CONNECT SELECT - CBS Audio

CONNECT SELECT
  A selection of interesting stories – rip ‘em & read ‘em before they go viral!
                       FOR Wednesday, May 13, 2020

TODAY IS:
     NATIONAL RECEPTIONIST DAY - They don’t just answer phones. Celebrate the
      people who are often the face of a company. And have to deal with all the ‘crazies’ who show
      up looking to yell at the boss.
     NATIONAL CROUTON DAY - You can thank the French for that crunchy addition to
      your salad. Crouton comes from the French word croûte, which means ‘crust’.
     NATIONAL APPLE PIE DAY - What’s more American than apple pie? Actually, apple
      pie was invented IN ENGLAND in 1381. But the saying is 100 percent American, so that’s
      gotta count for something, right?
     NATIONAL THIRD SHIFT WORKERS DAY - You can’t have a 24-hour world without
      people willing to work overnight. Third Shift Workers day celebrates all the bus drivers,
      hospital staff, cops and bakers (radio morning show staff) who work their butts off when
      you’re probably fast asleep.

BIRTHDAYS:
     STEVIE WONDER – Isn’t he lovely? The Rhythm and Blues legend turns 71.
     DENNIS RODMAN – Probably the most eccentric basketball star to ever live turns 60.
     ROBERT PATTINSON – Time to sink your teeth into some birthday cake! The ‘Twilight’
      star turns 35.
     PUSHA T – If you know, you know. The rapper turns 44.
     STEPHEN COLBERT – He keeps us laughing after hours. The ‘Late Show’ host turns 57.
     DARIUS RUCKER – He somehow seamlessly went from leading Hootie & the Blowfish to
      topping country music charts. The versatile musician turns 55.
     LENA DUNHAM – The ‘Girls’ star turns 35.

TRENDING/ODD

MASKS WITH STRAW HOLE (FOR BOOZING) (0:19)
Some genius just figured out a way to keep you wearing a mask…even during Happy Hour! The
mask has a small slit for a cocktail straw. It’s the brainchild of a designer in New Orleans (where
else?). She’s selling them for 30 bucks a piece. But some infection control experts worry a hole right
where your mouth is might defeat the purpose.

VERA WANG IS A 70-YEAR-OLD THIRST TRAP?! (0:18)
Your social media feed ain’t messing with you. Vera Wang is now a major thirst-trap. The 70 year old
wedding dress designer broke the internet when she tweeted a shot of her abs. She’s now revealed
her secret to looking ageless: ‘work, sleep, vodka cocktail, not much sun”. Aren’t we all doing that
right now?!

FLORIDA BEACHES TRASHED (0:21)
Florida re-opened Cocoa beach last weekend and a bunch of sun-bathing slobs left 12-thousand
pounds of trash behind. Cleanup crews hauled away 300 bags of garbage! Usually, they collect
about 30-40 bags per day. Cops say the beaches have been about as busy as Memorial Day
weekend or the 4th of July. Doesn’t help that people are using more disposable stuff these days.

WOMAN MAKES SOCIAL DISTANCING HAT (0:21)
A woman is walking around Paris with a 3-foot-long stick on her head, and NO, it’s not high fashion.
She just wants people to stay back. The hat-hack is intended as forced-social distancing. She even
wrote on it, saying: ‘THIS IS 3 FEET LONG. PLEASE RESPECT DISTANCING’. One problem,
because it’s only 3 feet wide, for it to work, everyone else would have to wear one too.

NEON SURF ATTRACTS CALIFORNIA GAWKERS (0:22)
People in California are breaking quarantine rules to go to the beach at night and see the waves that
glow in the dark. The Bio luminescence is caused by organic matter in the water. During the day, it
causes red tide but at night, that stuff glows electric blue. Swimming in it isn’t exactly a good idea but
highways all around California beaches have been jammed at night because of it.

IS MIKE TYSON MAKING A COMEBACK? (0:18)
Could it be? Iron Mike Tyson making a comeback? The former world heavyweight champion is
posting training videos online. He retired in 2005 and has said he’s considered returning for
exhibition matches to raise money for charity. Tyson became the youngest heavyweight champion of
all time in 1986 at 20 years old.

