Author: Rebecca OConnell

In a world of Swedish Fish-flavored Oreos and Peeps-flavored milk, bizarre food mash-ups shouldn’t be surprising anymore. But the latest, seemingly random combination of flavors has us all scratching our heads—and OK, maybe also taking out our wallets. 

Brach’s Confections—perhaps best known for its candy corn, among lots of other sugary treats—has decided to take their signature offering in a new direction. Their latest product features three new candy corn flavors, all of which are brunch-themed. Lovers of strange novelty food will surely flock to try the tri-color cones, which taste like French toast, waffles and strawberries, and chocolate chip pancakes. As The Daily Meal points out, there is a notable lacking of a mimosa flavor; in fact, all the flavors are decidedly more breakfast-themed than brunch. 

Regardless of meal semantics, specially flavored candy corn is intriguing. Adventurous sweet tooths can check these out at Target, where 15-ounce bags are being sold exclusively for $2.50 a pack. 

[h/t The Daily Meal]

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Banner image courtesy of iStock.

Fans of the Adult Swim cartoon Rick and Morty are likely well aware of the Meeseeks Box and the troubles that come with it. ThinkGeek decided to create a game based on the box, which captures all the original stress and repetition from the season one episode, “Meeseeks and Destroy.”

As a quick refresher, the Meeseeks Box was a gift from Rick to the Smith family. When the button on top was pushed, a blue figure emerged to help solve any problem the user was having. When the task was completed, the Mr. Meeseeks ceased to exist. The trouble only starts when the user fails to complete their goal. As the Mr. Meeseeks explains, “We are created to serve a singular purpose for which we will go to any lengths to fulfill! Existence is pain to a Meeseeks, Jerry!”

In the Rick and Morty Mr. Meeseeks’ Box-O’-Fun, the game follows a similar narrative. To begin, the player pulls a card with a specific task on it. The player then rolls the dice and tries to get a number that matches the number on the card. If they fail, they must press the button and summon a Mr. Meeseeks. Each blue character can either help with the task or make it even harder to complete. Players can keep drawing cards until the request is complete or opt to complete a dare. 

The set comes with 24 dice, 35 request cards, 60 dare cards, 50 Mr. Meeseeks cards, a timer, and a button voiced by Justin Roiland. You can order the game at ThinkGeek for $40. 

[h/t The Daily Dot]

If it’s been a while since you took a trip to the place where you grew up, you might find yourself missing the sights and smells of your home state. Homesick transplants can now find comfort in a nostalgic candle that borrows familiar scents from various states across the country.

Homesick Candles is a line of soy candles dedicated to channeling various smells from each state. New Yorkers can find comfort in a candle that smells like apple and pumpkin, while Georgians can enjoy the rich smell of peaches. Californians can choose between a candle that smells like the northern half of their state (pear and redwood) or the southern part (cactus, orange, ocean).

So far, the series has tackled 30 of the 50 states, but you can provide your email to get notified when new scents hit the shelves.

[h/t So Bad So Good]

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This year, skip the Halloween store—and the generic costume. Instead of pulling something pre-made out of a plastic bag, shop around and concoct the perfect outfit. Here are some timely costumes to try this Halloween.

1. HARLEY QUINN // SUICIDE SQUAD

Let’s get the most obvious option out of the way. There will probably be a lot of people slinging baseball bats this year—but popularity is also the sign of a good costume, so if you want to go the Quinn route, we’re here to help. We recommend a baseball tee, hot pants, fishnet leggings, a baseball bat, and lots of red and blue hair dye. You can take the look a step further with a Puddin’ necklace and Joker jacket.

2. ERIN GILBERT // GHOSTBUSTERS

Sure, you can pick up a Ghostbusters suit at the store, but we know you’re looking for something a little less obvious. Consider being Erin when she’s off duty. You just need an MIT sweatshirt, jeans, and rain boots.

3. DUSTIN // STRANGER THINGS

If you don’t want to sacrifice style when dressing up this Halloween, you might as well be the beloved toothless jokester from the new hit Netflix show, Stranger Things. All you need is a tri-color hat, green graphic tee, brown corduroy pants, and a denim jacket. The exact plaid-lined jacket Dustin wears might be hard to find, but you can always mix a navy jacket with a red plaid shirt.

4. ELEVEN // STRANGER THINGS

For another take on Stranger Things, dial it up to Eleven by buying a long sleeved pink dress, navy jacket, athletic socks, and a blonde wig (optional). Telekinetic powers sold separately.

