Reddit user Ricky Mikeabono created an amazing map of the best coffee house near every New York subway stop in Manhattan. 

"I just like good coffee and hanging out in coffee shops, and the map started because I wanted to find some more," Mikeabono told Business Insider in an email. (Keep reading below.)

Mikeabono said he started researching the city's best coffee shops using articles, blogs, Yelp, Google, and Zagat reviews, trying to avoid duplicates. He also enlisted the help of his friends, and on the weekends tried to find out what type of equipment and beans were used at each shop to help determine quality.

Mikeabono also created an Android app for the map that lets users scroll and zoom. "I would like to make it interactive, where more information come up for each coffee shop, but that's a project which will take sometime," he told us.

He's also open to suggestions, and says he will keep updating the map accordingly.

DON'T MISS: We Tried The Red-Hot Coffee Place That Just Raised $25 Million From Tech Investors

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A man who was tormented in high school for being gay got an amazing Facebook message from the last person he ever expected to hear from.

Lucas Bane had his moment in viral Internet history last month when he choreographed a dance sequence from "Step Up" in an attempt to woo his boyfriend, David Devora, into marrying him.

The Internet has always loved a good marriage proposal video, but as The Daily Dot points out, beyond the glitz and hype of the whole show, anyone who watches the video can tell the love between the men is very real.

Devora, of course, said yes.

The video went viral, and as luck would have it, made its way into the hands (or screen) of a man who used to bully Bane in high school for being gay.

He sent Bane a message on Facebook after viewing the video.

"I gasped when I saw the name. Then tears. Before even reading the words I just knew that this was going to be a good note, and when I read the words and his followup response, I sobbed," Bane told The Gaily Grind, a publication for the LGBTQ community, which first had this story.

The Gaily Grind published the thread:

Bane told The Gaily Grind that the messages helped heal wounds that had been open for years.

"Like there was a sad little boy inside me and somebody went up to him and said, 'Hey buddy. Don’t worry anymore. We like you.'"

SEE ALSO: 12-year-old boy gives the most hilarious advice on how to understand women

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At this time last year, Raye L. was getting ready to board Disney's Fantasy Cruise ship, where she would live for seven months, working as an actress and playing a range of roles that would require her to sing, dance, fly, and fall in love.

It was her dream job, and one of her first professional acting gigs.

Now a newly minted equity actress embarking on the national tour of Seussical: The Musical, Raye (disclosure: a friend of mine from college at Penn State University) dished to Business Insider about what it was like to live and work on a Disney cruise — from training at a circus school in Toronto to living in a tiny, windowless cabin behind the ship's theater. Her answers have been edited for clarity.

Business Insider: How did you get to perform on a Disney Cruise ship?

Raye L.: I was at an audition for a totally different show and I made friends with another girl there. She said she had an audition afterward for a Disney Cruise and asked if I wanted to come along.

I went in for The Dream (the name of a Disney Cruise ship) and sang twice that day. I got a callback for the next day. They gave me my sides, which are these little snippets of music. The director for the ship I ended up on was there helping The Dream cast and he said, “I can’t help thinking how you’d be perfect for these roles on The Fantasy (another Disney Cruise ship).” They gave me a couple of new scenes to read from two different shows for The Fantasy. Then they wanted to teach me a brand new dance. This woman at the audition made it up on the spot and taught it to me. They asked to film me dancing for some casting people who weren’t in the room. I was there for about three hours and I ended up getting cast.

BI: What characters did you play?

RL: I technically can’t reveal my characters. Disney is very particular about character integrity. Like when we weren’t doing a show, we were greeting people with Mickey and taking pictures with them. We couldn’t say things like “Mickey’s been out here too long, so he’s got to go now.” We had to learn a whole new vocabulary, and say things like “Mickey has a date with Minnie now, but he’ll be back again tomorrow.”

Even on social media, if you post a picture in character, you have to say, “Please direct all comments to the character.”

BI: What happened after you got cast?

RL: I found out I got the roles in October 2012. The process of hiring for Disney takes a really long time. There are major background checks and I had to get a full medical exam to make sure I was fit to work at sea.

The contract was for nine months. I was in Toronto to learn the shows for two months, from November to February. Toronto is the headquarters for Disney Cruise Line. Then I was on the ship for seven months, from the beginning of February to the beginning of September. We did the east and west Caribbean on alternating weeks. So one week, it would be St. Maarten, St. Thomas and Castaway Cay, and then the next week it would be Grand Cayman, Cozumel in Mexico, Jamaica, and Castaway Cay. You always ended on Castaway Cay because it was Disney’s thing.

After Toronto, we spent three days in Orlando for “Traditions,” which is Disney-specific training. We went to this thing called Disney University. Everyone hired by Disney in any way has to take this class, even if you work for the Disney Store. It basically teaches you the history of the company and Walt Disney himself. We talked about company standards and how to represent the company as an employee. Disney is one of the most beloved franchises in the entire world, so I thought it was such a cool experience to become a part of that. At the end of the course, Mickey comes in and presents you with your nametag and you’re officially a Disney employee.

BI: What were rehearsals in Toronto like?

RL: I had to learn five shows plus I understudied in a few. Others had to learn six or seven main shows.

