WAAF News Blog

If you know any athletes who've worked their whole lives to compete in these Olympics, PLEASE get this message to them.  STOP TWEETING. Yesterday, ANOTHER athlete was kicked out of the Olympics for an offensive tweet.  That's the third Olympic tweeting controversy in less than a week. On Sunday, Switzerland's men's soccer team lost two-to-one to South Korea. Afterward, one Swiss player, 23-year-old Michel Morganella, tweeted that the South Koreans should, quote, "all burn" and, quote, "they're a bunch of [ret*rds]."

The Swiss Olympic Committee sent him home yesterday.  He's since deleted his Twitter account and has apologized. Last week, a Greek triple jumper was kicked out of the Olympics for a racist tweet against Greece's African immigrants.

Earlier this week, Lolo Jones, an American hurdler, tweeted that Americans should be good at, quote, "da gun shooting competition."  She will not be kicked off the team.

#1.)  Chinese trampolinist Dong Dong.

#2.)  Canadian swimmer Victoria Poon. 

#3.)  Austrian heptathlete Ivona Dadic.

#4.)  South Korean pole vaulter Yoo Suk Kim.

#5.)  New Zealand cyclist Jack Bauer . . . like from "24".

#6.)  Swiss equestrian athlete Werner Muff.

#7.)  Canadian track star Gavin Smellie.

#8.)  Japanese volleyball player Yoshie Takeshita.

#9.)  Chinese sailor Aichen Wang.

#10.)  A track and field athlete from Trinidad and Tobago named . . . Sparkle McKnight.

Remember five years ago when rappers were all about wearing GRILLZ over their teeth?  Well, apparently that trend just caught on in the world of U.S. swimming.

--When RYAN LOCHTE beat MICHAEL PHELPS to win his first gold medal on Saturday, he planned to wear a special red, white, and blue GRILL on the medal stand.  But the Olympic organizers heard about it . . . and told him NO.

--Apparently, they told Lochte that if he wore the grillz, they WOULDN'T GIVE HIM his medal.  So he didn't.  Which, long-term, he'll probably be happy about.  They really did protect him from himself.

We've got a cool article here from Cracked.com on weird ways you can trick your body into working better.  Here are the four we found the most interesting.

#1.)  Before You Take a Nap, Drink a Cup of Coffee.  According to at least one study, it's better than doing one or the other when you need to wake yourself up.

--It works because caffeine doesn't kick in for about 15 minutes, which means you have to drink it RIGHT before you lie down.  And you have to make it a SHORT nap.

#2.)  Don't Stretch Before a Workout.  Researchers at the University of Nevada tested it both ways, and the people who stretched their legs before they did a lower-body workout actually generated less force than they did WITHOUT stretching.

--Other studies have found that stretching can decrease muscle strength by 30%, which means your workout won't be as intense.

--Plus, stretching can actually do the OPPOSITE of what you expect and make your muscles TIGHTEN.  When you stretch, your limbs basically think they're about to be snapped off.  So the muscles tighten and make you MORE likely to pull something.

--That's why you should warm up by doing something like jumping jacks instead.  And you SHOULD still stretch, because it makes you more flexible.  But you should do it AFTER you work out, or on a day you're not going to the gym.

#3.)  Eavesdrop with Your Right Ear.  This has to do with the right and left sides of your brain, and the science behind it is kind of complicated.  But basically, our left ear has evolved to be better at hearing TONES, like music.

--And our right ear is better at hearing speech.  There's not a HUGE difference, but if you're trying to listen through a wall or something, you're better off using your right ear.

#4.)  Reset Your Sleep Cycle by Skipping a Few Meals.  The MAIN way your body regulates your biological clock is through light.  So, if it's midnight and you're staring at a bright TV screen, your brain thinks the sun's still out.

--But another factor is FOOD.  A Harvard Medical School study found that if you fast for 12 to 16 hours, your brain automatically thinks it's morning the next time you eat.

