It's Friday — a day to surprise, delight and uplift as we head into the weekend. Today, OZY's editor-at-large Eugene S. Robinson endures a meat cleaver massage, with hilarious consequences (and video). And we reveal how activists are saving untold victims of the Syrian conflict: cats and dogs. We also show you how to climb through a window into an amazing dumpling house (pictured).
| Forget shiatsu, reiki, rolfing: This new kid on the chopping block will fix you fast. “I want you to lay on your stomach, hands down at your sides, and hold … very still.” Then it all begins. A combination of a 300-pound-plus man walking over the entire length of your body striking at various muscle bundles with a meat cleaver. Tempted to think he used the dull side? Then be tempted to think again: He uses the sharp side. To chop both my arms, that are uncovered by clothing, and my torso, that is. Forty minutes later I stand up, and while it could be a case of hitting your hand with a hammer because it feels better when you stop, I feel no pain. I twist. No pain. I bend. No pain. It would be cheeseball to describe it as magic, but it sure as shit was magical. | READ NOW |
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| | A dedicated team of volunteers is relocating beloved family pets and abandoned strays, even in dire situations. When Sedra Ayoub Agha and her family fled Damascus in August 2015, she was heartbroken. Not only because she was fleeing her life and home, but also because she had to leave her beloved cats, Rose and Jack, behind. These irreplaceable companions had helped Agha through the loss of another feline that went missing when the war started in her neighborhood. “We left the area, but she jumped out of the car because she was scared,” says Agha. The cat was never found. “I was very sick because of the sadness. That’s why my father bought Rose and Jack for me.” People fleeing war often have no choice but to leave their pets behind. Without their primary caretakers, cats and dogs often end up on the street, abandoned or abused. But even shelters are at risk. Ernesto’s Sanctuary in Aleppo was destroyed in November 2017, killing several cats and a dog (the clinic was later revived in another part of the city). The dire situation has spurred a brave group of pet lovers to take action. | READ NOW |
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| | | These popular pockets of meat-filled goodness are worth the hunt — and unorthodox climb. |
| | A biologist by training, Femdot had to wait for his breakout in Chicago's flourishing hip-hop scene. |
| | Getting off the treadmill and onto the trail can make you a better runner. Chances are, you'll be happier too. |
| | When it comes to love, staring into someone's eyes sure beats staring at a screen. |
| | Virginia Axioti creates every poster for every movie shown at the Athinaion Cinemas. |
| | Teenage girls in rural India are getting the chance to become change-makers in their communities. Meet some of the Girl Icons. |
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