Friday, December 28, 2012

FISCAL CLIFF
President Obama and congressional leaders meet today to try and figure out a solution to the so-called fiscal cliff  that we're set to reach on January 1st, when tax increases and spending cuts are due to go into effect. 

MORE THAN 50 THOUSAND IN DOWNTOWN FOR MUSIC CITY BOWL:
SOME LOTS SOLD OUT
More than 50,000 football fans are expected in downtown Nashville Monday morning for the Music City Bowl game between Vanderbilt and North Carolina State. Parking on the stadium campus is already sold out, however.
Stadium gates will open at 9 a.m. Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m. Find parking spaces ahead of time HERE. 

THE FRAY, AND LENNON AND MAISY STELLA HELP NASHVILLE RING IN THE NEW YEAR
The Music City New Year's Eve "Bash on Broadway" is Monday night. It'll include a Music Note Drop, confetti cannons, fireworks, and hours of live music. It's said to be the largest single New Year's Eve event in the South, with the largest light and pyro show. Artists include The Fray, Nashville-based Sixpence None the Richer, and internet sensations and "Nashville" stars Lennon and Maisy Stella.
Last year, the free outdoor event drew a record crowd of 55,000. The event will close streets on a staggered schedule through Wednesday. Lower Broadway and Commerce Street as well as parts of First, Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth avenues are among the closures. www.visitmusiccity.com/newyearseve

SOBRIETY CHECKPOINT
Metro police officers, including those working extra duty through a grant from the Governor's Highway Safety Office will conduct  sobriety checkpoints starting tonight (Friday). 

MANY ROAD CLOSURES THIS WEEKEND FOR EVENTS
The Titans will face the Jacksonville Jaguars at LP Field at noon Sunday, surrounded by the familiar tangle of game-day traffic.  The game will be followed by the Music City Bowl Battle of the Bands, an outdoor event on Second Avenue, at 5 p.m.

THP PREPARES FOR NEW YEAR'S EVE "NO REFUSAL" ENFORCEMENT
Five people died in car crashes last New Year's Eve. Three of the five deaths were alcohol-related. That's why the Tennessee Highway Patrol is doing another 'No Refusal' Weekend in Tennessee. "Suspected drunk drivers who refuse to take a breathalyzer test may be made to give a mandatory blood sample, and be tested that way." It's long been a tactic for drunk drivers to refuse the test to get out of the ticket. They even tell each other, "Always refuse to take the test. They can't prove anything that way. It's his word against yours."  Not this weekend. Cops can get a search warrant and test you anyway.

SOBER RIDE PROGRAM
There's no reason to drive drunk with the Sober Ride program in effect this weekend, and plenty of cabs available.
And remember to buckle up. Of the five people killed during last year's New Year's Eve period, three were not wearing safety restraints. In this past year, more than half the crash fatalities involved unrestrained vehicle occupants in Tennessee.

SAVING CARBS FOR DINNERTIME MIGHT HELP CONTROL WEIGHT
When you're trying to lose weight, it may not be so much what you eat as when. A study by Israeli researchers found that saving most of your carbohydrates, like potatoes, breads and pasta, for dinnertime it may help keep you from feeling hungry the next day, and help you eat less, overall.

WOMAN RAPED APPLYING FOR CRAIGSLIST JOB
Before you answer an ad for ANYTHING online, remember to make sure you have a safety plan! A Nashville woman just answered an ad on Craigslist for secretarial services, and got raped. Police say 38 year-old Timothy Story put fraudulent ads on Craigslist looking for secretarial help, and the woman came to his apartment on Dr. D.B. Todd Blvd,  to apply. That's where she was attacked. Story was caught when the woman escaped and called police. Detectives say if you're contacting anyone you meet on ANY website, make sure you have a safety plan, like meeting in a public place. 

WOMAN PUSHES MAN ONTO SUBWAY TRACKS
Commuters in New York City are on edge after a woman walked up to a man waiting for a train in Queens last night and pushed him into the path of a train.  He was killed, the suspect ran away. This is the second time someone's been pushed in front of a train this month. Witnesses say the woman had been sitting on a bench talking to herself just before she pushed the man. 

NORMAN SCHWARZKOPF DIES
One of the heroes of the first Gulf War has died.  Retired General Norman Schwarzkopf passed away in Tampa, Florida.  Schwarzkopf commanded coalition forces during the U.S. military campaign that drove Saddam Hussein's troops out of Kuwait.  He was 78.

POOR READING SKILLS LINKED TO TEEN PREGNANCY RISK
New research suggests seventh grade girls who don't read well are more likely to get pregnant in high school than girls who read at an average level or above. 21 percent compared to 12%.  You can draw your own conclusions about why poor readers are more likely to turn to unprotected sex.

