KJOY spent the morning at Crossroads Farm in Malverne to get the scoop from Malverne Mel, Nassau County’s famous prognosticator! Six more weeks of winter? Early spring? Find out what Mel had to say here:
Nassau County Executive Laura Curran joined Jamie Thursday morning to discuss how Nassau County is dealing with COVID-19.
Check out this awesome duet remix of “Cold Heart” with Elton John and Dua Lipa!
Broadway could soon go silent. Musicians represented by the American Federation of Musicians Local 802 say they are prepared to strike immediately if a new contract agreement with the Broadway League isn’t reached by Thursday.
The dispute centers on pay, health benefits, and working conditions for orchestra members who perform in some of Broadway’s biggest productions. Union leaders say they’ve been bargaining for months but remain far apart on key issues.
A strike would halt live music for many shows, though not all — some productions operate under separate contracts and would continue as scheduled. Negotiations are ongoing.
Toys “R” Us is coming back to Long Island this holiday season as part of a nationwide expansion.
The retailer announced plans to open 30 new stores across the U.S. — 10 of them permanent locations in at least eight states, and 20 seasonal pop-up shops in 16 states. One of those permanent stores will open at Tanger Outlets Deer Park, marking the toy brand’s first stand-alone store on Long Island since its nationwide closure in 2018.
According to a company spokeswoman, the 7,000-square-foot store at 152 The Arches Circle is expected to open in late November, just in time for the holiday shopping rush.
The expansion is part of Toys “R” Us’ ongoing comeback under WHP Global, which began reviving the brand in 2022 with in-store locations at Macy’s across the country.
MINEOLA, N.Y. (AP) — A former New York state trooper who shot himself, then falsely claimed he was wounded by an unknown gunman on a Long Island highway, sparking a regionwide search, was sentenced to six months in jail on Wednesday.
Thomas Mascia was also given five years of probation and ordered to undergo mental health treatment and pay nearly $290,000 in restitution in Nassau County court in Mineola.
Mascia pleaded guilty in May to falsely reporting an incident, tampering with physical evidence and official misconduct. He resigned in January after being suspended without pay while state police launched a criminal investigation into the shooting.
Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly called the former officer’s actions “disgraceful.”
“His lies wasted hundreds of hours of law enforcement manpower, deeply cost taxpayers in Nassau County, and betrayed the public’s trust of those in uniform,” she said in a statement after the sentencing.
Mascia claimed he was shot in the leg on Oct. 30, 2024, by a driver while parked on the shoulder of the Southern State Parkway, about a mile from his home. He described the fictitious driver as a “dark-skinned” man who fled in a car bearing temporary New Jersey plates heading toward New York City.
Instead, prosecutors say, Mascia staged the scene of the alleged shooting by scattering shell casings, then shot himself at a park, stashed the .22-caliber rifle, drove back to the highway and called for backup.
Jeffrey Lichtman, who represents Mascia and his parents, said in an email that the former trooper is “mortified by his actions and happy to finally get on with his life.”
He’s previously said Mascia, who became a trooper in 2019, was suffering from an undiagnosed mental health problem at the time of the shooting and has been undergoing treatment.
Mascia’s parents had also pleaded guilty to possessing an illegal firearm, which was found during a search of the family’s home.
Thomas A. Mascia, the defendant’s father, was sentenced to five years of probation Wednesday. Dorothy Mascia was given a one-year conditional discharge.
NEW YORK (AP) — The NHL has canceled an Olympic sendoff event scheduled for February at the New York Islanders’ arena and plan to hold All-Star Weekend festivities there in 2027, according to two people with knowledge of the situation.
The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Tuesday because the decision had not been announced. ESPN was first to report the move during the network’s coverage of the game between Boston and defending Stanley Cup champion Florida.
UBS Arena was announced to host 2026 All-Star Weekend when the league figured it would experiment with the event as a jumping off point for players, coaches and staff to gather there and fly out of John F. Kennedy International Airport to Milan.
