By calmly modeling his boundaries, the swim coach gave his young swimmer a gentle but clear message about what was and was not okay and embodied both empathy and autonomy for her in a way she can understand and mirror when she's older.Coach Siegel has shared various videos showing how he teaches kids much more than just how to swim. Check out this video where he helps a little one emotionally regulate: See on Instagram Well done, Coach. Thanks for giving us all such a fabulous example to follow. You can find more from Coach Siegel on the Superhero Swim Academy Instagram page.This article originally appeared in January. It has been updated.

We all know and love the late, great Robin Williams for his work in movies, television shows, Saturday Night Live, and standup. But let’s not forget he also has a slew of commercials under his belt as well. The talented Williams delighted in everything he did because, honestly, what medium wouldn’t benefit from his signature charm and humor?With such a long and illustrious career, fans may be happy to know that there's still new (to us!) William's content to find and enjoy. The evidence? Even the biggest Robin Williams fans might be surprised to find this recently unearthed commercial he did for the Illinois Bell phone company (later known as AT&T) back in 1977.In the clip, where Williams unsurprisingly plays a mischievous husband making voices while his wife shops around for the perfect landline phone, we see a delightful foreshadowing of his alien character Mork from the sitcom Mork & Mindy—it certainly helps that the woman playing his wife resembles Pam Dawber, who played Mindy in the show. (Not to mention the fact that he says "people of Earth” with that perfect alien voice.)Watch: - YouTube www.youtube.com Of course, it wasn’t just nostalgia for Williams that people felt while watching this video, but also wistfulness for a bygone era, a simpler time when something like a landline was even a thing. Here’s a small smattering of comments from YouTube:“You bought a phone and it sat on a desk or hung on the wall for decades and did its job, no updates, no 'starting it up', it was always on and always worked.”“Miss the days when you could slam the phone.”Whatever Bye GIFfrom Whatever GIFs “The most surprising thing is that they repaired the broken phones rather than simply throwing them out and giving you a new one.”“Oh, the times when we could make ourselves unavailable.”“I remember having to go to the phone company. All the different color phones on display.”“Our yellow kitchen wall phone had a cord like 12 ft long. It got knotted and tangled once and just stayed that way forever.”“I remember being so excited about the new "push buttons" instead of the rotary dial.”And last but not least, “I want to live in this time period.”While we have two things to miss because of this video, it also, as one view put it, gave us “something to smile about,” and that’s never a bad thing.If you're wanting more of Williams and his special brand of humor, you're in luck. Thanks to the Internet, we have a few more archived Robin Williams commercials at our disposal, arguably more chaotic than the one for Illinois Bell.Here's one for the popular game, Legend of Zelda: - YouTube www.youtube.com And another for Snickers, because who portrays the unhinged quite like Williams? - YouTube www.youtube.com The man simply had a talent that hasn't been matched since.Especially this rather notorious one, in which Williams drives director Howard Storm insane with his shotgun style improv skills.Williams’ comedic genius continues to be something we marvel at, and its inexplicable blend of zaniness, tragedy, and existentialism will always be a mystery we can never fully solve. That’s part of what made it so magical, and why we can watch even one of his most seemingly insignificant works and still be mesmerized. He was one of the greats, no doubt about it.And yet, Williams was every bit as known for his compassion and generosity, as well as a profound sensitivity and world weariness. In an interview on The View, actor Josh Charles, who worked with Williams on the 1989 film Dead Poets Society, recalled that "he was really kind to all of us. He was obviously the big star but he was very respectful of knowing that he was one part of this ensemble and was very gracious about that and treated us all really well.""And I could see his humor," Charles continued. "But I could also see the human behind it and the toll that took on him, even at that young age. I could see it."This article originally appeared last year. It has been updated.

