WEDNESDAY, Feb 5 – DAILY PREP TEXT VERSION

MORNING SIDEKICK DAILY PREP TEXT VERSION FOR WEDNESDAY, February 5, 2025
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COMEDY MP3s POSTED ON OUR PREP SITE FOR TODAY: A&M AUTOLAND – You Won’t Find a Better Deal

TODAY IS …
(All days repeat annually on today’s date unless otherwise noted; days may or may not be called “National”/”International”/”World” depending on source; sources listed often have additional info. We generally do not list special days which were created by commercial companies for the purpose of marketing – including “holidays” created by the National Day Calendar and Wellcat websites to drive traffic to their websites – or the hundreds of disease awareness listings which occur each year.)

NATIONAL CHOCOLATE FONDUE DAY

NATIONAL GIRLS AND WOMEN IN SPORTS DAY
From various sources:
National Girls and Women in Sports Day is an annual day of observance held during the first week of February to acknowledge the accomplishments of female athletes, recognize the influence of sports participation for women and girls, and promote equality for women in sports.

NATIONAL SHOWER WITH A FRIEND DAY

NATIONAL WEATHER FORECASTER’S DAY
The National Today website says this:
“Honors meteorologists, weather forecasters, and broadcast meteorologists, as well as storm spotters and observers. It is commemorated on February 5, the birthday of John Jeffries, one of the first weather observers in the United States, who began taking daily measurements in 1774.”

February is:

Adopt a Rescued Rabbit Month
African American History Month
Celebration of Chocolate Month
International Boost Self Esteem Month
International Friendship Month
National Bird Feeding Month
National Snack Food Month
National Sweet Potato Month
Spunky Old Broads Month
Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month

THE BUZZTHE WORST ENDING TO A DATE

Reddit asked, “What’s been the worst ending to a date you’ve had?” Some of the responses:
– “I had to call his mom to let her know her son had appendicitis, and until she showed up, I had medical proxy.”
– “He called me by his ex’s name mid-kiss.”
– “I had a guy who stayed over at my place. In the morning, he started reciting his extremely long and terrible Harry Potter poetry. He told me he’d write me poetry for every morning we wake up together. I did not invite him back.”
– “Drove 45 minutes to her place to pick her up — she wanted to go to a bar near me so it was 45 minutes back. We go into the bar, pay the cover, get a drink, and she says, ‘I don’t want to date you.’ Another 45 minutes back to her place, 45 minutes back home.”
– “First ever date. 16. Her dad called and told us to cut it short because there was a mass shooting down the street.”
– “I held the door open for her, and she walked right into it. I tried to laugh it off, but it was awkward and she left immediately after.”
– “We were playing pool. Got really into a story I was telling and waving the cue around and smoked her in the face. Right in the mouth. That was that.”
– “Met a guy online. Chatted for a week or two before meeting in person. The date went really well. He texted me the next day, saying he was really just looking for casual sex. When I said I wasn’t interested in that he asked if I had any friends who might be.”
– “The girl that pushed me down a flight of stairs in panic because she saw a cockroach.”
* PHONE TOPIC: How did your date end badly?

STUDY: PEOPLE ARE TALKING LESS

According to a new study out of the University of Arizona, people are speaking about 3,000 fewer words each day compared to less than two decades ago. Between 2005 and 2018, researchers found the average number of daily spoken words dropped from 16,000 to around 13,000 — a decline that appears linked to our increasing reliance on digital communication tools like texting and social media. The study found that about 300 spoken words on average per year go missing. Also:
– Who talks more, men or women? The numbers show that women do speak slightly more on average — about 13,300 words per day compared to men’s 11,950.
– Adults between 25 and 64 years old exhibited the largest gender gap, with women speaking approximately 21,845 words per day compared to men’s 18,570.
* I’m speechless.
* We’re speaking 3,000 fewer words each day, but we’re making up for it by eating 3,000 more calories each day.
* If you factor out the talking heads on the news channels, the average number of words we speak each day drops to about 18.
* I always get behind the lady at the supermarket register who uses all of her daily allotment right then and there.
* (If you do this story at the end of your show) Well, I’ve about reached my quota of words for the day, so I am out of here.

