So you want to get out of jury duty. Sure, you could wear a “F*ck The Police” T-shirt to the courthouse, or loudly proclaim that the frequency of your bowel movements will make sitting through the trial an impossibility. But before resorting to antics and goofs, you should try one of the perfectly legitimate paths to avoiding jury duty.

Because let’s face it: Though we know we should be proud of doing our civic duty, few among us are excited to see an envelope in the mail that reads “summons.” Since the jury summons process is designed to be as random as possible, you never know when that dreaded letter may arrive in the mail, or what kind of court case you might be assigned to, and the responsibility can be hard to work around if you’ve got a lot of other obligations.

If you couldn’t already guess, this guide isn’t going to dwell on the nuances of performing your civic duty. I’ll assume you’re an upstanding citizen who has an ethical reason for getting out of your jury summons. Plus, the consequences for lying to evade jury duty can result in serious fines or even criminal contempt charges, with jail time as a possibility, so you definitely aren’t going to do that. With that out of the way, here are all the legal ways you can avoid jury duty.

Legitimate claims to get out of jury duty

Keep in mind that your initial jury duty summons is only for attending jury selection day, not the jury service itself. To find a legitimate way out of your summons, begin by looking at anything that prevents you from being physically present for duty or that indicates you would not be able to be an impartial juror.

If any of the following excuses apply to your situation, you can file a written response to your summons that clearly lays out all the reasons why you cannot serve on that date. Below, I’ll outline the sort of proof different excuses require. (Note that what you put in this letter is not a guarantee that you will successfully get out of jury duty—each local court has their own procedures for these letters, and the court’s consideration of your request. )

You have an economic hardship

Maybe you own a small business that cannot run without your presence, or maybe your family will suffer significant financial hardship if you are eventually selected to be a juror. Financial hardship is a legitimate claim to get out of your jury summons, but you’ll need several documents in addition to your excuse letter. You’ll need to provide your current tax forms showing your financial status, documentation showing present employment status (wages, hours, etc.), and any document showing your inability to provide support for you or your family as a result of jury service.

Note: Government jobs and some large employers will pay employees during jury duty, but many other jobs will not. Unfortunately, “missing work” doesn’t usually qualify as a claim for economic hardship in and of itself (no matter how true it may be).

You have a medical hardship

Courts can’t expect you to show up if you have a legitimate medical limitation. You don’t have to prove you’re in a coma, either. For instance, if you have IBS, you could consider explaining why this would prevent you from sitting and focusing on a case for large stretches of time. Those looking to claim medical hardship must provide a signed statement from a licensed physician that indicates your condition and how long it’s expected to last.

You’re a caretaker

You might have dependents or individuals you care for who cannot be alone all day while you attend your summons. If you’re a caregiver for someone under the age of 16, you must provide copies of the birth certificates of the children you care for and an explanation as to why there are no other options for them while you’re at jury duty. All other caregivers (like for a parent, partner, or sibling) need a doctor’s note detailing the patient’s diagnosis and confirmation that their services as a caregiver are required.

You’re a full-time student

If you’re currently a student, you’re probably in the clear. Full-time students need to submit a copy of their student ID or class schedule to explain why they can’t show up on their summons date.

You’re a senior citizen

Each court system has its own rules, and many state courts recognize that jury duty can be an extreme hardship for many senior citizens. Some states, like Mississippi and South Carolina, will excuse you if you’re over 65 years old. Others, like Arkansas and Colorado, have no specific exemptions for senior citizens. This resource details a state-by-state age of exemption for jury duty.

Expressing mental/emotional instability can keep you off of a jury

While it might be difficult to share deeply personal information, a diagnosis of mental illness could get you out of the jury box. Even if you don’t have a diagnosis, it’s worth explaining extenuating circumstances, like a death in the family. This excuse could be particularly handy in very complex cases involving scientific issues, which would require jurors to be free of mental distractions.

You can’t be impartial

Even if you don’t know the details of the case yet, you might have a good reason why you can never be an impartial juror. For instance, if you’re a contractor who often works with your local police department, you should write in and explain that this makes you biased toward (or against) police officers right off the bat. Similarly, if your family member works in law enforcement, point out how this makes you highly subjective one way or another.

