samhexum

Wendy Williams living in sober house: Celebrities tweet their support Celebrities are coming forward to show their support for Wendy Williams after she announced on her talk show Tuesday that she’s been living in a sober house. Former “Today” co-host Tamron Hall, who’s set to launch a talk show of her own in September, tweeted, “Proud of @WendyWilliams for taking this major step! Her journey will inspire so many people in the same situation… using her voice for good.” CNN anchor Don Lemon praised the 54-year-old — who has been open about her past drug abuse — for her bravery in coming forward. “I say bravest woman I know. @WendyWilliams finally speaks her truth about recovery,” Lemon tweeted. “The View” co-host Meghan McCain said what Williams shared was not “for the weak of heart.” “Sending strength and love to you @WendyWilliams – speaking your truth and showing your struggle and darkness on national television is not for the weak of heart,” McCain tweeted. For comedian Whitney Cummings and “Scandal” star Bellamy Young, things got personal. “Addiction has plagued myself and my family for my whole life and I’m just so grateful that she’s sharing her story to help combat the shame of addiction,” Cummings tweeted. “This is a disease that discriminates against nobody.” And Young shared, “I learned a long time ago in #AlAnon that ‘we’re only as sick as our secrets.’ So shine your LIGHT. Let us heal w/you. There are very few lives untouched by addiction: it’s so important that we share how we heal & how we grow. I’m w/you 100%.” Meanwhile, Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler — who in January told GQ he’s been sober for nearly a decade (his fourth attempt at staying clean) — spoke about bravery. “YOU KNOW WHATS BRAVE..? ADMITTING YOUR FAILURE…ADMITTING YOUR TRIUMPHS WITHOUT A CARE FOR JUDGEMENT,” he tweeted. “STRENGTH TAKES TIME TO BUILD…BETTER LATE THAN NEVER…CONGRATS TO @WendyWilliams FOR SPEAKING YOUR TRUTH. .” Piers Morgan, known for blasting celebs, took a break from his feuds to compliment Williams. “Love @WendyWilliams – one of the nicest & most genuine people I’ve encountered on US TV,” he wrote. “This was a gutsy thing to admit – wish her all the best.” Howard Stern, who went after Williams and her “mystery illness” after she criticized his book, has yet to address Williams’ announcement. On Tuesday, Williams revealed that she didn’t tell anyone but her husband, Kevin Hunter, that she would be moving into the sober facility. “Only Kevin knows about this. Not my parents, nobody. Nobody knew because I look so glamorous out here,” she shared on her show. “After I finish my appointments … I am driven by my 24-hour sober coach back to a home that I live in the tri-state with a bunch of smelly boys who have become my family. … We talk and read and talk and read and then I get bored with them. Doors locked by 10 p.m., lights out by 10 p.m., so I go to my room and stare at the ceiling and fall asleep to come here and see you. So that is my truth.” Her revelation comes after she took a 2-month hiatus from her eponymous TV show. Upon her return, she revisited her past struggles with drugs but said her absence was because of her Graves’ disease. She didn’t officially say on Tuesday that she relapsed.

A New Hampshire turkey played crossing guard for his feathered friends — halting traffic on a two-lane road while they crossed the street, a new video shows. The traffic-safety-conscious fowl stood in one lane with it tail feathers unfurled, blocking oncoming traffic in Litchfield, New Hampshire, on Thursday. A pack of birds then safely cross the road as traffic remains stopped, the video shows. The crossing guard-bird then scampers across the road after all the other turkeys.

I was in the dentist's chair today getting numbed for a shot when the song came on. No, I didn't start singing. Smooth Criminal & Don't You Want Me also came on.

It's not a part of my cable package, but I tend to watch old sitcoms, so I probably would occasionally if I got it.

Did y’all catch the season premiere of TRADING SPACES last night? TLC also brought back WHILE YOU WERE OUT, but without Andrew Dan Jumbo & Theresa Strasser, who cares?

