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Here’s Your Ultimate 4th Of July Drinking Guide

Maria Loreto
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Here’s Your Ultimate 4th Of July Drinking Guide

BBQs, family gatherings, boating, picnic and more are all part of the 4th….usually involving a little day drinking – here are so suggestions to make it more delicious!

July 4th is one of the top drinking holidays in the US.  And it is a day long fiesta of opportunity to pop, pour or shoot.  It is a long tradition dating back years.  To help, here sit here’s your ultimate 4th of July drinking guide.

Highballs

Highball combinations are the simplest to make and they’re also enjoyed by the largest amount of people. There are the classic and reliable drinks like gin and tonic or vodka and soda, but there’s also always room to get creative. Scotch and chocolate soda is a good one, or moxie and amaro. These soda + booze combinations are fun and lime is almost always a great companion for them. Be sure to try out the craziest inventions on small quantities; you don’t want to have to drink or throw away a full glass of liquor just because the end result was awful.

RELATED: Can A Good Wine Description Make You Spend More Money

Sangrias

These drinks are fresh and perfect for the summer and they’re also super varied. You can make sangria with red wine, white wine or even rosé and add fruits that match the base wine and liquor. One of our favorite options is the watermelon sangria, which uses white wine, cointreau, rum, syrup, limes and watermelon. That already sounds like summer.

RELATED: 9 Times Asia Beat The US At Starbucks Frappuccinos

Cocktails

Cocktails are great if you’re planning on drinking during the day, being the best option for brunch. Spicy Bloody Marys and different flavored Margaritas are great companions for barbecue food. You can also make a Negroni punch, inspired on the classic Negroni drink but not as boozy thanks to the addition of seltzer water.

Alcohol-Free Drinks

Last but not least: alcohol-free drinks.  Mocktails and NA drinks have gained big ground, especially among Gen Z and millennials.   When you have several events planned for the long weekend and low dose (like a White Claw) or a NA can be handy. You can always buy some lemonade from the nearest store, but it’ll be way more delicious if you make one with your own twist. Lemonade is a very flexible drink, you can make it spicy with some jalapeños and strawberries, or a more simple and traditional one with a touch of basil and honey. You can also make some iced tea or some fresh juices from watermelons and cucumbers.

This Guy Getting Hit By A Bus And Going Straight To The Bar Is All Of Us

Sam Jones
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This Guy Getting Hit By A Bus And Going Straight To The Bar Is All Of Us

There are good days, bad days, and days you just want to head to the nearest pub after being hit by a bus.

According to the BBC, 53-year-old Simon Smith was struck from behind by a careening bus while walking along Gun Street in Reading, England. He was out for a daily run of errands, and wasn’t exactly expecting an out-of-control double-decker to tackle him out of nowhere.

The CCTV video is amazing, but be warned: It is pretty shocking, so make sure you’re in a place where you can yell “OH SHIT” while viewing:

His head breaks the windshield as the bus hits a wall of buildings beside him, veering away and narrowly missing running over him once he’s down.

Incredibly, he stands up immediately and stumbles into the bar that’s right beside him at the accident. It seems like he’s heading in for a drink after the weirdest morning of his life—but he’s actually scrambling for shelter after being, you know, hit by a freaking bus.

He spoke about his now-viral ordeal with the Sun:

“I came down the street, it was early morning, I’d gone to pay in a wage cheque at my bank. I make that journey every Saturday. I didn’t think anything of it. But then I heard some banging behind me and I was hit from behind. Then you can see what happened from the CCTV. The video says it all. I didn’t tense because I didn’t know it was coming. After it I just wanted to get somewhere safe. It’s quite funny everybody think I have gone for a pint. I was actually looking for a place of refuge when I went into the doorway of the pub.”

He did, however, get a beer after he was discharged from the hospital.

Moms Are Smoking More Marijuana Than Ever Before

Brendan Bures
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Moms Are Smoking More Marijuana Than Ever Before

The modern-day cannabis consumer is changing. In part, we’ve known this for the past couple years. Thanks to marijuana’s stigmatization waning and legalization occurring in 29 states across America, more people are including cannabis into their lifestyle. That includes parents, according to a new study by Eaze, the medical marijuana delivery service.

