What is ‘cougar puberty'? The health phase every woman goes through before menopause
In recent years, menopause has been given a bigger spotlight, with celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow, Brooke Shields, Halle Berry, Drew Barrymore and Salma Hayek all opening up publicly about their experiences with 'The Change.'
But there's a lesser-known and lesser-discussed phase just before menopause that's now getting the TikTok treatment — and makes it seem quite a bit sexier than it actually is.
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3 There's a new name for perimenopause on social media: cougar puberty.
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Perimenopause — the transitional period just before menopause, in which women can also count on symptoms like irregular periods, hot flashes and mood changes — has a new name.
'You know what the cool kids are calling it now?' TikTokker @radiant.rewind teased in a viral video this week. 'Cougar puberty.'
'I love the reset vibe for us rather than the game over,' she added.
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Others have been using the term on the app for over a year, with those going through it saying the new terminology makes perfect sense.
'I'm 37 and in the full blown throws of perimenopause and I've always said it's like a second puberty,' said one commenter.
'I feel like I'm going through puberty but with a whole bunch of different symptoms,' said Lisa (@simplythrivewithlisa) in a 2024 video. 'And I feel like I'm going crazy and all of these things are happening to my body that I really don't understand.'
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Meanwhile, a few — including author and comedian Kristina Kuzmic and her friend Amy — have used it to describe menopause as a whole, even making T-shirts with the term.
3 Perimenopause is the transitional phase before menopause, when the period stops completely. Symptoms can include mood swings and hot flashes.
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So… what is perimenopause, and how is it different from menopause?
Perimenopause describes a phase that many people think of as menopause itself — but it's actually totally separate.
Menopause is when a woman has gone 12 months in a row without a menstrual period.
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There are some fits and starts to get to that point — a woman might not have a period for a few months, then get one, then not again. Women typically find their periods grow irregular for years before they fully stop getting them.
That time of irregularity — when a bunch of other symptoms can also occur — is perimenopause. It's when the body is transitioning into menopause, and the hormone changes involved is stopping menstruation can also cause a lot of other symptoms as well.
These typically include sleep issues, hot flashes and night sweats, a decreased sex drive, mood swings, vaginal dryness, very heavy periods and the need to pee more often. Depression and anxiety are also common during perimenopause.
Other problems can include short-term memory issues and problems concentrating.
3 Other symptoms can include sleep problems, libido changes and fatigue.
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When does perimenopause happen?
For most women, this will being in your mid-40s — but can also start as early as your mid-30s or as late as your early-50s.
It usually lasts for about four years, but can be as short as a few months or as long as nearly a decade.
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The average woman in the US reaches menopause at 51.
What causes perimenopause?
Later in life, women's ovaries start producing less estrogen, a hormone that regulates the reproductive system.
That change in estrogen — and changes to progesterone, another hormone — kick off a domino effect of other changes to bodily functions.
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How can you ease perimenopause symptoms?
You can't stop perimenopause, but there are ways to ease the symptoms. These include lifestyle changes like maintaining a healthy diet, exercising, minimizing caffeine and alcohol intake, upping your calcium, and getting more sleep.
Some symptoms can be managed with medications like antidepressants, hormonal birth control pills and vaginal creams.
Doctors may also recommend hormone therapy.
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Newsweek
19 minutes ago
- Newsweek
What 'Superman' Says About Gaza—And Us
When audiences left early screenings of James Gunn's new Superman, many carried more than popcorn and superhero nostalgia—they carried the unmistakable feeling that they had just watched a parable of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. And that, in itself, says something profound. Despite fierce controversy and calls for boycott by some pro-Israel commentators, Superman is topping the box office charts, making over $220 million globally during its opening weekend. Gunn has repeatedly insisted that Superman is not about the Middle East. "When I wrote this the Middle Eastern conflict wasn't happening," he told The Times of London. He emphasized that the fictional war between Boravia and Jarhanpur was crafted before the Hamas-led attacks on October 7, 2023, and Israel's ensuing war on Gaza. He even said he tried to steer the narrative away from Middle Eastern analogies once real-world violence erupted. And yet, despite these denials, the allegory has taken hold. Why? Because the movie's central dynamic—a powerful, U.S.