What I Heard This Week! Feb. 22, 2018
A flight from Dubai to Amsterdam had to make an emergency landing in Vienna after one of the passengers had uncontrollable, noisy flatulence. He was asked to stop by his disgusted seatmates who then complained to the crew. The captain then issued a warning to the two men complaining, a fight broke out, the plane made an emergency stop to remove the two men that complained and two women that happened to be sitting on the same row as the men involved, but the farting man stayed on the plane. Get the guy some Beano. The four individuals removed from the plane have been banned from flying Transavia Airlines in the future.
People love a good comeback story. Disgraced and disappointing Johnny Manziel says he was self-medicating with alcohol for bipolar disorder and wants to make a comeback to football now that all that is behind him. This comes at the same exact time that Manziel is releasing a new clothing line called ComebackSZN (Comeback Season for the Hip-Challenged.) How convenient. I’ll believe it when I see it.
According to Google, the top searched “how to spell” word in Texas, is Maintenance.
There is a new exhibit at Houston Museum of Natural Science that opened earlier this month called “Message in a Bottle.” It’s a collection of messages in all sorts of bottles found while cleaning up riverbeds and waterways throughout the nation over the past twenty-years, by Chad Pregracke. There are messages of heartache, anger, jokes, song lyrics, messages written on dollar bills and a Yahtzee sheet.
Mattel’s revenue fell 11 percent last year, so they are looking to turn business around by updating classic brands such as Barbie and Hot Wheels. However, the card game, Uno, had sales up 12 percent in 2017. An Uno smartphone app is in the works for the spring and Mattel has launched a way to play the card game through Facebook Messenger. Now Mattel is launching the new card game Dos (isn’t that clever) and will have similar rules as Uno, except players make two piles of cards and can throw down two cards at a time instead of one. Cost: $5.99 and it goes on sale at Target in March. Time for family game night again.
As Steve Wynn resigns as chairman and CEO of Wynn Resorts amid sexual misconduct allegations, the company that bears his name is leaving him without any severance or compensation and prohibits his involvement in any competing gambling business for two years. Bummer. Imagine that. Consequences for bad behavior.
There is a norovirus outbreak among staff and volunteers at the Pyeongchang Olympics. Last week the total was up to 261 cases. The outbreak has been traced to contaminated water used in food preparation. Excuse me, I’ve got to go wash my hands.
Houston police said an SUV plunged from the third story of a parking garage after the driver accidentally hit the gas pedal instead of the brakes. Firefighters rescued the woman who was not hurt. This one would be hard to live down.
The flu seems to be slowing down just a bit. Texas’ new death toll stands at 4,153. Yikes.
Scott Israel – Broward County Sheriff – “I’ve said this time and time again. While the people who are victims of mental health illnesses in the country are being treated, in the opinion of this sheriff, they should not be able to buy, surround themselves with, purchase or carry a handgun. Those two things don’t mix.”
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Joe Don Baker is 82. Tennessee Sheriff Buford Pusser in Walking Tall. Author Judy Blume is 80. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing. Actor-talk show host Arsenio Hall is 62. Actor Josh Brolin is 50. Actress Christina Ricci is 38. Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family. Actor William Katt is 67. He was the ill-fated prom date in Carrie and his mother was Barbara Hale who was Della Street in the television series Perry Mason. Actor LaVar Burton is 61. Kunta Kinte in Roots.
Actor-rapper Ice-T is 60. Tennis Hall of Fame John McEnroe is 59. Actress Jane Seymour is 67. Singer Melissa Manchester is 67. Blues-rock musician Gary Clark Jr. is 34. Football Hall of Fame Jim Brown is 82. Actor Lou Diamond Phillips is 56. Basketball Hall of Fame Michael Jordan is 55. Actress talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres is 60. Actor Tom Selleck is 73. US Air Force Major General Charles E. ‘Chuck’ Yeager is 95. Michael Joseph Jackson Jr. aka Prince Michael Jackson is 21.
Musician Peter Tork is 76. The Monkees. Rolling Stone announced today that Micky Dolenz and Mike Nesmith will tour for the first time as a duo, this June. Peter Tork is skipping this tour to focus on his upcoming Lead Belly tribute blues album, “Relax Your Mind” and Davy Jones died at age 66, in 2012. I, for one, would sure love to see them.
Victor Hugo – Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.
Reverend Billy Graham, preacher to more people than anyone in history, first noted evangelist to take his message behind the Iron Curtain, and advisor to past presidents, has died at age of 99. He was known as a master of the media since he was the first to use telephone, television and satellites to deliver his message to homes, churches and theaters around the world.
