CONNECT SELECT WEEKEND EDITION A wide selection of interesting and trending stories – rip ‘em, read ‘em and post ‘em! FRIDAY, MARCH 19th, 2021
TODAY IS…
WORLD SLEEP DAY Doctors say 7-to-9 hours of continuous ‘shut-eye’ a night are essential to keeping you from getting fat or going crazy. Sleep is when the body repairs cells, grows muscle and reboots your brain. CLICK HERE FOR THE SOUND OF SNORING NATIONAL CERTIFIED NURSES DAY Let’s all give thanks to the men and women who do all the gross, tedious, overlooked jobs that are usually the difference between life and death. Doctors may get all the glory, but nurses get it done! NATIONAL LET’S LAUGH DAY Some studies have shown that laughter can help boost your immune system, relieve tension, lower cortisol levels (that’s the stress hormone) and help you relax. A recent survey found people in Arizona laugh more than folks in any other state. A third of Americans say giggling is their most common type of laughter - funny! CLICK HERE FOR THE SOUND OF UPROARIOUS LAUGHTER (THEY SAW ME SHIRTLESS) JUSTIN BIEBER DROPS NEW ALBUM Justin Bieber drops his sixth studio album today. “Justice” features collabs with Chance the Rapper and Benny Blanco.
SATURDAY IS…
THE FIRST DAY OF SPRING! Hallelujah! Spring officially arrives at 5:37 AM Eastern Time. It’s also the ‘vernal equinox’ when most of us get exactly 12 hours of daylight. FUN FACT: Today is NOT the only day you can balance an egg on its end. You can do that any day, as long as you’ve got a steady hand. It’s a myth that it only works on the equinox. CLICK HERE FOR ‘MORNING’ BY PEER GRYNT’ ALIEN ABDUCTION DAY Raise your hand if you’ve been abducted by aliens! Most Americans think extra-terrestrials exist and 1-in-5 of us believe aliens have visited Earth. The 1970s were especially full of alien encounter stories, including some pretty famous ones that were turned into movies. Most ‘abductions’ happened in the desert southwest, like Nevada and Arizona. No one’s figured out why aliens flock there. Maybe they enjoy a nice ‘dry heat’? GREAT AMERICAN MEATOUT DAY (observed on the first day of spring) Try going vegetarian today. The annual worldwide Meat-out invites people to try going just one day without eating meat. NATIONAL KICK BUTTS DAY Now don’t go ‘round beating people up! We’re talking about quitting smoking here. Every year, cigarette smoking is responsible for 480-thousand deaths in the US, including 41- thousand deaths from second-hand smoke.
SUNDAY IS…
NATIONAL COUNTDOWN DAY It’s the 21st day of the 3rd month. Get it? 3, 2-1. Now, start counting down to when those pop tarts are ready. HERE’S THE SOUND OF A TICKING CLOCK CLICK HERE FOR A NASA COUNTDOWN NATIONAL MEMORY DAY Try not to forget. NATIONAL SINGLE PARENT DAY Raising a child is hard enough, but doing it alone?…Today we honor and recognize the devotion and sacrifices of single parenting. Reach out to a single parent you know and offer to babysit or bring them a meal. FRENCH BREAD DAY The only bread that smokes cigarettes and thinks all Americans are tacky. Also known as a ‘baguette.’ In France, they take their bread so seriously, there are laws that say exactly how long a baguette should be. FUN FACT: o Baguettes were originally made 2 feet long so they’d easily fit down a soldier’s pants when they were in the battlefield. (Who’d wanna eat that bread?!) ANNIVERSARY OF THE START OF TWITTER It used to only be something only birds did. But on this day 15 years ago, humans began tweeting too. Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey sent the first tweet that said: ’just setting up my twttr.’ Since then, more than 1.3 billion twitter accounts have been created. 7-HUNDREDTH EPISODE OF THE SIMPSONS (8PM ET on FOX) The Simpsons have been on TV for 31 years, and tonight the show marks its 7-hundredth episode. It’ll open with a hand-drawn ‘couch gag’ that includes all the characters spinning out of Homer’s head. Tonight’s episode is kind of a ‘Stranger Things’ spoof when a ‘never- before-seen room is discovered in the Simpson’s home’. CLICK HERE FOR THE SIMPSONS THEME
BIRTHDAYS:
FRIDAY:
BRUCE WILLIS, 66: Actor. Yippie-ki-yay, it’s ‘John McClane’s’ birthday. The actor best known for “Die Hard” and “Moonlighting” celebrates double-sixes. Fun fact, Willis was the first actor to ever "act" in a video game (“Apocalypse,” 1998). HERE’S A JOHN McCLANE SONG, “DIE HARD,” BY GUYZ NITE AJ LEE, 34: Wrestler. She was the 2013 WWE Divas Champion who went on to become a New York Times best-selling author and social media influencer GLENN CLOSE, 74: Actress. She went from the psycho bunny boiler in “Fatal Attraction” to the understanding wife in “The Big Chill.” She’s a seven-time Oscar nominee. HERE’S A CLIP FROM “FATAL ATTRACTION”/“I won’t be ignored, Dan.” (:09) RUTH POINTER, 75: Singer. She is the eldest daughter of the sibling pop group The Pointer Sisters. She also was the singing voice of the character Rita in the Disney film “Oliver and Company.” CLICK HERE FOR THE POINTER SISTERS’ “JUMP (FOR MY LOVE)”
SATURDAY:
CLARE CRAWLEY, 40: Reality star. The “oldest Bachelorette” is one year older today. She found her man Dale Moss two weeks into taping her season on ‘The Bachelorette,’ and left the show pretty much before it began. HERE’S A ‘BACHELOR” CLIP FROM WHEN CLAIRE MET DALE SPIKE LEE, 64: Director. ‘Do the right thing’ and wish this famous director a happy birthday. He’s made many films, including “Jungle Fever,” “Malcolm X,” and “Da 5 Bloods.” BOBBY ORR, 73: Hockey Legend. He’s considered one of the greatest players of the game for revolutionizing the position of defense. He was the youngest person (31) inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. DAVID THEWLIS (TOO-lis), 58: Actor. You probably know this English actor as Professor Lupin in the “Harry Potter” films. CHRISTY CARLSON ROMANO, 37: Actress. Forever known as Ren Stevens on the popular Disney Channel show “Even Stevens.” She’s also the voice of Disney’s “Kim Possible.” CLICK HERE FOR THE “EVEN STEVENS” THEME SONG
SUNDAY:
GARY OLDMAN, 63: Actor. The acclaimed British actor plays the title character in “Mank,” and won an Oscar for his role as Winston Churchill in “The Darkest Hour.” HERE’S A CLIP OF OLDMAN AS CHURCHILL IN “THE DARKEST HOUR” MATHEW BRODERICK, 59: Actor. The “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” star started out on Broadway before hitting it big with classics like “WarGames.” He’s married to actress Sarah Jessica Parker. ROSIE O’DONNELL, 59: Actress/Comedienne/TV host. From hosting her own talk show and acting in “A League of Their Own,” “The Fosters,” and “Sleepless in Seattle,” she’s done it all. CLICK HERE FOR “ROSIE O’DONNELL SHOW” OPENING THEME SCOTT EASTWOOD, 35: Actor. The son of legend Clint Eastwood is making a name for himself thanks to his performances in in “The Longest Ride” and “Suicide Squad.” KRISTEN ANDERSON-LOPEZ, 49: Songwriter. You may not know her name, but you know her songs. The Oscar and GRAMMY-winning songwriter wrote all the songs stuck in your head from “Frozen” and “Coco.” CLICK HERE FOR “LET IT GO” FROM “FROZEN”
TRENDING/ODD
GUY SELLING ‘VIRTUAL FART’ FOR $85 (00:21) A filmmaker in Brooklyn is trying to find someone dumb enough to buy one of his farts. Best part is…it’s not even a real fart. It’s one of those digital tokens called NFTs (they’re a type of unique cryptocurrency that everyone’s going crazy for right now). He and his buddies recorded a year’s worth of farts while in quarantine. An audio file of a single ‘toot’ goes for about 85 bucks. Top bid for 52-minute ‘Master Collection’ is currently 183 dollars. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE FARTS
NFL SIGNS $100 BILLION DEAL, MOVES SOME GAMES TO AMAZON PRIME (00:20) There’s gonna be some changes to the way you watch the NFL. The league finalized a 100-billion dollar TV contract that starts in 2023. It means you’ll need a Prime membership to watch some of the games. Amazon bought the exclusive rights to Thursday Night Football. Everything else, including Sunday and Monday Night Football, pretty much stays the same. CLICK HERE FOR THE CBS NFL THEME
MCDONALDS SECRET CAKE (00:25) Who knew McDonalds sells cake? Apparently it’s been on a secret menu at some of their locations for years. It took a TikTok video to uncover the well-kept secret. The off-menu sheet cakes come in vanilla and chocolate, with vanilla frosting and Ronald McDonald on ‘em. They cost 9 bucks, but don’t be discouraged if the guy at the counter looks at you like you’re crazy; it’s still such a secret, most McDonalds employees don’t even know about them.