-backed aggressor invading a poor, largely defenseless neighbor—is all too familiar. Boravia, with its military might, international impunity, and stated mission to "liberate" Jarhanpur from supposed tyranny, mirrors in disturbing ways Israel's ongoing bombardment and occupation of Gaza. The imagery is searing: tanks and drones lining up at a border fence, a young boy clutching a national flag as civilians scatter in fear, and a so-called "just war" increasingly exposed as a campaign of domination. That such scenes resonated so strongly with viewers is not the fault of the audience's "left-wing brain," as Ben Shapiro dismissively put it—it is a reflection of the moral clarity that emerges when oppression is laid bare, even in fictional form. Online, the reaction was swift and divided. Some called it the most "openly pro-Palestine" content to ever appear in a blockbuster. TikTok creators, influencers, and activists lauded the film's unflinching portrayal of invasion and resistance, with one user declaring, "Superman is antizionist and leaves no room for doubt." Others—particularly in right-wing circles—branded it "Superwoke," accusing Gunn of injecting ideology into entertainment. Whether or not the film was meant to be about Israel and Palestine, it functioned as a kind of cinematic Rorschach test. When seeing injustice portrayed on the screen, viewers brought with them the images that have been burned into global consciousness after nearly two years of siege on Gaza—images of children killed, hospitals bombed, and international law flouted with impunity. When you witness a conflict where one side wields F-35s and the other buries its dead in mass graves, any story of asymmetrical warfare will inevitably call Palestine to mind. LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 02: James Gunn, David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult and Peter Safran attend the "Superman" Fan Event in London's Leicester Square on July 02, 2025 in London, England. LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 02: James Gunn, David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult and Peter Safran attend the "Superman" Fan Event in London's Leicester Square on July 02, 2025 in London, be clear, Superman is not a perfect political text. The film's Jarhanpurians—coded as Middle Eastern or South Asian—are largely passive. One of the few named Jarhanpurian characters is a falafel vendor, Malik, who serves as emotional fuel for Superman's arc before being killed off. As The Forward noted, the Jarhanpurians' purpose is less to assert their own dignity than to highlight the hero's morality. And so, while some audiences saw pro-Palestinian messaging, others rightly questioned whether the film reinscribes a savior narrative—centered on a white alien-immigrant superhero—rather than empowering the oppressed to resist on their own terms. Indeed, as Middle East Eye pointedly observed, Palestinians are not waiting for a white superhero to rescue them. The real heroes are the medics treating the wounded under rubble, the journalists livestreaming amidst bomb blasts, and the people who keep marching for their right to exist. Superman may deliver lines about morality, kindness, and justice, but in the real world, those words are being lived by people with far less privilege and far greater courage. Still, the film revealed how deeply the public has absorbed the reality of Gaza, how far sympathy for Palestinians has spread beyond Arab or Muslim audiences, and how badly establishment media and politicians have underestimated this shift. When a Warner Brothers tentpole provokes hashtags like "#SupermanIsHamas," it is not because the film is agitprop—it's because the world now sees Gaza everywhere. Even Gunn's framing of Superman as "an immigrant" touched off fierce debate, with conservative pundits recoiling at the suggestion that a refugee from Krypton could embody the American immigrant story. But that, too, is part of the tension: if Superman is a refugee who stands up to bullies, who uses his power to shield the powerless, then what happens when audiences draw connections between that ethos and the very people being demonized by Western governments? The film doesn't just expose geopolitical parallels—it exposes cultural contradictions. America wants to believe in Superman's values, but recoils when those values are applied consistently, especially when they implicate allies like Israel. It wants to celebrate rebellion in fiction but criminalize resistance in reality. And it wants to embrace immigrants in theory while deporting, detaining, and defunding them in practice. That's why Superman matters—not because it offers a perfect analogy for Gaza, but because it unintentionally lays bare the moral hypocrisy at the heart of so much political discourse. The discomfort it generates is revealing. When people see children under fire and think immediately of Gaza, the problem isn't that the film is too political—it's that reality is too brutal to ignore. This isn't the first time a Hollywood film has echoed global struggles, and it won't be the last. But what's different now is the speed and intensity with which audiences connect the dots—and the growing unwillingness to let sanitized narratives obscure the truth. Even in the heart of a superhero spectacle, people are demanding moral clarity. In the end, Gunn may not have set out to make a film about Palestine. But the world saw Gaza in it anyway. And that, in itself, is a kind of justice. Faisal Kutty is a Toronto-based lawyer, law professor, and frequent contributor to The Toronto Star. The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
