Extreme Sport?

Horse-boarding

If you love the thrill of water-skiing and windsurfing but don’t like getting wet, this could be for you.

A new sport has arrived and all you need for it is a skateboard, some rope and... a horse.

Horse-boarding involves being pulled on a board at up to 56kph (35mph).

It has become so popular that a training centre has opened and Britain’s first championships are to be held this year.

Stunt rider Daniel Fowler-Prime, who has worked on films such as Kingdom Of Heaven and The Da Vinci Code, invented it after messing about on a farm with friends.

‘There’s a raw surge of natural power that you wouldn’t get from any other sport,’ said Mr Fowler-Prime, 31.

‘The acceleration is explosive and a lot of skill is involved

‘You have to be prepared to take a few knocks because falling off has been compared to getting out of a car at 30mph.’

He added: ‘Horses generally take to it very easily.’

Mr Fowler-Prime is a founder of the Extreme Horse Riding Association and opened the National Horse Boarding Training Centre at Seisdon, near Wolverhampton.

He has organised the first championships, involving races on a 100m-course, later this year.

Tick….Tock!

Bomb sat for weeks at federal office

A package found by a security guard at a U.S. federal office building in Detroit sat three for weeks before someone thought to screen it and found it was a bomb, an official who represents unionized guards said on Wednesday.

A private contract guard, since suspended, apparently found the package outside in late February, said David Wright, president of the union that represents Federal Protective Service guards but not contract guards.

The building in downtown Detroit houses offices for the FBI, U.S. Senator Carl Levin of Michigan, the Social Security Administration and others.

The guard brought the package into the building and put it in "lost and found" without having it screened, Wright said. It sat until March 18, when someone decided to X-ray the package and found that it might contain a bomb, he said.

The guards then notified the Federal Protective Service and Detroit police and the package was moved outside the building, where the police bomb squad recovered it, he said.

Detroit police said they recovered a package Friday from the federal building and detonated it.

The FBI is investigating the incident, Special Agent Sandra Berchtold said. Neither police nor the FBI commented further on details of the incident,

Wright said it was not clear whether the guard who found the package initially was the one who decided to have it screened for explosives. The package should not have been moved in either case except by explosives experts, he said.

Electric Shock?

Cop sues boss for tasering genitals

Watch where you point that thing. Tasering a fellow cop in the genitals might just land you in legal trouble and cost you your job.

According to a new lawsuit filed by an officer in the tiny U.S.-Mexican border town of Nogales, Arizona, on Feb. 8, 2010, Sgt. Sergio Bon allegedly pushed a clipboard at Pedro Molera. When Molera placed the clipboard on Bon's desk, Bon allegedly unholstered his Taser and pointed it at Molera.

According to a report in the Arizona Daily Star, Molera responded "Are you going to use it? Go ahead." At that point, Bon is said to have placed the Taser on Molera's penis, over top of his clothes, and squeezed the trigger for up to two seconds.

Molera said that there was excessive redness following the electric shock and went home in emotional distress.

Molera registered a complaint the next day after he heard other officers joking about it.

Bon, an 18-year-veteran, has resigned as a result of the allegations. Molera is seeking unspecificed damages from Bon and the police department for a lack of training of superior officers and for failing to take appropriate training and supervision measures.

Jeffrey Kirkham, the town's chief of police, told the Arizona Daily Star that Bon likely would have been fired had he not resigned.

Waxing Away!!!

Mattel under fire over doll

A fashion doll designed by Mattel is encouraging young girls to tweeze and wax their body hair, US experts claimed Wednesday.

Clawdeen Wolf comes with a rundown of the doll's extensive hair-removal routine, which is impacting negatively on children, body image specialists said.

"My hair is worthy of a shampoo commercial, and that's just what grows on my legs. Plucking and shaving is definitely a full-time job but that's a small price to pay for being scarily fabulous," reads the character description of the teen werewolf doll.

The skimpily-dressed toy is part of Mattel's top-selling Monster High franchise - which is targeted at girls as young as six.

"These dolls are training girls to feel ashamed of their bodies, to focus on being sexually appealing and sexually attractive from a pre-pubescent age," human behavior and body image expert Dr. Patrick Wanis.

