Author: Matt Gilligan

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Some People Believe Corona Beer Has Something to Do with the Coronavirus

Yes, that’s right, the Mexican-style beer Corona. With a lime or without, I couldn’t say, but I can promise you here and now that alcohol makes viruses and other icky junk disappear, not the other way around.

In general, I mean, not as a treatment protocol – don’t drink beer if you feel sick.

The coronavirus in the news is a new respiratory-type illness that started in Wuhan, China. It’s now infected around 40,000 people, mostly in China, and the death toll is nearly at 1000 (also mostly in China).

People are scared, because this is a new illness without a treatment protocol, but the truth is that 80,000 people died from the regular flu in the United States in 2017. So that’s just something to keep this all in perspective.

Right now, scientists aren’t sure how the coronavirus outbreak began, but they’re reasonably sure that the virus jumped from an animal species into humans, probably at one of the open-air bushmeat markets so popular in China.

We can say for sure, though, that it’s not caused by drinking Corona beer.

A lot of people seemed determined to prove the movie Idiocracy (and Aldous Huxley) right by believing that they’re safe if they don’t drink Corona beer, though.

Search engines are getting tons of requests for “beer virus,” “corona beer virus,” and the like – so many people were searching, in fact, that Corona issued an official statement denying any involvement.

Really.

The internet is largely having fun at these people’s expense, and I’m not really mad about it – I just don’t know how we got to this place as a species, or how to go back.

Because this way lies madness and monsters, and for sure the end of the world.

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Women Share the Weirdest and Craziest Texts That Men Have Ever Sent Them

Guys…you all need to chill out a little bit.

You’re being way too overbearing, and you’re coming off like total psychopaths.

Well, maybe not all men, but these guys for sure…

Study these text exchanges carefully and whatever you do, don’t make these same mistakes.

1. Let us begin.

2. Take that back!

3. Okay, this is weird.

4. Seems fair.

5. “Accidentally”, huh?

6. Still managed to message you.

7. Merry Christmas!

8. BRB in a few months.

9. What a guy.

10. If you change your mind…

11. I put a spell on you.

12. Creeper to the extreme.


Wow…guys…let’s take it down a notch, okay?

Ladies, has this happened to you at all in your personal life?

If so, let us know how it all went down in the comments!

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Great Ways You Can Reuse Those Little Silica Gel Packets

This is pretty cool.

You know all those little packets of moisture absorbing silica gel that falls out of new boxes of shoes, electronics, big bags of rice…really all kinds of stuff? These little packets that tell you 1) not to eat them and 2) to throw them away?

Well, definitely don’t eat them, but don’t throw them away either – they can be repurposed and used for all kinds of things. Those packets are practically gold!

Here are some ways you can save these tiny dehumidifiers from the landfill and improve your own quality of life.

1. Keep your gym bag free from odor.

Throw a few packs in your gym bag with your stinky clothes and gear. They will absorb odor so you won’t recoil in disgust when you open it later.

Photo Credit: Flickr

2. Keep your razors from rusting.

No matter how thoroughly you think you dry your razors, you’re bound to miss some moisture. Store them with a silica gel packet to absorb water droplets.

Photo Credit: Wikimedia

3. Keep rust off your tools.

Live in Arizona? No? Your garage is practically a rainforest then, and if that’s where you keep your tools, you’ll need some packs to stop them from rusting.

Photo Credit: Flickr

4. Keep your pantry fresher.

Tuck some packs into your pantry or cupboard where you keep your spices, flour and potatoes.

Photo Credit: Flickr

5. Keep your expensive headphones from getting smelly.

Prevent your audio investment – before storing, go ahead and tuck packs into each “ear” of your over-the-ear headphones. It helps after they’ve spent a few hours near the warm, moist heat of your body.

Photo Credit: Flickr

6. In wet weather, use to protect chargers and cords.

If your staring down the barrel of a big storm and you need to keep electronic accessories dry, zip them away in a waterproof bag with a few packets for extra insurance.