5. THE DOG FILTER // SNAPCHAT

Social media mavens can cover a lot of bases with this costume, which can be either the dog emoji or the dog filter in Snapchat—and it’s relatively easy to pull off. Just grab some face paint and some brown or piebald ears.

6. LT. JUDY HOPPS // ZOOTOPIA

Getting the perfect Judy look will be a total snap. Basically all you need to do is combine two costumes—a police officer and a bunny. Instead of hopping over to the nearest costume store, look online for these things: a light blue turtleneck, a navy vest, blue leggings, a police badge, bunny feet, and ears.

7. PABLO ESCOBAR // NARCOS

We don’t blame you for envying Pablo Escobar’s impressive sweater game in the second season of Netflix’s show Narcos. Thankfully, it won’t be hard to steal this drug lord’s look for Halloween, especially if you have a mustache. All you need is a white button down, khakis, and of course, Pablo’s amazing handcuff knot sweater.

8. PRINCESS CAROLYN // BOJACK HORSEMAN

 

Princess Carolyn has had a tough year this season, but that doesn’t mean she won’t land on her feet (she is, after all, a cat). Celebrate the former agent’s new job as a manager by dressing up as Amy Sedaris’s character this Halloween. Pick up a yellow cardigan, teal dress, triangle necklace, red pumps, pink wig, and cat ears.

9. EZEKIEL FIGUERO // THE GET DOWN

Netflix’s The Get Down has great characters, catchy music, and stylish outfits. Get the main character’s retro look with a navy polo shirt, a navy cable sweater vest and brown bell-bottom pants.

10. INMATE // ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK

 

You can be pretty much any character from Netflix’s show, Orange is the New Black, with the help of a pair of tan scrubs. Couple that with a pair of black boots and it’s simply a matter of styling your hair. Some inmates also like to wear a shirt underneath their scrubs, so pick your character and look into that before you buy.

11. POKEMON GO // SMARTPHONE APP

Obsessed with Pokemon Go? Prepare to rock the easiest couple costume of all time. You can pick up a Pikachu or Charmander onesie and immediately transform into a Pokemon. Then, just have a similarly Pokemon Go-obsessed friend or significant other follow you around with their phone out.

12. ILANA // BROAD CITY

Ilana has so many insanely fun outfits that it seems criminal to just choose one. In one episode, Abbi dresses up like Ilana in an elaborate co-op con job. Since this costume can also be Abbi as Ilana, it seems like the most fun costume choice. To perfect this look, you need a leather fanny pack, tie-dye leggings, mesh crop top, and Ilana’s signature bralette. Bonus points if you also get her hot dog phone case.

Citizens of East Kensington in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania have a new and unexpected thing to worry about: their address signs. Local police are investigating a string reports that zeroes and ones are being taken from home address markers.

Resident Meghan Haley noticed the zero missing from her sign one day and decided to check the outside camera footage. There, she spotted an unknown woman coming up the porch and casually plucking the zero from the “2202” sign. “It has no value so I can’t imagine what they are using it for,” Haley told FOX 29. 

Another victim, Krista Ricca, told the outlet that she witnessed a man with an electric drill steal a one from a house across the street at around 4 a.m. Up to 20 homes in the neighborhood have come under numeral attack. 

It’s unclear what these binary burglars could want with all those ones and zeros (communicating with celestial robots, perhaps?) but it’s been a headache for the victims—and probably the mailman, too. 

[h/t Fox 29]

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If you used to own an Xbox 360 and currently own an Xbox One, you might have some unexpected games waiting to be discovered. As The Verge discovered, many games purchased on the Xbox 360 have recently carried over to the Xbox One and are now hiding out on players’ hard drives.

Backwards compatibility is nothing new. Gamers have come to expect that their new systems will be able to play games from the previous generation—but only the previous one. This means you can play Wii games on your Wii U, but you can’t play GameCube games. Saying goodbye to old games is just an accepted progression of gaming for most people, as the technological arms race between Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo rages on. But now that Xbox has rolled out this new version of backwards compatibility, it opens up the opportunity to extend past single generations.

You can see a full list of the Xbox 360 games that are now available on the Xbox One here and enjoy reliving old games on a new console.

[h/t The Verge]

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YouTube channel How Ridiculous is making the most of a 150-foot tower by dropping all sorts of things over the side.

