Midmorning With Aundrea - May 27, 2020 (Part 1)

(Part 1 of 2) As a result of the pandemic, many people are changing not only their habits but also their looks and sharing their startling transformations online.

And sunscreen may be a summer necessity, but it's even more important this year since so many people have been cooped up in their houses for months.

And with most movie theaters still closed even as states reopen, drive-in theaters have surged in popularity lately.

Plan it, but she loves we keep saying the times are changing.

But maybe what we should be saying is that we are changing.

With millions of americans stuck at home during the pandemic, people are not only changing their routines, but also their álooks.á many are sharing their dramatic makeovers áonline.á vlad duthiers has more.

Nats: corona cut challenge // hair- clipper buzzing / "oh my god... !!

Whether it's your sibling shaving your head.... ...or your husband chopping off your hair.... ...or whether it's you getting yourself a d-i-y tattoo... let's be honest... there are lots of good natured laughs over some quarantine mishaps.

"i gave myself giant bald spot."

For example, who knew you could get a bowl cut..

From..

Well... an actual bowl?

...and who knew changing your hair color is the change your heart always desired?

Quarantine makeovers are everywhere... even amongst the rich and famous.

...including nfl hall of famer brett favre..

Who couldn't resist the urge for a splashier change.

Comedian and actor jim carrey is growing his beard on twitter.

...so we can all "marvel" at h "meaningles transformation" his words.

Not mine.

..or when the internet went nuts as singer gwen stefani gave blake shelton a tiger king-themed mullet... that's our very own associate producer, michael sugerman... buzzing away.

He says it was less of a "makeover" than "latent curiosity.

For gabrielle garcia... shaving and losing those beautiful red curls had a much deeper meaning.

Vlad: when you looked at yourself in the mirror..

Describe that moment?

Gabby: i wanted to cry.

But i was so happy that i couldn't..

Gabby: in this time of being so like cooped up..

The way that i want to deal with that is to empower myself and to enlighten myself through cutting my hair through shedding all of that.

"do you ever loo at someone, and wonder what is going on inside their heads?"

We wondered too... so we asked cbs news mental health contributor, dr sue varma.

Sue: i think it's very common for people when they're going through extreme stress to want to define themselves to commemorate a change or a loss // just imagine all the stress and lack of control and lack of certainty that we're experiencing.

And changing your appearance is one way to say, i'm in charge, this is my narrative // it could be sometimes celebrating our freedom, it could be accepting our mortality and embracing change and taking back control.

Dr. varma also says that change can be beneficial.

A way to control what seems uncontrollable.

So change your hairstyle, learn a new skill or grow a beard.

As long as it doesn't harm you or others, that can be a way to bring contentment to your world when the outside world is in turmoil.

People who try to convince the rest of us to buy this product or try this restaurant are call influencers on social media.

Right now, social media usage is way up as people under shelter in place orders spend more time on their phones and computers.

That would seemingly create more opportunity for those making a living as social media influencers.

But as cbs news' laura podesta reports, the influencer industry is being impacted by the coronavirus too.

Alexa buckley, the co-founder of women's footwear company 'margaux' stepped-up the brand's social media presence when new york city ordered non- essential businesses closed.

She's hoping to encourage customers at home looking at screens to buy her company's handcrafted shoes.

"it's a hug advantage that we have a more captive audience than ever before.

So we've been thinking about community- building."

That community, is enhanced by influencers - like sara azani - who has 125 thousand instagram followers.

As a new margaux 'ambassador', she receives free shoes and earns a 15 percent commission if someone buys a pair from her instagram post.

Azani welcomes the income opportunity, after losing work with other companies because of economic uncertainty.

"it's obviousl paused a lot of projects for me.

That affects me financially."

Laura: "are thes projects you're depending on for your salary?"

Sara: "yes!

Thes are projects i've planned a few months ahead of time."

Influencer julia berolzheimer - with 1.2 million instagram followers and a successful clothing line - says she's collecting more photo likes and blog readers, but also finding fewer business opportunities.

"there are not lot of campaigns coming in right now.

We had some we accepted at the beginning of the year.

A lot of brands are on pause right now."

Both berolzheimer and azani are shifting their messaging&to stay in-tune with their audience.

"so much o instagram marketing is - luxury, this perfect life.

And right now it would be kind of tone deaf!

"it would.

It woul be insensitive."

"we want t provide a bit of joy for people following us and uplift them while also being real and transparent that this isn't the easiest time for anyone."

