Maybe reading is worth it after all.

I've been lied to by books before.(via reddit)

Over a year ago, redditor Dangjasondang found the above note stashed away in a book on the shelf of a café. Obviously, there are plenty of unanswered questions: Who? What? Why? WHY? and Really?

To answer those questions, u/Dangjasondang is now camped out in the café and posting updates every two hours on reddit. He's made a sign to alert his potential kidnapper benefactor of his existence and placed a note in the same book where he found the original.

If you see this sign, offer to sit under it while Dangjasondang goes to the bathroom.(via reddit)

Now we wait. Stay tuned...

Looks peaceful for a future crime scene.(via reddit)

No longer will you need to put your cat in a carrier or fold him in half to fit in your jean's pocket.

It's like that empty plastic shopping bag your cat always crawls in, but on your tummy.
(via Unihabitat)

New from Japan, it's the Mewgaroo! This specialty hoodie comes with a kangaroo style pouch on the front to keep your cat—or a cat-sized dog or rodent—warm and snuggly against your tummy.

This cat looks sick. (via Unihabitat)

The Mewgaroo is also covered in little feline features, like cute paw pads on the sleeves and fake ears on the hood. The pouch lining is removable so you can clean out all the hair and other cat residues.

"What do you keep in this pouch when I'm not in it? Why does it feel wet?" (via Unihabitat)

Like all the best cat-themed utility sweatshirts, the Mewgaroo is available from Japanese retailer Unihabitat. Watch as a particularly docile house cat gets cozy as a joey.

I never want to see what the bridesmaids were wearing. (via)

Weddings are a special time to gather your friends and family together so they can make fun of the ugly dress you picked. Everyone holds their breath as the bride enters and parades down the aisle in her—what the f*ck fabric is that? Plastic garbage bag?—dress. You'll never forget this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to criticize someone you love and her excessive cleavage while she's too distracted to notice it. If you just can't wait for your next wedding invitation, check out these fantastically awful dresses to tide yourself over.

Yeah we get it. Hearts. Love. You love him.(via)

Part wedding dress, part guide to a successful wedding night.(via)

All that extra fabric can get very expensive.(via)

In case you forgot why we're all gathered here today...(via)

This is actually how they always dress.(via)

We can still see you, Mama June.(via)

The first dance was a bit awkward.(via)

Who needs a tent?(via)

That divorce probably still cost less than the original dress.(via)

She's wearing all white to maintain her squeaky clean image.(via)

Thank goodness she's wearing that modest veil. (via)

For some people, a wedding is just an opportunity to break another record.(via)

He was a pastry chef. She was a pile of cream puffs. It was love at first sight.(via)

She's been eating tons of cake to fit into this dress.(via)

The original Snuggie.(via)

On the other hand, why risk wearing a dress when people like us will just make fun of it?(via)

Although I'd love to see a baby bear version of Don King managing one of these little guys.

I don't know what the Department of the Interior was thinking by making this free, you guys. I mean, our national parks are pretty underfunded, and the proceeds from this squee-inspiring match of furry fisticuffs could have probably funded Yosemite National Park (where this brawl went down) for a year. Unfortunately for them, any video they release themselves is public domain, which means you can steal this Vine for any reason you see fit. If, say, you'd like to add it to a montage of walking and/or boxing bears, may I suggest the following options as well:

Try not to feel really weird watching this bear walk on its hind legs.

The bear at this window is only here for the cookies.

Baby bear drops by a pharmacy to pick up a few things.

Two bears box each other over some delicious New Jersey garbage.

Russian man feeds giant bear raw meat through his window in the most Russian YouTube video ever.

This bear cub dancing with a flagstick is way more exciting than actual golf.

Ok, there are like 10 more stories, but I have to draw the line somewhere.

1. U.S. Government Refuses To Share Osama Bin Laden's Huge Stash Of Porn

Top U.S. intelligence officers have released a cache of documents recovered from Osama bin Laden's secret hideout in Pakistan, but they remain steadfast in their refusal share any of the vast quantities of pornography the al Qaeda leader had reportedly been hoarding. Total non-bro behavior, bros! Seriously uncool!