Buzz Feed
19 minutes ago
- Buzz Feed
44 Genius Kitchen Products That'll Change Your Life
A heated ice cream scoop to melt through frozen-solid pints like they're room-temp butter. It'll warm up to 158 degrees so you can get a scoop of your Ben & Jerry's without bending a spoon or breaking a sweat. It'll charge via USB, work cordless, and stay waterproof (obviously). Promising review: "This heated ice cream scoop is awesome! It warms up quickly to the perfect temp and glides through ice cream. The LED display is a nice touch, and it's super easy to use. Rechargeable, waterproof, and well-made. Definitely worth it if you're tired of bent spoons!" —amysGet it from Amazon for $24.59+ (available in five colors; be sure to clip the 18% off coupon when applicable). A minimalist fruit bowl that'll double as a secret colander. Because it's on a pedestal, moisture will automatically slide down out of the bowl, so fruits and veggies will dry thoroughly. A strip of LED Lights to add some extra lighting to your kitchen that can be voice-controlled via Alexa and Google Home. These are super easy to install and have a color spectrum of over 16 million colors. They can even sync with your music! This is a great way to make a major upgrade to your kitchen without spending big bucks, especially if you're a renter. Promising review: "We love our new strip lights so much that I decided to buy a second set. The first one was installed above the kitchen cabinets, where we placed some artwork and vases. The second set was placed under the kitchen island top. Grandkids love speaking to Alexa to change the colors of the lights. Set up was extremely easy, and it works with the Alexa app." —junin07Get it from Amazon for $20.99+ (available in four lengths; be sure to clip the $4 off coupon when applicable). A set of silicone oven rack edge protectors, because it absolutely sucks when you're going to get something out of the oven and you burn your hands or forearms on those hot metal racks. A "Bread Buddy" dispenser to keep your bread fresh for longer. The bread stays in its original bag — which prolongs its life — and dispenses one slice at a time. It's designed to stand upright, which will free up valuable countertop or fridge space. An aesthetically pleasing dishwasher magnet you stick to yours, so you always know if the dishes inside are clean or dirty. I cook A LOT at home, so the dishwasher is always in use — I'm talking three to four times a day. This saves me and my family a lot of time. An amazing cheese grater to grate an entire block of cheese in under a minute. It can grate vegetables and nuts, too! Check it out in this TikTok video by Rachel Meaders to see how easy it is to use review: "I had seen someone use this on TikTok and wasn't sure if it would be that good, but decided to try it. Loved that you can secure it to the table. It is very easy to use, works great and easy to clean. Highly recommend." —Nathalee PorterGet it from Amazon for $24.99+ (available in 13 colors and with three or five blades). An expandable rack that wraps around your awkwardly shaped kitchen sink pipe, no problem. When you use this, you'll literally double the storage space in your cabinet. Can you say "miracle product"? Measures 15 inches long x 11.25 inches wide x 15 inches high and can expand to 25 inches review: "I'm so glad I bought this. I have a 24-inch vanity in my bathroom, and this fits perfectly. I have it extended to about 23 inches, and it holds sturdy, though I can see if you were to extend it to its full length, it gets weak in the middle. I liked it so much that I ordered another one for the kitchen. I got some clear bins to help organize bottles and other goodies I keep in the bath."—Marlene it from Amazon for $22.38 (available in three finishes; be sure to redeem the 10% off coupon). A clear, nonslip cutting board to go right onto your countertop when it comes time to chop up veggies and fruits. This is especially great if you have a beautiful countertop that you want to show off. See it in action via toponlinefinds's TikTok review: "This piece is beautiful. I love how it's clear and shows what is underneath. I can have it on my counter all the time and it looks to be part of the kitchen. I've chopped many things on it, and I have no scratches. Very easy to clean." —Amazon CustomerGet it from Amazon for $49.99. A slim magnetic stove shelf that converts that awkward space on top of your stove into a little ledge. It's perfect for holding everyday cooking items like spices and olive oil, or all those random spices you'll need to make Mom's world-famous lasagna. A microfiber spin mop with a very efficient design to keep your kitchen floors sparkling clean. You step on a pedal to make it spin, and it's actually kinda remarkable how much extra wetness it spins off. And the design of the actual mop is brilliant — it's a triangular shape, so you can get into tight corners. An absolutely gorgeous glass rice dispenser so your bulk grains can be the star of your countertop or pantry. The lid's airtight, and it comes with a glass measuring cup. See it in action via TikTok review: "You control the amount of rice, includes a glass measure cup. It's so beautiful." —CettaGet it from Amazon for $76.99+ (available in five or eight liter containers). A silverware sorter that fits a full 24-piece cutlery set but takes up half the space of a traditional