Tag: News

• Blackstone released a new comedic holiday video on Thursday — its eighth since 2018.
• How does this year's video compare?
• Business Insider has watched and ranked them all — so you don't have to.

Blackstone released its 2025 holiday video on Thursday — the latest installment in a tradition that began in 2018 as a way to liven up employees' spirits in lieu of the holiday party, which was canceled because the firm had grown too large.

Since then, the video has become a viral sensation. Eight million people viewed 2023's video showing Blackstone's executives fumbling in their efforts to be more like Taylor Swift — the same year the Daily Mail wondered whether it might be "the most cringeworthy corporate video ever."

Watching — and poking fun at — the video is now a Wall Street tradition, making Jay Gillespie, Blackstone's head of video, a hot commodity at 345 Park Avenue.

"People come up to me throughout the year, and they're like, 'My daughter is helping me rehearse so I might get a line next year,'" Gillespie told Business Insider in 2024. "People are really into lobbying to be in it."

If you don't get it, don't worry. We decided to help readers save time by watching and reviewing all of the firm's videos going back to 2018.

No. 8: 2020

This video was released in December 2020, during the peak of the pandemic. It stuck to the theme it launched in 2018 of depicting Blackstone as a version of the NBC sitcom "The Office," but executives wore face masks and pandemic jokes featured prominently. In an early scene, one Blackstone executive struggles to recognize a colleague with unmanageably long hair. (Remember when all the barber shops were closed?)

While it was a bleak time, the video ends on an upbeat note, with Blackstone employees cutting loose to "I'm Walking on Sunshine," kicking off a tradition of holiday video songs that has featured prominently since. Still, it's somewhat stuck in the pandemic era, hence its placement at No. 7.

No. 7: 2022

The conceit of this holiday season is a fake news station, "BX TV News," prompting Jon Gray to search for Blackstone's secret sauce. (It was a roundabout way for the firm to tout its plan to hit $1 trillion assets under management, which it has since achieved.)

Schwarzman returns to a role he often plays in these videos, that of the sincere elder statesman, to explain that the firm's true secret sauce is its employees. However, he notes that a secret is hidden in the basement, setting two executives on an Indiana Jones-style quest to find the scroll containing the firm's secret. This weird twist is the highlight of the video.

The video effectively makes several self-deprecating jokes about Blackstone's love of acronyms (BCRED, anyone?) and Wall Street's notorious work hours. By 2022, however, the company had been going with "The Office" theme for four years, hence its ranking.

No. 6: 2021

The budget for the holiday video clearly increased this year, with a storyline about the birth of BX TV, the firm's weekly video call that Gray is incredibly enthusiastic about (and employees, less so). There are animals, special effects, and a Reese Witherspoon cameo.

The key joke is a fake award ceremony where Gray receives "Best Weekly Internal Zoom Call at an Alternative Asset Management firm." The hope is that it will convince the firm's president and chief operating officer that it's time to move on with John Finley, chief legal officer, saying, "I make one call to the FCC, and they'll cancel this clown car."

Employees chant "end it" and celebrate, thinking Gray has decided to cancel the show after winning the award. It quickly becomes clear that the 2022 BX TV season is already being planned, and the internal video call remains a weekly requirement at the firm.

No. 5: 2018

Scranton, Pennsylvania, is a long way from Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, and Dunder Mifflin would be among its smallest portfolio companies, yet Blackstone successfully riffed off the NBC sitcom "The Office" for its first annual holiday video. The video begins with the theme music from the television show, and like "The Office," there is hand-held camera work and plenty of "candid" interviews with executives. There's also a Michael Scott look-alike. As with all the holiday videos that follow, this one starts with Jon Gray calling his executive assistant, Laurie Carlson.

This video started it all and set the tone for Blackstone's trademark style of mixing the firm's reality with jokes. The premise of the video is that Blackstone canceled its holiday party and replaced it with a video, which actually happened. And Jon Gray really does, sometimes, act a bit like Michael Scott in his enthusiasm for wild ideas, according to people who know him. There are fewer visual gags and no Hollywood cameos, but it's a classic.

No. 4: 2023

2023's holiday video marked the first time Blackstone moved away from being a parallel version of "The Office" (only the title card remains). Instead, it's an homage to Taylor Swift and the Eras tour, with Blackstone trying to replicate her success with its own song about alternative investments.

This is the video that broke into the wider world, spawning mocking tabloid headlines. But for a video series whose main goal is to help the firm laugh at itself, that's a measure of success. Add that this immortal line: "Just this once, I do hope people confuse us with BlackRock." Also, you get to see Steve Schwarzman dancing while wearing a glittery fringe top.

No. 3: 2025

This year, Blackstone turned 40 years old, so it was only right that the firm lived out its midlife crisis in front of all of us. The birthday celebration begins with a Ken Burns documentary about the firm's origins, before Jon Gray asks for Burns to be fired in favor of some "pizzaz."

Blackstone's execs are all dealing with their age in different ways: wearing nose rings and buying sports teams or Ferrari (the company). Steve Schwarzman's ambition to become a DJ leads to a cameo by actual DJ and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon.

Another cameo from Jersey Mike's spokesperson Danny DeVito is a highlight, with his contract apparently requiring him to take on the challenging job of advertising "non-listed, semi-liquid, institutional-quality perpetual products."

The video ends with a musical number, this time an age-appropriate 80s theme, alongside a dizzying array of 80s references and an executive pulling off the iconic Dirty Dancing lift. After a challenging year for the firm's employees, this year the firm leaned into embarrassing itself and having fun.

