Millennials who grew up in the 1990s remember plenty of trends from that decade. From hair ties with plastic beads to scented markers to Lite-Brites, these trends captured the essence of the '90s.There was one color combination that marked the era's aesthetic: teal and purple. The mix became a Millennial craze, showing up on everything from clothing to cups, including the iconic Solo Jazz cup.YouTubers Michelle Hickey and Steve King of Play Me a Memory explain how the colors exploded in popularity during the '90s, noting that the craze kicked off with a new NBA franchise: the Charlotte Hornets. - YouTube www.youtube.com In 1988, the Hornets joined the NBA, and their teal and purple uniforms made an immediate splash. "This was a completely different, outside-the-box concept for a design choice," King says.The jerseys were created by North Carolina menswear fashion designer Alexander Julian. "Alex's favorite and signature color combination has always been purple and teal and it was a perfect match for his new basketball project," his website states. - YouTube www.youtube.com Compared to other sports teams with more traditional colors, teal and purple had never been done before and became instantly memorable. Soon, the combination was replicated by other sports teams.King adds that of the 22 new teams across the four major pro leagues (MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL), 11 that launched in the '90s used teal and/or purple as their colors. These included the Colorado Rockies, the Baltimore Ravens, the Toronto Raptors, and the San Jose Sharks. Sports fans repped the colors on Starter jackets and other sports gear.Beyond the sports world, teal and purple seeped into design more broadly—from food courts and franchises like Taco Bell to iMacs and even movies and TV, such as Disney's The Little Mermaid."When I think of that movie, I think of that teal tail and purple being the secondary color to that," Hickey says.The trend of combining teal and purple caught on, and King points to Jonah Berger's book Contagious: Why Things Catch On for insight into why it took off. He explains that social currency played a major role—meaning kids wearing Starter jackets or other cool sports apparel had the potential to "get me somewhere as a kid in the 90s in elementary school or middle school who might be struggling to kind of catch on with a friend group or trying to make a name for themselves...if I look like everyone else does, this is going to help me fit in a little bit more." @tikittytalk And the award for best color duo in a decade goes to: the 90s !! #90saesthetic #90snostalgia #90s #90sthrowback #1990s Millennials on Reddit got nostalgic about the teal and purple items they owned in the '90s and their love for the colors to this day:"Teal and purple 90's Adidas jackets rise up." - k1dsmoke"You forgot the greatest teal of all time, the Charlotte Hornets Starter jacket." - elcamino4629"So I learned just recently that this is my 24-year-old daughter's new favorite color combo! I had a whole teal and purple bedroom makeover when I was like 10 years old, and honestly I kinda miss it. Those colors were so soothing!" - Morriganx3"All my outdoor hiking gear and mountain gear are different shades of teal. Literally. People can spot me on the mtn and recognize me just because of all the teal I'm sporting ?." - Curious_Run_1538"Cuz it's tight. That jazz cup aesthetic is the goat. I have that exact pattern in a hoodie." - Siriusly_Jonie"I had a teal Gameboy color!" - inthecards13"I still am......and just putting it together that this is probably why." - Interesting_Zombie28"Because the best Pop-Tart was teal and purple. Wild Berry Pop-Tarts." Bob4Not, rmay14444 "My old bedroom was painted a bright teal color. With inflatable furniture, large boom box, clear phone, got milk ads on the walls….Looking at old pictures gives me headaches." - aLonerDottieArebel

It's not uncommon for people to have a "work bestie" or "work spouse." Often, people spend a lot of their waking hours at work, so they're bound to feel like they've made true friendships with their coworkers. Before too long, numbers get exchanged, and they find themselves venting after hours about work, but this may not be a good thing. Ed Hones is an employment attorney in Seattle, Washington, and he is not only discouraging coworkers from thinking of each other as friends, but also sharing what texts people should never send their colleagues. As an employment lawyer, Hones sees the legal fallout of the lines between friends and coworkers being blurred. Though he isn't saying people can't text their coworkers, he lists four specific types of texts to never send in case of a lawsuit. "I see great cases destroyed every single day from one thing: old text messages," Hones reveals. "You might think that your text thread with your coworker is a safe space to vent, joke, or even scheme, but let me be clear about this one thing: it is not. In the eyes of the law, those text messages are evidence, and if you ever have to sue your employer for something, defense attorneys will find a way to get those text messages and destroy your credibility and tank your case." Smiling at work, checking messages during a break.Photo credit: CanvaOf course, no one plans to sue their employer or to have their employer sue them, but sometimes things happen that result in lawsuits. Once a lawsuit is filed, discovery often follows, which means phone records and other device communications can be requested. If you've been trash-talking your boss or making egregious claims, you may be stuck having to explain it in court. But avoid sending these four texts, and you won't have to worry about your employer finding something to use against you in a lawsuit.1. Asking a coworker to bend the rulesHones explains that this often happens in the form of asking someone to clock you in or initial a form they forgot to complete. It may be something you think everyone does every once in a while at their place of employment, but sending a text message is documenting the request. Explicitly asking a coworker to break this employment policy can result in termination being justified. The employment attorney implores people to avoid doing it completely. Man focused on his phone screen, deep in thought.Photo credit: Canva2. Awkwardly acknowledging something inappropriate"Here is the scenario," Hones says. "A coworker or supervisor texts you something inappropriate. Maybe it's a dirty joke or a comment about your private life, or medical condition. It makes you uncomfortable, but you have to see this person at the office tomorrow, and you don't want to make it awkward, so you reply with an LOL, laughing emoji, or a thumbs up. But if you send that text, you're walking into a legal trap called "The Unwelcome Standard.'" This means that if this behavior turns into harassment or creates a hostile environment, legally, it can be seen as being acceptable due to responses to inappropriate texts in the past. 3. Texting about job huntingIt's not uncommon for frustration to boil over and result in someone declaring they're going to start looking for a new job. Not every text or annoyed utterance about needing to find different employment is serious. Sometimes it is about blowing off steam, but other times it's truthful. Hones says not to let your employer be the one to decipher the difference in a court of law, because it may not work out in your favor. It could reduce an employee's lost wages claims, eliminate the ability to claim work conditions that resulted in an abrupt resignation, and even result in the company pushing an employee out if the text is revealed before they resign. 