The massive success of the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament earlier this year led officials to wonder about how much sense it made to have a traditional All-Star Weekend with a skills competition and either a game or the 3-on-3 tournament that has become a fixture for hockey’s midseason event for almost a decade. The NBA altered its format to a U.S. against the world game as a way to mix things up.
NHL officials had said the Islanders would likely get the All-Star Game in the odd-numbered year between the return to the Olympics and the 2028 World Cup of Hockey. The hope is to use the Feb. 5-7 weekend in 2027 for that.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A man whose convictions for storming the U.S. Capitol were erased by President Donald Trump’s mass pardons has been arrested on a charge that he threatened to kill House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
Christopher P. Moynihan is accused of sending a text message on Friday noting that Jeffries, a New York Democrat, would be making a speech in New York City this week.
“I cannot allow this terrorist to live,” Moynihan wrote, according to a report by a state police investigator. Moynihan also wrote that Jeffries “must be eliminated” and texted, “I will kill him for the future,” the police report says.
Moynihan, of Clinton, New York, is charged with a felony count of making a terroristic threat. It was unclear if he had an attorney representing him in the case, and efforts to contact him and his parents by email and phone were unsuccessful.
Moynihan who’s 34, was sentenced to 21 months in prison for joining a mob’s Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. In January, he was among hundreds of convicted Capitol rioters who received a pardon from Trump on the Republican president’s first day back in the White House.
Jeffries thanked investigators “for their swift and decisive action to apprehend a dangerous individual who made a credible death threat against me with every intention to carry it out.”
“Unfortunately, our brave men and women in law enforcement are being forced to spend their time keeping our communities safe from these violent individuals who should never have been pardoned,” Jeffries said in a statement.
House Speaker Mike Johnson was asked about the case during a news conference on Tuesday and said he did not know any details of the threat against Jeffries.
“We denounce violence from anybody, anytime. Those people should be arrested and tried,” said Johnson, a Louisiana Republican.
The New York State Police said it was notified of the threat by an FBI task force on Saturday. Moynihan was arraigned on Sunday in a local court in New York’s Dutchess County. He is due back in the Town of Clinton Court on Thursday.
Dutchess County District Attorney Anthony Parisi said his office is reviewing the case “for legal and factual sufficiency.”
“Threats made against elected officials and members of the public will not be tolerated,” Parisi said in a statement on Tuesday.
On Jan. 6, Moynihan breached police barricades before entering the Capitol through the Rotunda Door. He entered the Senate chamber, rifled through a notebook on a senator’s desk and joined other rioters in shouting and chanting at the Senate dais, prosecutors said.
“Moynihan did not leave the Senate Chamber until he was forced out by police,” they wrote.
In 2022, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper convicted Moynihan of a felony for obstructing the Jan. 6 joint session of Congress for certifying Democrat Joe Biden’s victory over Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Moynihan also pleaded guilty to five other riot-related counts.
Associated Press writer Stephen Groves contributed to this report.
Follow the AP’s coverage of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries at https://apnews.com/hub/hakeem-jeffries.
NEW YORK (AP) — When slugger Joe Carter hit the last World Series pitch thrown in Canada over the left-field wall to win the Toronto Blue Jays’ second consecutive title, it was 8 1/2 months before Shohei Ohtani was born.
The Blue Jays are back in baseball’s championship round for the first time since 1993 and will host Ohtani and the Dodgers in Friday night’s opener as Los Angeles tries to become the first repeat winner in a quarter century.
The previous time the World Series was played north of the border, the Steroids Era was just starting, advanced analytics were science fiction and complete games were thrown about twice a month.
While the Dodgers may be the favorite, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the Blue Jays have an entire country behind them after rallying to win the American League Championship Series with a 4-3 victory over Seattle in Game 7 on Monday night.
Until now, Toronto’s only World Series appearances resulted in back-to-back titles in 1992 and ’93.
