“We always question ourselves, like we got to be rational about things, instead of just actually doing it.” Sometimes the irrational decisions liberate us the most. In 2012 Ryan Sandes, a South African ultra-runner, completed the 85km run through the…
The Internet is crowdfunding a bailout for Greece and it’s going surprisingly well
BY: THE PLAID ZEBRA Everyone is aware of the wasteland that is the current state of Greek economic affairs, as the nation quickly approaches its financial melting point. Yesterday Greece missed the deadline to pay €1.5 billion ($1.7 billion) to the…
Going on a road trip increases your creativity, lowers stress, and makes you a better person
BY: MATTHEW CHIN Going on a good old fashioned road trip is a surefire way to increase spontaneity, lower stress and inspire creativity, which lasts after you return from the trip. It encourages you to explore an otherwise overlooked part…
Watch New York City’s most influential buskers reveal why they sing to strangers
BY: MELISSA GONZALEZ I race to the subway, balancing a dripping tray of coffee while glancing anxiously down at my wristwatch. Already I’m late to work and I’ll no doubt be caught in the human swarm of Monday morning—sleep deprived…
Man leaves Japan to bike around the world with only $2 and has made it to 37 different countries
BY: ZOE MELNYK After working for his father’s air conditioning company for the majority of his twenties, Keiichi Iwasaki decided to take control of his life before it slip through his fingers completely. In 2001 at the age of 28,…
Chuck Palahniuk reading “Fight Club 4 Kids” is some seriously disturbing shit
BY: THE PLAID ZEBRA The consumingly violent novel-turned-cult classic, Fight Club, had millions of Average Joes across North America thinking about clearing the dusty cardboard boxes from their unfinished basements to start an underground fight club and grind their neighbours…
Wedding photographer exacts sweet sweet revenge on homophobic client who asked for a refund
The U.S.’s legalization of same-sex marriages across all 50 states represents a celebrated moment in history for most. For others, the ruling might as well be the first step on the slippery slope of national degeneracy. There’s no doubt it’ll…
Here is what a modern Scottish island powered almost entirely by renewable energy looks like
BY: MATTHEW CHIN On the western coast of northern Scotland, just 16 kilometres away from the mainland, lies Eigg Island, an island that runs almost entirely on renewable resources. The nine kilometres long and five kilometres wide island was bought…
Dutch citizens sued their government for not taking action against climate change and won
BY: ZOE MELNYK After years of disappointment in their government’s environmental policies, 886 Dutch citizens, following the lead of the sustainability foundation Urgenda, took their government to court in order to demand a better treatment of the environment and to…
Cabo Polonio is a completely off-grid village of hippies, fishermen and star gazers
BY: MATTHEW CHIN In Cabo Polonio, located on the eastern coast of Uruguay, sits the perfect beachfront getaway that is completely off the grid. The remote village dates back to the 1960s, where hippies, squatters, and fishermen have been building…
Doing Laughter Yoga with complete strangers was awkwardly enlightening
BY: MOLLY SANDERS They say laughter is the best medicine. But even in the funniest of life’s memorable moments, a good tear-jerking laugh lasts a couple of minutes at most; it’s a very temporary high. Enter laughter yoga, or Hasyayoga:…
Europe’s largest living wall contains 97,000 plants
BY: JESSICA BEUKER A 446-space parking garage is now home to Europe’s largest living wall. The wall contains 97,000 plants drawn from 20 different species chosen specifically to provide environmental benefits. According to Gizmag, the plants are tailored to do…
Extreme mountain camping and tree tents are the solution to your adventure-lust
BY: JESSICA BEUKER Most people get queasy looking over the edge of a balcony on a tall building. Fortunately, professional free climbers Tommy Caldwell and his wife Becca, are not most people. They are adventurers and extreme campers, facing cliffs…
Fast fashion companies treat human lives the same way we treat their cheap consumables
BY: LAURA ROJAS I walk through Toronto’s Yonge and Dundas at least once a week, obscured by the shadow of towering H&M billboards showing beautiful people wearing beautiful clothes, a large “2 for $10” sign reeling every passerby inside.…
Here are 5 things you can do about Earth’s sixth mass extinction (being afraid isn’t one)
BY: JESSICA BEUKER Recently my newsfeed and computer screen have been attempting to scare me. I’ve been flooded by headlines and stories that read, “Earth’s sixth mass extinction has begun and it’s all our faults.” Some read “Humans under threat,”…
We Wish We Lived in These 5 Extraordinary Places
BY: THE PLAID ZEBRA All of these locations are Plaid Zebra certified with creative, forward-thinking initiatives that make them incredible spots to call home. 1. Finland—The country with the world’s most wildly progressive education system Finland is often looked up…
5 disturbing drugs that you never wanted to know about
BY: JESSICA BEUKER We’ve all been subjected to that terrible ‘This is your brain on drugs’ video where they fry an egg. The only thing that video ever did was make me hungry for breakfast food. In my opinion, if…
Skinny jeans refuse to die and they are killing your nerves
BY: DANIEL KORN Skinny jeans have always been pretty ridiculous. I’m not going to be so naïve as to say that they don’t look good; heck, I tried on a pair in high school once, but my stocky build and…
Why Instagram celebrities condemning the Yulin Dog Meat Festival is the irony of the century
BY: ROB HOFFMAN Who’s to blame for a city that kills 10,000 dogs a year in the name of a good meal and celebrating the onset of summer? The most shocking aspect of the Yulin Festival celebration founded in 2009…
Elon Musk and SpaceX want you to design the tube transportation system from Futurama
BY: DANIEL KORN Futurama—at least its original four season run—does exactly what good science fiction should do—comment on our present by exploring our possible future. One of the show’s many plausible ideas is the transport system that the main characters…