WEIRD NEWS
Riding Your Bike Can be Hazardous to Your Health
Sure, taking a bike ride can offer various health benefits, but apparently there are some cons as well - most notably, the risk of being seriously hurt in an accident. UC San Francisco researchers say such incidences have risen for adults since the late 1990s, with more visits to the ER and skyrocketing medical costs. Per a new study in the journal Injury Prevention, there were about 3.8 million non-fatal bicycle injuries and nearly 10,000 deaths between 1997 and 2013, costing a whopping $237 billion in medical costs - a figure about double of all other occupational illnesses during the same time. In 2013 alone, the costs for bike accidents hovered close to $24.5 billion. That's also about a 137% spike over the course of the study for non-fatal accidents, and 23% for fatal ones. Men seem to have the most trouble behind the handlebars, racking up 75% of the total costs, and riders 45 and over are also faltering: While they accounted for only about 26% of total costs in 1997, by 2013 that number had jumped to 54%. Scientists think the older set is seeing an increase in injuries simply because more older people are taking up biking, but they theorize worsening injuries overall could be from people bike-commuting more often, as well as changes in vehicle design and traffic flow. "To me, it clearly makes a strong case for investment in safer cycling infrastructure," says study co-author Benjamin N. Breyer, who adds that certain European cities, with more bike riders yet fewer accidents, seem to have figured out a way to minimize the hurt. (Injury Prevention)
You Can't Fight City Hall - Except Maybe with Bed Bugs
In 40 years of government work, city manager William Bridgeo says he's "never had anything as yucky as this." It seems a man entered Augusta, Maine City Hall Friday and promptly shut it down by releasing dozens of bedbugs. Bridgeo says, "He whipped out a cup [full of live bedbugs] and slammed it on the counter, and bam, off they flew, maybe 100 of them." At least one of the bugs landed on a city employee, and the assistant city manager was reduced to using Windex in an attempt to stun the bugs while pest control was on its way. Police were immediately called and found the unnamed man. Bridgeo filed a complaint but police have yet to decide if Bed-bug-man will be charged with anything. The suspect was upset after requesting a form to get assistance and being told he didn't qualify. The bedbugs were reportedly from his former apartment. Augusta City Hall was closed for the rest of the weekend. (Kennebec Journal)
English is America's Language!! Oh Yeah?
Something pretty darn rare is happening on the American music charts right now. "Despacito" by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee (and featuring Justin Bieber) has been the top song on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in a row. The song, which is in Spanish, is only the third non-English-language track to become the number-one song in America in the past 35 years. In fact, only 15 songs not sung in English have even cracked the top 60 in that time. As the percentage of Americans who speak Spanish has more than doubled since 1980, popular non-English-language songs have followed suit, transitioning from gimmicky dance tracks to Spanish-language songs. Wanna guess what the other two two chart-topping, non-English songs were? "La Bamba" by Los Lobos and "Rock Me Amadeus" by Falco. (Washington Post)
No Kidding Better Ingredients Papa Johns!
When Papa Johns claimed better ingredients in their pizza, we're not sure they meant cocaine. Police in Washington state arrested two Papa John's employees Friday for allegedly selling cocaine out of the restaurant. An investigation into the Papa John's location actually started back in December. Undercover detectives were able to buy cocaine from the employees on four separate occasions. A King County Sheriff's Office spokesperson says, "They'd order pizza and go out and wait in the parking lot. The employee would bring the pizza out and in the box would be the cocaine." Apparently the code phrase was to say, "give it extra olives" when ordering. Following Friday's arrests, investigators found cocaine residue around the Papa John's register and in the employee washing area. A former employee at the Papa John's says she believes her coworkers used to do cocaine in the bathroom. Authorities are working on cleanup procedures at the restaurant. Three friends of the Papa John's employees were also arrested on suspicion of selling drugs to the undercover detectives. Authorities seized cocaine, ecstasy, marijuana, Oxycodone, LSD, meth, and $28,000 in cash. The five suspects are between the ages of 18 and 26. (KIRO)
Yes, Your Kids Have Seen Hardcore Porn
Parents may find it awkward to talk to their pre-adolescent kids about sex, but those who don't are letting porn do the talking. Or so says porn star Monique Alexander who was hired by the ad agency Mistress for a new PSA called "Give the Talk." In the controversial public service announcement, Alexander urges parents to be the ones to tell their kids about sex. One of the ad's creators says, "Our mission is that every parent see this initiative and feel empowered and equipped to talk to their child. It's disturbing when you think about hardcore online porn being a 9-year-old's first exposure to sex. A lot of parents don't realize we need to start the conversation that young." According to research conducted by Novus Report, roughly nine in 10 males in the US have seen hardcore porn by the time they are 18, and of that 90%, the average age at which they were "sexualized" by it was between 8 and 11. And if you don't think your kid is one of those nine, porn star Alexander says, "Yes, your child." She adds: "Yes, it's going to be uncomfortable - awkward. But if you don't, we'll be their only lesson." (Adweek)
Don't Sneeze, Don't Laugh!