What to do to not get picked for jury duty

If you can’t get out of attending jury selection, here are some ideas you can try to make sure no lawyer wants you in their courtroom.

• Be overly enthusiastic. Try a little reverse psychology and act like you really want to be on this jury. Lawyers generally avoid individuals who seem overly eager, since that type of juror could potentially have an agenda in mind before even hearing the case.

• Have your mind made up. If you truthfully have a stance that pertains to the case, make it clear. For instance, if you’ve been wronged by an insurance company in the past, then you shouldn’t be a part of a case that deals with an insurance claim.

• Be an “expert” of some kind. Lawyers want to be able to mold jurors’ minds. If you’re able to convey that you’re already an expert on some issue related to the case, chances are that you’ll be dismissed.

• Mention veto rights. If you get selected for jury duty, this is your last shot. The presiding judge asks you to swear that you will reach a verdict on the case based on the merits of the facts presented to you in court by the prosecution and defense teams. You can refuse to swear to this commitment. Tell the judge about your legitimate veto rights as a juror, which means that it’s the jury’s right to find a verdict as they see fit. This is known as “jury nullification,” and while it is totally legal, it’s a pain to the prosecution and the court.

How to postpone jury duty

If you can’t get out of it altogether, you can at least kick the can down the road: You can usually change your date of jury service just by asking, no explanation needed. From there, you can choose your own jury duty date—pick the right days, and your jury service could be an hour or two instead of a day or a week.

You can usually put off jury service for up to six months, two or three times after being summoned. Rules vary by state, but most will let you reschedule for a later date. For example, in New York, you can postpone your service once online or by calling a toll-free number at least one week before your date of service. Make sure to have your juror index number handy when you go online or call, and check your home state’s regulations because they might be different.

Choose a jury duty date when everyone wants to leave work early

Some extra advice, from Lifehacker’s own Stephen Johnson: “Since they let you pick the date you want to serve, choose the day before a long weekend. Lawyers and judges want to skip work early too, so no one is likely to start a case on that day. I’ve done this twice, and potential jurors were dismissed by 11 a.m. both times.”

Here’s another hot tip: Request to move your service date to December. Apparently this time of year, there’s a greater chance that the court cancels or postpones the hearing—it’s the holidays, after all. In the best case scenario, the court doesn’t recall you for the new date, and you get off scot-free.

Whatever you do, don’t lie to the court

As fun as it may seem, this is no time to pull a Liz Lemon. Never lie openly in court or make false claims in front of the judge—you could end up paying for it with jail time. In cases where the judge thinks you’re trying to make a mockery of their court, they have the right to sentence you to a jail term of up to two years. That’s a lot longer than your jury service would last.

Requests to be excused are reviewed by the courts on a case-by-case basis. Don’t be a no-show or leave jury selection early because you assume your reasoning was valid. You might end up with a steep fine, and there’s also the possibility of the court sentencing you to up to two years of jail time on charges of contempt of court.

For more jury facts, check out our debunking of some pervasive myths about jury duty.

After buying Twitter and taking a chief role in the Trump administration, the world’s richest man now has his sights set on a new target: tech industry darling OpenAI. In a move first reported on by The Wall Street Journal, Elon Musk apparently delivered a $97.4 billion bid to buy the nonprofit that controls OpenAI to the company’s board on Monday morning.

In addition to Musk, the offer has backing from venture capitalists, including Hollywood media mogul Ari Emanuel and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, so he isn’t going it alone. Still, it would be a major move for Musk, who has publicly beefed with OpenAI and worked to develop his own alternative in X’s Grok.

The offer also follows OpenAI’s announcement, alongside President Trump, of Project Stargate, a plan to invest $500 billion in building out the U.S.’s domestic AI infrastructure. Again, OpenAI is not alone in this initiative, having garnered financial support from SoftBank, Oracle, and MGX, as well as technology support from Nvidia, Arm, and Microsoft.

In other words, if the purchase were to go through, OpenAI’s partners would now suddenly have some quite unexpected new faces to contend with.