Some actors had to learn stunts and because it was a safety issue, they were compensated extra for those parts. Disney works with a circus school in Toronto. I had to learn two different flying stunts. In every single show there’s at least one flying scene. There’s a separate block of time for the actors who have to take a bus and then a train — it was about an hour away — to get to the circus school and do flying training in a harness.

If I was called for the entire day, I’d get there at 9:30 in the morning. I’d start with a dance warm-up and then a vocal warm-up. For most other jobs, you just have to show up warm, but Disney likes to take care of everyone. At 10 a.m. sharp, you start your schedule and you’d get your individual schedule the night before. Every hour and 20 minutes, we’d get a 10-minute break, according to equity rules, or we’d get a five-minute break every hour. 

Disney can’t offer equity cards or points because we’re working in international waters. But while we rehearsed, they followed equity rules for everyone because some of the 43 actors there were equity (members of the labor union that represents actors in the U.S.). 

BI: Did actors get maritime training on the ship?

RL: I had to pass a maritime law class and we had to do coast guard drills a couple times. No matter what position you’re in on the cruise ship, you need to fulfill basic safety training.

Technically, as main stage performers we were considered officers because we headed an assembly station. When guests first get on board, it’s mandatory to have a drill to show them what to do in an emergency. In their cabins, it tells them what station to go to. In an emergency, they would sound the alarm and all those people would go to their stations for instructions from the crew.

We had to go through a lot of training like how to control a crowd, how to put people in life vests and in lifeboats and how to report a fire or something else out of the ordinary. We also learned how to flip the lifeboat over in the water in case it capsized. We had a crew drill every other week on the cruise and had refresher safety courses every other month. We had a little bit of training in Toronto, but most of it happened in the two-week crossover period on the ship when the old cast was finishing up the shows before we took them over. In the crossover, we would rehearse our shows during the day and then we had safety classes at night.

BI: What was the performance schedule like?

RL: Cruises were seven nights. Five of the seven nights I was doing a show. The two nights a week I had off, typically I’d be greeting. Once in a blue moon, I got a full day off.

The welcome and farewell shows were revue style. So it’d be like, “Here’s all the cool things you’re about to do on the cruise,” and then “Hope you had a good time. Here’s all the cool things you did on the cruise,” and it was all in song form. Midweek, we did the big Disney shows and then we had these two shows that were made up specifically for the cruise called “Wishes” and “Believe.” They were shows with a definite plot line with famous Disney songs incorporated in a really clever way.

“Wishes” was my favorite show. It was an hour-long show and we did it sometimes three times a day. The coolest thing for me was when I got to sing, “When you Wish Upon A Star.” That’s the iconic Disney song. I’m so proud I got to sing that song.

BI: What was the hardest part?

RL: Performing on a moving ship is a whole other ball game. Our theater was very high tech, huge, and beautiful. But we needed special safety training for the pyrotechnic and the flying scenes. We had to learn how to dance and move on a stage when it’s rocking.

If you’re doing a jump, the ship could list while you’re in the air and the floor is never where you expect it to be. It took concentration to make the turns and the pirouettes. You learn how to hold your center so you can land and stay stable. 

BI: What were the living conditions like?

RL: Where you work is the same place you live. Our rooms were right above and right behind the theatre. Sometimes it was a little difficult separating work and real life.

We got really lucky as main stage performers. We got our own rooms, where most crew members got these bunk beds and they had to bunk in twos. We had the same size tiny cabins, but with a twin bed in them. There was no window, which was hard to get used to, but we weren’t actually in our rooms that much. We got our own bathrooms in our cabins. It was small, but cozy, and I fit everything I needed. And there was a TV that played every Disney movie ever on demand.

When you’re at sea, you don’t have cell service or Internet. Not being able to call friends and family was very difficult. Every Saturday when we’d be back in port, I’d check my email and make some calls. Saturday was also usually Target day because you could get WiFi there plus shop for supplies. 

BI: What did you do in your free time?

RL: I got to explore all the places we docked once rehearsals on the ship slowed down. I crossed a bunch of things off my bucket list like hiking and swimming in a waterfall. I went ziplining and jetskiing and spent a lot of time on the beach. On Castaway Cay, the crew had their own private beach. But we weren’t allowed to tan, at least not noticeably. Belle can’t have a bikini line. 

SEE ALSO: A Former 'Snow White' Dishes About Life As A Disney Park Princess

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The average price for a used Tesla Model S is $30,000 above the car's MSRP, according to a new report.

Although the Model S was launched just two years ago, "it seems to be in great demand" said Phong Ly, CEO of iSeeCars.com, which helps shoppers find good deals on used cars and produced the report.

Buyers of used Teslas are paying over $99,000 on average, while the car can be had new for as little as $63,570, after a $7,500 federal tax credit.

In contrast, the average sale price for a used Nissan Leaf or Chevy Volt is below the car's MSRP.

Ly speculates that the Tesla discrepancy comes from the fact that most Model S sedans sold likely cost well above that $63,000 mark. The version with the most powerful battery (and largest range) starts for $85,900. A fully loaded Model S costs around $110,000.

Prices for used models may also be inflated, Ly said, by the relative scarcity of the Model S on the road. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said "we really are production constrained, not demand constrained."

