Holidaze

Elections are about choices, and 2020 is shaping up to be an imagery choice -- do you like your President with or without a mask?

Trump paid tribute to fallen heroes Monday at Arlington National Cemetery and later Baltimore's historic Fort McHenry, and he was true to form -- no mask. He's made it clear ... he's not going to wear a mask in public -- as he put it, he doesn't want to give reporter that satisfaction -- but he was seen once at a Michigan Ford plant wearing a mask behind a curtain.

Meanwhile, Joe and his wife, Jill, ventured outside for the first time since the shelter-at-home orders were implemented and his presidential campaign came to a screeching halt. The former VP and Jill laid a wreath during a visit to a veterans memorial in Delaware.

Joe, Jill and even his secret service detail all wore black masks.

Although a mask is a scientifically-based precaution, it's also become a political symbol. Trump clearly is telling his supporters NOT to wear them ... almost as if it's a sign of weakness. Biden clearly begs to differ.

Blake Griffin and Chandler Parsons are hoop-challenged these days -- what with coronavirus and all -- so they figured out a game that still involves a ball, though a little lower to the ground.

Blake, Chandler, "The Hills" star Frankie Delgado and a few other buds enjoyed a game of kickball Saturday, and it looked like a blast. Blake and Chandler were captains of their respective teams and, of course, and there was trash-talking galore.

Blake was fully into it, kicking a grand slam and yelling, "That's the most exhilarating thing I've ever done."

There were some issues. No one was wearing masks and they were high-fiving each other at various points of the game.

Blake and Chandler could be back in action. The NBA may be coming back at Disney World's ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. It's uncertain whether the remainder of the regular season will be played or just the playoffs.

A Catholic priest got creative in doling out blessings and holy water around Easter time last month -- and his viral method has since gotten a proper meme treatment ... rightly so.

The guy's name is Father Tim Pelc, hails from Detroit. About a month ago, he was standing outside his church and blasting his parishioners with holy water through a mini squirt gun -- all just to bless their Easter food baskets. It's tradition ... and he kept it alive.

BTW, it was done safely -- Father Pelc stood a good distance away from folks puling up to their makeshift drive-thru and shot water into their vehicles, this while wearing a N95 mask, a plastic face shield and disposable gloves. Hallelujah ... responsible social distancing.

Meanwhile, Father Pelc's photos went viral since he started doing this -- and, naturally, the internet had a field day with the images. Some people featured him on fake movie posters, and we gotta say ... they look pretty legit. We'd go see these flicks -- if we could, that is.

Crafty online sleuths turned Pelc into an action hero of sorts -- featuring him on posters for 'Doom,' 'The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly' and others. He slides right in perfectly -- guess that'll happen when you play dress-up and horse around like a little kid with toy guns.

Mother's Day in one Colorado cafe looks more like a sold-out Led Zeppelin concert than your regular breakfast joint -- a troubling sign as one key model projects thousands of more deaths due to a rise in movement.

This scene was captured Sunday by a local reporter at a place C&C in Castle Rock -- where the guys say their traffic was practically doubled compared to regular times. Looks like a lot of families packed the place to celebrate the holiday ... and to get outta the house.

The influx of customers comes on the heels of several communities throughout the state there relaxing some of their stay-at-home orders and allowing certain retailers to reopen with strict restrictions in place. Doesn't look like that memo got through to the folks at C&C.

BTW, that's not the only place that's seeing increased traffic -- look at this photo of a TJ Maxx out in Arkansas, where droves of people went in this weekend in search of bargain buys. It's just another testament that as more businesses open up, more people will come.

That's not a good thing either -- considering a key model used by health experts forecasts at least 137,000 more deaths in the coming months because of increased mobility across the U.S. The director of the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation told CBS's 'Face the Nation' his findings show a lot more people leaving their homes ... this in the wake of several states starting to relax quarantine protocols.

As a result, he predicts many more deaths will come. Take note, people.

Chaka Khan and Luenell have had it with mothers in their community continuing to lose their children -- so, in their honor, they held a peaceful protest on an important holiday.

The singer and comedian got together in L.A. Sunday with a bunch of other women of color -- who have lost their own kids or relatives to violence ... be it from the police or at the hands of someone else. The purpose of the rally was to speak out against the killing of these children -- minors or adults, alike -- and to offer support to their grieving mothers.