Eaze emailed a 32-question survey to more than 10,000 active users to determine the makeup of the modern cannabis consumer. The study showcased that those who consumed marijuana were generally younger, educated, and in good-paying jobs. Millennials remain the largest group of active cannabis users of any generation.

In addition, 87% of working professionals attested that marijuana consumption had reduced their drinking while 12% testified replacing wine with weed entirely. Another statistic we hear often is patients replacing opiate use with cannabis. Eaze found similar results. According to their study, 48% of the working professionals they surveyed have been prescribed opiates. Once they began consuming marijuana, 95% said they reduced their opiate use and 31% quit opiates, substituting cannabis as medicine.

But Eaze also found the rising number of parents and women who are users. While more men smoke than women (a 66-36% disparity, according to Eaze), but women are the fastest-growing consumer base in the industry. Out of those women surveyed, 59 percent admit they consume daily. In addition, women are early adopters of new products like topicals and tinctures. Many women referred to “self-care” in their cannabis usage, as it helped reduce their opiate, alcohol, and antidepressant usage.

“What we’re seeing with women is that they’re integrating cannabis as part of their health and wellness regimen,” Sheena Shiravi, head of PR for Eaze, told Refinery 29.

Parents also enjoy including cannabis into their daily lifestyles. One out of five participants in Eaze’s study were parents and 63% reported using daily. Also interesting of note, 39% of marijuana consumers live with three or more people while just 26% live alone. Parents are also 52% more likely to stop drinking alcohol in favor of cannabis compared to non-parents.

“It’s not surprising to think that parents are using cannabis every day,” Shiravi told Refinery29. “Think about how often a mom reaches for glass of wine or takes Tylenol or pain killer for a headache or back pain.”

The modern cannabis user is changing, even if the stoner association remains embedded in places like Washington. No need to ask us, though. Just look at the data.

Inside The High Cost Of Marijuana Prohibition

Daniel Shortt
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Inside The High Cost Of Marijuana Prohibition

On July 6, 2016, Officer Jeronimo Yanez shot and killed Philando Castile during a traffic stop in Minnesota. On June 16, 2017, Officer Yanez was acquitted of all charges in the killing of Castile.

In the days after the acquittal, authorities released investigative reports, including Officer Yanez’s interview with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BSA) where he stated the following:

“I thought, I was gonna die. And I thought if he’s, if he has the, the guts and the audacity to smoke marijuana in front of the five year old girl and risk her lungs and risk her life by giving her secondhand smoke and the front seat passenger doing the same thing then what, what care does he give about me. And, I let off the rounds and then after the rounds were off, the little girl was screaming.”

Before I deal with the cannabis policy issues related to Castile’s death, I have to parse through what Officer Yanez says below as I am truly dumbfounded by it. Officer Yanez essentially says that anyone who smokes cannabis in front of their kid does not care about the life of their kid or about anyone else’s life either. Ponder that for a moment and then realize that if Yanez was telling the truth here (rather than simply mouthing an excuse he concocted after the fact) how ingrained in our society the idea is that people who smoke cannabis are flat out bad people.

Officer Yanez’s interview was released to the public within days of a Stanford Open Policing Project study showing that in Colorado and Washington State, highway patrol searches plummeted significantly after these two states legalized recreational cannabis in 2012. The type of traffic stop that resulted in Castile’s death occurs less frequently in states with legal cannabis.

In both Colorado and Washington, it is still illegal to drive under the influence of cannabis. However, in both states, individuals over the age of 21 are permitted to drive with cannabis stored in their cars. In states where cannabis is not legal recreationally, officers performing routine traffic stops may search a car if they suspect it contains cannabis. The decline in traffic stops in Colorado and Washington since 2012 is due in part to the fact that officers can no longer use possession of cannabis as a pretext to stop and search drivers.

The Stanford findings show that police are much more likely to stop African American and Hispanic drivers while driving. This is true in Washington and Colorado as well, though the overall number of stops have decreased substantially.

Marijuana use has long been used as a pretext for targeting minority communities. Marijuana was first made illegal at the urging of Harry J. Anslinger, the nation’s first Drug Czar. Anslinger successfully lobbied Congress to pass the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, which outlawed possessing or selling cannabis. Anslinger used all sorts of racially charged (and wildly inaccurate) testimony as scare tactics to ram through his harshly anti-cannabis agenda.

