Friday, February 12, 2021

Zoom snafu: Lawyer pleads not kitty

With the kitty filter on the Zoom call capturing his every inflection, the lawyer at a Texas court hearing earlier this week struggled to state his case, while his assistant tried desperately to shut off the filter. County attorney Rod Ponton insisted to the judge, “I’m here live. I’m not a cat.” The video went viral, and the rest is COVID-cat history. Zoom CEO Eric S. Yuan pleads his defense by saying: “They better figure out where they got this cool cat filter because Zoom doesn’t offer it yet :-)” (The New York Times)

Teen reunited with pet rooster lost at Alabama Cracker Barrel after Civil War reenactment

It all started when 18-year-old student at Copiah Academy in Gallman, Misissippi along with the founder of the Muddy Rabbits Mess, a 32-member military reenactment group and the largest youth group nationally, was returning from a Civil War reenactment in Springhill, Tennessee and stopped for lunch on January 31 at Cracker Barrel. He had his Buff Orpington rooster, Peep, with him as well. The young man and another friend took the rooster out of the cab of the truck, attached him to his leash and walked him around until their order was called. While they went in to eat, they tied the rooster’s leash to the bed of the truck as they had done several times before. But, an hour later, his friend went outside and came back with bad news: Peep had flown the coop and was missing. He called the police and an Animal Control Officer responded to the call. The student had posted a “missing chicken” post and photos to several Facebook pages before continuing on to his home in Mississippi, hopeful that someone would find his feathered friend. Thirty minutes away from his home, he received the news that a man had found Peep. Wherever the rooster wandered to or whatever roads he may have crossed, he’d found his way back to the Cracker Barrel parking lot where the man found him. A local farmer, who’d been posting advice on finding and catching Peep, ended up driving the rooster to Birmingham, Alabama where teen and bird were reunited. (AL.com)

Stranded trio survived on coconuts for 33 days, now they are in ICE custody

Three people who survived on coconuts for 33 days before they were rescued from an uninhabited island in the Bahamas are now in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, officials said. A helicopter crew spotted the stranded trio waving a large makeshift flag during a routine air patrol around Anguilla Cay, a chain of islands between the Florida Keys and Cuba, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. In a video shared on Twitter, Miami crew members with the U.S. Coast Guard Southeast can be seen dropping food, water and a radio to the castaways. The two men and one woman, who are from Cuba, were taken to the Lower Keys Medical Center in Key West, Florida, before they were arrested earlier this week by Border Patrol officers and transferred to an ICE facility in Pompano Beach, Florida, the Coast Guard said. The group told the rescue crew they swam to the deserted island after their boat capsized in rough waters. U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson said that their survival was nothing short of a miracle. (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

UPDATE: ‘Gorilla Glue girl’ Tessica Brown gets her hair unstuck after surgery

Tessica Brown, the Louisiana woman who went viral after smearing Gorilla Glue on her hair to style it, has finally gotten the incredibly sticky stuff out through surgery. Footage shows her in tears, running her fingers through her hair for the first time in more than a month after emerging from the four-hour procedure. “How’s it feel like to feel your hair like that again?” a voice is heard asking. “Now I wish I would’ve waited to cut my ponytail off,” Brown says. “It’s over. Over,” she says. “Over.” She got into the sticky situation after smearing the adhesive on her scalp after running out of hairspray, saying she thought it would just wash out. She ended up posting the saga online, saying she grew desperate for a solution after trying olive oil, tea tree oil and other concoctions until a doctor came to the rescue. The surgery was performed by Beverly Hills plastic surgeon, who offered to do the $12,500 procedure for free. (Fox News)

Pharmacies begin massive hiring spree

As vaccine supplies continue to slowly expand around the nation, a federal program will begin activating drug store chains as distribution sites from next week. Suddenly, the likes of CVS and Walgreens are embarking on a ferocious hiring spree. With the demand for pharmacists and support staff sky-high, companies are “dangling five-figure signing bonuses” and competing to secure staff. Some are looking to colleges to recruit vaccinators and establishing training programs that teach students how to administer vaccines. (The New York Times)

Dallas Mavericks to resume playing national anthem before games following pushback from NBA officials

The NBA says every team, including the Dallas Mavericks, must play the national anthem in their arenas, after news emerged that team owner Mark Cuban had ordered the Mavericks to discontinue the long-held practice. “With NBA teams now in the process of welcoming fans back into their arenas, all teams will play the national anthem in keeping with longstanding league policy,” said NBA Chief Communications Officer Mike Bass in a statement. (NPR)

Tokyo Olympics chief resigns after telling press “Women talk too much”

After the latest scandal over “sexist comments” which initially appeared some failed attempt at a joke during a press conference, the president of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee Yoshiro Mori has resigned and plans to formally step down just five months ahead of the “Tokyo 2020” Olympics’ scheduled start, which was pushed back from last summer due to the global pandemic. The 83-year old had unleashed a social media storm last week which was since picked up in a torrent of international reports after he publicly commented that it’s “annoying” when women go past their allotted speaking time. He essentially told an entire press event that “women talk too much.” (WND)

