In-N-Out causes chaos and long lines in Idaho...
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[A diver dressed in a Santa Claus costume feeds the fish at Sunshine Aquarium in Tokyo. ] A diver dressed in a Santa Claus costume feeds the fish at Sunshine Aquarium in Tokyo. Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP via Getty Images  BROWSING  [Classifieds banner image]( The wackiest headlines from the week as they would appear in a Classifieds section. Careers LINE CHEF: When In-N-Out opened its first location in Idaho last week, so many people lined up to order a sloppy burger that the estimated wait time was up to [eight hours](. Not everyoneâs excited: One Idaho resident commented on social media, âWho cares, itâs a hamburger.â MARGARITAVILLE CAPTAIN: You could make six figures as the [director of operations]( at the Jimmy Buffet-themed restaurant in Times Square. You just have to be alert and ready to tell patrons itâs five oâclock somewhere at any moment. For sale BLACK MARKET SOHO HOUSE MEMBERSHIP: The exclusive private club for people who DJ as a hobby is getting even more crowded than an airport lounge. To keep its air of exclusivity, Soho House [wonât accept]( new members in New York, LA, or London starting next year. THATSA BIGA MEATBALL: Ikea is giving away [30 turkey-sized meatballs]( 30 vegan versions) this holiday season. Some assembly required. Personal A BETTER SKIN: The Great Wall of China is defending itself against the elements surprisingly well. A study found that a â[living skin]( or biocrust, is protecting the ancient structure from wind, rain, and other conditions that could damage it. The researchers concluded the only way it could further improve longevity is to apply sunscreen every day. REMINDER TO MUTE: GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy took a leak during an X Spaces liveâ¦ummâ¦stream and [didnât mute]( his audio. Thatâs a 2020 move. FOUNDâ$820K RING: Someone who wasnât Lisa Barlow [lost]( an expensive ring in the Ritz hotel in Paris. The owner thought someone had stolen it, but it was ultimately found in a vacuum bag.âMM  PRESENTED BY APPLE GIFT CARD 1 gift brings a world of possibility [Apple Gift Card]( Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, gift-giving jitters keeping you on your toes⦠Okay, thatâs not how the song goes. But if youâre struggling to find the perfect gift for your loved ones, you might be feeling that holiday anxiety. Thatâs where [Apple Gift Card]( comes in clutch to save the (holi)day. Apple Gift Card doesnât just unlock exciting apps, games, movies, and music. It also gives recipients the freedom to subscribe to their favorite workout app, browse e-books, and [engage with the content they love](. One gift = a world of possibilities, and they all start with 1 nifty liâl card. [Gift or email yours](.  SNAPSHOTS  [Photo of the week](#)
[Tommy DeVito and his agent]ESPN No, that is not a Batman villain on the phone with Commissioner Gordon, threatening the people of Gotham with an overly complicated and easily stoppable scheme. That hero is the agent of Giants quarterback Tommy DeVitoâSean Stellatoâperhaps finalizing plans for his induction into the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame in Chicago, which actually happened [this past Friday](. The fashion icon became a viral sensation this week as his client won on Monday Night Football against the Packers, keeping the Giantsâ faint playoff hopes alive and instilling pride in Italian Americans across the country. Â SCIENCE Â [Dept. of Progress](#)
[ ]ImgFlip Here are some illuminating scientific discoveries from the week to help you live better and maybe even keep your cat indoors. This AI went to sommelier school. A new algorithm trained on wine can tell which vineyard a bottle of red Bordeaux came from with 100% accuracy, according to researchers in Switzerland. The group created this [AI connoisseur]( by feeding data on the chemical components of 80 wines bottled in France between 1990 and 2007 to a machine-learning model. (The algorithm also correctly guessed the year of origin half of the time.) Other than proving that AI can impress a dinner party, the findings demonstrate how local geography, climate, microbes, and wine-making practices combine to give each wine a unique flavor. Your mischievous cat might actually be a killer. Researchers are calling domesticated felines one of the âmost problematic [invasive species]( in the worldâ after the first global study quantifying their diets found that outdoor and feral kitties eat more than 2,000 types of crittersâincluding some endangered ones. In Australia, cats kill an estimated 300 million animals every year. Of the birds, mammals, insects, and reptiles they eat, 17% are of conservation concern, prompting some towns in Germany and New Zealand to keep their house cats insideâ¦or consider getting rid of all the feral ones. ð« Weâre one step closer to ending morning sickness. A hormone produced by fetuses causes many pregnant people to suffer from severe nausea and vomiting. But scientists think they may have [found the solution]( to this common ailment. At the Maternity Hospital in Cambridge, England, patients with lower preexisting levels of the hormone GDF15 had more severe pregnancy sickness, while those with higher levels didnât experience much nausea or vomiting once pregnant, according to researchers. This discovery indicates that reducing a personâs sensitivity to GDF15 by exposing them to it before pregnancy could effectively prevent them from getting ill while carrying.