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There's a wonderful reason why Mister Rogers always said aloud he's feeding his fish

Warning: This article is about Fred Rogers and his neighborhood, so there's a 50/50 chance you'll shed a tear.

There's a wonderful reason why Mister Rogers always said aloud he's feeding his fish



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, '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.

File:Mister-Rogers-Congress.jpg - Wikimedia Commonscommons.wikimedia.org

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

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Dad's heartfelt lunch message shows how simple, everyday acts can change lives

You can make a huge difference by using O Organics.

via Meg Sullivan (used with permission) and Canva/Photos

A volunteer hands out food in a food bank and Meg Sullivan shares her dad's kind gesture.

When we consider people who have had a positive impact on the world, we often think of those who have made grand gestures to improve the lives of others, such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Greta Thunberg, or Mahatma Gandhi. Unfortunately, that type of effort is out of reach for the average person.

However, O Organics would like to remind everyone that they can positively impact the world through small, consistent acts of kindness that add up over time. Much like how a small creek can create a valley over the years, we can change lives through small, consistent acts of kindness.

O Organics is dedicated to the well-being of all by nourishing people everywhere with delicious organic foods grown by producers who meet USDA-certified organic farming standards.

Upworthy's Instagram page recently posted a touching example of everyday kindness. Meg Sullivan shared how her father, Tom, peeled oranges for her lunch just about every day from kindergarten through high school. But on the final day of her senior year of high school, he sent his 17-year-old daughter unpeeled oranges with a touching note about how she’d have to start peeling them for herself.



“It’s Time Baby Girl,” he wrote on a wikiHow printout on how to peel an orange with a drawing of himself crying. For the father, this daily ritual was about more than just making lunch; it was about showing that he cared by going the extra mile. “I could have put money on her lunch account,” Tom told Today.com. “But it’s one of those little things I thought was important, that she knows somebody’s taking the time to take care of her.”

The small, daily gesture taught Megan an essential lesson in kindness.

The post reminded people how their fathers’ small acts of kindness meant so much to them. “My dad peeled my oranges until I graduated high school, too. Now, I peel my daughter’s oranges and will for the next 7 plus years,” Katie wrote in the comments. “Love this. My dad peeled mine, too. When I moved out, he gave me an orange peeler gadget,” Mary added.

o organics, albertson's giving backO Organics has a wide array of foods and flavors covering almost everything on your shopping list.via Albertson's

Did you know that every time you go to the supermarket, you can also change the world through small gestures? O Organics not only allows you to feed your family delicious and nutritious organic food, but each purchase also gives back to help people and communities facing food insecurity.

Through contributions from customers like you, O Organics donates up to 28 million meals annually. The company’s contribution is essential when, according to the USDA, 47.4 million Americans live in food-insecure households.

O Organics has a wide array of foods and flavors covering almost everything on your shopping list. “Over the years, we have made organic foods more accessible by expanding O Organics to every aisle across our stores, making it possible for health and budget-conscious families to incorporate organic food into every meal,” Jennifer Saenz, EVP and Chief Merchandising Officer at Albertsons, one of many stores where you can find O Organics products, said in a statement.

O Organics now offers over 1500 items, from dairy products such as eggs and milk to packaged meats and breakfast staples such as cereal bars, granola and oatmeal. You can also enjoy affordable organic produce with O Organics’ fresh salads and fruit.

Everybody wants to make the world a better place. With O Organics, you can feed your family healthy, organic food every time you go to the market while paying it forward by contributing to the company’s efforts to end food insecurity nationwide. That’s a small, daily gesture that can amount to incredible change.

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Education

Job recruiter is surprised when candidate put 671-day streak for Japanese Duolingo on his resume

Clever idea? Or just resume fluff?

@bllshfrv/Reddit, Wikipedia

Nearly two years of learning a language…something's had to have stuck.

In the age of algorithms and keywords and incredibly steep competition, people have to be more strategic and creative than ever to secure a good job. Especially when it comes to drafting a resume that stands out amongst hundreds of others.

Recently, one job recruiter was so impressed by one job seeker’s clever idea of listing their 671-day Duolingo streak—alongside a fluency in English and limited American Sign Language —under the "languages" section in their resume that he decided to share it online.

