To enjoy a healthy relationship and create a loving married life, couples need to put in the effort and understand what their relationship entails. For some, there are rules or set ideas that they swear by to help their relationship function fruitfully. Actor Nicole Kidman, too, has a few tricks to a blissful marriage. The elegant “Moulin Rouge” actor met her husband Keith Urban in 2005, per Hello Magazine.

Image Source:  Musician Keith Urban and actress Nicole Kidman arrive at the 2009 American Music Awards at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on November 22, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage)
Image Source: Musician Keith Urban and actress Nicole Kidman arrive at the 2009 American Music Awards at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on November 22, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage)

The duo has been together for almost two decades and has undoubtedly seen it all in their relationship. Kidman revealed how they, as a couple, make their bond stronger. She shared that having been married for many years, there have been ups and downs, as in every relationship. However, she and Urban made an agreement that they have religiously followed as their ride-or-die rule ever since. In the “Something To Talk About” podcast, the actor spilled the beans on what this agreement was and it’s a shocker. Her marriage with Urban consists of one rule that might surprise you: “No texting.”

Image Source: Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman attend The 2024 Met Gala on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
Image Source: Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman attend The 2024 Met Gala on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)

“We never text each other, can you believe that? We started out that way – I was like, ‘If you want to get a hold of me, call me,”’ Kidman said in the podcast. Although it may seem unusual, the actor revealed that this rule has been surprisingly effective for them over the years. Elaborating on her agreement, the “Big Little Lies” actor shared that she was not a fan of texting. While Urban tried his luck with texting, Kidman wasn’t keen on responding to messages. Respecting her deal, the duo began their no-texting rule and stuck with it. “If you really want to get a hold of me, you have to call me. Everyone else we text with. That’s just the one thing we don’t do,” she remarked.


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The actor mentioned that her no-texting rule is meant to foster “voice-to-voice and skin-to-skin” communication and to strengthen their bond, per Parade. “I try not to be on the phone and texting. I’m a terrible texter. And I try to not be really prompt with returning texts because then you get used to that kind of person,” she added. Sharing a poignant memory of how it all began, the star mentioned that it was simply because she was a bad texter, and, being an understanding couple, they made adjustments and just stopped texting.

Image Source: Musician Keith Urban and actress Nicole Kidman arrive at the Oscars on February 24, 2013 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jeff Vespa/WireImage)
Image Source: Musician Keith Urban and actress Nicole Kidman arrive at the Oscars on February 24, 2013 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jeff Vespa/WireImage)

Kidman also noted how texting can leave a wrong impression in many situations and that she wanted no room for misunderstandings. “We talk all the time and we FaceTime, but we just don’t text because I feel like texting can be misrepresentative at times. And I’ve had the thing where I reread texts and I’m like, ‘What does that mean?’ and then read it to somebody and go ‘Can you interpret that?’ I don’t want that between my lover and I,” she explained. On a side note, the actor also mentioned not having secrets and keeping it authentic. “We just approach it all with humility and hope and just really love hanging out. I mean it’s that simple,” she exclaimed.


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This article originally appeared 1 month ago.

  • Dog missing for 11 years ‘acts like he’s a puppy again’ after emotional reunion with owner
    A woman pets a pit bull. Photo credit: Canva
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    Dog missing for 11 years ‘acts like he’s a puppy again’ after emotional reunion with owner

    She kept his microchip information up to date for over a decade after he went missing from her backyard.

    When Jourdyn Koziak got a phone call saying her lost dog had been found, she thought it was a sick joke. After all, her pit bull, Forty-Cal, had gone missing 11 years earlier, back when she lived in Philadelphia. Since then, she had gotten married, had another child, and moved to Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. Yet when she took a chance and drove to the Philly shelter, there he was.

    “I am overwhelmed. I am shocked. I am in disbelief,” Koziak told Fox 29 News. “I had tunnel vision of him walking down that hallway.”

    How the lost pit bull was found

    Back in 2015, Forty-Cal and another of Koziak’s dogs went missing from their backyard, presumably stolen. While the other dog was found, Forty-Cal never returned home. Despite this, Koziak never stopped putting up missing signs and kept Forty-Cal’s microchip information up to date.

    “I never gave up hope because, obviously, I’m relentless,” Koziak told CBC Radio.