My former roommate & I visited Russia a few months after communism fell; a tourist company was trying to establish itself & we got a private car & driver. We were on our way to see something outside of Leningrad (they changed the name a week or so later) and our driver got pulled over for speeding. I don't think it was a racial thing, but we were nervous, nevertheless. My father got pulled over in PA when he & my mom were taking my sister to look at colleges. He actually told the cop that there had been police cars at every other underpass to catch speeders, but that they had changed the pattern and that was why he got caught. I got pulled over for doing 57 in a 50 MPH zone on a highway in Maryland. The speed limit had been 55, and then it just changed at a county or city line or something and I didn't see the sign. Unfortunately the cop smelled pot in my car & did a search and...

A group of tenants in a Hell’s Kitchen apartment complex say they are being locked out — by technology. And now they are suing their landlord for the return of their low-tech keys to the front lobby. “It’s ridiculous that everyone is spending all this money to go to court just to get a key,” said Mary Beth McKenzie, 72, an artist who has lived in the West 45th St. building for nearly five decades. “For 45 years I’ve had a key. And now, we can’t get keys.” Instead of keys, the building’s owners have installed a new electronic security system called Latch, which requires a smartphone app to access the building’s lobby, where a newly built elevator and the tenants’ mailboxes are located. McKenzie’s 93-year-old husband has been a virtual shut-in since the new technology was introduced last year because he doesn’t use a cellphone and has difficulty walking up the three flights of stairs to their apartment, she said. Tenants in the complex at 517-525 West 45th St. don’t need to use the lobby to access the stairwells to the buildings, which are between four and five stories each. McKenzie and some of the other rent-regulated tenants who are suing for the return of their keys say Latch also includes a GPS function that allows the building’s owners to monitor their movements and even their social media. The app, which is currently in use in more than 1,000 residential buildings in the city, also comes with an 84-page contract which states that any information collected through the Latch system goes to the building owner, the tenants say. “Once I come into the building using Latch, the landlord is immediately notified,” said Charlotte Pfahl, who lives on the fifth floor and is one of five plaintiffs in the lawsuit in Manhattan civil court. “It’s a form of harassment,” said McKenzie, whose paintings hang in The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian. “What happens if your phone dies? I don’t want to be stuck on the street and I don’t want to be surveilled.” Some of the rent-regulated tenants told The Post that they see Latch as part of a pattern of harassment by the owners to push them out of their apartments so they can rent them at market rate. Market rents in the building vary between $2,600 per month for a studio and $4,500 for a two-bedroom, according to recent real-estate listings. The city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development had previously slapped the owners of the building with two violations for capping the keyhole on the lock to the lobby door when they introduced the technology. The violations were removed last week following a second HPD inspection. The owners removed the cap from the lobby lock, but still did not issue mechanical keys to those tenants who asked for them, Pfahl told The Post. The owners — a limited liability company controlled by Offir Naim and Shai Bernstein — said they installed Latch to provide tenants greater security following a burglary in August 2018, according to court papers. And the GPS function is optional, they said. “Tenants have the option to disable that function at any time,” Naim said in court filings. The Latch system also allows tenants to buzz someone, such as a courier, into the building without having to be at home, court papers say. But Ron Sharpe, who has lived on the first floor of the building since 2003 and runs an antiques business with his partner, is not impressed. “We just want a key,” he said. “It’s just easier to handle.”

By all means, ask for a lock, since you have valuables there. It would also be nice to know what kind of homeowner's insurance your landlord has, though he might not like the question so I don't know if I'd ask it. If for some reason he doesn't want you to have a lock, invest in a nanny-cam.