The U.S. just released a list of the books found on bin Laden's bookshelf. But with all that porn he watched, I doubt he read any of them.

— Keating Thomas (@keatingthomas) May 20, 2015

2. Rick Santorum To Bring Frothy Mixture Of Conservative Ideals And Populist Rhetoric To GOP Primaries

Former senator Rick Santorum announced today that he is joining the already overcrowded race to become the Republican Party's candidate for president. Despite coming within striking distance of overtaking Mitt Romney as the GOP candidate in 2012, he's currently ranked tenth in a recent Quinnipiac poll. However, he should move up in estimation as we get closer to sweater vest season.

Rick Santorum running for president is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy by laughing at Rick Santorum.

— Brian Boone (@brianadamsboone) May 27, 2015

3. Democrats And Republicans Come Together In Spirit Of Getting Shitfaced On The Cheap

Republican and Democratic lawmakers are reaching across the aisle in order to pass some extremely important legislation that could improve life for conservatives and liberals alike. The Distillery Innovation and Excise Tax Reform Act, if passed, will reduce the tax rate for liquor from $13.50 per proof gallon to $2.70 per proof gallon on the first 10K gallons produced. "There's a lot of red tape involved in getting a new distillery off the ground and this bill helps reduce that burden," explains Republican Todd Young, who co-sponsored the bill with Democrat John Yarmuth. It's brings a tear to your eye, doesn't it?

I'm one of those "I always carry exact change to the liquor store" drunks.

— Paige (@love_always2093) May 27, 2015

4. Tomorrow's Make-Believe Planetary Alignment Probably Won't Trigger The End Of Human Civilization

According to credible scientists, the planetary alignment that's not actually happening tomorrow will, in all likelihood, not cause a massive 9.8 earthquake along the San Andreas fault in California, triggering the destruction of civilization as we know it. "Let me be clear: No, it won't. It can't. Worse, there's not even really an alignment on that date, at least not with the Earth. It's all baloney," astronomer Phil Plait declared on his blog. On the other hand, your dad's friend made a pretty good case for it in a Facebook post, so I don't know. Let's say 60-40 it won't happen.

I just placed a small German man in my earthquake preparedness kit.

— daveanthony (@daveanthony) May 20, 2015

5. Thousands Of Teens Are Trying To Summon A Mexican Demon When Millions Of American Demons Remain Unsummoned

Kids all over the world are suddenly obsessing over a game that supposedly summons a Mexican demon named Charlie to the realm of humanity. By stacking one pencil on top of another, a person theoretically pulls a spirit of unfathomable evil and power from its slumber in the spirit plane, so that it may tell you whether or not that cute boy in Geometry class wants to make out with you.

when you run down the hallway screaming and dont get in trouble #charliecharliechallengepic.twitter.com/vgUQvJGFDa

— isabella nitecki (@izzienitecki) May 26, 2015

If u are doing the Charlie Charlie challenge do not ask me for a pencil when you just gave yours to the Mexican Demon!!!

— syd (@sydneysellerss) May 27, 2015

Flame war on!

Cosmic rays turned that "A" into a "4." (photo via 20th Century Fox)

When actor Michael B. Jordan was given the role of Johnny Storm (aka "The Human Torch") in the new Fantastic Four reboot, the bowels of the internet erupted with the familiar racist caterwauling from angry white nerds who "aren't racist, BUT..." (Most of their complaints boil down to "Wahhh, but I want to watch a white guy turn into a fiery guy!")

Jordan recently addressed his racist critics in Entertainment Weekly:

Some people may look at my casting as political correctness or an attempt to meet a racial quota, or as part of the year of “Black Film." Or they could look at it as a creative choice by the director, Josh Trank, who is in an interracial relationship himself—a reflection of what a modern family looks like today.

