Radio Recap (Friday 12/20/19)

Bible Trivia Question:
Who went to find the baby because an angel told them where to look?
A. Shepherds (Luke 2:9-15)
B. Little Drummer boy
C. Wise Men
D. George Bailey


In The News:
- Ugly Christmas Sweater Day & Go Caroling Day & Games Day

- Fear of being offline? In a study of people age 30 and under, over 70 percent said they have to be connected, no matter where they are.

- Confirming what many couples already knew, a government study concluded it’s healthy to be married. Sure, the majority of husbands pack on some extra pounds. But overall, married people are sick less often and more active. They smoke and drink less and in general feel better than single, divorced, never married or even folks just living together. In the study, some 70.6 percent of husbands were overweight or obese compared with 65.1 percent of all men. For females, 48.6 percent of married women were overweight or obese, virtually the same as the 48.5 percent of women in general.

- Sackers, a metal recycling company in England, was recovering metal from a building being demolished when they got to several safes that had been tossed into a bin. One of the safes was full — bags of banknotes and coins. They turned the money over to police to find the rightful owner, but when no one could be found, a court ruled the money belonged to Sackers. They don’t want it: they’re donating the cash — over $20,000 — to two local hospices.

- If you’ve ever thought that you literally feel other people’s pain, you may be right. A brain-imaging study suggests that some people have true physical reactions to others’ injuries. UK researchers found evidence that people who say they feel vicarious pain do, in fact, have heightened activity in pain-sensing brain regions upon witnessing another person being hurt.




Fun Fact:
In a survey, 6% of employees say they feel obligated to do this. (Get their boss a holiday gift) #funfact



Matt's Musing:
If you have a fear of Santa… would you be Claus-trophobic? #musing


Matt's Pick Song:
“Christmas in Heaven” by Doug Anderson



Bible Trivia Answer:
A. Shepherds (Luke 2:9-15)

Radio Recap (Thursday 12/19/19)

Bible Trivia Question:Who told Joseph the baby’s name was to be Jesus?
A. Mary
B. An angel
C. His dad
D. The Little Drummer Boy



In The News:
- on this day in 1843: A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens, was first published in England.

- Hard Candy Day

- Retailers call the last Saturday before Christmas “super” for a reason. More than a third (36%) of shoppers polled plan to be out shopping on Super Saturday.

- Smart toilets could one day create a snapshot of your health and day-to-day life. Scientists (University of Wisconsin-Madison) say their smart toilet prototype took 110 samples of their own urine over a 10-day period. The results showed sleep, exercise, alcohol or coffee intake, and medication taken.

- This Christmas, a new family mediator might be stepping in to avoid Christmas arguments. Amazon’s Alexa can now be used to change the subject during family disputes over the winter holidays. Research by the online retail giant found 6:30 PM on Christmas Day is the time when family fights are most likely to break out. Amazon has now added a feature to its smart speakers to prompt virtual assistant Alexa to step in with a “distraction technique”. Using the phrase “Alexa, change the subject”, the AI-powered assistant will try to spark a new debate by asking questions such as: “Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?” It could also ask: “What would your superpower be and why?”

- Cover-stealing, coming home to an unmade bed and snoring are among the things that send tempers soaring between couples. Our top annoyance is a partner who snores (39%). Next is being woken up by a cover-stealing partner (24%). Then leaving clothes on the bedroom floor (23%). No. 4 is the partner who encroaches on your side of the bed (22%). Tossing and turning is last (20%).

- Doctors say drinking artificially-sweetened drinks like Diet Coke could make you more likely to put weight on. Researchers (University of South Australia) found that people who consume low calorie sweeteners (LCS) don’t reduce their overall sugar intake… The lead researcher said: “Consumers of artificial sweeteners do not reduce their overall intake of sugar. They use both sugar and low-calorie sweeteners and may psychologically feel they can indulge in their favorite foods. Artificial sweeteners can also change the gut bacteria which may lead to weight gain and risk of type 2 diabetes.”