The offer comes amidst OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s attempt to restructure the nonprofit into a for-profit company as well as an effort to raise $40 billion in funding, which would place the value of the startup at over $340 billion. Altman has already posted a curt message on X declining Musk’s offer, and joking back that OpenAI would be willing to buy the former Twitter for $9.74 billion.

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While, OK, brutal, Altman’s response might not be the end of the offer, as the CEO still has to contend with fellow board members: OpenAI’s structure means no board members hold direct equity in the company, which makes voting on such decisions a team effort. Additionally, Microsoft already owns a minority economic interest in the company, and it’s possible the company would no longer wish to pursue this relationship under new leadership.

For what it’s worth, this isn’t Musk’s first time wrangling with OpenAI. The billionaire actually co-founded the nonprofit arm of OpenAI alongside Altman in 2015 before departing in 2019. OpenAI later wrote that Musk said the group’s “probability of success was 0.”

Now, it appears his attitude has changed. In a statement his lawyer provided to The Wall Street Journal, Musk said “It’s time for OpenAI to return to the open-source, safety-focused force for good it once was.”

This week’s biggest event was the Super Bowl. While the game was a snore-fest reminiscent of the lopsided Super Bowl blowouts of the past, the halftime show was nothing like the performances of 1980s Super Bowl favorites “Up with People.”

If you compare the two performances (and you should), you’ll see how far we have come as a society.

Kendrick’s jeans win the Super Bowl

Super Bowl 2025 may have been more of beatdown than an exciting football game, but luckily Kendrick Lamar was around at halftime to provide some much needed drama. From “Uncle” Samuel L. Jackson providing a preemptive critique of the show from “mainstream” America, to Serena Williams crip walking for more total yards than the Kansas City offense, to the copious Drake-baiting, plus some provocative, timely questions about what “America” means anyway, all of it performed in front of the sitting president himself, it was a lot.

But even still, Kendrick’s jeans stole the show.

Debates over jean length and style have been vital part of youth culture since forever, and K Dot’s choice of washed, boot-cut jeans—flares, even—marks a turning point. For the last few years, kids have been wearing huge, Jnco style jeans dug up from the mid-1990s, often accented with some chrome studs, but Kendricks “loose fit on top; wild at the ankles” style is destined to be the must-wear cut for the foreseeable future.

Hopefully kids will take note that Kendrick’s jeans are the right length, and not do that “so long it’s draggin’ on the ground” thing that was popular the last time people wore bell-bottoms. As for the future of jeans, look for the return of skinny jeans; it is inevitable.

“What’s a father?” memes take over the internet

Online wags recently rediscovered an old clip of an interview with deceased rapper XXXTentacion, and they have been turning out hilarious memes using it on X, TikTok, and everywhere else ever since. The original video was released in 2022 by TheFader. In it, XXX is asked “Do you have any relationship with your father?” He responds “What’s that? What’s a father?” and there’s something so performativly poignant about it—so real-but-so-fake—that the moment defines cringe.

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The internet piled on after the initial post on X, with the consensus that XXX was corny. Then there were attempts to recreate the clip as accurately as possible:

And lots of memes where XXXTentacion fails to understand other simple things, like showers and jobs.

What does “reheating your own nachos” mean?

“Reheating nachos” or “reheating your own nachos” is an evocative piece of slang that comes from online fandom and amateur cultural critics. It is used to refer to performers and/or artists, and it means something like “trying to recapture what was good about previous work.”

It’s usually meant as negative criticism—nachos are generally not nearly as delicious when reheated—but it’s possible to successfully reheat your own nachos too. For instance, many fans of Lady Gaga regard her new single “Abracadabra” as reheated nachos—it’s got the same electronic beats, wordplay, and catchy chorus of her best work—but it’s regarded as awesome by many, leading to the suggestion that she made the new nachos as delicious as the old ones and/or created new nachos from her old recipes. Like a good nacho cheese pull, it’s possible to stretch this concept pretty far.

What does “boombayah” mean?

The slang term “boombayah” is a euphemism for having sex, sometimes phrased like “doing the boombayah.” It’s used mostly online, often to defeat censorship algorithms, so it’s not the kind of word you’re likely to hear said aloud.