Oregon restaurant receives $2G tip on day it reopens after 10-week closure

A restaurant in Beaverton, Oregon received a huge surprise when it reopened this week after almost 10 weeks closed because of the coronavirus pandemic. When the restaurant reopened earlier this week with limited outdoor dining, its first lunch customers left a $2,000 tip, according to a Facebook post from the restaurant. According to a picture of the receipt, the huge tip was left on a $21.95 meal. The customer also wrote a note on the receipt, praising the eatery. “Your food is always great and your service A+ exceptional,” the customer wrote, adding: “Thank you!” The tip was left for a server who hadn’t been able to work since December because she tested positive for the coronavirus. However, part of the tip will be split with other members of the staff. (KPTV)

Utah lawmakers reject a bill that would require teaching consent in sex education classes

A new bill in Utah that would have required students to learn about consent was shot down by lawmakers this week. HB177, introduced earlier this year, would have updated Utah’s health education curriculum by requiring schools to teach consent, sexual violence behavior prevention and sexual assault resource strategies. The proposal was defeated in Utah’s House Education Committee by a vote of 7-4. Currently, Utah’s sex-ed curriculum requires educators to “stress the importance of abstinence from all sexual activity before marriage and fidelity after marriage” and “stress personal skills that encourage individual choice of abstinence and fidelity.” Instruction regarding the “intricacies of intercourse” or the “advocacy or encouragement of the use of contraceptive methods” is prohibited. Supporters of the bill argue that the addition of sex education classes that would teach consent would have been vital to the curriculum. (KUTV)

Woman wants compensation after dog bred as stud mistakenly neutered at Roanoke Rapids animal clinic

A routine trip to the vet turned into heartbreak and a costly loss for a dog owner. She said her 2-year-old blue Doberman was sent in for a teeth cleaning, but he ended up in surgery and was mistakenly neutered at Creekside Animal Hospital. Earlier this week when she took him to his appointment, she was not allowed inside the building as a COVID-19 precaution. Instead, she drove up and handed Hannibal over to a staff member. “About an hour and a half after I dropped him off, the vet herself called me. I could tell she was really upset,” the woman said. She said the clinic’s owner told her one of the vet techs had made a mistake, and Hannibal had been neutered. “She said this had never happened to her before. She sounded like she was in tears,” the woman said about the vet. The owner said she thinks that the staff may have confused her dog with another Doberman, but she said the outside drop-off was also to blame. She said if she had been able to go inside the office with them and sit in a room and sign all the paperwork in there, and had the vet tech come to her, the situation would have obviously been different. On its website, the clinic describes itself as a “full-service, modern” hospital with a “highly trained staff.” Although, the woman said while the vet did not charge for any of the procedures, it’s not enough. Now, she wants compensation for what she lost, and she’s consulted with an attorney about seeking damages from the clinic. “I spent a lot of time and money on this dog, and breeding him is something I really wanted. It was a goal of mine,” she added. (WRAL)

State trooper among those accused of running prostitution, gambling ring out of gentlemen’s club

A Pennsylvania State Police trooper is among four men arrested for alleged involvement in illegal activity at a Lackawanna County gentlemen’s club, State Police announced yesterday (2/11). The 48-year-old Trooper is a 13-year veteran of the police force, who was allegedly co-owner of the Sinners Swing Gentlemen’s Club in Mayfield, Pennsylvania, police say. He, along with the club’s other co-owner and two employees, are accused of promoting illicit activity involving prostitution, gambling, and money laundering, according to police. The Trooper was assigned to the Bureau of Gaming Enforcement’s Pocono Downs Wilkes-Barre Office, State Police said in a press release announcing the charges. He had been on restricted duty during the investigation of the allegations against him and is currently suspended without pay pending resolution of the charges, according to State Police. Several others were arrested and charged, including the club’s co-owner, the club’s manager, and a club employee. The arrests follow a 17-month investigation by members of the Pennsylvania State Police, in partnership with prosecutors from the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. (Fox 43)

Texas mom tackles man ‘caught looking in her teen daughter’s window’

Dramatic video shows a mom body-slamming a suspected peeping tom accused of looking into her teenage daughter’s bedroom window, according to the Lake Jackson, Texas police reports. The mom said she got home from a store around 7am on January 31 to find the suspect staring into the window of her 15-year-old daughter. He ran away as the mom called police. He started to run toward the mom outside of her house, and then the mother dove out at him and tackled him. The daughter helped pin down the suspect until cops came to make the arrest. The 19-year-old peeping tom is facing charges of possession of a controlled substance, evading arrest and resisting arrest, Lake Jackson Police said. (Fox News)

Jeep Cancels Preachy Super Bowl ad as Springsteen Faces DUI Charge

Stellantis NV, the company that owns the Jeep brand, pulled a multimillion-dollar Super Bowl ad off of YouTube following news that Bruce Springsteen, the iconic singer and actor, was arrested late last year and charged with driving while intoxicated. The Super Bowl ad, entitled “The Middle,” preached unity but ended up dividing Americans. Springsteen is scheduled to appear in federal court later this month. National Park Service rangers had arrested him on November 14 in Gateway National Recreation Area. He faces charges of driving while intoxicated, reckless driving, and consuming alcohol in a prohibited area. (The Wall Street Journal)

Friday Blasts Off With:

• Chinese New Year 2021
• Darwin Day
• Lincoln’s Birthday
• Losar
• Lost Penny Day
• NAACP Day
• No One Eats Alone Day (2nd Friday)
• Oglethorpe Day
• Paul Bunyan Day (Born Feb. 12, 1834 in Bangor, ME)
• Plum Pudding Day
• Safety Pup Day