--For example, if you need to start waking up earlier . . . at say, six in the morning . . . you should stop eating between 2 P.M. and 6 P.M. the day before.  Then have a good breakfast as soon as you get up.

Yesterday, the NCAA announced its punishment for Penn State, based on the findings from the Freeh Report that they grossly mishandled the JERRY SANDUSKY child sex abuse scandal for more than a decade.

--The NCAA did NOT impose the "Death Penalty," which would've meant banning the school from competing in football for a year.

--The only football program that's received that penalty was Southern Methodist University in the late '80s, and they've never really recovered.  That "death penalty" was handed out after the NCAA found evidence SMU was paying its players.

--Instead, here are the penalties they levied on Penn State . . .

--A $60 MILLION fine, which will go toward a fund for victims of sexual abuse.  That money is about the equivalent of one year of football revenue.

--A four-year ban from competing in any bowl games.

--A reduction of scholarships from 25 per year to 15 per year for the next four years.  That's looked at as a significant hindrance in their recruiting process.

--Any current players or committed recruits are allowed to transfer immediately.  Normally NCAA rules make a player sit out one year when they transfer, but all Penn State transfers can skip that and play somewhere else immediately.

--And finally, all of their victories from 1998 through 2011 have been vacated.  That moves JOE PATERNO from 409 career wins to 298, which drops him from first place on the all-time list to 12th place.

--ESPN's Big Ten blogger says that the financial aspects of this punishment won't cripple Penn State, and the vacated victories are really just symbolic.  But the transfer rules and reduced scholarships COULD significantly impact the program.

--They won't be able to have a roster made up entirely of scholarship players until 2018 . . . so it could take until after 2020 for Penn State to be a football power again.  Not that any of that will make Sandusky's victims sleep better.

Good news, misogynists.  Your day has arrived.  In a massive new global study, scientists have officially declared that women are LAZIER than men.

--The study is based on the percentage of each gender who are considered INACTIVE.  That's defined as doing less than 30 minutes of moderate activity five days a week or 20 minutes of vigorous activity three times a week.

--Worldwide, 31.1% of adults are inactive . . . meaning they get little to no exercise.  34% of women are inactive versus 28% of men.

--In the U.S., 40.5% of adults are inactive . . . that's significantly higher than the global average of 31.1%.  And that includes almost HALF of American women, at 47.4%.  For American men, 33.5% are inactive.

--Malta is the laziest country in the world with an inactivity rate of 71.9%.  (--Malta is a small European island country in the Mediterranean.)

--Bangladesh is the least-lazy country, with an inactivity rate of only 4.7%.

(Time / The Lancet)

In case you don't realize how similar we all are, we've got a list here of seven weird things that EVERYONE does.  According to Buzzfeed.com, it's stuff you probably do all the time.  You just never talk about it.

#1.)  You Keep Singing Along to a Song After You Leave the Room.  Then when you come back, you see if you're still in sync with it. 

#2.)  When You're Writing the Word "Wednesday," You Sound It Out in Your Head as "Wed-Nes-Day."  And you probably do the same thing with the word "beautiful."  You sound it out as B-E-A-U-tiful. 

#3.)  You Write the Wrong Date on a Check So You Look More Responsible.  Like when you're supposed to mail a check by the first of the month, but you don't get around to sending it until the third.

#4.)  You're Cooking Something Like Macaroni & Cheese, and You Throw Away the Package Too Soon.  So you have to dig it out of the trash to look at the directions again.

#5.)  Your Cell Phone Is Covered in Smudges.  So you wipe the screen with your thumb until all the smudge marks are going in the same direction.

#6.)  You Make a Mistake While You're Entering Your Password on a Website.  But instead of using the backspace key, you delete the whole thing and start over.

#7.)  You Hate the Sound of Your Microwave Beeping.  So you always stop it when there's one second left.

(Buzzfeed.com)

#1.)  It took officials two days to remove all the booby traps the shooter left in his apartment.  That included liquids, explosives, and chemicals that would've killed anyone who entered . . . if the shooter hadn't TOLD THEM about the traps.

