Author: Amanda Crum

An earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale has hit Papua New Guinea, but officials say it didn’t trigger a tsunami.

Residents of Hawaii were tense after the quake, as the threat of tsunami affects them as well; however, no reports of strong waves have come in. The earthquake occurred just after one p.m. on Tuesday.

“Damage would be more likely in coastal areas of New Ireland,” Seismologist John Bathgate from Geoscience Australia said. “It would certainly have given the area a good shake but Rabaul is on the edge of our damage radius.”

A slightly larger quake hit Papua New Guinea just last week, but no major damage or injuries were reported.

Cops say a 2-pound joint was confiscated at a 4/20 party on campus at University of California, Santa Cruz, nearly 32 times the legal limit for possession.

The joint, which was about two feet long, was rolled in celebration of the universal day to get high and will be sorely missed by the students, who booed police officers as they removed it from campus, then promptly forgot what they were booing for and headed to Taco Bell. Probably.

But seriously, guys, what did you expect?

Carrie Underwood took to Twitter recently to vent her frustration over a new law called the “ag-gag” bill–which involves admission of secret videotaping of factory farms into animal abuse claims–and her posts quickly drew the attention of Tennessee lawmakers.

Underwood, a big proponent for animal rights, says she doesn’t agree with the law, which requires anyone submitting video footage of animal abuse to do so within 48 hours. Activists say two days just isn’t long enough and scares some people away from turning in the perpetrators.

“Shame on TN lawmakers for passing the Ag Gag bill,” the singer tweeted. “If Gov. Bill Haslam signs this, he needs to expect me at his front door. Who’s with me?”

That post, which reached her nearly 1.5 million followers, also drew the attention of Tennessee Rep. Andy Holt, who responded by saying, “I would say that if Carrie Underwood will stick to singing, I’ll stick to lawmaking.”

Underwood didn’t let that one slide by, and instead responded with a new tweet:

I should stick to singing? Wow…sorry, I’m just a tax paying citizen concerned for the safety of my family. #NoAgGag wsmv.com/story/22027811…

— Carrie Underwood (@carrieunderwood) April 20, 2013

However, Holt says the intention of the bill is to bring animal abuse to light as quickly as possible.

“I think what we need to do is make sure and recognize that if animals are being abused it needs to come to justice, and it needs to come to justice quickly,” Holt said. “No matter what anybody tells you. That’s the intention of this legislation.”

Will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas has admitted to taking someone else’s beat and making it his own after the original artist accused him of copyright infringement.

The song, “Rebound”, is an instrumental number originally done by Arty and Matt Zo. The music is featured on Will.i.am’s track, “Let’s Go, a collaboration with Chris Brown, and Will.i.am claims he got in touch with Arty about using it. However, Arty has said that he never discussed such a collab with the musician.

“Arty is a dope producer so I wrote this song to ‘Rebound’ last year,” he said. “I got in touch with Arty and showed it to him, did a different version to it because I asked him [to] make it newer, because I don’t just want to take your song and rap over it,” he said. “But in a year’s time, time’s gone by [and] we preferred writing over and using the [original] ‘Rebound.’ Something happened and the clearance … hopefully we resolved the issue.”

Interestingly enough, the musician’s solo album isn’t getting the best reviews. While his first solo effort, Songs About Girls, was well received, this time around critics are saying it feels like he’s trying too hard, with guest vocalists meant to ensure radio play (Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber).

Will.i.am says he’s a huge fan of Arty and just wants to share his music with his own fans.

“I’m a fan of Arty. I think he’s great and the world needs to know about how talented those guys are. It’s sad that it’s turned into a fiasco but hopefully it’s resolved because I’m a fan of those guys to the point where I wrote to their instrumental,” he said.

Olivia Newton-John has decided to postpone her run of Vegas shows in order to spend time with her family, after discovering her sister has brain cancer.

“In light of this news, I have decided to postpone my forthcoming Las Vegas residency to spend time with her and our family,” Newton-John wrote in a statement. “As a cancer ‘thriver’ myself, as many people are, I am very aware of the importance of love, support and family during this journey she is about to begin.”

