Grýla the Troll Eats Naughty Children on Christmas in Iceland

If you’re a bad kid who finds coal in his stocking instead of gifts, well…consider yourself lucky. If you lived in Iceland, you just might have been eaten by a troll instead.

Human-eating trolls feature heavily in many Icelandic myths, and during jól (Christmas season in Iceland), a Christmas troll named Grýla comes down from her mountain cave to gather all of the naughty children.

Then she hauls them back home to her lazy, nagged husband to turn into a holiday stew.

Stories of her antics have been around since at least the Middle Ages, and, according to experts on local mythology, Icelandic trolls are typically stupid but dangerous giants who actively hate Christianity and Christians. Early folk used them to explain rock formations (legends would claim they were trolls turned to stone).

Sometime in the 13th century, the general word for a she-troll – grýla – became the name of a specific troll who ate children around the holidays.

Which only goes to prove that, even hundreds of years ago, people needed a way to keep their kids in line at Christmastime.

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Happy krampusnacht! Our friend the krampus has gotten a lot of play the last few years, and I wholly approve of bringing back the traditions of terrifying children(and adults!) into good behavior. Iceland has an entire pantheon of holiday ghouls that I’m gleefully exploring and can’t wait to share with you. Without further ado, I welcome you to a Christmas full of holiday fear! . . . First, we’ll meet Gryla. She’s the matriarch of this northern band of bloodthirsty goblins. She has thirteen sons , the “Yule boys” and (depending on the telling) these creatures are murderous wretches or charming tricksters who leave gifts or rotten potatoes. Gryla, however, has received no politewashing treatment, and watches children all year long from her cave on the lava fields. If a child has made the naughty list, she’ll steal them away in the night and stuff them into her simmering stewpot. . . Clearly, Nordic wintertime festivals are the most metal. If the cold dark winters don’t kill you, there’s plenty of monsters hiding in the gloom that will. So grab your Rowan, yew, and a fresh pair of socks, and we’ll navigate how to protect ourselves from this family of fiends! (Unless you’ve already been bad. Then I’m sorry, Gryla’s claws are coming to town.) . . . #krampus #krampusnacht #folklore #christmastraditions #iceland #icelandicfolklore #goblin #troll #oagress #gryla #krampuslauf #icelandicchristmas #vikingmythology #nordictraditions #nordic #fantasticbeasts #badfairy #faerie #faerieart #betweenmirrors #popeofhell_art #whatsfordinner #darkart #fairy #badsanta #unseelie #christmasfear #nightmarebeforechristmas

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Like all trolls, Grýla is gross and huge, but she might also have 15 (or 40) tails to hold her many bags of naughty children, 300 heads with 3 eyes each, eyes on the back of her head, long ears, a beard, black teeth, and/or hooves – all depending on who tells the story.

So, I mean, they agree that she’s super ugly and scary, which is the point.

Despite her looks, Grýla is the mother of the 13 Yule Lads, who visit on the 13 days of Christmas, and she owns a cat called Jólakötturinn, who devours people who didn’t get clothes for Christmas (because they didn’t work hard enough).

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Day 3 of #folktaleweek is #witch. Grýla the Christmas witch of Iceland lives in a mountain cave with her husband (who is a giant yule cat!) and her 13 mischievous sons the Yule Lads.  Each Christmas, Gryla comes down from her mountain dwelling to hunt for naughty children. She places them in a sack and drags them back to her cave where she boils them alive for her favorite stew. Her sons join her and do all that they can to terrify the children before they're stuffed in Grýla's sack (because scared kids are tastier!) one is named 'the door slammer' and another 'the sausage swiper', one of them goes around stealing candles so the children are left in the dark. If you haven't heard of Grýla and her family yet go do a quick Wiki search, you're in for a treat! . #folktaleweek2018 #Gryla #christmaswitch #instawitch #witchesofinstagram #folktale #fairytale #folklore #fable #forest_of_twinkling_fireflies #iceland #kidlit #kidlitart #childrensbookillustration #childrensillustration #childrenswritersguild #illustragram #illustratenow #illustrationartists #illustrationoftheday #illustratorsofinstagram #illustratorsoninstagram #kidsillustration #artforchildren #whimsyillos #whimsicalart #best_of_illustrations #scarystories

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As with Santa Claus, Grýla is a cautionary tale used to get children to behave, not a creature adults believe in themselves.

You can see her depicted in statues and other artwork all over Iceland – even in airports – and you won’t have any trouble seeing why Icelandic kids are probably very, very nice when the season is upon them.

