John Evans

MONDAY 7/7
According to the ice cream industry, if vanilla is America's favorite flavor and chocolate is second, what's third?
BUTTER PECAN (Winner-Nan Schwieger, Campbell)

TUESDAY 7/8
Merriam-Webster is making its annual update of new words. They include dirty bomb, dwarf planet, malware and this word for a vegetarian who eats fish.
PESCATARIAN (Winner-John Goebel, Foster City)

WEDNESDAY 7/9
Three, seven, ten, eleven and twelve share something in common.
THEIR ONLY VOWEL IS "E"(Winner-Katie O'Sullivan, Mountain View)

THURSDAY 7/10
They poured the first one of these on this day in 1892 in Bellefontaine, Ohio.
CONCRETE STREET (Winner-Marie Permann, San Jose)

FRIDAY 7/11
According to Prevention Magazine, more than 40% of people who've had this procedure feel a compulsive need to do it again.
BOTOX (Winner-Marcello Dugatti, Foster City)

MONDAY 7/14
At Disney World's Magic Kingdom, guests consume 18-million of these every year.
PACKETS OF KETCHUP (Winner-Barbara Sloan, Alameda)

TUESDAY 7/15
TV Trivia-According to the Austin Chronicle, I Love Lucy and this 70s TV show air somewhere in the world every hour of every day.
MARY TYLER MOORE (Winner-Bud Gawlik, Santa Clara)



WEDNESDAY 7/16
I played a montage of the top 5 movie villains as voted by moviefone.com. You had to guess the top four. The fifth was optional.
LORD VOLDEMORT, DARTH VADAR, WICKED WITCH OF THE WEST, HANNIBAL LECTER, THE JOKER (Heath Ledger)  Winner-Kevin Fisher-Paulson, SF)

THURSDAY 7/17
Walter Hunt perfected this handy item and then sold the patent for $400 in 1849.
SAFETY PIN (Winner-Scott Williams, Hillsborough)

FRIDAY 7/18
According to askmen.com, the Rhodesian Ridgeback is the manliest dog in America. Name one more from the top five.



BLACK LAB, BLOOD HOUND, GERMAN SHEPHERD, ROTTWEILER (Winner-Philip Hadjin, Emeryville)



Have a PERFECT weekend :)

MULCH
We had some trees trimmed on our property a couple weeks ago.   We wound up agreeing to having two loads of mulch dumped on ours and our neighbor's driveways.  What a job it was getting it spread over 300 feet of our land and helping the neighbors.   And this was the 20th truckload in four years.  I'm exhausted but it sure feels good to work hard.

HOT TUB
I finally bought one. I had a hot tub for years when I lived in Marin County (of course I did...) and have been meaning to get a new one since the mid 90s. Obviously I did my homework. It was delivered a couple weeks ago and I must say that I've never appreciated a hot tub more than I do now. Especially my 51 year old feet.

DAVID SEDARIS



I am a relatively new fan of David Sedaris. My partner turned me on to him about 5-years ago, about the time we got tickets to hear Sedaris read some of his short stories at Zellerbach in Berkeley.  I remember him complaining that he was forbidden to smoke on stage. He went on and on about it.  I have since come to learn by reading his stories that smoking is a common-theme.   David was a recent guest on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart which prompted me to read his latest book, "When You Are Engulfed in Flames."  It's excellent (even though he repeats some older stories) and the entire ending of the book is about him QUITTING cigarets.  He went all the way to Japan to quit.   A fascinating journal/journey.

GREAT FOOD
Hey, how's your garden doing?   We just picked most of the apricots and blackberries.
And we've been eating the best green beans we've ever had...not to mention onions, peppers, carrots and the last of the swiss chard.   The tomatoes are almost ready too as are the plums and peaches.  I love Northern California.

I was having lunch with my friend Charles today and as we were saying goodbye, I noticed the mobile SF SPCA Adopt-A-Pet folks set up in the plaza between the Hyatt Regency and Embarcadero Four. Yikes. Tim and I have been talking for a while now about rescuing an animal and adding to our "family" of dogs. Tucker and Jackie could use some male dog energy around the house.

