Man, 105, seeks wife

A 105-year-old Chinese man has placed lonely hearts adverts in newspapers for a new wife.

Gong Duruo, 105, has placed lonely hearts adverts in newspapers for a new wife /Lu Feng

Gong Duruo, who was born at Chengde, Hebei province, in 1901, wants a wife less than half his age.

Gong, a doctor, said: "First, the woman better have a history of doctor practice or learning literature, since I need assistance to write a medical book.

"Second, the woman should be younger than 50, and can take care of my life."

Gong has two medical degrees - one from the American State University around 1940, the other from the West China University of Medical Sciences in 2000.

He currentlly lives with relatives but told Inner Mongolia Morning Papers he was looking for life partner again.

"Every one should have a goal. Without a goal, people would die very early. That's why scientists always have longevity, like Einstein, since they have life-goals," he said.

Drunk Norwegian breaks into prison

OSLO, Norway - In a different kind of jail break, a very drunk young man surprised prison guards by breaking into their northern Norway jail. "You might say we were a bit perturbed to find this person on our turf," prison warden Geir Broen said on the state radio network NRK on Monday.

Broen said the district prison in the Arctic town of Bodoe is rebuilding its outer fence, and that the man broke through a section of temporary fencing.

The weak fence is of no help to real prisoners seeking a way out, since they are confined within the walls of the jail compound.

The Norwegian, identified only as being in his 20s, was apparently was trying to find his way home after a Friday night party.

"I don't think this guy knew where he was, and he was pretty well under the influence," Broen said on the radio.

When police came to pick up the man to take him home, he told them he thought he was in Moerkved, a neighborhood about 6 miles east of the prison.

"I guess you could say this was notable day in the history of the Bodoe Jail," Broen said. "But I hope we don't have many similar incidents in the future."

Dog saves owner, dies trying to save cat

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. - After a disabled woman's cat started a house fire, her specially trained dog came to the rescue, then died trying to help the cat still in the house. Jamie Hanson said the 13-year-old dog named Jesse brought the phone so she could call 911 and also brought her artificial leg.

"She got me outside and then she heard the cat upstairs and she went up there to get the cat and she wouldn't come back to me," Hanson, 49, said at a news conference Monday at Aurora Sheboygan Memorial Medical Center where she was being treated for her injuries.

She received third-degree burns to an arm in the fire Sunday night at her home in the town of Rhine south of Elkhart Lake, the Sheboygan County Sheriff's Department said, adding that both pets died in the fire.

Hanson, who lost a leg in a car accident three years ago, said she was on the couch watching television when the cat ran over the back of the couch.

"And he jumped onto a table that had a candle on it and tipped it over and lighted the artificial plants on fire," she said.

Hanson said she fell off the couch and was unable to get her artificial leg from the table, "so my dog got my leg for me and went and got the phone and brought the phone to me so I could call 911."

She said she tried to put the prosthetic leg on, but it was too hot, and the dog, a golden retriever-German shepherd mix, came to her aid again before going back inside for the cat.

When rescuers arrived, the house was fully engulfed in flames, the sheriff's department said. Hanson was in the doorway and was assisted by a deputy.

Boy, 14, catches piranha - in Stockport

A 14-year-old boy has caught a 3lb South American piranha - in a Stockport pond.

Josh Boyle caught the exotic fish at a beauty spot, Reddish Vale, near his home in Greater Manchester.

Josh, who had been fishing for four hours before landing the piranha, said: "I recognised what it was straight away, so I wrapped it in a towel so it couldn't bite me.

"I was really shocked, but I was excited too - as I have never caught anything like it. I have been fishing since I was two, and I've seen lots of pictures of piranhas before, so I knew what it was."

Josh, who is a member of the Prince Albert Angling Society, landed his catch with just a spinner on his rod, which imitates a small fish.

After taking photos of the fish he released it back into the water, reports the Daily Mail.

Brian Zimmerman, aquarium manager at London Zoo, said: "This is most unusual. It managed to survive until it was caught, but it couldn't have survived the cold winter as the waters it is used to are between 25 and 30 degrees.

"It would have eaten smaller fish such as roach and tench to survive - the red bellied piranhas usually hunt in shoals and attack in a large group. When they are on their own they have to go for smaller prey."

Woman gives birth to own grandchild

A Japanese woman in her 50s has given birth to her own grandchild.

The woman had the baby last year, using an egg from her daughter and sperm from her son-in-law.

It was the first time a woman has acted as a surrogate mother for her daughter in Japan, reports the BBC.

Yahiro Netsu, the head of the Suwa maternity clinic in Nagano, told a news conference the woman agreed to act as a surrogate mother because her daughter was unable to have children due to cancer.

Both the mother and child were reported to be in good health.

Dr Netsu said the woman had first registered the baby as her own and then the child was adopted by her daughter and son-in-law.

The case is set to stir debate in Japan where surrogate births are opposed by the government and a key medical group.

Japan's justice ministry views the woman who gives birth as a child's mother - not the biological mother.

Dr Netsu called on the government and the medical authorities to review their stance.

Death-row prisoner gets pregnant in solitary

HANOI (Reuters) - A death-row inmate held in solitary confinement in Vietnam for almost a year is pregnant and is seeking a pardon to give birth, a newspaper reported on Thursday.