“You always feel the weight of the world in decisions you make but when you’re kind of feeling a country, it kind of gets a little dicey at times,” manager John Schneider said early in the postseason. “Sixth inning with the bases loaded and nobody out and Aaron Judge hitting, you feel like people in Nova Scotia want to come murder you.”
George Springer and the AL East champion Blue Jays have home-field advantage in the best-of-seven Series because they finished the regular season with 94 wins, one more than the NL West champion Dodgers.
“They just got all their guys rolling. They’re scoring seven, eight runs, 10 runs a game, so that’s tough to slow down,” Los Angeles shortstop Mookie Betts said. “They’re doing all three facets of the game.”
The Greatest Sho on Earth returns to the World Series
Seeking the franchise’s ninth title and eighth since bolting Brooklyn for Los Angeles after the 1957 season, the Dodgers have overrun opponents during the postseason. Ohtani is starring at the plate and on the mound, a performance that would be deemed CGI if not witnessed by thousands in person.
“Sometimes you’ve got to check yourself and touch him to make sure he’s not just made of steel,” teammate Freddie Freeman said.
Before his three-homer at the plate and 10-strikeouts, six-scoreless innings mound show last Friday night, Ohtani’s bat had been slumping.
He’s hitting .220 with five homers and nine RBIs in the postseason and is 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA in a pair of pitching starts, striking out 19 and walking four in 12 innings.
LA tries for a rare repeat
Los Angeles is back in the World Series for the fifth time since 2017 and is seeking its third championship in six years. The Dodgers are the first defending champion to reach the Fall Classic since the 2009 Philadelphia Phillies, who lost to the New York Yankees in six games.
No team has won consecutive titles since the Yankees took three in a row from 1998-2000. The gap is the longest in baseball history, topping the previous high between the 1977-78 Yankees and the 1992-93 Blue Jays.
In other U.S. major leagues, the longest Super Bowl title gap was between the 2004-05 New England Patriots and the 2023-24 Kansas City Chiefs, the longest in the NBA was between the 1968-69 Boston Celtics and the 1987-88 Los Angeles Lakers, and the lengthiest in the NHL was between the 1997-98 Detroit Red Wings and the 2016-17 Pittsburgh Penguins.
“Realizing how hard it is to do last year, realizing how hard it was in ’20, it’s special,” Dodgers catcher Will Smith said. “Trying to get back-to-back is even more special.”
Historical ties between the Dodgers and Canada
Toronto pitcher Max Scherzer was on the 2021 Dodgers team that fell short, losing to Atlanta in the National League Championship Series. Hall of Famers Rickey Henderson and Fred McGriff also played for both franchises, along with two-time All-Star Justin Turner.
Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman has dual American-Canadian citizenship — his parents were born in Canada.
Blue Jays bench coach Don Mattingly, in the World Series for the first time after a long and successful career in baseball, managed the Dodgers from 2011-15.
The Triple-A Montreal Royals were the Dodgers’ top farm team from 1939-60 — Jackie Robinson started his Dodgers career there in 1946, a year before he broke the major league color barrier.
The Dodgers roster has been money well spent
Los Angeles entered the postseason with a big league-high $341.5 million payroll, according to Major League Baseball’s latest tabulation, and is projected to pay nearly $168 million in luxury tax, easily a record. Counting the $6.5 million signing bonus in rookie Roki Sasaki’s minor league contract, the Dodgers’ player cost this year totals $516 million — with final numbers to be calculated during the offseason.
Including Sasaki’s signing bonus, the 13 pitchers on the Dodgers’ NLCS roster alone cost $124.5 million.
Toronto has the fifth-highest payroll at $252.7 million and is on track to spend $266 million including just over $13 million in luxury tax. No small-market team has won the title since the 2015 Kansas City Royals.
“Before this season started, they said the Dodgers are ruining baseball,” manager Dave Roberts shouted to the crowd after Friday night’s National League pennant clincher. “Let’s get four more wins and really ruin baseball!”