The 64-year old actress and singer battled breast cancer 20 years ago and is now facing a tough road with her sister, Rona. Her Vegas residency was to begin soon at the Flamingo Hotel as a stand-in for Donny and Marie Osmond’s away dates, and though it’s believed she will eventually perform, nothing has been confirmed yet.

Rona was famously married to her sister’s “Grease” co-star, Jeff Conaway, for five years. They have a son together, 38-year old Emerson.

A photo of a Boston police officer has gone viral after the police department tweeted about it over the weekend.

Officer John Bradley went above and beyond the call of duty when a Boston neighborhood was put on lockdown during the search for bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on Friday when he offered to go buy milk for a family with a baby. The child’s father, Kevin Wells, snapped a photo of Bradley returning to the house with milk in hand, and since it was shared it’s gone viral, sweeping the web as a visual representation of the strength and kindness Bostonians want to emphasize during such a difficult time.

“It just meant the world that he literally went out and got two gallons of milk,” McKenzie Wells, the baby’s mother, said. “We wanted to pay him, but he wouldn’t take money from us. He was just so generous.”

The family posted the picture on their Facebook page but took it down once it began to spread, fearing it would upset Bradley or the police department.

“The fact that it went as viral as it did was kind of crazy,” Wells said. “We kind of thought we were going to get in trouble at first, so we pulled it off. We just didn’t want to upset the officer, but we didn’t think it would be everywhere.”

Brookline Police Department tweeted the photo once it gained popularity, however, and it took off from there. Bradley has declined to comment, but a spokesperson from the department has said that he was simply happy to help.

A woman in Salina, Kansas got the shock of her life when she left the festivities at the circus she was attending to use the restroom: when she opened the door, she found a tiger standing a couple feet in front of her.

Jenna Krehbiel was enjoying a day with her family at the Isis Shrine Circus at the Bicentennial Center when she decided to take a bathroom break, and unfortunately she wasn’t alone.

“I went in to use the bathroom, and a lady came in to get her daughter out and said there was a tiger loose,” Krehbiel said. “I didn’t know it was in the bathroom, and I walked in the [open] door, which closed right after I had walked in. I saw the tiger; it was at most 2 feet in front of me, and I turned around calmly and walked back toward the door. Someone opened the door and said get out.”

Apparently, the tiger escaped shortly after performing, and staff members were in the process of blocking off the bathroom once they realized there was a jungle cat inside, but Krehbiel didn’t realize what was going on. Luckily, the tiger was captured and no one was hurt.

“Once she saw the tiger, I’m sure she knew to go the other way,” Bicentennial Center manager Chris Bird said. “Overall, it was a scary, surreal moment. I am glad no one was hurt or injured.”

Ben Affleck, who is fresh off an Oscar win for his film “Argo”, is taking the buzz surrounding his name to a good place: raising awareness about poverty and the harsh choices some have to make when it comes to every day living.

Affleck has decided to take the Live Below The Line challenge and live on just $1.50 a day for a week in order to highlight the extremes of living at the extreme poverty line. Many celebrities have joined the cause, and Affleck will be tweeting about his experiences during the week to raise awareness and funds for The Global Poverty Project.

“Last year we had over 15,000 people participate, and raised over $3 million,” Michael Trainer, Director of The Global Poverty Project, said in a statement. “We’re excited to leverage the support The Global Poverty Project has received from the campaign last year, and the Global Citizen Festival in Central Park.”

New Jersey mayor Cory Booker took a similar challenge last year when he lived on only food stamps for one week to highlight how difficult it is for families who receive government funds to feed their families on what that assistance provides…especially in New Jersey, where the cost of living is high. The SNAP Challenge was initiated after a woman began a Twitter conversation with Booker regarding food stamps and whether they were really necessary.

Affleck is reportedly due to start his challenge next week along with actress Debi Mazar, singer Josh Groban, and Sophia Bush.

Porsha Stewart, one of the stars of “The Real Housewives Of Atlanta”, is headed for divorce despite her adamant protests during the show’s reunion that everything was fine with her marriage to Kordell Stewart. And though the break-up was surprising enough, fans were even more shocked to hear that the two of them are still living together and that she found out about the dissolution of her marriage on Twitter. She says her sister was the first to break the news.