Both say they can use this time to build stronger relationships with their followers.

Laura podesta cbs news according to "influence marketing hub" last year the influencer industry grew to 6.5 billion dollars.

It was projected 20 would see the biggest jump yet -- to 9.7 billion dollars.

But that prediction was before the impact of the coronavirus.

Some of the people that influencers hope to reach are students graduating from high school or college.

Cnet's kara tsuboi reports on great and useful techy gifts for your graduate this year.

Graduation marks a right of passage.

Ease that transition to the next phase in life - whatever that may look like these days in the midst of a pandemic - with a cool and useful techy gift.

If distance learning continues into the fall, there's no more useful gift for a student than a laptop.

Same argument could be made for someone joing the workforce and needing a tool for zoom meetings.

For apple users, go with the revamped mac book air; windows users will enjoy the dell xps.

One of the best tech gifts i've received is my apple airpods.

They're great to use while exercising, for talking on the phone, listening to music and podcasts and all around multitasking since you're not tethered to your phone by a cord.

At apple, they start at a hundred and sixty dollars, but you can often find them for a bit cheaper from other retailers.

An instant pot is a great gift for kids moving into their own apartment.

They're going to need to learn to cook asap, especially now with limited restaurant ding options, and one of these multi-use gadgets is a great way to begin.

Models start around one hundred dollars.

Finally, go for the sentimental gift and put together a photo book of memories from your student's senior year.

Try blurb, artifact uprising or the well known, shutterfly.

For more tech news and reviews, visit cnet.com.

I'm kara tsuboi with cnet for cbs news.

Technology is being used now to track people who have come in contact with covid 19.

Emily casullo has more.

Emily cassulo / tech byte covid-19 isn't going away anytime soon, and people are worried they might come into contact with someone who's infected.

Technology can give you some relief.

Let's see what apple and google are doing to help stop the spread.

I'm emily cassulo, and this is tech byte.

Tech to fight covid-19 / tech byte tech giants apple and google are teaming up to help eliminate the spread of the coronavirus.

They're developing a new exposure tracker to work with both android and ios devices.

This technology will help health officials with contact tracing to contain the spread of the virus.

Apple and google will use application programming interfaces - or apis - to make it happen.

These apis will work with your smartphone using apps from public health authorities.

Using your phone's bluetooth, the exposure tracker can notify you if you've been in contact with someone diagnosed with covid-19.

Apple says the new technology will not invade anyone's privacy, and helps us work together to help solve the global pandemic.

This exposure tracker is still being developed, and will take a few months to complete.

If you want to know more about what they're doing, you can read the announcement on apple's website.

I'm emily cassulo, and that's this week's tech byte.

If you are spending more time at home, maybe you wonder?

Am i alone?

Spooky su summer is officially underway.

We know sunscreen is a summertime staple, but as nancy chen tells us dermatologists don't just recommend using it outside.

Many of us are ready for summer..

Even if that means social distancing in the sun.

After months of being cooped up because of the pandemic, dermatologist elizabeth hale says slathering on the sunscreen is even more important now.

Please protect your skin because if you go out without protection, your skin might be at risk for more damage and more sunburn because you've been inside hibernating for so long.

Dr. hale says look for a sunscreen that is labeled spf 30 or higher and broad spectrum, to block against ultra violet and b rays.

With many people spending more time inside than usual for work and school&here's something that may surprise you& you might want to consider sunscreen áindoors..áá the ultraviolet a rays are longer wavelengths and they penetrate through windows through glass and they contribute to skin cancer and also to aging of the skin.// furthermore, there's new interest in hev and blue light, which are the rays that are emitted from our devices.

And there's definitely new data that those rays can also contribute to aging of the skin and possibly the development of skin cancer.

Dr. hale says skin cancer is the most common cancer in the us and is almost always curable when caught early.

If you see any suspicious moles or changes in your skin, get in touch with your dermatologist.

Nancy chen, cbs news, new york.

Outside is where you are going to get most skin damage so be sure to reapply sunscreen at least every two hours, wear hats and seek shade when you can.

Right now, travel is slow.

In fact, very few people are renting cars during the pandemic.

Companies are stashing them at big public venues.

In metropolitan areas, parking lots at dodger stadium, santa anita park and angel stadium are packed with cars.

Hertz says it plans to lay off 10- thousand employees in north america.

