You're listening to k f I, a M six forty wake Up Call with me Amy King on demand on the iHeartRadio app. K f I n k OST HD two Los Angeles, Orange.
County can bounce everyone.
It's time for your morning wake up call.
Here's Amy King.
Amy's having a little problem with her headset.
I am broke my headphones again. Oh no, yeah, you know, I've been working in radio for like thirty years and I've never broken headphones. My headphones always last for like a really long time. And in the last month, I've broken three sets of headphones. I don't know what is going on.
You don't know your own strength.
Well, I don't know if they moved the headphone jack. I don't think so, or maybe I don't know. It's a sabotage thing.
Well, you got it.
Now, right anyway, Okay, I'm winded. Okay, great way to start the last show of twenty twenty four. This is your wake up call for Tuesday, December thirty first, the last day of the year. It's already New Year's in Sydney, Australia. They just rang it in, just arrived. So if you're worried about oh no, what's gonna happen when New Year's hits. You don't need to because it's already twenty twenty five in parts of the world. Here's what's ahead on wake
up Call. Pasadena is getting ready for thousands of visitors ahead of the Rose Parade. Crowds are expected to begin gathering today at noon to stake out spots along the five and a half mile route on Colorado Boulevard. Camping is permitted along the parade route. Tonight, Tennis legend Billy Jean King will serve as the parade's grand marshal. The state funeral for former President Jimmy Carter's been scheduled for January ninth. President Biden is going to deliver the eulogy
Before the state funeral in DC. Carter will lie in repose at Georgia's state capitol. They're also hold a funeral in Georgia. Carter's body will then be taken to the US capital, where he will lie in state until the funeral next time Thursday. The world population is increased by more than seventy one million people in twenty twenty four. It will be eight point zero nine billion people on New Year's Day. The US Census Bureau estimates the population in the US is up two point six million for
twenty twenty four. The US population on New Year's Day will be three hundred and forty one million. Speaking of millions, more than a million are expected to be at Times Square to ring in the new year. We'll check in with ABC's Josh Margolan to find out how the Big Apple is getting ready for the big ball drop that's coming up at five twenty. Also, Amy's on it, the last one of twenty twenty four. I'm on the stream. We'll see what what I'm watching and whether I think
it's worth your time. Also Joel Larsgard. He's going to be talking about New Year's financial resolutions, how to make them and how to stick with them. And then a dangerous new trend in shopping binge shopping, Oh goodie. At six oh five, it's Handle on the New of course Handled not here. He's off for the holiday, but we have Wayne Resnick in and Wayne's going to tell us about some Chinese hackers that have gotten into the US
Treasury what that means. Let's get started with some of the stories coming out of the KFI twenty four hour newsroom. Funeral plans are in place for former President Jimmy Carter, who died over the weekend. NBC's Chris Polone reports Carter will make a final trip to Washington, d C. Before being buried alongside his wife Rosalind in Georgia.
The official memorials begin Saturday, when a procession we'll take the former president's body passed his childhood home and then to Atlanta to lie in repose. January seventh, the late president will return to the Capitol Rotunda in Washington to lie in state until the state funeral January ninth.
President Biden has declared January ninth a National Day of mourning. Two security guards have been hurt, one of them critically, in a shooting outside a Target store at the fig at Seventh Shopping Mall in downtown LA. Investigators described the shooter last night as a white man with af row styled hair, last seen wearing a black shirt, pants, and scarf. Two others were wounded at a shooting at Seventh and Maple, about a mile away from the shooting at the Target store.
Police say it's not clear if the shootings are connected. Santa Ana winds are forecasts to linger in the Southland this week, increasing the risk of wildfires. The National Weather Services winds should peak today into tomorrow, with gus thirty to forty five miles per hour over the mountains and hills. The valley should also be breezy, with peak gus between twenty and thirty five miles per hour. Humidity is expected
to be low, adding to the fire danger. A red flag warning will be in effect through tomorrow evening for the western San Gabriel Valley, the Antelope Valley Freeway Corridor, the Santa Clarita Valley, the Santa Monica Mountains, and the western San Fernando Valley. At least four people have been killed in severe storms in the South. Staphne Brown describes what it felt like when a tornado in Texas destroyed her family's home on Saturday and killed her wife.
Been on a roller coaster with no seabolts.
It just throws you up.
You go up with it, you go down, you fly, you fly.
Up everything you can do. Where was your wife and.
The house that belonged right here in the kitchen.
The National Weather Service confirms it was an EF two that ripped through the area south of Houston. More than thirty tornadoes who are reported over the weekend in Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Texas. Can you believe twenty twenty four is over already? It's just so weird. Do you have a big party planned? Do you have anything planned? Well, we were doing a little checking to find out what
people are planning to do. We know that a lot of people are going to be staking out their spots going to the Rose Parade. Michelle, have you ever gone to the Rose Parade? Aside from watching it? Oh, she doesn't even have her headphones on. Hey, Cono, have you ever gone to.
The Rose Paray?
No?
I have not, but my mother loves it.