No. 2: 2019

The 2019 holiday video revolves around Blackstone's absurd search for a company mascot, which turns out to be Mr. Stone, a mascot that looks like a cross of Hulk and Jon Gray. The international offices of Blackstone get cameos in this one, as does a plug for Steve Schwarzman's book, "What It Takes: Lessons in the Pursuit of Excellence."

Gray told BI that this was his favorite in the series because of the mascot. The firm not only hired a company to build the mascot suit, but also made dozens of bobbleheads, which still show up in holiday videos and on some people's desks. We agree that the mascot joke is a highlight.

This video also ends with one of the best Steve Schwarzman gags of the series, when it's revealed that Schwarzman has been the mysterious person inside Mr. Stone the whole time.

No. 1: 2024

In 2024, the firm leaned into the cringe with a metaverse-like exploration of Blackstone executives as reality television stars, culminating in a country song-and-dance routine.

It features appearances from famous friends. Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, which was originally part of Blackstone before spinning out in the 1990s, makes a joke about how the two firms are often confused for each other.

Gray last year told Business Insider that the turn to country was inspired by Beyonce's own embrace of the genre on "Cowboy Carter."And just like Beyonce, some of the firm's best work comes when they don't let the critics stop them.

Jeffrey Cane contributed to previous year's rankings.

• Kristin Cabot went viral when a "kiss cam" caught her embracing her boss at a Coldplay concert.
• Cabot gave her first public interviews on the scandal and fallout.
• She said she's dealt with death threats, anger at Gwyneth Paltrow, and lasting career repercussions.

This summer, seemingly the entire internet was talking about Kristin Cabot. She's finally talking back.

When a Coldplay concert "kiss cam" caught Cabot, Astronomer's former head of people, and Andy Byron, the company's former CEO, embracing, the footage quickly went viral. In the weeks that followed, both Cabot and Byron left their jobs.

Now, Cabot, who was in the process of separating from her now-ex husband at the time of the infamous concert, has given her first public interviews to The New York Times and the Times of London.

From the crisis management to anger at Gwyneth Paltrow to lasting career fallout, here are the biggest takeaways from Cabot's conversations.

It was their first kiss

Cabot told both outlets that she and Byron had never kissed before the concert. She said they'd gotten along well since she joined Astronomer in November of 2024, and that she'd told him about her ongoing separation from Andrew Cabot shortly before the concert in July. That's when she said she learned that he, too, was going through a similar situation. (Andrew Cabot has publicly acknowledged that the couple was separated at the time and the two have since filed for divorce; the status of Byron's marriage is unclear, according to the Times of London).

By the time of the concert, Cabot told the Times of London that she had developed "a big happy crush," but she told The New York Times that she kept her feelings in check because he was her boss. At the concert, she said she had a few High Noons — the vodka seltzers well-known to college partiers — and the two started to act more like a couple. It was, she said, the only time they kissed.

Crisis management

Immediately after the big screen caught Cabot and Byron embracing — and quickly untangling, ducking, and turning away — Cabot said she first thought of accidentally humiliating her still-husband, who was also at the concert.

"Then a beat later my mind turns to, 'Oh God, Andy's my effing boss', this is a bad look,'" Cabot told the Times of London.

The two employees quickly went into crisis management mode, driving to her home about an hour away and deciding they needed to tell the board before anything got out, Cabot told both outlets. She said that "panic attacks were starting," according to the New York Times. She and Byron continued strategizing on the phone for several hours after he left, she told the Times of London.

Cabot has since hired a communications consultant and told The New York Times she and Byron haven't spoken much since September.

Her then-husband sent her the TikTok

Around 4 am, Andrew Cabot sent her a screenshot of the video on TikTok, Cabot told the London outlet. She said he was cordial throughout the whole ordeal.

The next morning, she said she apologized to the board, whom she said was kind, even as they opened an investigation. Eventually, the board asked Cabot to stay in her role, she told both outlets. Ultimately, she decided to leave.

Retreating to an Airbnb

The weekend after the video went viral, Cabot said she retreated to an Airbnb in the New Hampshire mountains. She told the Times of London that she was in "too dark a place" to fulfill her responsibilities as a parent.

Threats kept rolling in

Cabot told the New York Times that she got between 500 and 600 calls each day in the weeks after the concert, and 50 or 60 death threats. She said her children hesitated to go out with her in public, as people — largely women — would heckle her. She told the outlet that local police increased surveillance of her home and that she installed security cameras.

Former colleagues have cut her off altogether, she said.

Anger at Paltrow and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin

In July, Paltrow, the founder and CEO of Goop, appeared in an Astronomer ad that poked fun at the kiss cam video. Cabot told the Times of London that Paltrow, who popularized the phrase "conscious uncoupling" when she split from Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, was acting like a "hypocrite." She decided to throw out all of her Goop products.

Cabot also told the outlet that she believed Martin played a role in creating the scandal and was disappointed that nobody from Coldplay had ever contacted her or released a statement.

'Scarlet letter'

Cabot said she has long prided herself on her career and her financial independence, and told the Times of London that the whole scandal has made her virtually "unemployable."

"It has been like a scarlet letter; people erased everything I'd accomplished in my life and achieved in my career," she said.

• I tried 11 different frozen pasta meals from Trader Joe's to see which were worth buying regularly.
• I loved the spaghetti cacio e pepe, garlicky pasta, and rigatoni alla contadina.
• However, I wasn't impressed by the sweet potato gnocchi or the three-cheese pasta with eggplant.

