RYAN: Imagine hitting the road for a beach vacation to escape the cold ONLY for it to be snowing at the beach!? <SFX WEATHER OR NOT SOUND CUE>

RYAN: Last week, from the Texas Gulf Coast to the Atlantic coast of the Carolinas, residents were hit with a major winter storm. These regions of the U.S. are not equipped for winter weather, let alone EXTREME winter weather that brings record-breaking snowfall. Cities such as New Orleans saw 8 inches of snow, shattering their previous record of 2.7 inches, Pensacola, Florida recorded 7.6 inches, and , Alabama saw 7.5 inches. Although a blanket of snow was a beautiful sight to see for some Southerners, the bitter temperatures created dangerous road conditions, airport disruptions, and even reported cases of hypothermia. We hope to see warmer temperatures make their way back across the U.S. soon, until then, I’m wearing two pairs of pants, three hoodies, and every pair of socks that will fit on my feet.

PAM: Up next, we’re talking, Trump’s executive orders—,

RYAN: Like when Trump ordered McDonald's for the Clemson football team?

PAM: Mmmm, not quite. An executive order is a signed, written, and published directive from the President of the United States that manages operations of the federal government, according to the American Bar Association. One in particular entails changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America” on official maps. The Gulf of Mexico stretches along the United States’ southern coast from Texas to Florida and wraps around Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. Not to mention, it’s been called the Gulf of Mexico for over 400 years. But, that could change within just 30 days as a result of Trump’s executive order, ‘Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness’. And, while the United States may begin referring to it as the “Gulf of America”, other countries aren’t required to do so as there are multiple international bodies that help mediate changes like this one. So, stay tuned into your Google Maps and Google Earth apps to find out what’s in store for the Gulf!

RYAN: Now, onto an even BIGGER question… Can a cat qualify for a frequent flyer program? Maybe not, but Mittens the Maine Coon came pretty close after making 3 trips in just 24 hours between New Zealand and Australia! The cat was on a one-way flight with her family from Christchurch, New Zealand to Melbourne, Australia when her cage was overlooked in a plane cargo hold upon arrival. After 3 hours of waiting for her cat to be unloaded from the plane’s freight area, Margo Neas was informed by ground staff that the plane had returned to New Zealand with Mitten’s still on board. But, not to worry, the pet moving company arranged for Mitten’s one-way flight back to Melbourne where she was reunited with her family. That is something to celebrate.

PAM: Speaking of celebrations… HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR! Yesterday was Chinese Lunar New Year’s Day, one of the most important holidays in China. The Chinese New Year begins when the new moon appears, typically falling between January 21 - February 20. This 15 day celebration is a time for families to gather and enjoy special meals, children receive money in red envelopes, a color that symbolizes good luck and prosperity, and homes are even cleaned-out to get rid of bad luck and bring good fortune into the new year. This year’s celebration ends on February 12th with the traditional Lantern festival where people gather with glowing lanterns, and streets are taken over by parades and ceremonial dances. And Ryan apparently eating more mooncakes than he should be.

RYAN: (Mouth full) They taste like my childhood! Speaking of China…can you name this animal? <SFX Panda sound> <SFX clock ticks down from 3, then dings!> Did you guess it? Two Giant Panda’s made their debut at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington DC last Friday. Bao Li and Qing Bao are in the U.S. on a 10-year loan from China after the previous Giant Panda’s, Mei Xiang, Tian Tian and their cub, Xiao Qi Ji lease expired returned home in November of 2023. While the pandas got settled into their new home, the zoo was busy prepping for a two week celebration called the “District of Panda Party” that includes a Lunar New Year event, cultural activities led by the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China, a screening of “Kung Fu Panda”, and of course, a chance to see the Giant Pandas! Zoogoers can partake in the festivities now through February 9th. All you need to do is reserve a park entry pass, entrance tickets are free!

PAM: I’m gonna look up how to reserve a park entry pass…and while I do, let’s take a quick break for the grown ups.

RYAN: Hey Ten’ers, do you like Lego? We’re doing a deep dive on Lego and we want to hear from youp[yt4ev c\]kj\… What do you love about Lego? And what’s your favorite set that you’ve built? Or, what’s the coolest thing you’ve built that wasn’t an original set? Leave us a review, or email us at hello@thetennews.com and we might feature you on the upcoming Lego episode! Back to the show

PAM: And now the news Ryan has been desperately waiting for…

RYAN: Where are they Pam? HOW DO I FIND THEM?

PAM: Well this might be the coolest collab of 2025 so far… McDonald's and the Pokémon Company International! Starting last Tuesday, McDonald’s Pokémon Happy Meals hit menus across the U.S. and are available while supplies last. Customers who purchase a Happy Meal will receive a booster pack with four trading cards (there are 15 different ones!), a poster, and stickers to decorate the poster. Plus, these items come in the infamous Happy Meal box but with a twist to include some of your favorite Pokemon characters like Pikachu and Charizard. If you order a Happy Meal through the app, you earn a free, in-game bonus for Pokemon’s mobile trading card game!