Body image expert Sarah Maria, added, "Mattel is essentially promoting and encouraging the belief in young girls that they need to sculpt, tweeze, wax, and otherwise change their bodies in order to be considered attractive to men."

Mattel, the makers of Barbie, denied the claims, and said that the dolls positively promote the acceptance of all individuals.

"Grounded in a clever and humorous storytelling, Monster High characters deliver a positive message of celebrating one's imperfections and embracing those of others," a Mattel spokesperson said in a statement

Safety First?…Not In France!

French court bans condoms from Condom

A French court has banned a company set up by a descendant of King Louis XIV from selling luxury condoms described as from the southwestern town of Condom, the town's lawyer said on Wednesday.

The court in the nearby city of Bordeaux banned "the continued sale of condoms under the brand 'The Original Condom from Condom, France,'" said Caroline Lampre, lawyer for the picturesque town of 7,500.

"It is clear that the use of the name, the image and the renown of the town of Condom, without its knowledge, for entirely commercial ends (is) manifestly illicit," said the judge's ruling, seen by AFP.

French royal descendant Charles-Emmanuel de Bourbon Parme and count Gil de Bizemont have been selling their "luxury eco-friendly" prophylactics mainly in the United States since 2009.

The company is headquartered in the medieval town although the contraceptives themselves are manufactured in rubber-rich Malaysia.

Condoms sell on the company's website for $2 (around 1.50 euros) a piece, although the site says they are not available in Condom itself or anywhere else in France.

The site says the two aristocrats "decided to introduce a new kind of 'sophisticated' condom that holds a 'je ne sais quoi'."

"Condoms protect everyone from disease, ours protect from tackiness," Bizemont says on the site.

The town brought the case after Condom Mayor Bernard Gallado learned about the condoms from media reports.

The river Baise (French slang for sex) runs through the popular tourist town which feared the opening of a condom boutique in Condom itself.

Condom is now going to bring a case to get The Original Condom brand banned, lawyer Lampre said.

Hey….It’s Only Me!!

Robber identifies himself before crime

An American man decided to rob a bank - seconds after showing employees two forms of his own identification.

Daniel Rahunes, 35, went into a Metro Bank in Pennsylvania and told staff he wanted to open an account.

He was told he would have to show the ID and he obliged - before announcing he was actually there to rob the place.

After police were given an extremely accurate suspect description a warrant went out for Daniel's arrest and he was later caught after being involved in a car accident.

He was charged with theft and driving under the influence.

Always Be Safe?

Condom-covered fountain causes fury in town of Konin

Fans of the inventor of the modern day condom have outraged his home town by celebrating his birthday with a giant sheath over the town's biggest fountain.

The gushing tribute to Julius Fromm in Konin, Poland, has angered Town Hall officials who declared it "inappropriate."

Fromm - who settled in Berlin - invented the first seamless latex condom in 1916 but lost control of his creation when he was forced to sell it to Nazi Party leaders for a pittance under anti-Jewish business laws.

He died virtually penniless in Britain in 1945.

A spokesman for the inventors' supporters - who call themselves Akcja Konin - explained: 'The town should be proud that one of their own created something that has lead to so much pleasure and is still contributing to world health.'

Move That Car!!!

Road rage disrupts French nuclear crisis hearing

A French parliamentary hearing called to discuss the worsening nuclear crisis in Japan was suspended in uproar on Wednesday — in a spat over a parked car.

As ministers outlined France’s response to what the government has called a potential disaster on the scale of Chernobyl, independent member of parliament Maxime Gremetz stormed into a committee room to complain his car was blocked.

“That’s enough! This is unworthy!,” science committee chairman Claude Birraux protested, amid shouts from members of parliament enraged by the timing of the interruption.

After disrupting the hearing on live television for a second time, Gremetz was ordered to get the car registration number.

“With Japanese people risking their lives today, don’t come here and be a pain in the neck with your story about badly parked cars,” Birraux said before suspending the session,

attended by France’s top nuclear and power industry officials.