I'm certainly no stranger to a Trader Joe's frozen meal on days when I can't be bothered to prepare anything from scratch.

So recently, I visited my local Trader Joe's and bought every frozen pasta I could find, to see which are actually worth keeping in my weekly rotation.

Here's what I thought of the options I tried.

Trader Joe's sweet potato gnocchi came in a tasty butter and sage sauce.

Let's start with the positive — this sweet potato gnocchi came in a pleasant butter and sage sauce, which was herby and had a great flavor.

However, the actual pasta left a lot to be desired.

Although the sauce was good, the gnocchi was very mushy and didn't really have any chew or bite to it. The lack of texture is truly why it was my least favorite of the bunch.

The sweet potato had a good flavor, but the gummy texture of the gnocchi was enough to stop me from buying it again.

This was my first time trying ravioli from Trader Joe's.

I've never tried frozen ravioli from Trader Joe's before, but I thought the ricotta-and-spinach-filled version looked tasty. Once it was cooked, however, I wasn't as impressed.

Overall, I thought the ravioli seemed dry.

The spinach ravioli came in a rather bland tomato sauce that left me disappointed.

The ricotta-and-spinach filling had potential, but the ravioli tasted super dry. I also wish the tomato sauce had a thicker consistency.

I was pleasantly surprised by Trader Joe's spaghetti with meat sauce.

I picked up Trader Joe's spaghetti with meat sauce in hopes that it would be a simple, hearty meal. The instructions said to microwave the dish for about six minutes, so that's what I did.

The meat sauce had a lot of flavor.

After I heated this up, I noticed the sauce had plenty of small pieces of ground beef. It was also flavorful and filling without being too heavy.

The spaghetti was a little on the softer side, but if you're after a freezer-friendly dinner that packs 27 grams of protein per serving, this is a good option to keep on hand. I'd definitely buy this one again.

I was excited to try Trader Joe's three-cheese pasta with eggplant.

I was really excited when I saw Trader Joe's had an eggplant and cheese pasta, since I'm a huge fan of the vegetable.

Although I could've cooked this in the microwave, I decided to bake it instead.

Unfortunately, I wouldn't buy this meal again.

When I took the pasta out of the oven, I didn't think it looked particularly appetizing. And once I tasted it, every bite felt uneven. Some pieces of eggplant were mushy, while others had more of a bite.

The pasta tasted a bit overcooked, too, even though I cooked it according to the directions on the package. Overall, I probably wouldn't buy this again.

I was excited to try the penne arrabbiata.

I'm usually a fan of spicy arrabbiata sauces, so I was excited to try this version from Trader Joe's.

The penne held its shape after cooking, and I thought the portion was generous.

I thought this dish had a lot of great flavor.

The sauce — although a bit watery — had a lovely kick of red pepper flakes, adding a hint of heat without making it too spicy.

Overall, it wasn't restaurant-level arrabbiata, but it had a nice amount of flavor and was satisfying enough in a pinch.

Trader Joe's spaghetti carbonara is made with two types of cheese.

Trader Joe's spaghetti carbonara is made with uncured pancetta and two different kinds of cheese.

Overall, this was a decent plate of spaghetti, and the pasta itself held up nicely.

I wasn't a fan of the sauce, though.

However, the sauce didn't feel like carbonara to me. It was fine, but not super flavorful. It also didn't seem as eggy as other versions I've tried.

I also thought the meat was strange — in my opinion, it tasted more like the pork you'd get in Chinese food than pancetta. Overall, I wouldn't buy this again.

The cheese-filled fiocchetti looked fun.

I was drawn to this dish because I thought the fiocchetti shape looked appealing. However, once I took a bite, I felt like something was missing in terms of the flavor.

This pasta would have benefited from some extra spices.

Unfortunately, the cheese filling in the fiocchetti seemed a bit dry. I also thought the thin pink sauce would've benefited from some herbs or acidity.

Overall, the flavor felt a bit flat, like it could've used some red pepper flakes, Parmesan cheese, or basil. The sauce was also pretty thin, which I didn't love.

The garlicky pasta came in a creamy sauce.

I was excited to try Trader Joe's garlicky pasta, which was advertised as coming in a "creamy, umami, garlic sauce."

I thought this pasta was excellent.

If you love garlic, you'll likely consider this meal a crown jewel of the Trader Joe's pasta selection. The glossy sauce was packed with garlic flavor and coated the pasta perfectly.

It was a little oily, but the unique umami flavor was very prominent and made me want to keep coming back for more. This has definitely earned a permanent spot in my freezer.

Trader Joe's rigatoni alla contadina is loaded with veggies.

Trader Joe's rigatoni alla contadina comes packed with vegetables like asparagus, broccoli, and peas. It's also topped with a creamy sauce.

I'd definitely buy this one again.

For a veggie-loaded frozen pasta, I thought this was pretty good. The creamy sauce was mild, but it did a good job of tying everything together.

The rigatoni was cooked well, and the green vegetables added a nice texture, pop of color, and bite. A squeeze of lemon, Parmesan, or black pepper could take it even further, but as is, it's a good meal.

I wasn't sure what to expect from the mushroom risotto.

I'll be honest, I didn't have high hopes for a frozen risotto. However, once prepared, I was shocked by how creamy and delicious it looked.

However, I think it would make a decent date-night meal.

