PRO January 7, 2015

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Audio • Bits & Breaks • Datebook • Datebook Tomorrow • Entertainment • Fun & Games • Image of the Day • Joke of the Day! • Last Minute Items • News & Nuggets • News Attack • Number for the Day • Television • Video of the Day • Wacky-But-True 

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DATEBOOK: JANUARY 7, 2015

This is day 7 of 2015. There are 358 days remaining.

BIRTHDAYS

• Kenny Loggins is 67

• David Caruso is 59

• Katie Couric is 58

• David Marciano (Homeland, The Shield) is 55

• Nicolas Cage is 51

• Jeremy Renner (The Avengers and a Bourne movie) is 44

• Dustin Diamond (Saved by the Bell) is 38

• Lauren Cohen (The Walking Dead) is 33

• Marcus Scribner (black-ish) is 15

IT HAPPENED TODAY

• 1782: The first American commercial bank, Bank of North America, opened.

• 1785: Frenchman Jean-Pierre Blanchard and American John Jeffries traveled from Dover, England, to Calais, France, in a gas balloon.

• 1789: In the first U.S. presidential election, Americans voted for electors who, a month later, chose George Washington to be the nation’s first president.

• 1882: The cowboy helmet was patented. It was a steel hat with attached face mask to protect bronc riders, cow branders, and blacksmiths.

• 1887: Thomas Stevens arrived in San Francisco, ending the first around-the-world trek on a bicycle. He left the city by the bay in the spring of 1884, riding a Columbia standard bicycle — one of those with a huge front wheel and a tiny back wheel and no brakes. Stevens pedaled 13,500 miles as he crossed the world’s mountains, deserts, and jungles.

• 1894: W.K. Dickson received a patent for motion picture film.

• 1904: The distress signal “CQD” is established, only to be replaced two years later by “SOS.”

• 1927: The First transatlantic telephone call took place, from New York City to London.

• 1927: The Harlem Globetrotters played their first game.

• 1980: President Jimmy Carter authorized legislation giving $1.5 billion in loans to bail out Chrysler Corporation.

• 1992: AT&T released a video telephone. The price: $1,499.

• 1996: The 3-ton killer whale Keiko flew from his cramped quarters in Mexico City to an aquarium in Newport, Oregon. Keiko became a whale star in the movie Free Willy. In 1998 he flew home to Iceland.

• 1998: Former White House intern Monica Lewinsky signed an affidavit denying she had an affair with President Bill Clinton.

• 1999: The impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton began.

• 2002: A 40-year-old Romanian woman stopped hiccuping for the first time in 14 years following surgery in Bucharest. Doctors said the hiccups were caused by a lymphatic cyst which grew after an earlier operation.

• 2005: Actor Brad Pitt and actress Jennifer Aniston announced they were separating after four years of marriage.

• 2006: A retired Arkansas nurse saved her brother’s chicken, Boo Boo, by administering mouth-to-beak resuscitation after the fowl was found floating face down in the family’s pond. Marian Morris said she hadn’t had any practice with CPR in years, but she was interested to see if she “still had it.” She says she “breathed into its beak, and its dadgum eyes popped open.”

• 2012: A hot air balloon crashed in Carterton, New Zealand, killing 11.

SPECIAL EVENTS

• I’m Not Going To Take It Anymore Day

• Argyle Day

• Old Rock Day – an opportunity to enjoy and appreciate old rocks and fossils.

• Tempura Day

UPCOMING

• January 12: College Football Championship Game (Monday)

• January 20: Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Tuesday)

• January 31: Chinese New Year (Saturday)

• February 1: Super Bowl 49 (Sunday)

• February 2: Groundhog Day (Monday)

• February 14: Valentine’s Day (Saturday)

• February 17: President’s Day (Tuesday)

• More holidays

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NUMBER FOR THE DAY

25: Percentage of Americans who are unaware that the Earth orbits the Sun.

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NEWS ATTACK!

A New England brewery has apologized for showing disrespect by brewing a Gandhi beer. [Weird, yes, but interestingly, the more people drank the more non-violent they became.]