METEOROLOGISTS TRAPPED IN OFFICE FOR 5 DAYS (00:21) Just ‘cause you FORECAST the weather doesn’t mean you’re immune to it. Just ask the meteorologists who were trapped - FOR 5 DAYS - at the National Weather Service office in Wyoming. Half-a-dozen meteorologists were stuck there after the place got 2-and-a-half feet of snow. All the roads were impassible, and even if they found a plow, their cars were completely buried anyway.
SCIENTISTS FIGURE OUT HOW TO STOP COW FARTS (00:21) Who knew? Feeding cows seaweed can help reduce (moo) cow farts…AND greenhouse gases. Researchers at the University of California mixed small amounts of seaweed in cattle feed and found the stuff dramatically reduced cow burps and farts without affecting meat quality. More importantly, it cut the amount of methane a cow pumps into the atmosphere by a staggering 82 percent! CLICK HERE FOR THE SOUND OF COWS MOOING
LAW & DISORDER
DRUGS & DRIVING DON'T MIX - GUY ARRESTED 3X IN ONE DAY (00:24) A guy in upstate New York was arrested three times in a single day. All of 'em were traffic stops. The first one he was busted with cocaine, but was let go. The next one, same trooper, different car, and this time the guy had heroin on him, and again he was let go. The third time he was stopped, police charged him with being under the influence of drugs. No, he was not thrown in the slammer; he was released without bail.
SPRING BREAK MIAMI BEACH - HUNDREDS ARRESTED & GUNS CONFISCATED (00:18) The spring break scene in Miami Beach is so out of control, they're bringing in extra cops from nearby communities. In the last six weeks, nearly 900 people have been arrested and close to 80 guns have been seized. We haven't even reached the peak partying-time for spring break! Twerkers on the hood of a car, beware!
FCC FINES TEXAS JERKS FOR ANNOYING ROBOCALLS (00:20) How many spam calls do you get a week about your car's warranty? Robocalls suck! So it's nice to hear when justice strikes. The FCC has cracked down on two Texas telemarketing companies that spammed people a billion times. They've been fined 225-million bucks. It's the biggest fine in the FCC's history. The companies' racket? Fake short-term health insurance plans.
PELOTON TREADMILL KILLS CHILD (00:24) One of those fancy new Peloton treadmills just killed a little kid. The company’s CEO posted the news along with a warning to parents to keep kids away from the trendy machines. They didn’t get into exactly what happened, but admitted other children have been hurt playing with the ‘Tread+’. Plenty of grown-ups have gotten banged up trying to beat their best time, but this might be the first deadly accident involving a child.
NEW YORK REOPENING STADIUMS (00:12) New York’s governor has announced stadiums will be open to the public again (well, that’s one way to distract from a sexual harassment scandal). The Yankees and Mets will be allowed to open stands to 20 percent capacity starting on April 1st, which just happens to be opening day.
WEIRD SCIENCE & TECH
CANCER PATIENTS MIGHT BE INCUBATORS FOR COVID MUTATIONS (00:17) Scientists finally think they’ve figured out how the coronavirus mutates. They now believe the virus variants evolve inside people with weakened immune systems. New data from Cambridge University show people with cancer and other chronic immune conditions might be incubators for the mutant viruses.
WEIRD COVID VACCINE SIDE-EFFECTS MIGHT BE A GOOD SIGN (00:24) Don’t freak out about weird COVID vaccine side effects…scientists say they might actually be a good sign. People are still reporting rashes and spots on their arms after getting the shot, but disease experts say this is usually a good sign. The rashes only last a day, but they’re a sign that your immune system is being trained to deal with the virus. Less than 1 percent of people who got a vaccine reported adverse side effects.
MORE FACETIME SPAM CALLS FOR iPHONE USERS (00:20) Has it happened to you yet? A FaceTime call from a number you don't know. It's the latest form of spam, and it is aggravating people with calls coming in at all hours of the night. Some are back-to- back, with as many as 30 numbers at a time. And the real bummer, Apple does not have the technology to only allow FaceTime calls from people in your address book.
YOUR MONEY/SHOPPING
GENESIS RECALL (00:15) If you (or your grandpa) drive a Genesis, 95-thousand of them are about to get recalled. The luxury cars made by Hyundai have a problem with the anti-lock brakes that could cause an electrical short and turn your Genesis into a car-B-Q. So far there have been a handful of fires.
