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We tried the facial workout that Meghan Markle and other celebrities drop hundreds of dollars on — and we were shocked by the results

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meghan markle

  • Meghan Markle is a fan of facial workouts, which some say provides the same results as a face-lift — without surgery.
  • FaceGym, which hails from the UK, recently opened three locations in the United States, offering a "non-invasive workout" for your face.
  • Founder Inge Theron told Glossy that the company plans to also build an app offering Peloton-style live workouts for the face. 

Facial exercising is the latest beauty trend to take off.

This new service claims to replicate the effects of a face-lift, but without the needle, using kneading movements to strengthen muscles, improve lymph flow, and boost circulation.

Meghan Markle is vocal about being a fan of facial workouts. In a 2014 interview, she told Birchbox that she does these exercises with UK-based aesthetician Nicola Joss. 

Read more:Meghan Markle swears by this aesthetician's 'facial exercises' to get such sculpted cheekbones — and she shares her techniques on Instagram

On her website, Joss explains that her sculpting facial, which costs £250 (around $330), massages from inside the mouth to tone and firm the facial muscles.

"I swear it works," Markle told Birchbox. "On the days I do it, my cheekbones and jawline are way more sculpted. There's a reason she is in high demand around awards season when every actress wants to look A-plus."

The service is increasingly becoming more mainstream as new salons pop up.

FaceGym is one of them. This UK-headquartered facial-salon chain recently launched in the United States, and it now has three locations in the country. 

In a recent interview with Glossy, FaceGym founder Inge Theron said the company is looking to expand in the US, grow revenue to $14 million for 2019, and build an app that offers Peloton-style live workouts.

"We are highly aware that we have to break out of the [physical studios] if we want to be a global and massive player quickly," she told Glossy. "We need to expand outside of brick-and-mortar through product and allow customers who are regulars at studios to take FaceGym home with them."

We went to try out its new location in Noho to see what all the fuss is about:

SEE ALSO: Saks Fifth Avenue is launching a skincare service that Meghan Markle swears by

FaceGym offers several different services, costing between $70 for the 30-minute signature facial and $275 for more expensive facials that include radio-frequency treatments.

Radio frequency is designed to heat the skin tissue and stimulate collagen production to reduce the appearance of lines and tighten the skin.



We chose the "signature" facial and opted for a "medium" strength of massage.



At the start, we were asked to describe our skin type, which enabled the aesthetician to select the appropriate serum.

These serums target brightening, lifting, and skin clarity.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Every time I wear this unisex fragrance, someone tells me I smell good

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The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase.

Lake and Skye 11 11

  • 11 11, a fragrance by Lake & Skye, is a blend of musk and white amber inspired by numerology and Kundalini yoga.
  • The scent has reached cult-favorite status, with a 100 percent reorder rate from over 40 retailers who carry the product.
  • Its compliment-worthy blend is unisex, devoid of overtly feminine florals and the spicy-soapy scent that characterizes many men's colognes, and wearable for all.

I'll admit it: I was first drawn to Lake & Skye's 11 11 perfume oil because of the name. A series of repeating ones is said to be a sign from the universe, a call to listen to your intuition; and as a fan of numerology (and, let's be honest, pretty much anything within the woo-woo world of magical, mystical delights), it just spoke to me. I imagined rolling 11 11 on my wrists and neck and instantly becoming a Stevie Nicks-esque bohemian; someone who only wore white gypsy dresses and sang to the full moon. And this was before I even smelled it.

It turns out, I wasn't that far off from the creator's original vision: The scent was inspired by the teachings of Kundalini yoga and the color white. (Tell me that doesn't conjure a clear image.) "While I was in the process of creating this business, I had recently completed my teacher training for Kundalini yoga which is an intense, amazing experience," Courtney Somer, the founder of Lake & Skye, tells Business Insider. "It included a study on numerology and the understanding of the energies of color — when we created the fragrance, it came together quickly with really no variations."

But where the aesthetic — the name, the minimalist-chic bottle — caught my attention, the scent is what sold me. A warm blend of musk and white ambers, 11 11 is the type of mysterious, can't-put-my-finger-on-it fragrance that smells different (yet divine) on everyone it touches. "I describe it as sheer and uplifting, with an ethereal vibe," Somer says. It's earthy but elevated, subtle but sexy.

At $48 for .33 fluid ounces of oil or $98 for 1.7 fluid ounces of eau de parfum, the fragrance isn't exactly cheap — so I held off on purchasing my own bottle for a while, opting instead to roll on the tester every time I entered a boutique that carried 11 11.

I should've known the compliments I'd garner while wearing 11 11 would be more than enough to justify the purchase. Once I finally got my hands ona roller-ball of my own, I dabbed it on my wrists and behind my ears every morning — and it was almost as if it magically transformed me into an "it girl."

"Oooh, you smell so good," random strangers purred.

"I love your perfume!" a woman standing in line behind me at the coffee shop would inevitably exclaim.

"What are you wearing?" old friends asked when I went in for a hug. "I need that!"

"Can I try it?" That one came from my husband, because, yes, 11 11 is unisex.

I think that's part of the reason I'm so drawn to this scent. Without overtly feminine floral notes or that spicy-soapy scent profile that characterizes most men's colognes, Lake & Skye's cult-favorite fragrance defies gender. "I love that it turned out to be unisex," Somer says, even though that wasn't necessarily by design. "The intention was to create a killer scent — that it is not gender-specific is an added bonus."

That versatility no doubt plays a role in the commercial success of the brand and this perfume, in particular. Lake & Skye, which launched just a few years ago in 2015, became profitable in its first year of business — with sales doubling in every subsequent year. You can currently find 11 11 in over 40 stores and e-tailers within the US, including Birchbox and Amazon, and that number is only going go grow in 2019 since the 11 11 rollerball oil has 100% reorder rate from retailers.

Also on the horizon for the year ahead? An expanded product range — which, rumor has it, will include more ways to enjoy the buzzed-about scent (currently, it's available as an oil, eau de parfum, and soy-based candle) — and a foray into to the European market.

Despite all of that expansion, I doubt 11 11 will ever become as ubiquitous as, say, Santal 33. The latter, a perfume from Le Labo with a cult-like following, went from "ruggedly cool to utterly basic,"according to Fashionista, after (literally) everyone and their mother bought into the hype and wore the fragrance to death — but it stands to reason that Lake & Skye's attempt at cult classic will gracefully sidestep a similar fate. How?

It all comes down to the fact that 11 11 is fluid, transformative, open to interpretation — on me, it feels light and angelic. On my husband, it's warm and musky. Essentially, it's the perfect complement to pretty much anyone's natural scent.

Somer agrees that 11 11 adapts to suit your vibe, whatever that is. "Fragrance is such a personal thing, and people really feel this is ‘their smell,'" she says. "I also have a lot of customers that don't like perfume but wear this — it's unique in that way."

Buy the Lake & Skye 11 11 Roller-ball Fragrance Oil for $48 from Amazon or Birchbox

Join the conversation about this story »

5 reasons to take advantage of Southwest Airlines' unheard-of Companion Pass deal right now

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The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider may receive a commission from The Points Guy Affiliate Network.

Southwest Airlines 737

  • When you open a new personal Southwest credit card, you can earn the best-ever sign-up bonus offered for the cards: 30,000 points and an unlimited Companion Pass, which is valid for travel through 2019. Hurry, though; this offer ends on February 11.
  • The Companion Pass lets you designate a companion, and book a free ticket for them any time you travel (you'll just have to pay taxes and fees, which are usually $5.60 each way).
  • From unlocking weekends away and mini vacations, to cutting costs for weddings and family events, read on for a few of the best use cases for the Companion Pass.
  • There are three personal Southwest credit cards, but our pick for the best one is the Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card; take a look here for an in-depth look at all of the options.

For a very limited time, Southwest is offering its best-ever sign-up bonus when you open one if its personal credit cards: you'll earn a free, unlimited Companion Pass for the rest of 2019, plus 30,000 miles when you spend $4,000 in the first three months.

The Companion Pass is the "holy grail" of the frequent flyer, cheap travel, and travel rewards worlds. If you've never heard of it, you're in for a treat. 

When you have Southwest's Companion Pass, you can pick a travel companion — a friend, a significant other, a child, or anyone else — and bring them along on any flight you take. They'll just have to pay taxes and fees, which start at $5.60 each way for domestic flights, and generally top out at $25-30.