Your average dog does not enjoy going to the vet. It's a place of strange smells and sometimes painful injections or other procedures. You can't blame them for not being stoked about their regular check-ups. But some dogs do bond with the doctors themselves, who are animal lovers through and through.Not every dog might jump with joy after seeing their vet out in public, but for Cosmo the Golden Retriever, it was practically Christmas all over again when he spotted his own vet, Dr. Jones, at a brewery.In an adorable clip posted to TikTok, we see Cosmo in pure, unadulterated bliss as he snuggles with an equally happy Dr. Jones, who, considering he’s still in his scrubs, might have just gotten out of work and decided to stop for a quick pint.Watch the wholesome interaction here: @cosmo_andtheoddparents When you run into your vet in public #goldenretrieversoftiktok #vetlife #animallovers #petparents #goldenretriever #goldenretrievers #doglife #dogmom #dailyfluff #charlestondogs #doglover #charlestondog #brewerydog The cuteness is too much to handle! People in the comments could barely contain their secondhand joy.“He looked over like, 'Mom, do you see who this is?' one person wrote, while another said, “What in the Hallmark movie? Adorable!!”One person even joked, “Did we all check the vet’s hand for a wedding ring? (Said as a married woman. Looking out for you all, or something.)”Others wished they were as luck as Cosmo's owners. "My dog knows the vet tech by name but hates him so we’re not allowed to use the j name in our house." It helps that Golden Retrievers are notoriously friendly. Photo by Anthony Persegol on Unsplash According to Hannah Dweikat, Cosmo’s owner, the two actually share quite a history. She tells Upworthy that when Cosmo was but a wee pup, he “gave a scare” after eating a Sago Palm seed, which are highly toxic to dogs, from a plant in their backyard, which of course resulted in him being rushed to the animal hospital and staying there over the weekend.While that’s every pet owner’s worst nightmare, and certainly a scary situation for the poor fur baby, Dweikat says that “the calm and patient demeanor” of Dr. Jones and his staff put Cosmo at ease. And because of this, “Cosmo has always loved going to see his friends—especially because they give him lots of treats and snuggles.”Cosmo and Dr. Jones’ buddyship has also blossomed thanks to proximity, as Dweikat only lives down the street from the clinic. “Which means we get to see Dr. Jones and his staff out in public at times and Cosmo takes every chance he can get to say hi,” she explains. This time, however, she was able to capture it all on video. Yay for us!A few months later, Cosmo's owners documented another such chance meeting, this time at a coffee shop: @cosmo_andtheoddparents When you run into your vet in public Part 2 @portsidevet_ For Part 1 see the pinned post on our profile. Cosmo loves coming out with us and seeing familiar faces, but it’s even better when he gets scritches from Dr. Jones! ?? #goldenretrieversoftiktok #goldenretriever #veterinarian #thelifeofashowgirl #cutedog What makes a good vet?While not every vet, however gifted, will be able to elicit this type of reaction from their patients, having a calming presence like Dr. Jones is certainly a good sign for pet owners to be on the lookout for when shopping around for their own vet. But that’s not the only quality a good vet needs. According to Saint Matthews University, a vet also needs to have high stamina (both physically and mentally), as well as an ability to tolerate unpleasant situations (you can’t faint at the sight of blood or vomit), a high level of emotional intelligence (maybe all doctors should possess this skill, but especially those who work with animals), adaptability, a sense of enthusiasm, and finally, excellent communication skills.Being a vet is really tough. Surveys show it's one of the more mentally taxing and draining careers out there, in fact, so good vets who are able to stick out the ups and downs are worth their weight in gold.Dr. Jones seems to have these attributes in spades, and his patients clearly love him for it. None so much as Cosmo, obviously. Though Cosmo, it seems, shares a fondness for many things, like toys, fishing, and paw days. @cosmo_andtheoddparents Wanna see how many toys I can fit in my mouth?! #goldenretrieversoftiktok #boombap #kendrick #kendricklamar #chubbybunny #goldenretriever #goldenretrievers #doglife #dogmom #dailyfluff #charlestondogs #doglover #charlestondog #sillydog If you’re in need of even more content featuring this precious pup, you can follow Cosmo on both TikTok and Instagram.This article originally appeared in February. It has been updated.