The word originated with K-Pop band BlackPink’s 2016 song of the same name but has only recently caught on widely, first within the fandom of Squid Game (thanks to this video), from whence it spread to everyone else.

Everyone hates “Influencer Smurf”

Few things engender as passionate a reaction as reboots of beloved childhood media. When the new version of the old thing is done well, people absolutely love it, like the reaction to the recent Super Mario Bros. movie. But when it’s done poorly, the vitriol is off-the-charts.

So it is with the upcoming Smurfs movie. The plot, in which the Smurfs have to enter the real world for some reason, is seen as lazy, obvious, and also the same as the story for the quite poor 2011 live action Smurfs movie. But there’s a special hatred for one character in the trailer: Influencer Smurf. His line in the trailer (“Smash that subscribe button!”) and his smug look are seen as the worst kind of pandering, and a desperate bid to create modern relevance in the most obvious way possible. “Influencer Smurf will lead to a catastrophic event in July,” sums up one Reddit poster.

On the positive side of The Smurfs reactions, people like the casting of John Goodman as Papa Smurf. So there’s at least something nice to say. There’s also the fact that Smurfs were never anything but horrible, and people only liked Smurfs in the first place because they were 5 years old. A new generations of 5-year-olds is primed to fall in love this summer when The Smurfs is released. Again.

Viral video of the week: Doug’s winter party

This week’s viral video is so wholesome you can’t help but love it. Taken by a Ring doorbell cam, Doug’s Winter Party documents 85 year-old Doug visiting his neighbor Michelle to invite her and her family to his party. “Hi, I’m Doug across the street over here,” Doug says. “This is an invite to a party on February 15. I didn’t want to leave it in the mailbox.”

That would be fairly cute—maybe a five on a 10-point adorability scale—but Michelle follows with a video showing off the paper invitation, where Doug writes the party is from “4 p.m. until the cops arrive.” That shoots it up to 11.

An invitation to Doug’s winter party is now the most coveted ticket in the world (or on the internet, anyway), with many angling for a spot on Doug’s guest list and trying to impress with the dance moves they’ll bring. We can all only hope that no weird strangers actually show up. Nobody wants that, least of all Doug.

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Americans are predicted to spend a whopping 2.5 billion dollars on flowers this Valentine’s day. If you are one of the people who are considering such a gift to your paramour, you may want to stop for a moment and consider your beloved’s beloved: Many popular flower choices are toxic for dogs and cats. Here’s what to know before you choose your bouquet so you won’t have to apologize for a vet visit later. 

Flowers that aren’t safe for pets

First, consider whether your intended recipient has a cat or dog (or both), as they can have different reactions. For instance, lilies, a common Valentine’s Day choice, can be lethal to cats, even in very small amounts, including the plant itself and even the water it sits in. Lilies can cause kidney failure, which is often fatal. Lilies are dangerous to dogs, as well, causing gastrointestinal distress, but they don’t carry the same risk for dogs as they do for cats.

Tulips and daffodils, both bright and colorful enough to attract your pet, are toxic to dogs and cats. Both cause gastrointestinal distress, and while tulips usually result in vomiting and drooling, daffodils can be even dangerous: Ingesting the bulb of a daffodil can cause heart issues in animals. 

Fragrance is another reason some flowers are popular in bouquets: Hyacinth has a strong perfume and beautiful shape, but when ingested by dogs and cats, they cause severe drooling, vomiting, and tremors. Peonies, which are gorgeously ruffled and scented cause vomiting and diarrhea in dogs. 

Chrysanthemums, giant showy flowers which you might know as mums, are toxic to dogs, causing gastrointestinal issues, and incoordination. 

Tall, spiky flowers make for a dramatic and unique bouquet, but beware: Gladioli are toxic to both cats and dogs, causing drooling, lethargy, and diarrhea. Foxgloves are even more dangerous, causing cardiac arrhythmias and cardiac failure.

Also out? Amaryllis (gastrointestinal distress, lethargy, and tremors), poinsettia (skin and eye irritation, vomiting, and drooling) and peace lily (vomiting, drooling, and difficulty swallowing).