The Lao Dong (Labour) newspaper quoted a police doctor as saying tests in September confirmed that convicted heroin trafficker Nguyen Thi Oanh, 39, was then 11 weeks pregnant.

The report said it was the first time that a death-row prisoner had become pregnant in Vietnam and that police were investigating how it had happened.

Oanh's husband was serving a jail sentence at another prison in another province, the newspaper said.

Oanh was due to face a firing squad this year after losing her appeal against the death sentence she received last year for possession of a billion dong ($63,000) worth of heroin.

Trafficking more than 600 grams of heroin in Vietnam is punishable by death or life imprisonment

Troops battle 10-foot marijuana plants

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian troops fighting Taliban militants in Afghanistan have stumbled across an unexpected and potent enemy -- almost impenetrable forests of 10-feet-high marijuana plants.

General Rick Hillier, chief of the Canadian defense staff, said on Thursday that Taliban fighters were using the forests as cover. In response, the crew of at least one armored car had camouflaged their vehicle with marijuana.

"The challenge is that marijuana plants absorb energy, heat very readily. It's very difficult to penetrate with thermal devices ... and as a result you really have to be careful that the Taliban don't dodge in and out of those marijuana forests," he said in a speech in Ottawa.

"We tried burning them with white phosphorous -- it didn't work. We tried burning them with diesel -- it didn't work. The plants are so full of water right now ... that we simply couldn't burn them," he said.

Disney says "non" to Mouse orgy

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Walt Disney Co. on Thursday said it took "appropriate action" against employees at its Paris theme park who were caught simulating sex while dressed as Disney characters in a digital video that has received wide attention on the Internet.

Man who urinated in soda has shy bladder

DELAND, Fla. - A man who was jailed for urinating in a drink that was consumed by and sickened a convenience store customer could be in trouble again, this time because he can't produce that bodily fluid.

Anthony Mesa, 22, was sentenced to six months in jail and two years of a form of house arrest for urinating in the bottle of Mountain Dew and must also periodically take a urine drug test. Mesa said Wednesday, however, that he has a condition called shy bladder which affects his ability to urinate in public and therefore to take the drug test. He had failed to take a court-ordered test Sept. 19, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

"Anthony's little prank has taught him a great deal, and the irony of it all is that peeing was what got him trouble in the first place, and now not being able to is getting him trouble again," Mesa's mother, Denise Hislop, wrote to court officials.

Mesa has offered to take the test another way, including with a blood sample.

Mesa, a former convenience store clerk at a Pix store in Deltona, pleaded no contest to tampering with a consumer product. A construction worker who purchased the drink he urinated in began vomiting after drinking the product.

Dog back in Calif. after 1,400-mile trek

Kobe the terrier is back with his family after a 1,400-mile trip. The small white pooch vanished from his Bellflower home last month and was found by a stranger in Denton, Texas. A microchip implanted in his neck contained his owner's information.

Man finds £10,000 in McDonald's meal

A Belgian man who ordered a burger from a McDonald's restaurant was amazed to find £10,000 cash in the same bag.

Marco Parra-Martinez, 23, ordered his meal from a McDrive restaurant in Waterloo, reports Het Laatste Nieuws.

Inside the paper bag, as well as his burger, was an envelope containing 15,000 euros, the equivalent of more than £10,000.

"I hesitated one moment, asking myself if I shouldn't keep the money," admitted Mr Parra-Martinez. "But my parents taught me to be honest at all times."

So he returned the envelope to the restaurant.

McDonalds said the cash was restaurant takings that had accidentally been put down next to Mr Parra-Martinez's order. They promised him a reward for his honesty.

Woman tries to sell mummy on eBay

PORT HURON, Mich. - Officials are trying to track down the origins of a mummified human skeleton that a Michigan woman tried to sell on eBay.

The St. Clair County medical examiner's office confiscated the mummified remains Tuesday from the home of Lynn Sterling.

Sterling, 45, told police she got the remains from a friend who works in demolition and said he found them in a Detroit school he helped tear down nearly 30 years ago, police said. She said she had contacted an attorney before posting the remains for sale.

"It's an anatomical, medical-use skeleton," Sterling told The Times Herald of Port Huron. "I would never have put it on (eBay) if I thought it was anything other than an anatomical, medical thing."

Sterling likely won't face charges, Port Huron Police Capt. Don Porrett said, though officials said the remains will be sent to an anthropologist at Michigan State University for further examination.

St. Clair County Medical Examiner Daniel Spitz described the remains as an intact skeleton with mummified tissue. He said age, sex and race could not yet be determined, but said the remains appeared to be those of a child.

"It's very, very old. It's probably some type of anatomical dissection that was part of an anatomy class that over time got into the hands of somebody in the general public," Spitz said.

Port Huron police were notified about the eBay posting by a caller from North Carolina who spotted the item on the online auction site, Porrett said.

EBay spokeswoman Catherine England said the posting was removed Wednesday because it violated a policy against selling human remains. The Web site allows the sale of skeletons for medical use, but not mummified remains.

Curiosity did attract at least one bid before the posting was removed.

"There was a bid on it for $500 from `Satan's Child,'" Porrett said.

Kangaroo sighted on Austrian highway

VIENNA, Austria - A kangaroo was sighted on a highway in western Austria, but disappeared again, police said Thursday. The marsupial, which escaped from an enclosure in the village of Volders about two weeks ago, was seen by several people on a highway in Tyrol province, a statement said.