In the 1980s CNN made a doomsday video to run in the event of the end of the world. People are wondering why it took so long for them to reveal its existence to the public. [Probably because it took a while to find a VHS player.]

A prominent doctor in a clinical study says sugar should be considered as dangerous as tobacco, alcohol, and cocaine. [“Yet another brilliant young artist has been cut down in his prime. According to the medical examiner, he tested positive for Skittles.”]

South Korea says that North Korea maintains an army of 6,000 hackers. [They figured that out by counting the empty cans of Red Bull.]

Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds just got a new kid. [A confused Larry King sent a box of congratulatory cigars to Burt Reynolds.]

An Audi A7 Sportback drove itself from Silicon Valley to Las Vegas. [Where it lost a bundle at roulette, and was forced to hitchhike home.]

The new members of Congress have taken over. [It hasn’t even been a week and already they’ve tossed a sofa into the swimming pool and peed off the balcony.]

John Boehner was not the unanimous choice for the new speaker of the House. [He had to edge out votes for Congressman Webster and write-in candidate Vladimir Putin. ]

Game of Thrones is coming to IMAX. [Finally, something to do on the weekends with the kids.]

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NEWS & NUGGETS

FACEBOOK ‘PRIVACY NOTICE’ IS A HOAX _ In recent weeks, you may have seen a Facebook “privacy notice” creep onto your Facebook timeline. It probably looks like this: “As of January 5th, 2015 at 10:50am Eastern standard time. I do not give Facebook or any entities associated with Facebook permission to use my pictures, information, or posts, both past and future…”

… Because it urges people to copy and paste it into their own statuses, the message is proliferating on people’s Facebook news feeds. And it’s not the first time. A variation of the privacy screed has made the rounds on Facebook since 2012. But it’s pointless to pass it around.

Facebook isn’t interested in owning anything you post. Everything you post on Facebook — status updates, pictures, videos, bogus Facebook “privacy notices” — is yours. By using Facebook you are giving it a “royalty-free, worldwide license” to use any content that you post on or in connection with the social media site. This means Facebook can use anything you post on the website to promote itself. But the “privacy notice” you might see getting passed around on Facebook is useless.

OREGON, OHIO CHANGES NAME BEFORE COLLEGE FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP _ The city of Oregon, Ohio has decided to temporarily change it’s name to clarify its allegiance ahead of the football championship between Ohio State and Oregon. Starting Monday and through the college football championship game, the city will be known as “Oregon, Ohio Buckeyes on the Bay, City of Duck Hunters” as declared in a proclamation issued by the city’s mayor.

APPLE MAY RELEASE ITS WATCH IN MARCH _ Need another Apple gadget? A source says the Apple Watch may be released by the end of March. Apple plans to sell three versions of the Apple Watch: Apple Watch, Apple Watch Sport, and Apple Watch Edition, which will all have their own distinctive wristbands available for purchase. Apple says the most basic Apple Watch will cost $349.

DOG LEFT ALONE, TIED TO RAILWAY WITH BELONGINGS IN A SUITCASE _ A dog and suitcase found abandoned at a busy railway station in Scotland has prompted an investigation into who left the animal there. The dog and luggage were discovered without any sign of the canine’s previous owner. Whomever decided to reject the beautiful dog at least left belongings, which included a pillow, food, food bowl, and a toy. The dog is a 2 or 3-year-old Shar-pei crossbreed that’s microchipped. His name is Kai. The microchip led investigators to the people who sold Kai to his latest owners, but they didn’t have the buyer’s contact information. Authorities are investigating.

UNIVERSITY OF PIKEVILLE TO MAKE VIDEO GAMES AN OFFICIAL SPORT _  A private liberal arts college in Kentucky says it will make video games an official sport and start offering scholarships to gamers in the fall. This makes the University of Pikeville one of only a few schools in the nation to provide scholarships to those who play “League of Legends,” a multiplayer online battle arena game. A spokesman for the university said: “It will be a regime a lot like athletics. They’ll have to have a certain GPA. We’ll look at them like student athletes. There will be practice time and video time when they have to study other teams for upcoming competitions.”