I’m inspired to be a little kinder myself, even!

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Here Are Some of the Weirdest Books on Amazon

A person can get lost – and I mean lost – on Amazon if you start exploring that site’s book titles. It’s a never-ending wormhole that will consume you and eventually will rule your life.

That’s where we come in! Instead of spending your precious personal time doing that, we’ve put together the weirdest, most unusual book titles that Amazon has to offer…

There really is a book for everything, isn’t there?

1. Yeah, bro!

Photo Credit: Amazon

2. This is a very important book.

Photo Credit: Amazon

3. What if…?

Photo Credit: Amazon

4. A moving volume.

Photo Credit: Amazon

5. Can’t get enough of this.

Photo Credit: Amazon

6. It’s handy!

Photo Credit: Amazon

7. Hmmmmm…

Photo Credit: Amazon

8. I love the look on his face.

Photo Credit: Amazon

9. A must-read for all teens.

Photo Credit: Amazon

10. You probably shouldn’t take this advice.

Photo Credit: Amazon

11. They do?

Photo Credit: Amazon

12. Okay…

Photo Credit: Amazon

13. Ladies, this one’s for you.

Photo Credit: Amazon

14. A worldwide bestseller.

Photo Credit: Amazon

15. A very timely issue.

Photo Credit: Amazon

Now I need to get my hands on all of those books to use for stocking stuffers this Christmas!

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You Can Now Buy Pickle-Flavored Lip Balm

You need lip balm in your life, especially in the dry winter. Lip balms usually come in the same few types of flavor — vanilla, berry, and mint are typical.

But if you’re looking to branch wayyy out from those, there’s a new pickle-flavored lip balm that may appeal to you.

The new lip balm is formulated to taste just like dill pickles, and it comes from BluePoppyBath, a seller on Etsy. Aside from the bizarre scent and flavor, the lip balm is similar to other natural lip balms. It comes in a push tube and contains nourishing and moisturizing ingredients such as cocoa butter, shea butter and vitamin E.

Photo Credit: Etsy

The item description says the pickle lip balm “sounds weird” but is “strangely addicting!”

Pickles are one of those food items that one can easily become obsessed with out of nowhere — BluePoppyBath even recommends the lip balm as a pregnancy craving gift (that’s probably why so many pickle novelty items exist).

In addition to pickle lip balm, there have been a ton of other weird pickle-flavored items over the years, like pickle ice cream, pickle candy canes, pickle vodka, pickle mints, pickle marshmallows, and pickle cotton candy. The list is basically endless!

Photo Credit: Pixabay

But unlike these pickle-flavored foods, pickle lip balm will stay on your lips for a while, so you can enjoy that pickle-y goodness for as long as possible.

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Screenshots of ‘Nice Guys’ on Dating Apps That Escalated Things Quickly

Some guys get really angry really on dating apps. If a lady doesn’t give into a guy’s every whim or she gives him the cold shoulder (which is how dating apps work, so…?), some fellas fly off the f’ing handle.

Here are some good examples…

1. That escalated quickly.

Reposting because I accidentally deleted the original post; "Sent within the same hour apparently. Stolen from r/Tinder" from niceguys

2. Her response is great.

Friend went on one tinder date with this guy and he was way too clingy, so she told him to chill out. A couple weeks no contact went by and then… from niceguys

3. Kind of passive-aggressive.

The perfect tinder bio doesn’t exi- from niceguys

4. He’ll treat you like a queen.

Swiping through tinder and came across this from niceguys

5. Gross.

and then i never used bumble again. from niceguys

6. A bit extreme.

I’m a gentleman who thinks tinder is ruining society. If you won’t hook-up with me go somewhere else. from niceguys

7. I’ll choose option D.

a great opening line my friend got on tinder. she was unmatched after her response from niceguys

8. Oh dear…

One of my friends matches on Tinder… from niceguys

9. What a catch!

This guy has to be getting all the matches. from niceguys

10. Take it down a notch.

Found on tinder from niceguys

11. Total psycho.

My sister is trying out tinder, and already found a “great guy!” from niceguys

12. Oh my…

my first post… i matched with a guy who said he was 20 (i’m 18). he made me drive almost an hour into the city to meet him and when i got there he was clearly in his 40s. check those time stamps in the first picture. from niceguys

Ladies, have you had this happen to you?

If so, tell us your stories in the comments. Ugh!