So those who don't want to wait on line for a Model S may be willing to pay more for a used one, especially since it's going to be at most two years old.

According to iSeeCars, the average mileage on used Teslas sold is just 3,700 miles.

SEE ALSO: Scientists Finally Have An Explanation For Why Helicopters Are So Loud

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Wall Streeters, like any other group of people, have their own language based on what they do and see every day.

That means it's a language based on money. Wall Streeters go "long" or "short" on anything and see "upside" or "downside" everywhere.

The same word for clients is also used for girls.

Not all of Wall Street's tribes — the traders, the investment bankers, the analysts, brokers etc. — use all of these phrases. Some of them are specific to each group.

For example, if you ever hear someone say they're "junked up" on something, you can bet you're talking to a trader. That's just how they roll. Be aware.

Big shouts to Turney Duff, author of The Buy-Side: A Wall Street Trader's Tale of Spectacular Excess, for helping us with some of the definitions for the following 22 phrases you'll hear on Wall Street. This could be handy if you ever find yourself stuck behind some i-bankers waiting for a drink at Ulysses. It's hard to be in a world where you don't know the language.

____________

1. "Long"/"short"

Long and short, used to describe investments expected to go up or down, respectively, are used to replace positive or negative feelings about anything. A typical usage:

Banker 1: "I'm long seersucker, short flannel. Hipsters are a fad, my friend."

To communicate absolute certainty, a banker may say they're "triple long" or "triple short" an outcome or object.

2. "Sold!"

A sarcastic way to say "absolutely not." A typical usage:

Banker 1: Let’s watch ‘Love Actually’

Banker 2: SOLD

3. "Upside"/"Downside"

This indicates that there's a lot of (upside), or no (downside) benefit in a given situation.

Banker:"Upside of going to the Hamptons this weekend is that James is throwing a party at Pink Elephant, downside is that he's inviting my ex."

4. "A piker."

A piker is somebody who pretends to know everything about the Street but doesn't actually know anything and makes very little money working for bottom tier firm.

This term comes from the late 19th century slang verb "pike" meaning "withdraw from an agreement because of overcautiousness."

5. "Big swinging d----"

If you don't know this term, you haven't been anywhere near anyone on Wall Street. The BSD is the person that does the biggest deals, bring in the most money, and is generally a badass everyone looks up to.

The term was referenced in Michael Lewis's "Liar's Poker": "If he could make millions of dollars come out of those phones, he became that most revered of all species: a Big Swinging D*ck."

6. "Hunting elephants"

Most famously said by Warren Buffett, this means that you're looking for big deals. Here's how he put it after announcing that he would do a deal to acquire Heinz with private equity firm 3G.

"I'm ready for another elephant. Please, if you see any walking by, just call me," he told CNBC. "We're prepared. Our elephant gun has been reloaded, and my trigger finger is itchy."

7. "Buying size"

Trading big money or a large number of securities.

Hedge fund trader: "I have a friend over at Morgan Stanley that trades size all day every day. We should poach him."

8. "F-You money"

The money it would take for you to leave your job and never work again.

9. "Junked up"

This can be in reference to any security, and it means you're super bullish. Traders could also use it in real life to express enthusiasm for an object.

Trader: "I'm junked up on Venezuelan 10-years!"

10. "A clowngrade"

When a sellside analyst upgrades or downgrades a stock for a stupid reason.

Trader: "You see that Guggenheim analysts' Twitter clowngrade? You can't monetize that s--- yet!"

11. "Building a book"

Traditionally and professionally this means that you're building business, a portfolio of trades or deals.

In slang, it means collecting drug deal orders from friends to call them in.

12. "Put it on the tape"

Back in the old days, trade orders to be executed by brokers came out on ticker tape — a long roll of paper constantly printing orders and emptying them out to the trading floor. Now all of this is done by computers, of course.

However, the phrase has stuck. Now the tape isn't just for stocks or bonds though, it could be for ordering anything from food to drugs.

13. "Stopped out"

Meaning you're filled on an order and can take no more requests for anything from food to drugs.

14. "Treat me subject"

This means maybe. When placing an order for a client, a trader may say "treat me subject" to indicate that the client may have the order they want after the trader makes a phone call to double check that it's all in the clear.

The phrase is also used in everyday conversation to say maybe.

Banker 1: "We're going to Nobu 57 after work."

Banker 2: "Treat me subject."

15. "Fish"

Girls or clients, either way there are a lot of them in the sea.

16. "Not held"

In trading terms, this means you're free to go to the market. Conversationally, it means "feel free."

Banker 1: "Should we order the $300 bottle of Barolo?"

Banker 2: "It's not held, so whatever."

17. "Uptick"

An upgrade.

Say you're partying at PH-D at the Dream Downtown and your Managing Director decides to buy a bunch of bottles of Grey Goose. That is an uptick.

18. "Traded ahead"

You beat someone to the punch. It's a technical term, yes, but if a Banker 1 is eyeing a girl at the bar and Banker 2 goes and talks to her first...

The next day at the office, Banker 2 to Banker 1: "Sorry bro, traded ahead."

19. "The staffer's coming."

