Latest news with #Mejia
Business Insider
3 days ago
- Business
- Business Insider
I paid $18.65 for an Etsy witch spell in hopes that 'extreme luck' could help me land an NYC apartment with laundry
I opted against the demonic misfortune curse. Sure, my seatmate on a recent flight made the regrettable decision to eat a whole fried chicken, but she doesn't deserve supernatural torment. It also wasn't worth the $40 price tag. I'm admittedly new to commissioning magic off of Etsy, a website I typically browse to pine after expensive home decor. I'm not big on ghosts, paranormal activity, or superstition. I am, however, curious. The Etsy witches are busy these days. Social media is peppered with people offering spells, testifying about their successful spiritual cleansings, and parodying mystic rituals. The US psychic services industry was worth over $2 billion last year, and that's projected to grow to $4.5 billion by 2033, largely due to online interest. If that projection is right, it's more than Americans spend on dog walking services today, but less than they spend on nail salons. While the recent success of digital hexes could be a sign that people are bored and leaning into internet trends, it also hints at something more serious. "Magic is among the things that people turn to when things are becoming uncontrollable, when things are becoming uncertain, when you know the normal methods you use to shore up your life and provide some certainty don't seem to be working anymore," Michael Bailey, a history professor at Iowa State University who specializes in medieval Europe and witchcraft, told me. I can empathize with that. I, too, have a lot of worries about my future and the world. So I spent $18.65 (plus tax) on a spell to bring me extreme luck. I'm not feeling especially unlucky right now — I have many people that I love, and my boss lets me write things like this during work hours. But it seemed like a reasonable price for some extra good fortune, and I would really like a New York City apartment with laundry in the building. Etsy witches work their magic on your career or love life for prices ranging from $4 to $400 Jamie Mejia, 31, lives in Miami and swears by her Etsy witch results. About a month ago, she enlisted one for a reading about her love life, which cost her about $5 for each question she asked. Mejia had sensed that her partner wasn't ready to commit to a serious relationship, a feeling the witch validated. She said it brought her the closure she needed to end things. When she returned for a second reading, Mejia received good news: 2026 will be a big year for her career and personal life. For prices that range from $4 to $400, the Etsy witches offer anything I might need. I could increase my chances for long-lasting beauty, a dream job, money, protection, warm weather, a perfect wedding, or a loyal sugar daddy. I could inspire an ex to call me or motivate a crush to ask me on a date. Curses were also on the table, including promises of "revenge, pain, and suffering" for my enemies, along with the aforementioned demonic misfortune. Most of the spells, including mine, had extra-long wait times due to a "high volume of requests." I chose to ignore the flood of AI-generated images of the alleged witches: several silvery-haired wrinkled women that didn't look quite human, videos of a sage cleansing ritual where the hand had extra fingers, and perfectly-arranged altars that were too good to be true. It seemed weird that many of the spells were on sale — is it possible to find your soulmate at a discount? For the purposes of this story, it was important that I trust the process. It's worth noting that magic has been banned on Etsy since the mid-2010s. Most of the sellers have disclaimers that their work is for entertainment purposes only. A representative for Etsy didn't respond to my request for comment. Based on the thousands of positive reviews and plentiful social media testimonials, however, there are true believers among the internet-magic curious. "Part of me obviously has lost faith when it comes to relationships, so knowing that it gave me a little bit of hope," Mejia said, adding, "I don't think it's fake, I think it's real." Turning to the mystical when other avenues to success seem blocked Meija told me that she's turning to witches to manifest companionship and job security in a tough market for both. Assuming most of the Etsy reviews are written by real people, she isn't alone. Many of the sellers have thousands of reviews and average between 4.5 and 5 stars. Some happy customers said spells helped them pass an exam, land a new role, dismiss a traffic ticket, have a sunny bachelorette weekend, or feel a little bit less stressed. Most said they are still eagerly awaiting their results. In the most recently available 2017 Pew survey of American adults, 41% of respondents said they believed in psychics, 42% said they thought spiritual energy could be located in physical things, and 29% said they believed in astrology. A 2019 IPSOS survey also found that nearly half of respondents said they believed in ghosts. My colleague Emily Stewart wrote about this last summer: It isn't new that people are willing to shell out money on magic. But the latest