So, I met Ladde today. And I fell in love with him. He's a four month old lab born on March 8th (four months ago) and was rescued from Guatemala and brought here. His two sisters were already adopted but Ladde still needs a home.

So here I am, running late for work and yet took the time to fill out all the paperwork, etc...but, alas, it just wouldn't work for us right now. Ladde is such a special little guy and he's soooooo cute and would make a wonderful addition to the family. He needs lots of room to play and someone who can devote a ton of time teaching a puppy lab how to live in our world.

You up for it?

Hi there. Well, it was a short week for me, just three days. Here are the three questions from this week's Prize @ 5.

TUESDAY
According to Men's Health Magazine, Americans buy two billion of these every year and they are not recyclable.
DISPOSABLE RAZORS (Winner-Robert Joyce, San Jose)

WEDNESDAY
In 1960, there were 62 million of these registered in the US. Today, there are more than 135-million.
VEHICLES (Winner-M.R. Pamidi, San Jose)

THURSDAY
Prince Charles is a devoted environmentalist. He's had his 1970 Asten Martin converted to be powered by a bio-fuel made from this.
SURPLUS) WINE (Winner-Stephen Wong, Oakland)

Have a terrific Fourth!!

A friend of mine emailed this to me today.
It's a video from youtube of scenes of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake performed by the Great Chinese State Circus that will AMAZE you. It does me. Let me know what you think...

I just finished a book that I wanted to suggest to you.

Remember James Frey, the man who wrote a memoir titled "A Million Little Pieces"   ??   I loved that book and his follow-up, "My Friend Leonard."   I was sad for Frey when it was revealed that he embellish key parts of the memoir.   He said that he wrote "Pieces" as a novel but was persuaded to market it as a memoir.   The entire controversy could have been averted had a disclaimer been printed in the opening pages.  James Frey is a gifted writer and I am thrilled he's back.

His latest book IS A NOVEL but it's also a true history lesson of the origins of Los Angeles and where the City of Angels is headed.    "Bright Shiny Morning" is an epic tale that dates back to the 18th century as a reference to the telling of stories of its modern day migrants and residents.    It's brilliantly told, captivating, gripping and dark.   There's not a lot of optomism is his stories so don't expect any happy endings.   It's more of an indictment of the 'LA Culture.' 

I just spent an amazing weekend in Seattle.   My two oldest sons and I flew to Seattle for my youngest son Jordan's college graduation.  Here we are walking the streets of Capital Hill after a big lunch.  It was 50 degrees that day...so cold.  



Jordan's degree from the University of Washington is in Fine Arts/Product Design.    The students had their own gallery showing of the products they designed and one of the more fascinating ones was designed by Jordan.   It's an tourist information kiosk in the shape of a question mark.   It would be located in terminals, on street corners, etc. 



The four of us got to hang out for two full days.   Jordan took us to his favorite Thai place in the "U" District where everyone knew him by name.  The food is incredibly spicy.   You order everything with a heat index from 1 to 5.   Jordan did #4.   I'm impressed.   It was a great weekend.  I'm very proud of my sons.

I just finished reading the most wonderful story of a man and his dog. And the story is told by the dog Enzo. My mom and brother both read it and called me and said, John...you must read this story. It's the kind you love.

"The Art of Racing in the Rain" is by Garth Stein. It's a powerful story of the human condition...the best of it, the worst of it...told from a dog's point of view. And the ending will knock you out.




"La macchina va dove vanno gli occhi."

If you read the book, I'd love to hear what you think of it.

Thanks for all the great feedback on the Prize @ 5. Listeners ask all the time where I come up with my questions and the answer is quite unremarkable...the questions just come to me based on what I read in the paper and Internet on the daily basis.

A personal note, RIP Sydney Pollack and Harvey Korman. We lost two of the best EVER in the past week. None of us gets out of this life alive...I know that. But still, it's so hard to say good bye.