U.S. NEWS

WAFFLE HOUSE INSTITUTES EGG SURCHARGE

The soaring price of eggs has forced Waffle House to add a temporary egg surcharge on all orders. The chain is adding a 50-cent charge per egg. The company says in a statement that “The continuing egg shortage caused by HPAI bird flu has caused a dramatic increase in egg prices.” Waffle House says they will adjust or remove the surcharge as market conditions allow. Waffle House serves 272 million eggs per year.
* That’s $136 million in egg surcharges in a year. Which is about what they pay to clean up after all the Waffle House brawls.
* That’s a lot to shell out. SHELL OUT!
* Okay then, back to Egg McMuffins.
* Well, Easter’s gonna be a disaster this year.
* Have they tried giving the chickens fertility drugs, maybe they can start popping out three or four eggs at a time to catch up.

EGGS STOLEN!

Thieves poached (*Ha! I get it!) about 100,000 eggs from the back of a distribution trailer in Pennsylvania. The theft occurred around 8:40 p.m. Saturday at Pete and Gerry’s Organics in Greencastle, PA. The eggs are worth about $40,000. A statement from Pete & Gerry’s said: “We take this matter seriously and are committed to resolving it as quickly as possible. Due to the ongoing investigation we cannot comment any further on this matter.”
* How many times did my grandfather tell me: Don’t leave all your eggs in one distribution trailer.
* The eggs are worth about $40,000. But just wait – that’ll go up as people freak out.
* Committed by a couple of bad eggs, I bet. Hatched a plan for the job. Picked the ideal time to pullet. Got the flock outta there.
* Despite the financial loss, Pete and Gerry promise to keep their sunny side up.
* “Pete & Gerry’s”? Do they have an egg-flavored ice cream?

FLORIDA MAN ARRESTED FOR… WELL, TAKE YOUR PICK

Florida Highway troopers in Pasco County attempted to pull over the reckless driver of a pickup, later identified as Dylan Devereaux, just after midnight on January 27. Instead of stopping, he took off at a high rate of speed, stopping once to drop off a passenger before speeding off again. The pickup eventually crashed into a tree. Mr. Devereaux emerged from the truck wearing a dalmatian onesie, before troopers tased him to the ground. But then, Mr. Devereaux began fighting with a trooper in the road. He got away with one hand cuffed. He sprinted into the woods (* Where, despite the dalmatian onesie, he wasn’t spotted). A K9 was brought in and led law enforcement to Devereaux’s home, where they met his girlfriend. She told them she did not want anyone in the home – including her boyfriend – because there were drugs in the home, and she didn’t want to go to jail. Police returned to the home the next morning, finding and arresting Devereaux and booking him for reckless driving, fleeing, assault of law enforcement, resisting with violence, and possession of methamphetamine…
* …and awful fashion sense.
* Who wears a dalmatian onesie? Except maybe a half-hearted Furry?
* Police connected the dots.
* Sounds like quite the dogged chase.
* As they were taking him away to jail, the K9 shouted, “I’ll wait for you!”

TRENDINGJELLY ROLL NAMED AMERICAN IDOL “ARTIST IN RESIDENCE”

American Idol has added Jelly Roll as the show’s first “artist in residence.” Jelly Roll will join the show beginning with the Hollywood Week round, where the first cuts for audition round winners take place. He will be working closely with the Idol hopefuls, giving them firsthand advice on how to navigate the journey of stardom.

KELSEA BALLERINI STOPS SHOW TO FIX NEW BOOT

Kelsea Ballerini was performing in Nashville last Friday when she stopped the show and told the crowd that she was wearing a new outfit that night, and there was something wrong with her new pink boots. Kelsea plopped down on the stage, took off the boot, reach in an pulled out a wad of tissue paper, the kind you find stuffed in the toes of a new pair of shoes. The audience loved it.