In the years since, minority communities have been targeted by law enforcement for cannabis crimes. A major study by the ACLU in 2010 found African Americans were 3.7 times more likely to be arrested for cannabis than white people, though data shows that both groups use cannabis at the same rate.

Castile’s death shows how the danger of cannabis can stem from its legal status. Cannabis consumers face no risk of overdose and repeated use does not lead to physical addiction. Compared to other drugs like alcohol and opioids, cannabis is relatively safe. But Castile’s death shows how cannabis use can be deadly so long as it remains illegal.

What happened to Philando Castile was a tragedy and legalizing cannabis will not solve the complicated problems with policing in America. However, at a time when Attorney General Jeff Sessions wants to renew the war on drugs, Castile’s killing is a chilling reminder of the human cost of cannabis prohibition and stigma.

Daniel Shortt is an attorney at Harris Bricken, a law firm with lawyers in Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Barcelona, and Beijing. This story was originally published on the Canna Law Blog. 

Gossip: Prince William, Harry & Kate To Re-Dedicate Princess Diana’s Grave; Sean Hannity Says CNN Has “Lied Itself To Death”

Naughty Gossip
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Gossip: Prince William, Harry & Kate To Re-Dedicate Princess Diana’s Grave; Sean Hannity Says CNN Has “Lied Itself To Death”

The Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry will rededicate their mother’s grave on what would have been her birthday this weekend, as they include Prince George and Princess Charlotte in a special service to remember her. The Duke, Duchess and Prince Harry and the children will attend a private service at Althorp House, as the Archbishop of Canterbury helps them commemorate Diana, Princess of Wales in the 20th anniversary year of her death.

The rededication, understood to comprise words of reflection and prayer at the graveside, will take place after the memorial underwent extensive redesign following an accusation that the burial site had been neglected. The Spencer family last year began the first major programme of works to the estate gardens in 350 years, saying they would “honour” the memory of Diana in time for the anniversary.

This Saturday, on what would have been Diana’s 56th birthday, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry, Prince George and two-year-old Princess Charlotte will gather at Althorp in a private ceremony. The Prince of Wales will be absent, performing Royal duties in Ottawa to mark Canada Day with the Duchess of Cornwall. Earl Spencer, Diana’s brother, and her sisters Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Baroness Fellowes will also attend. Earl Spencer’s third wife, Lady Karen, whom he married in 2011, has overseen the renovation project.

Kensington Palace said in a brief statement: “The service, which will fall on what would have been the Princess’s birthday, will be conducted by The Archbishop of Canterbury and attended by her family.”

The service will be private, with aides declining to give details on any readings or prayers to be delivered.
[From The Telegraph]

Sean Hannity Says CNN Has “Lied Itself To Death”

Mediaite reports:

On Wednesday night, Sean Hannity continued his attacks on CNN and had a message for CNN’s president Jeff Zucker. “At this point,” he began, “we should put CNN six feet underground for repeatedly spreading lies, propaganda, black helicopter tinfoil hat conspiracy theories, and for viciously trying to take down this president.” He showed an image of CNN’s gravestone that read “Lied itself to death.”

He then listed former FBI Director James Comey admitting he leaked his memo to the press, former Attorney General Loretta Lynch interfering in the Clinton email investigation, all of Hillary Clinton‘s scandals, President Obama keeping quiet about Russia meddling in the election, the unmasking of Gen. Michael Flynn, and the conflict of interests of Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Love the fresh dirt we bring over daily from Naughty Gossip? Let us know in the comments!

Meme Alert: This Gorilla Who Gives Hilarious TED Talks

Brendan Bures
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Meme Alert: This Gorilla Who Gives Hilarious TED Talks

No meme is born the same way. You never know from which corner a new meme will take place and capture our collective internet imaginations. The latest comes courtesy of a combination of the LA Zoo, Reddit, and Twitter. Allow us to explain. The LA Zoo hosts a Roaring Night series during the summer, when adults can check out animals and botanical gardens after hours with some late night vibes. Following one such night, a Reddit user noticed this gorilla picture.

As the Reddit user wrote, the gorilla looks like a professor giving an “undergraduate philosophy lecture outside since it’s a nice day.”