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Check out These Really Bad Things Seen During Structural Inspections

It’s hard to imagine that these are real, but trust us, they are. The folks who work at a company called Alpha Structural take photos of the unbelievable things they see during inspections, and they are pretty wild. Like, people should NOT be living in these houses.

Don’t go in the basement!

1. Yes, that’s a real skull.

10 of the craziest things we’ve seen during our structural inspections!

2. Just…not even there.

Things seen this week during structural inspections!

3. Terrifying ghost doll: check.

Things seen this week during structural Inspections. 

4. Satanic altar?

Things seen this week during structural inspections!

5. Barely holding on.

Things seen this week during structural Inspections

6. Living in a cave?

Things seen this week during structural inspections!

7. Broken floor.

Some things seen this month during structural inspections

8. How is this working?

Things seen this week during structural inspections 

9. That’s not good.

Things seen this week during structural inspections!

10. Just appalling.

Things seen this week during structural inspections

I think it’s safe to call all of those MAJOR FAILS…and some are a little creepy.

Do you have any structural pics that measure up to these? Share them in the comments!

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Feral Hogs Destroyed Thousands of Dollars Worth of Cocaine in the Italian Forest

In very strange news, a bunch of feral hogs destroyed $22,000 worth of cocaine in the forest in Italy.

The cocaine had been stashed in the woods by a local gang, consisting of three Albanians and an Italian. Police discovered the operation by wiretapping members of the gang. That’s where they heard someone complaining about the havoc wreaked by the wild hogs.

Officials don’t know exactly how many boars were involved, but they allegedly dug up the package and destroyed it, dispersing it throughout the woods.

In the end, the men lost much more than thousands of dollars worth of cocaine. Thanks to the bust, four suspects were arrested on drug charges. Two of them are now in jail, and two are under house arrest.

Meanwhile, on Twitter, the story is reminding users of the viral “30-50 feral hogs” tweet from August.

“So that’s where the 30-50 feral hogs got off to,” one user remarked.

“It’s the coke that makes them impervious to AR-15 fire,” another added.

Others joked that “this is what they’re up to when they’re not rushing that one dude’s son.” Or, it could be the cocaine that causes the daily attacks.

On a serious note, feral hogs are a major problem in Italy (as well as many places around the world). Farmers recently protested in Rome, calling for the government to control the population. There are about two million wild boars in Italy, and they can cause land damage and road accidents.

But they are also very tasty, so…don’t get rid of all of them.

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“Please Hate These Things” Is an Instagram Account for the World’s Worst Designs

There’s a niche for just about everything on the Internet – even for people who want to come together to deride and hate on stuff together: it’s called Twitter.

JK!

Enter the IG account “Please Hate These Things,” a place for people looking for the what-not-to-do of the design world.

Kind of like an opposite-Joanna Gaines, I suppose.

Here are 15 of the worst of the worst, and y’all. They’re really, really bad.

15. Straight from the Playboy Mansion yard sale.

14. Are you going to be selling movie tickets?

13. It’s nice…if you want to die.

12. They forgot puke.

11. This just cannot be real.

10. What even is the point of this though?

9. Are they going to be high-diving off the top?

8. There’s just no way this was an accident.

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TGIWTF

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7. A house for Catwoman?

6. This takes saving space to the extreme.

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Time to watch my soaps!

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5. What? No, those won’t be in the way at all!

4. This is legitimately terrifying.

3. I don’t know where to look.

2. Is this the setting for a horror movie?

1. That would drive me slowly insane.

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Not quite.

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I’m torn between wishing I hadn’t seen any of that and being thrilled someone is out there compiling these pictures.

Did you love these? Did they drive you mad? I can’t decide!

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Millions of Americans Think Chocolate Milk Comes From Brown Cows

I’ve never thought about the fact that people over the age of 5 might think strawberry, chocolate, and regular milks come from different color cows, but, I mean, if no one ever told you differently…I suppose it could still make sense?

Aside from the fact that you’ve never actually seen a pink cow.

Then again, I live in the middle of the country, where cows appear regularly on the side of the road. So maybe I should give coastal city folk a break?

 

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NAH – this is ridiculous.

It turns out that A LOT of adults believe that chocolate milk comes from brown cows. How many, you ask?

Well, according to the Innovation Center for US Dairy’s website, around 16.4 million people across the country.

They know this because they commissioned a survey to see, which found that 7% of respondents think brown cows equal chocolate milk.

Yep, right out of the udder.

This despite the fact that their official statement (and common sense) says, “Chocolate milk – or any flavored milk for that matter – is white cow’s milk with added flavoring and sweeteners.”