According to Newsweek, the job recruiter, named Bilal Ashrafov, was pleasantly surprised, and had even considered including something similar on his own resume, “but wasn't sure if it would come across as professional.”

“Seeing someone take that first step made me reflect on its relevance,” he said, noting that “a long-standing Duolingo streak can demonstrate dedication and continuous learning,” even if the popular app only requires a minute of practice a day.

After sharing the resume onto Reddit, others seemed to agree, and commended the potential employee for their innovative approach.

Someone sent a resume with their Duolingo streak under ‘Languages’
byu/bllshrfv induolingo

"Imagine explaining that in an interview—'I'm not just consistent, I'm Duolingo consistent!'" one viewer quipped.

Another commented, "If I was hiring, I would definitely interview this person."

Still another said, "It got noticed, didn't it? Sounds like not too bad of an idea."

Considering that there are a few ways folks can keep their Duolingo streak intact without truly getting proficient in a language, like continuing to purchase streak freezes, this idea might never take on as the new resume must-have. But, on a much broader scale, this story highlights the need to bring a bit of ourselves to our resumes. As the concept of portfolio careers, or a career that includes multiple income streams, rather than a single job title, becomes more and more mainstream, we’ve seen people find great success in listing what they uniquely bring to the table, professional or otherwise.

When it comes to adding resume items that pop, and offer a true reflection for who you really are, think about including:

Soft skills:

These are personal qualities that describe how you work and interact with others, such as conflict resolution or time management, and they are not only gaining importance across the workforce, but are highly transferable across different types of work.

Personal projects:

Whether you got paid for these isn’t paramount here. If you led a community initiative your passionate about, or even have a long-standing blog about something that interests you, this could be included.

Technical skills beyond the job description:

Do you have a proficiency in certain programs, like coding languages, data visualization, project management, etc? Even if a job doesn’t specifically ask for these skills, they could be helpful additions.

Creative or unique hobbies:

You never know what interesting conversations your oddball pastime might inspire, if anything else. So don’t be embarrassed if you’re a wiz a Photoshopping old-timey puppy portraits or engage in recreating Scandinavian folk tunes with GarageBand.

Community involvement:

This can be your volunteering roles, and mentorship programs you might have participated in, or even charities you have close ties to.

Academic achievements:

Include relevant published research papers or presentations, and awards or honors you received during your studies, or any significant contributions you might have made to a research project

These are just a few suggestions to get you started. Include a few, or perhaps your own impressive Duolingo streak, or something else. Just remember, sometimes it pays to think outside the box.

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Any fan of Chappell Roan knows she’s a master of switching back and forth between head and chest voice, to the point where yodeling is a bit of a signature move. And while yodeling isn’t the most mainstream of pop music tricks, when it works, man does it work. Her single “Guilty Pleasure” is a brilliant example of this.

Prior to Roan, there was another female vocalist whose folksy yodel was the stuff of legend that you might fondly remember—Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries. While you can pretty much hear that satisfying keening in every Cranberries song, it really shines in “Dream” during the third verse. If you know the song, you know the part I’m talking about. (Aah, la-ah-la-ah, La-la-la, La-ah-la-ah…you can hear it, can’t you?)

And while “Dream” will always rightfully belong to O’Riordan, a resurfaced clip from Roan’s pre-famous days shows that her unique voice also lends itself perfectly to it, and has made people excited to hear one of the band’s beloved tunes come to life again in a whole new way.

Below, in a video posted to TikTok by the account @joedotie, we see Roan before she was a household name pulling out the cover while opening up for singer Declan McKenna for his concert in Virginia. As the account, and tons of viewers, noted, her voice is so incredibly well suited for recreating that distinct Cranberries sound, it’s a bit unreal.

Watch:


@joedotie A video of Chappell Roan covering Dreams by The Cranberries from 2018 has gone viral before the American singer would become a household name.⁠ ⁠ The video of Chappell Roan is from a Declan McKenna gig in Virginia, USA.⁠ ⁠ The singer's voice is so well suited to The Cranberries. #ireland #dublin #irish ♬ original sound - JOE.ie


Down in the comments, people couldn’t help but share the love.

“This has to be the most respectful cover I’ve ever heard of this song.”