Photo Credit: Pxhere

7. Protect photos

Remember printed photos? Remember your old box of printed photos? Whoopsie. Find that box and throw in some packets to keep them free from moisture damage.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

8. Get the musty smell out of your old books.

Old book smell is delicious. Musty, moldy smells? Not so much. If one of your books gets too much of a good thing, zip it in a bag with a few packets and wait a month. The offending smell should be gone.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

9. Use for storing seeds.

Gather seeds from your annuals and store them in a jar with a packet. Come spring, you’ll be ready to garden.

Photo Credit: Pixnio

10. Protect your silver jewelry from tarnish.

After wearing, clean your silver pieces and store it in your jewelry box with a couple of packets to keep them shiny and ready for next time.

Photo Credit: Pxfuel

See? Those little packets of silica gel are miracle workers. And if they don’t seem to be working, stick them in the oven on a cookie sheet on low heat for an hour or two or put them outside on a sunny afternoon. The moisture will get baked out, and they’ll be good as new and ready to reuse again!

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The National Bonsai Museum in Washington D.C. Looks Pretty Awesome

In Washington D.C., an extraordinary museum has some mighty special trees. These trees aren’t giant oaks or flowered with cherry blossoms, though. The National Bonsai Museum, rather, is home to 150 species of trees pruned and cared for in the manner of bonsai – a traditional Japanese cultivation technique that produces trees in miniature.

National Bonsai & Penjing Museum
The museum opened in 1976 to exhibit a gift from Japan of 53 bonsai trees commemorating the U.S. bicentennial and presented to Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. Their botanical gift joins the 3,000 cherry trees, given by Japan in 1912, that famously still grow today around D.C.’s National Mall.

National Bonsai & Penjing Museum
The exceptional display of bonsai trees can be found in the Department of Agriculture’s National Arboretum. Over the years, the collection has grown to include various species, including beeches, maples and pines, among others.

Photo Credit: Wikimedia

As the Japanese style of bonsai varies, there are several design types to see at the museum. Look for Chokkan style, characterized by a straight tapered trunk with thick branches coming from the middle of the trunk and finer sproutings at the top for a formal tree shape.

You can also see the dramatic kengai trees, which appear to “cascade” down mountains. Others on display are “root-over-rock,” where the tree’s roots reach around a stone base before disappearing into earth, and “forest” style, that have several trees, usually an odd number, arranged in a single container.

Photo Credit: Wikimedia

The absolute can’t-miss specimen of the entire exhibit is a Japanese white pine. The tree was started in 1625 and tended by five generations of the Yamaki family until it was donated to the U.S. It’s also called the Hiroshima Survivor because it emerged unharmed from the atomic bombing of the city of Hiroshima in 1945.

Bonsai gives both the viewer and the cultivator the opportunity for quiet contemplation. In a busy city that represents a country as dynamic as the U.S., this museum is an excellent place to root your soul.

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People Share Things That Sounded Like Good Ideas at the Time…but They Weren’t

Hmmmmm…

“Hey, that sounds like a great idea!” How many times have you said that in your life and then it turned out to be anything BUT a great idea?

Well, there’s a lot of that going around and these tweets prove it.

Let’s take a look.

1. Just stay in.

2. Fill ‘er up.

3. Oh no!

4. Never a good idea.

5. The problems with binge watching.

6. One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, FLOOR.

7. Snoozin’ the day away.

8. Time to suck it up.

9. A real loner.

10. Feel the burn.

11. Didn’t work out, apparently.

12. Always bring a bottle.

13. Famous last words.

14. Living the single life.

15. When generosity backfires.


Remember to think over those “great ideas” before you act on them, okay?

Have you had any experiences like this lately?

Tell us about them in the comments! Let’s see what you got!

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Epic Tweets People Shared About Having Really Bad Teachers

Some teachers are kind of apathetic and just go along for the ride, and then there are legitimately bad teachers who probably shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near a classroom.

The teachers people talked about in these tweets definitely belong in the latter category.

Let’s relive our school days with some tales of bad teachers!

1. You’re doing it all wrong.

2. That sure backfired.

3. No talking…ever.

4. That’s really bad.

5. Sounds like a gem.

6. Harsh as hell.

7. The last laugh.

8. We get graded on that?

9. You’re going to HELL.

10. That’s pretty creepy.

11. Still didn’t get fired.

12. That’s a strange threat.

13. Teacher of the Year?


Yikes…I’m glad I didn’t have to deal with any of these teachers during my school days.