Thankfully, we're still a few years away from families with cosmically mutated orange rock children. Also, it's worth pointing out that there wasn't nearly as much outcry over other deviations from the comic book (the Fantastic Four are much younger, Sue Storm is adopted, they gain their powers through dimensional travel instead of the laughable "cosmic rays," etc.)

He went on to give some great advice for everyone:

To the trolls on the Internet, I want to say: Get your head out of the computer. Go outside and walk around. Look at the people walking next to you. Look at your friends' friends and who they're interacting with. And just understand this is the world we live in. It's okay to like it.

Stop reading this and go outside! Get some cosmic rays!

(OK, maybe just open a window.)

Welcome to This Week in GOOP, where Gwyneth Paltrow makes the news just for wearing the same thing twice.

Fresh off the announcement that Gwynnie launched a new take-out food business, she talks to Dr. Laura Lefkowitz about why most diets fail. And if you can get past statements like diet-induced changes in gene expression can influence network interactions and cellular information flow, you'll find some good (if occasionally complicated) information.

Now that you're all motivated to lose weight, let's ruin it by making some Dungeness crab rolls and lobster pot pie.

I mention these because not only do they look delicious, it doesn't seem like you'd need a Le Cordon Bleu-trained chef or a Food Network pantry with dozens of items to construct them. Which makes me wonder if Gwynnie's slipping here.

But never fear. She rights the wrongs with this week's fashion choices.

Let's start with a $450 pair of shorts that look like the kind of thing my grandmother used to give me on my birthday until I introduced her to the magical world of gift cards.

The description says they "strike a happy balance between pants and short shorts," but I have to question the use of "happy" here because these shorts are what would happen if clinical depression were made of silk and worn by embarrassed models.

And speaking of sad, here's a mopey outfit consisting of wool culottes ($495) and a high-necked satin blouse ($495). Because wool and satin are perfect summer fabrics, you see.

I like to imagine the photos are an action montage of the model seeing herself in a mirror and then quickly walking away to take that shit off while cussing out the stylist over her shoulder.

Finally, remember last week when I told you about that 30% GOOP shop discount? It only lasted a few days, but it's back -- sort of. As long as you're buying something from this list of Our Lady of GOOP's favorite things, you can use the code #30offlovegoop and it'll knock 30% off your overpriced purchase.

Use it to save a bundle on a bunch of other things you won't wear this summer, like a shapeless $400 sweatshirt dress or some $950 leather pants! Sweat is the new black, you guys.

As always, Gwynnie, we're not worthy.

I went on a first date to the Museum of Sex as a joke and it ended up being really, really fun.

Hot date. The uncomfortable kind of hot.(via Twitter)

Instead of trying to solve the problem of first date awkwardness, I took the opposite approach: make a first date as awkward as possible by visiting the Museum of Sex. And it sort of worked! It's easy to break the tension when you're standing in between a stranger and a three-foot-tall plaster clitoris.

I'll refer to my date as "Mike" since he does not know I went on this date in order to write an article about going on a date. I met Mike when he asked for my number outside of a bar last week and I gave it to him because honestly, I'll give my number to pretty much anyone who asks nicely. Originally, our first date was supposed to be in Central Park, but I had to cancel to get headshots printed.

Headshots are so dumb.

I haven't booked anything with this headshot yet, but should I make it my Tinder profile picture? Anyway, when I rescheduled, I asked Mike to join me at the Museum of Sex. Here's his response:

Yes, I have ten unread text messages.

We met at the museum in the evening, I was 15 minutes late because I'm literally never on time for anything. Jay-Z's "Big Pimpin'" was appropriately blasting as we entered the museum. Mike asked, "how'd you get the idea to come here?" I sort of panicked and told him the (almost) truth: "a friend thought it would be funny to go here on a first date but he has a girlfriend so I stole his idea." I did not mention that I'd be documenting the date.

