Hello friends, I'm Scott. This is What a Weird Week. Every Friday we do a Weird-News-of-the-Week Top 10 Countdown podcast, a blog with all the stories and shownotes, and a YouTube video. Find everything at Shownotes.page.
This is Season 4, Episode 40 for Friday June 30, 2023:
❿ From Fox 2, KTBU. Billionaires offering dog nanny job with $127,000 a year salary had to pull their ad after too many applications. This is an American family living in the United Kingdom. They advertised for a live-in dog nanny at $127,000 a year! We don't know too much about the people wanting the dog nanny because they advertised through an agency. They did a job post and word got around quickly... they've gotten over 2,000 applications... So they had to take the ad down because they were swamped. I mean, people want those dog nanny jobs at $127,000 a year.
- Job description... had to be a live-in dog nanny, attention to detail is important... the owners have two dogs btw... you have to feed and groom the pooches... arrange for vet appointments... make sure the pooches get their shots and checkups, that sort of thing. But also you're in charge of walking the dog or making sure they get physical stimulation and mental stimulation. So you know dog school or something. You're the dog tutor and the dog nanny, maybe.
- We don't know what kind of dogs other than large dogs. That's it for now. I hope they find the right candidate because it seems like they're willing to pay through the nose to get the right person.
❾ from HuffPost, The results are in, Maury Povich is the father... of a great business venture!
Maury announced his at-home paternity test kit this week. He retired from his talk show, Maury, which made famous for the phrase, 'The results are in.' Now Maury is throwing in with a company offering at-home paternity tests, and the quote is, 'These at-home paternity tests can unite families after a long period of time.' That's true I guess, but as we saw on his show, many of those families weren't united. Many of those families were blowupuated after appearing on the Maury show and learning that the results were in.
- The company behind these tests is the same company that did testing for the Maury show and boasted a 99.9% accuracy rate.
- How much money are they going to cost? To be continued? What's the cost to the human soul? Also unknown at this juncture.
See
❽ from NDTV... 'Skilled US cow performs 10 tricks in 1 minute to set world record' ...
- cow name: Ghost.
- I was very excited for this and I'm happy for Ghost, the cow, and Ghost's owner. I think stories like this are inspiring and we need these stories, especially on a Monday or other day that has crushed our spirit... but then when you look at the tricks... I don't know what it takes to train a cow... and Megan seems like a nice lady and she's worked a long time with Ghost... But when you hear that Ghost, the cow, can do tricks, I can't help it. I'm thinking about maybe hanging from a trapeze. I don't know. I'm a city slicker. I guess I don't know cows. Here are the tricks, the 10 tricks, that Ghost did. I'm just going to list them off. Head nod, kiss, bell touch, fist bump or leg lift, stand on a pedestal. That was two legs on a little platform. Bow, spin, self-roping, which sounded so great. I'll link to the video. You be the judge... also Come when called, and stay... so Ghost, the cow, can stay, like, stand... So you say, hey Ghost, and Ghost doesn't move. And that's one of the tricks. So it's a Guinness World Record. I'm not going to take away from Ghost, the cow. All I'm saying is there's room there to build on this. Maybe that's the takeaway. There's room to build... and next year maybe have an even better record! Like trapeze.
See
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ndtv.com/offbeat/watch-skilled-us-cow-performs-10-tricks-in-1-minute-to-set-world-record-4149355/amp/1 and also https://youtu.be/LXhDfBEdlf4
❼ Seven is going to be a tie. There's going to be two stories in number seven. They're not weird news items so much as they're just weird articles that started getting traction this past week. First one, the headline was why you should never jump into water to avoid a bee attack. So that was published on the website Mental Floss and, the expert they quoted from University of California at San Diego mentioned how people trying to evade bees underwater are often panicked and come up gasping for air... people end up inhaling bees and they get stung internally. Good Lord. I didn't know this and where I live, bees are fairly docile, but I know some places bees are aggressive... well, bees will wait you out. If you try to dive into the water cartoon style, bees will wait sometimes for hours and, bees are going to win. So that's not exactly news, but just a weird article.
and the other story is... which again, it's not a news item so much as an article that started gaining traction this past week... but to me, it's kind of weird. Have you ever heard the phrase sleep divorce before?? From USA Today. the article is 'Sleep Divorce is on the Rise'.