MONDAY
(Holiday-No question)

TUESDAY
I'll bet you have one in the kitchen. The first one ws patented on May 27, 1919.
TOASTER (Winner-Ted Fukui, San Francisco)

WEDNESDAY
Adults were shown a list of 20 words and asked to identify the ones spelled incorrectly. These 7 were most often misspelled.
QUESTIONNAIRE, DEFINITELY, LIAISON, REFERRING, EMBARRASS, CALENDAR, RECEIVE
(Winner-Therese Porter, San Francisco)

THURSDAY
It is believed no man ever set foot on this until this day, May 29th, 55 years ago (1953).
MT. EVEREST (Winner-Bruce Dupuis, San Francisco)

FRIDAY
In honor of Harvey Korman, name this skit featuring Harvey and Carol Burnett. (I played the 16-second clip of Carol wearing the curtain rod...but here is a good long chunk from youtube).
IT WENT WITH THE WIND (Winner-Judy Lam, Millbrae)

During our "final" week of Spring, I gave away tickets for Cal Shakes production of "Pericles" at the Bruns in Orinda.

MONDAY
According to Men's Health Magazine, the handles of these have more bacteria than public restrooms.
SHOPPING CARTS (Winner-Debra Robinson, American Canyon)

TUESDAY
MSN says that theme parks and chain restaurants are bad ideas for first dates...but they're not the worst.  This is the worst place to take a woman on a first date.
SPORTS BAR (Winner-Glen Bean, Berkeley)

WEDNESDAY
Having one of these creates an extra 7 hours of housework every week.
A HUSBAND (Winner-C.J. Enders, San Francisco)

THURSDAY
South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Maryland and Lousiana...drivers in these states do this behind the wheel more than drivers in any other state.
TEXT MESSAGE (Winner-Michael Reardon, Daly City)

FRIDAY
Trip Adviser has compiled a list of the top ten free tourist destinations in America.   #1 is Bellagio Fountains in Las Vegas.    One is located in California.
GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE (Winner-Yao Sun, Cupertino)


Have a great Memorial Day Weekend.

I love this time of the year and am feeling even more grateful these days.

OUTDOORS
We've got a bunch of company coming this summer, beginning in early June.   We're trying to finish some rather big projects in our yard.   Our property is 300 feet long with a slight grade.    Toward the end of the property, Tim built an art studio and behind it is our vegetable garden.   We decided to fence off that area to keep the dogs out.  Plus, we're broken up the last of the old concrete patios and are recycling the chunks as stepping stones and the smaller pieces as new retaining walls for garden areas and steps.  It's hard work and we love it.   But it's also time consuming.  I'm hoping we get it finished in time.    Our mothers are coming again this summer.    Speaking of the garden, we're eating the swiss chard, onions, radishes, carrots, peas.   And our fruits trees are LOADED this year.   We're going to be making plenty of apricot and plum preserves.  And Martha Stewart's got some great recipes for cobbler.   Our neighbors Tom and Randy donated their old backyard love seat and two chairs so we created an outdoor den including an old marble table and outdoor fire place.   We now have 14 different "rooms" in the yard.

SAY "CHEESE"
I must have 35 photo albums dating back to my childhood.     But in the past 5 years I have taken all of my pictures on my digital camera and downloaded them to my PC.   I decided I needed to get them printed so I copied them to two CDs and took them in.  They turned out great.   I finally finished my years long project and arranged them all in albums.   A real accomplishment.

AMERICAN IDOL
I am rooting for David Cook.  
I am still waiting for Melinda Doolittle's debut CD of R&B and jazz torch songs.   Her "My Funny Valentine" is the best vocal of that song I have ever heard.

NEIGHBORS
A shout out to Bill and Maureen, who live at the end of our property.  We often chat when we're tending our gardens.  Maureen also walks the 'hood everyday with her friend Mary.   They have lived in the area for 50 to 60 years and have so many great stories.  Bill and Maureen share their apples with us.  Bill planted a redwood tree in one of the yards back in 1957.   That tree is as old as I am and more than 100 feet tall.   We were standing in awe of it Saturday afternoon.  It stands watch, along with two more redwoods also planted in the late 50s. 
If trees could talk.......



 

This week we gave away tickets for the Oakland East Bay Symphony "Follies" concert next Friday, May 16th at the Paramount Theater.
Here are this week's questions and answers.