https://www.companyofmen.org/threads/i-wouldnt-mind-being-calvin-klein.84855/#post-764895 The male model and one-time boy-toy of Calvin Klein only cared about how his hair looked as he left Manhattan court Friday where he was facing charges for allegedly beating someone with a frying pan, breaking into an apartment and stealing drugs. Nicholas “Nick” Gruber — who dated the much older fashion mogul in 2010 for two years in Klein’s first public gay relationship — replied “How does my hair look?” after a Post photographer jokingly asked if he was ready for a closeup. Gruber was arrested on March 11 for two crimes inside an East 76th Street building. He had previously charged in 2012 for punching a 20-year-old man after a night of partying. This time, prosecutors say Gruber, 29, and co-defendant Brandon Steele repeatedly hit an unnamed person with a frying pan on Sept. 3, 2018 and then refused to let the victim leave the apartment despite his pleas to get out. The beating broke several bones in his back, nearly severed his ear and may adversely affect his vision, the complaint states. Gruber was charged with second-degree assault and unlawful imprisonment for that incident and faces up to seven years in prison if convicted on the top count. On March 5 of this year, prosecutors say in a separate complaint that he broke into an apartment in the same building and stole a bag of methamphetamine along with a newly delivered package of clothing. Gruber claimed he never broke in, as he was subletting it from another woman, but the superintendent of the building told police he didn’t live there, according to the complaint. Gruber is charged with criminal possession of stolen property, drugs possession and trespassing for the second incident and he faces up to a year in jail if convicted on the top count. Back in April 2012, Gruber was accused of bringing a guy home with him to his Greenwich Street apartment after a night of partying and then punching the man. Cops at the time also found cocaine inside Gruber’s pants. He served 20 days community service for that offense. He pleaded guilty to drug charges in August 2012 for that case and eventually landed himself at a posh Arizona rehab. Gruber was slated to write a tell-all book about his relationship with Klein but later changed his mind. He is out on $5,000 bail and is due back in court on April 4. Gruber declined to comment about his cases.

Imagine Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr. with English accents and those beloved self-deprecating British senses of humor. The Queensborough Performing Arts Center will present Tenors Un Limited, a trio of crooners also known as “The Rat Pack of Opera,” in Bayside on Sunday, March 17, at 3 p.m. The group, which is celebrating 15 years together, is touring the United States with the “From Venice to Vegas” show, an eclectic mix of melodies from the opera world, Broadway tunes, and popular music from the 1950s and 1960s. Members also like to tell stories, crack jokes, and ham it up on stage. Thus, attendees can expect to chuckle in their seats between versions of “La Donna è Mobile,” “Volare,” “You’re Too Good to be True,” and Sting’s “Fragile.” They can also expect to hear introductions before the Opera songs with a bit of history and musical theory. Ticket prices are $48, $42, and $35. Each performer — Scott Ciscon, Paul Martin, and Jem Sharples — was enjoying a solo career until 2002, when they got the idea to form a “classical-crossover man band” that did popular songs from a variety of genres with a heavy incorporation of rich harmonies. They love harmonies. Luckily, audiences did, too. They got gigs at hallowed English venues such as Wembley Stadium during the final of a soccer championship and the Royal Festival Hall, while also appearing on television via BBC and Sky Sports. After their popularity grew, they went on tours of other European countries, Australia, and the United States. As the Queensborough Performing Arts Center has been undergoing a renovation over the past few months, this concert will take place at The OLBS Theater at 34-45 202nd St. (the corner of 35th Avenue and 203rd Street) in Bayside. There is free parking in an adjacent lot and on the street.

