The Ryan Lochte summer from hell won’t end. A month after the fiasco he created in Rio and days after his 10-month suspension from swimming, anti-Lochte protestors rushed the stage just after the Olympic champion’s first performance on Dancing With the Stars.
Sam Sododeh, 48, and Barzeen Soroudi, 40, allegedly stormed the stage as judge Carrie Ann Inaba was reviewing Lochte’s dance routine with partner Cheryl Burke. NBC News reports that security quickly tackled the duo, and the LAPD arrested the two on “pending charges on suspicion of trespassing.”
A handful of women wearing the same anti-Lochte shirts were escorted out of the studio for shouting “liar.
The broadcast didn’t show Sododeh and Soroudi taking the stage—viewers only saw a split screen of a clearly shocked Inaba pleading with the two to “back off”—but U.S. swimmer Eddie Moses shot an Instagram video that captures some of the chaos following the incident.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BKR2npzgxhb/
ABC News also released footage filmed from a different angle.
As for Lochte, he seemed shaken but mostly unfazed by the protest.
“I’m doing good,” he told host Tom Bergeron when the show returned from commercial break. “So many feelings are going through my head right now. A little hurt.”
“I came out here and wanted to do something I’m completely not comfortable with, and I did, and I came out here with a big smile.”
Today’s flashback takes you to 1995, the year when the noontime luster of Cool Britannia (embodied in this classic Pulp track) was dimmed by the shadow of mad cow disease, which had claimed its first ever human victim, just outside of London.
Creuztfeldt-Jakob disease, which, as anyone in the mid-‘90s could have told you, is the more correct name for the human variant of mad cow, is part of the family of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE), which attack the brain, rendering it into a soggy, tattered mess, like an old kitchen sponge. TSEs can take years to present symptoms, but once they do the poor victim will experience memory loss, hallucinations, tics and seizures, growing dementia, then death.
You catch TSEs from eating brains or nerves. Creuztfeldt-Jakob comes from cows. If you eat a person, you might catch a kuru, like New Zealand’s Foré people did back in the early 20th century. (One more reason not to eat a person—even if it’s consensual.)
There is no treatment for TSEs. Once they get going, there’s no stopping them. The good news is that it is very difficult to catch them. Just don’t eat people. (Did we already tell you that?) And don’t eat cervelle de veau from an infected animal. (Steak, however, is A-OK.)
We tend to think of diseases as invading organisms that want to feast on our insides or, at the least, make a home of them. But TSEs are caused by prions, which are simply proteins. Proteins with bad attitudes. To function properly, proteins have to be folded in very precise ways. But prions are slovenly, and their mere presence gives other proteins…ideas. Like that troupe of mean girls you daughter fell in with in junior high who introduced her to fashion that made you feel prudish and music that made you feel old, prions entice the proteins in your brain to twist themselves in strange and provocative ways.
A corkscrew will work whether it twists clockwise or the reverse. Not so our brains. When the proteins in our head all twist the wrong way, we don’t suddenly develop Genghis Khan goatees and a taste for mayhem, like anti-world Spock does. No indeed. We look just the same; we just end up dead.
A growing body of literature shows that cannabis can protect the brain against degenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. However, only one study so far has tested its effect on TSE. Researchers observed the effect of the cannabinoid CBD on both tissue samples and living mice that had been infected by a TSE called scrapie, that typically affects sheep. The results showed that CBD both slowed the migration of prions into the brain and extended life for mice already infected, in each case by about 6 percent. Six percent is hardly a figure for celebration, but considering that there is absolutely no current treatment, it’s better than chopped liver.
However, there is one big problem: CBD is most effective against prions when it taken directly after infection—but TSEs can take years to manifest. In addition to that, there are myriad “little” problems, including the fact that scrapie is not Creutzfeld-Jakob and mice are not people.
If you’d like to stroll into the scientific weeds of this subject, read the initial study and this accessible critique by the Prion Alliance.
Lady Chablis and Alexis Arquette, both well-known icons in the trans community, passed away this weekend.
Chablis came to prominence following a prominent role in John Berendt’s bestselling, 1994 non-fiction novel Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, which focused on Savannah and its people, including a spotlight on Club One, where Chablis performed.
Much to her own insistence, Chablis would go on to star as herself in the 1997 Clint Eastwood film adaptation Midnight, which also starred John Cusack, Kevin Spacey, and Jude Law.
Chablis wrote a memoir of her own, titled Hiding My Candy. In the book, she forwarded not to have undergone gender reassignment surgery, though she publically referred to herself with female pronouns and legally changed her name to Lady Chablis.