“She said, ‘Have you heard?’ And I’m like, ‘Heard what?’ So I went to Twitter and the first thing I see is, ‘Kordell divorcing Porsha,’” she said. “And I’m like, ‘This is just a crazy joke…’ I found out from Twitter.”

Stewart says she feels betrayed by her husband and insists she did everything she could to keep their relationship together, including marriage counseling, but Kordell wasn’t into it.

“I was totally blindsided,” Stewart said. “But when I found out about the divorce, it was absolutely a surprise.”

As for living together during such a difficult time, Porsha says it’s not ideal but it’s what they have to do for the moment.

“It’s a difficult, difficult situation right now,” she said. “It’s something I did not want at all.”

Richie Havens, who was well-known as the first performer at Woodstock, has died of a heart attack. He was 72 years old.

A folk singer with a love for guitar playing, Havens was first-billed at the enormous music festival after building his reputation in clubs around Greenwich Village and finding a following with his albums. He’d built a solid reputation by then and had signed on with Albert Grossman, who just happened to also be Bob Dylan’s manager.

Havens gained a huge audience when he took the stage at Woodstock, however, due in part to the fact that he played for nearly three hours as late performers trickled in to the show. The music festival would be a turning point, not just in his career, but in his life.

“Everything in my life, and so many others, is attached to that train,” he said.

Over his career, Havens released 25 albums and gained the admiration and respect of some of the biggest names in music, including Stephen Stills of Crosby, Stills and Nash.

“Richie Havens was one of the nicest most generous and pure individuals I have ever met,” Stills said. “When I was a young sprite in Greenwich Village, we used to have breakfast together at the diner on 6th Avenue next to The Waverly Theatre. He was very wise in the ways of our calling. He always caught fire every time he played.”

Chaz Bono has dropped sixty pounds with the help of a doctor and says he had to make a conscious effort to change the way he was eating.

Bono, who was born Chastity to Cher and Sonny Bono, has undergone a dramatic transformation in recent years due to a decision to undergo female-to-male gender reassignment. With the help of hormones, Chastity slowly became Chaz. But the stress of such a huge life change began to take a toll on his diet, and his doctor warned him of the dangers of becoming obese.

Bono claims that diets don’t work for him, so he went another route: having prepared, healthy meals delivered to him by Freshology. Delivered meal plans aren’t the most cost effective way to lose weight, but for some it’s a better option than trying to come up with a meal plan on their own and stick to it.

“Diets don’t work. You just have to change what you eat, and I have,” Bono said.

But that doesn’t mean he’s not exercising; the former “Dancing With The Stars” contestant still dances, and he says now he’s learned how to cook for himself in a healthy way.

“I really avoid grains and starches, so meats and vegetables and fruits are my diet. I make them all different ways to keep it interesting.”

Bono has dropped from 250 pounds to a slim 190, and says he’s still losing.

Image: Courtesy CBS

Ever wonder how Disney used to get character movements so lifelike before today’s computer technology existed? Well, this is how: they filmed actual scenes from animated movies with real actors so they could mimic the poses and actions on paper. Check out these awesome photos, which layer the animation and live-action scenes.

Hat-tip to Buzzfeed.

Tara Reid, who has become more famous for her partying ways in recent years than for her acting, is in headlines once again after an alleged outburst in an All Saints store.

The “American Pie” star was reportedly shopping for clothes to wear to the upcoming Coachella music festival and asked for a discount at the register. When she was denied, reports say, she threw a tantrum and began shouting at the employees. One witness claims that Reid seemed drunk, although that hasn’t been confirmed.

Reid’s rep says that the actress is accustomed to receiving discounts at All Saints UK, and that’s the only reason a hook-up was requested.

“Tara gets a huge discount with All Saints in the UK and Paris because she’s a walking billboard for them. She gets photographed … so they give her huge hook-ups. We told them we get a discount, and they said they’d email the press team,” the rep said.

Reid’s people don’t deny there was an incident but did say she wasn’t drunk at the time.

A news anchor for a Bismarck television station announced he was fired today after making his premiere with a string of obscenities.

