Condensed Soup

The legendary Dick Van Dyke turned 100 this weekend. His try-and-try-again career is an inspiration! Affable comedy acting legend Dick Van Dyke turns 100 years old (AP, Dec 13, 2025) Dick Van Dyke biography and career timeline (PBS, Dec 2, 2025) Dick Van Dyke Fast Facts (CNN, Dec 12, 2025) Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast condensedsoup@proton.me *This episode was recorded in a cruise ship cabin.

Sometimes it takes a fresh perspective to solve a problem. A bald volleyball coach stepped into help his players' hair problems.  How a bald coach solved volleyball's ponytail predicament (Alyssa Haddock, ESPN, Dec 1, 2025) The inventor of the scrunchie dies, leaving behind a fabulous fashion legacy (Kai McNamee, NPR, Sep 17, 2022) More atmospheric rivers coming for flooded Washington and the West...

One old, one new: the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris and Steinmetz Hall in Orlando take two very different approaches to allowing music to soar.  'The space is like an instrument': How Notre-Dame found its voice after fire muffled it (Richard Gray, BBC, Mar 6, 2025) Orlando's Steinmetz Hall: One of the Most Acoustically Perfect Spaces (Iulia Popescu, AVIXA, Jul 12, 2022 Steinmetz Hall: Damian Do...

Quicksand isn't quite what they show in the movies, but it is real! A hiker in Arches National Park was just rescued. Are you quicksand survival skills up to par?  Hiker mired in quicksand in Utah's Arches National Park is rescued unharmed (Mead Gruver, AP, Dec 11, 2025) How to Get Out of Quicksand (It's Not LIke the Movies!) (Scott Fitterman and Dan Hickey, Wikihow, Feb 17, 2025) Instagram: @cond...

One of the year's most active meteor showers peaks this weekend! Pack your thermos! How to watch one of the year's best meteor shower, the Geminids (Adithi Ramakrishnan, AP, Dec 9, 2025) I Didn't Know That!: Shooting Stars (National Park Service, accessed Dec 10, 2025) Shooting Star Meaning, Spirituality and Superstitions (Bambi Turner & Sascha Bot (HowStuffWorks, Aug 22, 2023) What are shooting s...

Australia just enacted a law limiting social media access to children under 16. Is this the start (or end) of something?  Millions of Australian children just lost access to social media. What's happening and will it work? (Hilary Whiteman, CNN, Dec 9, 2025) Social media use damages children's ability to focus, say researchers (Dan Milmo, The Guardian, Dec 8, 2025) Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast...

I can't help loving them -- those predictable, shiny Christmas romances that flood the market every holiday season. Are you on board? (I totally understand if you aren't.) It's Love Week! How the TV holiday rom-com got so successful (Sylvie Douglas, NPR, Oct 21, 2024) Hallmark's Formula for a Very Sappy Christmas (Nicholas Gilmore, The Saturday Evening Post, Dec 20, 2019 Instagram: @condensedsoupp...

Are we in for a world of ... white? Pantone thinks so. What this could mean (maybe).  Pantone's 'Cloud Dancer' color party is a recession indicator (Mia Sato, The Verge, Dec 5, 2025) Backlash Hits Pantone After Color Of The Year Slammed as 'Tone Deaf,' 'Dystopian' (Mary Whitfield Roeloffs, Forbes, Dec 5, 2025) You read that white: Pantone's 2026 Color the Year is 'Cloud Dancer' (Ivy Buck, Alina Ed...

Did you know 1 out of 12 rams aren't that attracted to ewes? A German farm is saving these gay sheep.  Just not into ewes: 'gay sheep' escape slaughter and take over a New York catwalk (Julia Carrie Wong, The Guardian, Dec 5, 2025) Flehmen (ScienceDirect, accessed Dec 6, 2025) Same-Sex Behavior Among Animals Isn't New. Science is Finally Catching Up. (Barry Yeoman, National Wildlife Federation, Ju...

When a New Zealand thief stole a Fabergé pendant, he swallowed it. Police recovered it (naturally).  Police recover a swallowed Fabergé pendant after a 6-day wait for it to reappear (Charlotte Graham-McLay, AP, Dec 4, 2025) The Imperial Eggs (Faberge, accessed Dec 5, 2025) Faberge Eggs (Britannica, Nov 27, 2025) Fabergé egg made for mother of Russia's last tsar sells for £23m (Serena Richards, The...

Got shredded cheese? Check it! There's a huge recall in the U.S. Also, if you thought your air travel was tough, ask a violinist. 1.5 million bags of shredded cheese have been recalled. Check your fridge for these brands (Karen Garcia, LA Times, Dec 3, 2025) Soloist forced to travel with 'naked' 1782 violin as airline refuses her boarding with case (Hazel Davis, Classic FM, Dec 2, 2025) Violinist...

U.S. holiday flyers, this episode is for you. If you're flying, make sure you have a Real ID -- otherwise you might be out $45. Plus, if your flight is delayed or your luggage is lost, you could be entitled to money. How do you get a REAL ID? Not having one could soon cost you $45 (Kate Perez, USA Today, Dec 1, 2025) Flight delayed this holiday season? You may be entitled to a refund. Here's what...