The third floor of the Museum of Sex right now is basically a creepy, sex-themed carnival. The first thing we did was walk through a dark mirror maze, the end of which is a giant clitoris sculpture. All mirror mazes are death traps, but when there's a sex organ at the end it's slightly less terrifying.

Found it!

There was a carnival-style game where you throw balls into a hole to make shiny gold dildos run like racehorses. We played against an elderly museum goer who yelled at us because our penises were moving too slowly. The old man's penis ended up winning the game. At least, his proxy penis won something. His real penis is, like, at least 70, so it's seen better days. Mike and I played against each other and I lost again, but I was close. Like really close, almost there, just gotta keep going.

Welcome to the penis races.

Next, we jumped around in a boob bouncy castle. It is exactly what it sounds like. I successfully balanced on atop a giant inflated breast, while Mike was unable to do so. Is that like winning something? I needed to win something after my loss in the penis races.

Boobs!

Our next adventure was called Grope Mountain. It's a rock wall where every hold is extremely erotic. We both climbed the wall and I totally won. Maybe I'm single because I make EVERYTHING A COMPETITION. Actually, Mike did OK on the rock wall. I'll call it a tie.

What a rock wall would look like in a sex dungeon.

After all the exhausting physical activity, we checked out the exhibit dedicated to animal sex. There I learned that duck penises are totally unacceptable, sometimes male turtles mistake rocks for female turtles, and bonobos are very sexually liberated. After viewing some National Geographic type footage, we came to a broad generalization about the animal kingdom: females just don't look like they're enjoying sex as much as males. You know, normal first date conversation.

The second floor of the museum produced two gems: a bicycle-powered sex-machine and a male chastity belt. If you've ever seen bikes locked up around New York missing wheels, this is where they've been going:

I feel like there's a less complicated way to build a sex machine.

In response to the male chastity belt, my date Mike seemed to be dead-set on it being for a female, which it very clearly was not. I guess the words "chastity belt" are so synonymous with "woman" that he couldn't fathom the idea of a similar torture device on a man. The image below should settle who won the argument:

I rest my case.

The last stop on our date was the gift shop. A highly trained member of the museum staff approached us and tried to convince Mike and I to buy edible chocolate to eat off of each other. I responded, "I'd rather just eat some chocolate by itself." My joke did not land.

The sales associate then informed us about anal beads, letting me know they "come in all colors." When I said, "I don't think my butt will know what color they are," both Mike and the associate laughed at my awesome joke. It was a perfect end to a super fun first date.

After Mike and I said goodbye, I went back inside to use the restroom, only to find that the bathroom is completely mirrored and has handles on the wall. So, like, I'm pretty sure they WANT you to have sex in it. I did not have sex in it because it was a first date after all, plus he was already gone.

Let me give you a real quick crash course in the #CharlieCharlieChallenge that's become so popular with kids in the past few days. So, there's this Mexican demon named Charlie (yes, demonic spirits do apparently adhere to humanity's political boundaries). You can summon him from the spirit world by balancing a one pencil on top of another over a simple four-part grid with the words "yes" and "no" in the quadrants, and then saying something along the lines of "Charlie, Charlie, are you here?" Once the supernatural force of evil is in the room with you, it will communicate with you by gently nudging one of the pencils toward either "yes" or "no." Needless to say, it's some exceedingly dark magic, and it's more than a little dangerous.

Or, it would be if it were real. Or if demons were real. Or if anything at all supernatural was real. But none of it is, so this is really just a demonstration of the effects of gravity upon some pencils. It's no more of a threat to your well-being than saying "Bloody Mary" into the mirror, placing your hands upon a Ouija board or staring intently at a photograph of Donatella Versace—they're mildly spooky things to do, but ultimately harmless.

Unsurprisingly, some people do not see the whimsy in this game. Instead, they're very concerned, and they're not afraid to share their humorless opinions with you on Twitter. Here's just a few of them:

if u doing this charlie thing i can't be your friend because i refuse to let some demon come into my life because of your dumbass

— Cole Griffin (@cole_griffin7) May 25, 2015

It's not you, it's the demon.