In other words, when you have a Companion Pass, you can get unlimited two-for-one flights on Southwest for the rest of 2019. 

Best of all, that applies to any flight you book, whether you pay cash or use Southwest's Rapid Rewards miles. The 30,000 miles that come with the sign-up bonus should be enough to book yourself a free round-trip for two, using the Companion Pass (plus $5.60 each for each flight).

Two-for-one flights sounds great, but it can come in particularly useful over the course of the year depending on your personal situation. Below, take a look at a few ways that you might be able to take advantage of the Companion Pass to save money on travel you were already planning — or to unlock vacations that wouldn't have been possible otherwise.

Click here to learn more about the Southwest Priority Card from Insider Picks' partner: The Points Guy.

Scenario 1: Use wedding planning to help subsidize your honeymoon

Most of the time when you open a new credit card, there's a minimum amount that you have to spend in a certain amount of time in order to get a sign-up bonus. In this case, that's $4,000 within three months of the day you submit your application.

Generally, you shouldn't spend money that you wouldn't otherwise in order to hit a minimum spending requirement. If you wouldn't normally spend enough to hit the amount, there are still a few different ways to make sure you get the bonus.

If you're in the middle of planning your wedding for 2019, though, hitting the minimum spend can be a piece of cake. Just pay any vendor deposits or balances with the credit card. This is money you were going to spend anyway, and you can avoid interest by paying the card off right away from your wedding budget. 

Then, once you get the Companion Pass, you can use it to book honeymoon flights on Southwest. The airline flies all over the United States, and to destinations in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America — Southwest also plans to begin flying to Hawaii, although the start date hasn't been announced.

Just remember that the pass is only valid until the end of this year, so if you're planning your honeymoon for 2020, this won't be the best option for you.

Scenario 2: Save money flying to friends' weddings

For people in their 20s and 30s, it can feel you spend roughly 100% of your weekends at weddings. Don't get me wrong, weddings are a lot of fun, but if you live far from home or your friends have scattered all around the country, that can mean a lot of money spent on flights and hotels.

If you have a significant other, the Companion Pass offers a way to cut your flight expenses in half for the rest of the year's out-of-town weddings. 

Just wait until you hit get the Pass before booking your flights. Then, go ahead and book two people's flights for the price of one.

This is Insider Picks' senior editor Ellen Hoffman's plan. She (or her boyfriend Jeff — they're figuring it out) plan to open the card before the promotion ends, and use the Companion Pass to fly to a bunch of weddings and family events later this year.

Learn more: Southwest Airlines is running an unprecedented deal on its Companion Pass — here's how to earn and use it

Scenario 3: Get a major discount on college visits

If your high schooler is looking to go out-of-state for college, you might have a lot of travel ahead of you. Weekends visiting college campuses for tours and interviews can add up, so using the Companion Pass can help you save on flights, at least.

When you have a Companion Pass, you can't use it for a different person each time; you have to designate your companion. If your 2019 has a lot of college tours coming up, one parent can earn the pass, and assign their future collegiate as their companion. That should help cut down on expenses.

Scenario 4: Save money when family members are scattered around the country

It's a common scenario among older millennials and Gen X-ers — you're settling down somewhere far away from where you grew up. Your parents are a few states away, aunts and uncles are on another coast, and cousins are even further away. That means that every time you see family, whether for holidays, birthdays, or something else, there's a long trip involved. Now double that if your significant other is in the same boat.

With the Companion Pass, you'll at least be able to cut air expenses. One half of the couple can earn the pass, and designate their partner as the companion.

Learn more: Plus, Premier, or Priority: We break down which Southwest Airlines credit card gets flyers the most value

Scenario 5: Take a bunch of short and last-minute mini vacations

If this is a fairly light year for you — free of weddings, family reunions, or college trips — you can take advantage of the Companion Pass to spend the year enjoying weekends away with your designated buddy.

Southwest fares tend to be competitive as it is, so this is a great way to stretch your travel budget and experience a year that might be unaffordable otherwise. Look for Airbnbs to keep costs down, or splurge on nicer hotels and resorts for special trips.

Bottom line

The Southwest Companion Pass is one of the best deals available in the travel world. Usually, you have to earn 110,000 miles or take 100 flights in a calendar year to earn it, but with this deal, it's as simple as opening a credit card and meeting the spending requirements.

Click here to learn more about the Southwest Priority Card from Insider Picks' partner: The Points Guy.

SEE ALSO: I've had the Southwest Companion Pass, and it's a game changer for family vacations — you can get one now easier than ever before

Join the conversation about this story »

5 easy ways to learn a foreign language as an adult

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man woman phone

  • Learning a foreign language as an adult is challenging, but there are ways you can easily enhance the process. 
  • Here are five strategies you can employ to help you learn a new language more efficiently.  

You've likely heard that learning a new language is easier for children than it is for adults. But all hope is not lost for grown-ups looking to expand their linguistic knowledge.

While a recent MIT study did pinpoint 17.4 years as the cut-off for obtaining a native-like mastery of another language's grammar structure, the results of the same study suggest that people over the age of eighteen can definitely still learn a foreign language quickly – they just may not achieve the same native-like proficiency.

It is also important to remember that children are not inherently better learners than their adult counterparts: the two groups just learn very differently, and, in fact, there are a few ways that adults can outperform children in language acquisition based on their longer and more robust life experiences.

If you're a person over the age of eighteen determined to learn a foreign language, read on for five easy strategies you can employ today:

SEE ALSO: I was a PC diehard for most of my life, but I now own Apple products across the board. Here's why I made the change and stuck with it

1. Use an app

From the popular gamifications of Duolingo and Mindsnacks to the more traditional curriculums offered in Busuu and Babbel, downloadable language-learning apps abound. These apps offer bite-size vocabulary and grammar lessons at your fingertips, and many of them are free or extremely low-cost.

Be sure to check out the specific features that each app offers: for example, many of the programs allow you to set daily time goals directly within the platform or connect with other learners and native speakers via chat if you have questions.



2. Practice in your community

After you master your vocabulary and memorize grammar rules, take your knowledge out into the world around you. Try asking what the platos del día are the next time you visit your favorite papusa joint, or order that pirozhki fromthe Russian bakery in Russian.

Not only is this a great way to put your knowledge into practice, you'll also build relationships with people in your community that can lead to continued and nuanced learning. 



3. Join a language exchange program

Language exchange programs pair up people in the hopes that they can teach each other their native languages through conversation. When I participated in an intercambio (exchange) program while living in Spain, I talked to my partner using only my intermediate Spanish skills, while she spoke to me only in English. This face-to-face set up allowed us to correct the other person when she used the wrong word or verb tense in real time.

What's more, the kinds of conversations that arose during our time together tended to be much more casual and natural than the conversations I was having in my college-level Spanish class that I was taking concurrently, which led to my partner and I teaching each other colloquialisms from our respective homes.  



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Washington Attorney General accuses LuLaRoe of operating an illegal 'pyramid scheme' in new lawsuit

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LuLaRoe DeAnne Stidham

  • The Washington state attorney general alleged in a new lawsuit that LuLaRoe is an illegal "pyramid scheme."
  • The suit, filed Wednesday, accused LuLaRoe of operating an "illegal pyramid," making misleading income claims, and encouraging its consultants to focus more on recruitment than selling clothes to customers.
  • "LuLaRoe tricked consumers into buying into its pyramid scheme with deceptive claims of high profits and refunds for unsold merchandise," Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement.
  • Business Insider reported in December that the Washington attorney general's office was investigating LuLaRoe. 

The Washington state attorney general has filed a lawsuit against LuLaRoe alleging that the multilevel marketing company is an illegal "pyramid scheme."

LuLaRoe CEO Mark Stidham and president DeAnne Stidham are among the defendants named in the suit, which was filed in King County Superior Court on Wednesday. 

The suit accused LuLaRoe of operating an "illegal pyramid," making misleading income claims, and encouraging its consultants to focus more on recruitment than selling clothes to customers, among other charges. 

"Defendants market the LuLaRoe MLM as a transformational, empowering opportunity to achieve dreams and achieve financial freedom while providing a flexible and part-time alternative to traditional employment," the suit said, according to a copy of the 21-page complaint obtained by Business Insider.

"In reality, LuLaRoe's pyramid scheme business model and compensation plan, and its corresponding marketing activities dictated that during any particular time, a majority of Washington Consultants lost money."