Besson said he was sure the offending vehicle did not belong to him or Environment Minister Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet.

“If it was either of our cars I am sure the chauffeurs would be sitting in the front,” he told the committee.

Just Say No!!

Bank robbery thwarted when teller says no

A would-be thief’s attempt to rob a suburban New York bank was thwarted when the teller refused his demand for money.

Police said the man remained at large after the attempted robbery on Wednesday in New Rochelle, about 25 miles (40 km) north of New York City.

“He slipped a note through the teller’s slot that said ’money in bag,”’ said police Captain Joseph Schaller said. “She refused and with that, she activated the alarm, turned away from the window and he ran out the door.”

The bank closed briefly but soon reopened for business, police said.

Drive-Bye?

Man drives car through car park wall

A Chinese driver drove his car halfway through the wall of a multi-storey car park after mistaking the accelerator for the brake.

The front of the Haima car shot through the second storey wall and came to rest hanging perilously above the street below in Chongqing city.

The driver, who was not named by local media, later admitted: "I was on a downward slope and simply hit the gas pedal instead of the brake."

He was taken to hospital for a check-up and doctors confirmed he tested negative for alcohol.

Huang Xiaoping, a bin man who lives next to the car park, said he had just got up for work when he heard the accident.

"I heard two explosions and I ran outside to see a car sticking out of the wall with the front wheels still spinning," he said.

"I thought it was a movie shoot at first but then I said to my wife that it sounded too realistic."

A car park attendant said the man lived nearby and always used the car park.

"He has been parking here for a long time - he certainly isn't a novice driver," he said.

The male driver and his passenger, a woman, were not injured as the car's airbags inflated.

It’s A Fair Cop Gov!!!

Robber sues police

A robber is suing police after they paraded him down a street in his boxer shorts in Germany.

The 38-year-old man, who was armed, was arrested then made to walk with his trousers around his ankles and his jumper over his head after holding customers in a bank hostage for over an hour.

The criminal had walked into a branch of the Noris Bank in the west city of Aachen with a revolver and demanded more than $300,000 but was soon surrounded by SAS-trained police when a cashier pressed an alarm button.

A lawyer said: "The handcuffs are understandable, but what the police have to explain is why he was brought out with his jeans pulled down and his underwear on show."

The Disappearing Marmalade?

The changing fortunes of marmalade

As recently as January, figures showed that annual marmalade sales had dropped by 800,000 litres – or 2.5 million jars – in the space of just one year.

This accounted for a three per cent fall in marmalade consumption, while American alternatives such as peanut butter and chocolate spread enjoyed rises of 7.5 per cent and 8 per cent respectively during the same period.

It was enough to leave marmalade lovers across the nation sobbing over their toast as they contemplated a future devoid of delicious orange shred.

But from impending disaster came some crumbs of comfort as readers wrote in droves to The Daily Telegraph urging the like-minded to take the future of marmalade into their own hands.

The response was staggering. In kitchens across the country defenders of the preserve slaved over their stoves producing home-made versions of the British breakfast classic.

Waitrose confirmed that sales of Seville oranges were up 30 per cent as amateur cooks took the battle for the survival of marmalade into their own kitchens.

Just a month after the damning trade figures, The Marmalade Awards in Cumbria announced that more than 1,000 entries had been entered for this year's competition – a 25 per cent increase on 2010.

Now, with the future of marmalade looking golden once more, academics who conducted thorough research into the composition and consumption of marmalade have put a fresh twist on the age-old recipe, claiming that it is best served thinly spread on cold white toast.

The claim is bound to stimulate another great debate, but marmalade lovers will be relieved to find that this time its survival is not in question.

A Quick Knap?

Burglar found sleeping in house

He was nabbed after his nap when the homeowner returned and alerted the police before he woke up.

Prosecutor Muhammad Ashraff Diah says the 35-year-old man spent the whole night in the house in southern Malaysia last week.

When the police arrived he tried to run away, but they caught him and recovered money he taken from the house.

The man pleaded guilty to burglary. Well, obviously, in these circumstances, an alibi would have been difficult to rustle up.