- Do people actually sleep better alone? This article is not definitive, but it does introduce to me the phrase sleep divorce, where it's kind of a harsh term, especially if you continue to be happily married to your spouse while your are sleep divorced... so you're in a relationship, an otherwise fine and healthy relationship, but when it's time to sleep, you have separate sleeping arrangements. Sleeping apart. And they call it sleep divorce. It just doesn't sound right. Divorce your spouse every night and remarry in the morning. No, that's not what you're doing. It is sleeping apart. Why don't they call it sleeping apart? Anyway, the article gets into sleep divorce and how good it can be for you, how according to studies, people sleep so much better on their own. And then the article's almost over and you're like, well, I guess this is my life now. I'm going to have to not sleep with my wife anymore. And then at the very end, they quote another study where it's like, oh, but this study says sleeping with your spouse is good for you and you'll sleep better. So you get almost to the end of the article and it's like, oh, there's no definitive answer. Thanks for reading.
%20(1)%20(1)%20(1)%20(1)%20(1)%20(1)%20(1)%20(1)%20(1).gif)
❻ Free Smartwatches: A Warning. Headline from PC Magazine is "Did you receive a free smartwatch in the mail? Do not turn it on."
Members of the US military have been receiving unsolicited smartwatches in the mail. If that's you, do not turn that on. Defense News reports that the Department of Army Criminal Investigation, the CID, says these free gifts are malicious... seems like the oldest trick in the book, but we'd all be tempted to be like, hmm, maybe I just deserve this because I deserve nice things, and somebody knew that, and sent me this smartwatch. You know, just turn this on and try it out. I wonder if it plays games. I wonder if it has a compass. Whatever. And, you know, the temptation is great to turn that thing on, and then it steals all your information, it steals vital details, defense secrets. It seems like a great ploy. Don't fall for it. You don't want that information to fall into your enemy's hands. In my case, it would be like, well, this fellow is extremely sedentary. Like, we thought he wasn't wearing the watch. We thought he must have put it on a shelf somewhere, placed it on a cushion, but it turns out he was wearing it the whole time. He barely moved.
Members of the US military have been receiving unsolicited smartwatches in the mail. If that's you, do not turn that on. Defense News reports that the Department of Army Criminal Investigation, the CID, says these free gifts are malicious... seems like the oldest trick in the book, but we'd all be tempted to be like, hmm, maybe I just deserve this because I deserve nice things, and somebody knew that, and sent me this smartwatch. You know, just turn this on and try it out. I wonder if it plays games. I wonder if it has a compass. Whatever. And, you know, the temptation is great to turn that thing on, and then it steals all your information, it steals vital details, defense secrets. It seems like a great ploy. Don't fall for it. You don't want that information to fall into your enemy's hands. In my case, it would be like, well, this fellow is extremely sedentary. Like, we thought he wasn't wearing the watch. We thought he must have put it on a shelf somewhere, placed it on a cushion, but it turns out he was wearing it the whole time. He barely moved.
❺ Pepsi Ketchup made headlines this week. Pepsi-infused ketchup! It's Pepsi and ketchup together at last! Is it just a publicity stunt? Oh, I'm pretty sure.
Available for a limited time, Pepsi Ketchup, which they're calling ColaChup... I don't know about that name... usually I tip my cap to the hardworking folks in the promotions department who sit around the table and come up with ideas, how to get attention, cut through the noise... then they come up with ColaChup? I don't know if ColaChup was the way to go... now Pepsup (©2023 Weird Week Enterprises), that's pretty good isn't it?
- Pepsi Ketchup was actually made with the help of the Culinary Institute of America, which is, you know, a fancy cooking school... renowned, prestigious.
- It's got Pepsi, smoky tomato, paprika, cinnamon, stuff like that.
- It's supposed to be around for July 4th at some ballparks... I bet if it takes off, if there's a market for it, you'll see it around... don't ya think?
Available for a limited time, Pepsi Ketchup, which they're calling ColaChup... I don't know about that name... usually I tip my cap to the hardworking folks in the promotions department who sit around the table and come up with ideas, how to get attention, cut through the noise... then they come up with ColaChup? I don't know if ColaChup was the way to go... now Pepsup (©2023 Weird Week Enterprises), that's pretty good isn't it?