I went one year. It was very cool.
I've watched it on television when I was younger.
Yeah, well, lots of people are doing that. Of course. A lot of people are for New Year's Eve, are going to be in New York City, more than a million. We're going to check in with Josh Morgolan coming up at five twenty to find out what the preps are for there. But a new study shows that a majority of people in the US, at least adults, intend to celebrate New Year's Eve at home. Two in ten say they're going to celebrate it at a family or friend's house.
Just five percent plan to go out to celebrate at a bar, restaurant, or an organized event. That's very low. There's a downtown celebration in Los Angeles. I've not been to that at Grand Park. A majority of a US adults not only planned to stay at home, but maybe they're going to do a little thinking what they're going to do in twenty twenty five. I know we mentioned yesterday about not making resolutions. I try to make a resolution, but it's like you're setting yourself up for failure because
I never keep them. But a majority of adults in the usay they do intend to make a new Year's resolution of some type. Millennials and gen zers are especially likely to be on board. About two thirds expect to make resolutions. About half of older adults say they're going to make resolutions. Also, women are more likely than men to say that they're going to set a new goal for twenty twenty five. So what kind of resolutions are
we going to be setting for ourselves? Well, last year I was going to well for this year, I was going to purge and organize, and I finally cleaned out my closet like three weeks ago, so it took me a little while, but I guess I finally did get to it. But here's what they're here's what we're resolving to do. Three and ten adults choose resolutions involving exercise or eating healthier. About twenty five percent say they're going
to make a resolution involving losing weight. You know, Jim's get really crowded in January, tapers back off in February when we all stop following throughun our resolutions, And then about twenty five percent say they are going to resolve to make changes about priorities on money or mental health. How do you make a resolution about your mental health? Like you resolve, just say you're going to focus on yourself more. You resolved to relax or maybe meditate. I'm sorry,
did you ask me a question earlier? Yeah, and you totally blew me off, So I'm not talking to you anymore. I was on the phone. Sorry, emergency situation. It's okay, no worries at all. And I know that Michelle already
told us yesterday that she is not making resolutions. You know, I resolutions are kind of like my old fitbit, because you'd wear your fitbit and then I'd check in at the end of the day and I would say, you missed this goal, you missed this goal, you missed this goal, and I just felt bad about myself, so I stopped wearing the fit bit. So I think it's going to
be kind of like that with the resolutions. Like the I do, I have had those mental thoughts, not for better mental health, but those thoughts that I'm like, you know what, after New Year's Day, I'm going to get back on track. I'm going to start eating right. We'll
see what happens after New Year's Day. I don't know if my resolve is strong enough, but don't whatever you do, I would just say, don't set yourself up for failure, because you know what, there's enough people out there and enough things out there making you feel bad about yourself. You don't have to feel bad about failing a New Year's resolution. But if you do do it, good luck to you. Let's get back to some of the stories coming out of the KFI twenty four hour newsroom. Renters
in California. We'll have more protections against evictions starting in the new year, a new law gives tenants ten days to respond if they receive an eviction notice. That's an increase from the current five days.
Give all those people of fighting chance to weigh in on an eviction and let the judge consider both sides of the case rather than just the loords. So I think it'll make a huge difference.
Lawyer and director of Affordable Housing Advocates Katherine Rodman says the new timeframe does not count weekends or holidays, giving renters more time to address the situation. People in California should have an easier time canceling subscriptions in twenty twenty five. The new law requires companies to get permission from customers before they automatically renew any subscription after July first. This woman says that's a good idea.
But makes sense.
If it's easy to sign up for something, it should be easy to cancel it too.
Customers will also get a reminder about their subscriptions, along with clear instructions on how to cancel those subscriptions if they want to. Have you ever done that where you go, I don't want this anymore, And then you go on the website and you can't find out how, And of course nobody has customer service like actual people anymore, so it's just really hard to navigate that. That's I think
this is a welcome new law. But Lisa are looking for any possible victims of a doctor accused of drugging and assaulting a woman at his home in West LA. The LAPD says forty two year old Bebeck Hajosini is a visiting specialist at Wound and Burn Centers of America in LA and Catalina Island Health Plisei Haijosianne tried to lure people in by offering high paying jobs on recruitment websites, then invited women to work overtime at his home, where
he served them, spiked drinks, and assaulted them. Ajsha Hoseini has pleaded not guilty and is out on bail. Multiple lawsuits have been filed against a cannabis brand in LA.
The two separate suits accused Stizzy and its products of causing cannabis induced psychosis. In one suit, a young man claims he locked his mom in a bedroom, hallucinated a girl that he introduced to his parents, and believed a witch had placed a curse on him. The other suit, found by twin sisters says the product led to a
suicide attempt in dropping out of school. The man's suit accuses the company of negligence and fraud, seeing it creates an acute psychological event that could require years of treatment in antipsychotic medication. Michael Monks KFI.
