🌱 Orange County Teacher Budget Stalemate + Oviedo Food Truck Monster Jam

Happy Thursday, Orlando! Let's get you all caught up to start today off on an informed note.

First, today's weather:

Beautiful with periods of sun. High: 73 Low: 58.

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Here are the top five stories today in Orlando:

1. Experts says widely-used antibody treatments for COVID-19, pushed by Governor DeSantis and Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, are useless for the Omicron variant. The nation's top doctors and Florida legislators are also furious after Florida's surgeon general told the public not to be tested unless they have obvious symptoms. (Tallahassee Patch)

2. The Oviedo Food Truck Monster Jam is this weekend on Saturday, January 8th from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. and will benefit nonprofit Helpful Hands. Over 20 gourmet food trucks will sell food at Center Lake Park. (Orlando Weekly)

3. 800 Orange County teachers have resigned this year and more could permanently leave soon as the district faces a stalemate between the Orange County teacher’s union and Orange County Public Schools over plans for teacher pay. (Spectrum News 13)

4. Almost 100 bus drivers in Orange County were out sick on Tuesday, leading to disruptions of students trying to get to school. Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings reminded anyone listening that the "numbers" are people. He urged everyone to do everything they can to keep their community safe to get through this wave. (WESH)

5. Popular Mexican food truck, Quesa Loco is opening a new brick-and-mortar location at 971 West Fairbanks Avenue. The truck offers birria-style options including Birria Ramen, Birria Flautas, and Papa Asada. (Bungalower)

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Today in Orlando:

• Make Some BOO-YA on Three Kings Day at Bulla Gastrobar. (11:00 AM)
• Clyde Butcher Lecture And Book Signing at Orlando Museum Of Art. (5:00 PM)
• Varsity Girls Soccer vs Freedom at Colonial High School. (6:00 PM)
• Live at Timucua: Wayne Escoffery (In-Person). (7:00 PM)
• Pixar Trivia at Ivanhoe Park Brewing Company. (7:00 PM)

From my notebook:

• A Brightline train killed a 5th person in a month in South Florida. (Miami Patch)
• There are 7,305 people in Florida hospitalized with COVID-19, according to the Florida Hospital Association. It represents a 387.7% increase over 14 days and a 114.2% increase over 7 days. (Twitter)
• City of Orlando is increasing COVID-19 safety precautions. Face coverings are now required for visitors and employees at city facilities until further notice. (Facebook)
• Pet Alliance Greater Orlando is sharing one of its longest residents, Riley. He's been in the shelter for 81 days, but they are confident his perfect adopter is out there somewhere. (Instagram)
• The Orlando Fringe Winter Mini-Fest is a 4-day curated theatre festival that unites local, national, and international artists. It is happening January 13th to January 16th in person and January 19th to January 23rd virtually. (Facebook)

Loving the Orlando Daily? Here are all the ways you can get more involved:

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You're all caught up for today! I'll see you soon.

— Carlos Hernandez

About me: Hello my name is Carlos Hernandez and I am a food writer with over 10 years of experience in the industry. I write the food blog Carlos Eats (http://www.carloseats.com) and also contribute to several newspapers and magazines with food-related blogs and articles.