It’s not the first time, however, that a thief has been found asleep on the job.

Last year blonde burglar Vanessa Joy Long did a Goldilocks impression when she broke into a home in Christchurch, New Zealand, and ate some food, drunk some alcohol, tried on some clothes she found – and fell asleep on the homeowner’s bed.

She was still catching 40 winks when the rather startled proprietor got back.

Naturally, he quietly called the police.

Breaking Wind!

Anger over farting ban

Farting in public has been banned in a Malawian city.

Residents of the financial capital Blantyre are furious at the Local Courts Bill due to be introduced next week, which will criminalize breaking wind on the streets.

The bill reads: "Any person who vitiates the atmosphere in any place so as to make it noxious to the public to the health of persons in general dwelling or carrying on business in the neighbourhood or passing along a public way, shall be guilty of a misdemeanour."

College student Matthews Phiri who is against the new ruling said: "We all fart in public and it will be difficult to tell who has done it. Some do it silently. It some cases it is like teargas which goes like shhhh!

"Our legislators need to concentrate on discussing development projects. They should not waste our time and money on childish issues. It would make sense if they talked about defecating and urinating anyhow but not farting. This will not work. We will keep on farting."

One Little Piggy Went To…….

How pigs are getting pensioners to open up

Residents of senior homes here are often sceptical when Daan Vermeulen walks through the door with his pig grunting by his side.

But, the physiotherapist tells Reuters, such apprehension is necessary for his work to be successful.

Vermeulen practises an odd form of physical therapy -- he lets senior citizens and children with emotional and behavioural problems feed, groom and dress up pigs as a way of making uninterested patients more receptive to therapy.

The pigs are not always welcomed at first by patients, which Vermeulen takes as a good sign.

"Fear is good at times," the Dutchman said. "I think whoever begins with a fear of animals has the possibility to develop and eventually be able to feed or groom the animal without angst. That would be enormous progress."

Vermeulen has two pigs he uses for therapy: Felix and Rudi. They are miniature pigs, which typically weigh less than 68 kilos (150 lbs) and are often used in medical research.

Pigs project calm to edgy seniors and get them to move about, helping their deteriorating motor skills, he said. They act as a kind of social lubricant for patients with psychological and concentration problems.

Vermeulen started using pigs four years ago when it helped an elderly patient embrace physical therapy.

The animals have a strong emotional effect on Germany's older generation in particular, he said.

"This generation associates pigs strongly with their youth," Vermeulen said. "It's a reunion with an animal one once knew well but hasn't thought of in many years."

Residents at the home warmly recall growing up with pigs.

"I really liked pigs," resident Gretel Buhl said. "But we slaughtered them. ... It was a lot of fun, there was always wurst and it tasted great. Everything was so fresh and delicious -- and the blood sausage."

"We had several pigs when I was young but I haven't had any since I got married at 25," resident Walter Stroebel said.

Cats, dogs and horses are often used in therapy, but a pig is successful because it is unusual enough to hold a crowd's attention, Vermeulen said.

"Dogs certainly have good qualities but if I'm walking along one side of the street with my pig and you're walking along the other side with your dog, then everyone will look at me," he said. "That's the advantage of a pig."

Where Has It Gone?

Landlord visits house to collect rent, finds house has gone

A Malaysian landlord received a rather unpleasant surprise when he went to collect rent from some tenants and found his property had disappeared.

All that remained of Zuria Ali's house, which he had inherited from his parents, were 24 concrete pillar holders, a smashed TV and pieces of broken wood.

The main structure of the house, including its walls, had disappeared, along with items like cutlery, cupboards, a dining table and a refrigerator, Malaysian newspaper The Star reported.

Police confirmed they have received a report of a 'missing' property.

'I had heard that my house had vanished and was curious to find out the truth,' Mr Ali said.

One neighbour told the news provider the dwelling had been missing since the beginning of last month.

'I thought the three were carrying out the dismantling work on instructions from the landlord. I did not suspect anything until he [Zuria] asked me about it,' he said.

Film director Guy Richie also recently found himself in a rather bizarre property crisis, after a group of squatters moved into his £6 million London mansion while it was being renovated.