A.J. Clemente was so excited for his first broadcast that he let loose some extreme words right as the show was coming back from a commercial break on Sunday night. His co-worker, Van Tieu, apologized for the outburst during the evening show, and the station issued an apology to viewers saying Clemente had been suspended. However, Clemente tweeted today that he was let go following the incident.

Tough day,Thanks for the support,We all make mistakes. Im truly sorry for mine. I’ll try my hardest to come back better and learn from this.

— A.J. Clemente (@ClementeAJ) April 22, 2013

Rookie mistake. I’m a free agent.Cant help but laugh at myself and stay positive.Wish i didnt trip over my “Freaking Shoes” out of the gate.

— A.J. Clemente (@ClementeAJ) April 22, 2013

Of course, Clemente isn’t the first person to drop an F-bomb on television. News anchors have a lively history of tripping up in front of the cameras, and the great Tom Hanks did it a few months ago on “Good Morning America”.

A man in Vietnam was arrested on Monday after officials discovered 53 King Cobra snakes in his car when he was stopped in Hanoi.

The man says he was paid to transport them, but there are few details at this time as to where he was taking them or who paid him. Authorities say the snakes were taken to a wildlife rescue center before being released back into the wild and were unharmed despite being transported together in a large bag.

Cobras are considered a delicacy in parts of Vietnam, so it’s possible the snakes were destined for a harsh fate before being rescued. They are also sought for their exotic skin, which is turned into items such as belts and shoes. The driver was paid $50 for his trouble, but was arrested since the hunting and trading of King Cobras is banned there.

Vietnamese police say they have seized 53 king cobras — that’s right, 53 — from a car in Hanoi. fb.me/24ippMZDa

— OdessaAmerican (@OdessaAmerican) April 22, 2013

Talk about a case of the Mondays! Vietnamese police arrest man found with 53 King cobras in his car ow.ly/ki8V3

— Darrell Romuld (CTV) (@CTVDarrell) April 22, 2013

How the hell do you ride around with 53 king cobras l”@cp24: Police in Vietnam seize 53 king cobras from car bit.ly/13qgBxl“

— ❄rae❄ (@rumnrasins) April 22, 2013

Full grown that’d be 954 feet of most venomous snakes @davidgrann: Man arrested for having 53 LIVE king cobras in car news.yahoo.com/vietnam-police…

— Philip Gourevitch (@PGourevitch) April 22, 2013

When police responded to a report of a burglary in Estacada, Oregon over the weekend, they quickly spotted the suspect and went in pursuit. But Raleigh Reynolds managed to elude them and jumped the fence between his home and his sister’s, hiding out in her home as police surrounded him. What happened next is a story that has gone viral and put Reynolds in the books with the likes of the most cowardly criminals.

Officials say Reynolds tried to escape from his sister’s home several times as police swarmed into the yard, but was unsuccessful. Eventually, he decided to grab his seven-month old son and hold him as a human shield before coming out. A tense standoff ensued, as it was believed Reynolds was armed and the officers didn’t want to make any sudden moves.

Reynolds was eventually subdued by police and the child was immediately put in the care of family members, who were nearby. He was unharmed. Reynolds was booked on a burglary charge, obstructing governmental administration, endangering welfare of a minor and resisting arrest.

This isn’t the first time Reynolds has proven himself to be a dumb criminal; in February he was arrested on felony drug charges after pocket-dialing 911 during a drug deal.

“Fabric Softener Jesus” found his way onto a man’s shirt after a laundry mishap, and now the image has gone viral.

Martin Andrews says he was doing his laundry when he accidentally spilled fabric softener on a shirt. What happened next was a miracle. Sort of.

“I showed my mates at work the picture and one of them said, ‘I’ve heard you can find comfort in Jesus but you’ve found Jesus in Comfort!’” Andrews said.

The shirt was immediately transformed from a regular old piece of fabric to a cloth of divine intervention: Jesus Himself appeared in the fibers, and Andrews took a picture that has swept the web. It’s a bit blotchy, but Andrews and thousands of viewers have said they can definitely make out the shape of Jesus with his arms outstretched in a welcoming gesture.