Read more: LuLaRoe is facing mounting debt, layoffs, and an exodus of top sellers, and sources say the $2.3 billion legging empire could be imploding

LuLaRoe and the Stidhams did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit.

Business Insider reported in December that the Washington attorney general's office was investigating LuLaRoe and was helping to secure refunds — some worth thousands of dollars — for former LuLaRoe sellers residing in Washington.

The Washington attorney general is demanding that a court permanently prohibit LuLaRoe, the Stidhams, and their employees from continuing certain business practices. The suit is also asking that a court assess fines against the company for violations of which it is accused and seek restitution for people impacted by the company's conduct.

"LuLaRoe tricked consumers into buying into its pyramid scheme with deceptive claims of high profits and refunds for unsold merchandise," Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement issued two hours after this story's publication. "Instead, many Washingtonians lost money and were left with piles of unsold merchandise and broken promises from LuLaRoe. It's time to hold LuLaRoe accountable for its deception."

There are fewer than 2,000 active LuLaRoe consultants in Washington, down from a peak of 3,500, according to Ferguson's office. Most Washington consultants reported less than $10,000 in total profits from their LuLaRoe business, and nearly one-third of consultants reported losses, the office said.    

Ferguson's complaint cites several instances in which LuLaRoe executives are accused of making claims about income and lifestyle, such as promising full-time income for part-time work.

Read more: LuLaRoe founder says the company is 'starting over' amid seller exodus and looming $63 million legal battle

In one such example, DeAnne Stidham is accused of telling consultants, "I mean I could blow your, your mind away by telling you that we have over 100 people that make a lot of money, like between $50,000 to $500,000 a month, and I'm not lying," the suit said.

The complaint also alleged that Stidham on several occasions asked top consultants to publicly share their bonus checks at company events. A photo included in the suit shows the Stidhams posing with a husband-and-wife consultant team and holding a giant check worth $1.4 million. 

Read more: LuLaRoe supplier files new demand for immediate seizure of $34 million and alleges the company is quietly liquidating goods

"While Defendants sometimes provide disclaimers when making these and other income or lifestyle claims, their attempts are inadequate," the suit said.

Ferguson's complaint further alleged that annual income-disclosure statements published to LuLaRoe's website are misleading and the company failed to post a disclosure statement last year.

The complaint also attacked LuLaRoe's minimum-ordering requirement, saying it forced consultants to buy large amounts of clothing that they could not sell within a reasonable time frame.

This practice, known as inventory loading, is "unfair and deceptive," Ferguson's office said in a press release. 

In addition to this lawsuit, LuLaRoe is also facing a $63 million lawsuit from its chief supplier, Providence Industries, which alleges the clothing company has failed to pay its bills for months. LuLaRoe has denied the claims in the lawsuit.

SEE ALSO: LuLaRoe is facing mounting debt, layoffs, and an exodus of top sellers, and sources say the $2.3 billion legging empire could be imploding

Join the conversation about this story »

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Michael D'Antonio reveals Donald Trump's 'strange' morning ritual that boosts his ego

The 13 top power couples in tech

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Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan

  • Tech industry leaders are dating — and married to — prominent venture capitalists, models, athletes, and other powerful people.
  • Here are 13 of the most powerful couples in tech.

Kanye West may have said it best in his song "Power" when he sings, "no one man should have all that power." That's where these prominent, high-profile couples come in.

While some tech leaders like Mark Zuckerberg have been with their partners since college, some notable figures in the tech sector have gravitated toward partners with just as much power and pull in their industries. 

There have also been some high-profile splits in the last year that have hit some prominent tech leaders. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and his wife, MacKenzie, announced in early January that they were getting a divorce. Tesla's CEO Elon Musk and Canadian singer Grimes dated for a while, though it's unclear whether the on-again off-again couple was still together come 2019.

Here are 13 of the top power couples in the tech industry:

Evan Spiegel & Miranda Kerr

Who they are: Spiegel is the cofounder and CEO of Snap Inc., Snapchat's parent company. Kerr is one of the highest-earning models in the world and founder of wellness company KORA Organics.

Their backstory: The couple started dating in 2015, and got married in May 2017. They have one son who was born in May 2018.

Read more: A year after their wedding, Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel and supermodel Miranda Kerr welcome their first baby, Hart. Here's a look inside their whirlwind romance.



Joshua Kushner & Karlie Kloss

Who they are: Kushner is the founder of VC firm Thrive Capital and cofounder of health insurance startup Oscar Health. Kloss is a prominent model who runs coding camps for young girls called "Kode with Klossy."

Their backstory: Kloss and Kushner have reportedly been dating since 2012. The couple got married in October 2018.

Read more:Jared Kushner's brother has married model Karlie Kloss. Here's everything we know about the power couple.



Priscilla Chan & Mark Zuckerberg

Who they are: Zuckerberg is the CEO and cofounder of Facebook. Together, the couple launched the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, a philanthropy focused on science and education.

Their backstory: The two are college sweethearts, and met in 2003 while they were students at Harvard University. The couple were married in a surprise ceremony in May 2012, the day after Facebook went public. The couple has two daughters, who were born in 2015 and 2017.

Read more:The 12-year relationship of college sweethearts Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Here's how to access a Super Bowl live stream online

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how to stream the superbowl

  • The Super Bowl will be held on Sunday, February 3, 2019 at 6:30 PM.
  • Tom Brady and the New England Patriots dynasty will face off in their fourth Super Bowl of the past five years against Sean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams.  
  • The game is being televised by CBS, but if you've already cut the cord and are worried about how you'll be able to tune in, don't fret. The game will be available on subscription services like CBS All Access, YouTube TV, and Hulu with Live TV, but is also being streamed for free on CBS Sports' website without any cable authentication. 
  • You can download the CBSSports app to stream the game for free directly onto your television via Roku, Amazon Fire TV Stick, Apple TV and Google Chromecast devices. 

The Super Bowl is one of the best days of the year in sports because there is something for everyone.

At the top of the totem pole are fans of the playing teams. Personally, I am a Detroit Lions fan, so I am not exactly sure what that feels like, but I could imagine it is pretty awesome to watch your team compete on the biggest stage in the entire world. Next is the casual NFL or sports fan that enjoys the storylines within the game, and this year's matchup is chock-full of fascinating story lines between the players, coaches, and franchises involved. After that group are the people who love the camaraderie of the event, like the commercials and halftime show, which have developed into their own subculture. Finally, there is the group of individuals who are completely uninterested in what is happening on the television screen, and are instead focused on making sure they get their fair share of the vat of guacamole and buffalo wings in the kitchen.

LA Rams

Make sure you don't miss out on the festivities on February 3 by securing how, exactly, you are going to live-stream the big game. If you've already signed up for streaming services like CBS All Access, Hulu with Live TV, and YouTube TV, you can find the game there. 

Additionally, because it is such a major worldwide event, CBSSports will be streaming the game for free online, as well as within their different TV apps. There are several different options to get the CBSSports Super Bowl live stream onto your television. The network's app is available on Roku, Amazon Fire TV Stick, Apple TV and Google Chromecast devices, making it easier than ever to find a way to watch. 

Tom Brady celebration

This game could be a huge turning point for the league at large. Is it the last leg of the New England Patriot's awe-inspiring dynasty? Is it the start of a new dynasty in Los Angeles under 33-year old head coaching wizard Sean McVay and 2016 number one overall pick Jared Goff? Will Tom Brady finally reveal himself as a deity sent down to earth to zip footballs into the arms of his teammates? All will be answered on February 3, so make sure you figure out how to employ one of the methods listed above to access the Super Bowl live stream. 

Buy the Roku Express HD Streaming Media Player for $29 from Amazon

Buy the Amazon Fire TV Stick for $49.99 from Amazon

Buy the Apple TV 4K for $179 from Best Buy

Buy the Google Chromecast Streaming Media Player for $35 from Best Buy

Join the conversation about this story »


MOGUL MANSIONS: From Elon Musk to Jeff Bezos, here are the homes and estates owned by the wealthiest people in tech

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elon Musk house 4_3

  • Many tech moguls have modest beginnings, developing their businesses in garages and sleeping at their offices. But don't be fooled: Many of tech's billionaires now have million-dollar homes and private islands. 
  • Oracle founder Larry Ellison bought 98% of an island in Hawaii for $600 million, while Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg has a habit of buying up properties surrounding his homes for maximum privacy. 
  • Some CEOs, however, have stuck to their roots: Apple's Tim Cook lives in a relatively modest 2,400-square-foot home in Palo Alto, California.
  • Here's a look at the mansions and estates of tech's elite. 