Thursday's sighting was not the alpine country's first kangaroo-related incident.

In March, a kangaroo led police in southern Austria on a snow chase after it jumped a fence of its cage. In the end, a local veterinarian helped capture the animal using a stun gun. That kangaroo belonged to a breeder in Tyrol.

Authorities could not say whether this month's missing marsupial came from the same place, and declined to provide any details about its origins.

"We're searching through the area intensely at the moment, but we haven't seen the kangaroo yet," Thomas Auer from the highway police in Schoenberg told Austrian broadcaster ORF.

Grandmother mails fruitcakes, sues USPS

WILMINGTON, Del. - Lucille Greene, an 88-year-old grandmother, takes baking and mailing about 30 family recipe fruitcakes as Christmas gifts seriously. Seriously enough that she sued the U.S. Postal Service for emotional distress after alleged rough treatment and accusations of being a terrorist from a postal clerk, according to her federal lawsuit.

In December 2002, Greene showed up at the Magnolia, Del., post office to mail fruitcakes to relatives and friends when, her lawsuit states, a postal worker asked her, "What kind of explosives do you have in here?" before shaking the box.

In the lawsuit, she said others in the post office laughed at her, leaving her upset and in tears. She said she tripped over a concrete parking barrier outside and fell, breaking her glasses and chipping a tooth.

The judge dismissed her allegations two weeks ago, and her appeal for $250,000 compensation, because Greene had a prior eye condition, and contradictory testimony.

But U.S. District Judge Sue Robinson wasn't entirely unsympathetic. She wrote the clerk "was likely being less than courteous" despite following standing procedures for suspicious packages.

Despite having to go to a post office farther away from her home, Greene said she hasn't given up on fruitcakes as Christmas gifts.

"My lawyer got a couple this year," she said.

MA in Robin Hood

A university is offering a masters degree in Robin Hood studies.

Nottingham University will provide the course to students, reports the BBC.

During the one-year course students will work with 15th century manuscripts in looking at the outlaw's place in English society.

The course will also use stories, songs and plays to investigate the medieval world of the Nottingham legend.

The course will start in October next year.

Dr Rob Lutton, medieval history lecturer, said: "The course provides an exciting opportunity for anyone with an interest in the origins and development of England's most enduring legendary figure."

First aider called to his own emergency

A first aider suffering a suspected heart attack received a pager message sending him to his own emergency.

Roger Flux, 66, a volunteer community responder for Hampshire Ambulance Service, had chest pains in bed at his New Forest home.

Roger Flux an emergency first aider with Hampshire Ambulance Service at his home in Ashurst, New Forest, after being scrambled to attend his own suspected heart attack /PA

His wife called 999 as a precaution and paramedics were on the scenes within minutes.

It was then that Mr Flux got a pager message scrambling him to the emergency at his own house.

He said: "I was on call that evening and during the middle of the night I had severe chest pains right across my chest and jaw.

"In a couple of minutes the ambulance crews were here and investigating and in the meantime I asked my wife to get my response bag.

"While I was sitting down my pager went off, telling me to attend to a man with chest pains. Then I looked at the address - it was my own."

By the time cardiac specialists at Southampton General Hospital decided it had been a false alarm, Mr Flux saw the funny side of it.

"At least it shows the system works," he said.

Police find burgers sprinkled with pot

LOS LUNAS, N.M. - Three workers at a Burger King restaurant were arrested after two Isleta tribal police officers discovered that the hamburgers they ordered were sprinkled with marijuana.

The Isleta Police Department officers ate about half of their burgers Sunday before discovering marijuana on the meat. The officers used a field test kit to confirm the substance was pot, then went to a hospital for a medical evaluation.

The three Burger King employees - Justin Armijo, 19; Robert Nuckols, 21; and manager Joseph Ledesma, 33 - were arrested and charged with possession of marijuana and aggravated battery on an officer, a felony.

Woman charged with drunk horse riding

CLAYTON, Ga. - Well, that's a DUI of a different color. Heather Darnell, 22, of Mountain City, Ga., faces a drunk driving charge after she steered the horse she was riding onto the highway and tangled with a car, authorities said. Darnell also was cited for entering a traffic lane.

She remains in fair condition after being airlifted to the Gwinnett Medical Center in Lawrenceville, Ga.

The horse apparently survived, officials said.

Three people who were in the Pontiac Bonneville that struck the horse Friday night were treated at Mountain Lakes Medical Center in Clayton, Ga., and released: Ancella Gragg, 32, of Lakemont, Ga., who was at the wheel; and a 13-year-old girl and 9-year-old boy.

Trooper Anthony Coleman said Gragg did not see the horse until too late and was unable to avoid hitting it.

"If it's on the public right-of-way, you're under the same jurisdiction as if you're in a car," Coleman said.

Sat nav system leads driver to sand

An 80-year-old German driver ended up in a pile of sand after following instructions from his new car's satellite navigation system.

Volker Heinmann ignored the diversion signs on the busy A24 near Hamburg when all the other motorists on the road were turning off.

He said: "I thought the navigation system knew a shortcut and it seemed to be a good one, there was no other traffic on the road, so I sped up - and hit a pile of sand in the middle of the road."

The sand had been put on the road by construction workers who were upgrading the section of motorway near Reinbek, Germany.