News, Angelina Joe Lee and Brad Pitt have reached a divorce settlement after eight years. The couple signed off on a default declaration filed in La Superior Court yesterday saying they have entered into a written agreement on their marital and property rights. The filing says they give up the right to any future spousal financial support, but it doesn't give any other details. A judge, we'll still need to
sign off on the agreement. A popular supermarket is adding three more stores in the San Fernando Valley.
No specific target date has been determined, however, In a recent episode of the Inside Trader Joe's podcast, Trader Joe's marketing team Tara Miller and Matthew Sloan say that locations that have high population density, are easy to access, have sufficient parking available, and are near higher traffic areas. They're all high indicators as so where a store goes.
We're excited when people are excited about us, but that's really not what's driving the decisions about what brings a Trader Joe's Andrew Caravella chaos.
One store's going to be opening in Northridge offer Seeda Boulevard, another in Tarzana off the Ventura Boulevard, and in Sherman Oaks off Riverside Drive. Always good to have more Trader jos. Hey, here's something we otter do more often. Instead of turning to fishermen or other unnatural solutions, maybe just turn to mother nature and let nature take care of itself. Here's what I mean. So along the California Coast, green crabs,
which are an invasive species. They're not from here, but they got here somehow have been wreaking havoc in the waters in Monterey County. So they come in and they eat up everything, They damage seagrass beds, they eat small prey that is crucial to other species survival, and they're getting worse and worse in spite of efforts to remove them. So once these crabs are taking hold, they're like, how are we going to get them out so we can have the regular ecosystem back in place. Well, in one area,
they're not having problems anymore. Really, they still have a little bit of green crabs, but they don't have a lot of problem because the sea otters have come to the rescue. The seaoutter population near Monterey County has gone up. They were almost like extinct a while ago, but they're back and their numbers are getting a little bit bigger. And sea otters love green crabs, so the little apex predators that are adorable have led to the green crabs demise.
They've eaten up to one hundred and twenty thousand of the green crabs as a group. This group of otters that are off of Monterey County, there is somebody who's been watching these people, and her name is ecologist Rique Jeffison. She says that sea otters are the assistant managers of the sleugh in helping keep invaders in check. Green crabs became a major threat to coastal ecosystems on the West Coast in the late nineteen eighties when they were unintentionally
introduced to the San Francisco Bay. They might have come over on trade ships. Washington State said in September it plans to spend twelve million dollars to manage its green crab population. Maybe they just need to get some otters. So the otters are like helping out the ecosystem. They're putting things back in balance. The snails that the crabs eat are now thriving. The snails eat algae that blocks
sunlight from reaching the sea grass. So it's a whole circle of life thing, and the sea otters are bringing things back in balance. It's sort of like bringing the wolves back to Yellowstone. Remember when they brought the wolf population back and they did what wolves do, and like, the whole ecosystem got better. It's a really fascinating store. If you want to read about it, just google it. So restoring otters in the water is saving the seas of California. I love it. And that's why I said
at the beginning, we otter do this more. Santa Ana wins are going to blow into southern California today, increasing fire danger in the mountains. National Weather Service forecasters say week to moderate Santa Anna's are expected today through tomorrow. Evening. Humidity levels are expected to remain low, and that means fire danger will be increased. Four people have been hurt in two separate shootings in downtown LA. Police say two security guards were shot last night outside a target at
FIGAROA and seventh. One of them is in critical condition. A man and a woman were then shot about a mile away. Police say they're not sure if the shootings are connected. It's going to be easier to cancel online subscriptions in California. New law requires companies to get permission from customers before they automatically renew any subscriptions. After July one of twenty twenty five, customers will also get reminders about subscriptions, along with instructions on how to cancel them
if they want to. At six oh five, it's Handle on the News with Wayne in four Bill Handled Today. The Rose Parade just a day away. People are already getting ready to stake out their spots along the parade route. Let's say good morning now to ABC's chief investigative reporter Josh Margolin.
Good morning, Josh, Hey, good morning, Happy New Year.
Happy New Year. A lot of people planning to stay home this New Year's according to a new AP poll. But in New York City about a million are expected to turn out to Times Square, So what's in store.
It's going to be wet. Oh gonsk that it's well, so we're just coming off of a cold snap in New York, so it's not going to be bitter cold, which is fortunate, but it is going to be a little bit soggy. And it's compounded by no umbrellas at Times Cure. Yeah, but people that are going that could be ready for it.
So no umbrellas, but you can wear like rain slickers and that kind of stuff.
Oh sure, Shore show umbrellas. Umbrellas are a security issue for police. First of all, they're security issue for you and the safety kind of thing. You know, you have gone to a concert or even when you're when you're stuck in a congested you know area and there are a bunch of umbrellas around, Its dangerous, right, you don't get your eye poked out a lot. So that's actually a big concern.
Okay.
Then they also it blocks people's view, so cops, no umbrellas, no big backpacks, no booze on the flip side. You can go in and you can stand there for nine hours waiting for the ball to drum.
That just sounds crazy and the like, can you take food in with you?
