104.3 The Hippo

09/09/2026

THE HIPPO'S QUESTION OF THE DAY:

Football season is here ... Is this something that excites you, or something you dread? Do you spend a lot less time with your significant other when football starts? Does this upset you — or are you happy to have the time to do other things you enjoy? Or, are you the football fan in the relationship? How much time do you devote to watching football? Is it just your team you watch — or are you a fan of it all?

09/09/2026

John Michael's "Did You Know" for Wednesday 9/9/26:

Did You Know that "BuzzFeed" just put together a list of things that used to be free but now cost money?! And most of these should definitely still be free, so we have a right to be angry.





Here are the highlights:





1. Phone accessories. Not that long ago, iPhones used to come with headphones and a charger. Now you have to buy that stuff separately.





2. All of the concert ticket fees. Buying a ticket used to be face value. Now when you add in convenience fees, processing, and delivery . . . it can make the price of the ticket double.





3. Checked airline bags . . . R.I.P. the only good part about Southwest Airlines.





4. Seat selections on an airplane. Now when you buy a plane ticket, they don't even give you a seat for free. You can risk it and not choose one, but then you'll probably end up in a middle seat. What is this world coming to?





5. And don't forget about free airline food, too. They really ruined air travel, huh?





6. Disney FastPass. This used to be an awesome and free way to skip long lines. And now it's mostly been replaced by paid options.





7. YouTube without excessive ads. Now a ten-minute video could be broken into three ad breaks. Unless you want to pay to get rid of them, of course.





8. Free internet content. Why is everything that's worth reading behind a paywall now?





9. Parking. It used to be that you could find something on a nearby street. Now it seems like you have to scan a QR code for every parking space on Earth.





10. Pizza delivery . . . I'm fine tipping, but a delivery fee, too? Ugh. (I miss the good ol' days.)





(BuzzFeed)





(Also, some places now charge money to put air in your tires? Sure, it's still cheap, but it used to be FREE. What gives?)

09/09/2026

An Ice Cream Shop Has a Very Convincing "Ice Cream Pizza"





If you ask a kid what their two favorite foods are, 99.9% of the time, they'll say pizza and ice cream. And the other 0.1% may have been to this place, and would say "PIZZA ICE CREAM."





There's an ice cream shop in Connecticut called Kelly's Cone Connection, and they've had some creative limited-time offerings to attract buzz.





Right now, they have an ice cream dish formed to look like a slice of PIZZA. They're calling it "apizza," pronounced "Ah-beetz." And it isn't just a quick, dumb stunt for social media likes . . . they did an AWESOME job with it.





This "slice" is on a waffle cone with strawberry basil ice cream topped with strawberry sundae sauce . . . grated white chocolate "parm" . . . and white chocolate basil leaves.





There's even a little bit of cocoa on the crust, so that your fingers feel some "classic New Haven char."





In the past, they've also done: Ice cream tacos . . . ice cream cheeseburgers . . . ice cream clam chowder . . . and ice cream lobster rolls.





(Boston.com)

09/09/2026

TODAY IS:

National Teddy Bear Day: Did you have a favorite stuffed animal when you were young? How attached were you to this stuffed animal? Do you still have a stuffed animal(s) in your room? Do you have a lot of stuffed animals in your room/on your bed? In your car? Has this ever scared someone off?

National When Pigs Fly Day: A day to believe in the impossible.

Wonderful Weirdos Day: A good day to be weird.

09/08/2026

THE HIPPO'S QUESTION OF THE DAY:

What is the greatest food-drink combination in all of human history? (AskReddit)

Some responses:

Chocolate chip cookies and milk
Oreos and milk
Pizza and a cold Coke
Cheeseburger and fries and a Coke
Coke and movie theater popcorn
Cheese and w**e
Ribeye and red w**e
Brats and a cold b**r, or two.
Tequila and lime
Tacos and Mexican b**r
Milkshake with fries
Hot dog and a b**r at the ballpark
Dr Pepper and Cheez-Its
Nachos and Margaritas
Pizza and b**r
Hot fried chicken and ice-cold sweet tea
PB&J with chocolate milk

Explore this post and more from the AskReddit community

09/08/2026

John Michael's "Did You Know" for Tuesday 9/8/26:

Did You Know that TSA Is Testing a Return to Allowing Non-Travelers to Hang Out with Loved Ones at Airport Gates?!