#2.)  His semi-automatic rifle jammed during the shooting, because of a problem with the 100-shot magazine.  And the FBI believes it saved several lives.  He had to switch to a handgun, which couldn't fire as many rounds as quickly.

#3.)  It's clear the attack was being planned, quote, "with calculation and deliberation" for MONTHS.  The shooter purchased the guns legally from local gun shops starting back in May, and bought ammo and Kevlar online a few weeks ago.

#4.)  This is the worst shooting in the U.S. since the attack at Fort Hood in Texas in 2009, when an Army psychiatrist with Islamic fundamentalist sympathies killed 13 soldiers and civilians and wounded dozens more.

#5.)  The shooter is being held in solitary confinement on suspicion of 12 counts of first-degree murder.  He's in solitary because inmates at the Arapahoe Detention Center in Colorado apparently can't stop talking about KILLING HIM.

--Remember, one of his victims was a six-year-old girl.  And child-killers do NOT do well in prison.

--A jail employee says he hasn't shown any remorse, and was spitting at the door and the guards.  His initial hearing is today, and he's been assigned a public defender.  Colorado DOES have the death penalty.

#6.)  Regal Cinemas and AMC both instituted bans on wearing costumes to movies in the wake of the shooting.  AMC banned all masks and fake weapons . . . Regal just announced, quote, "stricter controls over character attire."

--In this case, the shooter bought a ticket and sat in the front of the theater WITHOUT a costume.  After the movie started, he snuck out through an emergency exit, went to his car, and put on body armor and a gas mask before re-entering the theater.

--Still, when he re-appeared with the gear and the weapons, and threw a canister of gas, the first people who saw him thought it was part of the midnight showing.

TOM CRUISE was reportedly blindsided and heartbroken by KATIE HOLMES' divorce filing . . . but if we're to believe the"National Enquirer", there's already a new girl waiting to take Katie's place.

--Her name is YOLANDA PECORARO . . . she's 37 and a Scientologist like Tom.  Some people even claim they dated briefly in 2004.

--She's an actress, but she's mostly been in low-budget stuff so far.  (--Although she did play "pretty woman" in the 2009 romantic comedy "The Ugly Truth", starring Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler.)

--So-called "sources" say the Church of Scientology is embarrassed by how the whole Katie situation developed and all the negative publicity they got from it, and they want to, quote, "stabilize the situation" by hooking Tom up again.

--When asked if she's Tom's next in line, Yolanda gave kind of a non-denial denial . . . quote, "Yes, I knew and still know Tom Cruise.  And no, I'm not married or engaged."

According to new research from the University of Missouri, HOW you use Facebook says as much about your personality as WHAT you put on Facebook . . . or even how often you log in.

--They broke down Facebook users into two general groups . . . and BOTH groups use the site a LOT.

--If you're the kind of person who uploads photos, updates your status, and engages with other people and what they post, it means you like high-risk activities.

--If you're more likely to just sit back, read your news feed, and check out what OTHER people are posting, instead of posting things yourself . . . it means you're risk-averse. 

--Either way, advertisers and employers are probably watching and paying attention.  In other words, even if you think you don't do much on Facebook, you're telling people a lot about yourself with your inaction.  Supposedly.

SYLVESTER STALLONE'S son SAGE was found dead in his Los Angeles home by a maid on Friday.  He was only 36 years old.  The cause of death is unknown at this time.

--Sylvester's rep issued a statement saying he's, quote, "devastated and grief-stricken over the sudden loss of his son Sage Stallone.

--"His compassion and thoughts are with Sage's mother, Sasha.  Sage was a very talented and wonderful young man, his loss will be felt forever." 

--A source adds, quote, "This came completely out of the blue.  Sylvester did not see this coming for one minute.  Sage was healthy, and Sylvester thought he was doing really well, this came from complete left field.