I feel like logging out just because this Charlie demon foolishness is all over my TL. kmt, I rebuke you, Satan.

— NAE ⚓ (@IrieCultura_) May 25, 2015

also second PSA Charlie isn't just one demon, it's many different ones, no one gets the same one TLDR; you're talking with random spirits

— GET SHREKED (@fanysbutt) May 24, 2015

I'm glad a real demonologist jumped into the conversation.

When I see people doing the #charliecharliechallengepic.twitter.com/8khiK4Ya02

— kp (@_kierrrrra) May 27, 2015

Instead of the #charliecharliechallenge you could always just pray? I mean just a thought

— Common Catholic Girl (@comcatholicgrl) May 27, 2015

I mean, since you're in the mood to do something that completely ineffectual anyway.

How to do #charliecharliechallenge correctly pic.twitter.com/vbVYadMEzz

— Giving solo dms ✨ (@AriDrewCyrus) May 26, 2015

Wait a minute... is this some sort of regional variation on the Charlie Charlie Challenge?

DONT DO THE CHARLIE CHALLENGE pic.twitter.com/s9IOZClJAt

— geegee. ✨ (@DaGeeGee) May 26, 2015

I'm pretty sure this is just a leaked plot synopsis of the Ghostbusters reboot.

WHY WOULD ANYONE WANT TO DO THE CHARLIE CHALLENGE this is not a game omg those are demons you gotta deal with at night when you're alone

— Rylie Brown (@RylieBrown) May 26, 2015

I'm sorry to have to be the one to tell you this, Rylie, but dealing with demons at night when you're alone... that's just adulthood.

I REALLY THINK YOU NEED TO STOP THIS SHIT #charliecharliechallengepic.twitter.com/6oisWXiwEO

— Daïnora (@dainoraH) May 27, 2015

Anyone doing the #charliecharliechallenge will regret it. Be careful. Very careful. Wouldn't want to get possessed

— LispyJimmy (@UnitedgamerzHQ) May 27, 2015

That's a little presumptuous, don't you think?

Meow that's what I call music!

Americat idol.(screenshot via YouTube)

This little critter is having a singalong with its human, and since cats don't have hands and can't (or won't) clap their paws, he decided to chime in with some meowing. It's in Portuguese (at least the human part), so it's educational:

God hates flags!

I like to think God hates us all equally.(photo via Westboro Baptist Church, which blows)

Whoopsie daisy! Looks like our favorite vicious hate group masquerading as a religious organization made a little "uh-oh" and accidentally pulled out the wrong flag during one of their odious attempts to reserve the hottest section in hell.

They wanted to stomp all over the Irish flag during the tantrum they threw in reaction to Ireland legalizing same sex marriage, but they brought the Ivory Coast flag instead. It's an easy mistake for a group of truly loathsome assholes to make—both flags are tricolor with white in the middle and orange and green on the sides—but orange goes on the left on the Ivory Coast flag.

I know you're probably thinking, "Hey, couldn't that just be the Irish flag from behind?" Then you're probably thinking, "Wait, why am I defending the Westboro Baptist Church, a collection of the most execrable human beings that ever slimed their way across God's green earth? Then you're probably thinking, "Well, truth is truth and that's all I care about. After all, didn't Ghandi say 'the truth shall set you free?'" Nope! That's from the Bible, moron.

Anyway, I've got some truth for you: not only does the Irish flag have colors in a different order, it's also a different shape. The proportions of Ivory Coast's flag are a boxy 2:3, while the Irish flag is a svelte 1:2.

Kiss me, I'm Irish.(via Wikipedia)

"Please don't body shame me."(via Wikipedia)

You should definitely not abuse this extremely simple hack.

Power. So much power.

Some folks on reddit have discovered a bug in Apple's iOS that allows you to crash anyone's iPhone by sending them a simple text message. The message is:

effective. Power لُلُصّبُلُلصّبُررً ॣ ॣh ॣ ॣ 冗

We certainly do not advocate you texting this easily copied-and-pasted message to your friends and enemies just because you can. That would be wrong. Kinda fun. But wrong.