GENETICISTS TO STUDY DNA OF CT MASS SHOOTER
Geneticists at the University of Connecticut will study the DNA of Adam Lanza.  He's the 20-year-old who carried out a shooting spree at a Newtown, Connecticut, elementary school that left nearly 30 children and adults dead.  This may be the first study of its kind.  The genetics team will likely be looking for a possible mutation or abnormality in Lanza's DNA that may have led to his deadly rampage.  Some experts have concerns that the team's findings might lead to bias against people with the same genetic characteristics as Lanza.  A geneticist at the University of Massachusetts calls the study risky because researchers can't conclude anything from looking at just one person.

BABY RECLINER RECALL
Now that five babies have been killed in them, the Nap Nanny baby recliners are being recalled. The baby recliners have design flaws that can lead to an infant hanging or falling out over the side of the Nap Nanny.

SMART WATCH IN THE WORKS
You know how it's hard to keep up with your phone sometimes? Apple is reportedly working on that problem by coming out with a Smart watch. You strap it on, and you have bluetooth connectivity, and a touch screen... so you use it like you do your phone. (The Chinese website Tech.163 says the watch could be on sale next year.)

ANGEL TREE ADOPTIONS A SUCCESS
The Salvation Army says, although it was a close call, there near the deadline, that all of the 18-THOUSAND children and elderly Angels on its Angel Tree this year were adopted, and had a nice Christmas because of you. That's more local people than ever before. But... the Salvation army still need volunteers and donations for all the other things they do during the year including a Soup Wagon for the homeless on Friday nights, and the summer camp for at-risk kids. You can get more information at www.salarmy-nashville.org

MOST POPULAR BABY NAMES KATNISS AND FINN
This year's most popular baby names are Katniss for girls and Finn for boys.  Katniss comes from the heroine of "The Hunger Games."  Nameberry.com calls it an interesting change from Sophia, last year's top name for girls.  The second most popular girls' name for the year is Charlotte.  Finn is at the top of the list for boys.  It appears to be a nod to the popular "Glee" character played by Cory Monteith.  Last year's top choice was Jacob.  This year's second-place finisher for boys is Asher.

"WHATEVER" TOPS LIST OF MOST ANNOYING WORD FOR THIRD CONSECUTIVE YEAR 
Most American adults could do without one word in the English language - "whatever."  According to a survey taken by Marist Poll, "whatever" was voted the most annoying word for the third year in a row.  The runner-up to "whatever" on the most annoying word list was "like."  Other phrases that people find irritating are "you know" and "just sayin'."  Rounding out the top five is "Twitterverse."  The word "seriously," which got seven percent of votes on the same survey from last year, dropped off the list entirely in 2012.  Results varied by age and region.  People younger than 45 were particularly annoyed by "like" and "you know."  The same went for people living in the Northeast. 

"GAME OF THRONES" MOST PIRATED TV SHOW OF YEAR
 "Game Of Thrones" was the most illegally downloaded television show of the year.  According to a study done by "Torrent Freak,"  the HBO series had more than four-point-two million downloads for a single episode.  Showtime drama "Dexter" was the runner-up with three-point-eight million downloads, followed by "The Big Bang Theory," "How I  Met Your Mother" and "Breaking Bad."  More than 80 percent of the illegal downloading takes place outside the U.S.  The study showed that "Game Of Thrones" is particularly popular in Australia, as viewers there have to wait a week longer than fans watching in the U.S.  Despite that, people in the U.S. seem to downloading it in the hundreds of thousands as well. 
Other shows that were highly pirated in 2012 include "The Walking Dead," "Homeland," "House," "Fringe" and "Revolution."

CHRISTMAS TREE DROP OFF RECYCLE SITES ANNOUNCED
When you take down that Christmas tree, Nashville officials encourage you to recycle it. The tree drop-off locations are open this week, at nine local parks, and a recreation center... and you can see which one is closest to you... on the mix929.com NEWS page. Then, after those trees are chopped up, you can buy that good mulch for your garden, for
This week, parks in Davidson County will be collecting Christmas trees to turn them into mulch for landscaping.  In Nashville, trees can be dropped off at nine parks, one recreation center and the former Lakewood City Hall building from Dec. 27 through Feb. 17.
Parks include:
* Cane Ridge - 419 Battle Rd.
* Cedar Hill - 860 Old Hickory Blvd.
* Edwin Warner - 50 Vaughn Rd.
* Elmington - 3531 West End Ave.
* Joelton - 21 Joelton Community Center Rd.
* Richland - 4601 Charlotte Pike
* Sevier - corner of Clayton Avenue and Granny White Pike, near picnic shelters
* Two Rivers - 3150 McGavock Pike
* Whitfield - Edmondson Pike at Brewer Drive
or
* Una Recreation Center, 136 Una Recreation Rd.
* Former Lakewood City Hall Building, 3401 Old Hickory Blvd. in Old Hickory
Almost 18,000 Christmas trees are recycled each year through the drop-off program, according to the city of Nashville.
You can buy the mulch made from the trees at the Bordeaux facility for $11 a cubic yard. Call 862-8640 or visit www.nashville.gov/pw.