… Robert Morris University in Chicago has also made the game an official sport and offers scholarships.

 Start it on Facebook, take it to the phones: If your kid or husband could get a video game scholarship, what game would it be?

CHATTERING AWAY TO BABIES IS EVEN BETTER FOR THEM THAN READING _ Parents of tiny babies: When you’re home with the kid, keep a one-sided conversation going about anything and everything while you’re folding laundry, making dinner, or doing whatever else around the house. The the results of a study reveal that a steady stream of idle chatter from mom or dad’s mouth improves the child’s cognitive development, even more so than reading to them does.

VENEZUELANS NOT ‘LOVIN’ IT’ AS McDONALD’S FRIES GO SCARCE _ Venezuelan fast-food lovers are mourning the disappearance of McDonald’s golden staple: the french fry. A recent shortage at the U.S. fast food chain comes as socialist Venezuela grapples with shortfalls of basic goods ranging from medicines to flour due to strict currency controls that stand in the way of imports. McDonald’s restaurants are coping by replacing the spuds with salad or a local favorite, corn pancakes.

SLEEP EATING _ Ever wake up really full and find crumbs in the bed? You might be sleep eating. Sleep researchers say that some of us are “sleep eaters” — people who, while still asleep, raid the fridge. Some sleep eaters even devour stuff like cat food and medicine.

FAITH AND INNOVATION TRIUMPH OVER EBOLA _ As the Ebola epidemic ravaged Liberia, 22-year-old Fatu Kekula found herself at the center of the storm. With four infected family members, nowhere to go and no one to turn to, Fatu was faced with daunting reality that her father, mother, sister and cousin would die as hospital after hospital turned them away, overburdened by a swarm of Ebola patients and unable to provide adequate care. Desperate but determined, Fatu defied fear, daring to nurse her family to health all on her own. Fashioning protective gear from garbage bags, she risked her own life to save her family for two straight weeks. In the end, Fatu faith and resilience paid off as she successfully rescued all but one from Ebola’s menacing grip — sadly, her cousin did not survive.

… Now, thanks to the Internet, Fatu’s going to fulfill a dream: to go to nursing school. Her story of love and compassion moved total strangers to donate to an online fund that brought in $40,000 for her tuition and expenses.

WOMAN SUES OVER USE OF HER PHOTO ON FLASK _ A woman is suing a novelty products maker over a flask that includes her likeness and the phrase, “I’m going to be the most popular girl in rehab.” Veronica Vigil alleges in federal court that Anne Taintor Inc. obtained and used her high school picture from 1970 without her permission. The lawsuit says the Brooklyn, New York-based company then defamed Vigil by linking her image to a product that makes light of substance abuse. Court documents say the New Mexico resident is an active church member and doesn’t consume alcohol or drugs.

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WACKY-BUT-TRUE

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: FIND MY iPHONE FOILS THIEVES _ You might think that smartphone thieves would be smarter by now. While on their way to the scene of a robbery, Boston police officers received a description of a male suspect accompanied by a female who had attacked and pistol whipped a victim. Officers were also informed that the suspects had stolen a purse and two cellphones. Using the Find My iPhone app from one of the officers’ cellphones, the officers and the victims were able to track one of the stolen phones and arrest the robbers.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: 14-YEAR-OLD ARRESTED AFTER STEALING POLICE PATROL CAR _ In Des Moines, Iowa, police were dispatched to a home because of a dispute. The officer responding to the call left his keys in his patrol car and left the vehicle running. After exiting the home the officer realized his car had been stolen and informed dispatchers. Officers used GPS within the vehicle to track it. They busted a 14-year-old girl who lived a the home the officer visited.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: CYCLIST CRASH ‘JOKE’ TWEETER GETS FIRED _ A man who tweeted that he had knocked over a cyclist but could not stop because he was “late for work” has been fired from his job at a brokerage firm in Wales.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: MAN BUSTED FOR DRUGS WAS WEARING ‘I HAVE DRUGS’ SHIRT _ A 50-year-old in Florida was arrested for drug possession while wearing the most appropriate shirt for the occasion. According to his arrest report, the guy was in line at a Kmart when a deputy walked in. He saw the deputy and tried to hand a bag of green leafy stuff to the person behind him. That person declined to take the bag. Deputies discovered it held marijuana and methamphetamine. The man was wearing a T-shirt that read: “Who needs drugs? No, seriously, I have drugs.”