success of Etsy witches may be a sign of the times. Americans of all ages have told Business Insider in recent months that they're frustrated by long job searches, feeling nervous about finances, or holding off on big life decisions like having babies and starting a business because the economy feels unpredictable. Consumer sentiment markers dipped in July, and employees are less confident in their companies lately. Another Pew survey conducted last September found that 16% of adults feel lonely all or most of the time, with higher rates among Gen Z and millennials. Bailey said he isn't surprised that people are keen for an extra chance at financial stability, love, and relationships right now. "When you're feeling particularly uncertain, you're more inclined to the 'try anything' approach," he said, adding that magic has long been a way people try to "swing the odds in their favor." Thirty-six hours after I submitted my order, my witch sent me photo proof that my spell had been cast: an altar with a brightly-lit green candle, some crystals, and a couple of tarot cards. Over DM on the Etsy website, she told me I have "powerful support from the Universe," and the "The Luck Alignment Ritual" has been activated, "so it is done, Amen." All she needed from me was my birthday, two sentences about my intention, and a working credit card. We never talked, and I don't know what she looks like. That seems to be the case for most witches: you can order luck off the internet with a transaction that looks a lot like buying a Shein haul or bowl of DoorDashed pad thai. The whole thing felt spooky, and I'm not convinced Etsy magic is the healthiest way to cope with anxiety. But if I find an affordable apartment with laundry, I might be willing to credit divine intervention.
New York Times
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
From FaceTime to Face Time, In Person
After three weeks of chatting via FaceTime for 10 hours a day, Maya Felicity Vargas was impatiently waiting for Justin Corey Mejia to ask her out. They had met as undergraduates in January 2019 in an introduction to communication law class at Barry University in Miami, and stayed in touch by occasional messaging. They reconnected in December 2020 after Ms. Vargas reacted to Mr. Mejia's Instagram post asking female followers if they preferred 'six packs or a 'dad bod'.' She picked dad bod. 'I couldn't gauge how he felt, but I had a thing for his red beard from the beginning because my grandmother said I would marry a guy with red hair,' said Ms. Vargas, 28, the director of marketing for a21, an experiential marketing company in Miami. 'I finally asked if we would ever see each other in real life.' Mr. Mejia thought she was another pretty girl from New York with a motivated attitude, yet different. 'Even though I'm used to quiet, I liked how the energy shifts because of her personality,' said Mr. Mejia, 29, a Miami-based account manager for Zaddy LLC, a creative brand marketing company in New York. 'But I had no grand plan.' He agreed to meet up. [Click here to binge read this week's featured couples.] Their first date was Jan. 9, 2021, when Mr. Mejia, born and raised in Miami, took Ms. Vargas, who grew up in the Bronx, on a locals tour of South Florida. They drove from Fort Lauderdale to Miami's Coconut Grove, passing local attractions, grocery stores and family-style restaurants while talking about their lives. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Straits Times
22-07-2025
- Straits Times
An American toddler in foster care, a mom in ICE detention
Guatemalan immigrant Ingrid Mejia stands in front of the Seneca County Jail after being released from spending over 120 days in a immigration detention cell in Tiffin, Ohio, U.S., July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook GREENVILLE, Ohio - For 125 days in her immigration detention cell, Ingrid Mejia replayed in her head the day she was separated from her 3-year-old son. Mejia, a 25-year-old farmworker from Guatemala, had gone to court on February 25 on a charge of driving without a license. She didn't have a lawyer - or child care. So she left Eliazar, a chubby-cheeked child with dark hair and eyes, waiting outside with the person who had given her a ride to court. She thought she would pay a fine and go home, just as she had four months earlier on the same charge. Instead, as this was her fourth such offense, municipal court judge Julie Monnin sentenced her to three days in Ohio's Darke County jail. The brief sentence plunged Mejia into the dragnet of President Donald Trump's aggressive immigration enforcement, landing her in immigration detention for more than four months and stranding her U.S. citizen son in foster care for even longer. Mejia began trying to get her son back on July 3, within hours of her release. She hoped it would happen in days. But at a July 15 custody hearing, child welfare officials said Eliazar had bonded with his foster family during her prolonged detention. They told the hearing a slow transition would be in the child's best interest, Mejia said. 'He's my son. I just want him back now,' Mejia said after the hearing. 