This would usually be salted with expletives, and followed by junior bankers scurrying. The staffer is the usually the very unhappy VP who has to give assignments to analysts and associates, often at night or on the weekends.

20. “What is your schedule this weekend?"

In most work environments, this could be a friendly question or perhaps a segue into a negotiation about working a bit on Sunday. On Wall Street, from the staffer, it means whatever plans you had are canceled.

21. "Can you give me some more color on that?

This is a request for additional details, something that you'll hear analysts ask on earnings calls. In conversation, it'd more likely be asking for details about a night out. 

22. "I'm doing market research."

Looking at YouTube.

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A trip to the vending machine will usually yield some pretty unhealthy and unsatisfying snacks. 

A Chicago-based entrepreneur is looking to change that with a healthy twist on the vending machine, an experiment he calls the Farmer's Fridge. 

Luke Saunders opened his first kiosk back in October at Chicago's Garvey Food Court, an eating center that's already host to McDonald's and Dunkin' Donuts, among other fast-food options. 

At the Farmer's Fridge, on the other hand, you can use a touchscreen to order from a menu packed with super-nutritious items, like a fresh kale salad with quinoa, fennel, pineapple, and blueberries, or a Napa salad with avocado, grapes, and pistachios. They even sell sliced veggies with hummus and Greek yogurt mixed with berries. 

"I want to make it fast and easy for someone to choose a delicious, nutritious smart meal when they are on-the-go," Saunders said in a press release. "What we’re doing is taking the vending machine concept and revolutionizing it."

Each salad is made fresh each morning and delivered by 10 a.m. Ingredients are layered in an airtight jar, which helps keep everything fresh inside.

The glass serving jar can be recycled on-site, or be washed and reused. Even the kiosk's design is environmentally responsible — it's made out of reclaimed barn wood, and refrigerated to keep salads from wilting.

According to Saunders, having his business in a vending machine allows for a level of flexibility that wouldn't be possible with a physical store. 

"We aren’t tied to currently available space, and I can move the machine if a spot turns out to be a dud. The machine also operates 24 hours a day and doesn’t require staff to operate," Saunders said to Business Insider. "We do not save much on labor because we still make and deliver the food. However, having it open and available 24 hours means that the healthy options we offer are more accessible."

Though Saunders says the company's focus is the Chicago area, they hope to one day be a national brand.

And Yelp reviews are raving — one guest says the salads are "crazy-fresh, super-crunchy, and full of goodness" while another says they were "fast, fresh, and packed with a lot of yummy ingredients." 

Salads start at $8, and there's a weekly "Jar du Jour" special for $7. Any unsold salads are discounted by $1 starting at 6 p.m. each evening, then anything that's still unsold the next morning is taken to a local food pantry.

But if the kiosk's growing popularity is any indication, that won't be necessary for long.

"Our number one requested software feature is to be able to buy more salads at once," Saunders said. "So that is a good sign!"

SEE ALSO: Why My 3-Day Juice Cleanse Was Worth The Pain

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California is in the midst of extreme drought, possibly its worst since the 1970s.

The state is running out of water, some ranchers have been forced to kill off herds they can't feed without native grass, and farmers are struggling to grow crops.

Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency last week.

There's no end in sight for now, with the National Weather Service warning that "forecast confidence is high for drought persistence or intensification" at least through April. The hot summer could be even worse.

Satellite images from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration show the dramatic effect drought has had on the state. In the photograph on the left, from last year, snow covers the Sierra Nevada mountain range. In the photograph on the right, the lush green space has been turned to dust and there's little snow to be seen:

Some cities, like Santa Cruz, are imposing water restrictions to preserve resources. Los Angeles is asking residents to reduce their water use by 20 percent.

Timothy Quinn, executive director of the Association of California Water Agencies, told USA Today that "the whole state is in crisis mode."

This map from U.S. Drought Monitor shows how severe the drought is:

Southern California has enough water stored up to get through this year and next year without implementing mandatory water reductions, according to USA Today, but some rural areas that depend on rainfall and reservoirs for their water have been forced to impose water limits on households.

The small city of Willits, for example, has only 89 days of water left if it doesn't rain.

Scientists have warned about "megadroughts" that could be returning to California, noting that some previous droughts in the state have lasted 10 to 20 years.

Images from the state looks grim:

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432 Park Avenue is one of the most anticipated construction projects in New York City. When completed, it will soar 1,396 feet in the air, making it the tallest residential building in the Western Hemisphere.

But at almost twice the height of surrounding buildings in Midtown's "Billionaires' Belt," how will the slim tower stand?

Silvian Marcus, CEO WSP Cantor Seinuk, the engineering firm behind the project, explained to World Architecture News how the luxurious highrise was designed to stay upright (via Curbed New York).

"In the center of the building we have a square that is about 30 feet by 30 feet that is housing the elevator, the stairs, and all the mechanical services [like] the air, the electricity, the plumbing," Marcus said. "This core is a box [that is] surrounded by thick walls that are 30 inches made out of concrete and with reinforcing inside. It's a very robust element that is like the backbone of the body."

“The other element that is supporting the building is the outside façade made out of beams and columns," he continued. "This system of columns and beams, we call it a frame. It is very strong and it’s very powerful. The windows are just in between the columns and the beams."