You could take food in, you could take you can take stuff that you can fit into a small purse. You just can't take a big backpack. And and I've never done it myself. I have to confess. I'm a reporter, so I've had the benefit of being able to go in as a reporter, and so you can bring certain stuff in as a reporter. But I'm sure the cops are pretty easy. If you're bring in a ham sandwich,
They're not going to think it's a security risk. It's not one of those things where they want to make sure that you buy their stuff, like at a concert venue. They just want to protect everybody. So the cups are focused on things that could be weapons. Your ham sandwich isn't a weapon, certainly not once it gets wet, exactly.
Okay. Now I've heard too, Josh that there are no bathrooms.
Yes, that is that is a fact. It is New York City. There are no public bathrooms. On a good day, when you're penned in in the middle of Times Square, there's no bathrooms. It's another reason why if I were not a reporter, I probably wouldn't do it myself, not to not to say that people shouldn't do it. They should all have a great time. It's just not something that I would do.
Okay. So then we got to talk to about the practicality of this, because that's a million people and no bathroom. So is everybody wearing diapers?
I don't know. I'm sure there are people that do do that. That What helps is that there's no booze allowed, so you don't have that problem.
Yeah, okay, And so you're not and everybody's not worried about staying hydrated because it's not one hundred degrees like when we go to Coachella or something like that, so you're not drinking.
It does get to be a real it does get to be a real issue. A few years ago, I remember specifically, we had a brutal one of these polar vortex kind of cold snaps where they actually were worried that people were going to have to be carted away by ambulance because it was so brutally cold outside. Because it gets to be a certain point where no matter how much gear you have, nine hours and the bitter
cold is terrible. But that's not it's what it's going to be today, it's going to be in the mid to upper forties, a little bit rainy, So they're not worried about that. What they are talking about is the things in the world that could have an impact on New York. So this ongoing thing where isis is advocating for people to do vehicle rammings. We saw the thing in Germany a couple of weeks ago at the Christmas Market.
Two years ago, we saw somebody who decided to take out a large knife and go after police at a barricade out of metal detector. And so they're worried about things like that. Also, everything has gotten really heightened with
the political environment the election. Obviously we saw two attempts on Donald Trump's life throughout the course of the campaign, and then also since October seventh of twenty twenty three, with the Israel Hamas War, they have expanded in New York the Secure Perimeter, the frozen zone where no cars, no people are allowed, because they want to keep the they want to make sure that Times Square is even more protected from the possibility of vehicles getting anywhere near
the people who are outside in the plaza.
Okay, so I want to talk about that frozen zone for a second. So you've got a million people coming in to Times Square, do they literally set up barricades on every I don't know, on every street, on every sidewalk, and then people have to go through security.
Right, So if you look overhead like a map view or a helicopter view, you know the roads a crisscross network. So this Times Square basically look at that as the middle of the island of Manhattan, and then you have all the roads and sidewalks going in and coming out. It's all done in a staggered, phased, in layered approach. So at three o'clock this morning, the first road closures went into effect, and that was the core of Times Square where the people will gather, no cars at all.
People are restricted even as to where they're allowed to walk or move. Then as the day progresses, those road closures will expand outward like an amieba sort of growing, and ultimately by three o'clock this afternoon, they're going to start letting people go in. What's going to happen is by three o'clock you'll have an entire square basically from the southern border Central Park down to thirty eighth Street,
so that's about twenty blocks. That's twenty of the shortlock, and then east to west the long Avenue blocks from sixth Avenue to eighth Avenue, that's no cars at all, and that's where they will put these large garbage trucks or dump trucks full of sand blocker trucks, and that's going to block off access. Then certain streets will have
pedestrian only access. And the way they do is they set up like going to a rock concert where you're able like Coachella, where you're able to then go if you are at the right place and you know where you're going, you want to get in, you will then be able to wait on a line to go through metal detectors and be searched like you're going into a closed venue and the cops are the ones manning those metal detectors, and you go through, and once you're allowed in,
then you're going to be directed to the area where you basically are assigned to hang out with your group, and that's where you are until midnight.
That sounds like a I'd rather stay home. It just sounds like a lot.
You're not the only person that feels that way.
Yeah, Okay, And then and then at the end, like the ball drops and they play the music and everybody kisses and they do all old lang sign and stuff. Does the crowd just then quietly disperse or does it turn into sort of a crap you know, a crazy mass x migration.
I've actually been there. It's actually not a crazy scene. Afterwards, it's a fun scene at midnight. And then basically between midnight and twelve fifteen they start breaking things down. And think about it. If you've been outside, even in good weather, but had no facilities, and you haven't had anything to drink or eating, what, you're just hanging out for.
Nine hours, you're ready to go out?
Yeah, okay, So so people start going and remember the sub so the subways the streets are open. People can then walk. The subways keep running, so people head for the subways. They walk out. But Manhattan on New Year's Eve is generally very very busy, even outside of Times Square, So you have a lot of other stuff going on. You have a midnight run at Central Park, which is only twenty blocks away. You have other kinds of parties.
Time Square is right in the center of the action, and people have gathered at various points so people start this bursting. But in my limited experience for the few years that I've actually been there as a reporter, it seems that everything is pretty chill. People just sort of take off.