“Possibly the only person who can do this song justice and not butcher it.”

“Hats off to Chappell Roan, that’s probably the best rendition outside of Dolores herself.”

And in case you’re jonesing for more after that short sample, here is a full version of the cover, from the same tour:

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

Again, people applauded Roan for paying perfect homage to O’Riordan, and noted split similarities between the two icons.

“Chappell brought me back to the ‘90s — an era I miss. She did a terrific job. Dolores would be proud.”

“OMG!!! This was absolutely stunning. It's like Dolores reincarnated into Chappell cuz her voice especially the yodeling at the end was nothing short of heavenly and beautiful and perfect. Thank you for sharing this. I hope one day Chappell sings this again in a huge sold-out arena in the future.”

“Well it’s safe to say, she definitely has some Gaelic roots!! She kills the keening kind of vocal. Dolores would be proud of not only her vocals and talent, but also her fierceness, individuality and her willingness to stand up and fight against the grievances of fame. She is the most exciting artist I’ve listened to since Lana. So proud!”

Like Roan, O’Riordan had a knack for bringing her own distinct expression into everything she did, whether that was an original song or a cover. It’s part of what makes her still such a renowned artist today, long after her tragic passing. And it certainly seems to be the path that Roan has chosen for herself, whether it be through constantly evolving her vocal styles and general aesthetic, to using her platform to bring topics that matter to her into the conversation, as she did recently by using her Grammy speech to advocate for artists to make a more "livable wage.”

Similarly, O’Riordan was an activist herself, particularly advocating for children throughout the world. Heck, “Zombie,” arguably the Cranberries' most popular chart-topper, was a protest song. All this to say, maybe Roan was inspired by more than just O’Riordan’s musical choices. Who knows. If that’s the case, she certainly seems to be succeeding.

Education

Mom shares how her first grader's homework on the second day of school broke his spirit

"It's breaking their spirit and it robs them of what little fun and family time they have when they come home after a long day of school."

Photo credit: Cassi Nelson/Facebook

How much homework is too much homework?

Debates about homework are nothing new, but the ability of parents to find support for homework woes from thousands of other parents is a fairly recent phenomenon. A mom named Cassi Nelson shared a post about her first grader's homework and it quickly went viral. Nelson shared that her son had come home from his second day of school with four pages of homework, which she showed him tearfully working on at their kitchen counter.

"He already doesn’t get home from school until 4pm," she wrote. "Then he had to sit still for another hour plus to complete more work. I had to clear out the kitchen so he could focus. His little legs kept bouncing up and down, he was bursting with so much energy just wanting to go play. Then he broke my heart when he looked up at me with his big teary doe eyes and asked…. 'Mommy when you were little did you get distracted a lot too?!' Yes sweet baby, mommy sure did too! I don’t know how ppl expect little children to sit at school all day long and then ALSO come home to sit and do MORE work too…."

Nelson tells Upworthy that she was "shocked" that kindergarteners and first graders have homework, much less the amount they were expected to do. "We didn't have homework like this when we were in these younger grades."

Expert opinion and research is somewhat mixed on the homework front, but there isn't any conclusive evidence that homework is universally beneficial for students and too much homework can actually be harmful. As a standard, the National Education Association (NEA) and the National Parent Teacher Association (NPTA) support a limit on homework of “10 minutes of homework per grade level."

With that as a guide, a first grader shouldn't have more than 10 minutes of homework on any given school day, but it's not unusual for young kids to have two or three times the recommended limit of homework. That can be stressful for both kids and parents, cutting into valuable family time and limiting kids' time to decompress, play and freely engage in imaginative activity.

As Nelson concluded, "It’s breaking their spirit and it robs them of what little fun and family time they have when they come home after a long day of school."

Most parents and even most teachers in the comments agreed with her that four pages of homework is too much for a first grader, especially on only the second day of school:

"Poor little man. Children below a certain grade should not be given homework! Small children have a hard time sitting still for a long period of time yet alone expected to sit and do hours of homework, for what??? They are SMALL CHILDREN! Let them snack, play, laugh and all the other fun things when they get home. You are only a child once, they don't need that taken away from them. Let them embrace their inner creativity, imagination, recipes, etc."

