It's been a long week, and it's only Tuesday. However, it is also the 21st of September, so here's a sweet little bird singing along to Earth, Wind, and Fire.

We all know the original Yakko's World song, but have you heard it sung by the leaders of the countries Yakko lists? Now you can.

Watch in satisfaction and confusion as a red-hot hunk of metal gurgles and hisses its way through a chunk of ice (which is subsequently shattered by a large piece of concrete).

Last Friday, US District Judge Max Cogburn ruled that Lonnie Billard, a gay substitute drama and English teacher in North Carolina, was wrongfully fired in 2014. Cogburn ruled that the Charlotte Catholic High School and the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Charlotte, North Carolina violated federal protections under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and that the school's actions weren't protected by constitutional rights to religious freedom. According to EDGE Media Network, Cogburn also ruled that "the school's action didn't fit into exemptions to labor law that give religious institutions leeway to require certain employees to adhere to religious teachings."

"Plaintiff is a lay employee, who comes onto the campus of a religious school for the limited purpose of teaching secular classes, with no mandate to inculcate students with Catholic teachings," Cogburn wrote. The school and diocese are considering whether to appeal the ruling.

via LGBTQ Nation

Billard initially filed suit in 2017, three years after he announced his wedding to another man on Facebook in 2014. Within weeks of the social media announcement, Billard was informed by the school's assistant principle that he no longer had a job at the school. After Billard's firing, local diocese spokesperson David Hains stated that Billard was fired for, "going on Facebook, entering into a same-sex relationship, and saying it in a very public way that he does not agree with the teachings of the Catholic Church."

The lawsuit sought back pay, benefits, punitive damages, compensatory damages for emotional distress, and a court order blocking the school and diocese from firing other LGBTQ+ teachers in the future.

In a statement to The Charlotte Observer, the diocese wrote: "The First Amendment, federal law, and recent Supreme Court decisions all recognize the rights of religious organizations to make employment decisions based on religious observance and preference. They do not — and should not — compel religious schools to employ teachers who publicly contradict their teachings."

This TikTok from user @mattydovids gives simple, concise instructions on how to fold that pesky fitted sheet that you usually just ball up and plop on top of the rest of your sheets (but he's kind of an asshole about it).

If you're like me and can't stand the wet, cavernous mouth-sounds of mainstream ASMR videos, give this one a try: a teeny-tiny little baby kitty chilling in the grass, getting the pets it deserves, and spending time with mom.

It's hard to count how many students are participating in this giant, intimidating, potentially dangerous game of jumprope, but it's easy to count the two spotters standing by in case the jumper misses a skip and is catapulted into the stratosphere.

Originally posted by MagneticGames on Youtube, this snippy, snappy construction process is a pleasure for the ears and eyes (but apparently not so much for your wallet, since the price of some of these magnets starts to stack up even when you buy them in bulk).

In Kern County, CA, researchers are celebrating after spotting a single grey wolf on a wildlife camera. The California Department of Fish & Wildlife says it's the first verified wolf to return to the area in over 100 years.

The lone wolf made the roughly 700 mile journey from the border of Oregon to Central California, crossing 18 other counties and several major highways before its tracking collar stopped transmitting. It was finally found a few weeks later, in May, on a wildlife camera on a ranch in Kern County.

Wildlife experts are now trying to reconnect with the wolf's collar and investigating the ranch for DNA to see which wolf made the trek.

Those who think they've spotted the wolf (who is wearing a purple collar) are being encouraged to report the sighting to the California Department of Fish & Wildlife. Residents are also reminded that it is illegal to harm, pursue, harass, hunt, shoot, kill, trap, or capture gray wolves.

Starting this winter, students at universities in Berlin will be enjoying a larger array of meat-free food options at on-campus canteens. The 34 canteens across 4 campuses that cater to Berlin's student population will offer a menu that is 68% vegan, 28% vegetarian, and 2% fish-based, with a single meat option that will be offered four days a week.

The menus include marinated beetroot and sesame seeds, pasta bakes with tomato and cheese, buckwheat and spelt bowls topped with grilled sweet potatoes, and much more.

"We developed a new nutritional concept mainly because students have repeatedly approached us with the request for a more climate-friendly offer at their canteens," said Daniela Kummle of Studierendenwerk, the organisation providing economic, social, health and cultural support to students enrolled at Berlin's higher education institutions.

via The Guardian

According to Deutsches Studentenwerk spokesperson Stefan Grob, university cafeterias and canteens across Germany currently offer 30-50% vegetarian options, "But in Berlin, you have a critical mass."