Los Angeles pitchers are 9-1 with a 2.45 ERA in 10 postseason games, including 7-1 with 1.40 ERA for starting pitchers totaling 64 1/3 of 82 innings. Led by Blake Snell and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Dodgers starters were 3-0 with a 0.63 ERA in the NLCS and their staff held the Milwaukee Brewers to a .118 batting average during the four-game sweep, lowest in a postseason series of at least three games.
Healthy and rested for a deep October run
LA’s four postseason starters totaled 73 starts and 372 1/3 innings during the regular season. Their closer threw 36 1/3 innings.
That’s because Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Sasaki all hurt their pitching shoulders and Ohtani didn’t return to the mound until June 16 after recovering from elbow surgery in 2023.
If the Blue Jays win
Toronto, which started play in 1977, could become the 15th of the 30 teams to win three or more titles. That would be more than Cleveland and Philadelphia, franchises that have existed for longer than a century.
AP Sports Writer Beth Harris in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa faces growing pressure to drop out of the 2025 New York City mayoral race due to fears that his candidacy could split the conservative vote. Polling cited by The Wall Street Journal shows front-runner Zohran Mamdani leading comfortably in a three-way race, but his lead narrows if Sliwa withdraws, positioning Andrew Cuomo as Mamdani’s main challenger.
NEW YORK (AP) — Internet disruptions tied to Amazon’s cloud computing service affected people around the world Monday trying to connect to online services used for work, social media and video games.
About three hours after the outage began, Amazon Web Services said it was starting to recover from the problem. But the company later said it was continuing to respond to “significant” errors and connectivity issues across multiple services.
What is Amazon Web Services
Amazon Web Services is a cloud computing provider that hosts many of the world’s most-used online services and provides behind-the-scenes infrastructure to many government departments, universities and businesses.
Amazon is the leading provider of cloud infrastructure and platform services, constituting over 41% of the market, according to research group Gartner. Google and Microsoft are the next biggest competitors.
Seattle-based Amazon said the problems were centered in its Virginia-based US-East-1 data center region, one of its oldest and most important cloud hubs around the world. The region is a backbone “for so many services that when things go screwy, domino effects around the internet-as-we-know-it are enormous,” wrote John Scott-Railton, a cybersecurity researcher at Citizen Lab, in a social media post.
What happened?
AWS traced the source of the problem to something called the “DynamoDB endpoint in the US-East-1 Region,” in a pair of jargon-laden updates.
“DynamoDB isn’t a term that most consumers know, but it underpins the apps and services that all of us use every single day,” said cybersecurity expert Mike Chapple.
DynamoDB is a centralized database service that many internet-based services use to track user information, store key data and manage their operations, Chapple said by email.
It’s “one of the record-keepers of the modern internet,” said Chapple, an IT professor at the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business. “It’s fast, it’s cheap, and it’s reliable. But today it stopped working and we saw the effects of that outage ripple across the internet.”
Amazon’s updates suggest the problem isn’t with the database itself, but rather that something went wrong with the records that tell other systems where to find their data, he said.
“Amazon had the data safely stored, but nobody else could find it for several hours, leaving apps temporarily separated from their data. It’s as if large portions of the internet suffered temporary amnesia,” Chapple said.
Amazon has attributed the outage to a domain name system issue. DNS is the service that translates internet addresses into machine-readable IP addresses that connects browsers and apps with websites and underlying web services. DNS errors disrupt the translation process, interrupting the connection.
Because so many sites and services use AWS, a DNS error can have widespread results.
Who was affected?
Internet users around the world faced widespread disruption because Amazon’s problem took down dozens of major online services, including social media site Snapchat, the Roblox and Fortnite video games and chat app Signal.
On DownDetector, a website that tracks online outages, users reported issues with Snapchat, Roblox, Fortnite, online broker Robinhood, the McDonald’s app and many other services.
Starbucks experienced “a very limited impact for a very short amount of time” to its app, but all stores were serving customers normally, Starbucks Global Communications Director Jaci Anderson said in an email to The Associated Press.
