RYAN: We’re starting things off with some GGs! <SFX Pokemon catching sound> Today is arguably the absolute best day of the year, besides my birthday… It’s National Pokemon Day! Did you know that National Pokemon Day is celebrated annually on February 27th because it marks the day that Pokemon was introduced over two decades ago in 1996!? Let’s check out some Pokemon history!

Pokemon comes from the Japanese term ‘Poketto Monsuta,’ otherwise known as ‘Pocket Monsters.’
“Pokemon” was created by Satoshi Tajiri, who in 1991 first collaborated with Nintendo on the puzzle game, ‘Yoshi’ while already brainstorming another game that would eventually turn into ‘Pokemon.’
‘Pokemon’ was first called ‘Capsule Monsters’ but due to a copyright issue, it was renamed ‘CapuMon” and then ‘Pocket Monsters.’
1997 marks the year Pokemon was animated into a T.V. series in Japan.
And, in 1998, Pokemon Cards were released for the first time.

You can celebrate National Pokemon Day by playing your favorite video games or battling it out in a trading card game! Just remember you <SFX Pokemon theme song line: ‘gotta catch ‘em all!’>

PAM: And in the wide world of sports… <SFX Soccer Ball Kick, then Baseball Bat Crack, then Basketball Net Swish and a Stadium Crowd Roar> Some people catch ‘em all and some people ‘make ‘em all!’ which is exactly what Jaren Barajas did in a shooting contest against Milwaukee Bucks star Damian Lillard. Barajas, an 18-year-old college student, competed against the NBA player in the MrBeast $100,000 Challenge at the NBA All-Star Game. The challenge was that Barajas had to make one three-point basket from the logo at half-court before Lillard could make three. And, after Lillard had made two successful shots, the college student drained a buzzer-beater, making the crowd go wild – including Shaquille O’Neal, who hugged Barajas while jumping up and down in celebration. Jaren Barajas won $100,000 that he hopes will help pay for his education, and the NBA matched the amount, announcing they would donate $50,000 to Damian Lillard’s scholarship fund and another $50,000 to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Oakland and San Francisco.

RYAN: Alright, this next one is… <SFX Weird Wild Wacky> shoplifters at a Walmart are being punished with soap and water… A Michigan judge is ordering shoplifters to wash cars in a Walmart parking lot instead of the traditional consequences. Judge Jefferey Clothier started ordering ‘Walmart Wash’ sentences for misdemeanor shoplifting at the Walmart in Grand Blanc Township near Detroit. A misdemeanor is a minor wrongdoing.

PAM: The Walmart location is on board and has agreed to provide supplies and water for the free car wash events scheduled for March & April. Judge Clothier hopes that this new form of community service will discourage people from shoplifting at Walmart, plus reward shoppers with a free car wash.

RYAN: What’s better than a free car wash? Donuts donuts DONUTS! What’s better than that? Donuts AND movies. Krispy Kreme is partnering with streaming service Hulu on limited-edition ‘Krispy Kreme x Hulu: Movie Snacks Doughnuts. The collab features four new doughnuts inspired by the ‘cinema snack bar’ and includes:

The Blue Raspberry Slush Donut is an OG glazed donut dipped in blue raspberry icing and topped with blue sugar
The Caramel Popcorn Donut is an unglazed shell donut filled with caramel popcorn with red icing drizzled on top
The Cookie Dough Superstar Donut is similar to the caramel popcorn donut but filled with chocolate butter kreme flavored filling, dipped in chocolate flavored icing, and topped with gold glitter sprinkles
And last but certainly not least, the Candy Double Feature Donut, another OG glazed dipped in white icing with milk chocolate candy pieces and mini chocolate chips on top and drizzled with chocolate-flavored icing

Krispy Kreme is even offering guests a chance to win a 1-year Hulu subscription through their online giveaway. If I hear the word donut one more time, I’m gonna have a snack attack–

PAM: DONUT!

RYAN: BRB! SNACKY MCYUMYUM TIME! <SFX runs away, his voice trails> YUM YUM YUM YUM YUM YUM!

PAM: Before the rest of us take a break, we’re talking about buyer boycotts. A Harris Poll shared by the news site The Guardian, shows that 4 out of 10 Americans have shifted their spending habits to align with their views and values. For example, 31% of Americans reported having no interest in supporting the economy this year, and 24% of respondents have stopped shopping at their favorite stores because of their political views. This poll shows us how consumers use their spending habits to respond to politics. Many consumers stopped shopping at Target when the store announced it was rolling back its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives, or DEI for short. Costco, on the other hand, saw a big increase in shoppers when it announced that it would not change its DEI policies. Community organizer put together a buy-cott, the opposite of of a boycot, and encouraged people to head to their local Costco. I hope they had samples in the store that day! Yum. And now, a quick break!

RYAN: Hey Ten’ers, I gotta thank you for writing in those suggestions to name my new, orange kitten! A Ten’er named Timmy Trampoline said, “name your new cat basket ball plz.” That’s a cool name but, I don’t want anyone to dribble him… A Ten’er named Nikki said “name your kitten Shouldey” since he sleeps on my shoulder. And Libbymora said name your cat Ryan Jr. or Cinnamonroll. And Robin’s daughter said, “name the kitten mister tenner.” I mean, these are SENSATIONAL name suggestions, thank you! I’m gonna compile a list and take suggestions for ONE MORE WEEK. So if you have any idea what I should name my 12 week old, orange kitten, who sleeps on my shoulder…leave us a review, comment or send us an email: hello@thetennews.com.

