Around the weird:news of the bizarre

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No, it's not the early season CSI episode.

Fake Volcano Ignites, Makes Guests Flee
Mar 31, 2:39 AM (ET)

DULUTH, Minn. (AP) - An imitation volcano in a hotel and water park's swimming pool developed delusions of grandeur, forcing guests to flee to the parking lot in their bare feet and swimsuits.

The 20-foot-tall plastic volcano at the Edgewater Hotel and Waterpark started belching black smoke and shooting flames Thursday. The hotel manager said a malfunctioning internal speaker ignited the fire.

Firefighters helped put out the fire, but not before part of the volcano melted.

The displaced swimmers were given blankets and directed to the nearby Perkins and Black Woods restaurants. Once guests were allowed back into their rooms, the staff treated them to in-room ice cream Thursday night.

The Edgewater reopened in January 2006 after a 14-month, $20 million remodeling project.

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Longest Concert Record Set in Japan
Mar 31, 5:02 AM (ET)
By HIROKO TABUCHI

TOKYO (AP) - Japanese musicians overcame fatigue and a major earthquake to set the record for the world's longest concert on Saturday, playing 184 hours non-stop in a program that ranged from The Beatles' classics to Japanese traditional harp music.

Over 900 musicians aged 6 to 89 took turns performing in the 9-day marathon - with breaks of no more than 5 minutes between acts - at a small railway station in Hikone city, western Japan, according to organizer Kuniko Teramura, 51.

An official from the Guinness Book of World Records was on hand to certify the record at 10 a.m. Saturday, she said.

"The longest concert by multiple artists was achieved by Kuniko Teramura and friends at Toriimoto Station ... from 23-31 March 2007," read a copy of the certificate obtained by The Associated Press.

The previous record for longest concert was set in Canada five years ago and lasted 182 hours, according to the Guinness Web site.

On Sunday, a magnitude 6.9 quake in northwestern Japan jolted the stage - but didn't stop a determined pianist from ploughing on with her tune, said Hiroshi Mizutani, 51, another organizer.

A break in the performance would have ruined the challenge, because musicians were not allowed to stop playing less than two minutes into a song, said Mizutani, whose Oldies band played three times during the concert.

"This pianist was amazing. The whole place was shaking quite badly but she went right on playing," Mizutani said. "Even an earthquake couldn't stop us."

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N.Y. Students Nabbed Over Laxative Prank
Mar 31, 3:43 AM (ET)

HOLTSVILLE, N.Y. (AP) - Some eighth graders got an early start on April Fool's Day when they handed out doughnuts laced with laxatives to classmates, but it was no laughing matter when five were ticketed by police.

There were no apparent injuries but ambulances were dispatched Friday to Sequoya Middle School on Long Island as a precaution, a spokeswoman for the Sachem School District said.

Suffolk County Police said 19 students and a teacher ingested some of the doped doughnuts. They were screened by the school nurse, Holtsville Rescue personnel and field physicians from the county health department.

Two 13-year-olds and three 14-year-olds were charged with second-degree tampering with a consumer product. The teens, who were not identified because of their age, were issued appearance tickets for Family Court and released to their parents' custody.

Classes proceeded as usual, but parents were given the option to pick up their children. The district also said it would take "appropriate disciplinary action."
 
Lord have mercy.. those are all so freaky!!! :eek:

DOG UP AN RUNNING ON PROSTHETIC LEGS

Triumph, a female Siberian Husky who was found two years ago o the side of the road with both his her legs cut off, now has two new prosthetic legs thank's to Dr. Robert Taylor, a Denver based veterinarian. The dog took to his new legs like a champ and was walking a day after the light surgery. Now, the Husky is able to do everything any other dog can do..except have puppies, but that was already a done deal before they found her. Taylor is so happy with the results that he as six more dogs lined up for similar surgeries as well as a panda!! how wonderful ;)

The Buzz. Ken White..LVRJ
 
To boldly go...

Doohan's Ashes to Be Blasted Into Space
Apr 2, 11:12 AM (ET)

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) - The ashes of James Doohan, who played chief engineer Montgomery "Scotty" Scott on the original "Star Trek" TV series, have been loaded into a rocket that is set to launch in New Mexico later this month.

The remains of Doohan, Mercury astronaut Gordon Cooper and some 200 others were loaded into the rocket Friday by Charles Chafer, chief executive of Celestis, a Texas company that contracts with rocket firms to send cremated remains into space.