Cool. Well, we're going to hope for a safe and happy New Year in Times Square. It's always fun to watch from home. Exactly, all right, Josh Margoland, thank you so much. Appreciate your time. If you want to follow Josh on Instagram, it's just at Josh Mark Golan. Easy. Have a happy New Year, Josh.
We'll talk to you here. Good bye.
Hey, here's a fun fact. Our very own producer, Michelle has been in Times Square for New Year's Eve.
Yes, last time I was when we lived in New York.
I didn't move out of New York until with my parents until I was fifteen, so I was fourteen, So it was eighty six.
Was the last time I did it?
And did they have all the same Uh? Well, eighty six I was way before like nine eleven was all that stuff.
So it wasn't at I mean, they do they do.
Block they from what I remember, they block a lot of stuff off because they want to limit you know, who's there, and once you're there, you had to stay until midnight.
Oh, it's just I mean, it was so interesting listening to Josh explain what they do and how they you know, start restricting traffic and then you're stuck there for like nine hours. So did you have to stand there for nine hours?
Yeah, we had to stand there for nine hours.
But back then I remember like having to go to the bathroom and just walking into a store and they're like.
Yeah, I use the bathroom.
Like it was back then, it was much looser. I mean, I don't I can't remember. I'm assuming there was probably close to a million people even back then, but it was it was a little bit different of a time.
It was.
You know, it was fun though, but I can't imagine doing it again.
I just sit there and I used to think when I was younger, I'd go, oh, I want to do that one year, And now I'd go, oh, hell no, if.
You do it once, you wouldn't do it again.
It's like me at the Rose Parade, like camping overnight for the Roast Parade, Like you'll do it once and then that's it.
All right. Well, thank you, Michelle. I know somebody who's been in Times Square for New Year's Eve. I think you're the only person I've ever met. Here's what we're following in the KFI twenty four hour newsroom. California has the largest homeless population in the US. Just over one hundred and eighty seven thousand people were living without stable
housing in twenty twenty four. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development says the homelessness rate in California is more than double the national average, with forty eight out of every ten thousand people without a regular home. People who assault doctors, nurses, and emergency room workers in California are going to face tougher penalty starting in twenty twenty five. A new law increases the maximum jail time for these
attacks from six months to a year. Recent surveys show that over ninety percent of er doctors have reported being attacked just in the last year. The CHP begins its maximum enforcement period for New Year's Eve tonight at six pm. All available officers will be on duty in La and Orange Counties and across the state to look for drunk or drugged drivers, speeders, and drivers committing other violations. At six oh five, it's Handle on the News with Wayne resnik,
a big bird has made an incredible journey. A giant sea eagle has landed in the Great White North. Oh sounds fun making money resolutions and how to stick with them. And then also there's binge watching, but there's also binge shopping and more of us are doing it. We're going to check in and find out more about that with ABC's No, it's not, it's kfi's very own. Joel Larsgard, the host amount of money on KFI, is going to be joining us in less than fifteen minutes.
Amis on it, Dami's on this, AM's on it, Dami's on it.
I'm on the stream. There's so much out there. There's movies, there's TV series, there's documentaries. There's so much stuff, and how do you know what to watch? Well, hopefully I can help you with that. I also take recommendations from you and from my friends, and then I'll check them out and pass it along and let you know if it's a great idea for you to watch this or maybe save your time. So something that is and has been highly anticipated is the return of Squid Game. So
it's on Netflix, season two. Three years in the making. So the remember it was a forever ago that the first Squid Game came along, and so now they just dropped the second season. I highly recommend that you go and watch at least the last two episodes of season one, because it's been three years after Alcono and I were talking about it. He's like, I think I need to
go back and watch the last EPISOD. So I will say, yes, you do, and then I'm going to also say you might want to go back even further because I started at the very beginning to see how season one started, because again it was three years ago, and personally I have the memory of a nat so I needed to go revisit it. I had forgotten so much of it, like how he even got involved. The guy, the main character, Geehoon.
He he was just basically kind of a low life and now it's in season two and he's a changed person. But also when I watched it, I thought season two was only half released because it was seven episodes like Netflix does with like Cobra Kai and Bridgerton and that. But it's not. It's just Season two is seven episodes and it drops off right in the middle. It's a heck of a cliffhanger because it definitely doesn't feel like there's kind of any closure at all. It just it
leaves you hanging for season two. Read the first season felt more raw to me, a little more real. I mean, like the violence when it first starts is just shocking. You're like, oh my god, they're just shooting and killing all these people. As you know, I'm not giving away any secrets, even if you haven't seen Squid Game yet. And it was very compelling, So I think it's because we didn't expect it, so it sort of it was a shock to our system. But now three years later,
there's season two and we're expecting it. So do we get the same old, same old, Well, yes and no. As you find out at the end of season one, or at least it's intimated, Geehun, the main character goes back for more. It's going back into the games. So how do they keep it new? Well, they do more character development, and with that they bring in more social issues and insight into why these people sign up for Squid Game in the first place. And then there's also
a kind of a sinister turn to the storyline. I mean, after all, what he what do you do with all those dead bodies? That's a question Squid Game tries to answer that the show takes a kind of an interesting and unlikely turn. It is a stretch, but it almost makes sense in the grand scheme of things. On what are they going to do with squid Game this year that'll be different from last? And again, there is no second half of the season. But season three has already
been filmed. It's in post production. The guy who wrote it said he wrote seasons two and three together and having it be like fourteen episodes was too long, So that's why it's a seven. Season three is expected to drop in the summer or fall of twenty twenty five. So I kind of feel like they could have just ended it like after season one, call it a day. To me, it kind of feels like too much. It was the same old still intriguing. Don't get me wrong.