Police spokesman Jan Kalisch said: "We had a call from the elderly man and found him half a mile along the closed section of road standing with his wife beside the car, that was wedged firmly in the sand. Both were unhurt, but the car had to be towed to a garage."

Scientists discover why toast falls butter side down

Scientists have discovered how to stop your toast landing butter-side down - by spreading it correctly.

A team of researchers from TV show Mythbusters discovered that if you press firmly and quickly with the knife as you spread, the surface of the bread changes.

A dip is created on the toast which then affects the way it falls reports the BBC.

In tests this type of buttering method meant the toast landed butter-side up 29 times out of 50.

Presenters of Mythbusters, Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman said: "Just like when a leaf falls from a tree, it will always have a tendency to land with the curved sides up."

Man eats 247 jalapenos to win contest

DALLAS - A 62-year-old retired accountant from Nevada swallowed 247 peppers in eight minutes to win the Jalapeno Eating World Championship at the State Fair of Texas.

Richard LeFevre won $2,000 for prevailing in Sunday's contest, which was sponsored by the International Federation of Competitive Eating.

"I love to eat, and I love to compete, so the two go pretty well together," said LeFevre, the world's eighth-ranked eater according to the federation.

LeFevre, who has also won the fair's World Corny Dog Eating Contest three times, said his winning strategy was to mix three or four peppers in his mouth with a swig of milk before swallowing.

LeFevre was one of four professional eaters who took the top four places in the competition.

Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas said she had never eaten a jalapeno before the contest. Ranked third in the world by the federation, she downed 239 peppers to take second place and $1,000 in prize money.

Christopher Huang, of Arlington, entered the competition even though he doesn't normally eat spicy foods.

"I eat mild salsa," Huang said. "But there's nothing like putting yourself through a lot of pain for no reason."

The 26-year-old required several minutes of recovery time after eating 53 jalapenos.

"I cant feel my face," he said when he was able to speak again.

Dr. Daniel DeMarco, a gastroenterologist and director of endoscopy at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, said the amount of jalapenos consumed in an eating contest is more harmful than the burn.

"It's really pretty stupid," DeMarco said. "Like any sort of abuse of your body, it doesn't make any sense."

He said long-term complications are unlikely, but there are some risks.

"If they get sick, they're going to be vomiting it up, and that can cause esophageal tears," he said.

Inmates flush mattress pieces in toilets

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Monroe County Jail inmates cut up pieces of their mattresses and flushed them down toilets, clogging pipes and causing moderate flooding in the sheriff's department, officials said.

Several pipes backed up Friday night and leaked throughout the sheriff's department, which is located below the jail. Several ceiling tiles were damaged by flooding and the office of Chief Deputy Chuck Wilson incurred heavy damage, officials said.

No damage estimates were immediately available, and there was no immediate word on whether disciplinary action would be taken against the inmates responsible.

The incident is similar to problems at the jail in Vanderburgh County, where inmates have clogged toilets in the past. Six Evansville police detectives sued the local building authority there to fix pipes so they no longer leak sewage when inmates clog the toilets

Man arrested for stealing baking goods

MADISON, Wis. - The Madison Police Department said it has arrested a burglar with a sweet tooth and a penchant for making money. Police said they found the 53-year-old man at Stella's Bakery while they were investigating an ongoing series of thefts there.

The bakery reported thefts of ingredients such as oil, sugar, eggs and flour, and occasionally, the delivery truck.

Police said the suspected burglar took the products to area bakeries in the delivery truck during off-business hours, sold them, and then returned the truck.

The man, from Madison, was arrested Friday night without incident. Police said they caught him stealing bakery goods, while the truck was running outside.

The man was taken to the Dane County Jail and booked on a probation warrant. Police said they would send charges to the District Attorney's office early this week. They said they expect charges will include at least three counts of burglary and operating a motor vehicle without the owner's consent.

Jelly sparks security alert

A pile of jelly left by a road has sparked a major terrorist alert in Germany.

Hikers called the police after spotting the "flabby red, orange and green substance" and fearing it was toxic waste.

The area at Halle, near Leipzig, was sealed while experts trained in biological and chemical warfare and wearing special suits and gas masks moved to examine the substance.

Samples were taken but the mystery was solved before the results were returned after a policeman heard a wedding had taken place a short while before, and questioned the newly married couple.

The groom confessed that there had been a jelly fight the day before and that lots of the jelly had probably ended up on the road.

Hefner prefers dominoes to sex

Playboy millionaire Hugh Hefner says he's bored of sex and would rather have a game of dominoes.

Hefner, 80, is famed for bedding thousands of women and holding bunny-girl parties at his Beverly Hills mansion.

However, he says he no longer has the energy and would rather relax with his bunnies reports The Sun.

He said: "I'm bored of the hanky panky. I'm still active but it's different - I like to play dominoes with my girlfriends."

Hefner once had seven girlfriends - but in 1997 he cut down to three, saying the girls got jealous.

He lives with 26-year-old Holly Madison, 32-year-old Bridget Marquardt and 21-year-old Kendra Wilkinson.

He added: "Having three beautiful women keeps the years off me. I would recommend it to anyone."

Man used snake as car alarm

A Serb man who left a 6ft snake inside his car because he couldn't afford an alarm has been arrested after it escaped.