Alexis Arquette had various and memorable roles in films like Pulp Fiction and The Wedding Singer. She is reported to have passed away with members of the Arquette family surrounding her as David Bowie’s “Starman” was playing. A cause of death was not specified.
Arquette also starred in a documentary about her transition into becoming a woman in a 2007 film Alexis Arquette: She’s My Brother, which was popular on the film festival circuit.
In February, her brother David Arquette revealed on a Kocktails with Khloe appearance that Alexis had stopped referring to herself as transgender.
“She was like, ‘Yeah, sometimes I’ll be a man, sometimes I’ll be a woman. I like to refer to myself as gender suspicious,'” David said.
Just like with Lady Chablis, various celebrities took to Twitter to voice their condolences.
Have you heard about the upcoming show Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg are hosting? It’s called “Martha and Snoop’s Potluck Dinner Party,” and it has all the makings of the best frat party you ever did attend, minus the sticky floors.
Each week, Martha and Snoop will entertain new celebrity guests, like 50 Cent, Robin Thicke, and Keke Palmer, who will be assisting with cocktail and food prep. And hopefully conversation.
Recently, TMZ caught up with Martha at LAX. They asked the obvious question, which was basically, “Are you and Snoop going to get high on camera, pretty please?” She gave a dodgy “yes.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjG2qs0KQ_E
No premiere date has been set, but the show will air on VH1.
The Philadelphia Inquirerreports Lisa Lobree was minding her own business near Philly’s Art Museum on Labor Day morning when she heard a noise in a nearby tree. Next thing she knew a big-ass fish fell onto her face.
“Suddenly I was slammed by something,” she said. “I was like, ‘What?!’ I was freaking out.”
The catfish, which is believed to have been dropped by a hawk or eagle, knocked the stunned Lobree to the ground, where concerned onlookers asked if she was okay as her friends shouted about a fish. “It definitely hurt me, and I didn’t know what happened,” she said.
Lobree’s injuries were relatively minor—just a small cut, which she thought was fish guts, and some swelling—but the olfactory damage was more substantial.
“I smelled really bad,” she said, adding that it took 30 minutes in the shower to wash away the stench. “I was so disgusted.”
Later, she developed a fever that she feared might have been caused by the fish; however, her doctors, who initially didn’t believe her story, assured her it wasn’t, though the stress of the ordeal might have had something to do with it.
As of Friday, a full four days later, Lobree was still telling the story.
“People are still asking me about the cut on my face,” she said. “They say, ‘What happened to you?’ And it’s like, ‘Here we go again.’ “
Shaquille O’Neal isn’t afraid to play the clown. Nor is he afraid to play a genie, but this post isn’t about Kazam, (though maybe it should be.)
A few weeks ago, Kanye West debuted the music video for Life of Pablo track “Fade” following a speech at the MTV VMA’s. But all everyone discussed afterward, and continues to discuss, is Teyana Taylor’s jaw-dropping choreography. It’s absolutely stunning.
So much so apparently, that Shaq decided to take the dance moves for a spin on Instagram yesterday, breaking it down in his skivvies. In other words this is obviously NSFW a.k.a. No Shaq Fun at Work, as the acronym commonly refers to.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BKPAnXEDkCo/
This, of course, is not the first time Shaq has shown off his underwear game. In 2015, during an episode of NBA on TNT, Shaq claimed someone stole his pants and decided to start the show whilst not wearing any. Classic Shaq.
His NBA on TNT co-host Kenny Smith couldn’t resist the opportunity to clown Shaq. The Jet followed Shaq around, shuffling about Turner HQ pants-less, so many he really couldn’t find his pants?
https://www.instagram.com/p/-Aa-3do0u2/
The pants-less streak continued several months later. At halftime of a Rockets-Bulls matchup, Shaq promised the Rockets would win and Dwight Howard would lead the way with 19 points and eight boards. Why Shaq believed in Howard beats me, but he announced he’d go pants-less if Howard and the Rockets didn’t win.
Well guess what? They didn’t! Shaq initially refused to drop his trousers, but eventually succumbed to the peer pressure.
And while he didn’t necessarily drop his pants, Shaquille O’Neal wrestled co-host Charles Barkley off-air. The footage comes courtesy of the Atlanta Hawk’s Jarret Jack’s Instagram. He might not have lost the pants there, but it appears quite possible that Shaq ripped his pants during the wrestling match. If I had to guess, I’d say he did.
Halloween will soon be upon us and you know what that means. No, really. Do you know what that means? Do you understand the scope of what is happening to us right now? Holiday candy season has officially resumed!
