tsmyakima

Tonight’s fruit frost forecast from Pacific Weather Consulting and meteorologist Tim Creek.

Tim tells us that it will be another safe night, with no critical temperatures expected.

You can hear the complete report here.

theseasonsyakima.com image

As America’s Got Talent kicks of its’ summer television run, the preliminary  adult audition dates for Yakima’s Got Talent at the Season’s Performance Hall have been announced.

Are you long­ing to sing in the spotlight?

Do you amaze on the dance floor?

Are you a per­for­mance artist, a stand up come­dian, a mime, or have any other unusual tal­ent that you would like to show­case at the 4^th annual Yakima’s Got Talent?

What­ever your age or forte, this is your chance to grab the main stage and be eval­u­ated by the dis­cern­ing YGT judges for a chance at win­ning 1000 cash prize. This year we will be divid­ing our con­tes­tants into two groups; those under 18 and those over. We are offer­ing 1,000 cash prize in both cat­e­gories, with a total of 2,000 in cash prizes to get your cre­ative juices flow­ing. So, let’s see your tal­ent Yakima!

Get complete details here.

Get more information about the Seasons Performance Hall here.

jar0d, flickr

Researchers now say they can tell whether people are depressed without even talking to them first — all they have to do is watch how those individuals use the internet.

In a study conducted at Missouri University of Science and Technology, researchers watched the internet habits of more than 200 students who were later tested for signs of depression.

The researchers then cross-referenced the information, and found that the depressed group had markedly different ways of using the internet than everyone else.

Specifically, those who were depressed frequently switched among applications, used email and chat programs more often, watched more online videos, and played more online games. Study researcher Sriram Chellappan said the haphazard nature of the students’ internet usage may indicate trouble concentrating — a characteristic associated with depression.

Chellappan said he’d like to use his findings to develop software that could analyze internet usage patterns to predict the onset of depression, adding that such software may be useful to counselors on college campuses.

[LiveScience]

zoutedrop, flickr

Attention, dieters: stop counting calories and start watching the clock.

That’s the takeaway from a new study that says what you eat doesn’t matter as much as when you eat it.

Research conducted by Satchin Panda from the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, CA and his colleagues found mice that ate an unrestricted diet for eight hours and fasted for the remaining 16 hours didn’t have higher rates of obesity, diabetes or high cholesterol than mice that ate a healthy diet.

“For millions of years, we humans spent our lives as diurnal species — eating most of our calories only in the daytime and fasting overnight,” Panda said, adding that over the past century, we’ve stayed up later and eaten more at night, leading to excess weight.

“The gist of this study is that the timing and the number of hours you fast impact your weight gain,” he said. “Watch the times of day you eat as opposed to what exactly you eat. You don’t have to be as strict in counting calories.”

But some doctors aren’t convinced, saying that what works in mice doesn’t always translate to humans. Keith Ayoob, associate professor in the department of pediatrics at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, also said telling people they can eat whatever they want — even for a restricted time period — could be dangerous advice.

[ABC News]

tsmyakima

Tonight’s fruit frost forecast from Pacific Weather Consulting and meteorologist Tim Creek.

Tim tells us it’s another safe night for Yakima Valley and lower Columbia Basin Growers.

You can hear the in depth report here.

sehawks.com image

Running back Marshawn Lynch was the first Seahawk to crack the NFL Network’s Top 100 Players of 2012. Safety Earl Thomas is next.

Third year safety Earl Thomas is fast, scarey fast. He is definitely one of the young leaders on Pete Carroll’s Seahawks defense. No surprise he came in at #66 of the NFL Network’s Top 100 list for 2012.

AM 1280 and FM 99.3 Newstalk KIT is your Seahawks station.

Visit Seahawks.com here.

Townsquare Media

This is a little fun survey of Yakima Valley Drive Ins. Since May is National Hamburger Month, we would like to know what you feel is the best Drive Ins in the Yakima area, from the Upper Valley to the Lower Valley. If it’s In Ellensburg or even Goldendale, Let us know. Let us start you off with a few names that come to mind. You can add your favorite place if it isn’t mention.