Nearly a fifth of the world's 100 richest billionaires made their fortune in tech. And although some of their success stories start off modestly (and most likely in a garage), many tech moguls are taking their millions and splurging on real estate. 

For instance, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Microsoft's Bill Gates live less than a mile from each other in the waterfront city of Medina, Washington, and own two of the country's most expensive estates. 

Los Angeles is also another popular spot for tech moguls: Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and his wife, Miranda Kerr, bought their Brentwood home overlooking the city for $12 million, while Elon Musk's Bel Air abode boasts seven bedrooms, a giant screening room, and a tennis court. 

Here's a look at some of the homes of the tech industry's elite: 

SEE ALSO: San Francisco prices are so out of control that one hotel is charging the equivalent of $21.25 for a cup of coffee during a JPMorgan conference

Just outside of Seattle is the waterfront mansion of Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon. In the front, there's not much to see, with the gate and tall hedges blocking the view.

Bezos and his family, which is the richest in the world, live in the tiny city of Medina, Washington, located just outside of Seattle. The sleepy town has long been a haven for tech bigwigs in the area, including Bill Gates and other Microsoft elites. 

Source: Business Insider, Business Insider



Bezos in 1998 paid $10 million for the estate, which spans 5.3 acres and includes a 20,000-square-foot house, plus a second 8,300-square-foot dwelling.

The property then underwent a $28 million renovation in 2010, around which time Bezos bought the neighboring 24,000-square-foot house, which was rumored to have sold for at least $53 million.



The Amazon leader's estate is a big change from where he started the company: in the garage of his home in Bellevue, Washington, near Seattle seen here in 2013.

But Bezos' Medina home is not the only property he owns, because, well, he is the richest man in the world. 

Bezos also owns properties in Beverly Hills, California; a ranch in Van Horn, Texas; a former textile museum in Washington, DC; and three condos in a historic Manhattan, New York, building overlooking Central Park. 

Source: Business Insider



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Mueller dropped a huge bombshell in Roger Stone's indictment, and it's bad news for Trump

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roger Stone WikiLeaks Trump Mueller 2x1

  • Friday's indictment against the longtime GOP strategist Roger Stone contains several significant revelations.
  • Chief among them is the special counsel Robert Mueller's contention that a "senior Trump Campaign official was directed" to contact Stone about "any additional releases" from WikiLeaks, as well as "what other damaging information [WikiLeaks] had regarding the Clinton Campaign."
  • Stone's links to WikiLeaks are well known. But this is the first indication that a senior Trump campaign official was told by someone higher up to actively solicit information about documents the Russians had hacked and given to WikiLeaks.
  • At the time of the alleged instruction, the Trump campaign was aware the Russians favored Trump in the 2016 election and that the Kremlin had hacked the Democratic National Committee.
  • "This is bad news for the president," one former White House official told INSIDER.

On Friday, the special counsel Robert Mueller's office filed a highly anticipated indictment against Roger Stone, the longtime GOP strategist who acted as an informal adviser to President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign.

The document contains a slew of intricate details about Stone's alleged false statements to Congress about his interactions involving WikiLeaks; his extensive communications with the far-right commentator Jerome Corsi and radio host Randy Credico about WikiLeaks' document dumps in summer 2016; and his prolonged efforts to prevent Credico from testifying to Congress or turning over information to the FBI.

Much of what was in the document has been reported in the media. But the special counsel dropped one bombshell that was previously unknown, which could be trouble for team Trump: A top Trump campaign official was instructed to contact Stone about WikiLeaks' planned document dumps in the run-up to the 2016 election.

Roger Stone

Read more: Mueller indicts former Trump campaign adviser Roger Stone on charges of obstruction, false statements, and witness tampering

Prosecutors said that around June or July 2016, Stone "informed senior Trump Campaign officials" that WikiLeaks had damaging information about the Clinton campaign.

After WikiLeaks dumped the first batch of emails on July 22 that Russian hackers had stolen from the Democratic National Committee (DNC), "a senior Trump Campaign official was directed to contact" Stone "about any additional releases and what other damaging information [WikiLeaks] had regarding the Clinton Campaign," the indictment said.

Afterward, prosecutors said Stone "told the Trump Campaign about potential future releases of damaging material by [WikiLeaks]."

The indictment did not say who the senior official was or who apparently directed them to maintain a line of communication with Stone.

But the revelation is the first indication that a senior Trump campaign official was told by someone higher up to actively solicit information about documents that the Russians had hacked.

'Who would prosecutors be this careful not to name?'

One former White House official told INSIDER on Friday that it would be tough for Trump to distance his campaign from Stone in light of what the indictment revealed.

"This is bad news for the president," the former official said. "Note the indictment is very careful not to name who directed the senior official to maintain a channel of communication with Stone. It doesn't even describe the individual. Who would prosecutors be this careful not to name?"

Top Democratic lawmakers seized on the news Friday.

adam schiff

"Most significant in the Stone indictment is new info that a senior campaign official was 'directed' in July 2016 to contact Mr. Stone about additional Wikileaks releases," House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff said in a statement. "This was at same time candidate Trump was publicly calling for Russia's help in obtaining Clinton’s emails."

Democratic California Rep. Eric Swalwell, who also sits on the committee, chimed in as well.

"Who directs a senior 'Trump Campaign Official?' ONLY a more senior campaign official," he tweeted.

Asked about the revelation Friday, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders refused to say that Trump did not direct the senior official to contact Stone about upcoming WikiLeaks dumps during the election.

"This has nothing to do with the president and certainly nothing to do with the White House," Sanders said.

Read more: Here are the identities of all the unnamed people and organizations in Mueller's indictment of Roger Stone

The number of 'criminals surrounding Trump' is 'not coincidence'

Donald Trump Donald Trump Jr.

Friday's indictment also adds significance to the timeline surrounding the alleged instruction.

A little more than a month before prosecutors said the senior campaign official was directed to contact Stone about additional information that WikiLeaks had not yet released, Donald Trump Jr. was informed in an email that Russia had obtained dirt on the Clinton campaign.

Six days later, he met with two Russian lobbyists linked to the Kremlin who had requested the meeting so they could give the Trump campaign the kompromat, or compromising material. Both Trump Jr. and the Russians said nothing ultimately came of the meeting.

Five days after the meeting between the Trump campaign and the Russians, The Washington Post reported on June 14 that the Russians were responsible for the hack of the DNC.

As a presidential candidate, Trump heaped praise on WikiLeaks on the campaign trail and on Twitter. He also famously asked Russia during a news conference to find and publish the missing Hillary Clinton emails. And Trump Jr. was also reportedly in contact with WikiLeaks during the election and asked about upcoming document releases via Twitter direct message.

Jerome Corsi signs copies of his books at the Book Expo America in New York, Wednesday, May 25, 2011.

Stone's indictment went into deep detail on his communications with Corsi and Credico about WikiLeaks.

In one exchange prosecutors highlighted, Corsi told Stone in early August 2016 that WikiLeaks was planning a "damaging" document dump that would raise questions about Clinton's health on the campaign trail. He told Stone it would be a good idea to suggest that Clinton was ill because that would be the "focus" of the next dump.

In the days after, Trump began testing out the talking point.

On August 17, he said Clinton's speeches on the campaign trail "don't last long" and that she should "go home and go to sleep."

Shortly before that appearance, Trump said Clinton lacked the "mental and physical stamina" to fight the Islamic State.

After he was arrested on Friday, Stone declared that he would not plead guilty or testify against Trump.

Trump has praised Stone's loyalty in the past.

"'I will never testify against Trump.' This statement was recently made by Roger Stone, essentially stating that he will not be forced by a rogue and out of control prosecutor to make up lies and stories about 'President Trump.' Nice to know that some people still have 'guts!'" Trump tweeted in early December 2018.

Neal Katyal, the former acting solicitor general, pointed to Trump's tweet Friday morning and wrote, "Ask yourself why a sitting President of the US would have felt compelled to tweet the below. At some point, [the number] of criminals surrounding Trump [is] not coincidence."