4. Talking trash about your boss or company"We all need to vent, but doing it via text message hands the employer the perfect cover story," says Hones. This comes into play when an employee sues for discrimination or wrongful termination. According to the employment lawyer, if an employee sues for one of those reasons, the burden shifts to the employer to prove they didn't fire the employee for an illegal reason. If the employer discovers the negative texts about them, then it could give legitimacy to their claims if they have lied about the reasons someone was terminated. Hones says it's common for employers to lie in these cases by saying the employee was disrespectful or a bad employee, and texts trash-talking the boss would strengthen their argument. Focused multitasking at the office.Photo credit: CanvaHones explains in another video that it's not wise to assume your coworker-turned-friend will have your back in an employment investigation. Often, people need their jobs and are unwilling to risk them to help someone else keep theirs. Becoming overly familiar with a coworker may feel genuine and comfortable, but maintaining certain boundaries will help protect you legally should you ever have to sue your employer. "Work relationships do not necessarily have to be friendly to be healthy," Dr. Maya Reynolds, MD, MPH, Psychiatrist and Behavioral Health Spokesperson at Choice Point Health, explains to Upworthy. "Keeping personal relationships and work relationships separated keeps a person free from additional emotional entanglement, rivalry, and disappointment. Because when work relationships step into personal life, promotions or disagreements can feel personal rather than professional, which brings a great emotional toll on oneself. Also, maintaining boundaries at work promotes your psychological safety."

Ever look through your parents’ high school yearbook and all the teenagers look like they are 35 years old? When you think about how teenagers look today, the difference is striking. But why? Did people grow up much faster back in the day, or is there something else at play?If you look back to the 1980s, there’s a clear difference between actors Paul Rudd and Wilford Brimley at 50. — (@) Sure, that's a cherry-picked, extreme version of the difference in how people age, but it does support the idea that just a few decades ago, people aged much faster. In a recent video, the folks at Recollection Road did a deep dive into why your average high school junior in 1958 looked like a 55-year-old bank manager, and they found seven reasons. They were a mix of environmental and cultural factors that boiled down to one central point: people are much healthier these days. - YouTube www.youtube.com 1. Smoking“Cigarettes were everywhere: in diners, in offices, even on airplanes. In the 1950s, it wasn't unusual to see a mother with a baby in one arm and a cigarette in the other. High school kids would light up behind the gym, and by adulthood, many were chain smokers.”A Gallup poll found that in 1954, 45% of U.S. adults smoked cigarettes at least once a week. Compare this with 2024, when only 11% of Americans smoked a cigarette in the previous week. 2. Sun exposure“Back in the 1960s and 1970s, a summer tan wasn't just fashionable, it was almost required. People slathered on baby oil, laid out under the blazing sun, and cooked. There was no SPF 50. In fact, lotion was designed to help you burn faster for a deeper tan. Families on vacation didn't think twice about spending hours on the beach with no shade. By the time they were in their 30s or 40s, the sun had also carved wrinkles and dark spots into their skin.”3. Fashion“Think about old photos of your parents or grandparents. A 25-year-old man in 1948 was often dressed in a suit and tie, maybe even a fedora. A young woman might be wearing a conservative dress and practical shoes. By modern standards, those styles look more grown-up, more like something we'd expect from someone middle-aged.”4. Life was harder“Someone who grew up during the Great Depression often started working as a teenager to help put food on the table. A lot of young men were drafted into World War II or Vietnam before they were even old enough to legally drink. That kind of responsibility leaves its mark. … Even women carried heavy burdens. In the 1950s, a young mother might have had three or four kids by the time she was 25, while also running a household without modern conveniences like microwaves or dishwashers.”5. Drinking“Having a three martini lunch was common in the business world of the 1960s. Beer was practically considered a food group in some households. Combine that with less knowledge about exercise and health, and you can see why bodies wore down faster, giving people an older appearance earlier in life.”There has been a sharp decline in the number of Americans who consume alcohol. In 1971, 71% of Americans had the occasional drink, but that number dropped to 54% in 2025. The decline in drinking is attributed to concerns over alcohol’s effect on health and a decrease in consumption amongst younger people.6. Cultural expectations"By their mid-20s, most people in the 1950s and ‘60s were married, raising children, and working full-time jobs. Life was about responsibility, not self-expression. They dressed older, behaved older, and carried themselves as adults.”7. Testosterone“Studies show that the average testosterone has been steadily declining for decades. Men in the 1950s and ‘60s often had higher natural testosterone than men today, which gave them more muscle mass, broader builds, and in some cases, more facial hair. While that might sound like it would make them look younger, it often had the opposite effect. The heavy brows, thick body hair, and rugged features made young men look tougher, older, and more weathered than their actual age.”