“One Day at a Time” has been canceled at Netflix after three seasons, Variety has learned. According to an individual with knowledge of the situation, producer Sony Pictures Television plans to shop the series elsewhere. The reboot of the classic Norman Lear sitcom was co-created Gloria Calderon Kellett and Mike Royce, who also serve as co-showrunners. The series followed three generations of a Cuban-American family. A newly-single mom and military veteran (Justina Machado) journeys through the triumphs and tribulations that come with raising two strong-willed, mega-millennial children (Isabella Gomez, Marcel Ruiz), all the while enlisting the “help” of her old-school mother (Rita Moreno) and her building manager-turned-invaluable confidante (Todd Grinnell). The series also starred Stephen Toblowsky. “It’s been a great honor to work with the legendary Norman Lear on ‘One Day at a Time,'” said Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos in a statement. “I’ve personally spoken with Norman, and co-creators Gloria Calderón Kellett and Mike Royce, to express my gratitude to them, all the writers, the dedicated crew and the cast including the brilliant Justina Machado and dazzling Rita Moreno for creating a series with such humor, heart and humanity. This was a very difficult decision and we’re thankful to all the fans who’ve supported the series, our partners at Sony, and all the critics who embraced it. While it’s disappointing that more viewers didn’t discover ‘One Day at a Time,’ I believe the series will stand the test of time.” In addition to Calderon-Kellet and Royce, Lear served as executive producer along with Michael Garcia and Brent Miller. Sony Pictures Television produced for Netflix. According to another individual with knowledge of the decision, the show simply did not garner enough viewership to justify a fourth season, particularly given the fact that it was produced by an outside studio. Nevertheless, “One Day at a Time” has been a critical darling from the beginning. Season 1 averaged a 94% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, while both Seasons 2 and 3 are at 100%. Calderon-Kellet and Royce issued a joint statement on Twitter, which read in part, “We had the time of our lives making this show. We worked with the best, most giving and talented cast, writers and crew ever, as well as the incomparable Norman Lear. So while our hearts are very heavy, they are also bursting with appreciation for this amazing experience.” Calderon-Kellett also shared her frustrations in separate Twitter postings. (Read the full statements below.) Lear said he was “heartbroken” over the cancellation. He posed the question via Twitter: “Is there really so little room in business for love and laughter?” (Read the full statement below.) Netflix also said in a tweet thread announcing the cancellation, “And to anyone who felt seen or represented — possibly for the first time — by ODAAT, please don’t take this as an indication your story is not important. The outpouring of love for this show is a firm reminder to us that we must continue finding ways to tell these stories.”

Now shielding my eyes. Thanks for the warning! :rolleyes:

Nearly 21,000 canines competed in the Crufts 2019 dog show — but there was only one Baron Kratu von Bearbum. The Romanian rescue mutt took no trophies or ribbons at England’s annual celebration of man’s best friend. Who needs hardware when you own the spotlight? Kratu furballed his way through the agility course, gleefully refusing to obey his trainer’s every command. Far from a four-legged fiasco, this adorable 5-year-old was the one to watch. Officially billed as a Carpathian-Mioritic mix, Kratu’s rambunctious moves and stealth hiding techniques cracked up the Crufts crowd. Founded by traveling salesman Charles Cruft in 1891, the 128-year-old Kennel Club eventnow attracts more than 150,000 tourists, breeders, traders and, of course, dogs every year. Kratu was one of 3,611 dogs leading what organizers dubbed the “foreign invasion,” which saw 413 entrants from Italy, 389 from France, 327 from the Netherlands and 325 from Germany. The UK-based rescue group Wood Green saved Kratu from an abusive home in 2014, The Dodo reports. He was adopted as a puppy by his owner/trainer, Tessa Eagle Swan. “As a teenager he was incredibly hard to train — he was so stubborn and determined to do what he wanted,” Swan tells the Daily Mail. “He is such a big character who will try to do what he wants rather than what I am asking,” she says. “He is challenging … [but I] believe in all rescue dogs having an education with kind reward-based training and, if needed, behavioral work in order to be able to become happy, balanced dogs.” Well, there’s little question that Kratu made some dog watchers happy. In the end, Crufts supplied 12 solid hours of televised pooch performance art on Channel 4 in the UK. That’s nothing to bark at.

Geez... you click on a thread you think's gonna be about water polo...