Radovan Darkic, a pet shop owner from Belgrade, left the snake in his E-Class Mercedes every evening to make sure no one would steal it.

But he was forced to call the police when he found it had slithered its way out through an open window and into the engine compartment. He was arrested by officers for endangering public safety.

He said: "I only wanted to make sure that even if I couldn't take revenge on anyone who dared to rob my car then at least the snake could do it for me."

£2m to find cure for baldness

The Government is spending £2million to find a cure for baldness.

Science minister Lord Sainsbury says he wants the UK to become the world leader in hair restoration.

He is supporting a new treatment called Biotechnology, reports The Sun.

During the treatment the hair cells are grown in a test tube then injected into a bald pate.

He said: "Biotechnology provides a real opportunity to harness the world-class expertise we possess in Britain.

"This initiative should establish British industry as the world leader in this area."

The treatment is being developed by UK firm Intercytex, set up by biochemist Dr Paul Kemp.

He said: "Analysts estimate a good baldness treatment could be worth £1billion a year in Britain and many times that worldwide. The idea is to inject cells into the scalp, where many will develop into new hair follicles.

"Current hair transplant techniques take a long time so they cost a lot. This new procedure would be faster and cheaper."

'Eat a live cockroach, get in free'

A US halloween festival has sparked a row by offering free admission to anyone who eats a live, Madagascar hissing cockroach.

The stunt by the annual Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom's Fright Fest in Louisville has been met with protests of both child and animal cruelty.

Some say it targets poor children and is a form of child abuse, while an animal rights group says it's cruel to cockroaches.

But the amusement park claims to have received only a "minimal number of complaints" and has no intentions of canceling it, said park spokeswoman Carolyn Gaeta McLean.

"People complaining are not going to stop us," she told the Courier-Journal.

The promotion is going on at all Six Flags parks nationwide, though Kentucky Kingdom is the only one to offer free admission, she said. Other parks allow those who eat cockroaches to go to the front of the line.

McLean said each person who wants to eat a cockroach will have to sign a waiver, and children under 18 will need their parent or guardian to sign.

Philip Haming, a father of five children and a former teacher, said children should not be encouraged with a reward for performing a disgusting act.

"We have been teaching them all these years not to give in to peer pressure," he said. "I don't care what adults do."

And Peta spokeswoman Jackie Vergerio asked: "What is it teaching our children? A child who learns to respect a seemingly insignificant insect is a child that will grow up a compassionate person."

Lightning bum burn

A Croatian woman suffered burns to her bum after lightning struck her in the mouth and passed through her body.

Natasha Timarovic, 27, was cleaning her teeth in her home in the city of Zadar when lightning struck the building.

She said: "I had just put my mouth under the tap to rinse away the toothpaste when the lightning must have struck the building.

"I don't remember much after that, but I was later told that the lightning had travelled down the water pipe and struck me on the mouth, passing through my body.

"It was incredibly painful, I felt it pass through my torso and then I don't remember much at all."

Doctors at the city hospital where she was treated for burns to the mouth and rear said: "The accident is bizarre but not impossible.

"She was wearing rubber bathroom shoes at the time and so instead of earthing through her feet it appears the electricity shot out of her backside.

"It appears to have earthed through the damp shower curtain that she was touching as she bent over to put her mouth under the tap. If she had not been wearing the shoes she would probably have been killed by the blast."

Croatian daily 24 Sata said the young woman had been released from hospital after being kept in overnight and was expected to make a full recovery.

Cocaine found in postman's pickup

DALLAS - Authorities discovered cocaine and duffel bags of opened mail inside the pickup truck of a postal worker who was stopped for speeding.

Salvador Gonzalez, 33, of Dallas, faces charges of possession of a controlled substance. Authorities said he may face federal charges for the unopened mail pending an investigation by the Postal Service Office of Inspector General.

A deputy constable stopped Gonzalez on Wednesday morning in Dallas' Oak Cliff neighborhood and saw the items stuffed in duffel bags and scattered inside the vehicle.

"He had tons of mail, like old Christmas cards, all kinds of mail he had opened up," said Dallas police Chief Deputy John L. Garrett with the Precinct 1 constable's office. "He had eight or nine credit cards in his possession with different names on them. We assume he had taken them out of the mail."

Garrett said deputies found some mail addressed to a local elected official, but he declined to give the person's identity.

Spider causes man to lose control of SUV

LEVANT, Maine - A Levant man told police he lost control of his 2003 Lincoln Navigator after he was startled by a spider on Wednesday morning.

James Lee, 28, was trying to get out of the SUV when it smashed into a tree. He walked away with a bloody nose caused by the air bag.

But, it could've been worse. At least it wasn't the new Volvo XC90 he won in a contest.

Last month, Lee was one of 11 people from across the country to win a new vehicle from McDonald's, the Bangor Daily News reported. After finishing a Big Mac extra value meal, he got the winning game piece for the "Pirates of the Caribbean" game.

He hasn't taken delivery of the new vehicle yet

Mystery man baffles authorities

A mystery man arrested for breaking into the same house three times in Wales is baffling the authorities.

Police and immigration officials have no idea of the man's name, age, nationality - or what language he speaks.

Magistrates at Llanelli were told he had broken into the same house, near Ammanford, three times, washed himself, cooked food, and stole a sewing kit.

The man, who appeared to be in his 30s with dark receding hair and olive skin, was remanded in custody as no plea could be taken.