These flowers are safe for pet households

If you’re determined to order flowers, there are still plenty of choices that are safer for pets. Roses, though perhaps unoriginal, are non-toxic for cats and dogs—and florists usually de-thorn the roses, so even that risk is gone. 

Instead of tulips, consider gerbera daisies, which are bright, colorful, and safe for pets. Skip the daffodils and go for sunflowers. These giant blooms are like sunshine in flower form and are non-toxic for pets and people. The sunflower center becomes sunflower seeds, and you can even grill or cook the sunflower heart. 

If you want to be a bit more unique in your flower choices, snapdragons, a spiky flower alternative to foxglove and gladiolas, are safe and come in a wild array of colors. Want something scented like peonies? Try stock: This blandly named flower is deeply perfumed and has beautiful blooms along a single stalk. Freesia is also scented and has a beautiful shape of blooms on an arced stem, a bit like an orchid. If you’re looking for the impact of a chrysanthemum, ask for zinnias. They grow into similar shapes and petal structures with the same color and size impact. If you want a flower no one else will have that is fantastical and whimsical, celosia is non-toxic to pets and comes in both plume and cockscomb shapes.

Of course, if you want to impress a pet parent on Valentine’s Day, you might consider ditching real flowers altogether and going right to bribery of the most important person in their life.

The Department of Labor (DOL) is a critical federal agency that protects workers’ rights, ensures workplace safety, and promotes employment opportunities across the United States. Around since 1913, the DOL is the latest government entity currently facing scrutiny from the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

On Friday, a federal judge declined to limit DOGE—which is not an official government department, but a task force led by Elon Musk—from accessing the DOL’s systems and sensitive information. Not everyone is happy about that, because they are worried Musk might gut the agency in similar fashion to what is being done with USAID.

But what does the DOL do? It’s worth knowing, because the labor department impacts everyone who has an employer of some kind.

What the Department of Labor actually does

The mission of the Labor Department is “to foster, promote and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers and retirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights.” The breakdown looks like this:

1. Workplace safety: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), part of the DOL, sets and enforces workplace safety standards. This protects millions of workers from hazardous working conditions across industries.

2. Wage and hour protection: The DOL’s Wage and Hour Division ensures workers receive fair compensation, enforcing minimum wage laws, overtime pay, and child labor regulations. For instance, in 2024 the division recovered more than $273 million in back wages and damages for nearly 152,000 workers nationwide.

3. Employment rights: The department enforces federal labor laws that prohibit discrimination, protect worker benefits, and ensure fair employment practices. This includes oversight of minimum wage requirements, overtime compensation, workplace discrimination protections, and family and medical leave rights.

What laws does the Labor Department enforce?

Some of the key labor laws the DOL enforces include:

• Fair Labor Standards Act, which sets standards for private and public employment including wages, overtime pay and child labor.

• Family and Medical Leave Act, which provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for medical and family care reasons.  

• Occupational Safety and Health Act, which protects workers from unsafe and unhealthy working conditions and is administered by OSHA. 

• Workers’ compensations acts including those related to longshore and harbor workers; Department of Energy employees; coal miners; and federal employees.  

• Affordable Care Act provisions related to employer health care coverage.

• Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN Act), which requires employers to provide notice prior to large layoffs. 

• Employee Retirement Income Security Act, which regulates private pension plans and benefits. 

• Immigration and Nationality Act provisions applying to visa programs. 

Additional labor laws that the DOL enforces are listed here.

How to contact the DOL

To file a complaint about an employer violating your rights, you’ll typically need to gather personal and work information including your name and contact information; the company you work or worked for and its location, contact information and manager or owner; the work you did; your payment and records of hours worked.

• File workplace complaints online at www.dol.gov

• Call 1-866-4-USA-DOL for assistance

• Report wage theft, safety violations, or discrimination

• Seek information about workers’ rights

The bottom line

The DOL’s impact extends to nearly every American worker, protecting fundamental employment rights and ensuring safe, fair working conditions.

WASHINGTON, D.C., Feb. 7, 2025 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture clarified today that the Foreign Agricultural Service is continuing activities for projects funded by the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Childhood Nutrition Program and the Food for Progress Program.