SEE ALSO: Mueller indicts former Trump campaign adviser Roger Stone on charges of obstruction, false statements, and witness tampering

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: MSNBC host Chris Hayes thinks President Trump's stance on China is 'not at all crazy'

The dangerous measles outbreak near Portland, Oregon, is what happens when people refuse to vaccinate their kids

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measles vaccines 1963

  • Officials in Clark County, Washington — across the river from Portland, Oregon — have declared an emergency after identifying at least 30 cases of measles, most of which are in kids who aren't vaccinated.
  • Before the US developed a measles vaccine in 1963, the contagious infection was a common childhood illness. Hundreds of children died every year, and millions more had symptoms.
  • As vaccination rates plummet around the US, officials are worried that outbreaks like the one near Portland will become increasingly common.

It's a public health emergency: At least 30 kids and young adults are sick with the measles in an area of Washington state just north of Portland, Oregon.

On Tuesday, the public health department of Clark County, Washington, announced that at least 23 people were sick with the viral illness, which incubates for a week or two before prompting fevers, coughing, runny noses, and little red bumps that break out on the face and body. By Thursday, the number of confirmed measles cases had ballooned to 25, with 12 more suspected cases, and on Friday the number rose again to 30 confirmed measles cases. The infection can be deadly.

Twenty-one of the sick people are age 10 or under, and so far the public health department has confirmed that 26 of the 30 didn't get their measles vaccine. One person has been hospitalized.

This is exactly the kind of scenario public health experts have been warning about. In 2018, the World Health Organization said measles cases had surged by 30% around the globe, with some of the biggest hikes in places like the US and Europe, where more parents are opting not to give their kids recommended shots like MMR (protecting against measles, mumps, and rubella).

"This is something I've predicted for a while now," Peter Hotez, the dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, told The Washington Post. "It's really awful and really tragic and totally preventable."

A perfectly good, safe measles vaccine

measles vaccine in iraq

The measles vaccine was developed in the US in 1963. Before then, measles was a common childhood ailment that would kill 400 to 500 people every year in the US and sicken 3 million to 4 million others. But as more kids lined up for shots and oral doses of the vaccine in the decades after 1963, measles rates plummeted.

In 2000, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said measles was effectively eliminated in the US, because the virus was not being transmitted year-round anymore and there were fewer than 100 cases per year. But increasingly kids in the US are going without their shots.

Read more: Bill Gates says investing in 4 simple plans has saved millions of lives and provided a better return on investment than the stock market

an abandoned measles ward

Outbreaks in the US have more become common where unvaccinated people cluster and parents sometimes forgo shots for religious or personal reasons. There was one in the Orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn late last year and in Amish communities in Ohio in 2014.

Other parents mistakenly believe that there's a link between autism and the measles vaccine. This is chiefly because of discredited research by the scientist Andrew Wakefield. His main paper on the subject has been retracted, and many other studies since then have found no link between autism and vaccines. But the spread of misinformation and anti-vaccine campaigns (like those that targeted a Somali-American community in Minnesota) have led to more frequent outbreaks.

A 2018 report on the state of the US "social movement" not to vaccinate children found that Portland was one of the more dangerous "hotspots" where people weren't vaccinating their kids despite doctor recommendations. (Other spots of concern included Seattle, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, Houston, and Detroit.)

"Without urgent efforts to increase vaccination coverage and identify populations with unacceptable levels of under- or unimmunized children, we risk losing decades of progress in protecting children and communities against this devastating, but entirely preventable disease," Soumya Swaminathan, a deputy director general at the WHO, said in a recent statement.

2014 and 2018 were both banner years for measles in the US, with 667 and 349 confirmed cases.

What a measles infection looks like

child with measles CDC

There's really no way to prevent someone from getting the measles other than a vaccine. The virus can easily spread when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or breathes on others.

It takes one to two weeks after the infection for measles symptoms — which can include, fever, cough, runny nose, and watery eyes — to show up in a kid.

Often, parents notice white spots, called Koplik spots, appearing in an infected child's mouth about two to three days after the onset of symptoms. After a few more days, a rash breaks out, and flat red spots that may first appear on the face can cover the child from head to toe, developing into raised bumps.

With any luck, the rash and fever persist for only a few days before the child gets well again.

Deadly measles complications, which affect about one in every 1,000 people with measles, can include pneumonia, encephalitis (brain swelling), and a rare disease called subacute sclerosing panencephalitis that doesn't show up until seven to 10 years after a person's had the measles.

Before 1963, about 4,000 Americans developed brain swelling from measles every year. The encephalitis, when it didn't kill them, sometimes left people deaf or with brain damage.

Update: This story was originally published on January 23 and has been updated with the latest measles case counts.

SEE ALSO: Bill Gates says investing in 4 simple plans has saved millions of lives and provided a better return on investment than the stock market

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Watch Jeff Sachs destroy the anti-vaccine movement in under two minutes

A Hawaiian Airlines flight attendant died on a New York-bound flight

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Hawaiian Airlines Airbus A330

A Hawaiian Airlinesflight attendant died Thursday night on a flight bound for New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport, according to a Hawaiian Airlines statement.

Emile Griffith, the attendant, had worked with Hawaiian Airlines for 31 years.

Ann Botticelli, a representative of Hawaiian Airlines, said the airline was "deeply saddened" by Griffith's passing.

"Emile both loved and treasured his job at Hawaiian and always shared that with our guests. Our hearts are with Emile's family, friends and all those fortunate to have known him," Botticelli wrote Business Insider.

Hawaiian Airlines Flight 50 left Honolulu about 4:15 p.m. local time on Thursday, according to the airline. The plane landed about five hours later at 11:05 p.m. local time.

Hawaii News Now reported that Griffith had suffered a "medical emergency." The outlet also reported that a doctor and paramedic on the flight assisted.

"We are forever grateful for Emile's colleagues and good Samaritans on board who stayed by his side and provided extensive medical help," Botticelli said.

One passenger told Hawaii News Now that Hawaiian Airlines did not inform passengers of the death until after they had made the emergency landing in San Francisco. After that, passengers waited for about two hours for the coroner to arrive.

There were 253 passengers and 12 crew members on board.

A passenger said on Twitter that Hawaiian Airlines paid for passengers to stay in a hotel as they arranged for a new flight for the passengers. All passengers were to be reaccomodated on the first available flights and would receive compensation, Botticelli added.

SEE ALSO: What it takes to become a flight attendant in South Korea, where it's so competitive that candidates are getting plastic surgery to improve their odds

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Airports are dealing with massive lines during the government shutdown as TSA employees are working without pay

7 super-comfortable, go-to 'travel uniforms' we swear by for planes and trains

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The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase.

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  • Comfort is our most important consideration when choosing what to wear for a long flight or bus ride. 
  • We've developed unique "travel uniforms" of comfortable clothes, underwear, and shoes that we always wear when we travel. 
  • These 7 outfits feature soft, stretchy, and breathable fabrics to get us through our trips. Having a pre-planned, reliable outfit in mind also means we have one less thing to worry about as we prepare for our travels. 

Whenever I see someone well-dressed at the airport, I'm impressed. More power to them (though dressing your best may not actually snag a free upgrade), but I'm just here to get through my flight and to my final destination in the most comfortable way possible. 

I traveled more than ever last year, and I found myself developing a "travel uniform," a very specific combination of clothes and shoes that have proven to be comfortable through long plane and bus rides. Now, every time I prepare for a trip, I automatically default to this outfit so I don't have to stress over my flight survival strategy. 

Many members of the Insider Picks adopt similar uniforms when traveling. If you ever run into us at the airport or bus station, this is what we're most likely to be wearing.

Unsurprisingly, T-shirts, leggings, and sweats make the cut. Stretchy, roomy jeans are also the subject of a few love letters, and we can't underscore the importance of comfortable underwear enough. 

These 7 travel uniforms may look different, but they're all incredibly comfortable. 

Remi Rosmarin, Insider Picks reporter

1. Aviator Nation Bolt Sweatpants, $128: These are really comfortable and make it feel like you’re traveling in your pajamas, but somehow look much more put together. They might seem unnecessarily pricey for a pair of sweatpants, but they have serious longevity — the graphic stays bright and the fabric gets softer with each wash rather than fading or pilling like many other brands.

Buy it here: Bandier | Nordstrom

2. Madewell Whisper Cotton V-Neck Tee, $19.50: Comfort is the most important thing to me when picking out my travel outfit. This tee is lightweight, a little slouchy, and really comfortable. It’s my favorite T-shirt all around, so I usually bring one with me on trips, too.