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: SHOPLIFTING COUPLE ARRESTED, CHILDREN LEFT IN CAR AFTER ARRESTS _ A shoplifting couple was recently arrested for stealing from a Walmart in Florida (Lauderdale Lakes). However, they forgot to tell authorities that they’d left their three small children inside a locked car in the parking lot. The children, ranging from ages 2 to 7, were locked in the car for several hours. Luckily they weren’t injured.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: CYCLIST’S BIKE STOLEN AT POLICE STATION WHILE REPORTING iPHONE THEFT _ A Chicago man might think twice the next time he goes into a police station to report something as stolen. On Friday night Adam Wisneski rode his bike to a police station to report a stolen iPhone. He says he didn’t have his bike lock with him, and asked police if he could leave his bicycle inside the station. They said OK, and he did. He then filled out a police report about the phone. When he turned around his bike was gone. So he filled out another police report.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: TRAIN POOPER’S TWEETS FOR TP ANSWERED _ Adam Greenwood was using the restroom during a trains trip last month from London to Glasgow, Scotland, when he realized there was no toilet paper left on the roll. He tweeted: “I’ve just had a reasonably large poo and there is no toilet roll left on the @virgintrains 19:30 train from Euston to Glasgow pls send help.” He thought the tweet would do nothing more than “make people laugh,” but he quickly received a reply from an employee monitoring the company’s Twitter account. After identifying the train car he was on, the train company quickly had a roll of toilet paper sent to the restroom.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: FLORIDA MAN ACCUSED OF TOTING BABY TO HOME BURGLARY _ A Florida man is accused of bringing his 5-month-old son to a home burglary attempt. During the attempted burglary he set the baby down so that he could pull a knife on the homeowner. At least the baby was in a car seat.

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ON TELEVISION

SEASON PREMIERE: AMERICAN IDOL (8p ET, FOX) — Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban and Harry Connick, Jr. return as judges for the 14th season and Ryan Seacrest hosts. The auditions begin in Nashville.

THE MENTALIST (8p ET, CBS) — The Mentalist moves to its new night and time with this new episode.

THE MIDDLE (8p ET, ABC) — Kirstie Alley guest stars in this new episode.

THE MYSTERIES OF LAURA (8p ET, NBC) — New

THE GOLDBERGS (8:30p ET, ABC) — New

PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS 2015 (9p ET, CBS) — Mom stars Anna Faris and Allison Janney host this awards show where the winners are voted on by the fans. Performances include Lady Antebellum, Iggy Azalea and Fall Out Boy. Stars set to appear include the cast of The Big Bang Theory, Jon Cryer, Viola Davis, Portia de Rossi, Emily Deschanel, Robert Downey, Jr., the cast of Grey’s Anatomy, The Band Perry, Ellen DeGeneres, Kat Dennings, Betty White and many more.

MODERN FAMILY (9p ET, ABC) — Rob Riggle (The Hangover) guest stars in this new episode.

LAW & ORDER: SVU (9p ET, NBC) — Dreama Walker (The Good Wife) and Harry Hamlin guest star in this new episode.

SERIES PREMIERE: EMPIRE (9p ET, FOX) — Terrence Howard (Hustle & Flow) stars in this new drama as the head of a music empire that learns he has a disease and must choose one of his three sons to take over. Taraji P. Henson (Person of Interest) also stars.

BLACKISH (9:30p ET, ABC) — Jenifer Lewis (Strong Medicine) guest stars in this new episode.

FOREVER (10p ET, ABC) — Repeat

CHICAGO P.D. (10p ET, NBC) — New

TOP CHEF (10p ET, Bravo) — In this new edition, Chef Jacques Pepin challenges the contestants to create a dish inspired by Julia Child’s techniques.