"And we're ready to go," Chafer said after inserting the silver canister.

Jerry Larson, president of Connecticut-based UP Aerospace Inc., said the rocket will be launched April 28.

Families paid $495 to have a few grams of their loved one's ashes placed on the rocket.

Chafer said he's aware of the dedication of "Star Trek" fans.

"There's no doubt that we'll find a way to accommodate fans who travel here and want to be part of that experience," he said.

Doohan died in July 2005 at age 85.

The remains of "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry were blasted into space in 1997.

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Bello the Clown's Mini-Bike Returned
Apr 1, 6:49 PM (ET)
By MARCUS FRANKLIN

NEW YORK (AP) - Bello Nock, the daredevil clown, was all smiles Sunday when he was reunited with his lost little bike.

The star of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus thanked Ricky Robinson, who found Bello's shiny foot-high, 6-inch-wide contraption Friday night outside a restaurant on Manhattan's West Side.

"Give me a hug. I need my bike. That is my bike. Thank you, buddy," Bello said, outside Madison Square Garden, where the circus was performing.

In exchange for returning the bike, Robinson, 54, will receive a $1,000 reward, a new bicycle donated by Toys R Us, and free tickets to Knicks games and the circus show named for Bello, "Bellobration."

The bitty bike was taken from a Manhattan street Friday. Bello and two fellow clowns had put on an impromptu show for a passing camera crew, when Bello rested his bike against a street sign and forgetfully walked away.

After reading about the lost bike and seeing a picture of it in a newspaper, Robinson showed up at Madison Square Garden Sunday morning with the bike.

"I didn't know what it was," said Robinson, a native of Bridgeport, Conn. "I didn't know how anybody rides it."

The orange-haired, Florida-born clown had said he couldn't replace his trademark bike, which was built in Mexico City and has been in his family of circus performers for a dozen years.

Without the bike, the man once named "America's Best Clown" by Time magazine would have had to adjust his show.

"I can't tell you how happy I am to have it back," he said. "I wonder how comfortable it would be as a pillow. I may have to sleep on the thing."
 
YORK, Pa. - A man who arrived at court drunk for a drunken-driving hearing was again charged with driving under the influence, police said.

Paul H. Zeigler, 45, of Glen Rock, appeared at a preliminary hearing at the Shrewsbury district court on March 26 for a DUI charge from December.

Police said Zeigler appeared to be intoxicated at the hearing, according to police records.

After his court appearance, Zeigler failed a portable breath test for alcohol and was taken into custody for a blood test, police said.

The second test revealed that Zeigler's blood-alcohol level was twice the legal driving limit and he was charged with DUI, police said.
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HYDERABAD, India (Reuters) - Unable to come to terms with the death of their pet dog, an elderly couple in southern India committed suicide by hanging themselves, police said on Monday.

The bodies of 67-year-old retired soldier C.N. Madanraj and his wife, Tarabai, 63, were found on Sunday in their home in a suburb of Hyderabad.

Police said the childless couple had held a burial ceremony for their dog of 13 years, called "Puppy," and hosted a feast for friends before hanging themselves in their bedroom.

"The couple described the grief over their pet dog in the suicide note they left on March 29," said police inspector V. Anantaiah.
 
STOCKHOLM, Sweden - Metallica may be a cool name for a heavy metal band, but a Swedish couple is struggling to convince officials it is also suitable for a baby girl.

Michael and Karolina Tomaro are locked in a court battle with Swedish authorities, which rejected their application to name their six-month-old child after the legendary rock band.

"It suits her," Karolina Tomaro, 27, said Tuesday of the name. "She's decisive and she knows what she wants."

Although little Metallica has already been baptized, the Swedish National Tax Board refused to register the name, saying it was associated with both the rock group and the word "metal."

Tomaro said the official handling the case also called the name "ugly."

The couple was backed by the County Administrative Court in Goteborg, which ruled on March 13 that there was no reason to block the name. It also noted that there already is a woman in Sweden with Metallica as a middle name.

The tax agency appealed to a higher court, frustrating the family's foreign travel plans.

"We've had to cancel trips and can't get anywhere because we can't get her a passport without an approved name," Tomaro said.
 