Because the space between the windows and the concrete core is so well supported, Marcus says the rooms don't need any partitions and can be as airy or walled-off as owners wish.

The tower is slated for completion in 2015. You can watch Silvian Marcus' full interview on Vimeo (complete with a time-lapse of the building's construction), and here's a preview of the swanky interior:

432 Park Avenue interior preview from D. Berke on Vimeo.

SEE ALSO: The Best New Skyscrapers On Earth

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Some foods contain a shocking amount of sugar.

To visualize this, we compared the amount of sugar in foods that are not traditionally thought of as dessert items, like yogurt and apple sauce, to the amount of sugar in a chocolate glazed donut — about 13 grams.

Nutritionists recommend limiting added sugar to 6 teaspoons per day for women and 9 teaspoons per day for men. For reference, 4 grams of sugar equals one teaspoon of granulated sugar.

Added sugar only includes things like cane sugar and high fructose corn syrup that aren't found naturally in ingredients like fruit and milk. Keep in mind that naturally-occurring sugars and added sugar are combined on nutrition labels as "total sugar."

Yogurt = 2 chocolate glazed donuts.

There are 26 grams of sugar in a typical 6-ounce container of fruit-flavored yogurt (more than half is added sugar). That's equivalent to around 6.5 teaspoons of sugar.

Luna Bar = 1 chocolate glazed donuts

There are 13 grams of sugar in one S'mores-flavored Luna Bar. That's equivalent to 3.25 teaspoons of sugar.

Starbucks Caffe Latte = 1.3 chocolate glazed donuts

There are 17 grams of sugar in a 16 oz (grande) Caffe Latte from Starbucks. That's equivalent to 4.25 teaspoons of sugar.

Orange juice = 1.5 chocolate glazed donuts

One cup of orange juice typically contains 20 grams of sugar. That's equivalent to 5 teaspoons of sugar.

Apple sauce = 1.2 chocolate glazed donuts

There are 16 grams of sugar in one cup of original Motts apple sauce. That's equivalent to 4 teaspoons of sugar.

Vitamin Water = 2.5 chocolate glazed donuts

There are 32 grams of sugar in 20-oz of Vitamin Water Acai-blueberry-pomegranate. That's equivalent to 8 teaspoons of sugar.

Coca-Cola = 3 chocolate glazed donuts

There are 39 grams of sugar in one 12-oz can of coke. That's equivalent to 9.75 teaspoons of sugar.

Craisins = 2.6 chocolate-glazed donuts

There are 34 grams of sugar in one pouch (1.75 oz) of Craisins. That's equivalent to 8.5 teaspoons of sugar.

Pasta sauce = 1.1 chocolate glazed donuts

There are 14.5 grams of sugar in one cup of marinara pasta sauce. That's equivalent to 3.6 teaspoons of sugar.

Nutella = 1.6 chocolate glazed donuts

There are 21 grams of sugar in two tablespoons of Nutella spread. That's equivalent to 5.25 grams of sugar.

SEE ALSO: You'll Be Surprised To Learn Which of These Foods Has More Calories

SEE ALSO: 6 Reasons Butter Is Good

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The seven billionth person on Earth was likely born on October 31, 2011, according to United Nations data. With this milestone, how the planet can sustain such a large population has become an urgent question.

But even beginning to envision a billion people can boggle the mind — let alone seven.

100 People: A World Portrait tries to simplify global issues like this. Using World Health Organization, Census, United Nations, and other data, the project shrank the world population stats down to apply to just 100 people.

Inspired by a 2010 visualization of old data by designer Allysson Lucca, we produced our own graphic to show 100 people that would represent the world.

In 1992, the Retired Peace Corps of Madison, Wis. published the original statistics which inspired 100 People's project. Then, the world population was 5.48 billion.

Now, 22 years and 1.52 billion people later, the world portrait has changed. There are: 

• two more Africans
• one more Asian
• four fewer children
• one more elderly
• four more Muslims
• two less Hindus
• three fewer "non-religious"
• three more literate
• six more college educated
• 21 more who own or share a computer
• three less homeless
• five less undernourished
• six more overweight
• the same number starving
• four more with access to safe drinking water

SEE ALSO: The 25 Most Failed States On Earth

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[Editor's note: This article was written by Soraya Heydari, who recently traveled from London to work as a nanny for a wealthy Chinese family in the province of Hangzhou. Following a popular Reddit AMA in which she revealed that her host family had five Porsches, Business Insider asked her to write a longer account, which we have lightly edited and printed below.]

It was around the time when I sat, still dazed from the jet lag, in the booth of a steakhouse with my family had taken me to, or perhaps when I took the elevator up to my new Chinese home, lined with posters advertising skin and hair lightening treatments, that I realized this was not going to be the Red China I had heard about. In fact, standing in the street lined with designer shoe stores, burger joints, and pizza spots, the very idea that I was in a Communist state seemed laughable.

My decision to move to China had been somewhat incidental. I'd had a terrible last year at university and I didn’t have the money saved to travel freely as I would have liked. When I saw the job listing for a live-in teacher and nanny in China, I knew this could be my chance to get away from my life in London and rural Hampshire, and I'd read a number of books about Chinese history and Mao's China. What I didn't realize was that I would be getting a front row seat at the new lives of the Chinese elite.