At least 12 people are thought to have moved into the property and were planning on turning it into a school.

Doh!!!!!!!

Life-sized Play-Doh car parked on London street

Commuters were left scratching their heads yesterday, after car makers confused them by 'parking' a life-size bright blue Play-Doh vehicle an a street in London.

Chevrolet say they picked the unusual way of promoting the launch of a new car after research found Play-Doh is our favourite nostalgic toy. Though we don't know what that's got to do with new cars.

It apparently took a team of eight model makers around two weeks to hand-craft the 4.6 metre by 1.8 metre Chevrolet Orlando out of 1.5 tonnes of the famous modelling putty.

Say what you like about over the top stunt marketing like the Play-Doh car… but it really sticks to the road better than most vehicles out there.

Les Turton from Chevrolet UK said: "The new Orlando deserves another look and we believe this mould-breaking MPV is a real head-turner – especially when it’s made from tonnes of the nation’s most popular aqua-marine putty.

"Hopefully our launch will appeal to the inner-child in every parent and it will become a firm family favourite."

Cock-A-Doodle-Do??

Cocks responsible for farm-based fallout

Neighbours of Roy and Valerie Rylands of Bwlch-y-ffridd, mid Wales, complained that their cockerels wake them up each morning as early as 2.30am.

A noise abatement officer for the local council confirmed just how noisy the birds really are, recording 112 crows within a 20-minute period and 74 during a stint of just five minutes.

The Rylands were ordered to keep their five cockerels, Boris, Barack Obama, Jet, Rusty and John, quiet, however, they have gone to court to challenge the ruling.

Addressing magistrates in Welshpool, Jonathan Salmon of Powys County Council said it is easy to be 'flippant' about such cases, but the reality is that the council receives a number of complaints about cockerels each year.

'Once sleep is disturbed one can easily find it is almost impossible to sleep again,' Wales Online quotes him as saying.

Mr Rylands told reporters outside of court that if he and his wife do not win the case, they will go out of business.

'The only way to stop them crowing is to eat them,' he added.

In Cornwall, Catherine and John Stringer, from Probus, near Truro, are currently appealing a noise abatement notice about their cockerels, however, they have the support of many of their neighbours, who have signed a petition against the notice, reports The Cornish Guardian.

French Inflation?

France tells drivers to inflate tyres to save fuel

France's government on Thursday ruled out any cut in fuel taxes to alleviate the cost of soaring petrol prices, telling motorists they should inflate their tyres and drive more slowly to save fuel Rising fuel costs, worsened by the uprising in OPEC-member Libya, are once again climbing up the political agenda in France, where they have triggered protests in recent years. Unleaded gasoline hit a record of 1.80 euros (1.55 pounds) a litre in some service stations this week.

In recent years, striking fishermen and truckers have blocked ports and fuel depots and snarled up motorways in anger at fuel costs, forcing concessions.

Finance Minister Christine Lagarde on Thursday rejected opposition calls for fuel subsidies, saying France must concentrate on cutting its budget deficit. She urged motorists to buy petrol more "shrewdly" and change their behaviour.

"Firstly, you must pay close attention to your tyre pressure, secondly reduce your speed a little bit, thirdly avoid driving in a stop-start manner," she told France Info radio, adding that motorists should turn off their motors if they were stuck in traffic for more than 20 seconds.

The government estimates motorists can reduce their fuel consumption by around 2.4 percent by increasing tyre pressure.

The head of France's national federation of road transporters, Jean-Paul Deneuville, warned this week that higher prices were costing his sector hundreds of millions of euros.

One of Sarkozy's most charismatic ministers, Lagarde became a target for opposition jibes in 2007 when she told citizens to start using bicycles to combat high fuel prices.

Spain has lowered its speed limit in an effort to reduce its dependence on costly imported oil.

Socialist politicians have called for subsidised fuel for the poor to be paid for by oil firms. French oil major Total posted net profits of more than 10 billion euros last year.

A Mouse To Go Sir?

Pizza maker charged in vermin scheme

The owner of a suburban Philadelphia pizza shop has been arraigned on charges he schemed to plant live mice in competing pizza parlors in hope of putting them out of business.