BUZZ LITES

A sleepy, naked bandit in Costa Mesa, Calif. recently feel alseep on the couch of a home he broke into..Michael Bonnie was found by the home's owner in the buff and was covered by only a blanket when police were notified. Bonnie faces charges of bulgarly and indecent exposure.. [moron)

A man in Minneapolis recently robbed a bank and got away with cash, then wlaked next door to a liquor store bought boos, and then went to a nearby fast-food place bought some eats, then hopped a bus..he remains a large!! :eek:

A Japanese construction worker has managed to build a collection of womens underwear by using the climbing skills he learned on his job. Authorties say that Shigeo Kodama managed to purloin 3,977 pairs of panties, 355 bras and 10 pairs of sheer stockings over a 6 year period. Apparently, Kodama would clb up the side of walls to get to the panties, and officials say her had no interest in any other type of clothing!! (sicko)

Ken White..The Buzz..LVRJ
kwhite@reviewjournal.com
 
CAT ROUSES OWNER FROM BED, SAVING FAMILY

New Castle, Ind.

A cat helped spare a family from death by carbon monoxide poisoning by leaping on the bed and meowing wildly as fumes filled the home, the owners said. Eric and Cathy Keesling said Winnie played a key role in saving their lives after a wtaer pump in the basement cause the odorless but deadly gas to build up. "It was a crazy, almost like she was screaming" Cathy said. She realized she was nauseaous and dizzy, and called 911. Paramedics found the couple's 14-year old son, Michael unconscious on his bedroom floor.. AHHH, good kitty.. how cool!!

The Buzz. Ken White..LVRJ
 
102-Year-Old Calif. Woman Hits Hole-in-1
Apr 8, 4:47 AM (ET)

CHICO, Calif. (AP) - Elsie McLean thought she might have lost her ball on the par-3, 100-yard fourth hole at Bidwell Park. Instead, the 102-year-old Chico woman became the oldest golfer ever to make a hole-in-one on a regulation course.

Because of the slope of the green, McLean and her partners couldn't see where her ball landed after she teed off.

"Where's my ball?" McLean asked.

Her friends, Elizabeth Rake and Kathy Crowder, found it in the cup.

"I said, 'Oh, my Lord. It can't be true. It can't be true.' I was so excited. And the girls were absolutely overcome," McLean said.

It was McLean's first ace.

"Well everybody wants a hole-in-one, and I said, 'Why can't I have a hole-in-one?' I came within inches once," McLean told television station KNVN.

McLean, who used a driver, broke the age record of 101 set by Harold Stilson in 2001 at Deerfield Country Club in Florida.

McLean, who has been featured in golf magazines before, will appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" on April 24 to celebrate her accomplishment.

"For an old lady," she said, "I still hit the ball pretty good."

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Flight Canceled After Pilot's Outburst
Apr 7, 7:16 PM (ET)

ROMULUS, Mich. (AP) - A Northwest Airlines flight was canceled because the pilot was yelling obscenities during a cell phone conversation while people were boarding, and cursed one passenger, a federal official said Saturday.

The pilot of the Las Vegas-to-Detroit flight was apparently in a heated cell phone conversation in the cockpit, then went into a lavatory, locked the door and continued the conversation, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said Saturday.

"Passengers who were boarding the aircraft could hear his end of it," Gregor said.

Las Vegas police were sent Friday to McCarran International Airport to investigate, Gregor said. Authorities were told that the pilot cursed one passenger who confronted him, Gregor said.

There were 180 passengers and five crew on the flight to Detroit Metropolitan Airport in Romulus, Northwest Airlines Corp. (NWACQ) said in a statement.

The name of the captain, who Gregor described as a veteran pilot, wasn't released.

Gregor said Northwest removed the pilot from the aircraft and returned him to his home base in Detroit for an investigation. He said it was up to Northwest to determine what would happen to the pilot.

Eagan, Minn.-based Northwest issued an apology to passengers and said the incident was under review.

Passengers were accommodated on other flights to their destinations, the airline said. They also were given meals and hotels during any additional time in Las Vegas.

The FAA plans to follow up with Northwest about the outburst, Gregor said.

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Peeping Tom Leaves Ladder Behind
Apr 7, 7:16 PM (ET)

BARABOO, Wis. (AP) - A peeping Tom seen peering into a second-floor window at Matt Edgerton's apartment fled before Edgerton could catch him, but he left a key piece of evidence behind - his ladder.

"The ladder is absolutely in our custody," said police Lt. Rob Sinden, who is heading the investigation.

