Tim Phillips Show, 4/9/26

How well do you know the people who live next door or across the street? Borrowing a cup of sugar from a neighbor or letting your kids play together was very common decades ago, but most of us can’t imagine doing that now. According to a new survey, only 30% of Americans know their neighbors beyond a casual level now.

The Rocket Mortgage poll of 2-thousand people across the country finds that while nearly 80% believe strong neighborhoods improve their quality of life, only one in six actively try to interact with their neighbors.

The thing is, 50 years ago, neighborhoods were a big part of our culture and identity, and 80% say they were places people naturally connected.
But today, we’re hesitant to reach out, as 22% admit they feel awkward making the first move with a neighbor.
Nearly 42% say people in their neighborhood tend to keep to themselves, and 41% say even knocking on a neighbor’s door feels too bold.
Still, 68% report getting support from a neighbor in the last year and 58% say they would rely on a neighbor in an emergency. And more than two-thirds (65%) would feel comfortable offering help.
Connecting doesn’t have to be a big thing, as 53% say small, repeated moments, like a quick hello, short chat, or returning a misdelivered package - help build relationships more than planned gatherings.
But 29% admit they sometimes avoid socializing with neighbors, usually because they’re in a hurry or preoccupied.⠀
Source: Barchart

Throwback Thursday to 1996

BECAUSE YOU LOVED ME  -  CELINE DION

Princess Diana and Prince Charles get divorced.

The internet search engine "Ask Jeeves" is created.

The Summer Olympics are held in Atlanta, Georgia.

Kofi Annan becomes the Secretary General of the United Nations.

Bill Clinton is elected for a second term as the United States President after he defeats Bob Dole.

Buzz Lightyear Costume
Tickle Me Elmo
DVD's Launched in Japan
Duke Nukem 3D Shareware released to public

Popular Films
Independence Day
Twister
Mission: Impossible
Jerry Maguire
101 Dalmatians
The Rock
The Nutty Professor
The Birdcage
A Time to Kill
The English Patient
Star Trek: First Contact

There’s a lot to consider when it comes to buying a home, but it all comes down to “location, location, location,” according to the old real estate saying. The thing is, location affects everything from the home’s value to your lifestyle and the community you’ll live in, so it is a pretty important factor, but it’s not the only one that matters. A new report looks at location and much more to determine the best places to buy a home in the U.S.

Niche.com looked at cities across the country, analyzing them on a long list of qualities to find the most ideal ones for homebuyers.
They evaluated home values and housing costs, real estate trends, taxes, crime rates and the quality of local schools in thousands of communities nationwide.

Based on all of that, McCord, Oklahoma, tops the list.

The small community has a population under 2-thousand, but has a “suburban rural mix feel,” according to Niche. McCord gets high scores for cost of living, housing, public schools, family-friendliness, and jobs.
The median home value in the northeastern Oklahoma town is $202,400, which is just half of the national median of $405-thousand.
Larkin Charter Township, Michigan, comes in second, where home values are in the lower-to-mid $200-thousands.
The Top 10 Places to Buy A Home in the U.S. in 2026

McCord, Oklahoma
Larkin Charter Township, Michigan
Pine Grove Mills, Pennsylvania
Massac, Kentucky
Williamstown, West Virginia
Hazel Green, Alabama
St. Johns, Arizona
Hanover, Kansas
Granger, Indiana
Level Green, Pennsylvania
Source: Travel and Leisure

Tim's News You Can't Use 

WalletHub ranked the greenest states in the U.S. by comparing all 50 states across 28 environmental metrics including air and water quality, recycling habits, renewable energy use, and contributions to climate change. Vermont was ranked number one, followed closely by Hawaii, California, New York, and Washington. The least green state is West Virginia, followed by Louisiana, Alabama, Kentucky, and Mississippi.
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A new study suggests that we don't want to have robots that are super efficient — because they'll create traffic jams with each other. Harvard scientists determined that when a group of robots are assigned one task, their programming to use the shortest route possible makes them run into one another and crowd into the same space. The study said that if the robots programming added just the right amount of randomness, or “noise,” to how they move, they will go around each other quickly. 
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Anyone that's seen one of the Jurassic Park films knows that it's a bad idea to mess with dinosaur DNA. Yet that's exactly what three companies have done to make a new bag of lab-grown T.rex leather. Scientists used "reconstructed dinosaur collagen" to grow the leather and they gave it to design company Enfin Levé to create the handbag. It's currently in display at the Art Zoo Museum in Amsterdam next to a T.rex structure. After its museum run wraps up next month, it will be auctioned off to the highest bidder. 
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Sporked says Mars recently filed a patent for an unmeltable vegan ice cream. VegNews says the ice cream uses Urad beans to slow melting and keep its shape for about two hours at room temperature. In 2018, a melt-resistant ice cream was made with polyphenols.
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Iceland's tourism board has a solution for people who can't stop checking work email on vacation: let a horse do it for them
The campaign, called "OutHorse Your Email," is part of an ongoing effort by Visit Iceland to get travelers to truly unplug when they visit the country
It works exactly as it sounds. Real Icelandic horses walk across a giant, hoof-sized keyboard and tap out customized out-of-office replies for vacationers
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The Toronto Blue Jays smashed their record for most hot dogs sold during a game Tuesday night. Concession stands sold their "Loonie Dog" for 77 cents (that's 56 cents in U.S. currency), a number chosen because the Blue Jays started in 1977. And Jays fans went to town, ordering 102,202 hot dogs during the 4-1 loss to the L.A. Dodgers. The previous record was set last August with 92,221 of them.
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MSN says a self-driving Waymo car recently went the wrong way in a Whataburger drive-thru in San Antonio. The robotaxi completely stopped and turned its emergency lights on.  The police came and tried to get the Waymo to move.  Officers contacted Waymo, accessed the vehicle and manually moved it. 
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Money Talks News says a fire recently wiped out a California toilet paper warehouse. The 1.2 million-square-foot warehouse serves 50 million people. Crews fought the flames for hours. No injuries were reported. The site is closed for now. The website says a toilet paper shortage may occur because of the fire. The Cottonelle brand may have been in the warehouse.
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WHNT says a portion of I-65 in Limestone County, Alabama was closed yesterday after two trucks collided. One was carrying spicy chicken wings. The wings poured onto the highway and closed it. It took four hours to clean up the mess 
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KIRO  says a truck carrying 80,000 pounds of potatoes recently crashed on State Route 18 in King County, Washington. The westbound lanes were closed.  The state patrol shared photos showing the truck on its side in a ditch.  No word on what caused the crash 
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WPVI says two Hatboro, Pennsylvania thieves recently stole 96 bananas from a Wawa. The suspects fled in a black Hyundai Santa Cruz. The police say the banana bandits were identified after they posted their pictures online. No arrests have been made as of yet