Baby name trends come and go. What was once a hip and cool name will eventually be seen as passé (this coming from someone with a name that is now obsolete, apparently), and names once thought of as old-fashioned will absolutely become cool again. It’s part of the circle of life, like the tides, the seasons, the rising and setting of the sun…accept it.In fact, this comeback is already happening. According to the Social Security Administration, vintage names like Theodore, Henry, William, Charlotte, Evelyn, and Emma are among the top ten most popular baby names of the moment. Jimmy Fallon’s daughters are named Winnie and Frances, for crying out loud.However, just because there’s been an uptick in names that harken you back to a time when “Good show, old sport” was a common phrase, not everyone is on board. In early 2025, content creator Manny Buckley hilariously put into words what many of us think of these WWII-era names. Classic Film GIF Giphy In a clip posted to his TikTok, Buckley first savagely said, “Y’all went from naming all y’all’s kids Jayden, Cayden, and Aiden, Madison, Addison, and Addylyn to giving them all old people names.” He then recounted being on a train and hearing a mother call after her toddler, whose name was George.“Ma’am. George is a mechanic in his 60s and he can’t work on your car this week because his sugars is running high.” Where’s the lie? @mannybuckley What is this cycle of naming kids!? #names #naming #name He didn’t stop there, going on a lighthearted rant about the types of images certain now-popular names actually evoke, like Agnes (a “Florida retiree in her 70s who cannot leave the retirement home”), Ira (an “80 year old Jewish man”), Belinda (a “registered nurse who has been working in the field for 50 years”), and Clifford (a 85-year-old navy vet who needs “all y'all to be quiet”). Nary a youthful name in sight, if you ask him.Although the video was clearly just a lighthearted jab, a few adults commented to defend the use of vintage names.“We aren’t naming babies. We’re naming people,” one top comment wrote, while another seconded, “Exactly! Some people don’t realize this. They are kids for a very short period of time, then they are adults.”Still, another quipped, “yeah, but they aren’t senior citizens forever either!” Another wrote “I’m Martha…I’ve been 80 since the first grade.”A few others, particularly teachers, chimed in with their own equally funny experience of kids having old fashioned names:"I am a kindergarten teacher. I have Marjorie and Brenda. It’s like a 1950’s secretarial pool.""I have kindergarteners named Edyth, Arthur, and Iris. They’re going to form a knitting club at recess.”“My nephew is Charles lmao and he may only be 2.5, but he is the school maintenance and everyone call uncle.”“We have Matilda and Cordelia, 4 and 2, shelling beans on the porch. Their nicknames are just as old as Tilly and Della. I love them, though.” Oh nothing, just Edyth, Arthur, and Iris hanging out at the park.Canva PhotosSome of the names that Manny called out may sound humorous, but the trend of using old-fashioned names is real. The Social Security Administration recently announced a list of old-fashioned names that have been making a comeback in the last year. Some of the biggest climbers were Rocky, Marjorie, Heath, Abner, Lettie, Benny, Micah, Salome, and Carlo.And there you have it, folks. We have indeed come full circle. But is it any weirder than the thought of someone calling their Grandma Brittany? I think not.This article originally appeared last year.