Honestly, my family were extremely kind and welcoming and, more generally, the Chinese people seemed to be incredibly hospitable. The family had decorated my room with adorably kitsch furnishings and I was surprised to see how luxurious their apartment was. A love of luxury and Westernism permeated their lives, sometimes in an amusing parody of actual Western customs or products. Pizzas and salads are made with a curious mix of mismatched Western ingredients and almost always slathered with mayonnaise.

My host mother is an incredibly stylish and good-looking woman, and I would watch in amazement as she had stacks of designer shoes delivered every week, seemingly with higher heels each time to boost her tiny 5-foot frame. She and the other kept women of the apartment complex where we lived seemed to pile on these designer ensembles, and she often lamented that she couldn’t find shoes in my size so that I couldn’t look as polished as her. Awkwardly, she would remark enviously about my larger chest when I changed in front of her or when we were looking for clothes.

Despite having hundreds of millions of citizens living in poverty, China's surging population of new rich are all too willing to flash their cash. My family was one of them, and we spent our weekends having lavish 50-dish banquets plus tea and drinks and being driven around in one of the family’s many Porsches.

During the week my days began early, taking the son to school, and then helping him with his homework and helping him learn English when he returned. The kid was very cute, decked out in designer gear like the rest of his family, but sometimes incredibly hard not to discipline — for example, he once spat in my face and I found I could do nothing to tell him off.

The kid's life was ridiculously lavish and he was more than a little spoiled. For example, the family organized an event including famous singers from Hong Kong and a catwalk show that featured their son performing a song at the end. As the performance ended, several girls asked him to sign autographs and pictures and from that his already understandably slightly spoiled personality had another ego boost. A little while later, his Chinese teacher was helping me look after him one day and translated a remark he had made out of nowhere: He said we should be nicer to him because he is a star now. It was understandable he was a little big-headed — his mother kept trying to get him into TV and four evenings a week he had keyboard, singing, and piano lessons. She was sure he would be a star.

Although he was often incredibly cheeky (he would pick his nose and wipe it on me, and also tried to sneak me pork, something which I don’t eat), this wasn’t all that bad compared to some of my friend’s experiences. One girl who lived about an hour from me witnessed the younger child who was about five being allowed to pee on the floor or into a bucket in the living room so he didn’t have to move the 10 steps into the bathroom. Other kids are extremely violent: A girl in the next building was often cracked on the head with wood or kicked in the face and chest by the three-year-old she looked after. Worse still was the experience of my friend who was constantly called fat by the agency and her hosts, screamed at by her family members, and forced to cook using peanut oil, to which she is allergic. My own issues were usually not due to the family being jerks, but more to a massive culture clash and due to problems with the agency that had helped me find a job.

It certainly wasn't all bad. Everywhere I saw kids playing happily or sat by the lake or pond with their grandparents, just enjoying being there. My host-mother would give her son a big kiss and I heard excited squeals before he went to bed coming from the bathroom as she washed him and they played games. Often he would come into my room and talk to my friends on skype or just sit on the bed playing next to me. Once when it was time for bed he looked up at me and said "wo xihua ni," which means "I like you." I’ll remember that much better than the mango, mayo, and tomato salad.

SEE ALSO: 36 crazy things that only happen in China

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Online dating site AYI.com did a study of their users' profiles, and they found an interesting link between users' openness about drug use and drug laws.

From AYI's blog post about the study, their biggest finding was that "the states where people were the most likely to admit doing drugs were also the states who were most strongly considering legalizing weed."

The top five states in the study include Colorado and Washington, where recreational marijuana has just been legalized. In both states, 8.9% of AYI's users indicated that they use drugs sometimes or often on their profiles.

The only three states with more users admitting to drug use — Alaska (10.7%), Maine (9.9%), and Vermont (9.4%) — all already allow medical marijuana use and are moving in the direction of full legalization.

Unsurprisingly, the states with the fewest drug users are among the more culturally conservative states — Utah and Virginia with 3.3%, Louisiana, West Virginia and Mississippi with 3.1%, and South Carolina with 3.0%.

Here is AYI's map of users who admitted to using drugs:

And here is a map of current marijuana laws in each state:

The overlap is noteworthy — of the top ten states, marijuana is fully illegal only in Idaho and North Dakota.

If AYI's users are any indication, don't be surprised if Alaska's marijuana legalization referendum does well this summer.

Check out AYI's blog post on the study for more info.

SEE ALSO: The President Was Right — Alcohol Is More Dangerous Than Marijuana

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Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska is financing a dog shelter's effort to stop the culling of strays as the Olympics begin, says the NYT.

Thousands of stray dogs live in Sochi, and government authorities say they are wild and dangerous. That is why, according to animal rights activists, authorities have ramped up efforts to exterminate them ahead of Friday's opening ceremony.

From the NYT:

“We were told, ‘Either you take all the dogs from the Olympic Village or we will shoot them,’ ” said Olga Melnikova, who is coordinating the rescue effort on behalf of a charity called Volnoe Deloe (roughly, Good Will), which is financed by Oleg V. Deripaska, one of Russia’s billionaire oligarchs.