--"Sylvester was very close to Sage and he is absolutely overwhelmed with grief by his death.  He is totally stunned and still in a state of shock."

(--Sasha was Stallone's first wife.  They also have a son named Seargeoh who is autistic.  Stallone also has three daughters with his current wife, Jennifer Flavin.  In between Sasha and Jennifer, Stallone made the unwise choice of marrying Brigitte Nielsen.)

--Sage Moonblood Stallone . . . yes, that's his real middle name . . . appeared with his dad in two movies.  In 1990, he played Rocky's son in "Rocky 5".  And he was in Sly's 1996 action flick "Daylight".

--After that he co-founded Grindhouse Releasing, which was dedicated to restoring old horror and cult movies for theatrical re-release and DVD.

--Sage did act in some low-profile stuff in recent years, but he turned down the opportunity to play Rocky's son again in "Rocky Balboa" because of his Grindhouse obligations.  (--The part went to Milo Ventimiglia.)

(--Check out some photos of Sage through the years here.)

There have always been rumors that women shouldn't go camping or swimming during their time of the month . . . since BEARS and SHARKS are attracted by it.

--Well . . . it's not true.  In fact, studies disproved it over 20 years ago.  You can feel free to camp or swim and not worry that your flow is going to lead to the DEATH OR MAULING of everyone you know and love.

It's almost hard to remember, but once upon a time, you DIDN'T see new photos of yourself on a weekly basis.  We took photos only on special occasions and the film had to actually be developed.  Sure, we looked in the mirror, but that's not the same.

--But today, we look at photos of ourselves CONSTANTLY . . . and that's SHREDDING our self-confidence.  Dr. Adam Schaffner is a plastic surgeon in New York.  He says plastic surgery numbers keep going up . . . and Facebook is the reason.

--Quote, "With a good degree of frequency, people will come in and say, 'I saw myself in the mirror but I didn't really notice it until I saw myself on Facebook or on my iPhone.'

--"When you look in the mirror, you're seeing the mirror image of yourself.  But when you see yourself on social media, you're seeing yourself the way the world sees you."

--Dr. Yael Halass is another plastic surgeon who agrees.  She says, quote, "I'd say maybe 80% of the time patients whip out a photo of themselves on an iPhone and say, 'See this?  This is what I'm talking about.'"

--Cosmetic surgeries were up 2% in 2011 despite the economy.  Facelifts were up 5% and chin augmentations were up 71% . . . both of those are common surgeries people want after seeing unflattering Facebook photos.

Sony and Nielsen have collaborated on a study to determine the "most impactful televised events" in history . . . and perhaps not surprisingly, the September 11th attacks came in at #1.

--The goal of the study was to determine an "Impact Score" to show which events "caused visceral reactions that are embedded in our memories."  This is the stuff that became monumental, primarily because of what we saw on TV.

--They figured out how many people watched each event live, asked people if they remembered details about what they saw . . . and asked if they remembered talking about watching it with others.

--Here's the Top 20:

1.)  The Attacks of 9/11  (2001)

2.)  The Levees Breaking During Hurricane Katrina  (2005)

3.)  The O.J. Simpson Verdict  (1995)

4.)  The Challenger Space Shuttle Disaster (1986)

5.)  The Killing of Osama bin Laden  (2011)

6.)  The O.J. Simpson White Bronco Chase (1994)

7.)  The Japan Earthquake  (2011)

8.)  The Columbine Attacks (1999)

9.)  The BP Gulf Oil Spill  (2010)

10.)  Princess Diana's Funeral  (1997)

11.)  The Death of Whitney Houston  (2012)

12.)  The Capture and Execution of Saddam Hussein  (2006)

13.)  Barack Obama's Acceptance Speech  (2008)

14.)  The Royal Wedding  (2011)

15.)  The Assassination of John F. Kennedy  (1963)

16.)  The Oklahoma City Bombing  (1995)

17.)  The Bush / Gore Election Results (2000)

18.)  The L.A. Riots (1992)

19.)  The Casey Anthony Verdict (2011)

20.)  The Funeral of John F. Kennedy  (1963)

Tom and Peggy McElvoy of Mansfield, Texas are both 79 years old . . . and their hearing has started to go.  (--Mansfield is 35 miles southwest of Dallas.)         