Edgerton, 24, said he and a date were at home March 24 when he noticed a shadow move across his bedroom window and went to investigate.

When he pulled back the curtain, he was face-to-face with a middle-aged man peering in.

"My nose was actually touching the window and it was like, boom! His face was right there," Edgerton said. "It was like a horror movie."

The man seemed just as surprised and scrambled down the ladder.

"I tried opening my window to push the ladder over but I couldn't get it open," he said.
 
LONDON (Reuters) - A British man has met and married a 22-year-old woman after, by his own account, dreaming of her phone number and then sending her a text message.

David Brown, 24, says he woke up one morning after a night out with friends with a telephone number constantly running through his head. He decided to contact it, sending a message saying "Did I meet you last night?."

Random recipient Michelle Kitson was confused and wary at first but decided to reply and the two began exchanging messages. Eventually they met and fell in love.

"It was really weird but I was absolutely hooked," Kitson told the Daily Mail newspaper. "My mum and dad kept saying 'But he could be an axe murderer', but I knew there was something special about it."

After a long courtship, the oddly matched couple -- he's six foot seven inches tall and she's five foot four -- have just returned from their honeymoon in the Indian resort of Goa.

A love-struck Brown said: "I've no idea how I ended up with her number in my head -- it's only a few digits different from mine."
 
BUZZ LITES

A male dog in Sichuan, China, is in the hospital after being given Viagra and then mating with 3 female dogs in one day. Wang, the dog's owner, says she has been very busy since mating season started, because her pooch is considered "handsome" and may owners want him to breed with their dogs!

A peeping tom in Essex, England, has been ordered by the court to wear a fluorscent jacket whenever he goes out at night. Stephen Cooper must wear the bright orange jacket until his court hearing for hiding in gardens and watching women through their windows!

A wannabe bank robber in Red Bluff, Calif. gave police a head start when he called 911 to confess that he was in the middle of robbing a bank. Douglas Farrell was arrested as soon as he walked out of the bank and taken to jail, where he awaits charges IDIOT :eek:

The Buzz..Ken White..LVRJ
 
RIYADH (Reuters) - A Saudi man lost a bit of his nose in a joint assault by his two wives after he jokingly threatened to marry a third woman.

Judaie Ibn Salem had thought his threat would help resolve an argument over dividing up his house.

"I swore that I would do it because ... they were impolite and that's when I came under an even bigger attack," Ibn Salem told Shams newspaper after having seven stitches inserted.

"I never realized they would get so worked up. But the only way to restore my dignity is really to take a third wife.

"I don't know what I'm going to lose next if I do that."

Islamic law allows men to take up to four wives and polygamy is not unusual in the conservative kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam.
 
BUZZ BRIEFS

A man wearing only boxers recently was found dead in an owl cage at the Moscow Zoo. Alexander Luparev was found in the Siberian long-tailed tawny owl's cage with only his underwear on and a half empty bottle of vodka next to him. Officials speculate Luparev hist his head after starting a fight with the owl and then passed out. The bird reportedly is still in shock and not eating or drinking.. :(

Police in Honolulu are looking for a man who robbed three boys at gunpoint and espaced with only a collar. The boys were walking home from school when the man approaced them with a gun, took the dollar and fled :( loser!

The Buzz..Ken White..LVRJ
 
BOY FINDS WRISTWATCH ONCE BURIED AT NORTH POLE

Copenhagen, Denmark
A wristwatch buried in the ic at the NOrth Pole three years ago was found by a boy more tan 1,800 miles away after it floated ashore on the Faeroe Islands. Neils Jakup Mortensen, 11, spotted a black box near his home on Suduroy, the Faeroes southernmost Island, his mother Anna said. Inside, she said was a watch that had been buried at the North Pole by Joergen Amundsen, a descendant of Norwegian polar explorer Roald Amundsen. Jacobsen said the watch discovered by her son earlier this month was still working, and was accompained by a letter froM Amundsen. The watch probably drifted south with one of the chunks of ice that frequently break away at the North Pole and are carried off by ocean currents. The Faeroes, an 18-island Danish territory are located halfway between Scotland and Iceland!

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
 
^ That was old news from over two weeks ago.

Calif. Eatery That Sold Snake Closes
Apr 14, 5:14 PM (ET)

STOCKTON, Calif. (AP) - Local diners with adventurous palates have less than two months to try rattlesnake, alligator and other exotic meats.