I still watched it, and I'm going to watch season three, but I don't like it as much as I did the first season. Oh and by the way, when he wins the money, they put all the money up for grabs for the person who wins squid Games. It's forty five billion one, which is about thirty one million US dollars. That's not even a Mega million surprize. It's not even as much as the Powerball prize that's up for grabs because no winner was drawn last night. So season two
Squid Game on Netflix again. It's good, it's not great. It's getting kind of mixed reviews. People are either loving it or hating it. Like I said, I watched it. I'm going to watch the next season, but I didn't like it as much as the first season. There you go. The last Amy's on it of twenty twenty four. Normally I do it on Wednesdays. I'm not going to be here tomorrow, so we did it to ring in the
new year. Oh and if you're sitting at home on the couch and you don't feel like watching the ball drop, maybe you want to watch Squid Game. Let's get back to some of the stories coming out of the KFI twenty four hour newsroom. The Riverside Chapter of Habitat for Humanity is announced it will erect am memorial in honor of President Jimmy Carter. The thirty ninth President, spent a great deal of his life after losing reelection in nineteen
eighty building homes with Habitat for Humanity. The local chapter of the organization says it's going to pay tribute to Carter near one of its buildings in the East end of Riverside, with a framed wall and door celebrating the late president's contributions. The New York Stock Exchange has announced it will be closed on January ninth in honor of President Jimmy Carter, who died on Sunday. Kfis Kristen Marks reports. President Biden has declared the day a national day of mourning.
It's normal for the Stock Exchange to close trading to honor the death of a president. Trading was closed in December of twenty eighteen for the death of former President George H. W.
Bush.
Meanwhile, the normally hectic Stock Exchange paused for one minute of silence Monday morning in Carter's memory as photos of the thirty ninth president were shown on monitors.
Carter was one hundred years old. He was the oldest living former president a nation that passes to President Trump, but when Trump takes office again next month, President Biden will be the oldest former president. A jail inmate in Orange County has died two days after being booked on theft and drug charges. The Sheriff's Department says Anthony Brown of Cerritos was found unresponsive at the THEO. Lacy Jail on Sunday afternoon. Officials say preliminarily there are no suspicious circumstances.
They say a cause of death is going to be determined following an independent autopsy and toxicology testing. An attack by two pitbulls has left a seventy six year old woman in Desert Hot Springs without part of her right arm. The woman was visiting from Mexico when the dogs attacked her during a walk. The dogs were able to escape their owner's yard by digging a hole under the fence. The woman was taken to the hospital, where she had a partial arm amputation. The dogs were taken away and
were put down. Some federally owned sports fields and San Pedro are being turned over to local governments.
Of Defense had said four years ago it would no longer support the nonprofits who maintained the fields near the US Navy Defense Support Point, and would also significantly increase its fees. The organizations who use the fields, like Lomita Little League in San Pedro Girls Softball say it would have been too much, but Congresswoman Nannette Barragan says she secured language in the National Defense Authorization Act, signed last week by the President to transfer ownership of the land
to the cities of La and Lomita. Final negotiations are ongoing. Michael Monks KFI News.
Some Republicans in Washington dcsay Americans will cheer President elect Trump's Government Efficiency Task Force. Texas Congressmanship Roy says a makeover of the food stamp program would include removing sugary sodas from the list of items available. He says such restrictions on food stamps would save hundreds of billions of dollars put.
In restraint on the use of food stamps.
Roy is also pushing for a repeal of President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act. Roy was among the thirty four Republican members of the House who voted against the spending bill, which avoided a government shutdown before Christmas. A new scholarship has been created in the Inland Empire. The nonprofit Brothers of the Desert has collaborated with the Inland Empire Community Foundation to support black, gay male students in the Coachella Valley.
To qualify, an applicant must have completed a two year college program or secondary education in the IE and been accepted to a four year college. Applications open next month. People can start staking out spots along the five and a half mile Rose Parade route in Pasadena starting at noon. The parade, featuring floral floats, marching bands, and equestrian units, starts at the corner of Green Street and Orange Grove
Boulevard and continues along Colorado Boulevard. The parade starts at eight a m. A couple in Camerios expected to make a court appearance today to face charges of stuffing merchandise into specially designed girdles to steal from a store at the Camerio Premium Outlets. Please say. The sixty one year old man and fifty two year old woman were caught with seventeen pairs of jeans from an under armour store
stuffed in their girdles earlier this month. A red flag warning for parts of La and Ventura Counties goes into effect this morning at seven and continues through tomorrow at six pm. The warning is for the Santa Clarita, Western San Fernando and Calabasis Valleys, Santa Monica Mountains, and the southeast Ventura County Valleys. We're just minutes away from Handle on the news this morning, of course, Handle on vacation.