âML  TOGETHER WITH THE POINTS GUY [The Points Guy]( Case in point. Are you cashing in your credit card points for holiday travel? Those benefits could be changing soon. The [Credit Card Competition Act of 2023]( may cause issuers to cut back rewards programs. The good news: You can still make your voice heard. Learn how from [The Points Guy](.  NEWS ANALYSIS  [Why Nicaraguaâs dictator is so mad about Miss Universe](
[Miss Universe 2023]( alliance/Getty Images The Nicaraguan government, helmed by authoritarian leader Daniel Ortega, appears to be in meltdown mode over the results of an international beauty pageant. How it started: When Sheynnis Palacios, aka Miss Nicaragua, recently became the first woman from the country to be crowned Miss Universe, the government expressed âlegitimate joy and pride.â How itâs going: Things turned ugly when the government later claimed that Palaciosâs win was part of an insidious conspiracy against Nicaragua. The governmentâs mood likely soured after photos surfaced of Palacios at a mass protest against President Ortegaâs regime in 2018. And worse, Karen Celebertti, the head of the Miss Nicaragua pageant (which propelled Palacios to her universal triumph), resigned this week after getting charged with treason. Celebertti is currently staying abroad after not being allowed to reenter the country, but her husband and son, who were reportedly involved in the family business, have been detained on accusations of conspiring with her to rig the beauty contest and aid a foreign-sponsored coup. Why is Ortega so worked up over a pageant queen? The 78-year-old former left-wing revolutionary and current president has been tightening his grip on power ever since he assumed office in 2007. But Ortegaâs fears of dissent went into overdrive after the 2018 protests over social security reforms he initiated. Those rallies were brutally suppressed, leaving over 320 people dead. Thereâs no question that the then-teenaged Palacios was in a crowd of citizens fed up with Ortegaâs rule. Since-deleted protest photos posted on her Facebook profile made the rounds on social media last month after she became Nicaraguaâs first Miss Universe. Many Nicaraguans living in the country and in exile took her newly gained global beauty queen status as validation of the anti-Ortega resistance cause. In a region where beauty contests are often a public obsession, itâs customary for pageant fans to celebrate a Miss Universe crowning with fanfare in the streets. But in Nicaragua, the festivities were infused with political defiance. - Carousing crowds displayed the forbidden blue-and-white national flag that typically serves as a protest of Ortegaâs party banner.
- Some pageant observers believed that Palacios made an allusion to that flag when she donned a white dress with a blue cape at the Miss Universe ceremony held in El Salvador. Nicaraguaâs First Lady Rosario Murillo called the social media buzz about Palaciosâs victory being an anti-government victory âdestructive coup-mongeringâ by âevil, terrorist commentators.â This is not an isolated incident in Ortegaâs Nicaragua The government has been rooting out perceived threats for years. Nicaraguan sociologist Elvira Cuadra, who now lives in exile, told the Guardian that her home country has turned into a âpolice state.â Thereâs been a harsh crackdown on the Catholic Church in retaliation for some Catholic leaders providing refuge to protesters, and half of the nationâs universities have been shut down after being branded cradles of dissent. Dozens of dissidents have been jailed and thousands more have fled the country, while many prominent critics were stripped of their citizenship and sent abroad. Whether Palacios herself will be allowed to return to Nicaragua is unclear, as sheâs been traveling internationally in recent weeks. In her absence, authorities temporarily seized some of her pageant garments and accouterments taken from Karen Celeberttiâs home. But it isnât just Palacios or her pageant circuit colleagues who have dealt with the wrath of the Ortega regime. In a reflection of the countryâs curbs on freedom of expression, a popular TikToker who defended the new Miss Universe has been detained. And two artists who were in the middle of creating a mural dedicated to her were ordered by the police to paint over it. Itâs happened beforeâ¦Nicaraguan journalist Arturo McFields [points out]( that this is not the first instance of an authoritarian regime feeling threatened by the popular appeal of a renegade beauty queen: The 2015 Miss Canada, Anastasia Lin, was banned from competing in that yearâs Miss World pageant in China due to her political views. Itâs not even a first for Nicaragua. McFields explained how, in 1979, Nicaraguan Miss Universe contestant Patricia Pineda was forced to return home without competing after her family received death threats from the government.âSK  BREW'S BEST  #