 

But soon the picture caught steam with a slight remix. People imagined the gorilla giving stellar TED talks. The popularity of memes nowadays capitalize on a simple premise, everyone can put their own twist on. Let us be the first to say, the internet succeeded. The Harambe jokes are on point.

https://twitter.com/RamAlbumClub/status/878909220749496320

https://twitter.com/memeprovider/status/878655867469647872

So in conclusion, don’t forget: If it can happen to Harambe, it can happen to you.

The Wacko Gadget That Fills Bananas With Goo And WHY?

Sam Jones
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The Wacko Gadget That Fills Bananas With Goo And WHY?

Nobody asked for this. No one wanted this. But here it is anyway: the Banana Surprise Yumstation.

Kitchen gadget reviewer Rhik Samadder for the Guardian was brave enough to test this monstrosity out himself, so we didn’t have to. He called it “one of the most striking things I’ve ever seen but it is also one of the most abominable and traumatizing things I’ve ever tried.”

The concept for this device is simple, yet horrifying. First, choose your viscous foodstuff: cream, jam, chocolate, toffee, whatever is squirtable and would go inside of a banana. Actually, no, nothing should go inside of a banana, but if you can have an open mind about it, perhaps one of those might work.

You’ll then basically core the banana using a tube that’s in the shape of a plastic banana—a banana is impaling another banana here—and use a separate tube to squirt your liquids into the hole the corer left.

Samadder describes the process in an interview with CBC:

There’s a thing, a sort of swabbing stick, that you push down the hollows of the straws to clean them. There’s a lot of plastic tubes going into things and coming out of things. You’re pumping fluids into other fluids. It’s just a very messy, sticky, horrifying affair. You’d actually be better off just putting a straw down a banana with your bare hand. The fact that this thing has been designed at all makes me think it has some sort of dark ulterior purpose.

Absolutely disgusting. Whoever invented this needs to find a different hobby than violating innocent fruits and marketing it to children.

10 Types Of Marijuana To Make Fireworks Even Better

Maria Loreto
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10 Types Of Marijuana To Make Fireworks Even Better

If you’ve already stocked up on fireworks, beer and food for your 4th of July bash then make sure to remember about marijuana, also known as the perfect fireworks companion. Trust us, your independence day will be so much better.

RELATED: The Best Hydrating Cocktails For A Hot Weekend

Know that there are multiple ways to consume marijuana, you can eat or drink it, rub it into your skin, vape, smoke and much more. Ask the budtenders at your local dispensary which products have the strains listed and then pick how you want to put it into your body. Here are 10 types of marijuana to make fireworks even better!

https://giphy.com/gifs/broadcity-broad-city-ilana-glazer-hail-to-the-kween-3osxYrgM8gi9CDjcPu

GTO

This hybrid is well balanced, bringing soothing and talkative effects that are perfect for a mid-day barbeque and mingling with your guests. It smells delicious and it’ll also make you feel like you’re brimming with energy.

Wappa

This indica strain will make you feel euphoric, happy and giggly with a very strong and delicious smell of delicious candy.

Skywalker Alien

This indica will make you feel happy, relaxed and free of all types of mental and physical stress. This strain’s focus is a cerebral one, that’s great for having great conversations and get togethers.

Purple Maui

This sativa is purpled colored and useful for recreational and medicinal uses. It’s also fast acting and not that intense, so it won’t leave you with crazy red eyes or making any time to consume.

Blue Jay Way

https://giphy.com/gifs/happy-leonardo-dicaprio-cheers-QMkPpxPDYY0fu

RELATED: Read 5 Inspiring Stories Of Cannabis Feminists’ ‘Coming Out’ Month

A great cure for nausea, restlessness and pain, this hybrid strain is very smelly and great for relaxing you when in social situations, easing any anxiety and nervousness.

Sour Dream

This strain is the cross of two famous types of cannabis that result in a powerful product that’ll leave you feeling uplifted and euphoric, great for social settings. It’s also very energizing, so you won’t be feeling like dozing off in the middle of your party.

Super Blue Dream

This hybrid is potent and fast acting, affecting you cerebrally more than physically, relieving you of any anxiety. While it’s still powerful and energizing, it’s not strong enough to bother you or be distracting.

Funky Monkey

This euphoric indica will make you feel talkative and smiley and it fits well with any type of social interactions.

Pine Tar Kush

This type of cannabis produces some very interesting social results, leaving you calm yet talkative. Its perfect for a quiet get together with some friends or a dinner.