A mother who broke her neck when she sneezed five years ago has now suffered the exact same injury, but this time from laughing. Monique Jeffrey, from Melbourne, Australia, was lying in bed in March 2012, when she suddenly sneezed, jolting her neck forward causing the vertebrae in her neck to collapse. With her new born baby in the next room, she was barely able to move but managed to text her husband, Sam, who rushed home from work and called an ambulance. She spent the next 14 weeks in a halo brace, a device which is drilled into the skull while the patient is awake and used to realign the vertebrae. She made a full recovery but now has broken her neck for a second time - in the exact same place. Monique, now 33, said "I was in the staff room with a colleague having a laugh at a joke and it happened again. I knew exactly what I had done, the pain was really bad and work called an ambulance." Doctors were left baffled by Monique's injuries and told her they had never seen anything like this happen before. Monique's sister set up a GoFundMe page to help with mounting medical costs.(Metro)
What the What?
A group of 20-something men from Washington state have posted a bizarre Craigslist ad seeking a generic dad to grill burgers and hotdogs for a gathering set for the Saturday of Father's Day weekend in mid-June. Qualifications include a minimum of 18 years of experience as a dad and 10 years of grilling experience. The successful dad must bring his own grill, but burgers and hotdogs will be provided. Dane Anderson, one of the young men behind the ad say none of the other guys live with their fathers and, as the ad says, none are prepared to fill the role of barbecue dad. Additional requirements include talking about dad things like lawnmowers, building your own deck, and musician Jimmy Buffett. Payment is food and beer. Anderson says several potential barbecue dads have already responded. (KHQ-TV News)
Sure, taking a bike ride can offer various health benefits, but apparently there are some cons as well - most notably, the risk of being seriously hurt in an accident. UC San Francisco researchers say such incidences have risen for adults since the late 1990s, with more visits to the ER and skyrocketing medical costs. Per a new study in the journal Injury Prevention, there were about 3.8 million non-fatal bicycle injuries and nearly 10,000 deaths between 1997 and 2013, costing a whopping $237 billion in medical costs - a figure about double of all other occupational illnesses during the same time. In 2013 alone, the costs for bike accidents hovered close to $24.5 billion. That's also about a 137% spike over the course of the study for non-fatal accidents, and 23% for fatal ones. Men seem to have the most trouble behind the handlebars, racking up 75% of the total costs, and riders 45 and over are also faltering: While they accounted for only about 26% of total costs in 1997, by 2013 that number had jumped to 54%. Scientists think the older set is seeing an increase in injuries simply because more older people are taking up biking, but they theorize worsening injuries overall could be from people bike-commuting more often, as well as changes in vehicle design and traffic flow. "To me, it clearly makes a strong case for investment in safer cycling infrastructure," says study co-author Benjamin N. Breyer, who adds that certain European cities, with more bike riders yet fewer accidents, seem to have figured out a way to minimize the hurt. (Injury Prevention)
You Can't Fight City Hall - Except Maybe with Bed Bugs
In 40 years of government work, city manager William Bridgeo says he's "never had anything as yucky as this." It seems a man entered Augusta, Maine City Hall Friday and promptly shut it down by releasing dozens of bedbugs. Bridgeo says, "He whipped out a cup [full of live bedbugs] and slammed it on the counter, and bam, off they flew, maybe 100 of them." At least one of the bugs landed on a city employee, and the assistant city manager was reduced to using Windex in an attempt to stun the bugs while pest control was on its way. Police were immediately called and found the unnamed man. Bridgeo filed a complaint but police have yet to decide if Bed-bug-man will be charged with anything. The suspect was upset after requesting a form to get assistance and being told he didn't qualify. The bedbugs were reportedly from his former apartment. Augusta City Hall was closed for the rest of the weekend. (Kennebec Journal)
English is America's Language!! Oh Yeah?