organizer, freeing up a ton of storage in your drawer. BuzzFeed Shopping Editor Elizabeth Lilly has this and LOVES it: "I have VERY narrow kitchen drawers in my NYC one-bedroom apartment kitchen, and buying one of these organizers has transformed my cutlery drawer. I'm able to safely reach in and grab whatever I need (like a manual can opener for tuna salad or a mini whisk for a hot chocolate) without having to sift tools around."Promising review: "I have a tiny kitchen with only three drawers, so space is at a premium. My silverware organizer took up almost all of one drawer, so this organizer is a godsend. You can fit quite a few spoons, etc., in each slot. My beater attachments fit perfectly into the top two hollows. I will say I have to flip my forks over facedown in order to be able to shut and open my drawer, but then the drawer itself is kind of shallow. You NEED this if you have a small kitchen with few drawers!" —mialroGet it on Amazon for $8.99+ (available in two colors). A can of fire-extinguishing aerosol spray to keep near your cooking area in case you ever accidentally start a small cooking fire. The can is small enough to fit on a kitchen shelf, but strong enough to provide 32 seconds of firefighting time. Promising review: "Of course you never want to use something like this but I knew that we needed one in our new condo just in case. I was right! I was toasting taco shells in our large toaster and looked away for a moment. Smoke billowed first, and then it caught fire fast. My husband grabbed the device, aimed and sprayed for about five seconds. He stopped, and I barked for him to do it again because it caught one more time. There's no way I would have been able to toss a blanket up there, and a real extinguisher would have left the biggest mess. This was easy to clean up!" —Mamercs6 Get it from Amazon for $13.98. A sleek, magnetized dry-erase board for your fridge so you can stay on top of your tasks and grocery shopping list. You can easily keep track of all the eggs, blueberries, and bulk iced coffee concentrate you'll need for your next grocery run. Promising review: "I have it to write down things to buy. Very convenient and came with a good number of markers. It's really simple to clean. I use a wet cloth when I don't want to use the eraser, and that works easy also." —Stephanie Rios Get it from Amazon for $16.99. A rapid egg cooker that'll cook up to six eggs any way you want. Poached? You got it. Hard-boiled? Done. It can even make omelets. Simply select your number of eggs and set the timer. When it's done it'll automatically shut off. Promising review: "I love hard-boiled eggs for protein, especially when I'm on the go as a student/worker but it's hard to wait for the water to boil then put In the eggs and get ready all at the same time. This cooker is amazing!! Saves me time, it's quick and I don't have to watch it while it cooks — I can go get ready and then I hear a loud buzzer notifying me when the eggs are done! (The buzzer is really loud; sounds like a basketball game buzzer.) I was surprised how fast the eggs cooked." —MeganGet it from Amazon for $18.99+ (available in six colors).Read more about the Dash Egg Cooker here. An automatic, odor-absorbing, sensor-activated trash can made of fingerprint-proof stainless steel. It's called a trash can, not a trash cannot. Promising review: "I bought this trash can eight years ago. At the time, it was hard to find any stainless-steel trash cans for an affordable price, so the fact that this was the most reasonable and it had the automated lid seemed like a pretty easy choice. It still looks great and works great. You can wave over the sensor to open the lid, or there is a button on the front of it to open the lid and keep it open. The lid does a great job of holding any odors in while it's closed." —SomniGet it from Amazon for $67.12+ (available in 11 styles). A granite and stone cleaner that'll make stone countertops that look dull and are sticky instead be shiny and bright. Not only will this restore yours to its former glory, but it's also a disinfectant that kills up to 99.9% of germs and bacteria. Promising review: "This is my go-to granite cleaner and I've tried a lot! Actually gets counters clean without a film or streak and not a lot of elbow grease." —LoriGet it from Amazon for $7.99. A garbage disposal cleaner if your disposal smells a little funky. This product works in a matter of minutes and requires no elbow grease on your part. Just run the water, put the packet into the drain, then let the magic happen. The foam appears, it gets into all the hidden areas in your disposal and drain, and then removes the toughest gunk and foul odors. Promising review: "Seeing is believing. Not only does it do a great job, but you can see it happening. It doesn't just mask the smell and leave a lemon scent like some products, it cleans too and looks fun. Idk. Blue foam comes out and that's good enough for me." —sylvie yahGet a two pack of four-count bags on Amazon for $11. A washable, reusable sponge in vibrant prints that you just throw in the dishwasher or washing machine to make them like new again. You'll save a nice chunk of change by not needing to buy new sponges every couple of weeks. Porter Lee's is a family-owned small business based in Portland, Oregon, that specializes in homemade reusable review: "So glad I finally found an environmentally friendly sponge THAT WORKS! I tried all the other kinds of eco-friendly sponges before these — silicon (don't work on stuck stuff), vegetable