"This breaks my spirit. Our schools are huge scams. You're exactly right Cassi. Homework is ridiculous. Kids til the age of 10 primarily learn through real life situations and play scenarios."

"I hate that for him! My little one has ADHD and doing homework after sitting in class all day is very stressful to him and makes him hate school. They are in school for 7 hours they shouldn’t have homework. That definitely takes away any kind of family time and that’s why kids never spend time with parents anymore because they have all this homework to do after being gone all day.I feel that if it can’t be done in the 7 hours they have the kids then it should wait until the next school day."

"I don’t make them do homework at home when they are that little. It’s not fair!They are at school allllll day! And it’s already sooooo much for their little bodies and brains! I’ve never had a teacher upset about it either.. and even if I did oh well!"

"That breaks my heart. 4 pages is absolutely ridiculous for young kids. My daughter is going into 2nd grade next month, the 2 years in school it was always 1 page of homework sometimes back and front if it was math. And to read."

This article originally appeared in August "I was in this boat with my son…conversation with the principal and teachers helped dramatically!! It’s too much and we have to advocate for them."

Nelson was blown away by the response to her post, which has been shared on Facebook over 89,000 times. "I NEVER thought me sharing my thoughts openly about how my heart hurt watching my little guy struggle would connect to so many others worldwide going through the same thing," she says.

Many parents shared that excessive homework is one of the reasons they decided to homeschool their children, which Nelson took to heart. The week after sharing her viral homework post, she shared that they had had their first day of homeschooling. It was "A HUGE SUCCESS!!!!" she wrote, with her son getting far more work done in a far shorter amount of time, sitting for classes for just 1 hour and 45 minutes total.

Nelson tells Upworthy she was totally intimidated to try homeschooling. "I seriously thought there was no way," she says. "But I knew I had to set my fear aside and just take the leap for my kids. I told myself I'd figure it out one way or another. And here we are three days in and it's been the easiest and best choice I've ever made."

Homeschooling is not going to the right solution for every family, however, so the question of homework remains an important issue for kids, parents, teachers and schools to work out.


This article originally appeared last year.

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Any fan of Chappell Roan knows she’s a master of switching back and forth between head and chest voice, to the point where yodeling is a bit of a signature move. And while yodeling isn’t the most mainstream of pop music tricks, when it works, man does it work. Her single “Guilty Pleasure” is a brilliant example of this.

Prior to Roan, there was another female vocalist whose folksy yodel was the stuff of legend that you might fondly remember—Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries. While you can pretty much hear that satisfying keening in every Cranberries song, it really shines in “Dream” during the third verse. If you know the song, you know the part I’m talking about. (Aah, la-ah-la-ah, La-la-la, La-ah-la-ah…you can hear it, can’t you?)

And while “Dream” will always rightfully belong to O’Riordan, a resurfaced clip from Roan’s pre-famous days shows that her unique voice also lends itself perfectly to it, and has made people excited to hear one of the band’s beloved tunes come to life again in a whole new way.

Below, in a video posted to TikTok by the account @joedotie, we see Roan before she was a household name pulling out the cover while opening up for singer Declan McKenna for his concert in Virginia. As the account, and tons of viewers, noted, her voice is so incredibly well suited for recreating that distinct Cranberries sound, it’s a bit unreal.

Watch:


@joedotie A video of Chappell Roan covering Dreams by The Cranberries from 2018 has gone viral before the American singer would become a household name.⁠ ⁠ The video of Chappell Roan is from a Declan McKenna gig in Virginia, USA.⁠ ⁠ The singer's voice is so well suited to The Cranberries. #ireland #dublin #irish ♬ original sound - JOE.ie


Down in the comments, people couldn’t help but share the love.

“This has to be the most respectful cover I’ve ever heard of this song.”

“Possibly the only person who can do this song justice and not butcher it.”

“Hats off to Chappell Roan, that’s probably the best rendition outside of Dolores herself.”

And in case you’re jonesing for more after that short sample, here is a full version of the cover, from the same tour:

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

Again, people applauded Roan for paying perfect homage to O’Riordan, and noted split similarities between the two icons.

“Chappell brought me back to the ‘90s — an era I miss. She did a terrific job. Dolores would be proud.”

