Author: Overcoming Adversity | Buteau’s Odyssey

It’s the last month of the year and believe it or not there are still some thrills left in 2025. From sequels to reboots to found footage, December has got some surprising scares; even one on Christmas Day, although to be fair that one’s more of a horror/comedy.  We’ve listed nine titles below, some are theatrical releases while others are either on streaming platforms or VOD. Two of note are Man Finds Tape, a found footage movie which has generated some buzz, and Anaconda, the Black/Rudd adventure horror-comedy.  We’re also excited for Dust Bunny, the latest from director Bryan Fuller, the…

As a kid, I loved The Blues Brothers movie and the soundtrack so much, I wore out both the VHS and the 8-track. I don’t think I saw it when it first came out in 1980—I would’ve been nine years old, and I’m pretty sure my dad wasn’t taking me to a chaotic musical-comedy-crime-blues-musical. I’m pretty sure I found it later, around age 12 or 13, either on VHS or during one of those edited-for-TV weekend reruns. What grabbed me wasn’t just the action—though the car chases alone (a world record for smashed police cars at the time) were enough…

As with so many other forms of mental illness, the common understanding of bipolar disorder is wrong in a meaningful way. People tend to think the syndrome entails heightened sensitivities to one’s environment, so that whatever makes most people sad makes the individual struggling with this illness depressed, and whatever makes most people feel happy makes them feel euphoric. However, that’s a surface-level understanding of it. And the reality is much more complex, interesting, and even more challenging. Bipolar disorder I and II are each marked by lengthy periods of a depressive episode, which is expressed in a change in…

This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports.Missouri sports betting officially goes live today, and BetMGM is giving new players one of the biggest safety nets in the state. With the BetMGM Missouri Launch Bonus, your first wager is covered up to $1,500, letting you fire confidently on any matchup, any sport, and any market as the state officially goes live.Whether you’re jumping into NFL rivalries, NBA primetime showdowns, college hoops chaos, or NHL action, BetMGM lets…

As a daughter of Black River, Jamaica, the four weeks after Hurricane Melissa made landfall on October 28, 2025 have been so so hard. I went to Black River Primary School and my cousin was the principal during much of that time. My dad worked at the courthouse and my mom worked at the only bank in town. My aunt taught music at the high school, and at one point my sister was a nurse in the hospital, where my cousin now works. My great-great-grandfather got married in the Anglican church that is now a pile of rubble. And this…

The other night, I made the mistake of watching an Oprah podcast (she films her podcasts) before I went to bed. The topic was the current trend in our culture for people to sever relationships with family members. For the most part, the discussion centered around adult children who chose to end contact with their parents. There were three experts: Dr. Josh Coleman, Dr. Lindsay Gibson, and Nedra Glover Tawwab, all bestselling authors, therapists, and trainers. You might be familiar with Dr. Gibson’s book that helps people identify their parents’ flaws, diagnoses them as “toxic,” or “emotionally immature,” laying the…

I wanted everything to be perfect for my daughter’s first Christmas. Despite barely sleeping and having just returned to my high-stress job, I thought it would be a good idea to host both sets of out-of-town grandparents and my brothers-in-law at my house. It also seemed like a good idea to make Christmas Eve dinner, Christmas morning brunch, and Christmas Day appetizers, dinner, and dessert, while refusing all offers for help. Looking back, this wasn’t festive cheer. It was the perfect personality recipe for holiday burnout: high conscientiousness and high agreeableness, with a dash of neuroticism. If you tend to…

I’ve pondered many different iterations of the question in the title of this interview countless times and I’m sure I’m not alone.1 A month ago, I learned about the very important work of Dr. Jacqui Wilmshurst, who had been a speaker at the Annual Oxford Animal Ethics Summer School, and I deeply wanted to know more about her views on this incredibly difficult, disturbing, and nuanced question. I’m thrilled she could take the time to discuss its many sides using her enormous amount of on-the-ground experience with many different animals through the lens of disability.2. Marc Bekoff: Why did you…

Everyone’s heard that expression, “Life is for the living.” I’ve always assumed living in this context was a noun referencing all people currently alive. Now I’m looking at it as a verb. Think of it as a verb, as an action, as I say that life exists not for the dying of it, but for the living of it. Well, of course, right? Living occurs right now, in the present. Life is a gift. Acknowledging that gift in the moment is gratitude. One may focus their grateful perspective through a religious or spiritual practice, but it’s not essential. We can…

We all like to think we’re enlightened enough to make better choices for our kids than to repeat some of the shortcomings of our own upbringing. We want them to know they’re cared for, and we want to help prepare them to have their best lives. While these may be our goals, no matter how hard we try, there can be times we may find ourselves doing the same things our parents did that drove us crazy. For example, have you ever found yourself saying something to your child in frustration that was exactly what your parents said to you…