    Apparently, Forty-Cal walked up to a little girl in Philadelphia and befriended her. The girl and her parents took him home, fed him hot dogs, and called Animal Control. The shelter then used the information from Forty-Cal’s microchip to contact Koziak and reunite them after more than a decade.

    The shelter warned Koziak and her family that Forty-Cal might be overwhelmed and that it could take time for him to recognize them. However, it took only moments for Forty-Cal to realize he was back home.

    “We put our hands out, he sniffed us, and then proceeded to pull us towards the door, like, ‘Let’s go,’” said Koziak.

    While what happened to Forty-Cal over the past eleven years remains a mystery, Koziak is just grateful that he appears to have been cared for. When Forty-Cal was found, he was clean and well-fed. He was also friendly enough to approach the young girl who found him.

    “He acts like he’s a puppy again,” she said. “He wants to go for a walk. He’s wagging his tail…I had other animals in the house, as well, that were family pets, but Forty was my dog. I paid for him with my own money at 16 years old.”

    Now that he’s back home, both Forty-Cal and Koziak are making up for lost time.

    “I’m over the moon,” she said. “It’s like Christmas morning every day.”

    Tips to prevent lost dogs

    This reunion wouldn’t have been possible if Koziak hadn’t had Forty-Cal microchipped and kept the information up to date. It’s important to have your dog microchipped and registered for this reason, among others.

    There are other ways to help prevent a dog from becoming lost, as well as simple ways to find them should the worst happen. When outdoors, keep your dog leashed and within your line of sight at all times. Make sure your pup is also well trained and responsive to your commands.

    @thehannahestelle

    ❤️‍🩹 with how common this apparently is, I wanted to share all the resources we used to find our girl. Relieved doesn’t even begin to cut it. Safe to say miss Fifi is never leaving our side again. #lostdog #dallaspets #lostpets #24petconnect #petcolovelost #dogsofdallas #dogsofinstagram #lostdogfound #dallaspetsalive

    ♬ original sound – hannahestelle

    Along with microchipping your dog and keeping their tags up to date, there are additional collar options to consider. A bright, vibrant collar can help your dog stand out in the dark and among trees and bushes. A Martingale collar is also recommended, as it stays secure on a dog’s neck without choking them. Lastly, there are collars with built-in GPS systems, as well as devices like the Apple AirTag, which you can attach to a collar to track and pinpoint your dog’s location.

    This story is a reminder that sometimes a reunion between a lost pet and its owner takes determination, community, and patience.

  • 10 boys and 10 girls were left alone in separate houses. The results were shockingly different.
    A girl plays with block while two young boys play a gamePhoto credit: Canva
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    10 boys and 10 girls were left alone in separate houses. The results were shockingly different.

    Videos showed the children living normally for the first two days, but then the experiment took a chaotic turn.

    It sounds like the plot of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, but in the mid-2000s, it was a very real, and very controversial, reality television experiment. Footage from the UK Channel 4 documentary “Boys and Girls Alone” is captivating audiences all over again, offering a fascinating—and chaotic—look at what happens when you remove parents from the equation.

    The premise was simple but high-stakes: 20 children, aged 11 and 12, were split into two groups by gender. Ten boys and ten girls were placed in separate houses and told to live without adult supervision for five days.

    While there were safety nets in place—a camera crew was present (though instructed not to intervene unless safety was at risk), and children could ring a bell to speak to a nurse or psychiatrist—the day-to-day living was entirely up to them. The houses were fully stocked with food, cleaning supplies, toys, and paints.

    As the resurfaced footage shows, the results between the two houses could not have been more different.

    In the boys’ house, the unraveling was almost immediate. The newfound freedom triggered a rapid descent into high-energy chaos. They engaged in water pistol fights, threw cushions, and in one memorable instance, a boy named Michael covered the carpet in sticky popcorn kernels.

    The destruction escalated to the walls, which the boys covered in writing, drawing, and paint. But the euphoria of freedom eventually crashed into the reality of consequences.

    “We never expected to be like this, but I’m really upset that we trashed it so badly. We were trying to explore everything at once and got too carried away in ourselves,” one boy admitted in the footage.

    Their attempts to clean up were frantic and largely ineffective, involving scraping paint and messily mopping floors. Nutrition also took a hit; despite having completed a cooking course, the boys survived mostly on cereal, sugar, and the occasional frozen pizza. By the end of the week, the house was trashed, the garden was littered with garbage, and the group had fractured into opposing factions.

