The Jaffe Briefing - October 13, 2017
OUR TAKE ON THE NEWS IN NEW JERSEY
EAST ORANGE - Time to comb through the laundry. NBC tells the story of an East Orange retiree who saw on TV news that a winning lottery ticket has gone unclaimed. It prompted him to take a look through some old shirts and - Voila! - there was a ticket. And - Voila! - it happened to be the $24.1 million winner for the New York lottery jackpot on May 23. There was just two days let to claim the prize before it expired. The retired security guard said he has been buying lottery tickets since the 1960s, and has been sort of slow about checking his numbers. Now, with a 26-year payout, he will never need to check lottery tickets again.
LITTLE EGG HARBOR - It's an absolute mess at Pinelands Regional High School, closed yet again today because of big-time issues with air quality. The schools superintendent dashed out this concerning email last night, announcing "a new issue involving the construction at the high school. Please plan on this to be an extended closure of the high school building until all issues with the project can be addressed." Huh? What?? Pinelands schools were closed last week, with roofing tiles falling and apparently contaminating the air. Parents say their kids are complaining of headaches and burning chests. A public meeting is scheduled for 5 p.m. today. Expect wrath and fury.
ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL - Get ready for a barrage of "Murphy for Governor" ads. With less than a month until election day, Politico reports, Phil Murphy has amassed a massive war chest of $5.4 million. That's about $4.4 million more than what his challenger, Kim Guadagno, has collected in the bank. What a ton of cash to drop in quick amount of time, meaning we should all expect to be consumed by ads for the governor's race very quickly, as that windfall will demand our full attention.
IN THE MEDIA
Those fortunate enough to spend part of their lives working in a newsroom often relish the many characters they get to work with. And one of those characters was Vic Yepello, a retired Star-Ledger photographer who died from cancer two days ago at age 74. In the 1990s, Yepello was likely the most well-known man in Middlesex County, appearing virtually everywhere to take the photos for a busy bureau news staff. Known for his chain smoking, standard blue necktie and plaid shirt and muttering stream of expletives, (as well as his diligence, sense of humor and great photos), Vic was one of those guys that's tough to forget. We will fondly remember him always.
IN OTHER IMPORTANT NEWS
PALM BEACH - And now, for the man who has everything, there's something new to buy. For only $12,000, you can own a half-smoked cigar, once puffed by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The cigar was lit up in 1947, when Churchill was visiting Paris. The four-inch stub was sold to some guy in Palm Beach, apparently thrilled by the fact Churchill started smoking the cigar on May 11, 1947, at Le Bourget Airport. For the $12,000, he even received a photo signed by the prime minister that shows him with the alleged cigar in his hand at the airport. The pilot scooped up the cigar and kept it for many years, hoping some shmo would eventually come along to buy it.
MINAS GERAIS, BRAZIL - Luis Felipe Alvim, a mixed martial arts fanand amateur fighter, probably didn't count on more than a few cervejinhas and some entertainment when he bought a ticket to a UFC-sanctioned qualifying event in his home state, 100 mi. north of Rio de Janeiro. But after sneaking backstage to say hello to his coach, he found out there was a last-minute vacancy in evening's title fight - and that he just so happened to meet the weight limit. So, Luis entered - and won. To top it all off, the new Juiz de Fora welterweight MMA champion proposed to his girlfriend in the ring after the fight; she said yes. (I've already optioned the movie rights.)
THIS DAY IN HISTORY
It was this day in 1996 that the New York Jets prove - once again - they are the preeminent, hands-down, far-superior NFL franchise in all of league history, as Nick Lowery breaks Jan Stenerud's record for career field goals, at 374.
WORD OF THE DAY
Lagniappe - [LAN-yap] - noun
Definition: a small gift given a customer by a merchant at the time of a purchase
Example: Before I ordered a mug of beer, the bartender handed over a lagniappe - a half-eaten bowl of peanuts.
WEATHER IN A WORD
Clouds