ALMANAC

NOTABLE DATES, UPCOMING U.S. OBSERVANCES

February 12, Wednesday – Lincoln’s Birthday
February 14, Friday – Valentine’s Day
February 17, Monday – Presidents Day / Washington’s Birthday
March 4, Tuesday – Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras
March 9, Sunday – Daylight Saving Time Begins
March 17, Monday – St. Patrick’s Day
March 20, Thursday – Spring begins, Spring Equinox is 5:01 a.m. EDT

BIRTHDAYS

Darren Criss (actor, singer, “American Crime Story,” “Glee”) … 38
Bobby Brown (singer, ex-husband of Whitney Houston) … 56
Duff McKagan (singer & bassist with Guns N’ Roses) … 61
Laura Linney (actress, “Ozark”) … 61
Jennifer Jason Leigh (actress, “The Hateful Eight”) … 63
Christopher Guest (actor/director; member of Spinal Tap; husband of Jamie Lee Curtis) … 77
Charlotte Rampling (actress, “Dune” movies) … 79

Today’s Birthdays grade: Kind of a flat if okay list, though some people will say Christopher Guest scores mucho extra points for being in Spinal Tap and his work in several mocumentary films such as “Waiting for Guffman” and “Best in Show.” So … we’ll put our thumb on the scale. Grade: B-minus.

[Want to try something different with the daily birthdays? Try grading them! Some days have “good” celebs, some have “great” celebs, some have “lousy” celebs. For fun, give the group an arbitrary grade: A-plus through F-minus. Sidekick will give you our take on it; you can to take the concept and run with it.]

BIRTHDAY QUOTE QUIZ – Ask your listeners “Who said it?” HINT: Today’s their birthday!

“I could really care less about what they think about me, but at the same time, I do have something to prove.”

(A) Kim Jong-un
(B) Vladimir Putin
(C) Bobby Brown

ANSWER: (C) Bobby Brown

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

2003 – Secretary of State Colin Powell urged the U.N. Security Council to move against Saddam Hussein, saying Iraq had failed to disarm, was harboring terrorists and was hiding behind a “web of lies.”
* As opposed to our claims that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction, had tried to buy plutonium from Africa, etc. … that wasn’t part of a “web of lies” … that was “a failure of intelligence data”.

1922 – Reader’s Digest magazine was first published.
* There’s more to this story, but that’s the short version.

1917 – The Mexican constitution was ratified.
* And if you’ve ever had a jalapeno burrito, you know how strong the Mexican constitution is.

1901 – Ed Prescot patented the loop-the-loop centrifugal roller coaster.
* Leading directly to the invention of the barf bag.

1861 – The moving picture peep show machine was patented. You put a coin in the slot and turned a crank on the side.
* One guess what you did with your other hand.

THIS DAY IN MUSIC HISTORY

2023 – Beyoncé won four Grammys, breaking the record for most all-time Grammy wins with 32.

2015 – INXS guitarist Tim Farriss said he may never play the guitar properly again after severing his finger in a boating accident. Farriss caught his left hand while operating a winch on his boat in Sydney, severing his ring finger. He had undergone surgery twice to try to reattach the finger but had been left with permanent hand damage.

2008 – Amy Winehouse was questioned by police in connection with a video apparently showing her smoking a crack-cocaine pipe. The singer, who was not arrested, was interviewed after the video was posted online by the Sun newspaper.

2004 – Janet Jackson’s right breast became the most searched-for image in internet history. Jackson’s breast was seen by millions on TV after Justin Timberlake pulled at her bodice during a duet. Search engines reported a big jump in searches for Janet Jackson and Super Bowl, as people turned to the web for images of the event.

1990 – Toy makers Hasbro launched their “New Kids On The Block” dolls at a press conference in New York.

1985 – Boy George was voted Recording Artist of the Year by Britain’s Variety Club.

X-TREME TRIVIA CHALLENGE

Every installment of X-Treme Trivia Challenge includes three mystery factoids. Create your own “Impossible Question” contest – great for listener giveaways and phone interaction starters! Also a perfect sponsorship opportunity!

1. A recent survey says there are 500,000 Tweets about THIS topic every day. What is it?
The weather

2. If you want to burn 400 calories in an hour, do THIS. What is it?
Shovel snow

3. When severe weather is forecast, the two top-selling items at the grocery store are beer and THIS. What is it?
Pop Tarts

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