Friday Eve-9/25/08

What a wonderful Thurday we had haning out on your radio! Make sure to join Carolina Country Cruizin with Matt and Dee tomorrow when we kick off your weekend with more fun and winning! Keep it rolling with Wheelz 100.5

15 Jobs That Pay $50,000 – And Might Be Hiring

According to CareerBuilder.com, there are 15 jobs that pay between $50,000 and $59,000 – and may be hiring despite a bad economy. With the annual median salary for full-time workers in the U.S. at $33,634, these careers will help you earn well above the average.

1. Accountants and auditors: $57,060

2. Audiologists: $57,779

3. Compensation, benefits and job analysis specialists: $52,180

4. Conservation scientists: $56,150

5. Detectives and criminal investigators: $59,930

6. Environmental scientists and specialists, including health: $58,380

7. Insurance appraisers, auto damage: $51,500

8. Insurance underwriters: $51,264

9. Landscape architects: $50,843

10. Librarians: $50,970

11. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing: $50,750

12. Subway and streetcar operators: $50,520

13. Surveyors: $51,630

14. Teachers, postsecondary: $56,120

15. Urban and regional planners: $53,967

A man who took his pants off before going out for doughnuts at a shop in Yorktown, New York, has pleaded guilty to public lewdness. John Greco admits he exposed his bits in February while placing an order at a Dunkin Donuts drive-thru. Greco will be sentenced December 11th after pleading guilty last week.

Love/Hate Relationship With E-Mail

A study published yesterday by the Pew Internet and American Life Project shows that workers have mixed feelings about increased use of e-mail and the Internet in the past few years. The survey found that 96% of Americans use e-mail, the Internet or cell phones. Of them, 80% said these technologies have improved their ability to do their jobs, and 58% said these tools have given them more control over when to work. But 46% also said the devices increase the demands that they work more hours, and 49% said that the technologies make it harder to disconnect from work after hours. Half said they check their e-mail on weekends, and 22% checked it “often” on weekends. Checking work e-mail is considered much more important for people making more than $75,000 a year than it is for low earners.

Getting Ready For Flu Season

Flu-shot season officially began yesterday with a call for a record number of Americans to be inoculated – including 30 million more school-age children. There’s 143 million to 146 million doses available this year, more than ever before manufactured. Unlike last year when a surprise new influenza strain emerged, this year’s vaccine is a good match and should offer plenty of protection. Flu kills about 36,000 Americans each year, and hospitalizes about 200,000. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends 261 million Americans get vaccinated. But last year only 113 million of the 140 million doses were used. For the first time, the CDC is advising that every child age 6 months to 18 years be vaccinated, unless they have a serious egg allergy.

One New Jersey farm has a special attraction to go with the season's hay rides and corn mazes -- a giant pumpkin catapult. A group of middle school students who became obsessed with the medieval weapon asked northern New Jersey farmers Anthony and Heidi Lentini if they could use physics to fling the big orange squash. The couple, who have corn mazes on their Newton farm to attract customers, agreed. The half dozen boys, farmers and a technology teacher from HalstedMiddle School began work in August and finished building the giant catapult this weekend. It cost about 12-hundred dollars. The Lentinis paid for construction. The farmers say the device is up and running and covering the farm with the smashed remains of damaged pumpkins.

Aerosmith's Steven Tyler is taking legal action against some Internet bloggers he claims are posing as him and his girlfriend Erin Brady, online.  In a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Wednesday, the singer says unknown individuals have been revealing "intimate details" about him at Blogspot.com.  So far this year 31 posts have gone up on pages that also feature his picture, while seven entries have been attributed to "Brady."  The personal information includes statements about Tyler's mother's death, which he notes in his lawsuit are, quote, "perhaps most hurtful given that she recently passed away."  Tyler's accusations include public disclosure of private facts, making false statements, and misappropriation of likeness.  He also wants an injunction against the bloggers to keep them from pretending to be him again.

Despite being known for his laid-back lifestyle, Kenny Chesney says it's important to plan for natural disasters before they strike.  This year's leading Country Music Association Awards nominee was approached in 2007 by Mississippi native Morgan Freeman to serve on the board of his Plan!t Now organization.  The singer says he accepted because he was amazed by the impact of Hurricane Katrina.  He says being ready means being safe, getting out alive, and being okay if you can stay.  Chesney says Plan!t Now emphasizes that it's always better to be in a position to take care of yourself and your family if disaster strikes.  He adds that many of the crew members on his recently-wrapped "Poets and Pirates" tour had homes or family in the eye of the various storms during the last few weeks on the road, which he notes really brings the reality of such devastation into focus. Chesney explains that there's a big difference in knowing you're ready and thinking "it can't happen to me."