“Our mobile order ahead and pay app is working normally to serve our customers this morning,” Anderson said midmorning.
DoorDash said its systems were not directly affected but some of its partners “experienced brief disruptions” affecting deliveries.
Lyft said an outage was “intermittently impacting” the ride-hailing service, while language-learning app Duolingo thanked users for their patience.
The risks of centralized cloud services
Some cybersecurity experts have warned for years about the potentially ugly consequences of allowing a handful of big tech companies to dominate key internet operations.
“So much of the world now relies on these three or four big (cloud) compute companies who provide the underlying infrastructure that when there’s an issue like this, it can be really impactful across a broad range, a broad spectrum” of online services, said Patrick Burgess, a cybersecurity expert at U.K.-based BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT.
“The world now runs on the cloud,” and the internet is seen as a utility like water or electricity, as we spend so much of our lives on our smartphones, Burgess said.
And because so much of the online world’s plumbing is underpinned by a handful of companies, when something goes wrong, “it’s very difficult for users to pinpoint what is happening because we don’t see Amazon, we just see Snapchat or Roblox,” Burgess said.
“The good news is that this kind of issue is usually relatively fast (to resolve)” and there’s no indication that it was caused by a cyber incident like a cyberattack, Burgess said.
Has this happened in the past?
This is not the first time a problem with Amazon’s key services has caused widespread disruptions.
Many popular internet services and publishers were down after a brief outage in 2023. AWS’s longest outage in recent history occurred in late 2021, when companies — everything from airline reservations and auto dealerships to payment apps and video streaming services — were affected for more than five hours. Other major outages happened in 2020 and 2017.
Unrelated to Amazon, a faulty software update by cybersecurity company CrowdStrike affecting devices running Microsoft’s Windows also rippled across the world to cause massive disruptions in 2024.
What else could you add to your Pumpkin Spice Latte to make it even better? Protein! Now you can enjoy your favorite fall flavors with a healthy dose of protein. Listen below to how to meal prep a protein shake. Get Steph’s full recipe for her Healthy Pumpkin Spice Protein Smoothie HERE!
Don’t forget to enter to win your way into KJOY’s Meal Prep Live HERE!
The Great Jack-O’-Lantern Sail at Belmont Lake State Park
The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation is pleased to announce the 12th
Annual Great Jack-o’-Lantern Sail will take place Saturday, October 25, 2025, at Belmont Lake State Park.
Festivities begin at 3:00PM and will conclude at 6:30PM; the Jack-o’-Lanterns will set sail at approximately
6:15PM.
Everyone is welcome to join in this spooky celebration! In addition to the Jack-o’-Lantern Sail on the lake at
dusk, there will be a kid friendly spooky house, balloon twisting, a magic show, a petting zoo, character meet &
greets, children’s games and more! Halloween costumes are optional but encouraged. Don’t forget a trick-ortreat bag! All activities are free! Food and refreshments will be available for purchase.
If you would like to have your Jack-o’-Lantern in the sail, register at www.bookwhen.com/jackolantern.com
Registration is limited to the first 50 carved pumpkins. Pumpkins must be between the size of a soccer ball and
a basketball and dropped off at Belmont Lake State Park Boat Dock the day of the event between 10:00am
and 4:00pm. For additional information, please call Recreation Department at (631) 321-3510.
This event is sponsored by the Natural Heritage Trust, Connoisseur Media Long Island (WALK 97.5, KJOY
98.3, 103.1 The Wolf, WHLI 104.7 & 94.3 The Shark), Hick’s Nurseries, New York Life, Renewal by Andersen,
and Beachside Valet. Corporate contributors include North Atlantic Canoe and Kayak, Inc.
For more information, please call Belmont Lake State Park at (631) 667-5055 or the Long Island State Park
Region Recreation Department at (631) 321-3510 weekdays from 9:00am to 5:00pm or visit our website at
parks.ny.gov.
Belmont Lake State Park is located off the Southern State Parkway (Exit 38) in North Babylon, NY.