- Pepsi Ketchup was actually made with the help of the Culinary Institute of America, which is, you know, a fancy cooking school... renowned, prestigious.
- It's got Pepsi, smoky tomato, paprika, cinnamon, stuff like that.
- It's supposed to be around for July 4th at some ballparks... I bet if it takes off, if there's a market for it, you'll see it around... don't ya think?
❹ the janitor who unplugged the freezer and ruined the experiment and now is part of a lawsuit...
- Janitor heard these alarms and those alarms can get on your nerves pretty quick... I mean, it's not smooth jazz when those alarms go off...
- Janitor turned off the freezer which ruined 20 years of research, worth a million bucks.
- happened a few years ago at a university in New York and is in the news now because: lawsuit.
- the janitor isn't being sued... it's the cleaning company who employed the janitor...
- University wants more than a million in damages...
- fridge had cell cultures in it that had to be kept cold... the alarm went off as a warning that the fridge was getting warmer... they were planning on getting emergency repairs... in the meantime they put a lock around the outlet so it wouldn't be unplugged... also they put a a sign on the fridge saying THIS FREEZER IS BEEPING AS IT IS UNDER REPAIR. PLEASE DO NOT MOVE OR UNPLUG IT. NO CLEANING REQUIRED IN THIS AREA. YOU CAN PRESS THE ALARM/TEST MUTE BUTTON FOR 5-10 SECONDS IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MUTE THE SOUND,”
- it seems like the janitor thought the fridge was shut off maybe... he turned the circuit breaker off but it seems like he thought he he was actually turning the breaker on maybe... anyway, it was a mistake that ruined years of research and here we are... court case to be continued...
See https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/janitor-heard-annoying-alarms-and-turned-off-freezer-ruining-20-years-of-school-research-worth-us-1m-lawsuit-says-1.6457395
- the janitor isn't being sued... it's the cleaning company who employed the janitor...
- University wants more than a million in damages...
- fridge had cell cultures in it that had to be kept cold... the alarm went off as a warning that the fridge was getting warmer... they were planning on getting emergency repairs... in the meantime they put a lock around the outlet so it wouldn't be unplugged... also they put a a sign on the fridge saying THIS FREEZER IS BEEPING AS IT IS UNDER REPAIR. PLEASE DO NOT MOVE OR UNPLUG IT. NO CLEANING REQUIRED IN THIS AREA. YOU CAN PRESS THE ALARM/TEST MUTE BUTTON FOR 5-10 SECONDS IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MUTE THE SOUND,”
- it seems like the janitor thought the fridge was shut off maybe... he turned the circuit breaker off but it seems like he thought he he was actually turning the breaker on maybe... anyway, it was a mistake that ruined years of research and here we are... court case to be continued...
See https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/janitor-heard-annoying-alarms-and-turned-off-freezer-ruining-20-years-of-school-research-worth-us-1m-lawsuit-says-1.6457395
❸ the War on Taco Tuesday continues... Taco John's Answers Back...
ICYMI, we talked about this on episode 34 in May (https://www.scottyandtony.com/2023/05/what-weird-week-podcast-friday-may-19th.html)... this is an update...
TL;DR: A Wyoming-based restaurant chain named Taco John's currently has the federal trademark on the phrase "Taco Tuesday."
National chain Taco Bell wants the phrase to become free for everyone to use. Taco Bell filed a petition with the trademark people and now... this official response filing from Taco John’s... it basically disagrees with Taco Bell (paraphrase).
According to the expert quoted by CNN, the next thing will be discovery... Taco Bell will try to prove that hardly anybody associates Taco Tuesday with a particular restaurant... if they surveyed you, what would you say? BTW, the expert says this might take a couple years. In the meantime, everyone has to stop eating tacos. There is a complete taco moratorium. JK.
ICYMI, we talked about this on episode 34 in May (https://www.scottyandtony.com/2023/05/what-weird-week-podcast-friday-may-19th.html)... this is an update...
TL;DR: A Wyoming-based restaurant chain named Taco John's currently has the federal trademark on the phrase "Taco Tuesday."