And get this: 48% of respondents – which would mean over 154 million people nationally, if the survey statistics were extrapolated to the country as a whole – admitted they aren’t sure where chocolate milk comes from. As in, maybe it comes from a brown cow? Who knows??

A few more fun facts that emerged from the same survey:

37% of Americans admit to drinking milk straight out of the carton in the fridge (YIKES).

And 29% of Americans buy chocolate milk “for the kids,” but really they just want an excuse to drink it themselves.

As far as the latter, I hope by the time their kids move out they can own what they like and drink it all day like a m-fing adult (who may not know where it comes from). Because chocolate milk, brown cow or no, is delicious.

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Remember the Story About the Waitress Who Sued Hooters for Giving Her a Toy Yoda Instead of a Toyota?

In our strange world of social media and online news, stories that went “viral” a long time ago reappear out of the blue for some reason. Can we explain it? No, but we roll with it, that’s for sure! And this tale is pretty funny, too.

Let’s turn back the clock to 2001…

A woman named Jodee Berry was working as a waitress at Hooters in Florida (of course) all those years ago when her restaurant held a contest among its workers: whoever got the best beer sales would win a new Toyota…err…make that a “Toy Yoda.” Ouch.

Hooters

Berry worked hard and knocked her beer sales out of the park. When the big day came for her to get her prize, a brand new car or so she thought, she was instead presented with a toy version of Yoda from Star Wars in a box. Berry was PISSED, as I’m sure a lot of us would be.

A new Toy Yoda indeed ?

Posted by David Marshall on Wednesday, July 17, 2019

She was so pissed, in fact, that she not only quit her job at Hooters but she ended up suing the restaurant. The folks at the restaurant claimed the whole thing was just a big April Fools’ joke. A year later, Berry and the company that owns Hooters settled outside of court. Berry’s attorney said that the settlement was enough so that Berry could “pick out whatever type of Toyota she wants.”

I think I would be pretty pissed off too, to tell you the truth. What would you do in this situation? Poor Ms. Berry…

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You Have to Check out This ‘Humans of New York’ Interviewee’s Wild Life Story

This woman needs to have a movie made about her life ASAP. I know I’d go see it without a doubt.

But let’s back up a second. Humans of New York is a website that interviews people on the streets of New York and reports their stories. It’s a great way to get slice-of-life tales from regular folks.

Recently, a woman named Tanqueray was interviewed for the site, and, boy, did she tell amazing stories about her life. Here’s how Tanqueray began her life story.

“My mom threw me out of the house at seventeen for getting pregnant, then had me arrested when I tried to get my clothes. Then she fucked the head of parole to try to keep me in jail. She was some prime pussy back then. But the warden did some tests on me and found out I was smart, so I got a scholarship to go anywhere in New York. I chose the Fashion Institute of Technology, which I hated.

But by that time I was already getting work making costumes for the strippers and porn stars in Times Square. All my friends were gay people, because they never judged me. All I did was gay bars: drag queen contests, Crisco Disco, I loved the whole scene. And I couldn’t get enough of the costumes.

My friend Paris used to sit at the bar and sell stolen clothes from Bergdorf and Lord and Taylors, back before they had sensor tags. So I had the best wardrobe: mink coats, 5 inch heels, stockings with seams up the back. I looked like a drag queen, honey. One night a Hasidic rabbi tried to pick me up because he thought I was a tranny. I had to tell him: ‘Baby, this is real fish!””

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“My mom threw me out of the house at seventeen for getting pregnant, then had me arrested when I tried to get my clothes. Then she fucked the head of parole to try to keep me in jail. She was some prime pussy back then. But the warden did some tests on me and found out I was smart, so I got a scholarship to go anywhere in New York. I chose the Fashion Institute of Technology, which I hated. But by that time I was already getting work making costumes for the strippers and porn stars in Times Square. All my friends were gay people, because they never judged me. All I did was gay bars: drag queen contests, Crisco Disco, I loved the whole scene. And I couldn’t get enough of the costumes. My friend Paris used to sit at the bar and sell stolen clothes from Bergdorf and Lord and Taylors, back before they had sensor tags. So I had the best wardrobe: mink coats, 5 inch heels, stockings with seams up the back. I looked like a drag queen, honey. One night a Hasidic rabbi tried to pick me up because he thought I was a tranny. I had to tell him: ‘Baby, this is real fish!”

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I mean…wow.