The U.S. chose to stop commemorating World AIDS Day this year.  We'll do it here. The US government is no longer commemorating World AIDS Day (Jennifer Handler, CNN, Dec 1, 2025) For the first time since 1988, the U.S. is not officially commemorating World AIDS Day (Gabrielle Emanuel, NPR, Dec 1, 2025) Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast condensedsoup@proton.me *This episode was recorded in a cruise...

It's a few days post-Thanksgiving, so here's an episode of leftovers -- some stories that I couldn't expand into full episodes, but that definitely belong in the Soup. Enjoy!  Florida police seize over 30 illegally used disability parking permits (Allison Petro, WESH-NBC, Dec 1, 2025) Senior Couple Gets Married in the YMCA Swimming Pool Where They First Met in a Water Aerobics Class (Erin Clack, P...

Karl Bushby is nearing the end of his trek around the world, a walk that has spanned almost three decades. It's a testament of commitment. Round-the-world walker prepares for home stretch (Eleanor Maslin, BBC News, Jun 11, 2025) Round-the-world walker swims across Caspian Sea (Holly Phillips, BBC News, Oct 19, 2024) The Long Way Home (Bill Donahue, Backpacker Magazine, Mar 24, 2025) 27. Years on f...

A heist! But this time, it's an entire harvest of escargot. Someone got shellfish...  Thieves take €90,000 of snails meant for Michelin-starred restaurants (Adam Sage, The Times, Nov 27, 2025) Escargot Plates & Serving Dishes: What You Need to Know (Hubert, accessed Nov 29, 2025) Escargot (Britannica, accessed Nov 29, 2025) From Peasant Fodder to Fine Dining, Feast on the Tasty History of How Snai...

Are pet raccoons in our future? A new study says -- maybe.  City life is reshaping raccoons — and may be nudging them toward domestication (Anna Betts, The Guardian, Nov 28, 2025) New research reveals urban raccoons across the US show early signs of domestication (Amanda Schupak, CNN Science, Nov 24, 2025) Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast condensedsoup@proton.me *This episode was recorded in a cru...

An AI-generated musician just topped the Christian and gospel charts. Should we be worried?  The Current No. 1 Christian Artist Has No Soul (Kelsey Kramer McGinnis, Christianity Today, Nov 21, 2025) An AI-generated band got 1m plays on Spotify. Now music insiders say listeners should be warned (Lanre Bakare, The Guardian, Jul 14, 2025) Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast condensedsoup@proton.me *This...

Gramma, the 140-year-old Galapagos tortoise, has died. She was a splendid animal.  Fire engulfs high-rise housing estate in Hong Kong, killing at least 44 (Jennifer Jett and Peter Guy, NBC News, Nov 26, 2025) Tortoise who experienced more than 20 US presidents, 2 World Wars dies at age 141 (Megan Forrester, ABC News, Nov 25, 2025) Galapagos giant tortoise (Galapagos Conservation Trust, accessed No...

Are you a Macy's Thanksgiving Parade person? Come learn about this American tradition.  Americans eye Thanksgiving travel weather after Texas tornadoes, snow and rain elsewhere (Juan A. Lozano, AP, Nov 25, 2025) Everything to Know About the 2025 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (Gina Salamone, NBC (dot) com, Nov 25, 2025) Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade UWS Inflation Event 2025: What To Know (West Si...

One of the hardest parts of traveling is the actual travel -- walking through airports with bags and kids can be tough. And now, some moving walkways are disappearing. I have thoughts.  Why airline passenger walks to the terminal gate may get a little longer (Kevin Williams, CNBC, Nov 22, 2025) This U.S. Airport Will Take You the Longest to Walk Through, According to a New Study (Stacey Leasca, Tr...

Still waiting to upgrade your phone? Trying to eke out as much time as possible before you have to spend money on a new one? You're not alone. Here's why it matters.  Americans are holding onto devices longer than ever and it's costing the economy (Kevin Williams, CNBC, Nov 23, 2025) Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast condensedsoup@proton.me *This episode was recorded in a cruise ship cabin.

Sumo wrestling is a segregated space. Will Japan's first female prime minister change that? Japan's first female leader faces a taboo over entering the male-only sumo ring (Mari Yamaguchi, AP, Nov 21, 2025) The female sumo wrestlers fighting for recognition — a photo essay (Yulia Skogoreva, The Guardian, Jun 30, 2023) What is Sumo Wrestling & Where to See a Match (Dayna Hannah, All Japan Tours, ac...

New crash test dummies designed to more closely resemble women's bodies will be used for American crash tests soon. Plus, more smart crows! Swedish firm deploys crows to pick up cigarette butts (Daniel Coffey, The Guardian, Feb 1, 2022) The Crows Who Clean Our Cities (Michele Gargiulo (dot) com, Nov 20, 2025) A new crash test dummy that better resembles women gets key government endorsement (Jeff...

Going to the movies can be a really indulgent experience -- and sometimes, we need a little escape.  'A different vibe': New York welcomes the luxury private cinema experience (Adrian Horton, The Guardian, Nov 20, 2025) The Ultimate Guide to Movie Ticket Prices (Cinemark, Aug 11, 2025) 10 Unique Movie Theatres Around the World (Hester Underhill, Something Curated, Sep 25, 2024) The History of Driv...