By Christy Barritt

A Study on . . . Pajamas

A new poll has found that the average man wears his pajamas two weeks in a row before washing them. Women wear the same set for 17 days.

Women’s top excuse for utilizing the same set so often was that they forgot how long they’d been wearing them. Men, on the other hand, said they don’t do the washing so they use whatever’s available.

Sixty-one percent of those polled said they don’t have a lot of options as to what to wear at night and that’s why their nightwear goes so long between washings.

Skin experts warn that wearing pajamas too long can lead to skin infections, cystitis, and even MRSA. This is because people shed skin cells at night, which are full of microorganisms. Those experts also advised washing your pajamas at least once a week. (Ergoflex, a memory-foam mattress company, conducted the poll.)

“Ebola Bridal Shop” to Close

A bridal shop in Akron, Ohio, is closing its doors after being in business for 30 years. Coming Attractions Bridal & Formal was at the center of the state’s Ebola scare in the fall of 2014. The store wasn’t able to recover from the bad publicity it received.

The store has been struggling after a Texas nurse visited the shop to help her bridesmaids find dresses. The nurse was later diagnosed with Ebola.

The store shut down in October to be sterilized but reopened three weeks later. One of the employees was quarantined until medical authorities knew for sure she didn’t catch the disease. The owner said that despite her efforts, the stigma remained and business plummeted. She told a local TV station that people continually ask, “Is it safe to go there?” and have taken to calling the shop “the Ebola store.”

Newsweek Smears Bible, Christians 

Newsweek magazine released an article at the beginning of 2015 that many claim was a blatant anti-Christian slam. The piece, titled “The Bible: So Misunderstood It’s a Sin,” made the cover and stirred quite a controversy.

“The 16-page article portrayed today’s Christians as homophobic, right-wing fundamentalist hypocrites who believe in an unbelievable Bible. The essay was illustrated with images of snake handlers, Pat Robertson, and Westboro Baptist Church,” commented Todd Starnes of Fox News.com.

The article’s author, Kurt Eichenwald, went on to attack Republicans, prayer in school, the Ten Commandments, and the role of Christian women in society. Eichenwald also accused evangelical preachers of never reading the actual Bible due to errors in translation over time. Many people claimed that Eichenwald did not seek out any information or perspective from Bible experts for the article or do proper research but that he only promoted his own agenda.

Fire Chief Terminated after Authoring Christian Book

When Atlanta fire chief Kelvin Cochran wrote a book for his men’s Bible study group, he never dreamed the firestorm that would erupt. The book, Who Told You That You Were Naked? is about biblical morality, and it resulted in termination from his job.

The Atlanta mayor claimed the book had discriminatory elements. Initially he suspended Cochran without pay and ordered him to complete a sensitivity training class.

The book contained Cochran’s thoughts on purity and honoring God with our bodies. He wrote about sex being created by God to be honored in marriage and that any sex outside of that was sin.

The mayor eventually terminated Cochran, claiming this wasn’t an issue of religious freedom or even free speech. It was a matter of judgment.

Christy Barritt is an award-winning author in Chesapeake, Virginia (christybarritt.com). She and her husband, Scott, have two sons.