I thought the mushroom flavor came through nicely, even though the pieces were fairly small. The meal was a little on the salty side, but I didn't think that was a bad thing.

I really liked how it wasn't too thick or heavy but still rich enough to feel indulgent. With the addition of a chicken cutlet, I could easily pass this off as a nice date-night meal.

Trader Joe's spaghetti cacio e pepe looked promising.

I was excited to try Trader Joe's take on cacio e pepe — a pasta dish made with a creamy cheese and black-pepper sauce.

The cacio e pepe was my favorite meal I tried.

This meal is a freezer MVP. The sauce was creamy, cheesy, and peppery, and the spaghetti had a satisfying chew.

It was very heavy, but in the comforting way you actually want from pasta.

One thing to note is that the sauce thickened significantly when it cooled. So, it's best enjoyed hot.

With a little added Parmesan and grilled chicken, this would make a complete and satisfying meal.

• I tried every doughnut I could find at Tim Hortons and ranked them from worst to best.
• I didn't love the vanilla-frosted doughnuts I tried and thought they were too sweet.
• My favorites included the Canadian maple and Boston cream doughnuts.

I first became a fan of Tim Hortons after enjoying the chain's Boston cream doughnut. However, I realized I hadn't tried many of the brand's other offerings.

So, I decided to head to a location in Brooklyn to try all the flavors in stock. Here's how I'd rank them from worst to best.

The honey cruller was my least favorite.

The honey cruller had a different shape than the other Tim Hortons doughnuts I tried — a ring of puffy ridges coated in a sugary glaze. I hoped this might make for an interesting texture, but the doughnut was disappointingly squishy and airy inside.

The ratio of glaze to doughnut also felt too high to me, making it very sweet.

I was disappointed by the apple fritter.

This doughnut's description on the Tim Hortons website advertises "delicious apples and cinnamon in every bite." However, I didn't taste the apple at all and thought the cinnamon had no spice to it.

To me, this tasted more like what I'd expect from something wrapped in plastic, like a Little Debbie snack cake.

The Oreo doughnut was too sweet for me.

Tim Hortons' Oreo variety is a cream-filled doughnut topped with vanilla frosting and Oreo crumbles.

I love Oreos and typically enjoy Oreo-themed desserts. However, I thought the vanilla frosting and the sugary cream in this one made it too sweet.

The topping was also crumbled so finely that it didn't add any crunch.

I didn't love the filling in the strawberry-vanilla doughnut.

This was the only jelly-filled doughnut I found at Tim Hortons, and for that reason, it made for a nice change of pace. But again, the thick coating of vanilla frosting made the doughnut extremely sweet.

Though the jelly had a distinct strawberry flavor, the consistency was a little odd — it was more of a gel than a jelly.

My 7-year-old loves jelly doughnuts but called this one "too goopy."

The vanilla-dipped doughnut was the best of the varieties with vanilla icing.

Vanilla-frosted doughnuts make up most of the bottom of my list, as I found the thick, sugary coating to be a detriment.

However, the vanilla-dipped doughnut was our favorite of those with this frosting. Tim Hortons' doughnuts aren't as sweet as one might expect, so the balance of flavors was better on this one.

My 4-year-old, a passionate fan of rainbow sprinkles, called this one her favorite.

I've had better chocolate-glazed doughnuts.

I don't love chocolate as much as many people do, but I typically enjoy chocolate-glazed doughnuts. Tim Hortons' version wasn't disappointing, but it wasn't very exciting either.

This doughnut had a very mellow chocolate flavor and a thin coat of glaze. The aftertaste was a bit like a chocolate-flavored lollipop, which turned my wife off. However, I liked the way it paired with coffee.

Tim Hortons' vanilla-cream doughnut tasted a bit artificial.

Confusingly, Tim Hortons' vanilla-cream doughnut is covered in chocolate frosting with a swirl of vanilla-cream filling on top.

I enjoy Tim Horton's fudgy-chocolate frosting, but wasn't a big fan of the vanilla-cream filling. I found it reminiscent of Twinkie filling, only with a strong, somewhat artificial-tasting vanilla flavoring.

The old-fashioned plain doughnut tasted like it had a hint of nutmeg.

Even if it's not the most exciting option in the display case, a plain cake doughnut can be great when served with a hot cup of coffee.

However, this doughnut didn't taste as fresh as some of the others I tried. It also lacked the crunchy outer crust you might find on other cake doughnuts.

However, it had a pleasant hint of nutmeg, giving it a more nuanced flavor than its equivalents from other doughnut chains.

The maple-dipped doughnut was a pleasant surprise.

I'm normally ambivalent about maple flavoring, and the unnatural-looking orange color of the frosting didn't inspire a lot of confidence.

However, I actually enjoyed it. The maple frosting had a warm, caramel-like richness, and although it was definitely sweet, it was also very tasty.

I was a little confused by the honey-dipped doughnut, but it was tasty.

The honey dip is Tim Hortons' standard yeast doughnut in its most straightforward form: just glaze with no frosting.

Despite its name, however, nothing in the doughnut's flavor, texture, or online description suggested it involved actual honey.

The yeast doughnuts at Tim Hortons seemed a bit denser than those at Dunkin' (and far denser than those at Krispy Kreme), but this one was nice and soft.

My 4-year-old preferred it over any of the doughnuts that didn't have sprinkles.

The glazed old-fashioned doughnut was a little more moist than its plain counterpart.

I wasn't sure if I'd like the glazed version of Tim Hortons' old-fashioned doughnut better than the plain one. Often, I find that adding an extra layer of sweetness doesn't improve something that's already sweet.