Nickolas Galiatsatos, owner of Nina’s Bella Pizzeria in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, is accused of putting bags of mice at nearby competitors on Monday afternoon, according to Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood.

The owner of Verona Pizza watched Galiatsatos go into his restroom carrying a bag but emerge empty-handed, and alerted two patrol officers who were in the restaurant, Chitwood said.

The officers found a bag of mice and footprints on a toilet seat, suggesting someone had been trying to reach the ceiling tiles, he said.

The officers then found Galiatsatos near another pizza place, Uncle Nick’s, where he was seen putting something in a trash can. There, police found a bag containing five mice, Chitwood said.

“This guy planted them to put these guys out of business,” Chitwood said. “I’ve been at this for 47 years, and I’ve never seen mice used as a criminal tool.”

Galiatsatos claimed his shop had been infested with mice, and he blamed his competitors for the problem, he said.

Chitwood said that Galiatsatos told police he bought the mice at a pet shop for $10.

He faces misdemeanor charges of cruelty to animals, criminal mischief, harassment and disorderly conduct.

Their Here??

Student prank sparked alien invasion alert

A student prank led to British Army and intelligence units being mobilised for fear that aliens were mounting an invasion of England, documents released today show.

Britain's National Archives has released previously classified files documenting sightings of unidentified flying object (UFOs) dating back to the 1950s.

One of the files reveals how the RAF was inundated with calls one morning in 1967 after residents of southern England awoke to find six small beeping UFOs lying in a perfect line from the Isle of Sheppey to the Bristol Channel.

A bomb disposal unit blew up one of the UFOs, another was airlifted to the south-eastern village of Aldermaston, and both the army and the Ministry of Defence's intelligence unit were mobilised for what was considered a real "alien invasion".

It was later discovered that engineering students at Farnborough Technical College had constructed and positioned the UFOs in a bid to raise money for charity.

The files contain around 8,500 pages which mainly cover the period from 1997 to 2005 and include photographs, drawings and descriptions of flying saucer sightings, as well as letters the MoD sent eyewitnesses in response to their accounts.

Policemen, a soldier, an RAF officer and members of the public reported sightings of objects including a "chewy mint-shaped solid craft" and aerial objects resembling a "ring", a "jellyfish" and a "silver voile spin top".

In one account, a man said he believed he had been "abducted" by aliens in October 1998 after seeing an unidentified craft hover over his London home and finding he had gained an hour of time in the process.

"It was a large cigar-shaped vehicle with big projectiles on each side like wings," he told the MoD.

"It seemed to have two very bright lights at the front and a white light flashing round and round underneath ... As you can imagine, I felt quite shaken."

The MoD wrote to the man informing him that the object was probably an airship, adding that the time he had gained was probably the result of the clocks being put back one hour on the night of his close encounter.

Invasion

"It does raise some questions about what really would happen if at any time in the future there was some kind of incident- would we be prepared?" said David Clarke, author of The UFO Files and consultant to the National Archives' UFO project.

One of the files documents the experiences of a retired RAF officer who said he saw a UFO while on holiday in Sri Lanka in April 2004 and sent the MoD supporting photographs.

"I noticed a partial aura in the sky, a minute or so later there was a clap of thunder, then a short while later a ring like a doughnut appeared," he told the MoD, adding that he thought it was an "air burst".

In its reply, the MoD suggested he contact the Sri Lankan government.

Other highlights include a UFO policy file from 1997 which reveals how the Ministry of Defence handled UFO reports and a file detailing the only full debate about UFOs ever to be held in Britain's House of Lords - in January 1979.

The MoD said it investigated every UFO sighting report it received to determine "whether there is any evidence that the United Kingdom's airspace might have been compromised by hostile or unauthorised air activity".

A Hissing Fit?

Snake woman gets billed

A woman was given a big cleaning bill in the US after losing her snake on a train

Officials on the underground network in Boston told Melissa Moorhouse to pay up $650 to cover the costs of sanitising and disinfecting the Boston Red Line train after her pet boa constrictor Penelope slithered away.