Ethan Miller, Getty Images

Disco legend Donna Summer has died after a battle with cancer, TMZ is reporting. She was 63 years old.

Insiders say she wanted to keep the disease quiet, and a friend said that as recently as two weeks ago, Summer seemed okay and was even finishing up work on a new album.

The five-time Grammy winner shot to fame in the 1970s with songs like ‘Love to Love You Baby,’ ‘Hot Stuff’ and ‘Bad Girls,’ and continued her reign on radio airwaves into the ’80s with hits including ‘She Works Hard for the Money’ and ‘This Time I Know It’s for Real.’

Summer was also the first artist to have three consecutive double albums reach No. 1 on the US Billboard chart.

Summer’s passing will no doubt make some of us nostalgic. Remember the days of “Silkies” (Now Johnny’s On The Ave), Yakima’s attempt at the local disco scene? Or “Lancers” on South 2nd Street?  Disco sort of reigned on Yakima area dance floors until the movie “Urban Cowboy” came out, when country took over for most of the 80′s.

[TMZ]

Art by Brittney Coats

We are now taking bids on these two paintings by Brittany Coats. A survivor of many surgeries for removal of fluid in her brain, Coats is our first miracle child ambassador. She is now married with a husband in the Navy and living a great life.

Money from these photos will go to the Children’s Miracle Network Radiothon. Call 965-2515 for more information.

Give a gift that supports a great service for Central Washington, Children’s’ Village, and Children’s Miracle Network and Memorial Hospital. To donate, call 965-2515 or view the donation form on our website.

[button href="http://newstalkkit.com/childrens-miracle-network-radiothon/" title="Click Here To Donate" align="center"]

tsmyakima

Tonight’s fruit frost forecast from Pacific Weather Consulting and meteorolgist Tim Creek.

Tim says it will be another completely safe night, but temperatures will be slightly cooler than last night.

You can hear the in depth report here.

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Sketchy advertising by the shoemaker will cost them $45 million, with Washington State getting nearly $118,000.

Reality star Kim Kardashian, fresh from a sweaty workout, decides to dump her personal trainer. “It’s not someone else, it’s something else” said the celebutante in a recent TV ad. After a  shot of one of the starlet’s most photographed body parts and a scene of Kardashian glamorously lacing up a pair of Skechers, text on the screen says, “Bye-bye trainer, hello Shape Ups.”

skechers.com image

Will certain shoes – in this case, Skechers “Shape Ups” – magically burn off calories, fat and even improve circulation? A group of federal and state watchdogs, including Washington State Attorney General Rob McKenna, say unfortunately not. Yet Skechers marketed their shoes to have these and other benefits.

“Advertising materials claimed that consumers may ‘get in shape without setting foot in a gym’ even though there’s no good evidence to show the shoes work as advertised,” said McKenna. “Don’t cancel your gym membership. File these sketchy footwear claims under ‘too good to be true.’”

A lawsuit filed by 44 states, the District of Columbia, and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) alleges that without having adequate supporting evidence, Skechers claimed that their “rocker-bottom” shoes provided numerous weight loss and muscle-strengthening benefits. Not-so-subtle advertisements suggested that certain flabby body parts would firm up just by walking around in the shoes.

Rather than fight the suit, Skechers USA, Inc., the makers of Shape-Ups, Tone-Ups, and the Skechers Resistance Runner athletic shoes, will settle the lawsuit. Skechers does not admit any wrongdoing and denies the factual allegations asserted in the Attorney General’s complaint.  But today the company allocated up to $40 million for consumer refunds and will pay an additional $5 million to the states.

Skechers will pay $117,138 to Washington state. About half will cover legal fees and the rest will be used for consumer education, for health care purposes including but not limited to health-related research or education, programs directed towards girls’ or women’s’ physical fitness, proper nutrition, and reduction of obesity.

Under the settlement, Skechers is prohibited from making health and fitness claims unless it has adequate substantiation to do so. Consumers who purchased Shape-Ups, Tone-Ups, or the Skechers Resistance Runner should go to ftc.gov for information about how to obtain a partial refund.

