Amazon offers to help employees start delivery business
Article via Yahoo
NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon, which is racing to deliver packages faster, is turning to its employees with a proposition: Quit your job and we’ll help you start a business delivering Amazon packages.
The offer, announced Monday, comes as Amazon seeks to speed up its shipping time from two days to one for its Prime members. The company sees the new incentive as a way to get more packages delivered to shoppers’ doorsteps faster.
Amazon says it will cover up to $10,000 in startup costs for employees who are accepted into the program and leave their jobs. The company says it will also pay them three months’ worth of their salary.
The offer is open to most part-time and full-time Amazon employees, including warehouse workers who pack and ship orders. Whole Foods employees are not eligible to receive the new incentives.
Seattle-based Amazon.com Inc. declined to say how many employees it expects to take them up on the offer.
The new employee incentive is part of a program Amazon started a year ago that let anyone apply to launch an independent Amazon delivery business and provided $10,000 in reimbursements to military veterans.
The program’s expansion is part of the company’s plan to control more of its deliveries on its own, rather than rely on UPS, the post office and other carriers. Startup costs start at $10,000 and contractors that participate are able to lease blue vans with the Amazon smile logo stamped on the side.
Overall, more than 200 Amazon delivery businesses have been created since it launched the program last June, said John Felton, Amazon’s vice president of global delivery services.
One of them is run by Milton Collier, a freight broker who started his business in Atlanta about eight months ago. Since then, it has grown to 120 employees with a fleet of 50 vans that can handle up to 200 delivery stops in a day. It has already been preparing for the one-day shipping switch by hiring more people.
“We’re ready,” says Collier.
Dog disease that can be passed to humans confirmed in Iowa
Several cases of canine brucellosis have been confirmed at a commercial breeding facility for small dogs in Marion County.
Article via NBCNews
DES MOINES, Iowa — Officials say a dog disease that can be passed to humans has been confirmed in Iowa.
The state veterinarian, Dr. Jeff Kaisand, says several cases of canine brucellosis have been confirmed at a commercial breeding facility for small dogs in Marion County.
The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship says it is notifying people who have custody of the exposed dogs. Both the animals and the facilities are quarantined while the dogs undergo testing.
Signs of the disease in a dog include infertility, spontaneous abortions and stillbirths. State health officials say symptoms for humans include fever, sweats, headache, joint pain and weakness.
The department says the threat to most pet owners is very low. Dog breeders, veterinary staff and anyone who comes in contact with blood, tissues and fluids during the birthing process may be at higher risk.
The New Tamagotchi Can Marry and Breed
Article via Gizmodo
Twenty-two years after its initial release, and several years after countless revivals and re-releases, Tamagotchis have returned yet again with some interesting features like smartphone connectivity and the ability for your virtual pets to marry someone else’s and have kids. Tamagotchi? More like Tamagotchu for 18 years.
If you’re somehow unfamiliar with the toy, the Tamagotchi is like the modern version of the pet rock, but with most of the responsibilities and care that a real-life animal would require. That includes feeding your virtual pet, caring for it, playing with it, cleaning it, and generally interacting with it on a regular basis to keep it alive, happy, and growing. The latest iteration, Tamagotchi On, expands what you can do with the digital creature, but as an adult with a lot on his plate already, am I the only one who’s starting to feel these are more overwhelming than fun?
The most obvious update to Tamagotchi On is that it’s almost gigantic compared to previous versions of the toy that could hang off a keychain without being noticed. The new version is considerably larger, and as a result, it might have a hard time competing for pocket space against a smartphone.
One thing that hasn’t changed with Tamagotchi On are the three simple buttons used to interact with the virtual pet and to navigate the toy’s menus. It works, once you get used to how the navigation works (the buttons are unlabelled) but as the menus, settings, and options have expanded quite a bit in this version, it might finally be time for Bandai America to consider introducing an alternative—like a tiny touchscreen now that smartwatches have demonstrated they’re not impossibly small to use.
One small gripe: why didn’t Bandai America include a keychain with the new version? It has the holes to attach one, but it’s BYOK.
