Polly has the cutest coat of all time.
Lynn MacLaren (L) and Sarah Holt-Foreman.
Woody Fridae
Lynn MacLaren and Sarah Holt-Foreman were spending a September evening at a streetside wine bar in Fremantle, Western Australia. The sun was setting, they had a glass each, it was the weekend.
And then Holt-Foreman pulled a little model elephant out from nowhere, with two rings perched on its tiny trunk.
"As a child I collected elephants," MacLaren explained to BuzzFeed News. "It was a joke between my brother and I. I was a little bit heavier than he was, and I just owned it, and had this elephant collection."
The one Holt-Foreman presented was from Bali, where she had also bought the rings some time earlier.
"Do you want to get married?" she asked.
It wasn't the first time Holt-Foreman had proposed. MacLaren had hesitated the past couple of times her partner of seven years had floated the question. But this time, things were different.
Five years earlier, Holt-Foreman had been diagnosed with breast cancer. She had undergone treatment, and spent the last two years in remission. But on September 16, the day before she presented MacLaren with the ring-adorned elephant, the couple had received devastating news: the cancer was back, and this time, had spread to Holt-Foreman's bones.
MacLaren said yes.
"I felt like now is the time we must make the most of our lives together," she told BuzzFeed News.
The next question was a simple one: "Where can we go?"
In Australia, same-sex couples cannot legally marry.
As a Greens politician in the West Australian legislative council, MacLaren has devoted much of her time to advocating for a change in the law. She introduced marriage equality bills to the state upper house in 2012 and 2013, and has spent years speaking at rallies. She has lived in WA since 1982, but is a dual US/Australian citizen.
Eight days after the proposal, the pair flew to America to marry at the San Francisco City Hall. “That was important to us, because it’s an iconic place in LGBT history," MacLaren said, adding they were "very lucky" to have the option to travel.
The timeline was quick, but they wanted to marry before Holt-Foreman's treatment began, and while MacLaren had a window of time away from parliament.
Although the wedding – with 12 guests, many of them MacLaren's family and friends – was wonderful, it would have been easier in many ways if they could have wed in Australia.
"We could have put the word out, invited people, and had a large wedding with friends and family, especially Sarah’s family. Her son, who is 16, could have been there. Her grandmother could have been there," she said.
"Because we needed to do it before Sarah went back into treatment, we didn’t have time to organise or do anything else."
While MacLaren's American family and friends are well aware of Australian laws, strangers they encountered while travelling in California had a broad spectrum of reactions.
"Some were incredulous. ‘Why can’t you get married in Australia?’ They couldn’t believe it. It was strange to them, that we had to travel there," MacLaren said.
"Others were, I think, quite sad. They would express compassion, sympathy, say ‘That’s really sad’. There were a mixture of attitudes."
Much of the marriage debate in Australia in 2016 has centred on whether there should be a national vote on same-sex marriage, rather than marriage itself.
Lynn MacLaren speaks at a rally in her work as a WA MP.
Jesse Roberts / NEWZULU
The plebiscite, proposed by the centre-right Coalition government, was met with vehement opposition from the LGBTI community, who saw it as a cynical delaying tactic that would engender hatred and bigotry. It was eventually voted down by a coalition of the Labor opposition, the Greens, and other minor parties and independents in the Senate.
Attorney general George Brandis blasted those who voted it down, saying they were "playing politics with the lives of gay people" by putting marriage equality off the agenda for years.
But asked if Brandis' argument resonated more, given Holt-Foreman's diagnosis and the pressures of time, MacLaren said no.
"It’s disrespectful to our intelligence," she said. "This continuing smokescreen that says ‘You’re not going to get [marriage equality] because you didn’t do it the way we wanted to do it,’ it’s a complete lie."
She called on the federal parliament to have a free vote on a marriage equality bill – something that has never happened in Australia.
"That is the only way we are going to have marriage equality in Australia. That could happen tomorrow. That could happen before they rise [for the year]. That could happen this week."
The government has ruled out any such vote taking place, now that the plebiscite is dead. But Holt-Foreman's diagnosis is a stark reminder that not all couples will get to see the creaky wheels of democracy turn.
"You become aware of your mortality. My sister died last year, and that, for me, was an experience that was illuminating about life and purpose and the time that we have to live life to the full," MacLaren said.
The pair remain "cautiously optimistic" about Holt-Foreman's treatment as she undergoes six months of chemotherapy and radiation. They are still looking to the future.
Once Holt-Foreman's gruelling treatment is over – and the next WA state election is done and dusted in March – the pair plan to hold a second ceremony in their home state, surrounded by family and friends.
The Grand Budapest Ho Ho Hotel.
Look how sad and unaccompanied he is! My heart!!!
WHAT?!
The WB
Netflix
Netflix
Netflix
For the time-pressed superfan.
Granted, they're not as good as the books, but they're still A++.
Warner Bros.
But god, 17 hours is a very long time.
Warner Bros.
Naturally, it's called Wizardhood.
Warner Bros.
Bewitch the mind and ensnare the senses, indeed.
Warner Bros.
BEE MOVIE BUT THE SEINFELD THEME PLAYS EVERY TIME THEY SAY “BEE.”
For example, here's a cut of the entire movie but it speeds up every time anyone says "bee."
Abdul Razak Ali Artan, a student at the university, injured 11 people with his car and a butcher knife on Monday.
Artan was a transfer student in his first semester at the university, authorities said. His age was given as both 18 and 20 in the hours after the attack.
He and his family had fled Somalia in 2007, NBC reported, and they lived for a time in Pakistan. The family arrived in the US in 2014 as legal permanent residents, NBC reported, and Artan enrolled in Columbus State Community College that same year.