fiber (got so mildew-y so fast), and even crocheted (felt so gross and didn't work great). These do the job and then after a few days I just throw them in the wash! Hooray! And they're cute!" —willowbe041Get it from Porter Lee's on Etsy for $12+ (available in packs of one, three, five, and 10 and in four colors). A roll of bamboo towels if you're done spending money on single-use paper ones. These are soooo strong, and when they get yucky you can just throw them in the washing machine to make 'em like new again. A single roll replaces up to six months of paper towels. Promising review: "I've had these bamboo towels for a month now and am incredibly impressed with their performance! They're much larger than a regular paper towel, thicker, softer, and more absorbent. I've washed the first ones I've torn off the roll several times now, and they DO survive the laundry and perform just as well afterward. I've only used five bamboo towels this month, washed them, and re-used them. Several times. I would have been through a whole roll of Brawny by now. One you wash them, you're supposed to air dry them, so I haven't sent any through the dryer. And I haven't needed to, because allowing them to air dry has not affected the quality of the towels when I 're-roll' them!" —A. ClarkGet a roll from Amazon for $9.99 (also available in packs of two and four). A cleaning kit to remove all the burnt food and gunk that's residing on your glass stovetop. It comes with a soft pad for everyday messes and a hardcore scraper if something doesn't want to budge. The kit comes with a bottle of cleaner, a cleaning pad, and a heavy-duty scraper, all designed to break down burnt-on foods and tough stains. Promising review: "As soon as I used this stuff, I couldn't believe it! We had a new stove that I didn't clean for months and assumed the burnt pea juice (my enemy) would just be a new stain forever. However, after one application, it was basically gone. I used the scraper that came with it and did one more small application on just that spot, and it was gone! Every time I use this it looks like my stove could be brand-new." —Christi LambertsonGet it from Amazon for $14.98. A handheld veggie spiralizer if you're trying to incorporate more produce into your meals and want a fun way to do it. With just a few twists, an ordinary carrot, cucumber, zucchini, squash, or potato can be turned into veggie spaghetti and more. Promising review: "I love veggie noodles because they're faster to cook than regular noodles, healthier, and super delicious! Before this device, I would buy the pre-spiralized ones at the store for a huge markup, but this device is so quick and easy to use it's no extra trouble to do it myself, plus it's fresher!" —PhobGet it from Amazon for $11.99. A universal descaling solution that'll have your single-cup coffee and espresso machine in tip-top shape in no time. It'll remove limescale and other hard water mineral deposits and prevent corrosion, so basically, the whole shebang. It's compatible with all single-use coffee and espresso machines, like Keurig, Nespresso, Delonghi, Hamilton Beach, Braun, Bunn, Cuisinart, Tassimo, Krups, Saeco and review: "I had never even thought of descaling my 2-year-old Keurig before Amazon suggested it, but this stuff was cheap, I knew I was supposed to descale regularly, and I knew this kind of descaler wouldn't be as hard to rinse out as the smell of vinegar. I honestly wasn't expecting much, but the next morning it took much less time for the water to heat up and my coffee tasted twice as strong and rich as it did before descaling, which means the brewing temperature is higher now that the heating element isn't caked with mineral deposits. Now I feel a little silly for drinking mediocre coffee for so long." —LenoreGet it from Amazon for $9.99+ (also available in a pack of two). An anti-fatigue, ergonomic kitchen mat to make sure you can be comfortable on your feet while you work in the kitchen. It's also waterproof and cushioned, so it's basically the perfect rug if you stand in one place in the kitchen for long periods of time (like dishwashing at the sink). Promising review: "Wish I would have gotten this years ago. As my back gets worse with time (and my age) standing to do dishes was starting to be far too uncomfortable. This makes me feel as if nothing is wrong with my back. It's wonderful. Comfortable and stays where you put it. Almost wish I could have this put down as a carpeting in my whole house. I love it." —cheyenne44Get it from Amazon for $10.99+ (available in seven colors and 12 sizes; be sure to redeem the 50% off coupon when applicable). A tub of the TikTok-famous Pink Stuff that's great if you want an all-purpose cleaning paste that can pretty much take on any stains, smudges, scruffs, and more on any hard surface. This is easily one of the most popular cleaning products out there — there are over 151,000 5-star reviews on Amazon for a reason. Promising review: "I added before and after photos of my filthy oven so you all would know this stuff is the real deal and worth it. I like that it didn't have a strong odor and it didn't use much effort at all to clean my oven. You can really see it removing the burnt-on grease after a few circular motions." —DNICEANDFAMGet it from Amazon for $5.97. A paper towel roll holder to literally stick to your wall or under the cabinet, all thanks to being backed with self-adhesive. That's right, this genius product requires no tools to install and won't damage your walls or cabinets with nails or