The Tamagotchi On’s full-color screen isn’t new, that feature was introduced as far back as 2008 with the Tamagotchi Plus Color in Japan, but it’s finally making an appearance here in the US. The colors are vibrant, even in bright light, and given the screen’s small size the lack of pixel density isn’t an issue. Besides, the crude pixelated graphics and stuttered animations are part of a Tamagotchi’s charm and appeal at this point. I’m not sure if I’d want a virtual pet that looked and acted more lifelike—I’d be devastated when it eventually died.
That being said, all the features that have been added to the Tamagotchi line over the years are starting to make the toy’s menus feel a little bloated. You’ll find yourself randomly digging through endless sub-menus to find an option you’re looking for, and a display with more resolution would allow more options to be squeezed onto each screen.
The ability for two Tamagotchi Ons to wirelessly communicate over IR isn’t new either, that feature was first introduced with the Tamagotchi Connection back in 2004. But it now facilitates more interactions between Tamagotchis on different devices. You can have playdates, send your virtual pet off to visit a friend or a hotel, and even propose marriage to another Tamagotchi. If they say yes, your virtual pets will consummate their relationship (presumably off-screen) resulting in each one receiving an egg that will hatch and grow into a child that looks like both its parents. Up to 16 generations of a family can exist on a device at a given time, which sounds exhausting. To make things a little easier, there’s even the option for your younger Tamagotchi to spend the day being babysat by its parents.
Tamagotchi On will be available starting in July for $60—which is the least appealing feature of the latest version—they’re no longer a cheap $15 impulse purchase. But when it launches, Bandai America will also be releasing an accompanying mobile app (it wasn’t available for testing yet) that the Tamagotchi can wirelessly connect to to further expand what your virtual pet can do, where it can go, and who it can meet—including Tamagotchis all around the world. Instead of trying to compete with smartphones, Tamagotchis may have finally embraced them so kids have more incentive to keep their pets alive.
Note: at the time of publication both of the writer’s Tamagotchi were still alive and well.
Tyra Banks Reveals Why She Came Out of Retirement for ‘SI Swimsuit’ 2019 (Full Interview)
ET spoke to supermodel Tyra Banks about returning to modeling under the name ‘Banx’s on the cover of ‘Sports Illustrated’s 2019 Swimsuit Edition.
Boy calls 911 while locked in hot car with 6 other children
WALDORF, Md. — A boy called 911 to report that he and six other children had been left in a car in Maryland with the windows rolled up and the motor not running.
The Charles County Sheriff’s Office tells news outlets that the children ranged in age from 2 to 4 years old, and it’s plausible that it was the eldest who called 911 Friday. The boy told authorities that the children were hot and didn’t know where they were.
Deputies traced the call to a Waldorf shopping center and helped the kids. Deputies say the driver arrived about 10 minutes later, having already been gone for about 20 minutes. The driver, a mother of two who was babysitting five other kids, was charged with confinement of children inside a motor vehicle.
via: https://nypost.com/2019/05/13/boy-calls-911-while-locked-in-hot-car-with-6-other-children/
Photo Credit: Getty Images
NYTimes Archives: News article that inspired 2Pac’s “Brenda’s Got A Baby”
A newborn baby was rescued from a trash compactor in Brooklyn yesterday morning when two maintenance men heard the baby’s cries just as they were about to start the crushing machine’s motors, the police said.
Detectives said the mother was a 12-year-old girl who admitted that she had thrown the baby down a trash chute shortly after giving birth in her apartment in the building. The 12-year-old, whose name was not released, had not been charged with a crime last night.
The maintenance workers heard the baby’s cries about 9:45 A.M. and called the police. A patrol sergeant, Philip Insardi, said he crawled through the compactor’s small metal doors and shined a flashlight onto the mound of garbage that was about to be squeezed between the machine’s walls.
“His feet were sticking out from under some newspapers,” Sergeant Insardi said. “There was the baby, lying on top of the garbage. He wasn’t making a peep when I got there.”