Laura Carthew, prosecuting, said: "A map of the world has been offered to the defendant with no response."

She also said they presented him with flags from all the countries in the world, but this met with a similar response.

He has briefly spoken once in a language thought to be Amharic, but when a translator was called they said they did not understand him and had no clue to the dialect he was speaking.

The man's solicitor Mike Reed said in his 30 years' experience he had never come across a similar situation.

He said that in a previous hearing, the court heard how writing in a book apparently discarded by the man had been identified as belonging to a "small tribe at the bottom of the Atlas mountains" in Morocco.

Man unhappy to pay ex-wife - now she's a man

A Florida man is fighting to stop paying maintenance to his ex-wife - because she's now a man.

Lawrence Roach, of Seminole, says his ex-wife has had a sex swap op and is now living as a man.

He says he should be allowed stop paying his £650 monthly alimony payments, reports Bay News 9.

"This isn't right. It's humiliating to me and degrading," he said.

"You know, I'm a man and I don't want to be paying alimony to a man. If you can't be married to a man legally, how can you legally pay alimony to a man?"

Roach and his ex-wife, who Bay News 9 did not identify, divorced 18 months ago after being married for more than 17 years.

Man recites pi to 100,000 places

TOKYO - A Japanese mental health counselor recited pi to 100,000 decimal places from memory on Wednesday, setting what he claims to be a new world record.

Akira Haraguchi, 60, needed more than 16 hours to recite the number to 100,000 decimal places, breaking his personal best of 83,431 digits set in 1995, his office said Wednesday. He made the attempt at a public hall in Kisarazu, just east of Tokyo.

Pi is a physical constant defined as the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter.

It is usually written out to a maximum of three decimal places, as 3.141, in math textbooks. But the number, which has fascinated scientists for centuries, has no theoretical limit to the number of decimal places it can be written to. It is a constant that appears in the proofs of many equations defining the universe.

"What I am aiming at is not just memorizing figures, I am thrilled by seeking a story in pi," Haraguchi said.

The Guinness Book of Records currently lists Hiroyuki Goto, also from Japan, as the official record holder for reciting pi from memory. He recited the ratio out to 42,195 decimal places in 1995.

Guinness never entered Haraguchi's 1995 feat in its record book. The editors of the book could not be immediately reached for comment regarding Haraguchi's latest attempt.

Haraguchi, a psychiatric counselor and business consultant in nearby Mobara city, took a break of about 5 minutes every one to two hours, going to the rest room and eating rice balls during the attempt, said Naoki Fujii, spokesman of Haraguchi's office.

Fujii said all of Haraguchi's activities during the attempt, including his bathroom breaks, were videotaped for evidence that will later be sent for verification by the Guinness Book of Records.

Two local education officials joined 29 conference hall staff who worked in rotation to monitor Haraguchi.

Haraguchi, who began reciting pi at 9 a.m. Tuesday, reached his previous record of 83,431 digits Tuesday night, finishing exactly at 100,000 digits at 1:28 a.m. Wednesday, Fujii said.

In 2002, University of Tokyo mathematicians, aided by a supercomputer, set the world record for figuring out pi to 1.24 trillion decimal places.

Bungee cord breaks, leaving man dangling

TULSA, Okla. - A bungee cord on a thrill ride broke, leaving a man dangling 25 feet off the ground for a half-hour until he was rescued by firefighters.

Steve Alan Stone, 48, was not seriously hurt in the incident Monday at the Tulsa State Fair. A ride worker also was helped down by rescuers.

The ride, called the Ejection Seat, consists of a two-seat chair that is suspended from two towers by bungee cords. Passengers are propelled as much as 200 feet high at speeds of about 60 mph.

Shortly after Stone was launched, one of the cords broke, leaving the seat dangling sideways near one of the towers, Tulsa County Sheriff's Capt. Fred Cotton said.

Stone said he didn't fully realize what was happening until he saw that he was suspended sideways about 25 feet above the ground.

"I was talking myself though a lot, and they (emergency and fair workers) were talking to me, too," he said. "I wasn't scared of dying. I had the utmost confidence in them."

The malfunction is being investigated by the Oklahoma Department of Labor, which oversees fair-ride safety.

Don Hankins, senior amusement ride inspector and assistant director for the department's Safety Standards Division, said the ride has four bungee cords, all of which were replaced Saturday.

Although the bungee cord broke, State Fair Manager Amber Phillips said, "the ride's rip cord -- a redundant safety device -- operated exactly as designed, averting any serious injuries."

Ark. woman shows up drunk at DWI hearing

LITTLE ROCK - A Little Rock woman facing her fifth drunken-driving charge in the span of a year - and third in less than a month - showed up to a court appearance drunk Tuesday morning, a court official said.

Susan Marshall, 55, was arrested for contempt of court after a brief appearance in Little Rock District Court, said chief probation officer Sheila Farley. Marshall later had a blood-alcohol level of 0.147 percent, Farley said. The legal limit for adult drivers in Arkansas is 0.08 percent.

Marshall said she did not drive to her court appearance and had no keys when arrested, Farley said.

Marshall, who had three drunken-driving arrests in September, was taken to Pulaski County Jail. She was scheduled for another court appearance Wednesday, Farley said.