A team of 75 staff members from eight specialists at Texas Children’s Hospital have successfully separated 13-month-old identical twin girls conjoined who shared a chest wall, lining of the heart, diaphragm, liver and a large blood vessel connecting their hearts, a very complex procedure.
Useless Information: Zebras are black with white stripes, not white with black stripes. Even under the white hair, they have black skin.
A Prairie View A&M student who said she had been sexually assaulted on campus, filed a report with the university’s police department, went for a sexual assault exam and identified her assailant as policy requires, but her coach responded by telling her multiple times that she did not need to alert her parents and then…drum roll please…the coach paid for a plane ticket to help the alleged assailant avoid arrest and disciplinary action by the university. The coach left his position several months later, telling the girl’s teammates that she was the reason for his departure. The teammates then retaliated against her. Six, on-campus rapes were reported by Prairie View A&M in 2015. Yikes. Not good.
I am thankful for all those difficult people in my life, they have shown me exactly who I do not want to be.
Former first Lady, Rosalynn Carter is recovering from surgery to remove scar tissue from a portion of her small intestine where a cyst had been removed many years ago. Mrs. Carter is 90.
McDonald’s is taking cheeseburgers and chocolate milk off the Happy Meal menu, in an effort to cut down on the calories, sodium and saturated fat and sugar that kids consume at its restaurants. You can still ask for cheeseburgers and chocolate milk, but it will not list them on the menu. I’m a firm believer that cheeseburgers and chocolate milk are ok, but always in moderation.
According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, “Commonly used food dyes such as Yellow 5, Red 40, and six others, are made from petroleum and pose risks such as hyperactivity, cancer and allergic reactions.” Despite these concerns, millions of pounds of these petroleum-based dyes continue to be used in our food. No warnings. No labels, No nothing. So, avoid products that contain names with numbers. Pick up organic vegetables, fruits and spices that can be used to color frosting and foods naturally, like beets, cranberries, pomegranate, strawberries, roasted bell peppers, paprika, mango, carrots, golden beets, curry turmeric, saffron, blueberries, basil, spinach, mint, avocado and green tea powder.
Quincy Jones – “They were the worst musicians in the world.” Quincy Jones speaking about the Beatles. Huh? So wrong.
Fergie, of the Black Eyed Peas, sang the national anthem at the NBA All-Star Game and tried something different. She was on pitch, but her tempo, musical accompaniment and very sexy delivery were not exactly typical for a sporting event. Charles Barkley joked that he “needed a cigarette” after her performance. Shaquille O’Neal liked it and said, “leave her alone.” Rosanne Barr said that she sang “better” when she did it almost thirty years ago. Hah. That was a silly thing to say.
Tom Petty’s family says his death last year was due to an accidental drug overdose, because he suffered from emphysema, a fractured hip and knee problems that caused him great pain. He should have rested but was committed to finishing his tour which he had just finished a few days before he died in October at age 66. Too many pain medications.
KFC has been forced to close stores across the UK due to the lack of chicken. What can I say. I hope they have Popeyes, Church’s or Cane’s.
omgosh. Justin Theroux and Jennifer Aniston broke up. In a perfect Hollywood world, Brad Pitt is waiting for her at the corner. In a perfect world, Brad would be waiting for ‘all of us’ at the corner.
Police in a Philadelphia suburb were notified that a person in a Tyrannosaurus rex costume was walking their kid to school this week. I don’t see that as a problem and neither did the officers.
In a suburban Detroit home, a man destroyed his home by using a smoke bomb to get rid of skunks. A spark quickly spread from a crawlspace to the first floor, through the walls and the attic, finally destroying the entire home. No skunk carcasses were found in the ruins.
Dang. I missed it. While we are all glued to our TV’s watching the Olympics, sixty-four dachshunds were at Sam Houston Race Park competing in the 11th Annual Weiner Dog Races. Roxy, age 6, took the top spot with rescue Snookie, age 7, coming in second.
Lexus was the most dependable vehicle brand for the seventh consecutive year in JD Power’s annual survey. Porsche, Buick, Infiniti and Kia were the other top five performers and the worst were Chrysler, Land Rover, Fiat, Jeep and Cadillac.
A 61-year-old Florida man was arrested after using his apartment wall for target practice. His neighbors that shared the wall, awakened to a loud bang, finding holes in their bedroom and living room walls.
Thanks for reading this…
– Lisa