We talked to Luenell about it, and she tells us the time to voice concern about this issue is more pressing than ever ... and they want the public and people in power, especially, to know #EnoughIsEnough, which also happens to be the official name for their viral campaign.

Now, while Luenell insists the issue of black children being murdered goes beyond law enforcement -- hers and Chaka's movement comes at a moment where, once again, we're seeing excessive violence being exacted upon men of color -- specifically, black men -- by cops and/or rogue vigilantes -- encounters that often lead to their deaths as a result.

Of course, we're referring to two recent cases of this in Ahmaud Arbery -- who was gunned down after a man and his son claim he fit the profile of a burglary suspect -- and Sean Reed, who live streamed his own death after cops gunned him down during a chase.

We've seen it before ... the list of black/brown people being killed by the authorities is long and well-documented. But, for Luenell and co., they're truly pissed and demanding structural change. Watch ... she's incredibly passionate about the cause and for good reason.

The more the merrier is the attitude this trio of grandkids had when their quarantine Mother's Day gift for meemaw brought out other old folks, who wanted some of the love.

Check out this sweet video of a group of young-ins who went to their grandma's living facility and delivered a song and dance for her from outside, while she safely watched from her balcony. Definitely considerate -- especially seeing how seniors are incredibly vulnerable.

Welp, the "Say Anything" moment evolved into a mini get-together via other residents of the old folks home. At least 2 other women came out onto their balconies as well and enjoyed a little bit of "You Are My Sunshine" for themselves. Mother's Day vultures??? Eh, maybe.

The person who shot this video says several women came out, apparently thinking the serenade might've been their own gift. They write, "Today we went to visit my grandma at her independent living facility and 4 other women came out thinking we were there for them. They all loved it. And so did we."

Karl-Anthony Towns is honoring his late mother on a holiday dedicated to her and moms everywhere -- this less than a month after she succumbed to coronavirus and passed away.

The Minnesota Timberwolves star posted a touching tribute on social media Sunday, showing off a screenshot of an old text exchange he had with his mom, Jacqueline Towns, during Christmas last year ... where they shared some loving words between each other.

At the time, she wrote to her boy ... "My Son it seemed like I closed my eyes for just a moment and suddenly a man stood where a boy used to be, I (may) not carry you in my arms anymore but I always carry you in my heart. You are the sweetest present life has ever given me." KAT responded, "Love you mom Merry Christmas!"

Jacqueline then sent Karl a photo of herself in a Santa sweater. KAT wrote of the interaction on Sunday, "Miss you so much," while adding an animated heart with an arrow through it.

Karl's mother passed away last month after a long battle with coronavirus -- which she contracted around mid-March and later had her placed in a medically-induced coma.

Taco expert Danny Trejo is going OFF on Adam Jones for slathering his Cinco De Mayo treats in ketchup ... telling TMZ Sports that's THE WORST condiment a person can add to a taco!!

"You can do taco-anything," Trejo says, "but not ketchup!"

Jones -- a 5-time MLB All-Star -- posted a pic of his ground beef-ketchup delight on Tuesday ... celebrating the fifth of May while defending his choices for taco toppings.

"It’s my plate," Jones said. "I eat them how I want to. Ain’t a specific way. So gracias."

But, the owner of Trejo's Tacos -- a SUPER-popular taco joint in L.A. -- tells us Jones is dead wrong for putting Heinz anywhere near the tortillas!!

"The reality is that you can put anything on a taco," Trejo says, "but ketchup goes on a hot dog!"

In fact, Trejo says he's so appalled by the move ... if he saw the food crime go down in real life -- he'd buy the person's dinner just to make sure no ketchup touched the tacos!!

It's 4/20 ... and you've NEVER seen Mike Tyson this happy!!

The boxing legend is now a full marijuana advocate and entrepreneur -- and to celebrate the biggest weed holiday of the year, he fired up a joint and explained to TMZ Sports why the day is so important to him.

Of course, 53-year-old Mike launched his "Tyson Ranch" weed biz a while back -- and now swears by THC ... saying he views it as "medicine" and raves that it's changed his life for the better.

Now, he views 4/20 as an important day -- because it symbolizes the beginning of the "revolution" to de-criminalize weed all over the world.