    The girls’ house, however, looked like a different planet.

    In stark contrast to the mayhem next door, the girls immediately established a functioning society. They organized a cooking roster, with a girl named Sherry preparing their first meal. They baked cakes, put on a fashion show, and drew up a scrupulous chores list to ensure the house stayed livable.

    While their stay wasn’t devoid of interpersonal drama, the experiment highlighted a fascinating divergence in socialization. Left to their own devices, the girls prioritized community and maintenance, while the boys tested the absolute limits of their environment until it broke.

    This article originally appeared last year.

  • A ‘Severance’ fan with Stage 4 cancer made a ‘bucket list’ request. Ben Stiller’s reply is perfect.
    Ban Stiller with a quote card overlayedPhoto credit: Frank Sun via Wikimedia Commons
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    A ‘Severance’ fan with Stage 4 cancer made a ‘bucket list’ request. Ben Stiller’s reply is perfect.

    After a fan reached out with a “bucket list” wish to meet the cast, Stiller’s immediate response proved the internet can still be a force for good.

    Due to their serialized format, terrific TV shows can create a real sense of community, sparking our imaginations in ways other mediums simply cannot. The very best, like Apple TV+’s mind-bending dystopian mystery series Severance, can also offer a comforting form of escapism.

    Ben Stiller, the show’s primary director and executive producer, was reminded of that fact over X, when a hardcore fan reached out with a seemingly long-shot request:

    “Hi @BenStiller! Severance is the best show my husband and I have ever seen,” wrote Emily Powell-Heaton. “I have stage 4 cancer. A great bucket list item to check off would be to meet you and any of the cast and crew from the show. We can fly anywhere. We live near Toronto, Canada. Would this be possible? Thanks for your help!”

    Stiller, who has 5.3 million followers on the platform as of this writing, responded on the same day, asking for a DM. While we don’t know the specifics of their conversation, it appears they made plans to meet up in some fashion—potentially even with other people involved in the acclaimed show.

    “Thank you so much @BenStiller and team for making my wish come true!” they wrote. “My husband and I are over the moon about meeting you and the many other incredible people who work together to create #Severance! I am so happy.” The filmmaker replied, “Look forward to meeting you xx.”

    While social media can be a dark, depressing, divisive place, this connection highlights how it can be harnessed for good. Even the replies to their exchange were disarmingly positive, with strangers praising Stiller’s kind gesture and sending well wishes to Powell-Heaton.


    – “What a good guy. Prayers up for you, Emily!”

    – “YES!!! Fantastic… when the internet works well it really does. Xx”

    – “He is a legend! He’s made such an important dream come true!”

    – “You’re the man @BenStiller”

    – “Good on you, Ben. Emily, I hope you enjoy all things good and wish you wellness. XO”

    After the interaction with Stiller went viral, Powell-Heaton reposted an article about the news, writing, “He is a legend! He’s made such an important dream come true!”

    Powell-Heaton, who, according to their X profile, is 34 and has metastatic breast cancer, shared a health update shortly after the interaction with Stiller: “The spinal surgery is a go. No date set up yet but it’s likely to be in April. The spinal surgeon has to consult with some ENT specialists and I have to get a [CT] scan done on my face and neck area. This will determine if the surgery will be done from the back of the spinal cord or the front. A metal cage will be placed around the crumbling part of my spine to strengthen it.”

    Metastatic breast cancer, according to the Cleveland Clinic, is a cancer “that’s spread from your breast to other areas of your body.” The article states that there is no cure, “but thanks to newer treatments, more people with metastatic breast cancer are living longer than ever before.”


    In a study published in February 2025 in Cancer Causes & Control, researchers from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health analyzed data from all 50 U.S. states, concluding that breast cancer cases are increasing for women under 40. “From 2001 to 2020, breast cancer incidence in women under 40 increased by more than 0.50 percent per year in 21 states, while remaining stable or decreasing in the other states,” according to a news release about the study. “Incidence was 32 percent higher in the five states with the highest rates compared to the five states with the lowest rates.”

    Rebecca Kehm, PhD, the study’s co-author and an assistant professor of Epidemiology at Columbia Mailman School, wrote that these increases are “alarming” and cannot be solely explained by genetic factors or changes in screening practices.

    This article originally appeared earlier this year.

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