Chocolate Meringue

https://giphy.com/gifs/cbc-kids-in-the-hall-sparkler-buddy-cole-3o7qE6SJP91elen3qw

This indica will elevate your mood and leave you feeling stress-free, talkative and super happy. It’ll also make you a little hungry, so it’s a perfect pairing for dinner plans with friends.

What’s All This Business With Poop In Iced Coffee?

Sam Jones
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What’s All This Business With Poop In Iced Coffee?

Are you sipping a delicious iced coffee right now? Don’t freak out, but if it’s from a big chain cafe, there’s probably feces in it.

A report from the BBC’s Watchdog found these shocking results. They found fecal matter in the iced coffees of three major coffee chains, Costa Coffee, Starbucks and Caffe Nero:

Seven out of 10 samples of Costa ice were found to be contaminated with bacteria found in faeces. At both Starbucks and Caffe Nero, three out of 10 samples tested contained the bacteria known as faecal coliforms.

Ice machines are notoriously filthy, and Starbucks has been called out before in health investigations around ice.

“These should not be present at any level, never mind the significant numbers found,” Expert Tony Lewis told the BBC. He said these types of bacteria are “opportunistic pathogens – the source of human disease.”

Following the BBC investigation, all three of the chains are either conducting their own investigations or making changes to how equipment is used. Costa updated its ice-handling guidelines and was installing new ice equipment storage. Starbucks started conducting its own investigation, stating that the company took hygiene “extremely seriously.” A Caffe Nero spokesman said “a thorough investigation” was under way, followed by “appropriate action” after their own findings are complete.

You’re better off making your own at home, where you can at least control what going into your cold brew, whether it’s fancy coffee-cubes or a little cannabis.

Gossip: Shonda Rhimes Was Surprised How People Treated Her After Losing 150 Lbs.; Adele Says She May Never Tour Again

Naughty Gossip
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Gossip: Shonda Rhimes Was Surprised How People Treated Her After Losing 150 Lbs.; Adele Says She May Never Tour Again

In her new Shondaland newsletter, the uber-producer behind “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal” reflects on how her recent weight loss of “closer to 150 lbs” brought unwanted attention from women and men alike.

“Women I barely knew gushed. And I mean GUSHED. Like I was holding-a-new-baby-gushed,” Rhimes wrote. “Only there was no new baby. It was just me. In a dress. With makeup on and my hair all did, yes. But…still the same me. In one of my same dresses (cause why am I gonna buy a NEW dress when I can take this to a seamstress and she can just make it smaller? Who am I, The Crown? No, I’m from the Midwest, baby, and I come with coupons). Women gushed anyway. And men? They spoke to me. THEY SPOKE TO ME. Like stood still and had long conversations with me about things. It was disconcerting. But even more disconcerting was that all these people suddenly felt completely comfortable talking to me about my body. Telling me I looked ‘pretty’ or that they were ‘proud of me’ or that ‘wow, you are so hot now’ or ‘you look amazing!’ ”

Rhimes expresses confusion over how “after I lost weight, I discovered that people found me valuable. Worthy of conversation. A person one could look at. A person one could compliment. A person one could admire.”

“You heard me. I discovered that NOW people saw me as a PERSON,” she wrote. “What the hell did they see me as before? How invisible was I to them then? How hard did they work to avoid me? What words did they use to describe me? What value did they put on my presence at a party, a lunch, a discussion? When I was fat, I wasn’t a PERSON to these people. Like I had been an Invisible Woman who suddenly materialized in front of them. Poof! There I am. Thin and ready for a chat.”

Rhimes goes on to say “being thinner doesn’t make you a different person. It just makes you thinner.”
[From People]

Adele Says She May Never Tour Again

“So this is it after 15 months on the road and 18 months of 25 we are at the end,” the letter read. “Touring is a peculiar thing, it doesn’t suit me particularly well. I’m a real homebody and I get so much joy in the small things.”

Adele, 29, however, reportedly told the crowd that she will continue to write music. “I only ever did this tour for you and to hopefully have an impact on you the way that some of my favorite artists have had on me live. And I wanted my final shows to be in London because I don’t know if I’ll ever tour again and so I want my last time to be at home,” she wrote. “I might never see you again at a live show. Who knows. But I will remember this for the rest of my life.”

Love the fresh dirt we bring over daily from Naughty Gossip? Let us know in the comments!

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