Recently they’ve discovered Line-X—a fancy protective spray commonly used on trucks and other utility vehicles. The YouTube team sprayed various products with the thick black spray, giving the items a hard armor. Once the spray dried, they launched the products off the side of their tower and onto the pavement to see what would happen. Amazingly, the hard shells didn’t even dent. 

The first item thrown from the tower was a watermelon; the rind survived the fall but the pink insides were pretty squished. The next was an egg that seemed to survive the landing, followed by a light bulb that completely shattered within its pristine shell. 

After the few successful runs, the team decided to really put the spray to the test: They dropped a bowling bowl coated in Line-X onto an axe wedged in the ground. Finally, the seemingly indestructible spray met its match, as the bowling ball broke in two.

[h/t SPLOID]

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With hackers and data breaches making headlines around the world, protecting your sensitive personal and financial information is more important than ever. But safeguarding your name, birthday, Social Security number, passwords, and credit card numbers can be a big job. Here are eight smart ways to protect yourself against identity thieves who want to steal your information to rack up purchases, open accounts in your name, or file fraudulent tax returns.

1. SIGN UP FOR MOBILE BANKING ALERTS.

Besides regularly reviewing your credit card and banking monthly statements, sign up for alerts. Most financial institutions will contact you by email or text when an uncharacteristically large withdrawal or purchase above a certain amount occurs. Download your bank’s official mobile app so you can monitor your accounts from your phone. And if you spot any unauthorized purchases, contact your financial institutions immediately. 

2. MONITOR YOUR CREDIT REPORTS.

Every 12 months, you can get a free copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit reporting agencies. Read your credit reports to make sure that they don’t contain any incorrect addresses or accounts that you didn’t open. If you see something suspicious, contact the credit reporting agencies and your bank, stat.

3. DON’T BE LAZY ABOUT PASSWORDS.

Saving passwords to your computer’s password keychain may save you time, but doing so can make you vulnerable to a security breach. Besides using complex usernames and passwords (random strings of letters, numbers, and symbols), you should change your passwords regularly, especially for your banking logins. And only sign in to banking websites when you’re on a private, trustworthy Wi-Fi network.

4. BE WARY OF UNSOLICITED EMAILS.

Identity thieves can trick you by sending you an email that looks as if it came from a legitimate company with which you do business. If these phishers send you an unsolicited email from what appears to be your bank, be careful. Don’t click on any links in the email, or you run the risk of getting malware installed on your computer. Scammers may also call you, claiming to be an employee of your bank and asking you to reveal your account number, Social Security number, or other personal information. Instead of responding, contact your bank directly (using the number on the back of your card) to find out if the email or call is legitimate.

5. USE A CROSS-CUT SHREDDER.

The internet allows plenty of fun new opportunities for hackers to steal your identity, but low-tech identity thieves aren’t yet a thing of the past. Because these thieves steal your trash, looking for mail or other documents that contains your personal information, it’s important to get in the habit of using a cross-cut shredder. Before you throw them out, shred any credit card offers, bank statements, utility bills, receipts, and even the labels on your prescription pill bottles.

6. LIMIT WHAT YOU SHARE ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

Identity thieves love over-sharers. Whether you share your birthday on your LinkedIn profile, your phone number on Facebook, or your pet’s name on Twitter, you’re making yourself vulnerable to identity thieves who may be on the hunt for answers to your security questions. For all your social media accounts, make sure your privacy settings are strong, you aren’t friends or connections with people you don’t know, and you haven’t unknowingly shared too much personal information.

7. SECURE YOUR MAILBOX.

Some identity thieves steal mail from mailboxes, hoping to find bank or credit card statements, pre-approved credit card offers, and other sensitive documents. To safeguard yourself against this type of identity theft, put a lock on your mailbox and retrieve your mail as soon as possible after it’s delivered. If you have outgoing bills to send, drop them off at the post office (or a secured drop-off box) instead of leaving them in your unlocked mailbox. And when you leave town, get a mail hold from the post office so your mail doesn’t pile up.

8. KEEP IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS IN A SAFE.

Putting all your important documents in a safe can protect your information from getting into the wrong hands. Keep your Social Security card, passport, birth certificate, extra checks, copies of your health insurance cards, and a printed page of your important passwords in a safe. Just make sure to bolt your safe to the ground, otherwise a thief can take the safe with him.

Even if you diligently change your passwords every month and shred your documents before tossing them, identity theft can happen. Head to Allstate.com for the answers to questions you may have about adding identity restoration coverage to your policy.