National chain Taco Bell wants the phrase to become free for everyone to use. Taco Bell filed a petition with the trademark people and now... this official response filing from Taco John’s... it basically disagrees with Taco Bell (paraphrase).
According to the expert quoted by CNN, the next thing will be discovery... Taco Bell will try to prove that hardly anybody associates Taco Tuesday with a particular restaurant... if they surveyed you, what would you say? BTW, the expert says this might take a couple years. In the meantime, everyone has to stop eating tacos. There is a complete taco moratorium. JK.
❷ Rent the Barbie Dreamhouse...
This story was all over. It's publicity stunt to promote the Barbie Movie and it got picked up by all the news agencies... so it deserves some kind of award... we had an episode last month about how the Barbie Movie set used so much of a particular kind of pink paint that the paint company ran out... there's a bit more to that story, but it got a lotta press and now this Stay in the Barbie Dreamhouse thing... the promo team is hitting it out of the park for the Barbie movie!!
- Details... beginning July 17th, request to book Barbie’s Malibu Dreamhouse on Airbnb. They're gonna pick two people who'll win a free one-night-stay for them and a guest at the oceanfront villa. One person gets July 21 and the other winner gets July 22.
- Details... beginning July 17th, request to book Barbie’s Malibu Dreamhouse on Airbnb. They're gonna pick two people who'll win a free one-night-stay for them and a guest at the oceanfront villa. One person gets July 21 and the other winner gets July 22.
See https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2023-06-27/ken-barbie-malibu-dream-house-airbnb
🏆 A couple Honorable Mentions this week...
- When in Rome, don't carve your gf's name into ancient architecture... for sure don't get VIDEO of it! This happened at the Roman Colosseum. There's video of a guy carving what they believe is "Ivan+Haley 23" on the wall. That's illegal and also makes people in Rome really mad... the latest is that Italian police say the have an ID on the guy and the lady... but aren't releasing any names yet... they say it was a British tourist... if you want names we'll put a link because some other places are reporting their names... (https://www.euronews.com/culture/2023/06/30/hunt-for-tourist-who-carved-name-in-colosseum-intensifies)...
- this is the fourth time this year that something like this has happened... they;'re reporting that you can get a €13,000 fine and up to five years in prison for this.
- this is the fourth time this year that something like this has happened... they;'re reporting that you can get a €13,000 fine and up to five years in prison for this.
and...
🏆 the second Honorable Mention...
- are we gonna have to start paying 70 dollars for a bottle of Sriracha sauce?!!
- a Sriracha sauce shortage is making prices go crazy... in the neighborhood of $70 a bottle.
-Why? There has been a chili crop failure and one of the sauce's main producers is struggling to keep up with demand... so people are selling the sauce online for waaaay more money than usual.
- a Sriracha sauce shortage is making prices go crazy... in the neighborhood of $70 a bottle.
-Why? There has been a chili crop failure and one of the sauce's main producers is struggling to keep up with demand... so people are selling the sauce online for waaaay more money than usual.
See https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/sriracha-sauce-shortage-causes-prices-spike-upward-70-bottle
❶ Croatian City Bans Noisy Wheeled Suitcases...
A European city has imposed a ban on wheeled suitcases due to the excessive noise they produce when dragged across cobblestones. Violators face hefty fines of nearly $400, although carrying your luggage by hand or utilizing a fanny pack is permissible. The city, which is a popular tourist destination in Croatia, introduced this measure after locals voiced their frustration over the disturbance caused by tourism.
We've all been there, a hotel or whatever. Somebody's checking out early and the bags come down the hall and you can hear them from one end to the other. I mean, sure, it's loud. Sure, you wanna open your hotel room door and collect a $400 fine from those people.
- good idea: In an effort to educate travelers about local etiquette and avoid misunderstandings or penalties, authorities have produced instructional videos highlighting various dos and don'ts... they're playing the instructional videos on cruises and flights asking people to not do things like, 'hey, don't walk your pet without a leash. Don't climb on our statues. Don't whip off your shirt and start walking around downtown. And also, suitcases on cobblestones, not great.
Thanks for being here. Remember, click Shownotes.Page and get all the What a Weird Week stuff. Even a link for the answering machine. It's old school. I never answer.
If you scrolled this far, you're my favorite. Here's the Stream...