Buy it here: Madewell | Nordstrom | Shopbop

3. Adidas Superstar Shoes, $80: When traveling, I like to wear shoes on the plane that I’ll also wear during my trip. These Adidas sneakers usually make the cut. They’re comfy enough for long walks exploring new cities, look nice with pretty much any outfit, and are easy to slip on and off in the security line, making them a no-brainer for me. 

Buy it here: Adidas | Nordstrom | Macy's



Brandt Ranj, Insider Picks associate editor

1. Mott & Bow Wooster Jeans, $118: Mott & Bow’s Wooster Jeans are hands-down the most comfortable pair I’ve ever worn, and a travel must-have. Their custom stretch technology gives the jeans enough give that I can sit for hours at a time without feeling constricted.

Buy it here: Mott & Bow

2. Cole Haan GrandPrø Stitchlite Running Sneakers, $140: I know, a running sneaker for air travel? Trust me. The same custom cushioning that makes them a great running shoe works wonders when you’re walking around airports.

Buy it here: Cole Haan | Amazon

3. MeUndies Underwear, $24: MeUndies are my go-to underwear all the time, but they’re especially useful when I travel. The material feels soft on my skin, the elastic band never feels too tight, and they breathe enough that I don’t get sweaty running between terminals.

Buy it here: MeUndies

4. Nice Laundry Socks, 3 for $45: Nice Laundry’s socks are loose enough to expand if my feet swell mid-flight, and come in fun patterns so I can show off some style while I travel.

Buy it here: Nice Laundry



Ellen Hoffman, Insider Picks senior editor

1. Patagonia Organic Cotton Quilt Snap-T Pullover, $149: Patagonia can do no wrong in my book. Its classic Snap-T Pullover is ultra-soft (even after many washings) and surprisingly warm given that it’s not that thick. I never worry it will wrinkle or stretch out from too much wear either.

Buy it here: Patagonia 

2. Everlane Box-Cut Pocket Tee, $16: Everlane’s T-shirts are some of our team’s favorites and they won’t set you back a lot of money, so you can stock up on these staples without hesitation. They’re a perfect base layer under my Patagonia pullover. I also really love the look and feel of Richer Poorer’s tees, but they’re double the price.

Buy it here: Everlane 

3. Madewell Classic Straight Leg Jeans, $125: I like to feel somewhat put together at the airport, which is why you’ll never catch me hustling to my terminal in sweatpants. It works for some people, and that’s great, but not me. Madewell’s straight-leg jeans are still casual and amply comfy for wear on long flights since they’re not super form-fitting.

Buy it here: Madewell  

4. Cuyana Mini Tassel Bag, $150: A crossbody bag is one of my travel must-haves. Cuyana’s Mini Tassel Bag is the perfect size to store all of my essentials I need easy access to (phone, keys, wallet, passport, sunglasses, lip balm), and since it’s worn across my body in a way that it couldn’t be easily grabbed or fall off my shoulder, I never worry about losing it. Everlane’s Form Bag is another recent favorite that is a bit roomier.

Buy it here: Cuyana

5. Marc Fisher Ltd Yale Chelsea Boot, $179.95: I really don’t understand why people wear high heels to the airport, but I see it more often than you’d think. I’m all about functional flats — at the airport, and for life in general. For warm weather, Soludos espadrilles offer my arches unbeatable comfort, and they look cute, too. For cold weather, I’ve never gone wrong with classic Chelsea boots; Marc Fisher LTD and Thursday Boot Co. make my most walkable pairs.

Buy it here: Nordstrom | Marc Fisher | Amazon



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

I hacked my disorganized kitchen pantry using these DIY pull-out cabinet drawers, and they eliminated so much clutter

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The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase.

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  • Simplehuman products are designed to make everyday tasks as easy as possible; they employ a no-frills, all-function design that just happens to look great.
  • The brand backs their hardware with a five-year warranty and has excellent customer service (I know — I had questions!)
  • Installing Simplehuman pull-out racks takes all of 10 minutes and will save you untold hours searching about in pantry shelves over the years to come.

When my wife and I were designing our kitchen a couple years back, we opted for matching cabinets flanking either side of the fridge. In one of these cabinets, we chose shelving with built-in pull-out drawers; on the other side, we stuck with just the shelves. The logic was that we would use each side of the pantry area differently. The other part of the logic was that basic shelves cost several hundred dollars less than slide-out hardware. And thus it was that for about two years, one side of our pantry remained well-organized, easy to access, and was generally pleasant to use, while the other became a morass of half-empty chip bags, loose batteries, forgotten snack bars, expired condiments, and so forth.

But what could we do, rip out the whole cabinet and have a new custom piece built? Move to a new state and start the entire home organization process over from the ground up? Buy fewer groceries?

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Our solution to kitchen cabinet clutter ended up being a whole lot simpler than new cabinetry or relocating across state lines; we simply completed a DIY kitchen pantry upgrade using a pair of Simplehuman pull-out cabinet organizer drawers that took me all of 10 minutes to install.

(Ok, actually the installation took about 20 minutes, but I kid you not, the first half of that time involved simply removing all the junk collected over the previous months.)

The company Simplehuman doesn't make a lot of products — they offer a selection of trash cans, mirrors, soap dispensers, organization products, and that's about it — but what they do make are all top-of-the line in terms of quality and function. And as it happens, simple as most Simplehuman products are in their aesthetic, they also look great. Actually, let me restate that: Because of their simple design aesthetic, Simplehuman products look great.

I should know, because their 10-liter semi-round stainless steel trash can sits beside my desk where I sit every day, their 58 stainless steel touch-free voice activated trash can is in the corner of our kitchen, their dish rack is often on the counter, and a pair of the aforementioned cabinet organizers are permanently affixed to the pantry shelves. The immediate result of installing Simplehuman pull-out cabinet organizing drawers was a pantry with less clutter and easier access. The longer-term result has been less wasted food and a lot less stress and frustration.

And by the way, that 10-minute assembly I mentioned earlier? Yeah, I'm not kidding about that. With a drill, one drill bit, one Phillips bit, a ruler (which I used just to be extra sure I installed these things exactly flush with my shelves; you could easily eyeball it), and the provided screws, the install was so easy that I can all but guarantee anyone who was able to use these pull-out drawers could also install them. (For the record, I popped our shelves out and so I had easy access to them while screwing in the organizers; if yours are affixed in place the process will be more involved, but only because you will probably need to use a screwdriver or else buy a compact right angle drill to work in the confined space.)

These shelves can support 20 pounds each, which means we can load them with all sorts of eats which are then easily accessed when the organizer is drawn out from the cabinet. There are also adjustable divider inserts that allow you to customize the layout of the organizer shelf, something even our custom built-ins over on the other side don't offer.

download

As for the Simplehuman dish rack ($80), when we're not using the dishwasher (whether it's filled or for extra large or extra fragile items), it's another game-changer, and for good reason: It works well.

Made entirely from stainless steel and a durable plastic with a hydrophobic coating, this rack sheds water like a duck's back, meaning that you don't have to worry about your drying rack for clean dishes itself being damp and/or dirty. It has slots for wine goblet stems, posts for drinking glasses, a utensil caddy, and plenty of rows of storage for dishes, bowls, pots, and pans.

If you don't have a dishwasher, you need this dish rack. If you have a dishwasher that, you don't need this rack, but you won't regret getting it, either. Your large stew pot and your delicate family china will thank you. And yeah, it's expensive as far as dish racks go. But it's also probably the last one you'll ever need to buy.

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Simplehuman also makes a touch-free, voice-activated trash can for $200.

With a wave of the hand near the top of the unit, this trash can automatically opens its lid. Hands full of raw meat trimmings, a dripping coffee filter, or the dreaded baby diaper? Then just say: "Open can!" and like magic, the lid rises. Actually, it's more like science, but you get the point.

Do you need a touch- and/or voice-activated trash can? No. But you didn't need that sweet dish rack or those amazingly convenient shelf organizers, did you? But do you want to get rid of them once they have been integrated into your life? No, I don't. I mean no you don't... that's what I meant.

