Good Tuesday morning, welcome to another short workweek and a very nice symmetrical date – 2.22.22.
A quick Google search determined that this day is also known as “Twosday” (get it?) There’s also debate over whether this plethora of 2s all occurring on the same day actually means anything. I’ll leave it to you to decide for yourself.
In case you just want an excuse to celebrate, Rudy Tuesday is offering a $2 mini-margaritas and beer special, because it’s also National Margarita Day to commemorate the creation of the delicious concoction of tequila, lime juice and Cointreau or Triple Sec, served in a glass with a salted rim. (The history of the creation of the drink is, as usual, a little murky).
Yes, that’s the traditional way, and in my humble opinion, the ONLY way to consume this drink. Be gone with your frosty, sugary frozen messes, please and thanks.
I was musing to myself yesterday as I struggled to force myself to sit at my desk and work while fresh and warm breezes blew through the open window, calling me to abandon all responsibilities in favor of a nice long walk: Is spring fever real?
I’m certainly experiencing it. After months of being cooped up due to a combination of Omicron and bone-chilling temperatures, I am more than ready to shed my heavy winter clothes and frolic.
Turns out that spring fever is a thing, as far as conditions go, though it is not strictly a “a definitive diagnostic category,” as one expert put it. There have been studies that show people’s mood improves as the weather warms. There’s also some indication that as the nights get shorter, our melatonin levels drop, which leads to a surge in overall energy and, well, sexual desire.
Apparently, lots of babies get conceived in June, though the science isn’t 100 percent aligned on that. (Also, babies conceived in May tend to have worse outcomes when it comes to birthweight? Science is crazy).
As we’ve discussed here before, SAD (seasonal affective disorder) is definitely real, and appears to lift for many people in the spring. Though some – like me – tend to get a little melancholy when the seasons start to switch over, something to do with the recognition of the passing of time, and how we are powerless to stop it, and just a general aversion to change.
Humans are so damn complicated.
Temperatures will again be in the 50s today, but skies will be cloudy and we will be getting some rain by the afternoon/early evening. Wednesday looks great, with a mix of clouds and sun and temperatures in the mid-50s.
And looking ahead to the next several days and well into next week…well, apparently, it’s too early to pack those winter coats away just yet.
You’ve been warned.
And now, the headlines…
President Joe Biden signed an executive order to prohibit trade and investment between U.S. individuals and the two breakaway regions of eastern Ukraine recognized as independent by Russia, the White House said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered troops into separatist-held parts of eastern Ukraine in what the Kremlin called a “peacekeeping” mission, just hours after he signed decrees recognizing the independence of the Moscow-backed regions.
His aggressive move immediately raised fears that invasion was imminent – or that it had already begun.
Biden spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, reaffirmed the commitment of the US to Ukraine’s sovereignty and condemned Putin’s decision.
European leaders also condemned Putin’s announcement and issued fresh threats to respond to the “blatant violation of international law.”
Biden’s harm reduction strategy to fight a record number of drug-related deaths is in danger of being derailed by a Washington drama over “crack pipes” that is more about political gamesmanship than public health.
The Republican National Committee’s official GOP Twitter handle marked Presidents Day with an attack on Biden.
In an unanimous vote, the Northampton, MA City Council passed a resolution calling on Biden to cancel student loan debt through executive order.
Federal Reserve governor Michelle Bowman said she had an open mind over whether the central bank should kick off interest-rate increases next month with a larger half-percentage-point rate rise.
Neil Cavuto, an immunocompromised Fox anchor who has dissented from the loudest voices at the right-wing network and spoken out in favor of Covid-19 vaccines, revealed that he had been hospitalized for weeks with a serious case of virus and nearly died.
“It landed me in intensive care for quite a while, and it really was touch-and-go. Some of you who’ve wanted to put me out of my misery darn near got what you wished for, so, sorry to disappoint you,” said the Fox News anchor, who is fully vaccinated.
As the omicron surge continues to decline in the U.S., infectious disease experts are keeping a close eye on an even more contagious version of the variant that could once again foil the nation’s hopes of getting back to normal.
The virus, known as BA.2, is a strain of the highly contagious omicron variant that appears to spread even more easily — about 30% more easily.
Scientists say that children mobilize a first line of defense known as the innate immune system against COVID-19 more effectively than adults.
In religious groups across the country, clergy members are stepping down from the pulpit after the always demanding job became nearly impossible during the pandemic.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is scrapping coronavirus self-isolation rules as part of a “living with COVID” strategy, one day after Queen Elizabeth II announced she had contracted the virus.
The 95-year-old monarch was experiencing mild cold-like symptoms and was expected to continue “light duties” at Windsor Castle over the coming week, the palace said, and would continue to “receive medical attention and will follow all appropriate guidelines.”
Two cabinet secretaries within the Baker administration in Massachusetts have written to public and private college presidents, encouraging them to consider relaxing mask requirements on campus.