In 2019, Berlin universities fed about 5.6 million meals to students in its canteens. That same year a survey found that 13.5% of Berlin's student population described themselves as keeping a vegan diet, compared with just 1.6% in the country as a whole, while a further 33% said they were vegetarians.

via The Guardian

With climate protection becoming a more dire and pressing issue to both staff and students, Berlin's own Humboldt University is planning on being carbon-neutral by 2030, with Berlin's Technical University striving for neutrality by 2045. At both universities, in 2019, more than 300 members of staff signed a letter committing themselves to forgoing job-related, short-distance flights for trips under 1,000km (621 miles).

Five schools in Cullman, Alabama, are closing their doors for two weeks due to rising Covid cases. According to the Cullman County school district, one-third of the students in the district's 29 campuses were reported absent due to positive Covid tests or contact tracing, and the Cullman Times reported that the district has 107 reported positive cases of Covid among students. This news comes only days after a local superspreader event: Donald Trump's recent rally.

Prior to Trump's rally, health officials said they were "shivering in their boots" about the prospect of a COVID-19 surge in the wake of not only Trump's rally, but also a Rock the South concert held at the same venue the weekend before.

City officials also declared a state of emergency in advance of Trump's rally, with the state running out of ICU beds.

via Raw Story

The Alabama Republican Party reported that the rally hosted nearly 50,000 people, saying it was the largest political event in the state's history — even if the ex-president was booed for encouraging residents to get vaccinated.

Trump has long been criticized for holding large maskless rallies with no social distancing during the pandemic. Last year, researchers concluded that 18 of his rallies led to more than 30,000 COVID-19 cases and 700 deaths.

via Raw Story

Why are these lady-animals so sensuous? So svelte and seductive? We'd ask Tex and Michael themselves, but we'd need a ouija board.

During some commentary in the documentary series Age of Samurai: Battle for Japan, a familiar voice calls through the aether — and while this might be the literal dictionary definition of the word "genocide", it's not hard to imagine that this historian knows his way around Arrakis.

An innocent bystander can only cower in terror and film the horrific onslaught of aggressive shopping carts set loose from a local Giant Eagle grocery store.

At the Critter Creek Farm Sanctuary, Amos the pig and Lionel the cow have developed an adorable and heartwarming bond after being rescued together from South Florida.

Mr. Elba has, for a while now, been lusted after, fawned over, and otherwise admired. Now, it's time for him to make us feel sexually confused about a bright red echidna.

Knuckles was introduced to the Sonic game series as a villain in the Sonic the Hedgehog 3, and became a playable character in Sonic & Knuckles. He has since become a much beloved character in the franchise, along with the game's protagonist, his sidekick Tails, Amy Rose, and Shadow the Hedgehog.

Unlike the first film's protagonist, however, Knuckles and his voice actor are getting a lot of… attention.

Ironically, according to Pink News, Sonic furry porn was used to troll Donald Trump's "social media" website, GETTR. Surely, with Idris Elba ready to voice everyone's favorite echidna, there will soon be more furry fuel to add to that furry fire.

Redditor u/StineItch spotted this little bug making its way across a forest trail in Panama. The bug has been (tentatively) identified as either a puss or asp caterpillar, according to r/whatsthisbug, but regardless of what it is, it's extremely cute.

Rock-pop star Pink is offering to cover the 1500€ fine against Norway's women's handball team after they dared to play in shorts rather than bikini bottoms.

According to the Norwegian Handball Federation President Kåre Geir Lio, the thigh-length, elastic shorts were "not [appropriate clothing for] the activity when they are playing in the sand." Lio also says that the team had petitioned to wear shorts before the start of the tournament, but were threatened with disqualification and fines.

According to the International Handball Federation regulations, the women's team are required to wear midriff-bearing tops and bikini bottoms "with a close fit and cut on an upward angle toward the top of the leg" with a maximum side width of 4 inches. Players on the men's handball team are allowed to play in tank tops and shorts no longer than 4 inches above the knee.

The newest sci-fi spectacular that is Dennis Villeneuve's Dune might not include David Lynch's battle pugs, but it does include some startling similarities with the original 1984 film.

A man in Doral, FL, fled from a Bath and Body Works at the Miami International Mall loaded with candles and trailing bear repellent spray.

According to police spokesperson Rey Valdes, at least 15 of the 30 people affected by the spray were Bath and Body Works employees, and all of them would require treatment for their injuries. One employee was rushed to the hospital after receiving a direct hit of the spray to the face. According to Valdes, the man is "potentially looking at 30 to 35 felonies."

The suspect was las seen leaving the mall in a taxi, and his identity is still unknown.