Do you remember your worst teacher? Or maybe it was multiple teachers?

Tell us all about them in the comments below. Go ahead and put them on blast!

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A Tricky New Scam Poses as a Text Message with Your Package’s Tracking Information

Be alert!

It seems like thieves and n’er-do-wells are always out there looking for the next best way to swindle you out of your hard earned cash…and that’s because they kind of are.

With all of the technology we use, their attempts are getting more diverse, more widespread, and harder to spot – even for the savvy among us. And given that many of us have more than one package en route to us on any given day (thanks, Amazon), this scam text acting like it’s a tracking update is pretty stinking clever.

The scam is described by online technology magazine ‘How-To-Geek’ as a SMS text being sent out that seem to be confirming shipping or delivery on a package, and asking you to click for more information.

Image Credit: Pixabay

They recommend that you do not open the message or click on any links, then block the sender and delete the message. Clicking the link will take you to a fake Amazon listing where you will be asked to take a customer service survey that offers you a free product at the end of it – as long as you hand over your credit card number to cover a small shipping and handling fee.

The fine print admits that by agreeing to pay the fee, you’re signing up for a 14-day trial, followed by a $98.95 monthly fee for a supply of scam products.

Image Credit: Pixabay

I assume that you’re not notified of the monthly charge in any way, so it could be a while before some people notice the recurring debit on their statement.

So be vigilant. Read everything with a squinted eye, as though there are people out there whose entire job it is to trick you into handing over your information.

Because there definitely are.

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People Share the Things Their Parents Get Wrong That Really Annoy Them

I was obsessed with watching Saved by the Bell after school every day when I was younger, and my mom would always, without fail, call it Who Rings the Bell? 

And, when I used to watch Headbanger’s Ball on MTV, she would call that show Harvey Wallbangers.

Dammit, Mom! Get it straight.

We all have trivial little things that our parents do that drive us nuts. And people are sharing their hilarious stories on Twitter. Let’s take a look.

1. Getting angrier…

2. Pesky Blinders.

3. I kind of like that better.

4. Peperami pizza.

5. I like this a lot.

6. Why? Whyyyyyy???

7. Lots of love.

8. The Bart Simpson Program.

9. This is amazing.

10. Still thinking about it

11. That is disgusting.

12. The one and only website.

13. A bit of a difference.


Boy, do those bring back some memories…

Did your parents ever do this? And did it drive you up the wall?

Tell us about it in the comments!

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By the End of 2020, China Plans to Ban Single-Use Plastic Bags in Every Major City

It’s a new decade – and China, for one, doesn’t plan to end it as a top contributor to the world’s pollution problem. At least, not when it comes to single-use plastic bags.

They plan to include plastic plates, cutlery, and straws in the ban as well.

 

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The Chinese National Development and Reform Commission detailed the plan, which includes the complete ban of non-degradable plastic bags in every major city in the country, with plans to expand to every city and town by 2022.

They’re providing exceptions to markets selling fresh products until 2025.

The government expects the hospitality industry to get on board by the same year, with restaurants stopping the use of plastic straws and cutlery, as well as reducing their other single-use plastic items by 30%. Hotels will operate under the same expectations.

Currently, China produces around 60 million tons of plastic waste every year, far and away the largest plastic polluter in the world. The U.S. is next on the list, throwing out 38 million tons of plastic per year – which, in case you’re not into math, means each person in the States creates almost 3x as much plastic pollution as each person in China.

China is also one of the world’s biggest manufacturers of plastics, and plans to expand its environmentally conscious approach to that area, as well: they’ve decided to no longer produce products that are less than 0.025mm thick. In a less environmental move, China no longer imports plastic recyclables from other countries, which has made it very difficult for recycling to maintain its cost efficiency in the United States.

