Ron & Jen’s Great Escape, 4-20-2022 – Ron St. Pierre & Jen Brien

by Ron St. Pierre & Jen Brien, commentary

7AM LEAF BLOWER GUY

In my neighborhood there’s some dude… who, without fail, come spring and summer, heads out at exactly 6:59am on Saturdays and fires up his leaf blower and/or lawnmower. Every SINGLE SATURDAY till he can’t mow anymore, and the grass stops growing. When I hear that thing growling, I think “doesn’t this jerk think maybe his neighbors want to sleep”?  And “who in their right mind DOESN’T THINK about the rest of the neighborhood when they have some high powered device that makes a crazy amount of noise going at this hour?” I got to thinking about it though and realized so many people are like this guy and wander the Earth not giving a crap. My personal fav is the person in the car next to me on warm days who has their stereo blasting with the windows down. A) I don’t want to listen to “Welcome to The Jungle” at 8am – and  2) the dang bass is so loud it’s a good thing I don’t have IBS. I’d have an accident. Sure, sure – I sound like an old fart. Well, tough. I am one now. I’m a half century old and practicing for when I’m 80! I’m not a “get off my lawn” person yet, but I’m getting there. In the meantime, turn the stereo down at traffic lights and beware… I may put a banana in your leaf blower. (Shout out to Beverly Hills Cop right there)

See ya next week friends!  –  Jen

SUPERMAN RESCUE

The owner of Rhode Island’s tallest and most recognizable structure reached an agreement with city and state leaders on a deal to bring the Industrial Trust tower back to life. The $220 million redevelopment plan includes $41 million in state and local FINANCING WITH $26.2 million coming from the state and $15 million from the city of Providence. Known as the Superman building for its resemblance to the Daily Planet Building in the 1950’s ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN TV show, the structure has been dark and deteriorating for a decade. Now, here’s the kryptonite in all of this… does ANYONE actually think this project will come in on budget? If you do think it will, I have some lovely Rolex watches in the trunk of my car I’d like to show you. Think Boston’s BIG DIG, folks. So, here’s the big question… who is on the hook when this thing inevitably goes WAY over budget?

By the way, the exterior shots of the Daily Planet used in the ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN  were actually Los Angeles City Hall.

UNFRIENDLY SKIES

A federal judge ruled this week the mask mandates on planes and other forms of public transportation is unconstitutional saying the CDC overstepped its authority. It’s highly doubtful the CDC will appeal and the Biden administration, although “disappointed”, apparently won’t push back. The TSA will no longer enforce mask mandates on airplanes. Masks are officially optional at TF Green. While many are euphoric over the ruling, one group isn’t doing cartwheels. The flight attendants’ union says confusion over federal mask mandates ending could lead to MORE fights on planes with individual airlines now left to decide whether to enforce them. Apparently, members of the flight attendants’ union were split 50-50 on the mask mandate issue to begin with.

SWEET TOOTH FACTS

Lots of us reached for a Reese’s Peanut Butter Egg, a Cadbury Egg, Jellybeans and Peeps last Sunday. Did you know your candy preference says quite a bit about you? Sour candy fans tend to be extroverts at 59%. They also consider themselves eccentric, funny, and sarcastic. Folks who like chocolate are more likely to be optimistic as well as shy and thoughtful. How often you indulge in candy says something about your personality. Those who eat candy daily are more likely to be night owls rather than early birds.

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Ron St. Pierre is a veteran broadcaster whose career has spanned over four decades. Ron has programmed, performed on and managed WHJJ, WPRO, WWRX, 790 The Score in Providence, as well as WBZT and WKGR in West Palm Beach and WABC in New York City. Ron also anchored sports on WPRI Ch 12 in Providence. He is a member of both the Rhode Island Radio and Television and the City of Pawtucket Halls of Fame. He was born and raised in Pawtucket.

Jen Brien has over 20 years of radio broadcast experience having hosted shows on WPRO and WHJJ with Ron as well as her own shows on WRKO and WBZ in Boston, WXTK on Cape Cod and WHAM in Rochester, New York. Jen was born and raised in Woonsocket and served six years in the Army MP Canine Unit.

Hazel, Ron’s dog, makes regular appearances.

“Ron and Jen’s Great Escape” podcast, a more lighthearted look at the events happening around us, can be found on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts, with new episodes premiering each Wednesday and listen to Ron and Jen’s Great Escape call in radio show Friday afternoons 2 til 4 on 101.1 FM, 1540 WADK and streaming everywhere on WADK.COM.