COP APPREHENDS FUGITIVE WHO WAS ON THE LAMB A cop stationed on a Brooklyn highway to give out tickets Wednesday morning has become a hero after rescuing a wayward lamb found roaming the Gowanus Expressway. Officer Dominick Gatto from highway patrol was manning the high occupancy vehicle lane during rush hour when a motorist told him a goat was on the loose. The animal was first spotted about 9:15 a.m. trotting along the eastbound lanes of the Brooklyn highway near 38th Street and made it all the way to 50th Street, where Gatto was stationed. The lamb is believed to have escaped from one of the nearby slaughterhouses in Sunset Park and was trying not to become dinner. Gatto and Lt. Sherif Nassef came to the rescue, chasing down the fearless animal before throwing him in the back of their car when The Post caught up with the trio. The lucky lamb was transported to an animal rescue on Staten Island, where he will presumably live out the rest of his days in greener pastures. This is not the first time barnyard animals have terrorized New York’s streets. The N train in Borough Park had to be temporarily suspended last August when two goats were found roaming the train line and enjoying a nice grass lunch. It’s believed they’d also escaped the slaughterhouse. Cops managed to nab the duo after a two-hour operation and the pair were transported to Farm Sanctuary, a nonprofit shelter for farm animals located in Watkins Glen. Former “The Daily Show” host Jon Stewart, who sits on the board of Farm Sanctuary, was personally on hand to transport the kids.