Get more information here.

Getty Images

Will Seattle see the return of the NBA and perhaps an NHL team in the near future? Sonics fans hope so. The possibility became closer to reality today.

Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, King County Executive Dow Constantine, and investor Chris Hansen announced to media and cheering Sonics fans details of  a memorandum of understanding with the Seattle City and King County Councils May 16. This memorandum would finance a new, $490 million sports arena in Seattle’s Sodo District. That area is already home to the Mariners’ Safeco Field and the Seahawks’ Centurylink Field.

Constantine said “It’s time to put the ball in play.”

The public investment, capped at $200 million in bonds to be repaid through arena taxes and revenues, would be limited to $120 million if an NBA team is secured first. The remainder would be added once an NHL team signs on.

Once both teams are secured, Seattle’s  investment would be $120 million, and King County’s $80 million. Until an NHL team signs on, Seattle’s obligation would be $115 million and King County’s would be $5 million, because the city would receive more of the revenue.

The Mariners and the Port of Seattle  have raised concerns about increased traffic in the area. Hansen said an area traffic study he’s paying for likely would be done in the near future.

Before they were moved to Oklahoma City over three years ago, the Seattle Sonics had been an NBA franchise playing in Seattle since 1967. Newstalk KIT was a original member of the Supersonics radio network.

Listen to Newstalk KIT here.

 The council wants voters to increase car tabs by $20 to help increase the street repair fund.

Allison Joyce/Getty Images

There are many stores that sell beds and bedding and you hear about them a lot on talk radio. Many of the hosts have endorsement deals including me. Sleep Country USA has provided me with a fantastic Tempur Pedic. I am happy to sing its praises, and as an early riser I need as many hours of good sleep as I can get.

The study found that when we get less than eight hours of sleep at night our attention spans and reaction times are the first skills to take a significant hit. Even getting seven hours is not enough. One hour less nightly accumulates to a noticeable sleep debt.

dreamstime.com

 

Here we are on Wednesday, Hump Day, the downward slide to the weekend. You would think we would be ecstatic or at least happy, but an Australian researcher says we aren’t. Move over Monday, worrisome Wednesday is the saddest day of the week and here is why.

In the study, the psychologists interviewed 550 people about their moods on each day of the week. They found that Mondays were not as depressing as people expected. Meanwhile, Wednesdays really bummed a lot of people out. That’s when workloads tend to be heaviest, and we start looking forward to the weekend which only makes matters worse.  

That makes sense but what about Monday? The conventional wisdom is that the loss of the freedom of the weekend makes for a miserable Monday. It turns out that our much anticipated weekends are often rated as disappointing, so Monday’s measure of loss isn’t that great. So go the thoughts from the land down under.

schoolhouserock

ROTARIAN’S GIVE BOOKS TO ELEMENTARY STUDENTS

Members of the Rotary Club of Yakima are spending the next three weeks in and out of elementary classrooms throughout the Yakima School District.  Before they are done, every kindergarten through third grade student in the district will have received a brand new book of their own to keep. The Rotary Club’s Literacy Committee worked with a publishing company this year and were able to obtain 5,000 books to distribute. A detailed schedule of distribution is available by contacting either Patty Dion, Rotary Club of Yakima, 965-1650 or Mary Beth Wright, YSD, 573-7007.

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IKE PLAYERS PRESENT ONE-ACTS

The Ike Players present their annual student-directed One-Acts May 17, 18 and 19. The three acts, directed by seniors, include a parody of “Alice in Wonderland,” an original script “Eve of the Dead,” and two dance numbers. Show time is 7:00 p.m. each evening and admission is $3 at the door. Contact  Janey Peterson, Drama Instructor, with any questions at 573-2658.

