Netflix is moving in on your sweetheart

It’s maybe not surprising that streaming video giant Netflix has its sights set on taking over Hollywood. It’s already flipped the equation on cable and network television by producing original shows that are often better and more accessible.

News that Netflix is planning to release 40 new feature films by the end of the year, in what’s billed as an aggressive challenge to the country’s movie theaters, seems like a natural progression.

But, uh… the local cinema isn’t the only thing Netflix is crowding out of your life.

Giving a whole new meaning to the phrase “Netflix and chill,” the internet TV service is at least being anecdotally blamed for a dropoff in your sex life, too.

American adults are having less sex than about 20 years ago, despite all sorts of smartphone apps that can tell you if any stranger within a two-mile radius wants to canoodle. Here’s one explanation why:

“A lot of parents feel like they’ve already done about 50 things they didn’t want to do that day, like getting up at dawn, dealing with their child’s tantrums. Adding sex to the menu just seems like too much,” psychologist Samantha Lutz told CNN. “So we turn to things like Netflix to unwind, which leads to immediate gratification with zero energy expended.”

And now, some news headlines that offer immediate gratification, with zero energy expended.

What we’re talking about

The landlord who escaped all but one misdemeanor charge stemming from the deadly 2014 Halloween night fire at his Noyes Street duplex is asking the Maine Supreme Judicial Court to throw out that one misdemeanor conviction, which was for a violation of a city code related to window sizes. Six people died in that fire, making it one of the most deadly in Maine in decades.

If you live in Portland and federal agents come knocking on your door, it may just be that they’re asking if they can count your trees. The city of Portland is partnering with the U.S. Forest Service on something of a tree census, according to WGME, CBS 13.

Portland planners are backing a zone change which would allow a 68-foot-tall cold storage building on the waterfront, the Portland Press Herald reported. Folks involved with shipping and food production have long sought a cold storage facility to keep fresh products close to container ships and international markets. Neighbors complained that tall buildings along the waterfront would obstruct their views. The Planning Board approved the zone change unanimously Tuesday night, after about a year’s worth of meetings deliberating it. The City Council still must approve it before it can be finalized.

Do you need more poop in your yard? Well, these seven miniature donkeys will be made available for adoption this fall after having been rescued and rehabilitated by the South Windham-based Maine State Society for the Protection of Animals. The donkeys’ previous owner was suffering from health problems and couldn’t properly care for them, so a local animal control officer turned the donkeys over to the society to be nourished and re-homed.

This Portland teen from Iraq feared for his family during the ISIS occupation of Mosul. The BDN’s Beth Brogan has this story about Salim Aymen Salim, a Deering High School graduate and current Bowdoin College student, whose family left behind close uncles and grandparents in Mosul before the extremist terrorist group moved in and took over. Salim spoke with his relatives on a cellphone they kept in secret, as the fundamentalist terrorists outlawed use of the technology.

Tweet of the day

From Pew demographer Conrad Hackett:

The Big Idea

The Tyrannosaurus Rex didn’t run. Not in a “T-Rex wasn’t afraid of anybody” type way. Like, its legs would’ve buckled if it tried. New modeling indicates that the fearsome dinosaur’s upper body weight would have been too much for its legs to handle if it opened up into a full sprint. So instead of a 40-mile-per-hour clip, as paleontologists previously believed, it’s more likely they pursued prey in a brisk walk, like a lawyer. Their top speed was probably more like 12 miles per hour, which wouldn’t have been fast enough to chase down an Olympic sprinter, but would be good enough to keep up with most humans.

Got any interesting story ideas, suggestions or links to share? Email us at jbleiberg@bangordailynews.com or skoenig@bangordailynews.com, or tweet @JZBleiberg or @SethKoenig.

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