If you weren't on the internet this weekend, you may have missed a confusing yet somewhat hilarious scandal sweeping the nation. Hilaria Baldwin, the yoga influencer wife of Alec Baldwin, has been accused of exaggerating her Spanish heritage by faking an accent and changing her birth name, Hilary.
If you missed it, here's an explainer with some of the key points floating around. But to catch you up to speed, Hilaria's now-deleted CAA profile said she was born in Spain, she has been referred to in the press as "Spanish" for years, and has spoken in interviews with an accent that comes and goes. Alec has also referred to his wife as being "from Spain," the press has said her family is from the country, and the couple's five children all have Spanish names.
However, people online are now claiming Hilaria, born Hilary Thomas, has been exaggerating her Spanish roots and was actually born and attended school in Boston. They reference a Boston Herald article from 2012 which explains Hilaria's ties to the area, her name change, and have also dug deep into the heritage of her parents and grandparents (Hilaria's parents do currently live in Spain, where they retired after long careers in Boston).
Others have pointed out how it is problematic for an American to appropriate an immigrant experience, no matter how close they may feel to a culture.
Hilaria addressed the rumors over the weekend, saying that she split time between Spain and Boston as a child and was raised bilingual, so she feels she belongs to both cultures. She also said she was raised being called both Hilaria and Hilary. Alec has also defended her, as has her stepdaughter, Ireland.
For whatever reason (we are bored), the story has captivated many of us. And despite the Baldwins' attempt to clarify the situation, the story has only grown.
There are a lot of rumors flying around, and I invite you to fall down those rabbit holes. Of course, the memes are also flowing. And TBH, they are really, really funny. This is a classic.
Lots of pop culture fits.
A lot of people are joking about their own ~~new backstories~~.
Also this def needs to happen, right?
And then a lot of people just wanted to know more.
No matter what is actually going on here, thank you, Hilaria. This scandal has been a great distraction from the shitshow that is 2020.
Raise a glass, moms and dads — you survived 2020, and all the chaos that came with it.
It takes a village to raise a child, and time flies when you’re having fun. However, parenting usually isn’t as picture-perfect as mommy bloggers make it out to be, and sometimes there’s nothing to do but laugh when you fail.
To celebrate such mistakes, mishaps and melees, read on for 10 of the funniest parenting fiascoes that made headlines this year. But remember! Mom and Dad always know best, so try not to laugh too hard.
Keziah Jozefiak said it took an hour to get the fake tan off her son Raf's face. (Kennedy News Media)
A mom came clean after forgetting she had fake tanning lotion on when she fed her newborn, leaving the baby with a brown smear around his mouth. "When I looked down at Raf I just burst out laughing," Keziah Jozefiak said. "I couldn’t believe the tan had left his mouth looking like Homer."
Sharing photos of the fail with family and friends, Jozefiak said her loved ones thought it was "hilarious" as well.
The post struck a chord with so many that Nicholson began her own "support group" Facebook page for all those "victims of static cling." (Heather Nicholson)
This mom never planned for laundry day to end this way.
Heather M. Nicholson said her son Hunter was eager to tell her about something that happened in class after picking him up from school. She inquired about the news, and the boy rolled up his pant leg and pulled out a pair of her thong underwear. "I found this during music class!" Hunter exclaimed.
In a later Facebook post, the embarrassed mom explained that her undies got stuck in his pants due to static cling.
Well, they say showing up is half the battle. So by that metric, a mom who arrived at her children’s school to drop them off was partially victorious — and we say "partially" because forgot a very important part: her kids.
As seen on Twitter in a video viewed millions of times , the mom completely blanked when taking her kids to school that morning and began "driving off" without the children.
"I have to go back and pick them up," she said, during bursts of hysterical laughter. "I can’t believe it. I left my kids…at home."
When people began locking down and stocking up on the essentials at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, a family in Australia accidentally went a bit overboard.
Haidee Janetzki meant to order 48 rolls of toilet paper, but instead ordered 48 boxes. The woman and her family soon found themselves the proud owners of 2,304 rolls of toilet paper — enough to last about 12 years.
To pay it forward, the family planned to sell the extra boxes in a fundraiser for the same price they paid.
"We took a break so my mom can figure this stuff out," wrote Ben, 8. "And I’m telling you it is not going good." (Candice Hunter Kennedy)
Candice Hunter Kennedy was amused to find a hilariously honest journal entry by her 8-year-old son, reflecting on his mom's attempt at homeschooling during the coronavirus pandemic.