Something pretty darn rare is happening on the American music charts right now. "Despacito" by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee (and featuring Justin Bieber) has been the top song on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in a row. The song, which is in Spanish, is only the third non-English-language track to become the number-one song in America in the past 35 years. In fact, only 15 songs not sung in English have even cracked the top 60 in that time. As the percentage of Americans who speak Spanish has more than doubled since 1980, popular non-English-language songs have followed suit, transitioning from gimmicky dance tracks to Spanish-language songs. Wanna guess what the other two two chart-topping, non-English songs were? "La Bamba" by Los Lobos and "Rock Me Amadeus" by Falco. (Washington Post)
No Kidding Better Ingredients Papa Johns!
When Papa Johns claimed better ingredients in their pizza, we're not sure they meant cocaine. Police in Washington state arrested two Papa John's employees Friday for allegedly selling cocaine out of the restaurant. An investigation into the Papa John's location actually started back in December. Undercover detectives were able to buy cocaine from the employees on four separate occasions. A King County Sheriff's Office spokesperson says, "They'd order pizza and go out and wait in the parking lot. The employee would bring the pizza out and in the box would be the cocaine." Apparently the code phrase was to say, "give it extra olives" when ordering. Following Friday's arrests, investigators found cocaine residue around the Papa John's register and in the employee washing area. A former employee at the Papa John's says she believes her coworkers used to do cocaine in the bathroom. Authorities are working on cleanup procedures at the restaurant. Three friends of the Papa John's employees were also arrested on suspicion of selling drugs to the undercover detectives. Authorities seized cocaine, ecstasy, marijuana, Oxycodone, LSD, meth, and $28,000 in cash. The five suspects are between the ages of 18 and 26. (KIRO)
Yes, Your Kids Have Seen Hardcore Porn
Parents may find it awkward to talk to their pre-adolescent kids about sex, but those who don't are letting porn do the talking. Or so says porn star Monique Alexander who was hired by the ad agency Mistress for a new PSA called "Give the Talk." In the controversial public service announcement, Alexander urges parents to be the ones to tell their kids about sex. One of the ad's creators says, "Our mission is that every parent see this initiative and feel empowered and equipped to talk to their child. It's disturbing when you think about hardcore online porn being a 9-year-old's first exposure to sex. A lot of parents don't realize we need to start the conversation that young." According to research conducted by Novus Report, roughly nine in 10 males in the US have seen hardcore porn by the time they are 18, and of that 90%, the average age at which they were "sexualized" by it was between 8 and 11. And if you don't think your kid is one of those nine, porn star Alexander says, "Yes, your child." She adds: "Yes, it's going to be uncomfortable - awkward. But if you don't, we'll be their only lesson." (Adweek)
Don't Sneeze, Don't Laugh!
A mother who broke her neck when she sneezed five years ago has now suffered the exact same injury, but this time from laughing. Monique Jeffrey, from Melbourne, Australia, was lying in bed in March 2012, when she suddenly sneezed, jolting her neck forward causing the vertebrae in her neck to collapse. With her new born baby in the next room, she was barely able to move but managed to text her husband, Sam, who rushed home from work and called an ambulance. She spent the next 14 weeks in a halo brace, a device which is drilled into the skull while the patient is awake and used to realign the vertebrae. She made a full recovery but now has broken her neck for a second time - in the exact same place. Monique, now 33, said "I was in the staff room with a colleague having a laugh at a joke and it happened again. I knew exactly what I had done, the pain was really bad and work called an ambulance." Doctors were left baffled by Monique's injuries and told her they had never seen anything like this happen before. Monique's sister set up a GoFundMe page to help with mounting medical costs.(Metro)
What the What?
A group of 20-something men from Washington state have posted a bizarre Craigslist ad seeking a generic dad to grill burgers and hotdogs for a gathering set for the Saturday of Father's Day weekend in mid-June. Qualifications include a minimum of 18 years of experience as a dad and 10 years of grilling experience. The successful dad must bring his own grill, but burgers and hotdogs will be provided. Dane Anderson, one of the young men behind the ad say none of the other guys live with their fathers and, as the ad says, none are prepared to fill the role of barbecue dad. Additional requirements include talking about dad things like lawnmowers, building your own deck, and musician Jimmy Buffett. Payment is food and beer. Anderson says several potential barbecue dads have already responded. (KHQ-TV News)
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