Buy a 14-Inch Simplehuman Pull-Out Cabinet Organizer on Amazon for $50

Buy a 20-Inch Simplehuman Pull-Out Cabinet Organizer on Amazon for $60

Buy a Simplehuman Kitchen Steel Frame Dish Rack on Amazon for $80

Buy a 58L Simplehuman Touch-Free Voice Activated Trash Can on Amazon for $200

SEE ALSO: Why this $6 spatula should be in every kitchen

Join the conversation about this story »

Trump signs bill to reopen government for 3 weeks, ending record 35-day shutdown

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donald trump chuck schumer

  • President Donald Trump on Friday night signed a bill to fund and reopen portions of the US government that had been shuttered for 35 days. Trump announced his support for the plan earlier Friday, which will temporarily end the shutdown.
  • The plan funds affected agencies for three weeks, until February 15.
  • Congress quickly passed the measure.

The longest US government shutdown in history has ended — for now.

President Donald Trump signed a bill passed by Congress on Friday night that temporarily funds and reopens government agencies until February 15. Trump announced his support for the bill earlier Friday in a speech at the White House.

Trump's support cleared the way for congressional leaders to quickly pass a short-term funding bill called a continuing resolution, setting up a high-stakes negotiating period to avoid another closure before a February 15 deadline.

The deal does not include any money for Trump's proposed wall along the US-Mexico border and would give federal workers back pay. The idea is similar to the continuing resolution advanced in the Senate before the shutdown started on December 22. Democrats have demanded that Trump first open the government and then negotiate about a wall.

Read more:Congress finally met its breaking point on the government shutdown after airport delays took a punishing toll»

In his speech, Trump advocated a border wall and threatened to shut down the government again if Democrats do not agree to give him money for it.

"We really have no choice but to build a powerful wall or steel barrier," the president said. "If we don't get a fair deal from Congress, the government will either shut down on February 15 — again — or I will use the powers afforded to me under the laws and the Constitution of the United States to address this emergency."

Trump also alluded to his previous threats to bypass Congress and declare a national emergency to get money for the wall.

"As everyone knows, I have a very powerful alternative, but I didn't want to use it at this time," Trump said.

Friday is the 35th day of the shutdown, and the negative effects of the closure have taken a toll. Federal workers missed their second consecutive paycheck, and staffing issues led to widespread delays at major airports across the US — a major factor in Trump's willingness to support a short-term continuing resolution, CNN reported.

Prior to the passage of the bill, the Office of Management and Budget instructed agencies "to prepare for an orderly reopening."

"As agencies identify these steps, they should be prepared to prioritize restoring pay and benefits for employees, ensuring appropriate physical and information technology systems security access, recalling employees from furlough status, and performing any other critical support function needed to carry out these activities," the memo form OMB's Deputy Director for Management, Margaret M. Weichert said.

As far as timing, a senior administration official told INSIDER "the urgency of getting Federal employees paid quickly" is clear, and said "the administration is taking steps to ensure that they receive pay as soon as possible."

"Since specific payroll issues vary by agency, employees can find more information about paycheck details by reaching out to their agency."

Read more: Hundreds of flights delayed in New York and Atlanta as the longest government shutdown in history leads to air-traffic-control staffing shortages

Reopening the government will allow for federal workers to get back pay, which would provide much-needed financial relief for those facing mounting bills.

The president expressed gratitude for the 800,000 federal workers who have gone over a month without pay.

"I want to thank all of the incredible federal workers and their amazing families who have shown such extraordinary devotion in the face of this recent hardship," Trump said. "You are fantastic people. You are incredible patriots."

The shutdown started on December 22 when Trump rejected a short-term funding extension because it did not include money for his long-promised border wall. Since then, Trump and Democratic leaders have been in a standoff over his request for $5.7 billion to fund a wall.

Democrats have repeatedly requested that the president support a short-term funding bill with no wall money, and party leaders have said that no negotiations about a wall will take place while the government is closed.

Negotiations to end the shutdown seemed stalled in recent days. On Thursday, the Senate shot down two bills that would have reopened the government — one with funding for a border wall, and one without. The bill with the wall funding was modeled on a plan announced by Trump on Saturday that would have traded his requested wall money for temporary extensions to protections for so-called Dreamers, undocumented immigrants who were brought to the US as children.

Read more: Democrats rejected Trump's immigration deal for 3 glaring reasons

After the failure of the two bills, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer met to work out a path forward, which appears to have yielded some success.

Trump has consistently resisted opening the government with a short-term bill that does not include wall funding, but recent polling has found that nearly half of Americans blame Trump for the shutdown and that most dislike the president using the shutdown as a political tool.

SEE ALSO: The government shutdown may force Trump to make a nightmare choice between his border wall and the economy

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Watch President Trump announce deal to end the government shutdown for 3 weeks


The 20 best economy airlines in the world, according to the youngest man to visit every single country

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james asquith

  • James Asquith became the youngest person to visit every country at the age of 24.
  • Now 30, he is the founder and CEO of HolidaySwap, which lets users swap homes around the world for $1 a night.
  • He told Business Insider he has taken nearly 1,000 flights on more than 150 carriers in his life.
  • So, we asked him to rank his 20 favourite airlines for an economy flight.

At the age of 24, James Asquith became the youngest person to visit every country in the world. 

Now the founder and CEO of the HolidaySwap app, which lets users around the world swap homes for $1 a night, 30-year-old Asquith estimates he has taken nearly 1,000 flights on more than 150 airlines — and he shares his experiences with his 365,000 Instagram followers.

"Lots of the airlines and routes I have taken when travelling to every country in the world were not necessarily by choice, but it certainly gave me a broad overview of aviation globally," he told Business Insider.

Read more: Meet the 28-year-old London banker who is the youngest person to travel to all 196 countries

While he has his favourite airlines, he says he regularly returns to others due to scheduling and pricing when travelling for work, "giving them the chance to improve, or not let the 'better' airlines rest too easy in a rapidly changing industry."

While the amenities on board a plane are certainly important, Asquith believes nailing customer service is the way to win.

"Nowadays it seems unacceptable if we don't have USB ports and full WiFi connectivity across the globe," he said. "I like that as much as the next person, however, my greatest weighting will always come down to the cabin crew and customer service, which is a much more difficult part of a customer's satisfaction to win over than an updated refurb of aircraft seats."

Read more: The youngest person to travel to every country on earth has launched a 'travel Tinder' that lets people swap homes for $1 a night

As a frequent traveller, cost, of course, is also a factor. "With the improvement in long haul, low-cost airlines, the best products in the sky need to remain price competitive," he said.

We asked Asquith to rank his favourite economy class airlines based on their total rating after being assigned a score out of 10 across seven categories:

  1. Check-in & boarding
  2. Cabin crew
  3. Seat quality, amenities, and cleanliness
  4. In-flight entertainment
  5. Food & drink
  6. Cost
  7. Staff assistance before, after, and during travel

Scroll down to see Asquith's 20 best economy airlines in the world, ranked in ascending order by their overall score out of 70.

=19. Malaysia Airlines — 46/70

Check-in & boarding— 7
Cabin crew— 7
Seat quality, amenities, and cleanliness— 7
In-flight entertainment— 7
Food & drink— 6
Cost— 6
Staff assistance before, after, and during travel— 76

Total: 46/70

"Malaysia Airlines offers a good economy class product across all aspects, particularly on their roomy A380s, but unfortunately this aircraft will likely be a thing of the past for Malaysian in the next few years," Asquith said.

He highlighted "decent seat back TVs and a very friendly cabin crew" for a "fantastic experience," with room for improvement when it comes to in-flight catering.



=19. ANA — 46/70

Check-in & boarding— 7
Cabin crew— 7
Seat quality, amenities, and cleanliness— 7
In-flight entertainment— 7
Food & drink— 7
Cost— 4
Staff assistance before, after, and during travel— 7

Total: 46/70

Though it's a bit more cramped than its competitor Japan Airlines, "with all the decent extras your would hope for from an economy seat, from a power outlet and good in-flight entertainment to a foot rest, ANA certainly offers a decent product," Asquith said. "Onboard WiFi is available and cabin crew are impeccable, with a nice selection of Western or Japanese food to choose from."

However, he said ANA loses out on cost. "It's not the cheapest, it never has been, and I doubt it ever will be, but at least you get a pleasant flying experience for the price."



=17. Air New Zealand — 47/70

Check-in & boarding— 7
Cabin crew— 8
Seat quality, amenities, and cleanliness— 7
In-flight entertainment— 7
Food & drink— 7
Cost— 5
Staff assistance before, after, and during travel— 6

Total: 47/70

On board Air New Zealand, Asquith says you can expect "a great product with what can almost be described as a cheeky Kiwi crew that is largely let down by issues on the ground and a relatively expensive product."