But in this case, the old-fashioned doughnut wasn't overwhelmingly sweet on its own, and the glaze seemed to keep the doughnut a little more moist.

I loved the icing on the chocolate-dipped doughnut.

Of the three frosted ring doughnuts I tried, the chocolate-dipped version was the only one where the frosting proved an upgrade.

That's because Tim Hortons' chocolate frosting is delicious. It's got a thick, fudgy texture and is rich with chocolate flavor.

I didn't expect to like the Canadian maple doughnut as much as I did.

Tim Hortons' Canadian maple doughnut is identical to its Boston cream, except with maple frosting instead of chocolate. However, I liked this one more than I expected to.

The sweetness of the maple frosting was nicely balanced by the custard filling, which was surprisingly light and had a hint of tanginess. I wouldn't have guessed this one would land so close to the top of my list.

The Boston cream was my favorite.

I've had Tim Horton's Boston cream doughnut before, but I wasn't sure how it would compare to the chain's other offerings.

I found that the density of Tim Hortons' doughnuts makes them well-suited for filling since they're strong enough to withstand the weight without falling apart. And the combination of the chocolate frosting and custard is a time-honored one for a reason.

Amazingly, this was the favorite for me, my wife, and our 7-year-old.

This story was originally published on November 8, 2024, and most recently updated on December 18, 2025.

• LinkedIn, YouTube, Dunkin', Uber, and more joined Spotify in releasing year-end user recaps.
• My recaps felt more like a psychological evaluation than a moment of fun nostalgia.
• I didn't need to know that I was in the top 5% of LinkedIn users, or that my top YouTube genre was "reality TV recaps."

Spotify Wrapped could already feel humiliating. This year, there are more opportunities than ever to flip over the stone that is your phone habits and see what crawls out.

Last year, my top artist was Florence + The Machine. I stand by it; "What Kind of Man" is one of the best songs ever written. But why was I craving Florence Welch's scream about heartbreak and lust so desperately? What did that say about me?

The shame began.

This year, I can get rundowns from Dunkin' and Snapchat and YouTube. My colleague Sydney Bradley asked for a LinkedIn Wrapped — and then it appeared in my home feed.

"Saturday Night Live" made a sketch about the embarrassing potential of Uber Eats Wrapped. Then the company released it for real, just called YOUBER.

Scrolling these rundowns is starting to feel less like fun and more like a psychological evaluation. Here's what I learned from my roster of recaps.

LinkedIn made me feel like a try-hard

Thanks, LinkedIn, for letting me know that I have "true daytime energy" (as in: I use the app between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m.).

2025 has been my year of becoming a LinkedInfluencer. Some of it is to develop connections and find new stories; some of it is to promote my work. Speaking of which: Follow me on LinkedIn!

Knowing how much I used the platform, though, was overwhelming. I didn't need to know that I was in the top 5% of LinkedIn users.

It's always a bit concerning to know that I'm being perceived. Knowing my profile was viewed 4,248 times? Woof.

Like most of these recaps, LinkedIn tried to give me a title. I got the "Catalyst," known for putting myself out there.

Many of my colleagues also got this title. I think it's just because we post, unlike the majority of my friends, who use LinkedIn to stalk their Hinge dates.

YouTube reminded me how rotted my brain was

I used to be a big YouTube watcher. Now, I mostly use the platform to watch NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts and compilations of my favorite Bravo shows.

I had never thought much about it, though, until my YouTube Recap showed my top interest was "Reality TV recaps." Oh no.

It kept getting worse. I was in the top 0.3% of viewers for a small "Real Housewives" compilation maker I like. It's not my fault that "Real Housewives moments that haunt me at 3 a.m." is perfect 3 a.m. viewing!

And then, the bombshell: My award was "most likely to quote iconic TV moments at the most random times."

You don't need to rub it in my face, YouTube.

YouTube's descriptors for me were "cultured," "observant," and "entertained." Entertained? On YouTube? I would hope so.

I was named "The Connector" because I was "drawn to content that sparks conversations and builds community."

YouTube's first example of that: reality TV recaps. Well, fine.

Spotify made me feel like a normie

You're looking at a guy who listened to 27,999 minutes of podcasts this year. That's 19 days' worth. Dear God.

I listen to podcasts everywhere. I listen to them going to and from work. I listen to them in the shower. I listen to them when I fall asleep at night. Did I need to know how many minutes that was? No.

Then came my top artists. I live in Brooklyn, where everyone keeps telling me about the tiny artist they've been streaming forever that everyone's just coming around to. (Please, do not talk to me about Geese.) Compared to that, my taste felt basic.

My top artist was Lady Gaga, and it was for the whole year. That game Spotify played where it raced your artists against each other? Gaga won the entire time.

My other top artists were Beyoncé, Lorde, Laufey, and Lucy Dacus. All great artists, no regrets there. But certifiably un-indie.

Partiful called me "codependent"

A couple of the rundowns didn't work for me. I spent a long time hunting for my "YOUBER" banner. I deleted and redownloaded the Uber app; I powered my phone off and on. Nothing worked — and it seems like I wasn't alone.

I can guess what would be on there, though. Uber would tell me that my primary trip was coming back from Bushwick at 3 a.m.. Uber Eats would tell me that I ordered far too much late-night Chinese food.

I rarely use Snapchat, so my Snap Recap had almost nothing in it.