Fun Fact:A National Weather Service study indicated that more than eight out of every ten people injured or killed by lightning have this in common. (They are men.) #funfact




Matt's Musing: If you find yourself eating Christmas decorations, do you have tinsel-itus...? #musing


Matt's Pick Song:“Hark The Herald Angels Sing” by the Mark Trammell Quartet


Bible Trivia Answer:B. An angel (Matthew 1:21)

Radio Recap (Wednesday 12/04/19)

Bible Trivia Question:What form of transportation did Mary and Joseph use to get to Bethlehem? The answer is not a taxi cab.
A. Donkey
B. Camel
C. Taxi
D The Bible does not say.



In The News:
- Cookie Day & Sock Day & Dice Day

- The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree will be lit tonight.

- According to a new study (from Truecaller) the average American received 18.2 unwanted spam calls a month this year, up from 16.9 in 2018. The damages from those phone scams in America topped $10.5 billion last year. The biggest driver of phone scams have been robocalls, which accounted for 35 percent of all phone spam in the U.S. this year.

- When you think soup, it’s possible you think Campbell’s. If you’re a fan of the company’s Chunky line of soups then you’re a person who would be interested in Chunky Soup slippers. Yep, like so many companies, Campbell’s has a line of clothing and accessories. Like soup holding gloves for $20, and a hat that will hold your favorite spork.

- Firefighters in Britain said a kitchen fire was caused by a family dog that somehow turned on the microwave. Firefighters say the husky dog started the microwave, causing a package of bread rolls inside to burn and catch fire. The homeowner was not present at the time of the fire but alerted authorities when he noticed the smoke on the security cameras connected to his phone app. The dog was not injured.

- Police discovered an open door at the Honey Baked Ham store in suburban St. Louis last week. A search of the building led to something unusual. The burglar left a note and a sum of cash as a justification. The note read: “Happy Thanksgiving! No one was here and we were in desperate need of pies. Left money, took pies. Thanks!”



Fun Fact:65% of mall Santas that have a college degree.#funfact




Matt's Musing: When you go to a Christmas party, your presents is requested... #musing



Matt's Pick Song:“Peace On Earth” by Doug Anderson




Bible Trivia Answer:D. The Bible does not say. 

(Bible gives no details on how they went from Galilee to Bethlehem. It was an 80 mile trip for them, and it is likely they rode some type of animal.)

Radio Recap (Tuesday 12/03/19)

Bible Trivia Question:Who said: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel?"
A. Jeremiah
B. Isaiah
C. Ezekiel
D. John the Baptist


In The News:
- Giving Tuesday & Make A Gift Day

- Winter’s almost here. [I’ve switched to my winter socks. They’re the same as his summer ones only with fewer holes.]

- Cyber Monday went well. [And by “well” I mean that no one got trampled.]

- A Baby Shark doll narrowly saved the life of a toddler after absorbing a stray bullet that ripped through the walls of her family’s Madison, Wisconsin, home. The 3-year-old girl was sleeping in her crib when a gunfight erupted outside around 8:42 PM on Sunday. The bullets hit parked cars and multiple homes, prompting residents to seek shelter. One of the bullets entered the toddler’s bedroom where she slept. The toddler was holding the Baby Shark toy when it was hit by a bullet.

- Fifth of us say spending holidays at home is always a letdown _ There’s no place like home for the holidays, but according to a new survey that isn’t necessarily a positive. A significant 21 percent of respondents said that holidays spent at home consistently fail to meet their expectations.

- A new survey finds the average American carries out five good deeds a month. 66 percent have helped someone with directions. 65 percent held a door open for a stranger. 53 percent have paid for a stranger’s meal. 53 percent have picked up litter or garbage.

- A tanker truck went over a California highway guardrail and ended up spilling its load of 6,000 gallons of condensed milk. No injuries were reported when the tanker went over the side and ended up 75 feet down an embankment.