AMERICAN HORROR STORY: FREAK SHOW (10p ET, FX) — Neil Patrick Harris guest stars in this new episode.

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ENTERTAINMENT

ARSON INVESTIGATED AT ‘MRS. DOUBTFIRE’ HOUSE _ San Francisco police say they are looking into an arson at the house used in the 1993 film Mrs. Doubtfire, which stars the late Robin Williams. The fire happened Monday night. The homeowner could smell smoke outside of his home and noticed that the doormat was on fire. After the homeowner put the fire out, he called police. Police are not releasing the victim or suspect’s name.

NICHOLAS SPARKS’ MARRIAGE SHOCKER _ You’ve heard of Nicholas Sparks. He wrote some of the world’s most beloved romance novels — which became some of Hollywood’s most beloved movies: The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, Safe Haven. It’s like he’d somehow tapped into the magic formula of love to mine the pure golden core that heats the human heart. But tragically, his own love life has shattered: Nicholas Sparks separated from his wife of 25 years, Cathy.

… It was love at first sight for Sparks: The day after he met Cathy, he told her he was going to marry her. She laughed, he sent her 100 love letters, and about six months later, he proposed.

BLAKE SHELTON TO HOST AND PERFORM ON SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE _ Blake Shelton is confirmed to host and perform on Saturday Night Live. Shelton will become one of the few country stars to appear on the late night sketch comedy series. Garth Brooks, Dolly Parton and Taylor Swift are among the country heavyweights who previously hosted and performed on the show.

ASHTON KUTCHER AND MILA KUNIS SET FOR A SUMMER WEDDING? _ Going into 2015 it looked like Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis brought in the new year with a wedding. Fans and outlets started speculating that the two got hitched after Kutcher posted a beach photo on Facebook signed “Happy New Year Love The Kutchers.” According to Radar Online this was just Kutcher looking into the future and finding some amusement in pulling a prank on all of us. A source told the publication that Mila and Ashton do plan on getting married but aren’t rushing as they’re focusing on their new daughter Wyatt Isabelle. According to a source, Mila and Ashton are set to wed sometime in July.

GAME OF THRONES COMING TO IMAX _ If you think the only thing that could make Game of Thrones better is a bigger screen, you’re in luck: It’s headed to the biggest one of all. Later this month, the HBO show will become the first TV series ever to appear on IMAX screens, with 150 IMAX theaters airing the last two episodes of the fourth season. The theaters will also show an exclusive trailer for the upcoming fifth season, which debuts in April. The limited IMAX showing will run from January 23 to 29. The episodes will be digitally remastered for IMAX.

HOSPITAL NURSE TWEETS BLAKE LIVELY’S BABY NAME _ New parents Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds managed to keep the birth of their first child completely under the radar. But that’s as sneaky as they could get. Now it looks like their baby sex and name secret was completely spoiled by a nurse at the hospital where Lively delivered. In a tweet that has since been deleted, the nurse congratulated Lively on the birth of her daughter Violet.

BEN AFFLECK TO RECEIVE HUMANITARIAN HONOR AT PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS _ Two-time Academy Award-winner Ben Affleck is to receive the third annual People’s Choice Award for Favorite Humanitarian tonight (Wednesday). The Gone Girl star and Argo director was chosen as this year’s recipient in recognition of his work with Eastern Congo Initiative, a grant-making and advocacy-based organization he founded in 2010.

BRADLEY COOPER DIDN’T DATE TAYLOR SWIFT _ Bradley Cooper says gossip reports that he dated Taylor Swift are lies. Back in 2013, several outlets, including Radar Online, ran a story that Cooper was on Swift’s radar big-time. But when Swift begged mutual friend Jennifer Lawrence to set them up, Cooper said he wasn’t interested. Cooper said in an interview this the whole story is fiction.

CHARLIE SHEEN APOLOGIZES FOR EXPLOSIVE KIM KARDASHIAN RANT _ In case you missed it Charlie Sheen tried to get into it with reality star Kim Kardashian. The Anger Management actor took issue with Kardashian denying a little girl an autograph and then went loose. When the actor heard wind of this news item he took to Twitter, tweeting on a massive tirade which was very reminiscent of the #winning era of Charlie Sheen.