He graduated cum laude with an associate's degree in 2016, a college spokesman said.
"I just transferred from Columbus State. We had prayer rooms, like actual rooms where we could go pray because we Muslims have to pray five times a day," said Artan, who was identified as a third-year student studying logistics management.
"I mean, I’m new here," he continued. "This is my first day. This place is huge, and I don’t even know where to pray.
“I wanted to pray in the open, but I was scared with everything going on in the media. I’m a Muslim, it’s not what the media portrays me to be. If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I don’t know what they’re going to think, what’s going to happen. But, I don’t blame them. It’s the media that put that picture in their heads so they’re just going to have it and it, it’s going to make them feel uncomfortable. I was kind of scared right now. But I just did it. I relied on God. I went over to the corner and just prayed.”
Have you been good?
(Spoiler alert: Probably.)
BuzzFeed / Getty Images
You probably know Lin-Manuel Miranda from Broadway, as the creator of Tony-winning musicals In the Heights and – of course – Hamilton. But his latest endeavour sees him turning to Hollywood: He's written the music for Disney's latest (anti-) princess movie, Moana, about a young girl who voyages across the ocean to find a demigod and save her island.
Since he completely killed it on Moana's soundtrack, when BuzzFeed met up with Lin to promote the movie, we decided to put him to the test with a Disney lyric quiz. And the results were...interesting.
The turkey exploded, the tree collapsed, everyone had a fight.
Disney
Can Chip and Joanna just adopt me already?
1. Literally the best part of every episode is the beginning when they show a Chip Gaines blooper.
2. His belly should have its own show.
3. Chip Gaines: The Belly That Could
4. Joanna and Chip's farm is just so damn quaint. I want to live there.
5. How many goats do they have? One goat, two goats, three goats…1 million goats!
6. Actually, I want Chip and Joanna to adopt me.
7. So, Chip and Joanna have like 15 children, right?
8. It seems like they have a small army of children.
9. They have so many kids they could totally adopt me and not even notice.
10. I'll just blend right in. All I need is a cute pail filled with crayons.
11. I need to buy a farm.
12. And a silo.
13. Oh, right — the reason we're all here: the home buyer.
14. I am now weeping because this home buyer has either a tragic backstory or a beautiful family.
15. Or they're surprising their parents with a home and there are tears everywhere.
16. Every time Chip harkens back to his glory days, an angel gets its wings.
17. So Joanna is a flawless human, yes? We all agree on this?
18. I don't know a lot about childbirth but I'm pretty sure nobody is supposed to look that good after four kids.
19. Seriously, Chip better wake up every morning and bow down to his queen.
20. I am now weeping because of the house prices in Waco, Texas.
21. I could seriously own a house in Waco in about six years for what I spend in rent.
22. I'm this close to moving to Waco. This close.
23. Like, I'm ready to press "buy" on this plane ticket.
Because books are the ultimate relationship.
Charlotte Gomez / Via BuzzFeed
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
"I actually had to stop reading it for a little bit because I was nearly finished and I didn't want it to end." —Monika Porch, Facebook
"There are three major romances in the story and they’re all tragic, beautiful, and pure. Love and betrayal are main themes in this book and it doesn’t only pertain to romantic love." —xocora
Best friends who swear = best friends who care.
There's nothing more relieving than being able to curse in a judgement-free environment.
Comedy Central
Bravo
"OMG you love to swear? I love to swear! Let's swear...together."
CBS
VH1
These are the icing on the cake of a terrible year.
Zoë Burnett / BuzzFeed
Created by Aysem Oztas of Butterfly Wedding.
Cagdas Yoldas cagdasyoldas.com
Created by Intricate Icings Cake Design.
Ali N. Garrett alibrannan.com / Via Intricate Icings Cake Design intricateicings.com
Created by De la Creme Studio.
De la Creme Studio / Via delacremestudio.com
Bali with Beyoncé? Ibiza with Emma Watson? Rome with The Rock? Let’s find out.
Sian Butcher/BuzzFeed
Worst yet? You have to spend an entire weekend there.
You said things like “beyond the valley of” and “fabbity fab with nobs on”.
Paramount Pictures
Even though they were scrawny, pre-pubescent boys hanging around outside the corner shop.
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Your whole personality became "random".
Paramount Pictures
Spoilers ahead.
Netflix
What happened with Rory on the Obama campaign?
Why wasn't Sookie there when Lorelai had her secret wedding?
Do Doyle and Paris ever rekindle and work things out?
Why was Logan even getting married?
Why don't we ever see Odette?
Does Paul go on to find someone deserving of his love?
Why did we see Francie and not Madeline and Louise?
Why couldn't the real Chad Michael Murray play Tristan?
Why does Paris even still care about Tristan?
Netflix
Did Jackson ever get his "four in four years" kids?
How has Taylor not aged?
Same with Christopher?
How did Rory afford an apartment in Brooklyn and all those international flights...if she's currently jobless?
Why did Rory say she didn't have a car then repeatedly drive a car?
Was the sabbatical Sookie took with Dan Barber actually worth leaving the Dragonfly — the place she built with her BFF???
Is Rory actually a good journalist?
Because...why the fuck would she fall asleep while talking to a source?
And why would she sleep with a Wookiee?
“With her fast-wagging tail seeing her owners, Zuzu lit up like a Christmas tree.”
Downey Animal Care Center
Downey Animal Care Center
Desi told BuzzFeed News she has been volunteering at the shelter for about seven years.
She wrote on Facebook that Zuzu's former owners told her the dog had become depressed and was "crying" after her father passed away.
Zuzu eventually jumped her fence into the neighbors' yard, where the unhappy neighbors found her and called animal control.