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SOLAR-POWERED “GREEN” RV TO VISIT GILBERT

Green Living Project’s (GLP) Soltrekker RV is exhibiting across the nation on a Mobile Tour to help promote sustainability through education. One of the tour stops will be at Gilbert Elementary School on May 18 at 9:15 a.m. In addition to experiencing a comprehensive multimedia presentation, students will be encouraged to participate in a hands-on tour of the RV highlighting sustainable technologies through interaction with the features and components of the traveling exhibit. The RV is equipped with solar panels, biodiesel engine, composting toilet, water catchment system, sustainable wood floors, insulation made from recycled jeans, and LED lighting. For more information contact Gilbert Elementary at 573-5800.

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LEWIS & CLARK TO HOST GANG AWARENESS PRESENTATION

Lewis & Clark Middle School, in partnership with the Parent Teacher Student Association and the 21^st Century Program, is hosting a “Gang Awareness Presentation and Dinner” on May 22. Doors open with a Scholastic Book Fair at 5:00 p.m., followed by dinner at 5:45 p.m. and the presentation at 6:30 p.m. Guest speakers will be members of the Yakima Police Gang Enforcement Task Force, L-C Assistant Principal Dan Garza, and L-C Resource Officer Pepper. Topics addressed will be reasons kids join gangs, signs of gang involvement, clothing linked with gang involvement, and what parents can do if their child is involved in a gang. Presentations will be offered in English and Spanish, and childcare will be provided. Contact Lewis & Clark Middle School at 573-2200 with questions.

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‘SCHOOL HOUSE ROCK” COMING TO GARFIELD

Garfield Elementary School’s fourth and fifth grade students will be performing MTI’s Broadway Jr. “School House Rock” on May 24. Performances will be held in the school gymnasium at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. In addition, on May 31, Garfield third grade students will be performing the musical “Go Fish.”  There will be two performances of that as well in the gymnasium at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. Contact Christine Lavik, Garfield Music Specialist, at 573-5765 with questions.

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DAVIS HIGH SCHOOL SWING DANCE

The Davis High School Buccaneer Jazz Big Band presents its 1^st Annual Davis Swing Dance on May 25 at 7:00 p.m. Come and listen to the band perform live swing era jazz music from the likes of Ellington, Basie, Miller, Dorsey, and many more. If dancing isn’t your thing, that’s okay too. There is plenty of seating to listen to great live music, enjoy a dessert, and take it all in. Tickets can be purchased at Taylor Music, Ted Brown Music, or by contacting Jon Conrad, Director of Bands, at 573-2544.  Come on out and enjoy an evening of great music!

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IKE BOOSTERS HOST MIDDLE SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL CAMP

The Eisenhower High School Volleyball Booster Club is hosting a middle school camp June 4-6 from 3:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the Ike gymnasium. All girls and boys entering grades five through nine next fall are invited to participate. Cost is $50 which includes a camp t-shirt, volleyball instruction and daily treats. Call 573-2629 to register or email ackerman.brad@yakimaschools.org.

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EISENHOWER SUMMER DRAMA CAMP

Celebrating their fifth year, the Ike Players are offering an exciting Summer Drama Camp June 18-22. The camp will be held in the Ike Little Theatre from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. each day. Children will be grouped by age with two counselors per group. Campers will learn acting, dancing, singing, improvisation, props, and costuming, all in a fun, supportive atmosphere. Cost for the camp is $68 and includes a snack each day and a camp t-shirt. The Grand Finale show, performed by the campers for parents and friends, is on May 22, beginning at 11:30 a.m. in the Little Theatre. For more information contact Stephanie at 833-7676.

kit.com

Catholic Charities Housing Services (CCHS) is pleased to announce that AJ Crushing and A&B Asphalt, Inc. have teamed up to donate 30 yards of concrete and 26 tons of gravel. The donations will be used for the construction of picnic shelters and tetherball courts at Mabton Community Park.

“CCHS would like to thank AJ Crushing and A&B Asphalt for their very generous and needed donation to MCP,” says Bryan Ketcham, Director for CCHS. “We have been so blessed to have the support of friendly, community-minded businesses and volunteers who give so effortlessly of their time and money to assist in bringing this project to life.”

The two companies have donated the materials and delivery, with the donation value over $3,500. Both businesses are located in Benton City and do work throughout Washington state.