- A new survey finds the average person will spend 78,705 hours staring at their TV screen or similar device. This includes 3,639 movies at home, and 31,507 episodes of TV… Six in ten respondents actually admit they would be lost without their TV set.




Fun Fact:More people use blue toothbrushes than red ones. #funfact



Matt's Musing: Christmas countdown has started! Time to spruce things up... #musing



Matt's Pick Song:“White Christmas” by Ivan Parker


Bible Trivia Answer:B. Isaiah (Isaiah 7:14)

Radio Recap (Monday 12/02/19)

Bible Trivia Question:

Why did Mary and Joseph to go to Bethlehem?
A. For a Roman census
B. Jerusalem was too crowded
C. They were following a star
D. They were running away from Herod




In The News:
- Cyber Monday … Tomorrow is Giving Tuesday

- On this day in 1901: Gillette patented the first disposable razor.

- How did your thanksgiving desserts go? Ours was adventure! On Wednesday evening, my kids helped my wife Lydia make apple pies. All was going well. My two boys peeled and cut the apples while my daughter mixed and rolled the pie crust. Two problems presented itself. Half of our things are packed away since we’ve been trying to sell our house. That included the pie roller and pie pans! So I had the task of making a late night run to buy some foil pie pans. All ended well, with four beautiful apple pies for us to share with extended family.

- What is your traditions on thanksgiving? Besides watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade, we spend the evening as a family playing… Monopoly! Of course, we have several themes in our position. So this year we played “bacon-opoply” with with each property based on Smokehouses. Bacon taco, Bacon floss, Bacon cheeseburger, turkey bacon… well, you get the idea. One of the cards I drew gave me a choice, I had to complete an activity, if my family was satisfied with my performance, I’d win $50. If I failed… I lost $50. Fair enough right. Um. I had to lay on the floor and imitate “sizzling bacon”. That’s right, pretty much act like a shocked worm. However, I’m more like a slug. Well, I did pass. By the way… my kids have cell phones… yikes….

- Did you get your Black Friday shopping done while you were waiting in line for coffee? You definitely weren’t the only one. Retain industry number show 39 percent of online Black Friday purchases were made with smartphones. That’s a big jump from last year, when just over 33 percent turned to the devices in their pockets. People were willing to splurge, too. Shoppers spent about $2.9 billion using their phones versus ‘just’ $2.1 billion a year earlier.

- An Arizona teen who tried to shimmy down her chimney in an attempt to sneak home after a late night out. However,she ended up getting stuck for more than 90 minutes. The teen decided the chimney would be the best entryway to her home after she and her friend got locked out and couldn’t find another way inside. But the plan soon backfired and the friend had to call 911.

- It turns out, high chairs are only meant for babies and toddlers. Firefighters were called to a Chick-fil-A in Idaho when a teenager got stuck in a high chair. She had apparently been dared by her friends to sit in the small seat… The young girl’s friends and restaurant workers attempted to help her out of the chair for 45 minutes before calling authorities.

- Three men wearing disguises went into a jewelry store in Burnsville, Minnesota, armed with sledgehammers, smashed the display cases, scooped up inventory, and made a quick getaway in a stolen van. They might have never been caught, except that one of the things stolen was a small electronic device — a GPS tracker. It led police directly to their hideout.

- As radio stations everywhere turn to an all-Christmas format, what song would listeners most like to jingle all the way to oblivion? In the UK a poll has singled out Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas is You as the most annoying holiday song ever.




Fun Fact:It’s Christmas time… Every 8 seconds in America someone is arrested for shoplifting. #funfact



Matt's Musing: I love when candy canes are in mint condition. #musing



Matt's Pick Song:“Joy To The World” by Ivan Parker



Bible Trivia Answer:A. For a Roman census. (Caesar Augustus ordered the people to go back to the city of their forefathers/lineage to impose taxes. Joseph’s family was from Bethlehem. Luke 2:1-3)