PAM: Remember that scary fish in Finding Nemo with the glowing light on its head that chased Marlin and Dori? The internet is currently obsessing over that same creature after its rare appearance near the Tenerife Sea’s surface. An anglerfish that is typically found 6,500 feet under the sea was captured on video by marine researchers swimming toward the surface of the water. Unfortunately, the fish passed away just hours after being spotted, making its last swim emotional for viewers across social media. Viewers speculate that the fish may have been sick, scared, or even lonely as it made its final ‘descent’ to the water’s surface, making comments like, “Close your eyes and just imagine for one minute… just ONE minute and be her. The feeling she had seeing a light other than her own and then leaving this world.” While it’s a beautiful way to view this rare event, researchers suggest that the fish may have been swallowed by a predator and later regurgitated, or it was just caught in an upward-moving column of warm water.

RYAN: If that story was a little sad then this story is a little FREAKY. Okay for 10 points, what animal is this? <SFX snake hissing> <SFX three second clock tick> A venomous snake was found at a New Hampshire grocery store! A mildly venomous ornate cat-eyed snake, native to Ecuador, was discovered in a box of bananas by employees at a Market Basket grocery store in Manchester, New Hampshire.

PAM: Ry, wouldn’t you love that? It’s like catching a real life Pokémon!

RYAN: Yeah…NO THAT IS TERRIFYING, actually. Store employees contacted the New Hampshire Fish and Game Law Enforcement Division, who safely recovered the snake and relocated it to Rainforest Reptile Shows and RRS Oasis, a local reptile rescue organization where it will live the rest of its life. Since the snake is a specialized species and nocturnal, Rainforest Reptile Inc. is going to create a naturalistic habitat and provide it with specialized food to give it the best life possible. And to be clear, if I ever found a snake in a box of bananas, I would scream like this: <SFX high pitched man scream>

PAM: Wow. Ten’ers would be able to hear that scream all the way over in Alaska… where it’s typically cold, but things are actually heating up. Mount Spurr, a volcano near Anchorage, Alaska, one of the state’s most populated cities, could be on the brink of eruption. According to the Alaska Volcano Observatory, hundreds of small earthquakes have occurred beneath Mount Spurr, and other experts have observed ground deformations indicating that something is happening underneath the summit. There is no way of knowing if the volcano will erupt within a matter of days or even months, but scientists will continue monitoring it closely and watching for increased signs of activity. If the volcano were to erupt, the main two hazards would be ash clouds that could impact air travel and potential ash falling over regional communities. The only other times that Mount Spurr erupted were once in 1953 and 3 times in 1992.

RYAN: And, in Texas, there are 58 confirmed cases of measles, according to local health officials. Measles is a highly contagious, serious airborne disease caused by a virus that can lead to severe complications and even death. It is also known as “the most contagious infectious disease out there.” This marks the state's worst outbreak in over 30 years, and officials say that cases are likely to rise. In addition to Texas, other states like Alaska, Georgia, New York, and Rhode Island have reported measles cases this year. This particular outbreak began in a close-knit and rural Texas community with very low vaccination rates. The measles vaccine is effective and safe, with just two doses, you are 97% protected against developing the infection.

PAM: And now let’s go to our trivia master, Owen!

OWEN: Thanks, Pam! I’ve always been fascinated by Egyptian history…so we’re gonna geek out a little. Can you tell me whose royal Egyptian tomb was discovered in 1922? Is it:

Queen Hatshepsut
King Tutankhamun
King Thutmose II
or Queen Tiy (tea)

OWEN: The answer is… B! King Tut! The tomb of King Tutankhamun was discovered in the Valley of the Kings by excavators led by Egyptologist Howard Carter more than 3,300 years after the king’s death and burial. And as of last Tuesday, more than 100 years down the road, Egypt announced the first discovery of a royal tomb since the discovery of King Tut.

PAM: In a joint Egyptian-British archaeological mission, the tomb of King Thutmose II was discovered in the Mount of Thebes area, west of Luxor and the Valley of the Kings. King Thutmose II is the last of the lost tombs of ancient Egypt's 18th Dynasty kings, who reigned from about 1550 BC to 1292 BC.

OWEN: Although the tomb is in poor condition due to exposure to flooding shortly after the king’s death, the artifacts discovered are important additions to what we know about the area's history and King Thutmose’s reign.

PAM: So cool, thank you Owen!

RYAN: And that was Ten Things You Need to Know. Okay Pam, we gotta get moving. We have a LOT of Pokémon to catch, before we’ve caught them all…

PAM: Last I heard, there was 1,025 different Pokémon in the national Pokédex…how many have you already caught?

RYAN: 217. Give or take a dozen or two.

PAM: Oh wow. We have a LOT of work to do. We should probably give Ten News Snaps to some of our listeners…

RYAN: And before that, here’s a quick note for the grown ups!

RYAN: Time for TEN NEWS SNAPS!

PAM: A Ten’er named Giga Chad said, “Love. It. So. Much. I watch all the time. I wish it came out twice a day! Ryan is Goated!” Ahhh thanks so much Giga Chad, kinds are always appreciated. Thanks for listening!

RYAN: Giga Chad said WHAT! Thank you, you Giga LEGEND. Also, thank you for not mentioning butterflies, like every other review.

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 CATCHING THEM ALL! GET ‘EM GET ‘EM GET ‘EM! 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 Fyaah” Tittle, and our Executive Producers are Donald Albright Albright 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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National Pokemon Day to Egypt's Royal Tombs - 10 Things You Need to Know

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