The new stage production “Conway Twitty. The Man, The Music, The Legend ... The Musical” will debut October 12th in Nashville. The production will follow Twitty’s career from a rock ‘n’ roll teen idol through his extensive country career. Conceived as a touring attraction, the Twitty musical will be directed by Randy Johnson and has been endorsed by Twitty’s daughters, Joni and Kathy Twitty.

Trisha Yearwood appears on the cooking stage at Taste of Atlanta October 11th. The Georgia native will be joined by her mother and sister -- together they will prepare recipes from her popular cookbook, George Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen.

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum welcomes two new exhibits this fall. Johnny Cash - Man in Black opens September 30th and Gene Watson - 14 Carat Voice opens October 7th. The exhibits, which run through next spring, feature performance attire and memorabilia from both superstar's legendary careers.

Lighting and staging isn't Jason Aldean's only concern when he headlines the upcoming C-M-T Tour. He doesn't want to miss his third ranked University of Georgia Bulldogs play a single game, so he's arranging for some fun game-day festivities. He tells us, "I think we decided that on Saturdays we're going to have a big barbecue by the buses and have a big T-V outside that they got to watch, so it's going to be fun." The C-M-T Tour doesn't start until October 8th in Cullowhee, North Carolina. Jason is sure to be watching his Dawgs play the University of Alabama Crimson Tide this Saturday from his show in Petosky, Michigan

America’s Most Dangerous Jobs

Fewer people are dying on the job in the United States, according to Forbes. Last year, work-related fatalities dipped 6% to 5,488, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ National Census of Fatal Occupation Injuries report. That’s the lowest fatality rate since the government started keeping track in 1992. However, workplace safety experts say the decline in fatalities was due in part to lower employment nationwide, particularly in the construction and manufacturing industries. Improved safety standards have helped as well. Here are America’s most dangerous jobs for men and women,

according to Forbes:

Men:

1. Transportation and material-moving occupations (Total deaths: 1,367)

2. Construction and extraction occupations (Total deaths: 1,141)

3. Management occupations (Total deaths: 470)

4. Installation, repair and maintenance occupations (Total deaths: 370)

5. Protective service occupations (Police, Firefighters, etc.) (Total deaths: 314)

6. Sales and related occupations (Total deaths: 263)

7. Production occupations (Total deaths: 247)

8. Farming, fishing and forestry occupations (Total deaths: 244)

9. Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance (Total deaths: 233)

10. Office and administration support (Total deaths: 73)

Women:

1. Office and administrative support occupations (Total deaths: 59)

2. Transportation and material moving occupations (Total deaths: 36)

3. Sales and related occupations (Total deaths: 48)

4. Management occupations (Total deaths: 41)

5. Health care practitioners and technical occupations (Total deaths: 30)

6. Personal care and service occupations (Total deaths: 24)

7. Protective service occupations (Police, Firefighters, etc.) (Total deaths: 23)

8. Food-preparation and serving-related occupations (Total deaths: 18)

9. Production occupations (Total deaths: 17)

10. Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations (Total deaths: 17)

David Blaine's latest stunt left fans scratching their heads.  But not because they couldn't figure out how he did it.  Instead, the big finale of Blaine's "Dive of Death" TV special ended in a bizarre manner.  Blaine was supposed to jump from a five-story scaffold after hanging upside-down for 60 hours.  However, his "dive of death" was simply David free-falling most of the way with a cable attached to his back.  After he floated above the ground for several seconds, he was pulled up in the air, disappearing into the blackness.  Fans who had gathered on the ground were noticeably stunned at stunt's conclusion.  Internet posters have already begun filling the Web with speculation that stunt was botched, and fans weren't supposed to see the cables.  Blaine's camp has yet to comment.  Also on last night's ABC special, Blaine caught a 22-caliber bullet in his mouth with a metal cup, and he took two punches in the stomach from mixed martial arts fighter Kimbo Slice.  The show aired live from New York City on ABC. * http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqRi4QAcJWI or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49WZfX5sLJc