So we have Wayne Resnick sitting in and if you see a drone buzzing around, Wayne's going to tell you why you should not shoot it down. Let's say good morning now to the host of How to Money right here on KFI. It's Joel Larsgard. Good morning, Joel.
Morning Amy.
So a lot of people making resolutions. We were talking about that a little earlier, and one of the things that thing that one of the things that people are making resolutions about is money. So let's talk about that because you're our money guy.
Yeah, I mean.
And the thing is, even if it's not directly money related, like I want to increase my net worth by forty two percent or something like that, money is often involved.
In so many of the goals that we set for ourselves.
Let's say you're setting this goal like I'm going to take two international vacations this year, whatever it is, like, all of those things involve money. So money is tangentially involved in so many of the things that we want from our lives in twenty twenty five. So it's really important to kind of have different money goals, or I would say, actually different money systems in place to kind of help you achieve some of those other grander goals that you have for your life.
In twenty twenty five.
And when I say systems, there's this guy, James Clear who writes about goals. He's one of the foremost experts on goal setting, and he talks about how systems are so much better than a goal because which one of us has not set a goal and then to half weeks into the new year said, well, that didn't work out so well and you abandoned it completely. And so it's important to have these smaller micro things that you can implement to help you along the way instead of
this one big, audacious goal. Well, you've got to break it down into a bunch of smaller steps. What is it going to take to get there? And let's say it is money specific, like I do want to become an investor for the first time, Well, what is it going to take to get there? Break it down into small steps so that you're not floundering just two weeks in.
Okay, So say you want to become an investor, like, for example, what would be some of those baby steps that you would take.
Sure you got to see. I think the baby step there is well what is available to me from a retirement account perspective? And it would also be smart to look in to say, well, hm, I need to find out what the best things to invest in for me are for the time being. So there's some legwork that needs to be done, some readings, some homework that needs
to be done. You might need to call your HR department and say, what is the match inside of the four to oh one k at my work because a savvy investor hopefully is going to take advantage of the full company match. That's the goal you're going to get to. But you got to figure out, well, what does it look like? And then okay, what company is it that I should be investing with? What brokerage firm should I
open up an account with? And you know, there's by the way, tons of information up on howtomoney dot com about funds that we like, about companies that we like working with, about the importance of low cost and investing. But there's probably some homework you want to do so that you could be confident when you start investing. And the cool thing is, I think too, once you learn the stuff, learn a few of those ropes, and by the way, it's far less complicated than a lot of the people on Wall Street.
Would want to lead you to believe.
Once you learn some of those ropes and then you have the confidence and you actually start doing the thing, the cool thing is you start to view yourself a little differently. You're like, look at me, I'm an investor over here, and that then perpetuates this glorious cycle of continuing to add to you know, your what you what you've learned, continuing to add to your knowledge, and then continuing to do the right thing.
Does that make sense?
Yes, I just we're having headphone issues this morning.
Seek Okay, last second.
Sorry, I didn't mean to like leavang out and I thought it was.
So profound that I left you speechless, But you did.
You did, Okay, I can hear you again. So then here's another question. Becoming an investor is one thing. Here's another thing that I think that I've been thinking about is really raining in my spending. So I'm thinking about that and thinking, like like you said, instead of just saying I'm cutting back twenty five percent or something. What are a couple of like mini goals that we can set as we go to make it a more realistic.
Thing, that is that's a great question, I think something that probably a lot of people are trying to figure out right now in the aftermath of Christmas. Hopefully it was a wonderful Christmas for everyone out there. But the man, it's so easy right into. Something you and I talked about a lot on the front end was the ability to overspend. And there was an article in Baron's the other day talking specifically about how easy it is to become a bin shopper these days, and how we talk
about sports gambling that man that worries me. But apparently there's a much higher percentage of the population, according to
a new study, who struggle with bin shopping. So they're essentially addicted to shopping, and it's easier than ever to get addicted to And because we're on our phones all the time, we're on screens all the time, and shopping is just one click away, and now it's inside other apps like TikTok, and so people are spending in ways that never would have even been a thought in the minds of our parents, right, And so you're having to deal with new ways of technology trying to get into
your life to try to call your money away. And so I do think that that one of the things, one of the small steps that needs to be taken, if spending less money is one of your goals, is to maybe eradicate an app or two from your life. Maybe you only go on Instagram. This is something I do on the browser on your computer. It's a far
less enjoyable experience. But you're doing that on purpose. You're doing that for a reason to say, one, I'm going to limit my exposure to certain things that are going to prompt me to spend and two, because it's a less enjoyable experience, I'm going to just spend less time there so I'm more productive in other areas of my life.