The restaurant Taboo by the Delta is closing its doors June 1 when its owner retires after 10 years in business.

Along with gators and rattlesnake, Taboo served shark, frog legs and turtle.

The name of the restaurant reflects the hidden allure of "things that are forbidden. Things that would hurt you," owner Jesse "Boo" Burkett said. "People just buy into it."

Burkett said he stopped serving kangaroo and black bear in 2004 after the California Department of Fish and Game told him it was illegal.

"People are so curious to things that are different," said Burkett. However, he acknowledged, "you do get negative reactions from people sometimes."

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Suds Fill Streets in Idaho, Alaska
Apr 14, 2:13 AM (ET)

BOISE, Idaho (AP) - City streets got an unscheduled cleaning as a sudsy citrus-scented foam erupted from manhole covers like geysers.

The bubbles spewed from a three-block stretch on the city's east side Thursday after American Linen accidentally released detergent into the municipal sewer lines. The combination of gravity and churning water whipped the soap into a sudsy foam.

"We have never had a situation like this before," said Vince Trimboli, the public works spokesman.

Officials say the company had a malfunction, caused by human error, in its automated detergent loading device, releasing 167 gallons of a harmless but concentrated detergent.

Crews worked during the day to disperse the suds before they reached the treatment facility, then used soft-spray hoses and yard blowers to reduce foam levels closer to the plant.

"It had no effect on the treatment plant at all, and the closer the foam got to the plant, they were able to hose most of it off. None of it has gotten to the (Boise) River," Trimboli said Friday.

Meanwhile, there was a similar problem in Wasilla, Alaska. Clusters of foamy bubbles spewed from the city's sewer lagoon, witnesses said.

"It looked like the texture of something you'd see come out of your washing machine if you overloaded it," said Sue Foster, a student teacher.

Bill Harvey, deputy public works director, said that ice thawing on the city sewer treatment lagoons leaves an accumulation of residue and foam on the surface. He also suspected the treatment plant may have gotten a "good jolt" of soap residue.

Aerators that inject air into the lagoons to churn the water for treatment further stirred up the foam, he said. Then, swirling air currents at the treatment plant created a chimney effect that sucked the foam hundreds of feet into the sky and carried them over the city.

Grandview Inn general manager Sandra Joyner said a maintenance employee scooped up some of the bubbles. They had no smell and were a little bit iridescent.

"It was ridiculous. People were pulling off to the side of the road and running out, trying to catch them," Joyner said.

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eBay Says Pope's Old Car Is for Sale
Apr 14, 3:56 AM (ET)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Forget biodiesel. This 1999 metallic gray Volkswagen Golf might run on a higher power. For the second time in two years, eBay is hosting an auction for a car said to be Pope Benedict XVI's old hatchback.

Bids had surpassed $200,000 by Friday afternoon. The auction was scheduled to close on Saturday morning.

The car's owner, a Texas-based online casino, GoldenPalace.com, posted two German automobile registration documents that list "Josef Kardinal Ratzinger" as the vehicle's previous owner. The casino bought the car in 2005 on eBay from a German man.

On Friday, eBay said it had verified the car was owned by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger before he ascended to the papacy.

The company said that 40 percent of the proceeds from the sale will be donated to Habitat for Humanity Great Britain. The car is in England; the online casino said it would pay for shipping to the United States.

Since the car's last sale, its appearance has changed. The Golf now has "Pope Benedict Mobile" and advertising stickers plastered on its body.
 
RETIREES TO TAKE CAB 2,000 MILES TO ARIZONA

New York..Betty and Bob Matas have retired and are moving to Arizona, but like many New Yorkers they don't drive, and they don't want their cats to travel all that way by an airliner cargo hold. Their solution.. "Hey cabbie".. They met taxi drier Douglas Guldeniz when they hailed his cab after a shopping trip several weeks ago. They got to talking about thier upcoming move and we said, "Do you want to come with us"? Bob Matas, 72, said. and he said "Sure". They plan to leave Tuesday on the 2,400-mile trip with Goldeniz driving his yellow SUV cab 10 hours a day for a flat fee of $3,000, plus gas, meals and lodging. They're getting a break..the standard meter fee-fare would be about $5,000 each way. "This job is not easy, and I want to do something different" said Guldeniz, 45!

The Associated Press
 
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