screws. You're going to save so much countertop space, too! A food storage set with eight 30-ounce containers with lids, perfect for meal prepping. These are made out of thick glass that doesn't get that food stain fog like traditional plastic ones. Promising review: "Absolutely love this product! Makes storing and transporting my meals extremely easy and keeps everything fresh all week. Portion size is perfect. I fit a whole chicken breast plus rice in them with room to spare. The leak-proof design holds in freshness and gives me peace of mind when transporting them in my backpack. When all is done they are extremely easy to clean." —RHGet it on Amazon for $39.99 (available in two colors). A cabinet door organizer so your cutting boards and paper boxes (that hold aluminum foil, parchment, etc) don't take up countertop or drawer space, and instead are stored in a space that would otherwise go unused. Promising review: "This organizer is so useful! I recently moved and ended up with a much smaller kitchen, so I've been doing everything I can to make sure there's a place for everything and no wasted space. Luckily, I have pretty wide cabinets, so this works out perfectly. I have one holding my cutting boards (four standard plastic boards) and another holding my foil, cling wrap, and parchment paper boxes. The organizer is super easy to assemble, and it's completely versatile. Hang it over the cabinet door or attach it to the wall/cabinet door, which means it's great for renters and owners." —KerryGet it from Amazon for $17.97. A jar of Humble Suds' all-natural scour cleaning paste for taking on tough cleaning jobs like baked-on grime in the oven to removing difficult stains on your kitchen's grout. Thanks to a combination of castile soap and essential oils like sweet orange and lemongrass, not only does this do the job of removing grime, but it smells amazing, too! Humble Suds is a small cleaning brand run by two moms in Colorado. All of their products are made from humble yet powerful plant and mineral-derived ingredients and scented with pure essential oils. Promising review: "I just cleaned my boyfriend's oven that hasn't been cleaned in five years 😲 with this magical stuff, and I was amazed. This works like a dream. Will be buying more immediately" —Tarah Redburn Get it from Humble Suds on Etsy for $15.95+ (available in an 11-oz or 18-oz jar). A 15-piece set of airtight food containers, because your most-used pantry items deserve special containers that'll help prolong their freshness. Promising review: "I ordered this set to continue on the road to an organized pantry. There are enough containers and a variety of sizes to make me happy. I have stored pasta and noodles, dried beans, rice, sugar, instant mashed potatoes, crackers, etc. When I open a box of something, I put whatever is unused into one of the containers and feel very secure that the contents will be fresh and protected from any possible insect problems." —R MGet it from Amazon for $23.99+ (available in three colors). Or a 10-piece set of Oxo food storage containers if you want something with a little more pizzazz. Not only do they look great and make pantries so organized, but the airtight seal really does prolong the life of dried goods like pastas, flour, and chips. A set of magnetic glass spice jars if you have a ton of spices but nowhere to store them. Not only will this product fix that problem, but it looks cool, too! Promising review: "I am in love with my magnetic spice jars! I recently moved to a small apartment and don't have the counter or wall space to store spices or a spice rack, so magnetic jars it was! I love how these have a decorative feel while providing a secure way to store the spices. Unlike other magnetic spice jars, I feel that these add an extra flair to displaying your assorted spices." — a 12-pack of small jars from Amazon for $70+ (also available in 24 small jars, 12 large jars, and 24 large jars). An easy-to-use blender that can chop, mix, blend, whip, grind, and more. And because of its tiny size, it's the perfect fit for single servings like a smoothie or cup of salsa. Promising review: "I work in a vegan restaurant and use these once in a while for small amounts of dressings. So when I was in the market for a personal blender for smoothies and dressings/sauces for two, I knew I wanted this ... and boy, does it deliver! I love prepping the smoothies the night before in the containers. It's the perfect size for a small apartment, and it easily stores in the cabinet if you need to clear off the countertop." —BernadetteGet it from Amazon for $39.29+ (available in black or silver). A practical cereal dispenser for your countertop or in your pantry if you're really into cereal but not necessarily the various boxes it comes in. Now you'll have the perfect bowl ready to go with the twist of a knob. A spice rack drawer organizer in a 10-foot roll that you can cut to size if you have a lot of drawers and spices but not cabinets. The roll provides enough length to organize 30+ full-size spice bottles. YouCopia is a woman-owned small business that specializes in home storage review: "This is one of my favorite things I've ever purchased from Amazon! The fact that they are so customizable allows you to cut them for any drawer size! I think this will be my go-to gift for all of my friends who love cooking as much as I do! Freeing up cabinet space and having something that can easily be rinsed off in the sink makes this a for-sure buy!" —momononoGet a 10-ft roll from Amazon for $16.99 (available in gray or sandstone). A garlic chopper to take on the time-consuming task of chopping or mincing garlic. You put up to five regular-size cloves in it and then use your hand to roll this thing on any smooth surface, and it chops it all up in a matter of seconds. If you want to mince it, you keep rolling for maybe 10 more seconds. It's seriously the best! Promising review: "Love! Love! Love the GarlicZoom! Mincing garlic has never been easier or more fun. It makes mince work out of garlic, onion, chilies, and herbs. I'm not sure what I love most about this little gadget. Not smelling stinky garlic fingers all night? No burning fingers or eyes from chopping a super hot chile? Or mincing fresh herbs in a blink of an eye. I have a problem wrist from an injury and an arm and hand that suffers from nerve damage. I can still manage to zoom this. When people ask if they can help in the kitchen, this is the chore that I give them, and everyone loves it. They think it's the neatest little thing." —Kennedy CollinsGet it from Amazon for $19.95. An ice cube tray with a lid to make over 200 tiny cubes without needing a bulky and expensive ice machine. Traditional ice cube trays only make 12 cubes, and because there's no lid, they can get gross and absorb the smells of other foodstuffs in your freezer. With this one, you plop the cubes into the bin when they're frozen, and use the lil' scoop to get ice whenever you need it. Promising review: "This was a really pleasing purchase, I first saw it on TikTok. Product was received as described and pictured. The ice cubes are small and cute. The bin can hold about four trays, a lil over 200 ice cubes — that's with the scoop inside as well. The entire product doesn't take up much freezer space… I almost forgot it was there. Overall good purchase." —Gee inghamGet it from Amazon for $13.97+ (available in three colors). A drip catcher for soaking up water splashes and puddles that form around your kitchen faucet. Make sure you never have pools of still water (a breeding ground for bacteria!) around your faucet again. Hustle & Sew is a woman-owned small business based in Saint Helens, Oregon making fabric goods for the review: "LOVE these splash catchers! They save me from having to chase the puddles that form around the base of our faucet before they start creeping over the counter. So reasonably priced, made well with neatly finished edges, and packaged with gift-ready care." —AlinaGet it from Hustle & Sew on Etsy for $13.50+ (available in four sizes and five colors). A set of fruit and vegetable containers for folks who love efficiency and a well-organized fridge. The containers are stored within their own colander, so you can drain your produce and then nestle them right in. There's an adjustable divider in each, so you can store multiple types of produce in one container. Each one has vents that can be adjusted for fruits (vent stays open) and veggies (vent stays closed). Oh, and they're airtight, which will prolong the life of whatever you're storing. Check out this TikTok by Selina to see them in use. Promising review: "I love this set. I've been trying to eat breakfast more and saw them all over TikTok! These make it so much easier to clean the produce and keep it crisp! Will be getting another set!" —Jane DoeGet it from Amazon for $27.99+ (available in six colors). A drink dispenser to keep your favorite drinks organized. As you pull a can or bottle out of the dispenser, it'll push all of the drinks behind it forward. Reviewers rave that it holds so many bottles while also freeing up a ton of fridge space. Check out Rachel Meaders' review on review: "This is a true 'TikTok made me buy it!' I saw this and thought I'd love to have it, but the price is pretty steep. I splurged, and I'm so glad I did. It has revolutionized the cleanliness and ease of our drink supply!!!! We always know where we are with stock, and it looks so clean. The best part is that it can be customized to fit almost any fridge. We could have even just had four rows on one shelf and four rows on another if we wanted to — the rows are so easy to separate and adjust! Do yourself a favor and bite the bullet on the purchase. You'll be so glad you did." —Jacqueline FoleyGet it from Amazon for $57.39+ (be sure to clip the 18% off coupon). A peel-and-stick yogurt holder that can go on the walls or ceiling of your refrigerator, which is otherwise space that would go unused. Promising review: "I had seen them on TikTok and immediately bought them because my yogurts always tip out of my refrigerator and splat all over the floor! They have been so great, now my yogurts stay and don't fall out." —Amazon CustomerGet it from Amazon for $14.99+ (available in packs of one or two). An under-cabinet lid opener so you never struggle to open a jar again. And because it mounts to the underside of your cabinet, it'll be out of sight and out of mind when you don't need it. And a wine rack that stacks one bottle on top of another. Because it goes up and not horizontal, you'll be utilizing the normally unused vertical space in your fridge, therefore freeing up more shelf space. Promising review: "Fantastic product. Sturdy and stacks very well. Holds the wine with no worries of anything falling apart or out of the rack itself. Looks beautiful, giving your fridge a great look of organization." —Amazon CustomerGet it from Amazon for $28.99. You looking around your kitchen now that it's all tricked out with the best gear out there: Reviews have been edited for length and/or clarity.