If the machine had started, he said, “the kid was history.”
The sergeant wrapped the infant in his shirt and handed him to an ambulance crew. The child, with his umbilical cord still attached, was taken to Brookdale Hospital, where he was treated for hypothermia, the police said.
The 6-pound 10-ounce infant was in stable condition last night in the care of nurses, who named him Trevor, said Mimi Grinker, a hospital spokeswoman. The young mother was also in the hospital for observation. No Injury Despite Fall
Investigators said the baby had not been injured by the long fall down the chute. “It’s a miracle, alright,” Sergeant Insardi said.
After the baby was rescued from the trash compactor, detectives from the 73d Precinct canvassed residents of the six-story apartment building at 37 New Lots Avenue in the East New York section and found a woman in apartment 4E, Gladys Perry, who said she believed her 12-year-old daughter was the baby’s mother. The detectives then went to Thelma J. Hamilton Junior High School at 985 Rockaway Avenue and took the teen-ager out of class.
“She denied it at first,” said Sgt. Timothy Phelan of the 73d Precinct squad. “We took her to Brookdale. The doctors examined her and said she had just given birth.”
Confronted by the doctors, the girl admitted to detectives that she had given birth in her fourth-floor apartment and had dropped the infant down the chute, the police said.
“She is not admitting who the father is or that she even had sex,” Lieut. Eugene Albright said. She would also not say why she tried to dispose of the baby, he said.
Lieutenant Albright said the 12-year-old lived with two brothers and Mrs. Perry. Although Mrs. Perry told the police that the teen-ager was her daughter, investigators said last night that it was unclear what their relationship is.
Detectives said the baby was born sometime in the early morning. The mother apparently abandoned the baby about 7 A.M., they said.
Lieutenant Albright said Mrs. Perry had told investigators that she worked at night and was not in the apartment when the baby was born. No charges had been filed against her last night, and investigators were still trying to determine whether she was culpable.
The infant will be placed in foster care when he leaves the hospital, the police said.
The boy was born in a six-story tenement on the corner of Stone Avenue, a depressed area of littered streets, empty lots and broken sidewalks. A security guard is posted at an iron gate in front of the building, and floodlights illuminate the courtyard.
None of the neighbors seemed to be aware that the teen-ager was pregnant. Several expressed shock that the police believe she tried to kill her baby.
“I was hurt because it was a baby having a baby,” said a woman who lives on the same floor and asked not to be identified. “She should have been getting the proper help. I could have taken the baby.”
Photo from video: vimeo.com
88-year-old man beaten, carjacked while shopping for Mother’s Day gift for his wife
NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. (WFTS/CNN) — For 88-year-old Robert Rodriguez, running errands is part of his daily routine. So, when a man shoved a gun to his stomach and demanded his wallet, he couldn’t believe it.
The ambush-style attack happened around 3 p.m. on Thursday in the parking lot of Bealls located at 12125 US Highway 19 in New Port Richey.
“I was still in the car when this guy appeared from someplace and put a gun in my side and asked for my wallet,” Rodriguez said. “I pretended I didn’t understand. Finally, he told me to get out of the car give me your keys; give me your keys.”
Rodriguez gave the man the keys then got knocked to the ground. His elbow is purple from the deep bruise he got when he landed on the pavement.
“He could’ve shot,” Rodriguez said, grateful he escaped with just bruises.
Rodriguez said he was going to the store to buy his wife of 64 years new pajamas for Mother’s Day.
“I went this morning and got them,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez’s car was found less than a mile away from where the incident happened.
According to information provided by the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office:
The victim described the suspect as a light-skinned black or Hispanic male in his 40s-50s, 5’6″-5’7″ tall, approximately 160 pounds wearing all black clothing and sunglasses. He was also clean shaven with short hair. The vehicle was located less than one mile south of Beall’s, abandoned on the south side of a building located at 11610 US 19 in Port Richey (at the intersection of US 19 and Gulf Highlands Drive).