"It is not going good," says the boy, whose name is Ben. "My mom’s getting stressed out. My mom is really getting confused. We took a break so my mom can figure this stuff out. And I’m telling you it is not going good."
"Y’all I’m dying!!!" Kennedy wrote on Facebook following the find, and thousands of users said they agreed.
"When I had ordered the birthday sign, we agreed to only get black letters," the birthday girl's mom told Fox News. "When I got home, it wasn't just black letters." (Morgyn Shelton)
Well, that’s one way to ring in 18. A barely-legal display was set up on a residential lawn to celebrate Morgyn Shelton’s 18th birthday — and Twitter had a field day.
The lavish set-up featured a giant "18th," as well as a "Happy Birthday" banner. However, the attention-grabbing aspect was the name of the birthday girl herself — Morgyn. The "M" and "N" in her name are a bedazzled silver, while the rest of the letters are a striking black. Due to this interesting color choice, the display appeared to read "ORGY" at first glance to some onlookers.
Hayley Sexton had painted the nursery pink and chosen the name Isabella for her baby on the way. (SWNS)
A first-time mom was shocked to welcome a son after being told she was having a little girl — twice.
Hayley Sexton had prepared her home and life for a daughter, but was left speechless when a nurse said it was a boy, who she named Alfie. "When the midwife said, 'He's here,' I was like, 'What do you mean 'he'?'" Sexton said. "It was a huge shock – I had no idea I was having a boy. At two scans I'd been told my baby was a girl … But I love Alfie to bits — he's such a lovely little boy. It was meant to be."
Dalila and Juan Perez officially became empty nesters when their youngest child got married and moved out in August. (Melyssa Anne Photography)
Who said that an empty nest is a lonely one? Two parents in Texas went viral for a hilariously honest photo shoot celebrating their next chapter without the kids at home.
Dalila and Juan Perez officially became empty-nesters when their youngest child got married and moved out in August, inspiring the couple of 34 years to mark the moment with a hysterical series of pictures. Some show the couple faking frowns while holding an empty bird’s nest, sharing a "cheers" with coffee mugs, riding around on their motorcycle, throwing confetti, and walking down the street holding hands.
A rebuilding Arizona team was projected to finish fifth in the Pac-12 in last month’s preseason poll and did not receive a single vote in the most recent AP Top 25. The Wildcats did beat Colorado on Monday night to improve to 7-1, but that’s their first victory of the season over an opponent in Ken Pomeroy’s top 100.
While Arizona was far from a shoo-in to make the NCAA tournament this upcoming March, the Wildcats’ self-imposed postseason ban isn’t the most egregious in recent memory. Other programs have slapped themselves on the wrist during lesser seasons in an effort to stave off future penalties for teams better equipped for deep postseason runs.
On February 4, 2015, Syracuse removed itself from contention for the following month’s NCAA tournament, not that the Orange were likely to make it anyway. Most mock brackets at the time did not include Jim Boeheim’s team, which went on to finish that season with an 18-13 record.
The timing of Auburn’s self-imposed postseason ban last month was equally cynical with the Tigers headed for a rebuilding season. Not only did they lose their six best players from last season’s 25-6 team, their top incoming freshman’s eligibility was also under investigation.
In each of these cases, the schools knew they were on the hook for major violations. If a postseason ban was inevitable, the goal was to administer it on their own terms, to act like they were taking their mistakes seriously and to hoodwink the NCAA infractions committee into not punishing them any further.
The NCAA has sometimes fallen for this act in the past. It can’t do so any longer. That would only underscore the message that it pays to cheat in college athletics, that even the few programs who get caught are able to skirt meaningful punishment.
Arizona, led by head coach Sean Miller, have banned themselves from postseason play this season. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Arizona was one of the many schools ensnared by the federal probe into college basketball corruption. In announcing its postseason ban on Tuesday, the university was careful not to admit any wrongdoing by head coach Sean Miller. Arizona’s statement instead placed the blame on “certain former members of the MBB staff” who “displayed serious lapses in judgment and a departure from the University’s expectation of honest and ethical behavior.”
Former Arizona assistant coach Emmanuel “Book” Richardson served three months in federal prison after pleading guilty to accepting $20,000 in bribes for the purpose of steering players to certain agents. The university also suspended former assistant coach Mark Phelps over alleged rules violations and did not renew his contract.