She had lost her scaly friend between stations and another commuter raised the alarm when they saw the creature on the train.constrictor leads to cleaning bill for owner

Melissa promised to pay more attention next time she decides to take Penelope out and about

Hood Ornament?

Husband drives 100 mph with wife on hood

A man high on methamphetamine drove with his wife on the hood of their minivan for more than 40 miles, hitting speeds of 100 mph, police said on Wednesday.

The woman climbed onto the hood early on Saturday morning, outside the couple's home in Manteca, California, because she wanted to keep her husband from driving off, said the city's police spokesman, Rex Osborn.

But instead of stopping, Christopher Carroll, 36, sped away with his wife clinging to the hood, Osborn said.

Police said they would not identify the woman because she is the victim of domestic violence, but Osborn said she is in her 30s and a mother.

In Pleasanton, the woman rolled off the hood when Carroll slowed down, police said.

Carroll was arrested back at his Manteca home, and charged with attempted murder and domestic violence, Osborn said.

No charges were filed tied to Carroll's methamphetamine use, which the woman described, he said.

Bird Power?

Train driver attacked by seagull

The driver of the 8.15am train from Hastings to London yesterday morning was walking along the platform when a seagull flew down and struck his head

He was checked over by first-aiders following the attack and resumed his duties around 15 minutes later, but not before an announcement had been made explaining the reason for the train's delay.

One waiting passenger, foster carer Liza Donaghue, told the newspaper: 'No one had really taken any notice until that point, then everyone looked and started looking at each other and saying, "Did he just say what I thought he said?"

'Then everyone started laughing. People could not believe it.

A spokesman for Southeastern Trains said that while seagull attacks are rare, they can be very dangerous.

Safety First?

'Safety' wall built across motorway

Road officials who built a wall across a 70mph motorway at night without warning motorists are being sued by crash victims.

The five feet high wall - which had no lights or signs - had been built to protect road repairers working further down the highway.

But officials are facing an inquiry after dozens of cars slammed into the wall in Xian, Shaanxi province, western China, without realising it was there.

Survivor Zou Tieqin, 42, said: "I had my family in the car and I suddenly saw the wall in my headlights. I braked but it was too late and I went straight through.

"We were saved by our airbags but when we got out of the car we saw lots of other vehicles piling in. Some weren't so lucky.

"The people responsible cannot get away with this and we are demanding compensation," he added.

But far from apologising - workers kept rebuilding the wall every time it was hit - saying they had put lights up but they had been pinched.

Tits Up?

Human breast milk ice cream banned

A London ice cream parlour has been forced to stop selling a flavour made with human breast milk.

Westminster Council officials took away samples for testing and later ordered The Icecreamists to stop selling the dish, reports the Daily Telegraph.

Matt O'Connor, the founder and owner of the parlour, said the £14 'Baby Gaga' ice cream dish had proved to be popular with the customers.

He claims the ban is an overreaction, claiming the key novelty ingredient was screened and tested before being used.

"We followed exactly the same screening process as any blood donor does, as any mother donating to a milk bank does," he said..

Westminster Councillor Brian Connell said officials had visited the parlour and removed the breast milk ice cream following two complaints from the public and concerns from health and food safety officials.

"Selling foodstuffs made from another person's bodily fluids can lead to viruses being passed on and in this case, potentially hepatitis," he said.

"As the local authority we will support small businesses and applaud innovative ideas wherever possible, but we must protect the health of consumers."

The breast milk was provided by mothers who answered an advertisement on online mothers' forum Mumsnet.

The Baby Gaga recipe blends breast milk with Madagascan vanilla pods and lemon zest, which is then churned into ice cream.

Stripper Woes?

Patron claims stripper's flying shoe chipped his teeth

A patron of an Indiana strip club is suing its owners after claiming he was hit in the face with a stripper's shoe when she performed a high-kick.

Jake Quagliaroli, 34, of Indianapolis, is suing PT's Showclub in nearby Lawrence after he was allegedly injured last month when the shoe struck his mouth and chipped four teeth.