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The FIRST baby leatherback turtle born in 2020 ?? after plastic ban in Thailand Thai citizens have been in full support of the single-use plastic ban campaign since the start of the year, and we deserve some celebrations ?for this small victory in protecting ocean lives — a rare baby leatherback turtle successfully hatched in Phang Nga province, under the close watch and protection from the officials at Khao Lam Pi – Hat Thai Mueang National Park. The impact of one single action is often more far-reaching than how we imagine it to be ? Together we can make change happen! #gogreenfortheplanet เต่าทะเลมีจำนวนลดลงโดยเฉพาะขยะพลาสติกในทะเล แต่โพสต์นี้เป็นพิเศษ เมื่อไหร่จะมีข่าวดีนะคะ ลูกเต่ามะเฟืองตัวแรก ของปี 2563 คลานขึ้นจากหลุม ซึ่งมาจากแม่เต่าตัวแรกที่พบ วางไข่ในรอบ 6 ปี ?? รณรงค์เรื่องขยะพลาสติกและมลภาวะในทะเลกันอย่างคึกคักช่วงนี้ #gogreenfortheplanet เพราะการแก้ปัญหาสิ่งแวดล้อม ลำพังจิตสำนึกอย่างเดียวไม่พอ ต้องอาศัยเครื่องมือหลายอย่าง และต้องลงมือทำกันทุกภาคส่วนค่ะ ?: @seetanubungalows, Chiang Rai Times #leatherbackturtle #gogreen #saveourocean #bansingleuseplastic #sustainableliving #zerowastegoals #protectnature #zerowastethailand #plasticban #ecothailand

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Let’s be honest – the average person doesn’t need to use plastic bags at the grocery store or get a straw and plastic silverware every time they order takeout. There are simple workarounds that people choose not to use because they’re lazy and plastic is convenient.

If this proves anything, it’s that the government is going to have to step in – because regular people aren’t going to voluntarily make their own lives slightly harder, even for the good of the planet.

At least, not in high enough numbers to really make a difference.

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A High School Senior was Promised a College Scholarship in Kindergarten and is Now Told She Can’t Have It

College affordability haunts parents and kids everywhere, pretty much from the time the little ones are born until they finally (hopefully) graduate with a degree. Costs have soared to the point where many cannot afford it, at least not without taking on obscene loads of student debt – so you can see why being promised scholarship money in kindergarten would have been an enormous relief for a family.

South Florida student Ynette Lopez was promised $3000 a year towards to Florida university of her choice back in 2007, but now that she’s finally getting ready to graduate from high school, the organization is telling only her, not the other 96 kids in her ‘class’, that she hasn’t qualified.

Ynette’s mother, Zondra Aimes says that she’s been in contact with the organization, I Have A Dream, but hasn’t gotten the answers she wanted.

“They stated that each kid would receive $3,000 per year for whatever four-year college or university for Florida only…Now that she’s a high school senior, she has been told that she hasn’t qualified for the tuition fees they promised.”

 

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She was given two reasons: one was that they moved (not out of Florida, just to a different county), and the other was that she “did not keep up with the program.” Zondra claims that she had confirmed with I Have A Dream that their move was ok, and that she checked in with them every year or two to make sure everything was still on track for the scholarship – and up until this year, I Have A Dream kept saying it was.

Legal expert Howard Finkelstein weighed in on the matter.

“Legally, this is really tricky, because the contract is not clear, and there is wiggle room for both sides. The foundation has a strong argument, because after Ynette moved, she did not go to any of their programs, and Zondra said she only contacted them every year or two. But favoring Ynette is that she got great grades, did volunteer work and became the kind of student the scholarship was created for.”

The head of the I Have a Dream Foundation Miami chapter, Stephanie Trump, confirmed that even though 21 kids moved out of the area after kindergarten, Ynette is the only one to be denied the scholarship.

 

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The senior is currently applying for scholarships elsewhere, but her mother is considering suing the foundation in small claims court. She would be willing to compromise, but believes her daughter deserves some amount of scholarship because she put in the work.

“She participated in at least six years of it, so $1500 every year instead of $3000? Something, because she did participate.”

It sounds reasonable to me, but I’m no lawyer – we’ll have to keep tabs and find out what happens, but whatever it is, I hope that Ynette has a great college experience and doesn’t let this stop her from the education she’s earned.

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