Being a human being has really gotten expensive. Millennials constantly lament the high cost of living and the fact that the so-called "American dream" is out of reach for many of them. Housing prices have skyrocketed, as has the cost of a college education. Eating out has gotten drastically more expensive, and making food at home with fresh groceries is hardly any cheaper. It's just so hard, they say, to get a foothold in the modern economy. One of the big talking points in the great American Millennials versus baby boomers debate is that, yes, things are more expensive, but has the younger generation knee-capped itself by its lavish spending habits that have prevented them from owning homes? If Millennials stopped buying $14 avocado toast and $1,000 iPhones, would they be able to save enough for a down payment on a modest house?Why older generations don't understand Millennial financesFreddie Smith, 36, of Orlando, Florida, recently went viral on TikTok for a video in which he challenged the boomer argument with statistics from the Bureau of Labor, Federal Reserve, and the U.S. Census Bureau.Smith argues that older generations misunderstand Millennials' finances because their concept of luxury is based on 1980s economic conditions. That's when most boomers were coming of age and buying their own family homes, and their ideas of saving up for a down payment and affording a monthly mortgage are heavily outdated.Smith says that for baby boomers, essentials such as rent and child care were much more affordable, but items considered luxuries (TVs, CD players, computers) were much more expensive. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Freddie Smith (@fmsmith319)How is the economy different for Millennials than it was for baby boomers?"The main shift is that core essentials—housing, education, healthcare, and even food—have become more expensive," Smith said. "Housing and rent, for instance, now outpace wage growth, making homeownership feel unattainable for many. The cost of childcare has also skyrocketed, and food prices have increased.”The home price-to-income ratio is currently at an all-time high. The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University writes, "In 2022, the median sale price for a single-family home in the US was 5.6 times higher than the median household income, higher than at any point on record dating back to the early 1970s." That ratio was closer to 2.5 in 1980.Even transportation has skyrocketed. Buying a new car now costs about as much as the median yearly salary, with entry-level vehicles disappearing rapidly and being replaced with high-tech, fuel-efficient offerings."As a result, I think older generations have a different perspective on luxury versus necessity,” Smith continued. “They grew up in a time when hard work typically led to financial stability, whereas today, even with hard work, many people struggle with the high costs of housing, rent, and medical expenses. Basic survival used to be far more affordable, allowing people more financial room to build a stable life."Smith’s numbers don’t lie. For a person in the '80s to own three TVs, a CD player, a cellphone, a microwave, and a computer, it would cost them 3.5 years of rent or a 20% downpayment on the average home. So, it was irresponsible for someone in that period to purcahse the luxuries of their day.However, for Millennials, these "fancy toys" are a lot more affordable compared to the big-ticket items of housing, childcare, and college education. Skimping out on them won't make a meaningful difference in saving the massive amount of cash required for a down payment on a modern home. "But if you skip that daily $6 Starbucks drink, you’ll have enough for the downpayment in 29.22 years," Yokahana joked in the comments."I hate that housing and transportation have become luxuries," Molly added."Imagine spending 3x your rent on a microwave," Donutdisaster wrote.Older people may see Millennials with multiple TVs in their homes, along with iPhones and tablets, and think that money could be better saved toward the "American dream." But the truth is those savings won't really help, and worse, they'll make life pretty unenjoyable in the meantime.Why are luxury goods more affordable now than they were in the '80s?The price of manufactured goods has steadily fallen over the last few decades due to technological improvements and trade policies that have enabled the U.S. to import goods from countries with lower labor costs. "International, global competition lowers prices directly from lower-cost imported goods, and indirectly by forcing U.S. manufacturers to behave more competitively, with lower prices, higher quality, better service, et cetera," Sociologist Joseph Cohen of Queens University said, according to Providence Journal. Although they may begin to creep up again after recent tariff policies have dramatically raised the taxes American companies pay to import foreign-made goods.Even as recently as the early 2000s, a high-quality TV was likely to cost over $1,000. Nowadays, you can get an equivalent, or better, television set for just a few hundred bucks. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Freddie Smith (@fmsmith319)Why are housing prices so high?Housing prices in the US have soared due to the low inventory caused by the Great Recession, mortgage rates, and zoning laws that make building more challenging. Rents have increased considerably since the pandemic due to low inventory, inflation, barriers to home ownership, and the fact that more people want to live alone than with a roommate or romantic partner.In recent years, there has been an abundance agenda in America encouraging public policies that make housing more affordable by stripping costly regulations, opening up zoning laws, and making it easier to build taller apartment buildings. Increasing the housing supply would help lower prices.Smith’s breakdown of economic changes over the past two generations makes a strong case that Millennial financial troubles stem more from systemic problems than from spending habits. The boomers got a bad deal regarding luxury items, and the Millennials with necessities. Wouldn’t it be great to live in an era when both were affordable? This article originally appeared last year. It has been updated.

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by Mac Slavo, SHTF Plan: If the United States follows through on its threats to attack Colombia over “narco terrorism” allegations, it will “take up arms” and fight back. Colombian President Gustavo Petro has vowed that the U.S. won’t have an easy time in a takeover of Colombia. Petro’s comments appear to be in response […]

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