But Tanqueray wasn’t done. Here’s the second installment of her life story.

“My stripper name was Tanqueray. Back in the seventies I was the only black girl making white girl money. I danced in so many mob clubs that I learned Italian. Black girls weren’t even allowed in some of these places. Nothing but guidos with their pinky rings and the one long fingernail they used for cocaine.

I even did a full twenty minutes in the place they filmed Saturday Night Fever. But I made my real money on the road. Three grand on some trips. Every time Fort Dix had their pay day, they’d bring me in as a feature and call me ‘Ms. Black Universe’ or some shit like that. I had this magic trick where I’d put baby bottle tops on my nipples and squirt real milk, then I’d pull a cherry out of my G-string and feed it to the guy in the front row.

But I never used dildos on stage or any shit like that. Never fucked the booking agents. Never fucked the clients. In fact, one night after a show, I caught another dancer sneaking off to the Tate Hotel with our biggest tipper. Not allowed. So the next night we put a little itching powder in her G-string. Boy did she put on a show that night.

Didn’t see her again until ‘The Longest Yard’ with Burt Reynolds. So I guess she finally fucked the right one.”

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“My stripper name was Tanqueray. Back in the seventies I was the only black girl making white girl money. I danced in so many mob clubs that I learned Italian. Black girls weren’t even allowed in some of these places. Nothing but guidos with their pinky rings and the one long fingernail they used for cocaine. I even did a full twenty minutes in the place they filmed Saturday Night Fever. But I made my real money on the road. Three grand on some trips. Every time Fort Dix had their pay day, they’d bring me in as a feature and call me ‘Ms. Black Universe’ or some shit like that. I had this magic trick where I’d put baby bottle tops on my nipples and squirt real milk, then I’d pull a cherry out of my G-string and feed it to the guy in the front row. But I never used dildos on stage or any shit like that. Never fucked the booking agents. Never fucked the clients. In fact, one night after a show, I caught another dancer sneaking off to the Tate Hotel with our biggest tipper. Not allowed. So the next night we put a little itching powder in her G-string. Boy did she put on a show that night. Didn’t see her again until ‘The Longest Yard’ with Burt Reynolds. So I guess she finally fucked the right one.”

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Are you ready for more? Let’s see what else Tanqueray had to say.

“The scene was different back then. All the adult clubs were mob controlled. It all flowed up to some guy named Matty The Horse. Honestly the mob guys never bothered me. They were cool, and I liked how they dressed. They wore custom made suits. And they went to hair stylists, not barbers. These guys wouldn’t even let you touch their hair when you were fucking them. Not that I ever fucked them.

Because I never turned tricks. Well, except for one time. I took a job from this woman named Madame Blanche. She controlled all the high dollar prostitutes back then. She was like the Internet– could get you anything you wanted. And all the powerful men came to her because she never talked. She set me up with a department store magnate who wanted a black girl dressed like a maid. I thought I could do it.

But when I got to his hotel room, he wanted to spank me with a real belt. So that was it for me. I was done. But Madame Blanche set my best friend Vicki up with The President every time he came to New York. And don’t you dare write his name cause I can’t afford the lawyers. But he’d always spend an hour with her.

He’d send a car to pick her up, bring her to his hotel room, put a Secret Service agent in front of the door, and get this: all he ever did was eat her pussy!”

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“The scene was different back then. All the adult clubs were mob controlled. It all flowed up to some guy named Matty The Horse. Honestly the mob guys never bothered me. They were cool, and I liked how they dressed. They wore custom made suits. And they went to hair stylists, not barbers. These guys wouldn’t even let you touch their hair when you were fucking them. Not that I ever fucked them. Because I never turned tricks. Well, except for one time. I took a job from this woman named Madame Blanche. She controlled all the high dollar prostitutes back then. She was like the Internet– could get you anything you wanted. And all the powerful men came to her because she never talked. She set me up with a department store magnate who wanted a black girl dressed like a maid. I thought I could do it. But when I got to his hotel room, he wanted to spank me with a real belt. So that was it for me. I was done. But Madame Blanche set my best friend Vicki up with The President every time he came to New York. And don’t you dare write his name cause I can’t afford the lawyers. But he’d always spend an hour with her. He’d send a car to pick her up, bring her to his hotel room, put a Secret Service agent in front of the door, and get this: all he ever did was eat her pussy!”

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I wonder which president she’s talking about?!?!?! Let’s get this woman a writing partner this instant so we can get all this in a book and then onto the big screen.

Don’t you agree???

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