In between tokes, Tyson also revealed his dream celebrity smoking buddy -- explaining why he would have LOVED to spark up with Bob Marley.

"He is such an amazing man, I wish I had the opportunity to meet him."

Obviously, Bob passed away a long time ago -- but Mike says he's friendly with Marley's kids ... and even visited Bob's home in Jamaica!

There's more ... Mike is also honoring the "holiday" by posting some celeb interviews on his YouTube page including Action Bronson, Kenan Thompson and Jadakiss.

Look, some people go all out for Christmas ... other people, 4/20.

Ben & Jerry's is yet again putting down the scooper and picking up a megaphone on 4/20 to tell people about the injustice people of color experience over weed arrests.

The famous ice cream company followed in their own footsteps on both Sunday and Monday, with two timely posts about the unofficial holiday ... pointing out that, yes, minorities -- specifically, black people -- are disproportionately punished over having herb.

B&J come with some stats ... pointing out African-Americans are 264% more likely than white people to be arrested for cannabis possession, even though they use at similar rates. They write, "Cannabis is legal in 33 states, but hundreds of thousands of people are still arrested for possession every year — a disproportionate number of them Black. This #420, get the facts then join us and @aclu_nationwide to take action to pass the MORE Act."

Just the day before, they put up another informational post, which noted that white folks are the ones who seem to be profiting the most on the legalization of weed ... something they say isn't right. Their messaging here is clear ... POC are getting left behind on this issue.

Of course, Ben & Jerry's conducted a very similar campaign last year, again pointing that despite weed being legal in 33 states now -- it's black people and other minorities that are constantly getting busted for it. A year later, they're hammering their point home twice as hard.

This time, they're also championing a piece of federal legislation they're hoping gets signed into law. It's called the MORE Act -- Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement -- and just as the name describes, it's aimed at getting weed drug offenders out of prison.

Jim Jones is blazing it up on 4/20 and you can join his smoke session ... everyone's invited, including celebrity guests like Fabolous, Jadakiss and Kevin Hart!!!

Jim's celebrating the stoner holiday with a couple virtual smoke outs, and you can burn with him and his celeb friends on Zoom when the clock strikes 4:20 PM on the East Coast and West Coast.

The "We Fly High" rapper is hosting the smoke sessions with his business partner, Alex Todd, and they're also celebrating the one-year anniversary of their luxury cannabis brand, Saucey Farms & Extracts.

Anyone can join the smoke sesh on Zoom, and there's also a fundraiser in the online chat for COVID-19 relief efforts so you can get two birds stoned at once, or something like that. All the money raised will be used for masks for the homeless.

Jim's supposed to be joined by celeb guests like Kevin, Jadakiss, Fabolous, N.O.R.E. and more ... and they're gonna be answering questions from fans and giving away Saucey merch, plus tickets to future Jim Jones and Dipset shows.

BTW ... Kevin's not gonna be smoking, but still ... 4/20 BLAZE IT!!!

Pastor Tony Spell held an in-person Easter service, as promised, and says he had more than 1,000 faithful parishioners there ... defying Louisiana's Governor and potentially spreading the coronavirus.

The minister was fired up for his flock Sunday at Life Tabernacle Church, and though he's previously been arrested for doing this -- he opened church doors again to his congregation, but also posted his service live on social media.

Spell claims he had 1,345 in attendance -- which he says is higher than his usual turnout. We say claims, because the congregation was rarely shown. We don't know if it was intentional, but the camera never showed more than a couple of rows of pews.

Most of the shots are of him on stage preaching from the pulpit. You see a few others on stage around him as well ... keeping somewhat of a distance. Although, the congregation was hidden from camera view, you can hear there are way more than 10 people present. The state guidelines call for gatherings to be 10 or less, and they have to maintain 6 feet distance.

One brief shot of the pews showed at least a dozen or so people, who don't seem to be socially distant.

Spell brazenly referenced the CDC's guidelines while preaching about a victory march for Jesus.

Not really shocking from the man who told us his parishioners would be happy to die from COVID-19 if it meant they could attend church in-person.

As we reported, police said they did not intend to break up the service or arrest Spell on Easter -- but would instead monitor the gathering and use it to build a case against him for the District Attorney.