--To cope with their hearing loss, Tom and Peggy each have special headphones they wear while watching TV . . . so they can set the volume to different levels.     

--On June 2nd, they were watching a rerun of "JAG" with their headphones on . . . and didn't notice that they were being ROBBED.
 

--Someone broke the glass on the door to their bedroom to get in . . . 15 feet away from where Tom and Peggy were sitting.

--The burglars took Tom's money clip, two watches, and almost all of Peggy's jewelry, including her wedding ring.  Altogether, it was worth about $20,000. 

"ESPN" magazine's annual "Body Issue" comes out this Friday.  And you know what that means:  We're going to get to see lots of athletes BUCK NAKED.

--We've got a couple of advance pics:  Surfer MAYA GABIERA . . . and ANNA TUNNICLIFFE of the U.S. Women's Sailing team. 

When you eat tacos, does it ever bother you how the hard shells break and fall apart while you eat them?

--A food blogger named Nick has come up with a new type of taco shell to fix that.  It's called the Tacone and, basically, it's a TACO IN A WAFFLE CONE.

--That way, you can eat your taco like you'd eat ice cream . . . which reduces the amount of spilling.  Nick says when he tried out his shell, not a single bit of his taco spilled.

--Of course, this was just one guy's invention, so there's no word on whether someone will start manufacturing these.  But if you really wanted them, you could replicate what he did and make it yourself. 

BOSTON, MA (July 9, 2012)  – Today WAAF announced the addition of “LOVELINE” with Dr. Drew Pinsky, Mike Catherwood and Simone Bienne to its evening programming line-up. The nationally-syndicated radio show tackles listeners’ questions about love, relationships and sexuality with the help of its expert hosts and advice from a regular line up of popular guests. “LOVELINE” will air weeknights from 9p.m. to 11p.m., beginning on Monday, July 9^th.

“WAAF prides itself on delivering multi-dimensional entertainment and pledges to its audience to be all things rock.  Simply put, ‘LOVELINE’ rocks!” said WAAF Program Director Ron Valeri.   “Dr. Drew, Mike and Simone are champion additions to the roster of WAAF personalities who have been rocking Boston for decades.   Welcome Dr. Drew and crew and thanks for bringing everybody’s favorite sport to Title town!”

Dr. Drew Pinsky is a Board certified internist and media’s go-to doctor for life coaching, relationships, addiction and all things medical.  In addition to “LOVELINE,” Dr. Drew is the producer and star of VH1’s “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew,” “Sex Rehab with Dr. Drew,” and “Celebrity Rehab Presents Sober House.”  He’s also the star of his own nightly talk show “Dr. Drew” on HLN and the host of various MTV programming including “Sex...With Mom and Dad,” “16 & Pregnant,” and “Teen Mom.”  Dr. Drew has also starred in his own television series “Strictly Sex with Dr. Drew” on the Discovery Health Channel and is the bestselling author of four books including his latest: The Mirror Effect: How Celebrity Narcissism Is Seducing America.

Mike Catherwood is one of the nation’s most recognized radio voices.  He gained national notoriety as a guest host alongside Kelly Rippa during Men in Radio Week on “Regis and Kelly.” He later appeared on ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars,” America’s highest rated television program at the time.

Simone Bienne is a renowned British psychosexual and relationship therapist who is a regularly featured TV contributor on HLN’s “Dr. Drew,” CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360” and the CW’s “LifeChangers.”

England's version of "Jersey Shore" is called "Geordie Shore", and one of its cast members is named Gary.  Last month, he tweeted a few photos of women sleeping in his bed after one-night stands, and used the hashtag "#bedofshame."

--And because so many guys out there are HORRIBLE PEOPLE . . . it's become a trend.