However, economy passengers do have the option to buy the entire row for half the price with the "SkyCouch" feature so they can curl up throughout the flight — though Asquith stresses it's not exactly easy to book.



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Palm's $350 credit-card sized smartphone is supposed to liberate you, but it's got some big problems

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Palm Phone

  • Palm, the brand behind popular PDA-style phones in the early 2000s, has relaunched with a credit-card sized phone.
  • The phone is supposed to act as a companion device to your regular cell that you can more easily use for nights out, workouts, or periods away from your full-fledged smartphone.
  • The Palm phone costs $350 and is only available through Verizon.
  • Because of Palm's hefty price and incapability with iPhones, it seems more sensible to just buy one of the many smartwatches out there that have similar uses as Palm's phone.

By now we're all familiar with the criticisms about smartphones monopolizing our attention and replacing our real-world interactions. 

Enter the new Palm phone: a smartphone the size of your credit card is out here trying to break up that reliance on tech.

First released in November, the Palm phone is designed to be a travel-sized companion device to your larger, regular-sized main smartphone. The company has branded the phone as an "ultra-mobile" device that allows you to "stay present during life’s most important moments."

Over the course of a few months, I regularly swapped out my traditional iPhone for the Palm phone when I would go out with friends, travel to the gym, or go to dinner on the weekends — situations where I wouldn't necessarily want, or need, my smartphone and all its capabilities.

Here's what it was like using Palm's tiny companion smartphone:

SEE ALSO: Mark Zuckerberg is ordering Facebook employees to make big changes to the way the company's most popular apps work, connecting WhatsApp, Instagram, and Messenger

The Palm phone synchs up in real time with your main phone — but that phone needs to be a Verizon phone.

For my review, I was given a Google Pixel 3 with a new phone number that I could use to pair up with the Palm phone. The two phones have the same number so that both can receive phone calls, messages and other alerts.

But the Palm device is only available if you have a Verizon phone. That means if you're on a different carrier, you'll need to go through the hassle of switching if you want to use the Palm.

The two devices sync up in real time, so responding to a message on one phone will also have it show up on the other. I found the syncing between the two phones to be a bit laggy, but that's only when I had both phones in front of me (which is, of course, not the point).

This effortless sync between the phones is made simpler because the devices run on the same Android operating system and pull data from the same Google cloud. The Palm phone is also compatible with iPhones, but we didn't test it with an iPhone so we can't speak to how well it synchs in that scenario.  (The company says your blue-bubbled iMessages will show up as green on the Palm phone). 



The phone really is about the size of a credit card and is incredibly lightweight. The home screen setup is simple and aesthetically pleasing — any wording or more clutter on the screen would seem overwhelming.

The phone is only 3.8-inches tall and 1.9 inches wide, with one-inch wide bezels on the top and bottom.

Despite it's small size, the phone can run the same apps available for normal-sized phones. With a scant 3GB of RAM though, it's relatively easy to overload the phone's storage and affect the device's performance.



The smaller device and smaller screen dramatically alters the appearance of the websites and apps that you're familiar with, and it takes time to adjust.

Headlines on news articles would often take up the entire screen, and a lot of scrolling was involved to get through a webpage. Gmail was difficult to read, and sorting through my Google Calendar was almost impossible.



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10 new cars that will be worth the most money in 5 years

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2019 Jeep Wrangler

  • The automotive research company Kelley Blue Book (KBB) released on Wednesday its ranking of the vehicles from model year 2019 that it projects will best retain their value over the first five years of ownership.
  • Toyota had the highest overall expected resale value among all auto brands for the fourth time in the past six years.
  • Porsche had the highest overall expected value among luxury brands for the third consecutive year.

The automotive research company Kelley Blue Book (KBB) released on Wednesday its ranking of the vehicles from model year 2019 that it projects will best retain their value over the first five years of ownership.

Read more: I just got back from the 2019 Detroit auto show — here's all the cool stuff I saw

While the average vehicle from model year 2019 is expected to be worth just 39% of its initial value after five years, each vehicle in KBB's top-10 list is expected to retain over 50% of its value over the same time period, the company said. The list is based on projections from KBB's automotive analysts.

Toyota had the highest overall expected resale value among all auto brands for the fourth time in the past six years. Porsche had the highest overall expected value among luxury brands for the third consecutive year.

Toyota placed three vehicles on KBB's top-ten list, while Porsche placed one vehicle on the list. General Motors was the only automaker to place more than one vehicle on the list.

These are the 10 vehicles from model year 2019 that are expected to best retain their value in five years.

 

SEE ALSO: I drove a $195,000 Acura NSX to find out if it's really the best value in supercars — here's the verdict

10. Porsche Macan

Projected resale value after 36 months: 65%

Projected resale value after 60 months: 50%



9. Ford F-Series

Projected resale value after 36 months: 57.5%

rojected resale value after 60 months: 50.6%



8. Chevrolet Colorado

Projected resale value after 36 months: 59%

Projected resale value after 60 months: 50.9%



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Costco, Trader Joe's, Kroger, and the 8 other stores with generic brands that customers trust the most (COST, KR)

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Costco shopper Frank Fiorina

  • Which grocery stores carry the most trustworthy generic brands?
  • Signs.com recently ran a survey to discover which stores carry brands that shoppers consider both reasonably priced and well made.
  • Costco ended up triumphing over its rivals, with Trader Joe's and Kroger taking second and third place, respectively.

Generic brands offer shoppers an opportunity to rack up the savings without compromising on quality. 

But which grocery chains carry the most reliable brands?

Online communications company Signs.com conducted a survey of 514 shoppers to find out. Participants were asked to rate the price and quality of a company's generic brands out of five — with five representing the highest quality brands.

Read more: The top 25 grocery chains with the most loyal shoppers in America

The survey didn't factor in bulk prices.

When it comes to generic brands, Costco handily took the top spot. Check out which grocery chains carry generic brands that customers rely on:

SEE ALSO: How Doug McMillon went from a high schooler working at Walmart for $6.50 an hour to a millionaire CEO running one of the world's most powerful companies

DON'T MISS: The CEO of Kroger, America's largest supermarket chain, explains why the company's merger with the country's 6th-favorite grocer puts them in the perfect position to take on Amazon and Whole Foods

11. Safeway

Price: 3.96

Quality: 3.47

Overall score: 3.72



10. Albertsons

Price: 3.79

Quality: 3.67

Overall score: 3.73



9. Whole Foods

Price: 3.54

Quality: 4.08

Overall score: 3.81



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Hedge-fund manager Ken Griffin's $238 million NYC apartment shattered the US real estate record — here's a look at his record-setting properties and penthouses

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ken griffin nyc real estate portfolio

Ken Griffin is on a real-estate spending spree that's seen him break a major record in the first weeks of 2019.

Most recently, he dished out $238 million for a sprawling New York City apartment. The 23,000-square-foot penthouse unit at 220 Central Park South is now the most expensive home ever sold in the US; it shattered the previous record, a $137 million Hamptons home purchased by Barry Rosenstein in 2014, by more than $100 million.

But that's just the tip of the real estate iceberg.

Read more: A $68 million Miami penthouse with 2 infinity pools could shatter Florida's real-estate record. Here's a look inside the sprawling apartment

Just days before news of his NYC purchase was announced, news broke of Griffin's $122 million mansion purchase in London. According to Bloomberg, the historic mansion is about a half mile from Buckingham Palace. And, on January 11, the Chicago Tribune reported that he dropped $58.75 million on 4 top-level floors in a Near North condominium in Chicago.

Here's a quick look at some of Griffin's notable properties, in the US and beyond.

Ken Griffin is a hedge-fund manager whose net worth is an estimated $8.84 billion. That makes him the richest man in Illinois and one of the richest men in the world.

Source: Bloomberg



Griffin is the CEO of Citadel, a hedge fund founded in 1990 that manages $30 billion in assets. He's also well-known for his philanthropy — in August, for example, he donated $20 million to Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach, Florida — but currently, it's his real-estate investments that are making the news.

Source: Bloomberg, Philanthropy News Digest



In January, Griffin bought the penthouse apartment of 220 Central Park South. It's the most expensive real estate transaction in the US.

Source: Business Insider



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