'I just want to hug him." Friends and family say Mejia is a hardworking mother, not a violent criminal, who did not need to be detained, and her son did not deserve to be in foster care. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Two found dead after fire in Toa Payoh flat Singapore Singaporeans aged 21 to 59 can claim $600 SG60 vouchers from July 22 Singapore Singaporeans continue to hold world's most powerful passport in latest ranking Singapore Singapore, Vietnam agree to step up defence ties, dialogue between leaders Asia Malaysia govt's reform pledge tested as DAP chief bows over unresolved 2009 death of political aide Tech Singapore to increase pool of early adopters in AI to complement data scientists, engineers Singapore Prosecution says judge who acquitted duo of bribing ex-LTA official had copied defence arguments Singapore Ports and planes: The 2 Singapore firms helping to keep the world moving Immigration authorities and those who favor restricting migration say Mejia repeatedly broke the law by driving without a license and by violating immigration rules. Mejia admits to using false paperwork to enter the U.S. and to being in the country illegally. 'I don't think this offense should be minimized," Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies for the Center for Immigration Studies, a think tank that favors lower levels of immigration, said of the driving without a license charge. Trump was elected on a promise to deport millions of immigrants who are in the United States illegally, and has deported more than 239,000 people so far, according to Department of Homeland Security data. His administration has set arrest quotas for immigration enforcement officials of 3,000 a day - 10 times higher than average daily arrests the last year of President Joe Biden's administration. It has also been releasing far fewer people from immigration detention on humanitarian grounds. Just 67 people were paroled in June by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, down from 5,159 in December, Biden's last full month in office, government data show. Meanwhile, since Trump took office, ICE has dramatically increased 'detainer requests' - notices to state and local jails to hold an immigrant for pick-up, sweeping up immigrants like Mejia. They rose to 700 a day on average through early June, from an average of about 400 a day during the same time period last year, according to a Reuters analysis of ICE data collected by UC Berkeley's Deportation Data Project. PICKED UP FROM JAIL When Mejia was booked into the county jail on February 25, her fingerprints were automatically shared with ICE. They showed a match for a person who had entered the United States seven years earlier and was in the country illegally. ICE issued a detainer request and on February 28, after Mejia had completed her unlicensed-driving sentence, immigration officers picked her up from jail and drove her 140 miles to a detention center in Tiffin, Ohio, according to jail records. 'She has been arrested multiple times for driving illegally and admitted to law enforcement that she was in the country illegally,' DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin told Reuters in a statement, in response to questions about Mejia and her child. McLaughlin said deportees are generally given the choice of taking U.S. citizen children with them or leaving them with friends or family in the United States. After Mejia was convicted on February 25, police and child welfare officials tried to contact a friend whom she suggested could look after Eliazar during her three-day sentence. But the woman didn't answer the door to Mark Ater - the police chief in Union City, where Mejia lived - because she was afraid he might be working with ICE. With nobody else immediately available, Eliazar was placed in foster care. The case weighed on Ater, the police chief said. "It broke my heart that this kid was taken away from his mom,' he said. 'Outside of the entire situation, there was still a kid that was going to go into foster care." Monnin, the judge, declined to comment, saying the 'unfortunate consequences of the defendant's actions are out of my control,' adding: 'I pray that a reunification process is developed quickly.' A TEENAGER ALONE Mejia fled sexual and gang violence in Guatemala, arriving at a port of entry on the U.S.-Mexico border in November 2017, a few weeks shy of her 18th birthday, according to her immigration paperwork. Smugglers told her to travel on her younger sister's documents to ensure she was processed as an unaccompanied minor in the event that her journey took longer than expected, she said. While entering on fraudulent documents does not disqualify an asylum application, it can make it harder to win, experts say. Mejia spent four months in a government children's shelter before being released to pursue her asylum claim. She moved on to Virginia, where she lived for eight months with a woman who beat her with a leather whip and made her work for no pay, according to her application for a visa for victims of human trafficking. Reuters was unable to verify her account independently. By September 2019, she had escaped and made her way to an area of rural Ohio in America's Corn Belt, dotted with poultry farms and egg processing plants. She got a job packing eggs into cartons that were shipped to grocery stores across the country. Mejia said she tried to use mini-van ride shares to get to work from her home in Indiana, 20 miles away, but sometimes there were no seats available. Neither Ohio nor Indiana allow immigrants in the country illegally to obtain drivers' licenses. She was driving to work on February 18 when she ran a stop sign, colliding with another car, according to the police report. Nobody was injured. The officer at the scene wrote her up for driving without a license, requiring her to appear in court. For Jim Groff, 76, who heard the collision from his home across the street, the facts of Mejia's detention are simple: She was in the country illegally. 