Star 99.9

TELL ME SOMETHING GOOD: Passionate Customers Help Save Famous New York Book Store

A lot of business are struggling this year because of the coronavirus pandemic wreaking havoc on everything. Some are worse off than others. As you can imagine the book store industry isn’t exactly one that is thriving right now.

Recently the owners of the the famous Strand Bookstore in New York said it might have to close down after the pandemic cut sales by 70%. Once customers who love the store caught wind of this they immediately sprung into action to help out. Within 24 hours, thousands of orders had been placed online, and people were lined up outside to buy books. Truly incredible.

I may have to go read a book now to celebrate.

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why do baseballs have red stitching?

If you were watching the World Series last night (Congrats Dodgers! Sorry to all the Yankees, Mets, and Red Sox fans here in CT) you may have wondered why the stitching on the baseballs is red?

Way back before the 1900s baseballs used to have more of a cowhide color on the stitching. But around 1934 the MLB decided to implement the red stitching on all the balls in the league. to this day each ball now has 108 double-stitches of waxed red thread. The reason for the color red is mostly so the batter can see the ball better when at bat. Makes sense!

Photo credit: Getty Images

The Anna & Raven Show: Ouija Boards, Strange Fears and Vampires

Wednesday October 28^th, 2020

Have you ever used a Ouija board before? You might think twice before using one once you hear some stories from Barry Pirro! (0:00)

Crocktober continues and Anna is already tired of cooking with her crock-pot. She wishes Raven cooked some of the dishes, but he claims it’s his job to just eat what she cooks. Anna also explains the stress she goes through shopping for the ingredients of these crock-pot recipes. Raven tries today’s Crocktober recipe. (3:57)

Using your cars dashboard as a shelf for your junk or using Facebook to contact strangers, urging them to unfriend people? That’s all I need to know about you! (10:16)

One of Anna’s biggest fears came true for a New York man. A sink hole on the sidewalk he was standing on! Not only did he fall through the sinkhole, but he encountered another one of Anna’s biggest fears! Anna is very open about her stranger fears, but what are Raven’s strange fears? (13:40)

Candy Autopsy continues with another lucky person who has a shot at a %50 Amazon gift card! All they have to do is guess what candy Anna describes with the list of ingredients she gives. Would you have known the answer to today’s autopsy? (21:34)

It’s Wellness Wednesday! Today, Anna & Raven test the theory of cuddling something soft for 60 seconds. Apparently, if you are in a bad mood, cuddling something soft for one minute helps instantly relieve stress! Does it work though?! (24:24)

Want to learn a bit about Vampires? Professor of Religious Studies, Joe Laycock gives us some inside info about Vampires! (27:45)

Couple’s Court: George and Megan have plans to eat out with friends this weekend, but the other couple only eats outside at restaurants. Now that temperatures are down, Megan says they’re done dining out for the year and they should cancel if the couple refuses to move inside. George says the steakhouse and friends are worth toughing it out, she’s being a baby! Bring a blanket; they haven’t seen these friends since February! Whose side are you on? (31:34)

It’s Emily’s turn at the $2,500 Jackpot! Can she win it all or will we continue to add to that (already) huge jackpot?! (35:52)

Can’t Beat Raven: Emily Is Up!

It is our largest ‘Can’t Beat Raven’ jackpot ever, and Emily was incredibly close to winning it all! Could you have gotten all five of these questions right today during Can’t Beat Raven?! Another shot at a now $2,600 jackpot happens tomorrow morning at 8:10am!

Crocktober: Dr. Pepper Ribs

Anna cooks up some Dr. Pepper Ribs!

Raven gives them a try below in our podcast!

Wanna make them yourself? The recipe is below. Thank you to everyone who submitted this recipe!

Dr. Pepper Ribs
Ingredients:
-Boneless country style pork ribs
-Dr. Pepper soda (cherry Dr. Pepper is good, too!)
-Barbeque Sauce
Directions:
-Place the ribs in your slow cooker, and pour a can of Dr. Pepper over the top.
-The lid goes on, and you can either cook them on low all day, or you can cook them on high in half the time.
-When they are nice and tender, carefully remove them from the crock pot and place them on a wire rack over a foil covered cooking sheet.
-Combine your favorite BBQ sauce with some Dr. Pepper
-Brush BBQ sauce on them and bake them for 15 minutes. Flip them and do the same to the other side.
Enjoy!

TELL ME SOMETHING GOOD: The CT Food Bank Is Getting Creative With Distributing This Much Needed Item

We are getting into that food drive time of year as Thanksgiving approaches. We have our Star Food Drive coming up in mid-November and the CT Food Bank obviously is working hard all year round to make sure thousands of Connecticut families don’t go hungry.