A witness at that location observed a light-skinned black male exit the vehicle matching the descriptors provided by the victim. The witness recognized the driver as a black male whose name is possibly Allen (unknown spelling). This subject may also be known as or referred to as “Killa” or “Killer.”
Photo Credit: kmov.com
FL Mother arrested for abusing baby because he couldn’t stand
Pinellas Park, FL (WFTS ) — A mother in Pinellas County is facing several charges after she was arrested for abusing her 10-month-old son, according to the Pinellas Park Police Department.
Investigators say 25-year-old Natalee Sesler cursed at the baby and threw him against a wooden fence because she was frustrated that he was unable to stand up. It happened around 6 p.m. on Saturday in the the 5900 block of 72nd Avenue.
After that, police say Sesler threw the head of a metal rake at the baby with the intention of hitting him, but missed. She was then seen picking the hysterically crying baby up by his leg and throwing him on a beach type lawn chair, police say.
The baby had a small bruise and swelling near one of his eyes, according to police. They also say he appeared malnourished and lethargic.
When police responded, they found the baby wearing only a shirt with no pants or diaper on, they say. Sesler was also wearing only a shirt at the time police made contact with her.
Police say they spoke with two juvenile witnesses who live nearby and saw the abuse. According to police, Sesler was visiting an unknown male at a home in the area at the time.
The baby was taken to a local hospital by officials, where he will remain for observation and further testing while in protective custody. Then he will be turned over to local family members by the Department of Children and Families, police say.
Sesler was charged with one count of child abuse, one count of child neglect, aggravated assault, resisting an officer without violence and violation of probation. Police say she appeared to be under the influence of narcotics.
Photo Credit: kmov.com
The Looper Ralph Ruffalo’s Tragic Past
Remember there is light at the end of the tunnel. If anyone you know is suffering from suicidal thoughts contact National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-8255
Alyssa Milano Called For A “Sex Strike” To Protest Strict Abortion Laws And Many People Are Confused
Article via BuzzFeed
“Until women have legal control over our own bodies we just cannot risk pregnancy,” Milano said.
Former Charmed star Alyssa Milano set off a Twitter firestorm when she tweeted a call for a “sex strike” on Friday, asking women to stop having sex until “until we get bodily autonomy back.”
Just days before, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed a controversial bill that would ban abortions in cases where a fetal heartbeat can be detected, and in Alabama, politicians feuded over a last-minute change to a bill that suddenly stripped exceptions for rape and incest from a near-total ban on abortion in the state.
“Our reproductive rights are being erased,” Milano tweeted. “Until women have legal control over our own bodies we just cannot risk pregnancy.”
Milano, who has been an active #MeToo advocate, told the Associated Press on Saturday that the call for a strike reminds “people that we have control over our own bodies and how we use them.”
She cited historical instances where women withheld sex as acts of protest, including Iroquois women in the 1600s to stop unregulated warfare, and sex strikes by Liberian women in 2003 that called for an end to a long-running civil war.
Milano’s call for a sex strike stirred up criticism from people who said the call to action is misguided.
“This strike may mean well and contain cheap ‘feel good’ reactions,” said one person. “But it pushes a sexist narrative that sex is something WE give to men as a form of currency. That is not empowering. At all.”
“This strike may mean well and contain cheap ‘feel good’ reactions,” said one person. “But it pushes a sexist narrative that sex is something WE give to men as a form of currency. That is not empowering. At all.”
Another person said, “As a single ace woman, this is… what I do every day ANYWAY. Got any suggestions for things I can do that might actually be HELPFUL?”
Also, Milano’s message was supported, and seemingly co-opted, by anti-abortion advocates.
One person said, “I’m praying your sex-strike catches on!! Think of all the abortions that will be avoided!”
“Pro-life here,” said another. “Wholeheartedly in support of this.”
Milano said people have to determine for themselves how long the sex strike should last. She hasn’t decided yet how long she will personally avoid sex.
“I mean I don’t know,” she told the AP. “I sent a tweet last night I haven’t really thought much past that this morning.”
BuzzFeed News has contacted a representative for Milano for comment.
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