The new slogan is not exactly a “wish you were here.” An unofficial tourism catchphrase that has been used to draw attention to Australia’s Northern Territory is facing a lot of backlash – and a potential ban in the region – for its use of suggestive wording. NT Unofficial created the cheeky expression, which out loud reads, “See you in the NT (Northern Territory),” but on paper, has been shortened to look like an offensive derogatory four-letter term for women. The company began selling the swear-word adjacent slogan printed on shirts and other merchandise at stores throughout the area in 2016 and claims it never had an issue. “Our official stockist at Mindil markets has been selling for years without any issue,” the company told the NT News in a statement. “We just hope that council doesn’t forget the real NT Unofficial has been tirelessly campaigning to promote the Territory to the world. “There’s nothing insulting or degrading to women about a simple invitation to the greatest territory on earth.” However, the official Darwin Council, which can enforce laws which prohibit offensive materials from being sold in stores at the marketplace, said they have fielded many complaints over the years and met this week to discuss a potential ban for the “offensive” phrase. “The complaints are about this merchandise that [has] been on display near the playgrounds… children are saying ‘what does this mean’ and it’s not something parents want to have to explain.” said Darwin Council official Robin Knox, the NT News reported. “In common usage this word is not a joke, it is used very negatively and as a slur against women.” Locals have been split on the matter, with many firing back on Facebook, slamming the company’s materials. “Feel like there is a design flaw here,” one wrote. “Do you need to stoop this low to advertise your Territory!!! NO !!!! TAKE IT OFF FACEBOOK !” another wrote. “But walking to the shops with his own kids, maybe they wouldn’t question it, but I think it’s pretty poor taste. I reckon the Territory should grow up a little bit,” a local man told NT News. But there have been many staunch supporters of the bold slogan. “It’s one of the most creative and intelligent things I’ve ever heard,” another local, Ross, said. “Snowflakes melt in the heat.” “As a born n bred Darwinite I [wholeheartedly] approve and embrace NTunofficial and their merchandise,” a Facebook user wrote, signing the message, “Caring understanding northern Territorian.” Local businesses have also reportedly supported the merchandise, stating the popularity of the items have helped them stay open. “It’s prevented us from laying off staff,” shop owner Tracey Wedel told 9News. “Prior to receiving this stock, we were struggling in a major way.” An Ohio salon owner thinks she hit the nail on the head with her business name — even though some residents don’t agree. Dawn Moon, owner of Hand Jobs Nails & Spa, in Perkins Township, believes the name is good branding. “You don’t want something that they can’t remember or that they can’t pronounce or say,” Moon told ABC. “In less than a week, I think the whole country knows about us. You can’t pay for that kind of advertising.” It’s also literally what the spa does. “If you go in and get your nose done, it’s called a nose job, right? Well, you come in and get your hands done, it’s a hand job!” Moon added. Krystle, an employee at the salon, told The Post the cheeky name has been getting “mostly compliments” from patrons who’ve come in since the salon opened this week. Others “crack jokes,” she said. But not everyone is laughing. Perkins Township Zoning Director Megan Sherlund said she’s gotten complaints about the sign’s suggestive nature. Signs should not be “indecent or obscene in nature,” Sherlund told ABC. “We have no stance on it other than we have to take into consideration the entire feel and community of Perkins Township.” A decision on whether the sign passes zoning restrictions is due later this week. If it doesn’t, one worker vowed to fight for the name. “If they reject it, then we’ll appeal it and then we’ll go to court,” Krystle said. “But the name of the salon will not change.” A statue commemorating a World War II veteran in North Carolina has been vandalized in what is suspected to have been a case of mistaken identity. The statue of General William C. Lee, described as “Father of the Airborne,” was covered in an accelerant and set on fire in Dunn earlier this month. Rather than being an orchestrated attack against the military figure, officials at the Major General William C. Lee Airborne Museum, where the statue is based, believed the “jerk punk” vandals set the marble statue on fire believing it was commemorating General Robert E. Lee. The museum’s curator, Mark Johnson, said whoever was responsible must have thought they were targeting a confederate statue as he considered it “unbelievable” that anyone would want to set fire to a statue of the hometown hero. “I think that’s probably it,” Johnson told The Daily Record. “So just an alert to people who may be thinking about such things, this is the wrong general.” Speaking to WNCN, Johnson said he has been studying William Lee’s life and there is no common connection between the two generals, adding that the Dunn veteran was not racist. “When he was in World War II he’s considered the father of the airborne which there were plenty of black paratroopers, a very diverse outfit.” “Complete different generation, complete different war, complete different everything,” Johnson told The Daily Record. “Everything is different.” The museum shared pictures of the burnt statue on Facebook on February 15. “The United States owes so much to our military forces and all five military branches are what has kept this country safe and free for all these years,” the museum wrote in a caption alongside the pictures. “The U.S. Army Airborne soldier is highly respected worldwide. Then comes along some jerk punk(s) and he tries to burn the statue of WWII Major General William C. Lee. “It scorched the statue mostly on the left side. You can see the burn marks in the marble where the jerk placed the remainder of the fuel container on the platform. The cleaning and repair possibilities process will begin soon.” Dunn Police said they are investigating the incident but have not come up with any suspects yet. The museum said nearby surveillance cameras will be reviewed in a bid to catch the perpetrator. The states of North and South Carolina have frequently ignited debate regarding confederate monuments in the wake of the mass shooting of a black church in Charlestown by white supremacist Dylann Roof. In August 2018, a bronze statue of Confederate soldier Silent Sam was toppled at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. The statue, which has since been completely removed from the grounds, was erected in 1913 to pay tribute to those who died fighting for the Confederacy in the Civil War. Blind creature that buries head in sand named after Donald Trump Amphibian’s behavior compared to president’s approach to global warming A newly discovered blind and burrowing amphibian is to be officially named Dermophis donaldtrumpi, in recognition of the US president’s climate change denial. The name was chosen by the boss of EnviroBuild, a sustainable building materials company, who paid $25,000 (£19,800) at an auction for the right. The small legless creature was found in Panama and EnviroBuild’s Aidan Bell said its ability to bury its head in the ground matched Donald Trump’s approach to global warming. Trump’s distinctive hair has already led to comparisons to a poisonous furry caterpillar and a golden-plumed pheasant, while a yellow-crowned moth was called Neopalpa donaldtrumpi in 2017. The newly discovered creature is a caecilian and its naming rights were auctioned to raise money for the Rainforest Trust. The scientists who found the 10cm amphibian have agreed to use the name Dermophis donaldtrumpi when they officially publish the discovery in scientific literature. Bell said: “It is the perfect name. Caecilian is taken from the Latin caecus, meaning ‘blind’, perfectly mirroring the strategic vision President Trump has consistently shown towards climate change.” As an amphibian, the shiny animal is particularly susceptible to the impacts of global warming and is therefore in danger of becoming extinct as a result of its namesake’s climate policies, the Rainforest Trust said. Police Arrested A Man Named Sober For Being Not Sober It’s not uncommon for people to be arrested while wearing an ironic T-shirt (like this guy), but what about having an ironic name? That’s what happened on Saturday in Butler County, Pennsylvania, when police pulled over a suspected drunken driver named Daniel Sober. Court documents said he told officers he had just dropped off his girlfriend so she could check on her son. Officers said they smelled alcohol on Sober, 44, and gave him a portable breath test. Spoiler alert: Sober wasn’t sober. His blood-alcohol level registered .194 ― more than twice the legal limit for drivers. He was charged with drunken driving and careless driving and was later released on his own recognizance and is scheduled to appear in court on March 20.