As for why the message causes your phone to reboot, it's relatively simple. Redditor sickestdancer98 explains:

So simple! It's all about how the banner notifications process the Unicode text. Duh.

Anyway, none of that matters. What matters is that you could send this message to anyone—your ex, for example—and really eff up their day. Right now. It's super simple. Just copy, paste, and hit send. But you won't, obviously. You're bigger than that.

Right?

An Apple spokesperson has said that they are "aware" of the problem and working on a permanent fix. In the meantime, if someone meaner than you sends you this message, you can fix it this way, according to techradar.com:

Head into your Settings app, then the Notifications tab, Messages and then switch off the slider called "show on local screen and under "alert style when unlocked" choose "none."

So easy! It probably wouldn't be a big deal if you sent that message to just a few people. But you won't. You're not an asshole.

A couple caused controversy when pictures of them walking through the Staten Island Mall went viral. Now they've come forward to explain.

Who would get upset about that? Oh wait, everybody.(via Reddit)

The picture above, and other images of this couple, have been all over the Internet in the past two weeks. They were taken on Saturday, May 16 at the Staten Island Mall in New York City. The pair in the photos, who weren't identified at the time, didn't seem the least bit shy. They posed for plenty of pictures, and didn't even let up when approached by mall security.

They don't cover this in mall cop training.(via Reddit)

Someone even took a video of them in a park after they had left the mall. The man was seen taking the woman off her leash so she could get a drink.

This is CRAZY!.. First She Was in The #StatenIsland Mall on a Leash.. Now's She's in The Park Taking a Dip!.. This Lady is Really About That #Dog #Life.. She Really Needs Help & I Hope She Gets It.. #TheDudeTookHerLeashOff #AndWasLikeGoAHead #LittleTinkTinkGoGetaDrinkDrink #SheDefinitelyGotWaterStuckInHerEars #TheDogWasLikeWTF #IDontEvenDoThat #WeGottaDoBetter #ZTWO #TheUltimateDeckParty #ThisThursdayBaby #LetsDoIt!
A video posted by @victorkingnyc on May 17, 2015 at 12:10pm PDT

At the time, the two weren't identified, although mall employees described them as well-liked regulars. Well-liked because they didn't usually bring the leash. Nevertheless, the images ignited a firestorm of criticism, with many describing their behavior as indecent and sexist and wrong. Now, the two have decided to come forward with an exclusive interview in the New York Daily News to respond to their critics and explain their unusual lifestyle.

It turns out they're a happily engaged couple. He is 30-year-old Nathan Riely. She is 21, and prefers to be known as "Xena, Nathan's puppy." Despite all appearances, they claim that their relationship feels totally normal to them. Riely told the Daily News:

"The leash and collar are symbols of our bond to one another. The collar is like a ring for most couples. They use rings, we have a collar."

They both have a long-standing interest in BDSM culture, and bonded over it after meeting online. They were each looking for a partner in a "Puppy Play" relationship, in which the dominant person takes on the role of a master, and the submissive one acts like a dog. He even moved to New York to live this way with her. They claim that this arrangement does not extend to their sex life and they're not looking for attention, it's just what makes them happy. "This is the lifestyle I chose to do," Xena told the Daily News.

The Staten Island man who walked his fiancée on a leash explains their lifestyle. http://t.co/cbZPc2tP5Xpic.twitter.com/2RUvDv8O3p
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) May 24, 2015

This is a hard story to form an opinion on. I'm all for people having unconventional relationships if it makes them happy, but they're coming across as showoffs. I mean, she had her head in the fountain. That's unsanitary at the very least. Plus, can you imagine being stuck behind them on a staircase? It must take her forever to climb it on all fours! That would be frustrating. Now that I think about it, all my concerns are basically pragmatic. Is what they're doing immoral though? No. It's fine. But what if kids saw it? That would be fine too. Kids need to learn about this stuff.