Lockdowns across the country have left many people spending more time in their homes... and that's led to a sharp increase in reports of possible hauntings.

Chris martinez takes a look at this uptick of the unexplained.

Nats&hayley: "thi is the upstairs where i have heard multiple footsteps..."

It's an unsettling but not unfamiliar experience for hayley foxx.

"there's on particular spirit that's been with me since i was a child, and he seems to follow me around everywhere i go&" but over the past couple of months, the strange occurrences in her rhode island home have become more frequent than ever& nats&hayley over video: "there was on occasion when my daughter and myself heard somebody say my name..."

She's not the only one.

"there's been a lo more áclaims of paranormal activity coming in&" jason hawes is a paranormal investigator - and host of discovery channel's "ghos nation"..

Since lockdowns around the u-s began in march, his website - 'the atlantic paranormal society' - has seen a 35% jump in reports of hauntings.

While he believes ásome are likely the real deal - he thinks others have simpler explanations& "people ar spending more time in their home and everything from wood's drying out, you're getting popping sounds, cause we're getting into the warmer months of the year."

While there may be no áscientific evidence ghosts exists... in a survey by 'yougov' - 45% of adults in the u-s say they believe.

Hayley offers this advice... "if you're no satisfied or if it makes you uncomfortable, just tell them to stop what they're doing& and it actually lays low for a little while, they listen!

" after all, in a time of social distancing, even ghosts should follow the rules.

Chris martinez, cbs news, los angeles they were all the rage decades ago.

Could it be?

The drive in is making a comeback.

The as as states begin to reopen, more families are venturing outside for entertainment.

Mireya villarreal reports a whole new generation is discovering movies under the stars.

At the coyote drive in the fort worth city skyline... serves as a backdrop for some of hollywood's biggest blockbusters.

Once a thing of the past...the nation's nearly 330 drive-in movie theaters are making a comeback... with pandemic precautions pushing their popularity.

Gs: we've been sold out every night since we opened glen solomon owns the coyote people are excited to take their children, get in the car, come out, and have a night out together in a safe place.

// in the small bed of this truck... the medallin moreno family is ready to watch their first drive-in movie.

Mom: we're feeling really really good// we're eating snacks with film the wind and the weather and it's awesome.

General manager chris fortune says even as business booms... customer and employee safety is their priority.

Cf: we are doing social distancing everywhere at the drive-in we can possibly.

// we have a reduced capacity in our lots.

So we're only selling 25% capacity, it's always been my dream to like go to a drive in and like a diner and now my first time coming to drive in.

...and it's that sense nostalgia that drives solomon... whose father owned movie theaters as well.

He grew up during the depression.

And that was a great escape for people, was to go see films//that's a little bit of what it's gonna be for people now, is to come out and escape.

&a silver lining found on the silver screen.

Mireya villarreal... cbs news... fort worth, texas.

For the first time in nearly a decade, two astronauts will blast into orbit from american soil.

The launch is set for next wednesday& and today the crew spoke about the historic mission.

Skyler henry reports.

Astronauts bob behnken and doug hurley are now just days away from a turning point in america's space program.

After a successful readiness review - nasa says wednesday's launch is on.

257 as each system was considered at the end we got a go.

We are now preparing for a launch the two astronauts spoke from crew quarters about their mission to the international space station.

They'll lift off on elon musk's space x falcon 9 rocket&.

The first time a private company is sending astronauts into orbit.

And the first time in 9 years humans are launching from u-s soil.

551 we've longed to be part of a test mission, a test space flight and doug and i are lucky enough to get that opportunity going forward.

So i would say it's something we dreamed about, flying something other than a shuttle, the next vehicle behnken and hurley have been to the space station before - hurley piloted atlantis to the i.s.

In 2011, the final flight of the shuttle program.

The long time friends will ride to the kennedy space center launch pad in a white tesla& and say they're grateful to be together on this mission.

Bb 24:24 .

24:24 i'm just thankful that doing something like this doing it with doug hurley because he's going to be prepared for whatever comes our way and he's going to be prepared quickly so i couldn't ask for more as far as bob// there's no stone unturned, no way he doesn't have every potentiality thought about five times ahead of everybody else nasa is inviting the public to celebrate the milestone& but with the coronavirus pandemic, launch parties will be virtual.

Sh, cbs news, washington since 2011 nasa has relied on russian rockets to bring astronauts to the space station.

If the weather isn't right for the launch the agency plans to postpone it until the weekend.

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