SHOP ONLINE WITH NORDSTROM LIVE-STREAM (00:19) It's kinda like the Home Shopping Network for those NOT ready to hit the mall. The department store Nordstrom has begun live-streaming sales events. Burberry kicked things off Thursday. Watch for store employees and brand partners, they'll showcase ensembles and accessories. Customers who tune in can then purchase those products in real-time.
FEMA TO REIMBURSE FUNERAL EXPENSES (00:15) Lose a relative to the coronavirus, and FEMA will reimburse funeral expenses up to seven grand. Next month the agency will start accepting applications. You have to provide receipts and a death certificate. COVID-19 deaths going back to January 2020 are included.
LIFE/SURVEY SAYS…
MORE KIDS ARE SWALLOWING MAGNETS DURING PANDEMIC (00:13) Maybe it’s because no one’s watching them or maybe they’re just bored, but more kids are swallowing magnets during the pandemic. Calls to poison control centers for swallowed magnets are up more than 5-times the usual amount.
FIRST BABY BORN WITH COVID ANTIBODIES (00:22) There’s a baby in Florida who’ll might never need a COVID shot. Doctors say it might be the first baby born with COVID antibodies. Mom is a healthcare worker who got a Moderna shot a few months before giving birth. They think it’s the first time COVID antibodies have been detected in an umbilical cord. Now, they’ve just got to figure out how long the inherited protection will last.
PANDEMIC SURVEY: KIDS SCREEN TIME INCREASES ALONG WITH ARGUMENTS (00:23) Fortnite Season 6 is out. You can tell by how distracted the kids are. A new study finds parents are arguing more to get kids off their devices. Parents surveyed say their children are watching more TV (59%), more videos on mobile devices (65%), and playing more video games (57%). Nearly 40 percent of moms and dads admit the squabbling over screen time has become more severe than in pre-pandemic times. Who you telling?
AIRBNB - MORE OUTDOORSY LOCALES BEING BOOKED (00:18) Americans are itching to travel and are ready for the great outdoors. According to Airbnb, southern Maine, Cape May, New Jersey, and Round Top, Texas are the top destinations they're seeing in spring and summer bookings. People want privacy and space. And they're looking for unique experiences like a treehouse or barn.
ENTERTAINMENT
AMC THEATERS REOPEN TODAY (00:15) Ready for movie popcorn? AMC says nearly all its theaters will be open today. What can you expect? Seats will be blocked off for social distancing, masks must stay on, and no grubby hands tearing your ticket. AMC now has an app for tickets, and even candy and refreshments.
TV Preview Friday (00:10) It’s GameTime for all you March Madness bracket fanatics. Tonight at 7pm ET, North Carolina plays Wisconsin in a first-round game. At 9:30pm ET San Diego State plays Syracuse.
TV Preview Sunday (00:11) Get ready for the PGA Tour today at 3pm ET on NBC. The Honda Classic final-round play from PGA National is taking place in Palm Beach, Florida. Last year, Sungjae Im scored his first PGA Tour win.
WEEKEND / “ICYMI”
COMPANY LOOKING FOR MINECRAFT LANDSCAPE DESIGNERS (00:22) If you like to play Minecraft and you’ve got a green thumb, do we have a job for you! A British company that reviews garden sheds is looking to hire consultants who have video gaming and garden design skills. They’ll be used to help Minecraft players with their virtual landscaping. The gig pays $70 dollars an hour and can be done remotely. Applications are being accepted online at What Shed dot C-O-dot-U-K.
TINDER WILL LET YOU DO BACKGROUND CHECKS ON ‘DATES’ (00:21) Tinder is gonna start letting you do a background check on your date. Why should car loan people be the only ones who get to do background checks? Tinder’s teaming up with a crime-prevention company to offer criminal background checks on that hottie you just swiped right on. The checks won’t include stuff like drug possession, and they hope to have ‘em ready later this year.
POLITICIANS WANT TO RENAME HIGHWAY FOR PRINCE (00:18) Some politicians in Minnesota want to rename a chunk of Highway 5 after Prince. They’ve proposed that 7 miles of highway that runs through his old ‘hood’ in Paisley Park would be renamed “Prince Rogers Nelson Memorial Highway.” But that stretch of road is already named after a dead Minnesota senator, so this might get messy. CLICK HERE FOR PRINCE’S ‘KISS’
STUDY: SMARTPHONE USE CAUSES TEETH-GRINDING (00:23) A new medical study says your phone is ruining your teeth. Researchers at Tel Aviv University found that too much social media is likely to cause teeth-grinding at night and waking up with facial muscle pain. Researchers say half of us get up in the middle of the night just to check our phones, and that’s also messing with our health. They recommend putting limits on social media and turning off phones at night.
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