AT 20:30 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abF8U_5-VeA

The NYPD blocked off parking spaces in upper Manhattan and “relocated” about 30 civilian cars for what Police Commissioner James O’Neill called a “special event” — the department’s annual flag-football championship game. O’Neill defended the move amid criticism from outraged Inwood residents — and even a member of Mayor de Blasio’s administration — who accused the NYPD of abusing its power by towing the vehicles to free up the spots. “This is a special event. This was the flag football championship,” O’Neill said during an unrelated news conference at One Police Plaza. “There were cars that — they were relocated. Nobody was towed. Nobody got a ticket.” O’Neill also said motorists were warned there would be no parking on Sunday outside the Columbia University sports complex, through signs that he said were posted five days earlier. “Special events go on throughout this city. This is something that the Commissioner’s Football League has every year,” he said. The “relocated” vehicles were towed away and parked on the street at “various locations in the vicinity,” NYPD spokeswoman Sgt. Jessica McCrorie said. “People could find out the location of their vehicles if they spoke to officers in the area, called 311 or contacted the precinct,” she added. The tow jobs took place just hours before the winter storm that closed city schools on Monday, and little more than a week after de Blasio announced a new crackdown on abuse of government-issued parking placards. Inwood resident David Thom, 44, said he shot photos of about 20 cars with NYPD placards on their dashboards that were parked near the stadium. One dashboard also displayed a hand-written note that said “NYPD FOOTBALL PLAYER INSIDE,” while another just had a note that said “On Police Commissioner’s Flag Football team,” along with a phone number. “I was greatly annoyed by this. Inwood has an ongoing parking issue. The NYPD took up four blocks,” said Thom, an engineer. “That’s a real abuse of the streets and power by the police.” A de Blasio administration official said there’s no law or regulation that allows parking spots to be blocked off for private use, saying: “Parking is first-come, first-served — this is New York.” “They’re clearly abusing their power because no one else enforces this,” the source said of the NYPD. “Unless you’re the cops, nobody else can do this because they don’t have the signs.” Columbia said the streets around its sports complex never get cleared for the games that draw thousands of fans to watch the Columbia Lions football team, according to NY1, which first reported the Sunday incident. There is a 1-train stop just five blocks from the stadium.

A mom has slammed the UK discount store Poundland for selling vibrators — on the same shelf as children’s toys. Dozens of Bonkin’ Bunny Vibrators were stacked between slinkies, “Finding Nemo” bath towels and sweetie-themed candles at the store in Tolworth, south London, according to horrified shopper Jana Bardsley-Smith. Bardsley-Smith, 52, said the $6.50 sex toys were positioned right next to the checkouts. “I was amused at first but then I realized I found it annoying,” the mom-of-two said. “It’s not something you want to see at eye level when you are out shopping. There is a place and a time to be selling or buying things like that. “There are a lot of families in the area. I wouldn’t want my child to ask what it is.” Bardsley-Smith has slammed the chain store as “insensitive.” “Thankfully I was on my own when I was out shopping. I would say it’s insensitive,” she said. “If they are going to sell things like that, they should be at the back of the store.”