“OMG!!! This was absolutely stunning. It's like Dolores reincarnated into Chappell cuz her voice especially the yodeling at the end was nothing short of heavenly and beautiful and perfect. Thank you for sharing this. I hope one day Chappell sings this again in a huge sold-out arena in the future.”

“Well it’s safe to say, she definitely has some Gaelic roots!! She kills the keening kind of vocal. Dolores would be proud of not only her vocals and talent, but also her fierceness, individuality and her willingness to stand up and fight against the grievances of fame. She is the most exciting artist I’ve listened to since Lana. So proud!”

Like Roan, O’Riordan had a knack for bringing her own distinct expression into everything she did, whether that was an original song or a cover. It’s part of what makes her still such a renowned artist today, long after her tragic passing. And it certainly seems to be the path that Roan has chosen for herself, whether it be through constantly evolving her vocal styles and general aesthetic, to using her platform to bring topics that matter to her into the conversation, as she did recently by using her Grammy speech to advocate for artists to make a more "livable wage.”

Similarly, O’Riordan was an activist herself, particularly advocating for children throughout the world. Heck, “Zombie,” arguably the Cranberries' most popular chart-topper, was a protest song. All this to say, maybe Roan was inspired by more than just O’Riordan’s musical choices. Who knows. If that’s the case, she certainly seems to be succeeding.

Love Stories

Newlyweds are getting a lot of love for their beautiful $500 wedding. Here's how they did it.

They focused on what really matters.

via Nadya Vysotskaya/Unsplash

Weddings don't have to break the bank.

Having a big, expensive wedding seems like the worst way for a young couple to start their lives together. For those who get mom and dad to foot the bill, no problem. But in the U.S., 28% of couples reported going into debt when paying for their weddings and the average celebration costs $29,200.

“It’s one of those life events that’s really tied to emotion, to your values, what’s important to you,” researcher Elyssa Kirkham told CNBC. ”[People are] willing to take on debt and do that trade-off if it means they can get closer to achieving their dream.”

Kiara Brokenbrough and her new husband Joe have received a lot of attention recently because they bucked the trend and had a beautiful wedding for just $500. The wonderful thing about the celebration is that its focus was on the couple and those who love them.

"You have a wedding, with witnesses there to witness you, vowing to your spouse, vowing to God that you guys are going to stay together for life," Kiara told Good Morning America. ”And then you celebrate with food, drinks and dance. And that's exactly what we did."

After trying on a few $1,500 dresses at a traditional wedding shop, Kiara decided to save some money by purchasing a dress for $47 at Shein. She revealed her money-saving decision in a TikTok video that went viral.

@kiarabrk

Reply to @maalikaelise dress included! $47 on @SHEIN 🤩🤩 #weddingtiktok #weddingdress #cheapwedding #blackbride

The dress impressed a TikTok user named Kristen. “I be tryna tell yall cost of things don’t matter. It’s how you put it together and wear it. AND BABYYYYY YOU PUT IT TOGETHER AND WORE IT,” she commented on the video.

The couple also cut costs by having the runner and flowers donated by her family. As for the venue, they chose a free location overlooking the ocean on the California coast. "Our goal was to just be as minimal as possible," Kiara told Good Morning America. "And to spend the least amount of money as possible."

The Brokenbroughs saved money on the reception by having guests pay for their food and drinks. "The people we have there, they understood the assignment, they understood the things that we were trying to do, and they really supported us," said Kiara.

The Brokenbroughs’ decision to have an affordable wedding to start their marriage on good financial footing was an incredibly savvy move and, according to research, it could bode well for the couple’s future.

The linked study on how wedding spending correlates with a couple's longevity was done in 2014 and found that "marriage duration is inversely associated with spending on the engagement ring and wedding ceremony."

If the research still holds up, the Brokenbroughs’ attitudes toward finances could be a predictor of a long and happy marriage.

“It could be that the type of couples who have (an affordable wedding) are the type that are a perfect match for each other,” one of the study’s authors, Hugo M. Mialon told CNN. “Or it could be that having an inexpensive wedding relieves young couples of financial burdens that may strain their marriage,” he added.


This article originally appeared three years ago.

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