The New York Film Critics Circle Awards 2025 was a time of celebration of great movies and performances from the previous year that also included a great ribbing. As part of the awards presentation, actor Ethan Hawke had the honor of introducing the winner of Best Actress, Rose Byrne, to the stage at the Film Critics Dinner, but not without a rebuttal that was 16 years in the making.Hawke revealed at the podium that he discovered that Byrne had left a Goodreads review of his 1996 book The Hottest State back in 2010. In her review, given under her first name only, Byrne gave the book two out of five stars, saying that she read it because the book was “lazing around on set.” She ended her review with, “It's kind of like a Ryan Adams song but not as good.” — (@) The audience laughed as the gobsmacked Byrne took the stage and approached the microphone. Hawke laughed as well, greeting Byrne with a smile, a peck on the cheek, and a hug as she accepted her award for her performance in the film If I Had Legs I’d Kick You.“I never thought you would read that review. Ever! Ever! Goodreads is so daggy, like, no one reads it,” Byrne declared with the crowd, and Hawke, laughing.While she didn’t care for his book at the time, Byrne was certainly a fan of Hawke’s overall, saying, “You are the most magical person and artist whose career I put on a pedestal. I had a poster of Dead Poet’s Society on my wall.” — (@) Byrne was referring to Hawke’s breakthrough film role in Dead Poets Society back in 1989 which led to him becoming a movie star and household name. — (@) Byrne then proceeded to continue her acceptance speech. In If Had Legs I’d Kick You, Byrne portrays a woman trying to hold it together as she deals with her child’s illness, a missing person, her absent husband, and a contentious relationship with her therapist while being a therapist herself.Film buffs quickly pointed out that this book review call-out reflected a past film the two had starred in together. In 2018, eight years after Byrne posted that Goodreads review, she co-starred with Hawke in the rom-com Juliet, Naked. In the film, Byrne’s character meets Hawke’s rock star character after leaving an anonymous negative review of his latest album. - YouTube youtu.be Everything was all in good nature, fun, with a sweet ending with Byrne saying this to Hawke before accepting her award:“Whether I see you on the street corner in Brooklyn or at a black tie event, your spirit is infectious, insightful, inspiring. I walk away having a better day.”

On her 44th birthday, Kate Middleton shared a beautiful reflection with followers on Instagram. As part of the royal family’s “Mother Nature” series, Princess Kate narrated a video about winter. Nature has always been a place of comfort for the princess, particularly throughout her cancer and healing journey. “Even in the coldest, darkest season, winter has a way of bringing us stillness, patience, and quiet consideration. Where the stream slows just enough for us to see our own reflection. To discover the deepest parts of ourselves, alongside the whispers and the pulse of every living thing,” she heard in the voiceover. View this post on Instagram A post shared by The Prince and Princess of Wales (@princeandprincessofwales) Many Wished Kate Middleton a Happy Birthday on Her Post Kate Middleton smiled in the video as she walked outdoors embracing winter. “To be at one with nature. A quiet teacher and a soft voice that guides. In memory, helping us to heal,” she added. She captioned her post with a reminder of the importance of caring for the Earth. “The Mother Nature series has been a deeply personal, creative reflection on how nature has helped me heal. But it is also a story about the power of nature and creativity in collective healing,” Kate Middleton shared in the video’s caption. There is so much we can learn from mother nature, as we look to build a happier, healthier world. C.” Followers shared sweet birthday wishes with Kate Middleton. “Happy Birthday, Your Royal Highness. What a beautiful video. The darkness of the diagnosis and chemo journey I know so well, yet the joy and the colours of life we experience when out the far side is immeasurable! We are blessed beyond measure to life this wonderful life!” A follower wrote. “Wishing you a very Happy Birthday Catherine. Have a lovely day with those you love,” another person added. This story’s featured image is by Isabel Infantes – WPA Pool/Getty Images