The one item that is much needed but can be a challenge to distribute is anything dairy related like milk. The CT Food Bank has come up with a new program called “Dairy Express” to try and meet this challenge. The way it works is that Food Bank volunteers drive refrigerated vans around the state with fresh milk. Since anything fresh and nutritious can go bad much quicker than non-perishables this is the only way to get these items to people.

The Dairy Express head out to the streets multiple days a week and makes two stops a day. Such a great idea!

If you want to donate or learn more about the program and how to help just go to ctfoodbank.org.

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Does Looking At The Sun Make Us Sneeze

You’ve probably done this more than a few times when you feel a sneeze coming on. You immediately try to find the sun and look directly into it. But why does this help you sneeze?

Sneeze are usually caused by something that gets in your nose to trigger the reaction. Dust, pollen, pepper, etc… most of the time you sneeze when something physically touches your nostrils. The nerve that controls all the senses in your face/nose is located very close to the nerve that affects your eyes. Scientists have discovered that because the two nerves are so close together any bright light that gets in the eye can accidently trigger that nose nerve. This tricks your body into thinking something is touching you nose when it’s really just the bright light causing the sneeze.

Feel one coming on? Quick! Look at the sun!

Photo credit: Getty Images

Things to Know Tuesday October 27th

Massachusetts craft beer giant to open distribution center in Stratford CT Post

‘Its natural state’ – Milford Land Trust cleans up newest property CT Post

Judge delays civil trial on Bridgeport top cop challenge CT Post

Lamont: Stricter enforcement of COVID rules possible after bar incidents CT Post

Today is the last day CT residents can register to vote ahead of this year’s election WFSB

No plans for CT to rollback any reopening phases despite spike in state COVID cases WFSB

Westport museum tries to set world record with largest abstract painting The Hour

Barrett confirmed by Senate for Supreme Court, takes oath The Hour

Pratt & Whitney chooses North Carolina for new factory, but reports big loss Stamford Advocate

Gov. Lamont cracks down on bars masquerading as restaurants amid pandemic restrictions WTNH

The Anna & Raven Show: Ghosts, Crocktober Continues and Costume Contests

Tuesday October 27^th, 2020

Have you ever seen a ghost before? Anna thinks that the appearance of a fly means a family member is around, while Raven remains a little skeptical…What about you? (0:00)

If you are an adult and you still wear t-shirts with THIS written on it, or if you send every one of your texts with the CAPS lock on, that’s all I need to know about you! (10:55)

Anna & Raven’s Crocktober continues! Today, Raven tries some Swedish meatballs with egg noodles. Find out what raven thinks about the dish and what difficulty Anna had cooking it. (14:24)

There are two full moons this month! It’s a rare sight, so we talk to Astrologist Anne Nordhaus-Bike about the occasion and find out a bit more about whether a full moon really effects your mood or not. (17:46)

All week we are playing ‘Candy Autopsy’! We read you a list of ingredients and if you can guess what candy we are describing than you win yourself a $50 gift card to Amazon! (21:34)

Have you ever won a costume contest before? Raven and his wife Alicia had won one last weekend, and Alicia made both costumes from scratch! What did they get as a prize? What costume contest did Anna win that she regrets? Catch up with the podcast! (25:15)

Dating is hard enough, but admits the pandemic, quarantining and social distancing; it’s gotten even tougher. So it’s time we talk with Single Olga and find out exactly what it’s like as she continues to date in a society where Zoom meetings and no physical interaction have been the new normal. (29:12)

Couples Court: Danielle and Peter are expecting their first child. Danielle asked Peter not to tell anyone until she reached the 12-week point. Peter told his friends and her MOM found out! Clearly, Danielle is upset but Peter says she’s being ridiculous. It was her fault for doing the whole “second trimester” announcement thing. It’s old school. Whose side are you on? (32:48)

Can Rich win the big $2,400 jackpot today, or will we add another $100 to make tomorrow our highest Can’t Beat Raven Jackpot yet?! (39:52)

Crocktober: Swedish Meatballs Over Egg Noodles

Today’s Crocktober recipe was sent in to us by Jerry DiPierro. Thank you Jerry!

Anna making Jerry’s recipe in her crock pot below!

What did Raven think about it when he tried it? Listen right here!

You can find the full recipe and directions below.

Ingredients:

-1 can of cream of mushroom soup low sodium
-1 can of beef broth low sodium
-1 packet of dry onion soup mix
-2 tablespoons of A1 steak sauce
-1 2 pound bag of frozen meatballs
-1 container of sour cream which is a cup
-1 package of egg noodles

Directions:

-Mix undiluted soup with beef broth, onion soup mix and steak sauce
-Stir well
-Add frozen meatballs
-Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours
-After meatball mixture has cooked, stir in sour cream
-Boil noodles and drain
-Mix noodles and meatballs together or serve meatballs on top of noodles

Enjoy!