[To-do list graphic] Cook: [Baked mac and cheese]( for a holiday crowd-pleaser. Read: Looking for a short but heartwarming read? Check out [The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry]( from the author of Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow. Listen: Orville Peckâs [music]( evokes the sounds of country legends Kenny Rogers and Willie Nelson. Art rec: The funniest little New Yorker-style animal [cartoons](. Watch: In honor of the great Andre Baugher, who died on Dec. 11, watch (or rewatch) his comedic [genius]( in Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Gift guide: In case you missed it, hereâs our list of [50 gift ideas]( in every price range. Gift doctor-approved pleasure: This year, give her the doctor-recommended [Crescendo 2]( vibrator. Itâs clinically proven to improve arousal and alleviate dryness, and you can [save 30% today]( *A message from our sponsor. Â DESTINATIONS Â [Place to be: The North Pole](#)
[Buddy the Elf]Elf/Warner Bros. Itâs a big world out there. In this section, weâll teleport you to an interesting locationâand hopefully give you travel ideas in the process. Thereâs only one destination on the minds of savvy tourists right nowâthe North Pole. If youâre traveling to Santaâs hometown, learning the cultural norms and practices is essential so you donât upset the locals. Hereâs some advice to help you enjoy the winter wonderland. If you arrive on Dec. 24, the bad news is Santa will already be out delivering toys. But the good news is that [NORAD tracks his sleigh]( as it flies around the globe, which means you can be assured heâs very far away while you rummage through his house uninvited. Hang out behind the workshop. You know how donut places will throw away excess inventory? The same applies to Santaâs workshop. Wait to see if the elves dump any garbage bags full of electronics and toys that donât have a destination because of last-second naughty list updates. If you get there before Santa leaves for his one day of work per year, bother him for autographs all you want. Heâs not that busy. It doesnât take much energy to loom over the factory floor like heâs Elon Musk II. Elves are people. If you encounter Santaâs unpaid laborers at a bar unwinding with a hot cocoa after a long day, donât be the millionth person to ask about Buddy. Buddy is not real. He is fictional. The elves are realâ¦real sick of that question. You wouldnât walk into a boxing gym and ask about Rocky Balboa. Respect the elves. Please do not bother Superman. Yeah, he lives there, too. But itâs the Fortress of Solitude, not the Fortress of Asking For Selfies. You donât want to be bothered when youâre out of the office during the holidays, and the same applies to Kal-El.âDL  COMMUNITY  [Crowd work](#) Last week, we asked: Whatâs the strangest thing youâve experienced at a work holiday party? Here are our favorite responses: - âAround eight employees at the Bakersfield, CA, office got hammered at the holiday party and spontaneously decided to drive out to Vegas for the weekend. Nothing too crazy happened in Vegas beyond gambling and drinking, but they all arrived back in the office the following Monday having driven straight back from Vegas, still wearing the same (very rumpled) clothes from the holiday party.ââAnonymous
- âAt a small startup, our offices were in a rented space and we were expanding, which meant that there was going to be a wall torn down between our current office and the space we were expanding into. Our COO/HR/founder got drunk and used everything in sight, including his body and head, to break down the wall in true masculine fashion. Iâm glad I donât work there anymore.ââJess from Prague, Czech Republic
- âWe hosted a holiday party and had a psychic who told every other person that the tarot cards said they should quit their jobs.ââDanielle from Blythe, CA
- âMy wife (my +1) left early, not feeling well. I didnât think much of it. She called five minutes later saying she was having the taxi take her to the ER. I left in a panic. My CEO happened to be taking the same elevator down to leaveâ¦and he ended up joining me at the emergency room for my wifeâs kidney stone for a few hours. Called for some good next-day stories at the office.ââScott from Chicago, IL This weekâs prompt Set a realistic New Yearâs resolution for someone other than yourself. Mattyâs response to get the juices flowing: âMy sisterâs resolution should be to actually read the stories in the Morning Brew newsletter, not just scroll down to the games like she normally does.â [Share your response here](.  SHARE THE BREW  # [Share Morning Brew]( with your friends, acquire free Brew swag, and then acquire more friends as a result of your fresh Brew swag. Weâre saying weâll give you free stuff and more friends if you share a link. One link. Your referral count: 0 [Click to Share]( Or copy & paste your referral link to others:
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