MONDAY (Cinco de Mayo)
There are at least 13 states with a town named Montezuma.  Name one.
ARIZONA, COLORADO, GEORGIA, INDIANA, IOWA, KANSAS, NEW MEXICO, NEW YORK, NORTH CAROLINA, OHIO, TENNESSEE, VIRGINIA, WEST VIRGINIA
(Winner-Brad Justice, Richmond)

TUESDAY
These are the worst gifts to give on Mother's Day.   Name three of the five from a Canadian survey.
ANYTHING FOR THE KITCHEN INCLUDING APPLIANCES OF ANY KIND, CLEANING PRODUCTS, CLOTHING, VACUUM, IRON
(Winner-Paula Vander Pool, Fremont)

WEDNESDAY
According to Men's Health, 8 out of 10 couples who do this together say they have an excellent relationship.
COOK (Winner-Blaise Curet, Oakland)

THURSDAY
According to a learning website, this is the most popular book among American first graders.
GREEN EGGS AND HAM by DR. SUESS (Winner-Paul Almy, San Francisco)

FRIDAY
(I played a montage of clips of four TV Moms and asked you to name three of the characters).
CLAIRE HUXTABLE-Cosby, EDITH BUNKER-All in the Family, DEBRA BARONE-Everybody Loves Raymond, THELMA HARPER-Mama's Family
(Winner-Deborah Ferry, Sunnyvale)

Have a great Mother's Day Weekend and join me for a luxurious Big Island of Sanity, Sunday from 9am to Noon.
Ciao for Niao.

It's Monday again.  I hope you enjoyed the weekend, albeit a cool one for May.   I took Friday off to have surgery to have a benign tumor removed from my left arm.   Back in February, the day of my birthday dinner, I noticed the lump in my arm.  I had a friend over that Saturday and we were chatting in the kitchen while the water boiled for tea.    I folded my arms and felt the pain.   My friend is a vet and he looked at it and insisted I go to the E.R.    Yikes.   So off to Berkeley and Alta Bates I went.   Several doctor appointments and an MRI later, I finally had it removed.   Everyone at the Surgery Center in Oakland was amazing.    I now have a third scar on my left arm.   The other two are from childhood including a vicious dog attack when I was five.    So, that was my weekend, taking it easy and getting lots of sympathy from Tim and my friends.  But it's Monday and the novelty's worn off .  

I came across some interesting stories on the Internet this morning that I re-wrote and would like to share with you.


HUMAN CONDITION

Upside-Down Feet
A 15-year-old girl from the Philippines is recovering in a New York City hospital from surgery to correct a bizarre birth defect.   She was born with her feet upside down.   They waited until she stopped growing to correct the problem.

Falling Trees
Climate change is having a big impact on the forests of Colorado and Wyoming.  Several campgrounds are closed because of concern that dead or dying trees could fall.   Warming temperatures and an abundance of aging pines have allowed populations of the hungry bugs to explode.

Space Aliens
In Denver, Jeff Peckman is urging the city to prepare for space aliens.   Peckman wants a commission to be created to deal with what he says are ETs on Earth.   He’s seeking signatures to get the measure on the ballot.


TECH TICKER

Cuba Gets Wired
It's another high-tech first in Cuba.  The people now may buy PCs.   It’s one more ban being lifted by the new president, Raul Castro.  Besides dropping the ban on computer sales, Castro has ended bans that kept most Cubans from owning cell phones, staying in luxury hotels or renting cars.  A tower-style computer and monitor costs nearly 800 U.S. dollars.  While few Cubans can afford that, crowds gathered outside electronics stores just to look at a computer through the glass and dream of owning one.

Peanut Allergy
Within 5 years there may be a treatment for people with an allergy to peanuts.  Dr. Wesley Burks at Duke University says peanut allergies often appear in the first three years of life, with the allergic reaction from eating peanuts ranging from a minor irritation to death.  Many children grow out of other food allergies, but only about 20% lose their peanut allergy.

When I got home last night I noticed Augusten Burroughs' new book on the dining room table.   I'd forgotten we'd ordered it.    Ever since "Running With Scissors," I've read all of his books including his first, which came out before Scissors.  It's a bizarre little novel titled "Sellevision."     His latest book is about his relationship with his father, titled "A Wolf At The Table." 

I came across this quote on Wikipedia...Burroughs said that many of his fans may have trouble with the book.   "It's just a devastating, terrifying story.  But I had to write it for me. "



I'll let you know what I think in a couple days when I've finished it.