Gas Supplies Lowest Since 1967

U.S. gas inventories shrunk to the lowest level since 1967 after Hurricanes Gustav and Ike shut Gulf Coast oil refineries, but the Bush administration said there is still no need to ask for emergency fuel supplies from European allies. The drop in fuel supplies has caused long lines a gas stations in southern cities. Many gas stations have run out of fuel. U.S. gas stocks fell 5.9 million barrels last week to just under 179 million barrels, down almost 19 million barrels from a year ago, according to the government. That leaves the U.S. with the lowest fuel stocks since 1967, when America’s gas demand was just 5 million barrels a day, almost half its current daily consumption of 9 million

South Charleston police have charged a man with battery after they say he intentionally passed gas on an officer while under arrest for suspicion of drunken driving. Police say they were fingerprinting Jose Antonio Cruz, 34, at police headquarters Tuesday when Cruz moved near Patrolman T-E Parsons, lifted his leg and passed gas "loudly" on the officer, according to a criminal complaint. Cruz then waved the air in the direction of Parsons, who was preparing a breath test machine nearby. The complaint says, "The gas was very odorous and created contact of an insulting or provoking nature with Patrolman Parsons." Cruz was charged with D-U-I, battery on a police officer and obstructing justice.

The Greatest Movies Of All Time

“The Godfather” has been named the greatest movie of all time in a new poll by Britain’s Empire magazine. More than 10,000 movie fans, critics and filmmakers took part in the poll. The top 10 greatest films of all time:

1. “The Godfather”           

2. “Raiders of the Lost Ark”       

3. “Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back”        

4. “The Shawshank Redemption”        

5. “Jaws”     

6. “Goodfellas”      

7. “Apocalypse Now”       

8. “Singin’ in the Rain”    

9. “Pulp Fiction”    

10. “Fight Club”

Holding A ‘Secret Job’ At Your Real Job

Many Americans are squeezing two jobs into one shift – moonlighting by day – as a hedge against a sagging economy or to maintain their style of living. While hard data on this below-the-radar employment is hard to come by, experts say there has definitely been an increase in the number of U.S. workers who are doing it. Shoehorning a second career into the same shift as your primary job is tricky – and ethically questionable. Some workers do it with the approval of their employer. But many do it in defiance of company policy.

Darius Rucker has the No. 1 country album and the No. 1 country single this week. “Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It” is the lead single from his first solo album, “Learn to Live,” which was released on September 16th. Rucker replaces last week’s No. 1 country album, Jessica Simpson’s “Come On Over.”

You can catch Jimmy Wayne singing the national anthem at the Pittsburgh Steelers game on Monday as they take on the Baltimore Ravens at Heinz Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:30 pm [ET] on ESPN.

Ronnie Dunn says he’s offered to “fly in a redneck SWAT team” to help pal Keith Urban and wife Nicole Kidman keep the paparazzi at bay. The couple are constantly swarmed by photographers when they go out with new daughter Sunday Rose. Dunn tells People magazine that Urban says every time they get in a car “there’s a rubber hailstorm from paparazzi cameras hitting the car.”

While Texas area oil refineries recover from the devastation of Hurricane Ike, gas supplies to Nashville all but dried up last Friday. Caught in the crunch, Joe Nichols was forced to siphon gas in order to get to work. Joe said he was scheduled in the studio to record some new material for his next album, but the gas tank on his “good car” was on empty, and gas stations throughout Nashville were dry. So Nichols siphoned gas out of his old, dilapidated farm truck, a 1975 orange Chevy Silverado named “Rusty.” “Usually I wouldn’t mind driving my old truck into town,” Nichols said. “But I couldn’t risk running out of gas AND the sides of the truck falling off on the interstate. She’s called Rusty for a reason – the rust is about all that’s holding her together!”

Nick Hogan Set For Early Release

Nick Hogan will be released three months earlier than expected from Pinellas County Jail in Florida, thanks to credit for good behavior. Hulk Hogan’s son will serve just five months of the eight-month sentence he received last May. The punishment was handed down after he pleaded no contest to one count of reckless driving involving serious bodily injury for a 2007 high-speed DUI crash that left his passenger, John Graziano, severely injured.

Thursday is almost gone and the weekend starts tomorrow with the Friday version of Carolina Country Cruizin with Matt and Dee. Make sure to come back and enjoy a morning full of fun and winning! Keep it rolling with Wheelz 100.5!

*Information from Premiere, Jones, and Metro Networks*