… Hours later and the tweets of Sheen cursing out Kim Kardashian were deleted, and the actor has since apologized. Originally he wrote, “She cries about it every night before she goes to sleep. You are lucky that ANYONE cares about your gross and giggly [sic] bag of funk you dare call a [rear].” The best tweet to come of his tirade was his side props to Kardashian’s husband. “My apologies to your hubby, great guy I’m sure, I hope his vision returns one day.”

… After Sheen cooled off he tweeted: “Dear Kim, my extreme bad. Really embarrassed by my actions. I was already [upset] about some other [things] that had nothing to do with you. I heard a story that bothered me. wrote some trash you didn’t deserve. Ever. I’m an idiot as often as I’m a genius. that day, clearly I was the former. #ShutUpSheen.”

DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON 5 PREMIERE DELIVERS 10.1 MILLION VIEWERS _ Sunday’s premiere of Downton Abbey, Season 5 averaged 10.1 million viewers, the second-highest rated episode of the series to date, nearly even with the Season 4 premiere which had 10.2 million viewers.

NICK AND VANESSA LACHEY WELCOME BABY GIRL _ Nick and Vanessa Lachey welcomed their second child, a baby girl, on Monday. They’ve named their daughter Brooklyn Elisabeth Lachey.

ANNE HATHAWAY’S OSCARS ADVICE TO NEIL PATRICK HARRIS _ Anne Hathaway isn’t proud of how her Oscars hosting gig went, but she has faith that Neil Patrick Harris will do a wonderful job this year. Her advice to the actor? “Do the opposite of what I did, and you’ll be fine.” Hathaway and co-host James Franco received criticism for their 2011 Oscar performance, especially their opening, where they spoofed the year’s top movies.

USA CANCELS ‘COVERT AFFAIRS’ AFTER FIVE SEASONS _ Covert Affairs has been canceled after five seasons.

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AUDIO

Audio Archives

SHOW CLOSES

A package of drops for a show closer or something similar. » download

STUFF YOUR KIDS RUINED

Share a recent experience of your kid ruining something, then invite listeners to share their stories. Here are nine calls to help with the phones. » download

PREGNANCY CRAVINGS

Always a solid topic for phone calls. If you know of someone who’s pregnant, share with your listeners their weird pregnancy craving — then ask for moms to share theirs. » download  And from the archives, two more files of real callers: File 1, File 2.

FUN DOG NAMES

From Angus to Ziggy and everything in between, Rover.com dug into its database to discover the most popular dog names of 2014. Top Male Dog Names were Max, Buddy, Charlie, Jack, Cooper, Rocky, Toby, Tucker, Jake and Bear. Top Female Dog Names are Bella, Lucy, Daisy, Molly, Lola, Sophie, Sadie, Maggie, Chloe and Bailey.

… The most popular category for dogs names (behind people names) was food. Popular dogs names in the food category: Coconut, Kale, Guinness, Vino, Mochi and Whiskey. (More info here.) » download

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BITS & BREAKS

TOP TV SHOWS

Delayed because of holidays.

YOU MIGHT BE A PARENT IF…

 Start it on Facebook, take it to the phones: Finish this phrase: “You might be a parent if…” Here a some that the blog Scary Mommy came up with.

• You correct you coworkers and friends when they don’t say “please” and “thank you.”

• You automatically cut your own food into teensy-weensy pieces.

• You would give your left arm for a brand new, fully loaded, top-of-the-line minivan.

• Your idea of a good time includes going to Target, alone, on a Saturday night.

• You’ve had to choose between an extra ten minutes of sleep and making it day day without a shower.

• You’ve discussed poop with someone like you’re a couple of CSI investigators.

• You automatically tell your spouse you’re sooo proud of them after they use the toilet.

• Everything in the top rack of your dishwasher is made of brightly colored plastic and there is never room for glasses.

CRAZY FLU MYTHS YOU MUST IGNORE

Although you may be putting your best foot forward to start 2015 out with the healthiest possible lifestyle, January also happens to be the dead of the winter. In other words, flu season is in full swing. Making matters worse, there has been a lot of misinformation out there about the virus this year.

