In this issue of The Upworthiest, Cecily Knobler shares what happened when a documentarian spotted a Navy veteran's hat in a diner and asked its 104-year-old owner one question. Then: older Redditors list the 17 truths about aging nobody warned them about, people paid to read strangers reveal what gives you away in 10 seconds, and researchers name the one phrase that grinds arguments to a halt.
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104-year-old Navy veteran shares her surprising secret to staying young: ‘Skippy peanut butter’ | ||
“With all that is wrong in the world…this is just the warmth and love we need…perfect balance to an imbalanced world.” | ||
By Cecily Knobler | ||
If one is lucky enough to make it to 104-years-old, they will most certainly have a layered story to tell. For Ella, a centenarian sitting in a diner, it was no different. So when storytelling documentarian, Kara Lewis, noticed a woman wearing a US Navy veteran’s hat, she approached her in the hopes that she’d share her life story. | ||
In a video clip posted to Kara’s Instagram page (and re-making the rounds elsewhere), we see her approaching the elderly woman. “Excuse me,” Kara begins. “I don’t mean to interrupt you guys, but I document stories online. And I saw her hat. I was super curious and interested if there’s maybe something you would be willing to share about your life.” | ||
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Older people agree that no one is ‘prepared’ for these 17 harsh truths about aging | ||
Someone asked Reddit: “What’s a truth about aging that no one prepared you for?” and thousands of people answered. | ||
By Tod Perry | ||
Many of us feel invincible when we are young, believing we can control the aging process so that we’ll always stay forever young, as Bob Dylan once sang. But there’s a moment when everyone realizes aging is an inevitable process and that, eventually, we will have to deal with a slow decline in our physical and, quite possibly, mental capabilities. | ||
This realization and understanding that we won’t be here forever can profoundly change one’s perspective on life. Even though aging is inevitable, studies show how we think about the process can significantly impact our longevity. People with a positive view of aging live an average of 7.5 years longer than those without. | ||
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The dad in the background watching his little girl’s future unfold. “One day that’s gonna be me and you.” 😭
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People who ‘read’ others for a living share what they can pick up on about someone in 10 seconds | ||
“I’m a teacher. It is INCREDIBLY obvious which kids have unregulated Algorithm time and which do not.” | ||
By Tod Perry | ||
As you gain experience in a job, you develop strong gut feelings about your profession. Whether it’s the work you do or the people you work with, you learn to read situations before they happen because you’ve seen the same scenario play out time and time again. | ||
This gut feeling can transform into an innate ability to read people because you’ve seen a version of them thousands of times before—whether it’s dealing with salespeople, students, customers, patrons at a bar or restaurant, or patients in a healthcare space. | ||
Recently, a Redditor asked on the Ask Reddit subforum, “People whose job is to read strangers for a living (poker dealers, bartenders, TSA agents, loss prevention): what’s the tell you clock in the first 10 seconds that people don’t realize they’re broadcasting?” | ||
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An Upworthiest Quiz
Botanically speaking, what is a peanut?
Yesterday's Results
In yesterday's issue, we shared an American trying to order Olive Garden-style chicken parm in Italy.
And we asked: Which of these dishes is an Italian-American classic rather than a traditional Italian dish? A whopping 83.9% of you got it: spaghetti and meatballs. The familiar dish grew up in Italian-American kitchens rather than on the old-country menu.
Spaghetti and meatballs (83.9%) 🏆
Cacio e pepe (3.4%)
Risotto alla Milanese (2.7%)
Pasta alla Norma (10.0%)
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Conflict experts share the 1 phrase to stop an argument before things get out of control | ||
Here’s how to stop it before it starts. | ||
By Tod Perry | ||
Has getting into a heated argument with your significant other, a coworker, or a child ever solved anything? Probably not. Heated arguments often lead people down the dark path of personal attacks, animosity, and getting so riled up that they stop making sense altogether. However, conflict is a natural and healthy part of our daily lives, so it can be very productive when we know how to have productive disagreements. | ||
“If no one ever argues, you’re not likely to give up on old ways of doing things, let alone try new ones. Disagreement is the antidote to groupthink,” organizational psychologist Adam Grant said, according to Psychology Today. “We’re at our most imaginative when we’re out of sync.” So the big question is, how do we prevent heated arguments from happening and steer them to more productive territory instead? | ||
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