Forty-nine states have announced plans to drop their indoor mask mandates as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations steadily decline across the country. The only holdout remains Hawaii.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is considering authorizing a fourth dose of a Covid-19 vaccine later in the year.
A range of new studies suggest that a COVID-19 booster shot may provide protection against future variants for many months, even years.
New York ranked 47th among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows.
Attorneys for a group of Long Island parents who are challenging the state’s mask mandate in schools are seeking to reargue a mid-level appeals court’s decision that stayed a judge’s ruling last month striking down the directives as unconstitutional.
Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin tested positive for COVID-19, just days after attending the state Democratic Party’s convention featuring Gov. Kathy Hochul and Hillary Clinton.
The Lieutenant Governor shared the news on Twitter, saying he is vaccinated, boosted, and in good spirits since he is only experiencing mild symptoms. COVID tests for his wife and two daughters came back negative.
Mayor Eric Adams tapped ex-City Councilman Fernando Cabrera to serve as a faith adviser in his administration after the controversial Bronx politician apologized for his history of anti-gay views and remarks.
Referring to an apology that Cabrera posted on his Facebook page, Adams said that the ex-councilman “acknowledged the pain that his past comments have caused and has apologized for the words he used. I heard and accepted his apology.”
“My remarks were made in the context of movement toward multi-party elections, but with limited information,” Cabrera said, adding that he now “resoundingly” supports and respects the Supreme Court’s decision to legalize gay marriage.
Adams’ new subway safety plan went into effect yesterday, which included police issuing summonses for fare-beaters and stopping people from sleeping across multiple seats.
City Hall was unable to confirm how many specialized outreach teams of cops, social workers, and clinicians were dispatched, saying only that “some came online today” and the full 30 would be deployed in the coming days and weeks.
Adrienne Adams, speaker of the New York City Council, said enforcement of these new rules should not be “counterproductive by criminalizing people who are in need of housing or treatment.”
Speaker Adams is playing a leading role as New York officials confront a spike in violence that has gained national attention.
The weekend after Adams and Hochul announced their subway safety plan, at least eight violent incidents took place on trains took place in every borough in which the subway operates, on four different train lines and in four different stations. None were fatal.
New police data shows that serious crime was up nearly 14 percent this year in New York City as of yesterday, compared to the same period in 2020 — when the city was bustling before COVID-19.
Nearly 30 percent of NYC bus riders aren’t paying their fare — costing the transit authority $56 million in the last three months of 2021 alone, according to the MTA’s latest fare evasion survey.
A bill set to be introduced in the New York City Council would bar on-demand grocery apps from advertising 15-minute delivery times, citing threats to worker and pedestrian safety.
Mew congressional maps that merge conservative Staten Island with liberal Park Slope – an unlikely political marriage – will aid Democratic efforts to win a Republican-held House seat in New York.
The head of a major Jewish advocacy group in Queens is slamming Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for suggesting that Israel cages Palestinian children.
A new bill introduced in the state Senate this month seeks to cut down on the red tape doctors face with insurance companies when attempting to prescribe certain treatments and therapies to their patients.
Immigrant advocates are rallying in support of a bill that would provide healthcare coverage to tens of thousands of New Yorkers.
The largest health care union in the country, 1199 SEIU, is launching an extensive campaign to advocate for higher wages for home health care workers in New York.
An effort is underway to draft former three-term Republican Gov. George Pataki, 76, to run again for the state’s top office, but he doesn’t seem interested in taking on that challenge.
The New York City Chapter of the Adirondack Mountain Club plans to resolve litigation and disassociate from the parent Adirondack Mountain Club and pay a settlement of $50,000.
Former NXIVM president Nancy Salzman was expected to begin her three-and-a-half year prison sentence yesterday at a West Virginia federal facility that once housed Martha Stewart and is nicknamed “Camp Cupcake.”
Few evictions have been carried out in some of the Capital Region’s most populous areas since the suspension of the state’s moratorium, according to recent data.
In two cases, Tioga Downs contractors participated in fraudulent arrangements to use MWBE businesses as pass-through entities for other companies to give the appearance that the casino was meeting state diversity hiring requirements, the state IG found.
All but three of New York’s horse racing tracks would likely close without subsidies provided by the state, a recent study found.
Medina Spirit was stripped of the victory in last year’s Kentucky Derby due to testing positive after the race last May for a steroid, betamethasone, and Mandaloun was declared the winner after a ruling by state racing stewards.
A fire at a welding shop on Colonie’s Spruce Street spread to a neighboring home and several other buildings during an overnight blaze that investigators said featured several explosions.
The CanCode Communities, a nonprofit that trains people for software career opportunities, has opened a new training facility on Albany’s Warren Street.
The discount store chain Family Dollar has temporarily closed more than 400 stores due to a rodent infestation at an Arkansas warehouse.