RYAN: I’ve been grinding in mobile TCG so this is everything I need right now. A Happy Meal and Pokemon stuff for under $10 bucks? What a deal! Unlike our next story… Love it or hate it, pineapple on pizza might be one of the most controversial toppings there is, thanks to a Canadian chef from the 1960s who decided to add pineapple to a ham pizza. Some love it, some don’t, and a Norwich, England pizzeria is making its feelings known by offering pineapple as a topping on their delivery menu, but customers have to pay 100 euros (around $122 U.S.) for it. Simply put, the Head Chef of Lupa’s Pizza is saying ‘no’ to pineapple on pizza. There’s currently a poll in the Norwich Evening News, a local newspaper, for customers to vote whether or not the topping belongs on pizza. If the results are in favor of pineapple, the pizzeria has promised to add it to its monthly special board, but there’s no word on lowering the price. I personally believe that you can put whatever you want on your pizza, I might not eat it, but if you like it, do you!

PAM: What about pickles and pepperoni?

RYAN: I’ve not tried that, but I am strangely intrigued.

PAM: Know what intrigues me?

RYAN: People that like smelling their own feet?

PAM: What?! NO! Science intrigues me. <SFX Beaker bubbling, Static Electricity, Zaps> Earth’s magnetic north pole is on the move. But, what’s the difference between magnetic north and true north? The geographic north pole, or true north, is a fixed point where all lines of longitude meet. And, the magnetic north pole is the northernmost point of Earth’s magnetic field, that’s always in motion because of convective activity in Earth’s core. And, scientists have released an updated WMM, World Magnetic Model, showing that the pole has shifted closer to Siberia over the last 5 years, and it continues to drift toward Russia. While it may seem like this movement doesn’t directly impact us, it certainly does; it can affect the accuracy of navigation systems like GPS, disrupt radio communication, and even cause challenges for animals that rely on the magnetic field for navigation. But don’t worry, with each shift the World Magnetic Model is updated accordingly to reflect the changes.

RYAN: You can always rely on The Ten News team for trustworthy headlines and news coverage, and usually our friends at Apple, too, until recently. <SFX Tcky Tcky, Tech Yourself, Before You Wreck Yourself> The iPhone maker is pulling its Apple Intelligence feature after the technology provided users with misleading, and sometimes false, summaries of news headlines. The feature is currently disabled for news and entertainment headlines while Apple is working on improvements with plans to re-enable it for users in a future update. Users must opt-in to the Apple Intelligence summaries, and this time the company will emphasize that the information is produced by AI, which can sometimes lead to inaccurate results. This hiccup serves as a good reminder to always fact check what you hear in the news to help stop the spread of misinformation.

PAM: Speaking of facts, let’s go to Owen for some Trivia…

<SFX Trivia INTRO>

OWEN: Humanity has explored the moon more frequently over the years, but do you know which moon landing came first in history?

China’s Chang’e 3
Soviet Spacecraft Luna 9
The U.S.’s Apollo 11, or
The U.S.’s Galileo?

OWEN: The answer is.. C! NASA’s Apollo 11 launched from Cape Kennedy, Florida on July 16, 1969, and that next day, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first people to walk the moon.

OWEN: Exploration of the moon’s surface allows scientists to understand the evolution of Planet Earth and our solar system, which is pretty important, but we also need to preserve its history.

PAM: Which is why the World Monuments Fund has listed the moon, the first location beyond Earth, as vulnerable. The World Monuments Fund is an international non-profit that highlights 25 heritage sites that are at risk every 2 years.

OWEN: And, with the moon hosting more than 90 historic lunar sites relating to humanity's presence on it, they feel it needs to recognize and preserve its artifacts, like Neil Armstrong’s boot print.

RYAN: And that was Ten Things You Need to Know.

PAM: Alright Ry, what do you wanna hit first? The Panda Party or the Pokémon McDonalds mission?

RYAN: Pokémon McDonalds, obviously. I’m not showing up to a Panda Party on an empty stomach. Chicken nuuuugggies, in my bellllly..

PAM: <SFX Keys jingle> I’m driving if you’re buying. Oh! We should give Ten News Snaps before we go–

RYAN: And before that, here’s a quick note for the grownups…

AD BREAK

RYAN: Time for Ten News Snaps! <Grand fanfare SFX>

PAM: We got some Spotify comments on the Wildfire Special Report…A Ten’er named Mathis said, “oh no.” and Chofis said, “Good episode.” and a Ten’er named Theo said “Wow there must be a lot of butterflies.” and then left a whole bunch of emojis.

RYAN: Thank you Mathis and Chofis but Theo, WHY would there be a lot of butterflies?! I don’t understand your logic!

PAM: And two extra notes for the grown-ups, you can now get ad-free versions of our episodes when you join the Ten’ers Club on our website.

RYAN: And if you want to help support the Ten News, you can make a tax-deductible donation at the link in our show notes. The whole team thanks you for your support!

PAM: “The Ten News” is a co-production of Small But Mighty Media and Next Chapter Podcasts, and part of the Airwave Podcast Network.

RYAN: The Ten News creative team is eating chicken nuggies and catching Pokémon and includes Tracey Not a Crooks, Adam The Great Bambino Bernard, Brian NOT Ryan Douglas, and Carson Not So Harry Potter. Big thanks to Owen Not Slowin’ down for anybody.

PAM: Our Production Director is Jeremiah On Fy-ah Tittle, and our Executive Producers are Donald Albright and show creator Tracy Takes the Leeds Kaplan. I’m Pamela Kirkland.

RYAN: And I’m Ryan Willard, thanks for listening to the Ten News!

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