From now until February we can look forward to a surplus of, no doubt, recycled candy in celebration of Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Valentine’s Day. We get a small reprieve in April when Easter rolls around and then it’s candy drought time again until school starts, kids.
What do each of these holidays have in common? They all have the same candy cheerleader. The one who will never date the captain of the football team.
Originally called Chicken Feed when it was introduced in the 1880s, candy corn has morphed into a chameleon. There’s different colored and flavored candy corn for Halloween, Thanksgiving (Indian Corn), Christmas (Reindeer Corn), Valentine’s Day (Cupid Corn), Easter (Bunny Corn) and even Fourth of July (Freedom Corn). Let’s make candy corn great again!
If you are the type of person who would rather enjoy a cheese course for dessert instead of a chocolate hurricane on your plate, you are not going to like candy corn.
Despite containing all of the essential vitamins and minerals — hydrogenated palm kernel oil, shellac, etc.— nobody wants to see candy corn in their trick-or-treat bag, grandma’s candy dish, bulk candy bin or even on store shelves. They might as well start selling candy corn at animal shelters, because it’s the sweet treat that is always looking for a loving home.
But things are changing. It appears candy corn has hired a new PR firm, because Brach’s has released three dynamic new flavors to bring candy corn into the current century: Peanut Butter Cup, Sea Salt Chocolate and Brunch Favorites. Yes: fuckingbrunch! I saw a photo of it on my friend’s Instagram account about a week ago and my eyes wouldn’t even let me see the word brunch (I read “crunch”) because there’s no way that’s a real thing, right?
Wrong.
Photo courtesy of Julien Perry
Found exclusively at Target, Brunch Favorites candy corn comes in three flavors: French Toast & Maple Syrup, Waffles & Strawberry and Chocolate Chip & Pancake. Let’s be real. This is breakfast, not brunch. If it was brunch, I’d expect flavors like Smoked Trout & Hash, Chicken & Waffles, and Bloody Mary & Garnish. But this is by far the kinkiest candy corn has ever gotten and I’m totally a fan. But then, I’ve always been a fan. And not because of the taste. Let me explain.
I appreciate candy corn for its no bullshit attitude. In the face of so many novelty candies, it just sits there, being candy corn; the girl in the corner nobody wants to dance with until all the other girls pass out from trying too hard. Candy corn has no interest in trotting out the newest moves on the dance floor. Candy corn will break out the waltz and maybe even the pop-and-lock on a good day, but that’s it. Candy corn is not concerned with your approval, because not liking candy corn is missing the point. It’s not the best candy, nor is it even a great one. It’s not trying to be either. Candy corn is a metaphor for humility, self confidence, individualism and longevity. Ask Lifesavers. They get it.
I’m not going to sit here and tell you how amazing the new Brunch Favorites candy corn is, because it’s not. It’s candy corn. But what I will say is that the French Toast & Maple Syrup actually tastes like a combination of the two, and that is no easy feat. Runner up: Waffles & Strawberry. Both really great flavor combos. Chocolate Chip & Pancakes, on the other hand, doesn’t even really taste like chocolate. In fact, it tastes a lot like the French Toast & Syrup, because, you know, syrup. If you can resist the intoxicating vapors of maple upon opening the bag, do not even bother eating what’s inside. This candy is not for you.
For people who hate candy corn, I have some advice: stop trying to force it. Candy corn is never going to change for you or anyone else, despite your mockery.
I hear a lot of candy corn haters describe it as “sickening sweet.” It’s a tired trope. Of course it’s sweet! If you don’t like sugar, you are not going to like candy corn, which is straight up sugar. If you are the type of person who would rather enjoy a cheese course for dessert instead of a chocolate hurricane on your plate, you are not going to like candy corn. If you are the type of person who orders cake doughnuts instead of the ones that are filled with things like jelly, cream and extra sugar, you are not going to like candy corn. If your favorite coffee drink is an Americano, with not even a float of milk, you are not going to like candy corn.
I once watched a video of someone reviewing candy corn. It was hard to sit through. “It’s cloyingly sweet,” they stated. “It’s got a weird texture. I’d rather be eating a Snickers.” Are you for real right now?
Listen. We all need to keep our expectations in check when eating anything with the words “candy corn” on the label because it’s fucking candy corn. It’s not going to surprise you one day by tasting like a Pierre Hermé creation, served in a fancy box with coiffed ribbon. Candy corn is basically penny candy made with ingredients that probably cost even less, if that’s possible. The joy of candy corn comes not from its taste or presentation, it comes from the pure fact that it’s chewy sugar that you can eat by the handfuls. It’s functional. By pure definition, candy corn is candy (sugar) + corn (shaped). It’s not here to impress you. And that’s why I love it and will always love it, no matter what flavor it decides to embody next. I also love candy corn’s progeny, the Circus Peanut. But that’s a story for another day.