The Dunkin' rewards recap also felt a bit empty. My "go-tos" were iced coffee and donuts. At Dunkin'? Shocking. At least it didn't tell me how much I could've saved by making coffee at home. That would be devastating.

I'm not a big Partiful user, though I did make my first invite this year to plan a housewarming. I co-created the invite with my roommate. For that honor, the app called me "codependent." Rude!

And the worst of them, of course, was Strava. I hate distance running. I will not be one of the gaggles of Gen Zers signing up for a marathon.

I logged one — count them, one — run on Strava this year. There weren't even enough to get a "Year in Sport."

• When my kids were growing up, Christmas was so busy and costly.
• This year, they now know Santa isn't real, so I'm approaching the holiday differently.
• I'm talking with my kids about the budget and letting them organize their wishlist.

It's the first year my kids know Santa isn't real, so I've never been more excited about Christmas.

I was told "the news" by my youngest kid, who cornered me in the kitchen mid-October. She said, "Mom. We know about Santa. You don't have to pretend anymore."

When I tried to argue about believing in the spirit of Christmas, I was shushed. For the first time, I didn't try to push that Santa was real. I just nodded my head. I then noticed a wave of excitement and relief wash over me.

That's when I knew I could cut back this year for the first time.

Christmas was all about making holiday magic — at a high cost

Since my kids were babies, I've tried to make Christmas magical. There have been Christmas outings to see lights, cookie-making, Nutcracker trips, and "Frozen on Ice." If it was holiday-themed, we did it.

Christmas Day would begin with a sea of presents on the living room floor. It was like Christmas consumerism gone bananas.

My husband and I did a lot to make this magic happen, finishing the season exhausted — only to slide into the new year with mountains of debt that lasted until March.

Christmas has only gotten more difficult over the last few years

Over the last three years, my school-aged kids have been suspicious that Santa isn't real. They would try to sneak and find gifts, opening closets and investigating the garage.

On Christmas Day, they would yell out when the "Santa" wrapping paper was different, looking closely to scrutinize the handwriting on gift tags. They were trying to catch us in the act.

I have always loved Christmas, but the holiday started to feel more like a trap and a lot less fun. I couldn't hide it, and I suppose my kids could feel this, lovingly referring to me as the Grinch. Compared to the moms on Instagram who made cookies from scratch and sewed their own stockings, my Scrooge-ness made me feel like a mom failure.

We can now approach holiday budgeting differently

Now that Santa has been unveiled, I find myself looking forward to Christmas more than I have in years. I'm hoping we can scale back this holiday season by setting some guardrails on their Christmas lists and our spending, taking a more practical approach.

We've shared with our kids what a Christmas budget can look like: things they want, need, and big asks.

While having honest budgeting conversations during the holiday season may not seem spirit-filled, our kids are learning that making smart budgeting choices is important all year long.

Of course, we'll still surprise them with a few fun items, Santa-style, but being clear about our budget helps our kids with their own financial literacy.

Honest conversations about the holidays will help us all find more joy in the season

Since Santa is no longer a secret, we hope this helps our family discover what brings true joy and how to be intentional throughout the holidays. In being honest about our budgets and reining in spending, we understand that one person can't make holiday magic; it's something we create together.

We plan to make better holiday decisions, focusing on spending more time together and, most importantly, giving more than we receive.

Christmas has always been a special time for our family. Even though our kids are older, I'm hopeful that we can still experience holiday magic, but with a greater emphasis on meaning. I am excited to create new traditions and memories in the spirit of the season — without any help from Santa.

• A US Navy warship in the Middle East just launched a one-way attack drone for the first time.
• A commander described it as a milestone in the effort to deploy cheap drones.
• The launch comes as the Pentagon tries to keep pace with new technology in modern warfare.

A US Navy warship operating in the Middle East launched a one-way attack drone at sea this week, marking a first for the American military as it pushes to deploy this new technology.

The Independence-class littoral combat ship USS Santa Barbara launched the drone, a Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System, or LUCAS, in the Arabian Gulf on Tuesday, 5th Fleet said in a statement on Wednesday.

Vice Adm. Curt Renshaw, the head of US Naval Forces Central Command, said the "first successful launch of LUCAS from a naval vessel marks a significant milestone in rapidly delivering affordable and effective" drones to American military personnel.

The drone launched from the Santa Barbara belonged to a new squadron based in the Middle East that operates the LUCAS systems, one-way attack drones that resemble the Iranian-designed Shahed-136 widely used by Russia in attacks against Ukraine.

LUCAS, developed by the American engineering firm SpektreWorks, has an "extensive" range, can be launched by catapults and from vehicles and mobile ground stations, and has rocket-assisted takeoff capabilities.

The system's classification as a one-way attack drone, also known as a loitering munition, indicates that LUCAS can remain airborne in a target area for a period before diving down at its target and detonating.

"This platform will undoubtedly enhance regional maritime security and deterrence," said Renshaw, who oversees the American naval presence in the Middle East.

Littoral combat ships, such as the Santa Barbara, are equipped with naval cannons, machine guns, and missiles. The ability to launch attack drones from the flight deck would give the vessels more firepower, though it's unclear whether the LUCAS systems would be used this way during combat operations.

The launch this week, which took place in waters near Iran, comes as the US seeks to rapidly produce and deploy inexpensive drones amid a rise in robotic and autonomous systems in modern warfare.

The Trump administration has made it a priority to boost the production of drones to keep pace with Russia and China. Earlier this month, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared a plan envisioning a substantial $1 billion investment over two years to make and field hundreds of thousands of cheap attack drones.