Myth: Flu season is over! Fact: “The flu season is typically higher in January and February,” explains Jennifer Layden, MD, infectious disease specialist at Loyola University Health System in Maywood, Illinois.

Myth: The flu shot wasn’t effective this year, so there’s no reason to get it. Fact: The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention did tell doctors last month that this year’s vaccine is not as effective, because one of the strains previously covered in the shot — the Influenza A type H3N2 — has mutated. It’s too late for a new version of the flu vaccine to be released (because it takes about four months to produce the shot), but the CDC notes that this year’s version can still decrease the severity of illness caused by the virus.

Myth: It’s not the flu unless you have an upset stomach and are vomiting. Fact: “Generally, the flu does not cause vomiting and significant GI symptoms,” explains Dr. Layden. “But [those symptoms] are more commonly seen among kids and can occasionally occur in adults. However, it is true to emphasize the flu is most typically a respiratory virus.”

PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS

Mom stars Anna Faris and Allison Janney host the awards tonight (Wednesday) on CBS. Some of the categories and nominees:

FAVORITE MOVIE

• 22 Jump Street
• Captain America: The Winter Soldier
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• Maleficent
• X-Men: Days of Future Past

FAVORITE MOVIE ACTOR

• Brad Pitt
• Channing Tatum
• Hugh Jackman
• Mark Wahlberg
• Robert Downey Jr.

FAVORITE MOVIE ACTRESS

• Angelina Jolie
• Emma Stone
• Jennifer Lawrence
• Melissa McCarthy
• Scarlett Johansson

FAVORITE TV SHOW

• The Big Bang Theory
• Game Of Thrones
• NCIS
• Once Upon a Time
• The Walking Dead

FAVORITE MALE ARTIST

• Blake Shelton
• Ed Sheeran
• John Legend
• Pharrell Williams
• Sam Smith

FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST

• Beyoncé
• Iggy Azalea
• Katy Perry
• Sia
• Taylor Swift

FAVORITE GROUP

• Coldplay
• Imagine Dragons
• Maroon 5
• One Direction
• OneRepublic

Full list of nominees.

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FUN & GAMES

TRIVIA: Sales of this accessory are up over 60% over the last 5 years. (Scarves)

TRIVIA: Every second 28,258 Internet users are doing this. (Viewing pornography)

TRIVIA: This has been downloaded over 2 billion times to tablets, smartphones and other devices. (Angry Birds and its spin-offs)

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JOKE OF THE DAY

After their baby was born, the panicked father went to see the obstetrician. “Doctor,” the man said, “I don’t mind telling you, but I’m a little upset because my daughter has red hair. She can’t possibly be mine.” “Nonsense,” the doctor said. “Even though you and your wife both have black hair, one of your ancestors may have contributed red hair to the gene pool.” “It isn’t possible,” the man insisted. “This can’t be, our families on both sides had jet-black hair for generations.” “Well,” said the doctor, “let me ask you this. How often do you and your wife make love?” The man seemed a bit ashamed. “I’ve been working very hard for the past year. We only made love once every six months.” “Well, there you have it!” The doctor said confidently. “It’s rust.”

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VIDEO OF THE DAY

A guy filmed himself reciting a word a day for a year.

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IMAGE OF THE DAY

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LAST MINUTE ITEMS

• Whittier, Alaska, is a town of about 200 people, almost all of whom live in a 14-story former Army barracks built in 1956.

• How to win Wheel of Fortune.

• 2014’s Top Slow-Mo Moments

• Two idea-packed books for sales, promotions and stunts in 2015. Here’s one, here’s the other.

• You can buy farts on Amazon.

• Five Airbus jets fly in formation.

• Paul Harvey’s father was a cop killed in the line of duty. Here, he opines on the role of the police officer.

• Conversations with My 4-Year-Old: Shopping

• Artist creates works of art simply by adding signage to things that are already there.

• Parking lot incompetence.

• Download Our Boring Radio Station App.

• Random request generator.

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