'Flying Elvis' suffers broken pelvis

BROWNING, Mont. - A "Flying Elvis" suffered a broken pelvis during the grand opening of the Glacier Peaks Casino here. Paul Moran is a member of The Flying Elvi, a 10-member skydiving team made up of Elvis Presley impersonators, who were hired to parachute into the parking lot at the casino Friday.

Other members of the troupe said the Las Vegas man apparently misjudged the landing and hit the ground at 50 mph.

"I talked to his family (Monday) and they said he is doing well, but he did break his pelvis," said Gary Green, casino manager.

Moran was taken to the Blackfeet Community Hospital and then flown to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where he is listed in serious condition in the intensive care unit.

Baby sitter picks up wrong child

LONG BEACH, Calif. - A baby sitter bungled her first day on the job by picking up the wrong 5-year-old boy from his elementary school, police said.

Angel Guerrero was taken by mistake Monday when the woman arrived at the school and took him without knowing what the child she was to care for looked like, said Sgt. David Cannan.

The mix-up caused alarm when Angel's grandmother came to the school and was told someone had already picked him up. Police issued a missing child alert, and his name and picture were broadcast on several TV stations.

Meanwhile, the baby sitter had no idea she picked up the wrong child until her employers returned home.

"The baby sitter said 'This is your son,' and the parents said, 'No, this is not our son,'" Cannan said. When the parents saw Angel's picture on their TV screen, they immediately called police.

School officials didn't notice the mix-up, Cannan said, because Angel willingly left with the woman. Meanwhile, the boy she was supposed to pick up waited for several hours until school staff called an uncle to pick him up.

"There's a lesson here," Cannan said. "What an opportunity to tell parents to talk to their kids, and communicate with their caregivers. This young child was full of trust, and he sees an older, caring adult and just walked off with that person."

Customs discover vodka pipeline

Russian customs officers say they have discovered a mile long pipeline that was pumping vodka to Latvia.

Border cops in Buholovo, on the border, said the tunnel had been laid six feet underground by crooks to pump home-made vodka across the border. It was then sold in Latvia.

But the pipeline was discovered when local council workers started digging holes to plant trees in the area.

Yakov Kabanov, of the local border police, said: "We had our suspicions that there was someone running hooch across the border here but we could never figure out how they managed it.

"They probably would have got away with it for decades if those trees hadn't been planted as well."

Officers are questioning people in Buholovo about the pipeline, which ran between two rented houses that were empty when they were raided.

Danger - falling pears

Council officials in Worcester have put up signs warning people of falling pears.

Two pear trees have been cordoned off in case their fruit falls on people at Cripplegate Park, St John's.

Signs have been screwed into each tree saying: "Warning, pears falling!"

The 30ft trees have stood in a city park for 50 years without any problems.

Officials acted after receiving a complaint the trees are a health hazard. The council fears it could be sued if anyone is injured by a pear.

The trees produce large black pears that weigh about 1lb each, reports The Sun.

Local man Barry Cox, 40, said: "This is a crazy waste of time and money. It seems people aren't credited with common sense any more. Next thing they will be issuing people with hard hats before they enter the park."

The council's parks and cemeteries manager Ian Yates said: "There are some sizeable pears and not everyone is going to be passing thinking a pear might fall on them, especially children.

"These signs divert people away from the danger. This is a lot cheaper than having a no-win, no-fee solicitor taking us to court."

Wife accused of chasing husband with ax

LACONIA, N.H. - Police said a couple were arguing about their marriage when the wife grabbed an ax and charged at her husband, chasing him around the house.

The ax is considered a collector's item and is used for display, but investigators said it has a very sharp blade and is capable of causing serious injury or death.

Linda Masse, 50, defended herself in court Monday and called the ax a toy.

"I didn't threaten him or to kill him or anything," she said.

Investigators said that the couple had been drinking, and Masse's husband told her that he wanted to leave her. The argument then became violent, police said.

Police said that while chasing her husband, Masse destroyed several things inside their home, including a glass door and his car.

Her husband ran to a neighbor's house, where he locked the door and called police.

Clown is running for mayor of Alameda

ALAMEDA, Calif. - A real clown is running for mayor of Alameda, and even his sister won't vote for him.

Kenneth Kahn, 41, a professional joker known as "Kenny the Clown," admits he's running a long-shot campaign for City Hall's top spot. Kahn has not previously run for an elected position and has never sat on a public board.

"People ask me, 'Do we really want to elect a clown for mayor of the city?'" he said. "I say, 'That's an excellent question.'"

Kahn's mother, Barbara, said her son doesn't have a chance, and Sylvia Kahn, a teacher, said her brother's candidacy is a "mockery of our system."

"I don't think it makes any sense, because, to me, running for mayor is not where you start as far as community involvement goes," she said.

In November, the funnyman who graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, faces incumbent Beverly Johnson and City Councilman Doug deHaan.

Driver stopped train for cigarette break

A Romanian train driver is facing disciplinary action after he stopped his train to get out for a cigarette.

He stopped in the middle of the countryside and he also allowed passengers to get off the train.

Smoking was recently banned on trains in Romania, reports the Evenimentul Zilei newspaper.

The incident happened on the Blue Arrow, supposedly the country's fastest and most modern train

The train had just passed the city of Timisoara when the driver announced: "Passengers may get off now, we'll take a five minutes cigarette break."