US Central Command, which oversees US operations in the Middle East, announced on December 3 the establishment of a new task force for the military's first one-way attack drone squadron — using LUCAS drones — in the region.

The delta-wing shape is a popular design for one-way attack drones. Some models, like the LUCAS or Russia's Geran-2, appear to have derived their profiles from the notorious Iranian Shahed.

Russia used Iranian-made Shaheds against Ukraine early in the war, but it has since started manufacturing its own versions. The Gerans carry small warheads and travel much slower than cruise and ballistic missiles, but they are significantly cheaper, allowing Moscow to launch dozens or hundreds in a single night. These weapons augment strike packages and make defense more difficult.

In May, President Donald Trump praised the Shahed for its low cost — estimated to be roughly $35,000 to $40,000 — and speed. He said the drone has proven extremely deadly in Ukraine.

One-way attack drones, like the Shahed, have been used in recent years by Iran-backed militants, who have launched them at American forces in the Middle East, as well as Israel and ships sailing off the coast of Yemen.

• After years of a minimalist life, my wife and I decided to try living without furniture.
• We noticed physical benefits, and we also love that our house often looks clean and uncluttered.
• This lifestyle isn't for everyone and there are downsides, but it's been great for us.

My wife and I live in a pretty garden apartment that's almost entirely devoid of furniture. The closest things we have are a bamboo laptop table and two single camping mattresses.

At our ages — 57 and 60 — we're expected to invest in matching La-Z-Boys and TV trays, but we spend most of our time on the floor on yoga mats. Honestly, we've never been happier.

If you'd told me this was what the future held for us back when we were lounging on our L-shaped couch in 2020, I'd have suggested you reduce the strength of your edibles. As much as we still dream about that comfortable couch, though, we wouldn't take it back.

Life without furniture comes with an array of benefits, both expected and unexpected, and they're not worth trading for modern-day creature comforts.

Adopting a minimalist lifestyle made us open to new and different ways of living

Ever since inadvertently becoming minimalists in 2008, we've made a point of engaging in lifestyle experiments, but it had never occurred to us to eschew furniture.

Then, I listened to a podcast about furniture-free living. I was immediately intrigued, but my wife wasn't as easily convinced.

The idea wasn't one we could entertain anyway, since we were about to move to a fully-furnished cottage in the middle of nowhere. Life has a way of giving you what you need, though, and the country wasn't for us.

Five months later, we were back in Cape Town's city bowl, on the hunt for new digs.

Finding an almost-empty apartment to rent felt like our sign to give furniture-free living a try

When a stunning, affordable, and unfurnished apartment showed up in my inbox, I took it as a sign that it was time to give furniture-free living a try.

The lush, bee-friendly garden with a towering pine tree won my wife over immediately. I didn't even have to say a word; I suspect she'd have agreed even if it meant sleeping outside in a tent.

We made some mistakes at first. Initially, we bought a cheap, low-level futon to sleep on, but it proved a poor choice for our backs, and we soon ditched it in favor of our camping mattresses.

Our intention was always to buy a tatami sleeping mat down the line, but our frugal "if it ain't broke" selves keep deferring the purchase.

Right from the get-go, we both loved hanging out on the floor, and it just felt right.

This lifestyle comes with several benefits

Within about a month, we began to feel physically stronger — probably because we were constantly getting up and down from floor level and forced to work on our posture.

Without a cushy office chair to sink into for hours at a stretch, we're naturally reminded to change position or get up and move.

Plus, our balance has improved because we've trained ourselves to get up and sit down without the help of our hands. We can also sit unsupported for extended periods.

Practically, no furniture makes moving homes — something we've done more than once in the past few years — a breeze. It makes sense for us to live in a way that supports our perpetual desire for change.

With nothing to move, housework is also ridiculously easy. Plus, our apartment always looks neat.

Probably the best benefit, though, is that our quirky rescue kitty seems to love our furniture-free life. He prefers to tunnel under our legs rather than sit on our laps — and being on the floor gives him a lot of chances to do this.

It's not for everyone, and that's OK

When we tell people about our lifestyle, the same concern always comes up: How do you entertain? The truth is, we don't.

This way of life isn't for everyone, and the last thing we'd want is to make our guests feel uncomfortable. So, we've found middle ground by meeting for walks or going out for coffee or a meal. It might not work for everyone, but it works for us.

Ironically, our next lifestyle experiment — which we're tentatively planning for late 2026 — means going back to a bed and couch, but only because you can't do without either when you live in a van.

Well, technically you could … but even we're not up for that level of discomfort.

• Henley & Partners says soaring private healthcare costs now shape where wealthy families move.
• A global index reveals stark healthcare cost gaps that are reshaping millionaire migration.
• Experts say Europe offers strong care value as US and Asian hubs push private costs higher.

A surge in global wealth migration seems to be colliding with an overlooked but increasingly decisive factor: the soaring cost of private healthcare.

Henley & Partners, an investment migration firm, said its client data and new cost comparisons from a global health index show wealthy families are no longer choosing where to live solely on tax or lifestyle, but are increasingly factoring in the long-term cost of private healthcare.

The firm said in a press release this month that it has received applications from 92 nationalities in 2025, supporting clients across more than 50 residence and citizenship programs.

Applications jumped 43% year-over-year in the first three quarters of 2025 compared with the same period in 2024, it said.