But I think it is really easy. It's more think about another thing.
Emails from some of your favorite companies and maybe they've got a twenty percent discount today. Only they send you the email and you're like, oh, click over there and take a look, and you end up spending money that you weren't planning on spending. And so unsubscribe from those emails. And then something else I like for people to do is to create a twenty four or a forty.
Eight hour rule.
Oh so you are where you're like prompted to spend money on something, and you say, oh, man, I really want to follow through. I really want this thing in my life. Well, if you wait twenty four hours typically, and then you go back to the cart, right, and you say, is this something I want kind of in the light of day. Right, let's say you're scrolling at night and you I want this thing so bad, I'm going to get it right now. Well, if you wait until the next day, the next afternoon, maybe you're less
inclined to buy that thing. Maybe you're like, well, I got why I was interested in it, but I don't actually need this. And so if you follow through on the purchase immediately, you're more likely to make an impulse buy. And if you give yourself a little bit of time, you have a chance for that the smarter part of your brain to kick in and say, hey, I don't think I actually need that thing.
It's sort of like writing a nasty email. Don't hit send right, hold on to it, and then go and revisit it, like in a day or two and say, do I still really want to send that? It's kind of the same idea.
Neither of us would ever do that, amy, but it's a good hypothetical.
Not that I have ever written a nasty email in my life, but okay, so we're going to do baby steps as we head into the new year. I love that idea, and maybe even become investor.
But do your homework right, Yeah, And you know, whatever your money goal is, it's going to be dependent on where you are in the process. And so if you go to how to money dot com and you click start here, there is there's something that we call the money gears, and it'll tell you you can quickly find, well, where am I at in my money progress and what's
the thing I should be doing right now? Because the thing that you should be doing and the thing that CONO should be doing or different depending on how far along you are in your financial progress. So make sure you know where you are because financial advice isn't one size fits all. It's not rocket science. You can figure it out. That's the other thing too. If you want help and encouragement, which I think is so crucial to be able to stick to our goals and to make progress.
Find a group of like minded people who will kind of ride with you along the way. And that could be a friend, accountability buddy, It could be a partner or a spouse, but it could also be that. The good thing about the Internet is that there are groups of people who are doing awesome things to help each other and answer each other's questions. And the how to Money Facebook group just a brief plug for that, is a great place of people who really do want to help each other out.
And so.
It's a group I started, but I love being in there because it's so full of great advice, great questions, and people literally trying their best to spur each other on towards better financial habits. So find a group like that, whatever it is in your life, of people who are trying to push you in the right direction. I found this year becoming friends with somebody who was really into
a goal that I was interested in. He just kept prompting me and pushing me, and I got so much better along the way just because I had a friend kind of sharing his successes, sharing some insights, and I was like amazed at how much it impacted my ability to reach my goals.
I love that the buddy system, yeah, all right, it makes a difference. And Joel Larsgard, he's our buddy. He's our money buddy. Sorry, I'm getting punchy. In the end of twenty twenty four, Joel Larscard, thank you so much. You can listen to more great money advice with Joel on how to Money right here on KFI. It's on Sundays from noon to two and you can follow Joel at how to Money. Joel. Thank you so much, Joel. We love your advice as always. Can't wait for more of it in twenty twenty five.
Thanks for having me Amy, Happy New Year.
All right, we'll talk to you next year.
Sounds good.
Okay.
Hey.
One fun fact shared by producer Michelle that confetti that's dropped in Times Square has secret messages in it, so it's got thousands of people's wishes written on the confetti. Back in twenty fifteen, wish fetti became a thing and they started doing it, and now they do it every year. People write their wishes for the new year and then
submit them to the wish wall in Times Square. They also submit them online and then those wishes are turned into the confetti that falls over the crowd at midnight. Kind of cool. This is KFI and KOST HD two Los Angeles, Orange County Southland weather from KFI. Low cloud and fog this morning, then sunny with Santa Ana wins and parts of Ella and Ventra Counties in the IE.
Highs will be in the mid sixties at the beach's, upper sixties for Metro La and in Lando c around seventy in the valleys, and IE low sixties in the Antelope Valley. Clear skies tonight as we ring in the New year, overnight lows in the thirties and forties. Sunny and warmer for New Year's Day, with highs in the low to mid seventies at the beaches and Metro areas, mid seventies to upper seventies in the valleys, and IE
sixty for the High Desert. It's fifty three in Fountain Valley, fifty one Manhattan Beach, fifty in Tustin, forty one in Santa Clarita. We lead local live from the KFI twenty four hour newsroom for producer Michelle and technical producer Cono. I'm Amy King. This has been your final wake Up Call for twenty twenty four, and if you missed any of it today or any day in twenty twenty four,
you can listen anytime on the iHeartRadio app. Happy New Year, you've been listening to wake Up Call with me Amy King. You can always hear wake Up Call five to six am Monday through Friday on KFI Am six forty and any time on demand on the iHeartRadio app