One of the passengers, Adina-Nicoleta B, told the newspaper: "I couldn't believe my ears when I heard the announcement about the cigarette break.

"We were not travelling by bus. It was supposed to be a fast train but it stopped in the middle of nowhere and people led by the driver went out to have a smoke."

Railway officials said the engine driver admitted making the stop but claimed there were technical reasons for it.

However, they admitted the driver should not have let passengers off the train and he faces disciplinary action.

Police travel 20 miles to move bin

A policeman was sent 20 miles to tell a woman to move her dustbin.

Debbie Allen put the bin outside her house to keep a parking space while she went shopping.

She moved it when she returned and parked her car in the spot reports The Sun.

Later a policeman called at her house in response to a complaint from a neighbour. He explained he had made a 20-mile round trip from Newquay to St Agnes in Cornwall to deal with the problem.

He warned Debbie that she would be fined if she carried on leaving her bin in the roadway.

Debbie said: "You can never get the police when you need them - yet they sent someone all that way just because of my bin. I put it out because we live on an estate and a lot of people park opposite our house.

"When I go shopping with the kids it's difficult to unload the car and keep an eye on them so I try to keep the spot free.

"I've probably only done it on a dozen occasions but obviously someone didn't like it and reported me. To be fair to the policeman he seemed to be embarrassed at having to come all this way just for a bin.

"But he warned me I could be done for obstructing the highway, even though my Vauxhall was parked between two other cars. It wasn't even blocking the roadway."

Conkers seized by police

A policeman stopped and searched four children - for having conkers.

The children were issued with forms informing them why they were stopped from knocking the conkers from the tree.

Diana Jayne told how she and seven-year-old son Kiya went back to the tree in Littlehampton, West Sussex, the next day - and were confronted by the same policeman.

Diana, 41, said she was told the tree had a preservation order and was on private property.

The local council later confessed neither was true.

According to The Sun she said: "The kids were only throwing sticks up into the tree - it was harmless fun."

Rebecca Richardson, 36, whose son Charlie, 11, was also issued with a form, said: "I thought it was a joke."

Sussex Police confirmed: "We confiscated a large bag of conkers. The forms are a necessary form of bureaucracy to ensure parents are aware we have spoken to their children."

Alleged burglar does laundry, gets pizza

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - A burglar who made himself at home after a break-in overstayed his visit, police said.

Larcellus Angelo Scott, 23, had ordered a pizza and was doing a load of laundry Wednesday when Denise Bealessio returned home from work.

Bealessio, 51, arrived just as the pizza did. She turned the delivery driver away and was met inside the door by Scott.

Scott attacked, but Bealessio was able to escape unharmed. A neighbor called police, who found Scott rummaging through Bealessio's purse. He had written one of Bealessio's checks to pay for the pizza.

He was arrested on suspicion of burglary, robbery and forgery and was being held Friday in Kern County Jail in lieu of $85,000 bail.

Scott used to live next door, Bealessio said.

Headmaster to breathalyse pupils

The principal of a Romanian high school is to buy a breathalyser to test students and teachers in the morning.

Principal Ruben Filimon, of Mihai Viteazul High School, in Oradea, Bihor country, said he noticed many students, and also teachers, appeared to be "very tired" when they come to school.

He said the penalties for those who are caught off-guard will be a one day suspension and "a surprise anti hang-over lesson".

Man locks himself in cage with lion

A Chinese man has locked himself in a cage with a lion to raise public awareness of the 'pain of isolation'.

Ye Fu and his assistant entered the four metre high, three metre wide iron cage at Qingdao Wildlife Park, reports China Daily.

The duo plan to stay in the cage for 10 days without talking. Like the lion, they will eat raw beef and drink tap water.

Last year, Ye Fu, who describes himself as an artist and poet, spent a month in a huge bird nest outside a high-rise in Beijing.

Man wears cardboard box at Pa. hearing

GREENSBURG, Pa. - A man accused of theft arrived for a preliminary hearing wearing a cardboard box on his head in an effort to conceal his identity.

Justin Michael Kalich, 26, wore the box at the suggestion of his lawyer while he waited outside a judge's office for an appointment Thursday morning.

"I'm trying to think outside of the box, so to speak," attorney Jeff Leonard said.

Leonard said the move was prompted by concerns over whether a witness would be able to identify his client in connection with a July theft of reel wire.

The witness might see a photo lineup before his client went into the courtroom for a hearing, he added.

"This was kind of a simple way to force the commonwealth to meet its burden without the defendant having to reveal his identity," Leonard said.

Charges were dropped at the hearing when Kalich reached an agreement to pay for the wire, valued at less than $600, according to Leonard and police.

Man spends 4 hours in hole

A pensioner who was trapped upside down in a hole for four hours was rescued after a postie saw his feet sticking out.

Albert Hughes, 70, was trying to adjust the water flow to his garden sprinklers when he fell head first into the narrow shaft housing the water meter.

When postwoman Janelle Maury called to deliver letters, she saw his boots and heard his cries for help.

According to the Mirror she said: "His feet were at ground level but that was all I could see. When I was closer I could see he was down there.

"I just couldn't believe he was upside down for that long."

The emergency services arrived but couldn't pull him out by hand.

Firemen put a tripod over the hole, attached a rope and straps to his feet and winched him out of the pit at his home in Spokane in America's Washington state.

He was released later that day from hospital uninjured.