Deripaska has already used his resources to finance the Olympics to the tune of $1.38 billion, according to Forbes. He is the CEO of Basic Element, an investment holding company with investments in everything from metals (especially aluminum) to airports. The Sochi airport, in fact, is one of his main contributions to the Olympic project.

Forbes estimates that Deripaska's net worth at $8.5 billion.

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In December, we told you about Distiller, a web-based whiskey discovery portal for the dabbler and connoisseur alike.

Well, it's officially an app now available for iOS.

Distiller helps you navigate the ongoing whiskey renaissance by prompting you with questions — How much are you willing to spend? Are you a beginner or an expert? — and then making bottle recommendations.

"If you don't have the expert level of knowledge," founder Mikael Mossberg told Business Insider back in December, "How do you choose?"

Distiller makes the choice for you. It employs a cast of whiskey Iron Chefs — everything from bar owners to bourbon bloggers — to give tasting notes. It pumps your answers through an algorithm that organizes whiskey based on price point, availability, and flavor profile. Then you can keep track of the bottles you like.

Check out how it works.

First you have to answer a series of questions.

 And then it gives you a rec.

You can check out more details and find other similar brands.

There you have it. We think it's pretty cool. You can download Distiller at the App Store here. 

SEE ALSO: 9 Things We Just Learned About The Liquor Industry

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If the polar vortex has you running south of the border, look no further.

Condé Nast Traveler put together a list of the best hotels and resorts in Mexico, based on reviews from tens of thousands of travelers as a part of its Gold List 2014.

From Cabo's vibrant nightlife to Riviera Maya's pristine white sand beaches, Mexican hospitality has a lot to offer.

10. El Dorado Maroma, Riviera Maya

Readers' Choice Rating:95.6

Price: Starting at $4,215/night

Maroma beach provides a secluded, enchanting setting for an intimate getaway. Adventurous couples will enjoy the exclusive resort's variety of outdoor activities, such as sport fishing, diving, and parasailing. Unwind with a dip in the lazy river, or a moonlight massage on the beach.

Source: El Dorado Maroma by Karisma

9. Las Ventanas al Paraíso, San José del Cabo

Readers' Choice Rating: 95.6

Price: Starting at $1,331/night

This Rosewood Resort location lies at the tip of the 1,000-mile Baja Peninsula, combining a breathtaking desert landscape with one of the world's richest marine ecosystems. A trip to the spa is a must — its services are inspired by the ancient healers of Baja and tap into the powers of earth, air, fire, and water for ultimate rejuvenation. 

Source: Las Ventanas al Paraíso

8. Capella Pedregal, Cabo San Lucas

Readers' Choice Rating: 95.7

This luxury beach resort is reached via a privately owned tunnel carved through the heart of the mountain. Guests can experience true Cabo culture in the vibrant shops, dining, and entertainment of the nearby Cabo San Lucas village — if they can pry themselves away from the two oceanfront infinity pools.

Source: Capella Pedregal

Anaïs and Samantha were both born in Busan, South Korea, but were adopted into families on different continents: Anaïs grew up in France while Samantha lived in New Jersey.

26 years later, they connected on social media and discovered that they were twins separated at birth. 

Anaïs first spotted her sister thanks to a YouTube video where she noticed how uncannily they looked alike. After seeing on IMDB that Samantha, an actress, had the same birthday that she did and was also born in South Korea, Anaïs felt even more curious. When she discovered that Samantha had made a YouTube video called How It Feels To Be Adopted, Anaïs decided to reach out over Facebook and send a message to the girl who looked just like her.  

When Samantha responded confirming that the city in South Korea where she was born was the same city where Anaïs  was born, the two decided to "meet" via Skype. Once they saw each other and spoke face-t0-face, they both felt sure that they were, in fact, biological twins. They ended up meeting in London, and Samantha admits it was "weird." Since, the two have become extremely close, meeting again in LA, traveling together back to their home-city, and going to a conference for adoptees in Korea. 

The two girls tell their story as part of Facebook Stories, a project by FB to showcase amazing things that have happened through the social network. The twins' story is beautifully done: Check it out! Samantha is also currently making a documentary about their experience. 

SEE ALSO: WELCOME TO 'LITTLE ODESSA': Inside The Brooklyn Neighborhood That's A Miniature Version Of Russia

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Prince Alwaleed bin Talal does not and has absolutely never owned a diamond-encrusted Mercedes Benz, says a statement from his investment firm, Kingdom Holdings.

Pictures associating Alwaleed with a Mercedes-Benz SL 600 adorned with 300,000 Swarovski crystals hit the internet back in 2010. From then on, his ownership of the car became kind of an urban legend.

Stories said he would charge people $1,000 just to touch it.

The rumor even caught on with some Middle Eastern media sources.

Well Alwaleed had it with that, and now the prince would like to clarify that the car is and was not ever his.

"The Private office of Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal would like to state officially that HRH Prince Alwaleed does not, and never has, owned or had any association with a 'diamond-encrusted Mercedes-Benz'" says the Kingdom Holdings release.