I'd like to personally thank you if you attended the KDFC Classical Star Search Finals last night at the Palace of Fine Arts Theater.   It was a great event...from the pre-concert reception to the announcement of the winners.  Even getting out of the parking lot went well without much of a wait.

There are so many people here at KDFC who worked tirelessly on making this happen (you know who you are) and we couldn't have pulled it off without them.   And Lang Lang...you rock!

I wanted also to thank the 300 people who submitted entries, the 20 semi-finalists and the six finalists.  I could never be a Simon Cowell (even though I often agree with him)  because I feel rather paternal to the performers...I thought they all did a terrific job.   Congrats to the winners...Percy Liang and Rieko Tsuchida.

We've had several conversations here at the studios today on how to grow this event even bigger next year. 
And we will.

This week I gave away tickets to see the new show at Berkeley Rep, "Figaro."   The show opens tonight and runs through the first week of June.  I hope you enjoy the show.

MONDAY
This musical opened on Broadway on this day, April 21, 1977.   The original run of 2,377 performances lasted just shy of 6 years.



ANNIE (Winner-Hope Weisssman, San Francisco)

TUESDAY
130-million of these will be thrown away this year.   Only 20% are recycled.
CELL PHONES (Winner-Patrick Domres, San Jose)

WEDNESDAY
What were you allowed to do on flights from say the Bay Area to LA and Seattle (flights less than two hours) UNTIL this day, April 23, 1988?
SMOKE (Winner-Josephine McChord, Berkeley)

THURSDAY
We know most everything about our pets.  But only 6 in 10 of us know this.
THEIR BIRTH DATE (Winner-John Quilter, Brisbane)
(There are our two dogs.   "Sophie" Tucker, on the left, was born February 10, 1998.   She's now 10.   We don't know Jackie's birth date.  She was a rescue.  We guess Jackie "Jane Russell" she may be about 8.)



FRIDAY
New Yorkers were required to buy one of these for their automobiles beginning on this day, April 25, 1901.    The price for one was a dollar.
LICENSE PLATE (Winner-Cliff Terry, Walnut Creek)

Have the best weekend.
See you Sunday morning on the Big Island of Sanity from 9 to Noon.    :)

Some interesting stories I thought I'd share with you today.   I can really relate to the travel story.   I will be traveling to three places this year and all of them are in the U.S.   (I want to be Hoyt when I grow up and become a world traveler).    In June, we're going to Seattle for my son Jordan's graduation from the UofW.    This summer, we're going to New York City and we're spending Thanksgiving with friends in New Mexico.    That's the only region not represented on this top ten list.

HUMAN CONDITION

Summer City Destinations
Are you traveling this summer?  Orbitz says Americans for the most part will be staying stateside this summer.  The top American destinations will be Las Vegas, New York City, Chicago, Orlando, Honolulu, San Francisco, San Diego, Anchorage, Seattle and Miami.

Teen Writing
Texting is taking a toll on teens.   Texting shortcuts are finding their way into formal writing assignments in school and dropping grades.   It was bound to happen.    LOL!!    :)   

Close Call
A new study by scientists finds that the human race nearly died off 70,000 years ago.    The human population was reduced to small isolated groups in Africa and may have shrunk as low as 2,000 because of drought before numbers began to expand again in the early Stone Age.


TECH TICKER

Internet Population
China and the U.S. now have about the same number of Internet users....about 220-million each.   There’s been a dramatic increase in China where a third of all Internet traffic takes place at cybercafés.

Penguin Wet Suit
Researchers have developed a wet suit for an elderly penguin.   The poor guy was losing his feathers which protected him from the cold waters.  Unlike marine mammals, which have a layer of blubber to keep them warm, these penguins rely on their waterproof feathers.   After losing patches of feathers, little Pierre could no longer stand the cold water and would shiver on the sidelines.  Oceanic Worldwide in San Leandro made a penguin body suit.   One concern was that the other penguins would reject Pierre in his new duds, but, they accepted his new look.    Pierre was outfitted six weeks ago and since then has gained weight and grown back feathers on his hind part

I love stories about people which demonstrate courage, struggle to overcome obstacles, gratitude, generosity, creativity.     I also enjoy technology stories.   So I've decided to share a few of my favorites every week.     These are just highlights which I've rewritten from wire stories and web reports.   You can always search to read more.