Arizona’s statement described the postseason ban as a means of “serving the best long-term interests of the University and the Men’s Basketball program.” Left largely unmentioned were the innocent victims in all this: the current Wildcats players.
The worst aspect of in-season postseason bans is that they highlight everything that is wrong with NCAA justice. Coaches, athletes or boosters commit the crime, but all too often a future generation of players are the ones doing the time.
At least when the NCAA hands down a postseason ban during the offseason, current players have the option to transfer to another school that is eligible for the Big Dance. But with these in-season, self-imposed bans, players are stuck by the time their school announces it is removing itself from NCAA tournament contention.
Almost five years ago, Louisville pulled the plug on an 18-4 season in hopes of reducing the damage from its infamous stripper scandal. As a result, the dreams of graduate transfers Damion Lee and Trey Lewis were reduced to collateral damage.
Lee arrived from Drexel and Lewis from Cleveland State eager to chase their One Shining Moment. They were the leading scorers on a team that had just beaten second-ranked North Carolina the night before the postseason ban was announced.
All of Arizona’s players at least will have the option to return to school next season with the NCAA not counting this year against athletes’ college eligibility. Same with the basketball players at Auburn and the football players at LSU.
Still, the NCAA needs to send a message that they won’t accept postseason bans after the season begins, that teams who attempt this aren’t helping their own cause.
These postseason bans aren’t merely self-imposed. They’re more self-serving than anything else.
Republicans are becoming a national joke in their deranged pursuit to overturn the recent election. The following abbreviated list shows why.
First, in the over fifty lawsuits they have filed, the word “fraud” is nowhere to be found. Why? Because the lawyers bringing these cases could produce no tangible evidence of it and they know that they can go to jail and/or be disbarred for lying to a court. And the courts, including the Supreme Court in which Trump’s buddies hold a majority, have — with one minor exception — thrown all these cases out.
Second, Republicans have contorted themselves to the point that they argued in certain cases that election laws they themselves passed in prior years should be declared unconstitutional. They profess their love of states’ rights out of one side of their mouths and then ask federal courts to nullify state election processes out of the other.
Third, the attorney general of the United States, a Trump supporter if there ever was one, declared — after what you may be assured was a very diligent search — that nothing was found that would affect the results of the election.
Fourth, a lowly bureaucrat in the Department of Homeland Security, a Republican appointee whose job it was to assure the integrity of the election process, declared that this was the most secure election in our history. And then got fired.
Fifth is the spectacle of the circular firing squad in Georgia with Republicans threatening their own because they won’t accept Trump’s fantasies as reality.
Sixth, there is the former Texas law officer who ran a vehicle off the road, threatened the driver — an air conditioning technician — with a weapon, and put him on the ground until local authorities arrived because he was convinced that the truck contained 750,000 fraudulent ballots which, upon inspection, turned out to have been cleverly disguised as air conditioning parts and tools.
And finally, the only documented case of voter fraud that I know of is that of a Pennsylvania Republican who posed as his dead mother to cast an illegal vote for Trump.
All of which would be funny if it weren’t so sad — and dangerous.
When you accidentally share something (tastefully) NSFW
You know, there is also always the worry that you may accidentally share something a little too personal. After all, you are broadcasting directly to your peers from the comfort of the place of all your secrets: your home.
“My fiancé and I fight over the only workspace we have in our small Los Angeles apartment: the kitchen table,” shares Sarah Chang Tadayon, filmmaker and student at California State University Northridge’s MFA in Screenwriting program. “This means that sometimes I get booted into the bedroom to do Zoom class. When I do I always feel the need to apologize for the artistic nude photo of me hanging above my headboard in the direct field of vision of everyone in the class. That being said, since I’m in the creative field, neither the professors nor students seem to mind all that much.” Just like this story, these 14 working from home memes are hilariously accurate.
cucun.indah.link
Agreed on UCLA. Cronin is a very good coach who will develop that team. I don't see it with ASU though I know they've got a lot of hype because of a couple one-and-doners.
Stanford's coach is getting the recruiting juices flowing. Would've loved to see what that team could've been with Terry for another year. Just shows how hard it is to thread the needle in college hoops in the sense that you want those young guys to be good but not thaaaat good until the whole roster is ready to win big.
The Link Lonk
The Link Lonk