A senior prank blows up in the pranksters' faces, and now they face up to 2 years in jail.

Next time, use digital alarm clocks.(via Thinkstock)

A farewell prank may land two teens from Statesville, North Carolina, in prison.

Shannon Farrell and Lekia Hall, both 18, had a great idea for a senior prank: fill the unused lockers throughout South Iredell High School with lots of alarm clocks all set to go off at different times. Hysterical, right? Farrell's father Dan thought so, too, when he heard about the planned prank. That's dads for you, though. Laughing at really funny, inadvisable ideas.

On Tuesday morning, the pair busted the zip ties keeping the vacant lockers closed, filled each one with a ticking alarm clock, and then closed up the locker with their own locks. Sounds pricey, but I guess any good prank is going to incur a few expenses. However, once classes started, the hallways were full of the sounds of ticking. Lots of ticking.

A school administrator called 911 after noticing the loud ticking and the brand-new locks. The 1,500 students and 200 employees were evacuated from the school as emergency responders searched the hallways with bomb-sniffing dogs. After two hours of searching, word got back to investigators that it was all a joke.

Troutman Police Chief Matthew Selves did not find the prank that funny. While a perceived bomb threat in a local high school is not exactly a laugh riot, Selves doesn't seem to understand the nature of pranks. He spoke to the Statesville Record & Landmark, saying the whole situation could have been avoided if anyone had alerted an official that there would be a prank ahead of time.

If everyone knows what's going to happen ahead of time, that's no longer a prank. Everyone will be able to see the gag coming from a mile away, like a gameshow on NPR.

After decades of the standard operating procedure for all airlines being "leave passengers on the runway until they contemplate cannibalism," Delta finally asked the question "what if we tried doing the absolute bare minimum?"

We are sitting on a runway stuck on a @Delta flight because of weather. So they're throwing us a pizza party! pic.twitter.com/QO0ntZvs4I
— Riley Vasquez (@RileyVasquez) May 26, 2015

Due to severe weather, a Delta flight from Philadelphia to Atlanta had to make a landing in Knoxville, TN and wait for several hours before continuing. That's when something unusual happened: the crew ordered pizza for the passengers. These are the moments brands are built from. That moment when you establish yourself as being slightly less of an inhuman monster than your competitors. That moment when you say, "We here at Delta may not have our shit together in terms of getting flights out on time, keeping track of your luggage, or having the (paid) snacks and wi-fi we promised, but we'll do what we can to prevent mass murder from happening on our stranded planes. And what we can do is order pizza."

Delta continues with class. Stuck due to weather and the crew ordered everyone pizza. #deltaairlinespic.twitter.com/yMeBCFF0qL
— Bill Wittenmyer (@BillyTheKidWitt) May 26, 2015

That's not actually what they said, of course. A spokesperson spoke to CNN about the pizza party: "It's part of an effort company-wide when weather disrupts our operation to get food and beverages to delayed customers." Frankly, the way I phrased it was clearer.

Well my @Delta pizza party pic is going viral right now. Here's a couple more shots of our #deltapizzapartypic.twitter.com/2T9MxLrpN7
— Riley Vasquez (@RileyVasquez) May 27, 2015

Clearly, both from the passengers' perspective and that of Delta's brand image, this has been a smashing success. The images have gone viral (as opposed to, say, an angry passenger live-tweeting the delay), all for the cost of a stack of pizzas.

@RileyVasquez That is AWESOME! We're so excited we were able to turn your unexpected stop into a party. Enjoy the inflight entertainment!

— Delta (@Delta) May 27, 2015

Way to go, Delta. This in no way improves the fundamental aspects of your business, but the next time I need to fly and I'm not in a hurry, I'll pick you guys and hope for a thunderstorm. One question: this pizza "party" (really stretching the term) was due to weather. If the delay is due to scheduling or maintenance problems, do passengers still get pizza or would that be admitting too much responsibility?