![\"an-open-door-to-a-bedroom\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1786267512_93_.jpeg\")
\n Alamy Stock Photo<\/p>\n
Alamy Stock Photo\n<\/p>\n
Adrienne Behrman took in two young women to help them get back on their feet. They stayed in her home for several days, but when holes began to appear in their backstories, Behrman began digging, and discovered her guests were wanted for murder.<\/p>\n
(The Washington Post<\/a>, approx 10 mins reading time)<\/p>\n \u2018That nearly week-long stretch in Genoa, Ohio \u2014 and Behrman\u2019s immediate call to 911, followed by the suspects\u2019 swift arrest \u2014 is now part of a homicide case that began inside a Maryland high-rise apartment where Hilde Henderson (67) was found beaten to death in late May.\u2019<\/p>\n 2. Are we living in a romance recession?<\/a><\/p>\n Alamy Stock Photo\n<\/p>\n There is no shortage of dating apps and matchmaking events, but in the US the number of people dating and in relationships has sharply dropped over the last 50 years. What\u2019s going on?<\/p>\n (The Atlantic<\/a>, approx 28 mins reading time)<\/p>\n \u2018Dating has always entailed some hardship, but it used to be the norm to find love in everyday life\u2014at the office, at church, at a party. People didn\u2019t need to choose what to step away from. Now many of the quirks of modern life have made meeting organically in person less likely. More people are tucked away at home, working remotely, streaming TV, and having food delivered to their door; approaching strangers feels fraught when so many of us are used to flirting via text with people who have already \u2018liked\u2019 us. So we depend on the apps even as we resent them. Dating becomes another responsibility to squeeze in, \u2018like you\u2019re scheduling a job interview,\u2019 Sarah Boyle, a 29-year-old public defender in Chicago, told me.\u2019<\/p>\n 3. Lured to London for organ trafficking<\/a><\/p>\n Alamy Stock Photo\n<\/p>\n A 19-year-old man called Daniel who worked on a market in Lagos, Nigeria was promised a better life in the UK. He didn\u2019t know that in exchange he would have to donate a kidney.<\/p>\n (The Guardian<\/a>, approx 20 mins reading time)<\/p>\n \u2018Noticing Daniel\u2019s uneasiness, Dupont asked if he was scared to tell the Ekweremadus that he did not want to go ahead. Daniel said he did not want to donate his kidney. It was only when Dupont made clear that the operation would not happen that Daniel finally made eye contact, the doctor testified. \u2018He was nervous that I would say or imply that the decision not to proceed was his fault. I assured him that confidentiality was paramount and the intended recipient would be told he was unsuitable.\u2019 He recalled Daniel saying about Obeta: \u2018He had not told me anything about this. I would never have agreed to any of this. My body was not for sale.\u2019<\/p>\n 4. Jackmaxxing<\/a><\/p>\n Alamy Stock Photo\n<\/p>\n US singer-songwriter Jack Johnson has transfixed Gen Z with his calming lyrics and chilled out vibe. His songs have inspired the concept of \u2018Jackmaxxing\u2019 \u2013 maximising relaxation by listening to Johnson\u2019s songs.<\/p>\n (The New York Times<\/a>, approx 11 mins reading time)<\/p>\n \u2018It was a rainy Monday night, and \u201cSURFILMUSIC,\u201d a documentary about the singer-songwriter\u2019s enviously low-cortisol life, had just screened at Angelika Film Center. At 51, Johnson hovers an inch or two below the rarefied air of household-name status. His catalogue of unassuming beach pop is a staple at many a white-walled brunch spot where drinks come in Mason jars. Banana Pancakes, his song about, among other things, the tyranny of getting out of bed, has more than 750 million streams on Spotify. He is the soundtrack for a Sunday drive in a sensible hybrid vehicle, and, these days, his original devotees are, like him, navigating the turns of midlife. Surprisingly (or not), some of their kids have become Jack Johnson fans, too.\u2019<\/p>\n 5. The psychic capital<\/a><\/p>\n Alamy Stock Photo\n<\/p>\n Cassadaga, Florida has become known as the psychic capital of the world. People have flocked to the small wetland town for decades to converse with spirits. But how did it all start?<\/p>\n (Dispatch<\/a>, approx 12 mins reading time)<\/p>\n \u2018What people come for, mostly, is grief. A loved one recently passed, an unresolved conflict, a guilt that\u2019s never quite let go. Spirit tells some they did nothing wrong, that they took care of them. \u2018We call it spiritual counselling,\u2019 she says.\u2019<\/p>\n 6. The UK\u2019s hikikomori<\/a><\/p>\n Alamy Stock Photo\n<\/p>\n Hikikomori is a Japanese term for people who withdraw from society. This article looks into the lives of young men living as hikikomori in the UK, some of whom love their lives, and others who want change.<\/p>\n (Dispatch<\/a>, approx 11 mins reading time)<\/p>\n \u2018Since leaving school five years ago, Daniel estimates he has left the family home \u2018maybe once a month\u2019, to pick up essentials at a local shop \u2014 always making a beeline for the self-checkout \u2014 or to put out the bins when Claire was away. Instead, he has spent his time gaming, sleeping long hours, reading online forums, listening to podcasts and watching TV. He\u2019s \u2018a film nerd\u2019, working his way through the catalogues of different directors in turn and noting down his thoughts and analysis afterwards.\u2019<\/p>\n \u2026AND A CLASSIC FROM THE ARCHIVES\u2026\u00a0 Alamy Stock Photo\n<\/p>\n![\"a-bouquet-of-dead-colorful-flowers\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1786267513_320_.jpeg\")
\n Alamy Stock Photo<\/p>\n![\"london-city-skyline-viewed-from-the-london-eye-london-uk-winter-december-2025\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1786267513_500_.jpeg\")
\n Alamy Stock Photo<\/p>\n![\"singersongwriter-jack-johnson-performs-on-stage-at-hyde-park-to-promote-the-all-at-once-initiative-in-central-london\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1786267514_893_.jpeg\")
\n Jack Johnson. Alamy Stock Photo<\/p>\n![\"spiritualism-signs-for-streets-in-unique-psychic-village-of-cassadaga-florida\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1786267515_384_.jpeg\")
\n Spiritualism signs for streets in Cassadaga, Florida. Alamy Stock Photo<\/p>\n![\"a-man-sits-at-a-computer-in-a-room-at-a-table-at-nigh-programming-black-and-white\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1786267515_848_.jpeg\")
\n Alamy Stock Photo<\/p>\n
\n7.\u00a0Glen Hansard and Mark\u00e9ta Irglov\u00e1<\/a><\/p>\n![\"london-uk-28-may-2025-glen-hansard-and-marketa-irglova-of-folk-duo-the-swell-season-performs-at-royal-festival-hall-credit-justin-ngalamy-live-n\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1786267516_703_.jpeg\")
\n Glen Hansard and Mark\u00e9ta Irglov\u00e1 of The Swell Season performs at Royal Festival Hall in 2025. Alamy Stock Photo<\/p>\n