"We would like to put this popular myth to rest. Any entity with questions about the Mercedes pictured in these erroneous reports should contact Garson/D.A.D, which appears to have manufactured and displayed a crystal-encrusted Mercedes-Benz SL 600, adorned with 300,000 Swarovski crystals, at various auto shows in the U.S. several years ago."

Alwaleed has come under fire in the past from Forbes magazine for overstating his wealth. If you believe that, then it's hard to believe he would deny owning a car that reportedly costs between $1 and $4 million.

Check out the car below:

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It may feel like every flight these days is packed to the gills — and that's certainly the way airlines want it  — but nearly 20% of seats on American domestic flights go unfilled.

According to newly published numbers from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the passenger load factor for flights in the U.S. is 83.8%.

While lower than you may expect, that makes U.S. flights the most crowded in the world.

China isn't far behind with a load factor of 80.3%, Brazil climbed from 71.8% in 2012 to 76.% in 2013, and Japan reported by far the lowest figure, just 64.3%. The global rate for the domestic market is 79.9%.

That doesn't mean that 20% of seats on every flight are empty, naturally — so next time you fly home for Thanksgiving, don't expect to have any extra elbow room.

Other news from IATA that is good for the airline industry: Passenger demand climbed 5.2% between 2012 and 2013, with especially fast growth in the Middle East and Asia. Unsurprisingly, growth in the developed U.S. and European markets was slower.

There's more good news for airlines: IATA has predicted it will see its biggest profits ever in 2014, largely thanks to growing revenue from those terrible bag fees.

SEE ALSO: Flying Today Is So Much Better Than It Was In The 'Golden Age' Of Aviation

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For the first time in history, exports of U.S. bourbon and Tennessee whiskey crossed the $1 billion mark in 2013.

Thirteen years ago, there were 24 craft distilleries in America. Today there are over 430, and most either make or will make whiskey. Find new bottles with whiskey apps. Stay fresh with whiskey shaving cream.

The question has to be asked: Have we reached peak whiskey? Are we at the top of the bourbon bubble?

In the new issue of Fortune, New York Times editor and whiskey author Clay Risen chronicles whiskey's decades-long rise from solitary confinement to international fame. And Risen asks that critical question.

"The whiskey industry has been in bubbles before, when spikes in demand drove up production, only to have sudden changes in consumer preferences pull the floor out from under it," Risen writes.

Like in the 1950s, when Kentucky bourbon had its "golden age" as whiskey-soda became the national post-war drink.

As they always do, American tastes changed. By the 1960s and 70s, people wanted vodka and tequila over the brown stuff, Risen writes.

For distilleries, the problem with timing Americans' taste for whiskey is that it requires exactly that — timing. Unlike vodka, whiskey is aged, sometimes upwards of 20 years. Business models are based on current demand (that's why consumers can't get their hands on the mega popular Pappy Van Winkle, which is operating on a business plan from the 1980s). 

Now distillers are on a building spree, Risen writes. "For the first time since 1977, distillers are sitting on nearly 5 million barrels, significantly more than one barrel for every man, woman, and child in the state of Kentucky."

A similar boom happened with craft beer in the 1990s. And that should give some bourbon-lovers pause. From Fortune:

If a bust comes, it will hit the craft sector hardest. Like any new industry being flooded by startups, only a relatively small number have the right combination of quality, talent, and management acumen to make it. Many people compare the present craft boom to craft beer in the late 1990s. “It got to where everyone and their brother was making beer,” says [Whiskey Advocate editor John] Hansell. Then, when the recession of the early 2000s hit, hundreds of those newbie breweries couldn’t stay afloat. “There will be a similar shakeout in distilling,” he says. Then again, the shakeout in brewing cleared the field for stronger craft producers, like Sierra Nevada and Dogfish Head, to expand rapidly in the subsequent decade.

Will there be a bourbon bust?

"Whereas the previous whiskey boom was mostly domestic, the global nature of the current expansion makes it unlikely that a correction will affect every market at the same time," Risen concludes.

But if it does, only the strong liquids will survive — and maybe that's a good thing.

NOW WATCH: Why Pappy Van Winkle Is The White Whale Of Bourbon

SEE ALSO: 9 Things We Just Learned About The Liquor Industry

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Last month, I finally booked myself a weekend behind the wheel of the the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, fully loaded with Z51 performance package and painted a dazzling bright yellow.

With a base price of $53,800 (including the Z51) and loaded up with just about every feature available, my ride came with a $71,960 sticker.

I had planned several non-driving activities for that weekend, which I regretted as soon as I climbed into the Stingray (this requires the same muscles you use to get into a crawl space).

Simply put, I've never had more fun in a car. The Stingray is hugely powerful. Frills are limited, everything is designed to keep you focused on the road. And people absolutely love it. Even in January, I kept the window down, because so many people caught me at red lights and wanted to talk/shout nice things at me.

Their collective spirit is summarized by the first guy who spoke to me: "Dude, your Corvette is sick, bro."

First, let's just take it in. Gorgeous. The color, by the way, is "velocity yellow." I heard the working title was "look at this thing!" yellow.

The car's interior is simple, and focused on the driver. I felt like a fighter pilot sitting in this thing.

Partly, that's because of the head-up display — it gives you speed and RPM, right in front of your eyes. I think every car should have one of these.