"Global mobility is becoming a core risk-management strategy for wealthy families," said Christian H. Kaelin, the firm's chairman. Clients "are scrutinizing not only access to residence and citizenship, but also the real cost of sustaining that lifestyle — especially the price of reliable private healthcare."

"Destinations that look attractive on paper can become far less so once true healthcare exposure is understood," he added.

Where healthcare is most — and least — affordable

Henley & Partners cited the SIP Health Cost Index 2025, from the SIP Medical Family Office in Switzerland, a global benchmark released earlier this month, which ranks 50 countries by the true cost of private healthcare using international private medical insurance (IPMI) premiums as of August 2025.

The findings are stark:

• The United States has the most expensive private healthcare market in the world, it found, with an average annual IPMI cost of $17,968 per person.
• Hong Kong and Singapore follow closely, the report said, with $16,175 and $14,231 in average healthcare costs, respectively.
• China, Thailand, and Taiwan now all rank among the top 12 most expensive markets, driven by demand for premium hospitals and rising inpatient costs, the report said.

In Europe, the UK ($11,726) and Greece ($9,654) sit at the pricier end due in part to insurance taxes, it said. while Switzerland ranks mid-table at $8,912. The UAE ranks 10th globally, with an average of $9,680.

Some of the mid-range markets include South Africa, Saudi Arabia, and Monaco, which range from roughly $7,100 to $7,600.

Hidden cost shocks

Kevin Bürchler, CEO of SIP Medical Family Office, which is behind the SIP Health Cost Index 2025, said inflation in private healthcare "is rising worldwide, but the pace and pattern differ dramatically."

Speaking to Business Insider, he pointed to "value" destinations such as Italy, Portugal, and Austria, which offer lower costs and proximity to top-tier medical hubs like Switzerland and Germany.

While ultra-high-net-worth individuals can absorb steep premiums, the cost gap matters for affluent families, especially those planning toward retirement, he said.

"It can make a significant difference whether you pay $30,000 plus for private health insurance versus $10,000," or whether "a doctor consultation costs $500 or $50," he added.

Growing demand for healthcare resilience

That pressure, among other factors, is reshaping behavior, especially among Americans.

"US citizens were 5% of our client base in 2018, whereas today they comprise 40%," Basil Mohr-Elzeki, managing partner at Henley & Partners North America, told Business Insider — a shift he described as part of a broader hedge that includes healthcare resilience.

He said healthcare costs are explicitly cited in at least 15% of client decisions, making it a top-five factor behind geopolitical risk, global mobility, legacy planning, and tax optimization.

Interest is rising in Portugal, Italy, Greece, Malta, and in cost-effective Latin American options such as Panama and Costa Rica, he said, adding that Turkey also attracts clients for affordable private medical tourism.

Mohr-Elzeki said many aging clients are increasingly seeking alternative healthcare options abroad — not only because of the cost, but also to access different medical opinions and treatments outside the US system, which he said, while "top-tier," may have a "commercial bias."

Henley & Partners said the SIP Index is helping clients "avoid hidden high-cost traps" as healthcare becomes a central part of global mobility planning.

• TikTok is telling US staff that they will need to return to the office five days a week next year.
• The move is affecting several large teams, including advertising sales, marketing, and product.
• Return-to-office mandates are ramping up across the corporate world.

For many TikTok employees, the days of working from home are numbered.

The company has told US staffers across several large divisions that they will need to return to the office five days a week next year, two affected workers told Business Insider.

The return-to-office push, which kicks off in September, will affect US employees across a wide set of roles, including staffers who work on advertising sales, marketing, and product, the employees said. A third staffer said they expected that much of TikTok's US cohort would be back in the office five days a week next year.

TikTok and its owner, ByteDance, set in-office attendance rules by team. The company's e-commerce division, TikTok Shop, already has a five-day return-to-office requirement that at one point involved tracking the number of hours workers were physically in the office, Business Insider previously reported.

RTO is very much in vogue across corporate America. After easing up on in-office requirements during the pandemic, companies like Dell, JPMorgan, and Amazon have all ramped up in-office mandates over the past couple of years.

TikTok competitor Instagram announced plans to bring US workers back into the office five days a week beginning in February.

"I believe that we are more creative and collaborative when we are together in-person," Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri wrote in a memo explaining the policy.

Other companies like Spotify have been more lenient about RTO. The company's former HR chief said last year that its work-from-anywhere policy was rooted in the idea that "you can't spend a lot of time hiring grown-ups and then treat them like children."

The idea of returning to the office full-time has sparked mixed reactions among workers, both inside and outside TikTok. Young employees who started their careers working from home during the pandemic have begun romanticizing the idea of commuting to work in social-media posts, for example. On the flip side, there's Amazon, which has taken a more aggressive approach to RTO by forcing staffers to relocate to hubs, and has struggled to recruit new hires, Business Insider previously reported.

Some executives view their employees' attitudes toward RTO as a signal of their alignment with the company.

After AT&T instituted a five-day RTO earlier this year, CEO John Stankey said in August that workers who felt virtual or hybrid work was "essential" would have trouble aligning their priorities with the company and its culture.

TikTok's RTO plans, set for the end of 2026, could change if the company winds up selling its US business to a new owner next year. Its current owner, ByteDance, is required to sell most of its US assets to comply with a divestment law passed in 2024.

In September, the Trump administration said it was prepared to approve a $14 billion sale of the US business to a buyer consortium that could include Oracle, its executive chairman Larry Ellison, Michael Dell, and Rupert Murdoch.

TikTok did not respond to a request for comment.