Business Insider
an hour ago
- Business Insider
Inside the 12 hours it took for an awkward moment at a Coldplay concert to go viral
The Coldplay kiss cam video shows how fast someone's 15 seconds of fame can ricochet around the world. The clip caught a tech CEO and his head of HR embracing and led to the chief's resignation Here's a play-by-play of how the scandal unfolded — and why it caught so much attention. By now, we've all seen the Coldplay kiss cam fiasco. What happened in the hours and days afterward is a case study in how fast someone's 15 seconds of fame (or infamy) can truly ricochet around the world. A tech CEO and his HR head were caught embracing on the jumbotron at Gillette Stadium. They looked horrified and quickly untangled, with the woman turning away and the man dodging the camera. Front man Chris Martin suggested they could be having an affair. The fleeting moment — a fraction of a nightly segment during which Martin addresses various members of the audience — stuck with some concertgoers. In the early morning hours following the show, at least a few took to the internet to post about it. A Reddit user who said they attended the show asked if anyone else was wondering about the couple. One TikTok user said Martin had caught "a couple having an affair" at the show, and another said that they were "constantly refreshing the TikTok search in hopes that someone recorded the couple caught red-handed at the Coldplay concert tonight." They were in luck. Grace Springer, who had fewer than 15,000 TikTok followers at the time, had been recording in the hopes of landing on the jumbotron herself and capturing the moment. Shortly before 1 a.m. ET on Thursday, she posted a 15-second clip on TikTok captioned "trouble in paradise??" "In the moment when I filmed it, I didn't think much of it," Springer, who didn't respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, said during an interview on the British daytime program "This Morning." "But it wasn't until after the concert, where I was debriefing the moment with my friends, and I said, 'Let's review the footage, let's see if it really looks that bad.' And I think it does." Then the algorithm did its thing, pushing the video onto For You pages the world over. The TikTok spread like wildfire. It didn't take long for internet sleuths to identify the pair as Andy Byron, the then-CEO of tech upstart Astronomer, and Kristin Cabot, Astronomer's head of HR. Their names came up in the comments of Springer's TikTok video, though it was unclear who was the first to recognize them because the platform doesn't display the timestamp of comments. By 3 a.m., two hours after Springer posted the video, people were starting to look them up by name, according to data from Google Trends, which monitors search volume. The story had changed from an awkward interaction to a corporate scandal. Soon, people all over the world — from Ireland to Singapore — would know their names. "It's really sort of as we're waking up into the day on the 17th, where we see it start to spread," Molly Dwyer, the head of insights for social media monitoring company Peak Metrics, told Business Insider. The amateur internet sleuths then deployed their talents to find the pair's social profiles and those of Byron's wife. Commenters began bombarding Byron and Cabot's profiles, as well as those of Astronomer, which had turned off the ability to comment on posts across channels by Thursday afternoon Meme accounts had a heyday. "That's sort of the bread and butter of clickbait content — laughing at people's poor decisions — and the fact that then it plays into an anti-corporate element just further fanned the flames," Dwyer said. He noted that there has been an uptick in interest in content that is opposed to CEOs. "It was sort of a perfect storm of things that are really viral on social media right now, all coming together." Storyful, a social-media research company, used ticket stubs and raw footage from Springer to corroborate she was at the concert, according to John Hall, an editor for the site. One by one, mainstream news organizations around the world started covering the story. The online chatter kicked into high gear later on Thursday. Peak Metrics tracked 30,000 X posts in the 11 a.m. hour. Byron's name had been Googled more than 2 million times by that afternoon, and more than $65,000 was traded on Polymarket about his chances of remaining as CEO and predictions about his marital status. Brands like Netflix and Nando's jumped in, posting reactions to the clip or commenting on Springer's videos on social media. Think pieces about the surveillance state, sachenfreude, corporate America, and Coldplay proliferated. The saga shows how quickly a single moment can take on a life of its own in the social media age — a lesson others have learned before. While it seemed everyone had something to say, the pair at the center of it all stayed silent. (A fake apology from Byron that quoted the Coldplay song "Fix You" spread on Thursday afternoon before the company said it wasn't real.) Astronomer, a then little-known data startup, broke the silence on Friday with a statement that said the board was investigating the matter. Later that day, Byron was placed on leave. By Saturday, he'd resigned, and one of the company's cofounders, Pete DeJoy, had taken his place. The company found a silver lining in the scandal. "The events of the past few days have received a level of media attention that few companies—let alone startups in our small corner of the data and AI world—ever encounter," DeJoy wrote in a LinkedIn post on Monday. "The spotlight has been unusual and surreal for our team and, while I would never have wished for it to happen like this, Astronomer is now a household name." As with any viral moment, the attention was fleeting — and one that must've caught Coldplay off guard, too. "We'd like to say hello to some of you in the crowd," Martin said on Saturday, when the band took the stage for the first time since Wednesday's concert. Then a warning: "We're going to use our cameras and put some of you on the big screen. If you haven't done your makeup, do your makeup now."