"The strip club had a duty to protect its customers and it did not do that," Quagliaroli's attorney Syed Ali Saeed told News. "[They] need to make sure people are wearing the right kind of clothes and [that those clothes] are not flying off."

Quagliaroli was standing about 20 feet (7 meters) away from the stage when a dancer's shoe flew off during a performance, his lawyer said.

"He was bleeding [and] his front four teeth were chipped," Saeed said. "It was not a situation where it was a light tap on the face. It hit him with quite a bit of force. You can imagine the velocity at which the shoe must have come out when it hit him in the face."

Quagliaroli is claiming battery and negligence by the club and is asking a jury to grant him unspecified damages.

Slip Up?

Woman sues after slipping on banana peel

A banana peel, the torment of many a cartoon character, has allegedly become the real-life downfall of a woman in California.

Ida Valentine, 58, is suing the 99 Cents Only store where she slipped on one last April.

She said that she suffered a herniated disk and tissue damage, spent $9,000 on medical bills and is seeking an unspecified amount in damages.

"She fell and landed on her backside," said Courtney Mikolaj of the Quirk Law Firm in Ventura, California, which is representing her.

Mikolaj said the 99 Cents Only store in Fontana, California, refused a proposed settlement of $44,000. Executives from the company, a deep-discount retailer with hundreds of stores in western states, were not immediately available for comment.

The image in popular culture of an unwary pedestrian tripping head over heels on a banana peel stems from the late 19th century, when bananas were a popular street food in American cities and the press portrayed them as a public nuisance.

In 1879, Harper's Weekly groused that "whosoever throws banana skins on the sidewalk does a great unkindness to the public, and is quite likely to be responsible for a broken limb."

Phew..One’s Enough!!

Man has 39 wives, 94 kids

The more, the merrier is certainly true for Ziona Chana, a 66-year-old man in India’s remote northeast who has 39 wives, 94 children and 33 grandchildren — and wouldn’t mind having more.

They all live in a four storied building with 100 rooms in a mountainous village in Mizoram state, sharing borders with Myanmar and Bangladesh, media reports said.

“I once married 10 women in one year,” he was quoted as saying.

His wives share a dormitory near Ziona’s private bedroom and locals said he likes to have seven or eight of them by his side at all times.

The sons and their wives, and all their children, live in different rooms in the same building, but share a common kitchen.

The wives take turns cooking, while his daughters clean the house and do washing. The men do outdoor jobs like farming and taking care of livestock.

The family, all 167 of them, consumes around 91 kg (200 pounds) of rice and more than 59 kg (130 pounds) of potatoes a day. They are supported by their own resources and occasional donations from followers.

“Even today, I am ready to expand my family and willing to go to any extent to marry,” Ziona said.

“I have so many people to care (for) and look after, and I consider myself a lucky man.”

Ziona met his oldest wife, who is three years older than he is, when he was 17.

He heads a local Christian religious sect, called the “Chana,” which allows polygamy. Formed in June 1942, the sect believes it will soon be ruling the world with Christ and has a membership of around 400 familie

Cookies Cooked!

Dispute over cookies gets physical

Police say a brawl between roommates over Girl Scout cookies led to assault charges against one of them. According to the Naples Daily News, the Collier County Sheriff's Office reports that 31-year-old Hersha Howard woke up her roommate early Sunday and accused her of eating her Thin Mints.

They argued and deputies say that it turned physical with Howard chasing her roommate with scissors and hitting her repeatedly with a board and then a sign.

Police say the roommate's husband tried to separate them. The roommate said she gave the cookies to Howard's children.

Howard is charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. She was released Monday on $10,000 bail.

Here Boy!!

 

Dog Tosses Owner’s Weed To Police

WHEN Sherman County cop Sgt. John Terrel pulled over Joel Dobrin’s1998 GMW with California plates, a sock flew out of the window.

Dobrin tells police that as he tried to hide the sock, his passenger, a dog, grabbed hold of it in his teeth and pulled. Dobrin pulled. The dog pulled harder. The dog won and with a flick of its head tossed the sock out of the vehicle.

The sock was full of marijuana and hashish.

The dog denies possession with intent to supply…