SMALL FACE CHALLENGE (0:21)
Here’s a strange one. For all you makeup pros, take part in the Tiny Face Challenge! It’s a trend on
social media sites like TikTok and Instagram. You cover up your mouth with a scarf and paint a tiny
mouth and nostrils on your nose, to create a bizarrely small face. What are they going to come up
with next? Some people definitely have too much time on their hands these days!

CRIME

TRANSIT WORKER DIES AFTER SPITTING ATTACK (0:22)
In London, a transit worker who was spat-on by some guy who said he had the coronavirus has
died. She was attacked by some weirdo and then spat on. Within day, she started showing
symptoms. The 47 year old mom had underlying health issues and was eventually taken to the
hospital where even a respirator and round-the-clock care couldn’t save her. British police are now
looking for witnesses.

INMATES TRYING TO INFECT THEMSELVES (0:27)
Here’s a trick most people definitely wouldn’t want to attempt, trying to infect yourself with the
coronavirus. But that’s exactly what inmates at the LA County Jail did, according to Sheriff Alex
Villanueva (vill-uh new-ay-vuh), who released surveillance video showing the inmates sharing drinks
and masks. It worked. 21 inmates tested positive within a week of when the videos were taken. The
Sheriff says they were hoping the jail would release them if they tested positive. That did not work.

TARGET ASSAULT (0:14)
Another violent incident involving people who didn’t want to wear face masks. This one was at a
Target store in Los Angeles. A pair of brothers got mad when they were asked to suit up. They
allegedly attacked a security guard, leaving him with a broken arm.

GRANDMA CHARGED WITH KEEPING KID IN SHED (0:16)
A grandmother is under arrest in Dallas- accused of keeping her 6-year-old grandson in a shed.
Police arrested 53 year-old Esmeralda Lira and her boyfriend. Both face felony charges of
endangering a child for placing him in imminent danger. The boy was found in the shed, his hands
tied behind his back. He said he was kept there since schools closed because of the coronavirus
outbreak.

HEALTH/SCIENCE
COVID-19 VACCINE BY YEARS-END? (0:18)
The country’s top infection-control doctor says we could have a coronavirus vaccine this year!
Coronavirus specialist (and virology thirst-trap) Dr. Anthony Fauci told a Senate hearing that there
are currently 8 COVID-19 vaccines in clinical development. He says several different labs are
working on one and we could know if it works by late fall!

WOMEN’S RESEARCH (0:23)
Early indications are showing women’s research has plummeted during the lockdown, while articles
from men have increased. Female academics are citing a surge in childcare and chores, and less
time to work on projects. The reason why that means something? Having articles published in
academic journals can be important to getting promotions at many universities, so this time could
lead to more of a gender gap.

WHAT’S REALLY TO BLAME FOR GAINING THE ‘COVID 15’ (0:25)
A scientific explanation for why we’re eating so much in lockdown! We’ve all joked around about the
Covid 15, weight we’re gaining while quarantined. Now we have an excuse! Scientists say stress
produces the hormone cortisol and that triggers your appetite. Foods rich in sugar and carbs can
produce another chemical, dopamine, which makes us feel pleasure. And all of that extra food to
make one hormone outweigh another is going to our middles.

YOUR MONEY/SHOPPING
FAST FOOD CHAINS BANS SELF-SERVE REFILLS (0:28)
Forget about getting yourself a free re-fill at some fast food joints; Burger King and Popeye’s will no
longer allow customers to help themselves to re-fills. They’re worried that re-filling the same cup
could contaminate the entire soda dispenser, so they’re turning off all those self-serve soda
fountains. Same for those ketchup pumps. Burger King and Popeye’s say you can still top up your
drink, for free, at the counter. But experts predict they’ll eventually start charging you for a new cup.

