The Buzz Log What’s hot on Yahoo! Buzz™ (and why)...

Our crack team of editors takes a closer look at the hottest trends on Yahoo! Buzz.

  • Gentlemen, Start Your Razors

    by Mike Krumboltz

    Oct 28, 2009

    The Phillies and Yankees are in the World Series. Two proud teams with very confident fans. How confident? One Pennsylvania politician is so sure of his beloved Phillies that he's willing to bet his hair on their winning the championship.

    Congressman Robert Brady of Pennsylvania was asked by the good folks at TMZ if he had any humorous bets going on the Series. Rep. Brady responded that he had personally challenged the New Yorkers in Congress to a mohawk challenge, in which the loser would have to undergo the Mr. T treatment. According to Rep. Brady, the cowardly contingent from the Empire State declined.

    But then! An hour or so later, TMZ talked to Congressman John Hall of New York. Rep. Hall responded to Rep. Brady's challenge, saying, "I'll see his mohawk and raise him a whole head. I'll shave all my hair if the Phillies win -- which we all know isn't happening." Sounds good to us, but according to a photo on Rep. Hall's official site, the congressman isn't exactly blessed with luscious locks, meaning he won't have much to shave. You're a savvy gambler, Rep. Hall.

    4 Votes

  • Bridge to Nowhere: Bay Bridge Closed

    by Claudine Zap

    Oct 28, 2009

    The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge — the monstrous connector between San Francisco and Oakland in Northern California — wowed with its super-speedy work over Labor Day weekend. But on Tuesday night, the Bay Bridge suddenly closed again, with no clear timeline for when it will re-open.

    What happened?
    The goal had been an emergency repair on a structural beam on a cantilevered section, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Locals should have considered that the dress rehearsal: The fix only lasted seven weeks, when high winds apparently caused repaired parts to come crashing down on cars below during the rush hour commute. Luckily nobody was seriously hurt. But the Bay Area commute is sure taking a beating — and this time the bridge could be shut off to traffic for days.

    The headache has caused Web traffic to surge on the Bay Bridge. One-day Yahoo! searches for "bay bridge closure" rose a whopping 22,600%. Commuters also looked up "bay bridge cable," "bay bridge news," and "bay bridge traffic."

    Nightmare commute
    And if you think your regular commute is a nightmare, welcome to the new normal: The normally quarter-million Bay Bridge drivers clogged alternate routes and bridges, and the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) commuter rail was standing room only, with a record number or riders. Lines to buy BART tickets ran seven deep, ferries were filled to capacity, and buses linked riders to alternative routes. BART has so far extended its trains, but not its hours, because apparently these things cost a lot of money. They're happy to do it if someone kicks in some cash, though.

    Odd fact
    The reason for the shut-down on Labor Day was to work on a new bridge that will replace the old one. Workers noticed the crack on the old structure and made the quick, not-so-effective fix. The 30-mph winds did in the eyebar repair, although officials say they think they have figured out a work-around. We sure hope they're right this time.

    Get the latest info on the Bay Bridge closure.

    1 Vote

  • Noooooooooooooooooo!

    by Mike Krumboltz

    Oct 28, 2009

    And without further delay, we present the award for the absolute worst idea of 2009. May we have the envelope please? Well, no surprise here... the winner is the Jon Gosselin-Octomom Dating Show!

    This morning, In Touch Weekly reported that Mr. Gosselin was set to star in a reality show with Nadya Suleman. The premise: The parents hang out and perhaps go on a date or two, while further ensuring their children will have epic therapy bills down the road.

    Fortunately, in a sign that there is definitely a God, a representative for Gosselin responded that the show "isn't happening." And the world breathes a collective sigh of relief...

    4 Votes

  • A Homemade Halloween

    by Mike Krumboltz

    Oct 28, 2009

    Over the past week, Web lookups on "homemade halloween costumes" have surged well over 200%. Clearly it's not too late to come up with a self-stitched outfit.

    For those slackers who haven't yet come up with a Halloween costume, help is just a search term away. Among the most popular ideas are pirates, hippies, ladybugs, and the unfairly persecuted nerds.

    Classic costumes like cats, ghosts, and vampires are also big in the Search box. And, really, that makes sense. After all, coming up with a homemade cat outfit isn't going to require a trip to your local fabric store. Black pants, black shirt, paint on some whiskers, and you're good to go.

    Below, we've ranked the top homemade costume searches from the past seven days. We were a bit surprised to see the Smurfs garner so many searches. Looks like there's gonna be a rush on blue body paint...

    1. Homemade Pirate Costume
    2. Homemade Scarecrow Costume
    3. Homemade Cat Costume
    4. Homemade Zombie Costume
    5. Homemade Robot Costume
    6. Homemade Mummy Costume
    7. Homemade Smurf Costume
    8. Homemade Hippie Costume
    9. Homemade Punk Rocker Costume
    10. Homemade Frankenstein Costume
      1. Homemade Hobo Costume
      2. Homemade Tin Man Costume
      3. Homemade Vampire Costume
      4. Homemade Toga Costume
      5. Homemade Spider Costume
      6. Homemade Flintstones Costume
      7. Homemade Superhero Costume
      8. Homemade Ladybug Costume
      9. Homemade Ghost Costume
      10. Homemade Nerd Costume

        6 Votes

      1. Keira Knightley, Flu Shots, "Great Pumpkin": What's the Buzz

        by Claudine Zap

        Oct 28, 2009

        Our top picks from the day's hottest searches.

        1. Fred Armisen (Searches increased by 3,231%). "SNL" comedian and "Mad Men" star Elisabeth Moss tied the knot. It's a match made in TV heaven.
        2. Scarlett Johansson and Keira Knightley (+2,195%). The British Knightley beat out the bombshell Johansson for the movie remake of "My Fair Lady." Um, was that ever even a question?
        3. Free flu shot clinics (+438%). New York City has begun a five-borough campaign to encourage elementary school students to get the swine flu vaccine.
        4. Taylor Swift (+182%). Gone in 120 seconds: Tickets to the singer's concerts scheduled for next year are sold out.
        5. "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" (+194%). It's just not a holiday without a "Charlie Brown" special.
        5 Votes