'If mom wants her little baby back, send them back,' he said. But he wished the U.S. could speed up the process of allowing immigrants to come into the country legally. 'Jeepers, creepers, they're damn good workers,' he said. MIXED MESSAGES In late February, after her transfer to immigration detention, a distraught Mejia contacted Maira Vasquez, for help finding out where Eliazar was and how she could get him into the care of a family member. Vasquez, a U.S. citizen, attended Eliazar's birth as a community health worker and the two women had stayed in contact. When Vasquez visited Darke County's Department of Job and Family Services in March, officials told her this was a new situation for them and they weren't sure how to handle it. Asked for comment, the agency said it was unable to share details about the case, citing privacy laws. 'We continue to work closely with the family, law enforcement and our community partners to ensure child safety,' it said in a statement. Many state and local child welfare agencies don't have the training to handle cases involving the immigration system, said Kelly Kribs, co-director at the nonprofit Young Center's technical assistance program, which aims to support children caught between the federal immigration and state court systems. ICE and local child welfare agencies work as separate systems, with separate goals, she said. 'These agencies don't talk to one another,' Kribs said. That can lead to mixed messages. Mejia told Reuters in a phone call from detention in March that ICE officers told her that she could be reunited with Eliazar if she signed a document agreeing to be deported. But Vasquez said that county officials told her that Eliazar was in their custody, and they had their own processes meant to look after the boy's best interests. Mejia didn't sign – and Vasquez continued to explore options for placing Eliazar with family or friends. Mejia's sister, who asked not to be named as she is afraid of being arrested by ICE, was initially willing to take him. But county officials told her that it would be difficult for her to pass background checks as she is in the country illegally. Two friends who do have legal residency declined to take Eliazar because they feared exposing family members who are in the U.S. illegally, Vasquez said. Eliazar's father has never been involved in his life, and was not an option, Mejia said. LASTING TRAUMA Experts warn that forcibly separating a child from a parent can result in trauma, even after they are reunited. Mejia's 'son is being set up for major psychiatric and learning problems in the future by this separation,' Joan Lederer, a psychiatrist who evaluated Mejia at the request of her lawyer, wrote in a court filing. In detention, Mejia thought about Eliazar warming to people quickly. He doesn't talk much due to a speech delay, she said, which makes conversations by phone difficult. In April, child welfare officials sent Vasquez a picture of a smiling Eliazar with a toy truck. They told her that Eliazar's foster family had five other children. Mejia said officials told her that nobody in the house spoke Spanish and she worried he would not understand what was going on around him. By that point, Ater, the police chief who went to the address Mejia provided that February day, was alarmed that Eliazar was still in foster care. He reached out to Vasquez and said Eliazar could stay with him and his family until he is reunited with Mejia ‒ 'three minutes or three years.' He would even fly the boy to Guatemala if Mejia were to be deported. 'I have to go out and do my job,' he said. 'But on the flip side, I'm also human and this isn't cool. This little dude is not with his mom, and what does the future hold for him and what does the future hold for her?' Mejia worried that signing over custody of Eliazar to Ater could mean losing him forever. She also didn't think it would help ease access to the boy for family members, as they were unlikely to visit him at the home of a police officer for fear of being arrested by ICE, Vasquez said. She decided to wait. On July 2, an immigration judge dismissed Mejia's deportation case for a second time, ruling that she was entitled to a hearing before an asylum officer and noting she was the sole custodian of a U.S. citizen child with disabilities. This time, ICE did not contest the ruling and released Mejia the next day. Vasquez picked her up from the detention center, and the two women tried calling Darke County children's services but it was the eve of the July 4 holiday and they couldn't immediately get through. The following Monday afternoon, Mejia did meet Eliazar, in the offices of children's services. 