In defense of Brach’s brunch favorites candy corn, it is new and trendy with 3 breakfast flavors!
Observing that stoners are “lazy” is likely to get you labeled as a troglodyte by your sophisticated friends. However, speculating that cannabis use may impede decision-making and, therefore, support the “Transient Amotivational Syndrome” hypothesis, might just get you the funding for another post-doc that will inch your career further along the ever-receding path to tenure.
Whatever sounds you care to envelop the underlying concept in—“lazy,” “amotivated,” “de-incentivized,” “contra-laboraphilic”—cannabis may likely make users that way. At least temporarily.
That’s the finding of a paper published online this month by the journal Pschychoparmacology. This double-blind, controlled study gave its 17 subjects either the equivalent of about a join’s worth of cannabis vapor or an equal volume of bupkis, and then tested their willingness to do meaningless menial work for paltry pay. To wit: Participants could either press a spacebar 30 times in seven seconds for the British-money equivalent of about 70 cents, or they could press a spacebar 100 times in 21 seconds for about three bucks.
The results will not amaze: The people who were high were disinclined to press the spacebar faster than they had to, by a margin of 50 percent (un-high and willing) to 43 percent (high and unwilling).
Obviously, haters will find in these results confirmation of their suspicions about the demon weed. But for most of us, amotivation is the whole reason for recreational marijuana use. We reach for a joint (or a cocktail, for that matter) to unwind from a busy day, not to get a boost before the second shift. If it’s twitchy, nervous energy you want, well, let’s just say there are better ways to get it.
Here’s the biggest boost for our optimistic theory of the case: According to the reachers’ observations, the amotivational effect wears off in about 12 hours, even among the most committed devotees of the herb. So, smoke away and bask in the sweet balm of indolence and idleness! Just get to bed early, and tomorrow you’ll be as money-driven and sharp-elbowed as any striver in a neighboring cubical. At least you will be by lunch time.
You should read lead researcher Will Lawn’s own lucid and entertaining account of the study. It’s a good read—even if it was written by a scientist.
Last month, Tania Farah, the wife of four-time Olympic gold medalist Mo Farah, made headlines after she reportedly yelled at a Delta Flight flight attendant, telling the woman she was “pathetic,” led a “sad little life”, and was being “disrespectful. Now, Farah is fighting back with claims that the flight attendant disrespected her husband and sent their family to the back of the line.
“This woman basically humiliated him until people came forward and said: ‘That’s Mo Farah, the Olympic champion,” Farah toldThe Daily Telegraph. She was mortified afterwards, but had basically yelled at him like he was a piece of shit to get back into line.”
“He was the only black person [in the queue] and hadn’t done anything to warrant it. I just knew she had a problem with him.”
Farah’s tirade at the flight attendant reportedly lasted 10 minutes, according to a witness who spoke to the Daily Mail, and began after the Farahs weren’t allowed to board with the rest of the first class passengers. Some witnesses said they arrived late, and that’s why they weren’t allowed to board early.
“It wasn’t at the top of her voice but loud,” witness Jen Erdmann said. “Mo stood there with their daughter but if that were my kids they would be so embarrassed. She called the agent disrespectful a lot of times. When a supervisor arrived Tania referred to the agent as ‘this pathetic little woman.”
“She said she was taking her sad little life out on them,” Erdmann added. “She was swearing a lot, it was peppered throughout. She talked about ‘fucking’ problems on this fucking airline.”
The Farahs and Tania’s 11-year-old daughter finally boarded the plane after another Delta official intervened. They were reportedly applauded by the passengers after another flight attendant announced their presence.
During a recent stop on Beyoncé’s Formation world tour, she halted her performance of “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)” halfway through. Teasing fans, Bey announced she needed to bring someone on stage. And then she introduced Formation tour creative director John Silver to his hometown St. Louis crowd.
Beyoncé handed Silver the microphone. He shouted out his St. Louis roots and embraced dance captain, Ashley Everett. Following a brief speech, he dropped to a knee and asked if he could put a ring on it. She of course said yes. A quick celebration and the song’s performance resumed and Beyoncé cheekily said, “Now let’s see you do the choreography after that.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BKOS6veBm_r/
Beyoncé has delivered numerous surprises throughout her current tour, and the video below is proof that if you have the chance to go, you should.