--Supposedly guys are now tweeting photos of women sleeping in their beds after one-night stands and tagging them with #bedofshame.  Kinda makes you weep for society, right?

--Just as it started taking off last week, two things happened:  A huge BACKLASH began . . . and Gary apologized and told people to stop posting the photos.  But, ya know, that's only going to be so effective.

--On Friday, he wrote on Twitter, quote, "I'm truly sorry for my behavior on Twitter, I know I've let you down.  I've deleted the photos and comments and please will you do the same?" 

There's a new list of The Sexiest Songs Ever Recorded on Buzzfeed.com . . . and the #1 spot went to BILLY PAUL'S 1972 single"Me and Mrs. Jones".

--Here's the Top 10:

1.)  "Me and Mrs. Jones",  Billy Paul  (1972)

2.)  "Into the Mystic",  Van Morrison  (1970)

3.)  "Pony",  Ginuwine  (1996)

4.)  "Whole Lotta Love",  Led Zeppelin  (1969)

5.)  "Love Hangover",  Diana Ross  (1976)

6.)  "Between the Sheets",  The Isley Brothers  (1983)

7.)  "Between the Sheets",  Meiko  (2011) . . . This is NOT a cover of the Isley Brothers song.  Its placement is apparently just a coincidence.

8.)  "Let's Spend the Night Together",  The Rolling Stones  (1967)

9.)  "Wicked Game",  Chris Isaak  (1989)

10.)  "Let's Get It On",  Marvin Gaye  (1973)

(--You can find audio and brief write-ups of each song at Buzzfeed.com.)

Well this pretty much guarantees I'm not going swimming in any lakes, streams, creeks, ponds, or swimmin' holes this summer.

--There's a rare fish in Papua New Guinea and other South Pacific countries called the pacu fish.  Its nickname is the "BALL CUTTER" because it attacks men by . . . wait for it . . . BITING OFF and EATING THEIR TESTICLES.

--And a pacu fish just surfaced in a lake in southern Illinois.

--Last month, a fisherman caught one in Lake Lou Yaeger in Litchfield, Illinois.  He thought it was a piranha but it didn't have sharp piranha teeth . . . it looked like it had HUMAN TEETH.

--The Illinois Department of Natural Resources examined it and determined it was a pacu fish.  They assume the fish was illegally dumped in the lake . . . and they believe it was the only one, so it's allegedly safe to swim there.

--Supposedly, at least two fishermen in Papua New Guinea have died after the pacu ripped off their testes . . . and they bled to death.

Legendary Oscar-winning actor ERNEST BORGNINE died yesterday at the age of 95.  There's no word yet on the cause of death.

--Borgnine has several iconic roles on his resume.  He beat FRANK SINATRA to death in "From Here to Eternity".  He was one of the survivors of "The Poseidon Adventure".  And he was the title character on the '60s sitcom "McHale's Navy".

(--Ernest was actually in the Navy for 10 years before becoming an actor.)

--TIM CONWAY was one of Borgnine's co-stars on the show.  Decades later they would team up again to provide the voices for superheroes Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy on "SpongeBob SquarePants".

(--Borgnine was Mermaid Man.  Conway was Barnacle Boy.)

--In 1955, Borgnine won an Oscar for his role as a lonely butcher who finds love in "Marty".

--His other classic films include "The Wild Bunch", "Bad Day at Black Rock", "The Dirty Dozen" and "Escape from New York".

--He also had two other significant TV gigs:  He co-starred with Jan-Michael Vincent on the '80s action-adventure show"Airwolf", and played a doorman on the '90s sitcom "The Single Guy".

--Horror fans would know Ernest from a couple "classic" low-budget flicks he did in the '70s.

--He was done in by an army of vengeful rats in the original version of "Willard" in 1971 . . . and turned into a goat-headed demon thingy in the 1975 flick "The Devil's Rain", co-starring WILLIAM SHATNER and JOHN TRAVOLTA in his first film role.