THE HUMAN CONDITION

Falling Baby
Lisa Harwell has spent the past couple days adjusting to being famous for an act of heroism.   She was delivering mail Monday morning when she noticed a baby crawling out a window on the second floor of a building.   The next thing she knew, the baby fell into her arms.  The little girl’s fine.

Cow Power
In Vermont, brewery workers put their heads together and came up with a plan to power operations using methane gas from cow manure.  In exchange for the manure, the brewery is sending farms its mash, the byproduct of the brewing process.   Farmers feed it to their cows.

Docs by Email
Why are so many doctors and their office staffs resisting staying in touch with patients via email?  Wouldn’t it be easier than wasting hours, days, playing phone tag just to re-fill a prescription or make an appointment??

THE TECH TICKER

Faux Fowl
The animal rights group PETA is offering $1-million to any scientist who can create lab-grown meat that is commercially viable and indistinguishable in taste from the real thing.  PETA wants scientists to grow chicken meat in labs to stop the birds from being caged, abused and murdered for meat.    Scientists must be able to produce the meat in large enough quantity so it could be sold in 10 states at competitive prices.    More than 40 billion chicken, fish, pigs and cows are killed every year for food in the United States.

Voice Blackberry
Microsoft has launched an application for the BlackBerry that lets people speak commands into their smart phones.   "Weather," “traffic,” "movies," "driving directions.   As one official says, people are getting more frustrated by cell phones and PDAs that are getting smaller yet have more and more functions.  There are so many menus you can’t safely navigate through them while driving or walking.  Voice is the best solution.

Solar Bike
In Los Angeles, Brent Hatch is powering his bike by the sun.   He's converted an eight-seat surrey bike to a solar-powered commuter.  His is the sort of bike you see shuttling tourists around.  It's tough peddling up hill with his five kids, so Hatch added an electric motor.  To keep from running out of juice, he installed solar panels to the bike and it works like a charm.

It was cool this weekend.  But I won't complain.   I spoke with a brother, a sister, a niece and my mother last night and all four live in Seattle and Tacoma.  They endured snow flurries all day...IN APRIL!    So, it was a bit on the chilly side but I still managed to wash and wax one of the cars, mow the lawn, pick a few roses off one of the bushes, wash windows, attack cobwebs, trim vines and two deturas (they smell so good on a warm night) play with the dogs and watch the DVD movie, "Kinky Boots" which a friend lent us.   But one of the highlights of the weekend was making a red cabbage dish which I cooked Saturday and we ate Sunday.   I grew up on that dish during holiday and mine turned out great.   And we ate mustard greens and swiss chard from our garden with limes off the tree.  I also started reading "New Earth" by Ekhart Tolle.    Too many people I know, love and respect have read and it and rave.   Here goes....
 

I hope you enjoyed playing along this week.   And by the way, many listeners suggest trivia questions to me and I use them from time to time.  If you've got one, by all means email it to me.   There might be a goodie in it for you.   :)

MONDAY
4 out of 10 of us have taken or will take this job, which can be found just about anywhere.
WAITER OR WAITRESS (Winner-Al Fishman, San Francisco)

TUESDAY
According to comScore, this is the most-searched health term online.
PREGNANCY (Winner-Joe Sefchuck, Oakland)



WEDNESDAY
A lower house of the French Parliament has approved a bill that would make it illegal for fashion magazines, advertisers and websites to promote this.
THINNESS (Winner-Mathew Ceryes, Vallejo)

THURSDAY
This was introduced on this day, April 17th in 1964 at the New York World's Fair...and then two days later on all three TV networks.  In the fall of '64, one was featured in the James Bond movie, Goldfinger.
FORD MUSTANG (Winner-Tom Libby, San Francisco)



FRIDAY
According to the US Census Bureau, Seattle is NOT the rainiest city in the US.   This southeastern city is.
MOBILE, ALABAMA (Winner-Kenneth Sumner, Berkeley)

Have a nice weekend y'all.    :)