No word yet on what Andrews plans to do with the shirt.

He hath returned! Praise be to Jesus for sending images of Him in a fabric softener stain (he lost his cell phone). upi.com/blog/2013/04/2…

— Pope Siglericus XXX (@PopeSiglericus) April 22, 2013

and you call me cray ===>> Man claims to have found Jesus’s face after spilling fabric softener goo.gl/3b46j

— Super Cheezy (@web_supergirl) April 22, 2013

You know it’s Monday when: Man Claims Jesus Appears in T-Shirt Fabric Softener Stain (PHOTO) christianpost.com/news/jesus-fab… @renzogracie_bjj

— Lisa Suhay (@NiceChess757) April 22, 2013

A man claims that the fabric softener stain on his T-shirt looks like Jesus. He is now calling the cloth the Snuggle of Turin.

— Bill Kempin (@BillKempin) April 22, 2013

JFK Airport suffered a minor scare on Sunday when a terminal was shut down due to a “suspicious” package found in the baggage holding area.

Airport officials were being cautious when they closed the terminal due to recent events in Boston and the Ricin-laced packages sent to government officials just after the bombings last week; however, their worry was all for naught, as the package was actually just a tube of toothpaste.

Apparently, the owner of the baggage had wrapped the tube in duct tape, which prompted an investigation. Why anyone would bring a duct-tape wrapped tube of toothpaste into an airport has still not been explained.

The terminal was re-opened after an hour and a half, causing just enough of a delay to upset commuters. But authorities say they are on alert at the moment after the horrific bombings in Boston, which may have caused the rumors to start about the toothpaste being “wired”. Officials say that was never the case and that it was completely harmless.

LaGuardia Airport was evacuated last week due to a bomb scare after travelers reported seeing suspicious wiring hanging from a fluorescent lighting fixture. The incident was quickly resolved, however.

Jennifer Lawrence was tapped to introduce former president Bill Clinton at the GLAAD Media Awards this weekend, and though she stumbled over her lines at the event, her haircut was what everyone focused on.

Lawrence, who hasn’t been seen much since her big Oscar win, has been busy filming the sequel to the highly successful film “The Hunger Games”, a role which required her to take her hair several shades darker than the honey-washed color we’re used to seeing. Now she’s back to those golden tresses and has chopped her locks to a shoulder-grazing length that flatters her heart-shaped face.

The 22-year old actress was excited to share a stage with Clinton but says she’s out of her element when it comes to speaking in public.

“Making movies is where I belong. I shouldn’t be heard just talking. So, when I’m doing movies, I’m really happy. That’s where I’m comfortable, that’s my home. When you put me on a red carpet or on a stage, I turn into chihuahua Jennifer,” she said.

After a now-famous trip up the stairs to accept her Academy Award, Lawrence endeared herself to people everywhere with her self-deprecating wit and silly sense of humor; now she can add herself to the list of young stars with the power to start a trend, because if today’s news is any indication, it looks like girls will be lining up to copy that hairstyle.

Image: WireImage

Al Michaels, the Emmy-winning sports announcer for Sunday Night Football, was arrested on Friday night in Santa Monica, California on suspicion of DUI.

The 68-year old was pulled over after attempting an illegal U-turn and was suspected by officers to have had too much to drink.

“He makes an illegal U-turn in a business district. … Two motor officers see that. They’re staged in a gas station lot. They see the illegal U-turn, and they go after him,” Sgt. Richard Lewis said.

After being arrested, he was later released early on Saturday morning. Although he hasn’t released a statement, a spokesman for NBC Sports did say they have been in contact with him. No word, however, on how this will affect his career, if at all.

“We are aware of the situation and we’ve been in contact with Al,” said spokesman Greg Hughes. “We have no further comment at this time.”

The arrest came after a local crackdown on drunk driving; officials had warned residents that there would be a heightened police presence and checkpoints in the near future.

“All too often, members of our community are senselessly injured or killed on local roadways by impaired drivers,” Lt. Jay Trisler said in an April news release. “Over the course of the past year, traffic collisions involving impaired drivers/riders were involved in 91 collisions, which have killed three and injured 28 people.”

Image: Jason Watson