DUNKIN’ SWITCHES TO PAPER CUPS (0:17)
Notice anything different on your Dunkin run? Dunkin has officially switched to paper cups for all of
its hot drinks. They say they’ve designed these so that they keep your drinks as hot as the old foam
ones did. They’ll also switch out those plastic lids for recyclable ones by the end of the summer.

TWITTER TELL STAFF THEY CAN WORK FROM HOME ‘FOREVER’ (0:22)
Twitter just figured out a way to save a pile of money on rent; they just told all their employees they
can work from home…forever! Twitter says its offices won’t open until at least September, but
anyone who wants to continue working from home, can - for as long as they want. It could be a trend
with other companies too, especially if it means saving a few bucks on office space.

AIRPLANE MEALS NOW DELIVERED TO YOUR HOME (0:28)
A grocery delivery company is now selling surplus JetBlue snack-packs and shipping them right to
your door (no turbulence required). Since no one’s really flying right now, all those prepackaged
cheese and cracker boxes are going to waste, so JetBlue is selling them off for way cheaper than
you’d pay if you were hungry and stuck on a plane for 5 hours. A company called ‘Imperfect Foods’
says they’ve already delivered 40-thousand of them. They usually go for 9 bucks but now you can
have ‘em delivered for 2.99 each.

STEAK N SHAKE CLOSING STORES (0:20)
If you’re a fan of Steak n Shake, you’re gonna have a harder time finding one. The burger chain is
closing 10 percent of its restaurants. That’s about 60 locations. They say they coronavirus really
kicked their butt and closing restaurants will help the rest survive. Steak n Shake has about 600
stores in the US, most of them are east of the Mississippi.

UNEMPLOYMENT ERROR (0:20)
A costly mistake in Arizona. The state’s Department of Economic Security, which pays
unemployment claims, accidentally shorted everyone paid between May 7th and 11th 600 dollars, the
federal weekly benefit. One guy in Tucson had planned to use the money to help buy a car. The
department says don’t worry- the money is coming, sometime between today and Friday.

LIFE/FAMILY
POLL: HOW AMERICANS ARE EASING THEIR STRESS (0:17)
No big surprise here: more than three-quarters of Americans say the pandemic has increased their
anxiety and stress. A poll - done by a CBD company - finds more a third of us have taken up
meditation to stay calm. 32 percent say they loosen up with a stiff drink. And 27 percent say…they
just have sex.

POLL: COVID CRISIS HAS MADE MORE AMERICANS ENVIRONMENTALLY
WOKE (0:26)
Being forced to stay home for months has made a lot of us more environmentally ‘woke’. According
to a new poll, two-thirds of Americans say they’ve had an ‘eco’ wake-up call since the start of the
pandemic. As a result, 55 percent say they’re recycling more often, and 44 percent say they’re using
less paper products (wonder if they’re talking about toilet paper?). Nearly half say they plan to work
from home at least one day a week - even when this is over - just so they can reduce their carbon
footprint.

ENTERTAINMENT
NBA PLAYERS POLLED ABOUT RESUMING THE SEASON (0:25)
The NBA Players Association started sending out text messages last night, asking players if they
wanted to resume the season. The ‘yes’ or ‘no’ text could be a sign that the NBA is closer to making
a decision about returning. There’s word players are still worried about health risks. ESPN says the
NBA is considering playing all their games in one or two cities - possibly Las Vegas or Orlando - and
won’t resume until at least next month.

DISNEY WILL RELEASE ‘HAMILTON’ MOVIE A YEAR EARLY (0:15)
Disney says it’ll release the movie version of ‘Hamilton’ this summer. The Broadway musical-turned-
movie was supposed to come out next year, but with so many people just sitting around, Disney+
thought it would be a good idea to start streaming it on July 3rd.

SPORTSCENTER HOST WORRIED THEY’LL RUN OUT OF STUFF TO TALK ABOUT
(0:18)
No, you’re not the only one worried that SportsCenter is running out of stuff to talk about. ESPN’s
Scott Van Pelt admits that some nights, he doesn’t think he’s got enough to get him through the
show. With no sports out there (except for Korean Baseball), SportsCenter has basically been an
endless talk-fest about WHEN sports might return.

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