'I just hugged him and hugged him,' she said. She said he recognized her, but didn't speak to her. He seemed attached to his foster parents, and she said she overheard him speaking English. In the July 15 custody hearing, child welfare officials recommended more visits so that Eliazar could get used to his mother again, Mejia said. Officials also ordered inspections of her home to ensure her place is appropriate for a child, she said. Darke County children's services declined to comment. Vasquez said child welfare officials expressed concerns about how Mejia would support Eliazar, now that she has lost her egg packing job. Vasquez said she had raised funds to deposit about $3,000 in a bank account in Mejia's name to show she has money to tide her over until she gets her work permit. On Monday, July 21, an official from children's services and Eliazar's foster mom dropped him off at Mejia's home with unexpected good news. He would be allowed to stay with her, with regular child welfare visits until the case is closed. "They are not going to take him away anymore," Mejia said. 'This makes me happy.' REUTERS
Newsweek
18-07-2025
- General
- Newsweek
Mom Asks New Dad To Bring Car Seat To Hospital—Can't Believe How He Arrives
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A woman couldn't resist capturing the moment her partner had a "first-time dad moment" after she asked him to bring the car seat. Nayomie Mejia from Tampa, Florida, hit record on her phone as soon as she saw what her partner, who has asked not to be named, had done. "I was tired, in pain, but I had to pull out my phone because of his explanation that the nurses side-eyeing him and him just assuming this was a regular thing," Mejia told Newsweek. "I knew the internet needed to see this first-time dad moment in real time." Becoming a father for the first time can be a stressful experience. A systematic review of data published in the Joanna Briggs Institute Database of Systematic Reviews & Implementation Reports highlighted several key concerns. Shifting to the fatherhood identity and the negative feelings and fears associated with it was key, while the restrictions placed on the lifestyle they previously enjoyed was also an important consideration. Crucially, in this context, the review highlighted how fathers wanted "more guidance and support around the preparation for fatherhood." That's something Mejia's partner could well have benefitted from when it came time to take their newborn son home. It's become something of a regular feature on social media to see videos of dads carrying their newborn children out of the hospital in a car seat. "Hot dad walks," as they have been termed, don't always go to plan though. Mejia and her partner had planned similar, but it didn't get off to the best of starts when he arrived at the hospital with the car seat still boxed up and in need to putting together. "I did tell him ahead of time to just bring the car seat, not the whole box, not the base, none of that," Mejia said. "But of course... here he comes rolling into the postpartum room with the entire giant box like it was a suitcase of ours." Mejia's video, posted to TikTok under the handle @ captured the chaos and hilarity that followed as he tried to explain his logic. The clip went viral with 250,000 views and a glut of comments from amused social media users. "It still being in the box is taking me out," one viewer wrote. "Tell me this your first baby with out telling me this your first baby." Though Mejia found the whole thing amusing, she was a little sympathetic at the same time. "To be fair, our baby decided to make an early arrival, so we hadn't installed the seat yet, and it was still packed up at home so we ended up bringing the whole box in the car," she said. "He also said he needed help installing it and didn't want to mess anything up, which is sweet but also, sir... we are literally in the hospital room." The story has a happy ending though: Mejia was able to help him put the car seat together. "I had to make sure the manual was turned to the correct page so he could reference it while he installed it," she said. They left hospital on June 22, with Mejia enjoying a well-earned dad walk in the process.
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USA Today
14-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
2025 Mifel Open: Mejia [244th] vs. Basavareddy [111th] Prediction, Odds and Match Preview
No. 244-ranked Nicolas Mejia will meet No. 111 Nishesh Basavareddy in the Mifel Open Round of 32 on Tuesday, July 15. Basavareddy is favored (-350) in this match compared to the underdog Mejia (+260). Tennis odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Monday at 2:35 PM ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub. Nicolas Mejia vs. Nishesh Basavareddy matchup info Watch the Tennis Channel and more sports on Fubo! Mejia vs. Basavareddy Prediction Based on the implied probility from the moneyline, Mejia has a 77.8% to win. Mejia vs. Basavareddy Betting Odds Mejia vs. Basavareddy matchup performance & stats