If you're a Boomer or a Gen X'er, you may remember WAAYYY BACK when non-travelers were allowed to walk their loved ones to their gate at the airport, and wait with them.





It feels like a lifetime ago, but it was roughly 25 years ago: Until 9/11 happened.





Well, those days MIGHT be coming back. The TSA has launched "Gateside, by TSA PreCheck," a "pilot program" allowing approved, non-ticketed visitors to pass through security at 13 U.S. airports. (I like that it's a "pilot program.")





The participating airports include: John Glenn Columbus International in Columbus, Ohio . . . Dallas Fort Worth International . . . Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport . . . Indianapolis International . . .





Harry Reid International in Las Vegas . . . Los Angeles International Airport . . . San Diego International . . . and Salt Lake City International in Utah.





Non-ticketed visitors who are approved for the program must still go through screening . . . and they must apply through TSA and receive a Gateside pass one to three days BEFORE arriving at the airport.





You must also have TSA PreCheck or a "Known Traveler Number." Then, you'd go through the PreCheck screening lane with your ID.





If you're worried about this making lines LONGER, they say availability can be restricted during particularly busy periods . . . like around holiday travel.





TSA says the program is designed to make airport visits easier for families . . . especially those with children flying, or elderly passengers.





They also say it's "an exclusive benefit for our most trusted travelers . . . that makes it easier to return to the gate for welcomes and send-offs, meet friends during a layover, and enjoy dining and shopping along the way."





The program will roll out to more airports in the coming months.





(Newsweek)





(For more info, hit up TSA.gov.)

09/08/2026

Monster-sized chocolate ... If you're already thinking about Halloween (how could you not when every store is already in the holiday spirit?), Costco has a new treat that's turning heads, literally. The warehouse retailer is selling a giant chocolate Frankenstein head that weighs in at about five-and-a-half pounds and comes stuffed with more than a pound of gummy candies. It even includes a small mallet so you can smash it open at your party. The monster-sized candy costs $55. While some shoppers say that's too expensive for a seasonal novelty item, others point out that the amount of chocolate alone could justify the price. Either way, it's designed more as a Halloween party centerpiece than something you'd hand out to trick-or-treaters.

(For more info visit thetakeout dot com)

09/08/2026

TODAY IS:

Star Trek Day: Star Trek premiered on television today in 1966. It's a day for Trekkies everywhere to celebrate and “go boldly where no one has gone before.”

Another Look Unlimited Day: This day is observed every year on the Tuesday after Labor Day. It's a day dedicated to looking around your house and getting rid of stuff you don’t need ... kind of like a post-summer “fall cleaning.”

What is something you just can’t get rid of … even though you know you should?
What room or space in your home needs some serious de-cluttering?
What stuff gets put away now that summer is "over"?

09/07/2026

THE HIPPO'S QUESTION OF THE DAY:

We're into Labor Day Weekend. Summer is pretty much over. So … What did you do?

What's the biggest adventure you went on?
What's the worst disaster you got through?
Any regrets? Any lessons learned? Anything you hoped to do — but swung and missed?
What's the one story from this summer you tell to make people feel jealous?
How about a story from this summer you tell that makes people happy they're not you?

09/07/2026

John Michael's "Did You Know" for Monday 9/7/26:

Did You Know that 4% of Americans Didn't Think There Would Be a Labor Day This Year?!





The labor market is going through a challenging phase . . . but that doesn't mean we're canceling Labor Day . . . right?





In a survey conducted just two weeks ago, only 66% of Americans knew when Labor Day would be celebrated. It's TODAY. It's ALWAYS the first Monday in September . . . and it's been that way for 132 YEARS.





4% of people didn't think there would be a "Labor Day" in 2026 at all.





Americans also aren't sure what Labor Day means.





18% wrongly believe that it's meant to "commemorate the founding of labor unions," while 9% thought it was the official start of autumn.





6% believe it's meant to celebrate the signing of the U.S. Constitution, while 4% think it honors the end of World War Two.





(Wait, so how many Americans could be convinced that it was meant to celebrate mothers . . . going into labor??? Or that it was established to draw a line in the sand, for when it's no longer appropriate to wear white.)





The good news is: 61% of Americans got it right: Labor Day is a salute to the contributions and achievements of American workers.





But naturally, people love the idea of three-day weekends, regardless of why they're happening. 64% of people agree that EVERY weekend should be three days long, and 38% "strongly agree" with that.





(Talker Research)