Strange & Stupid: Amusing News

Franklin, MA– A 3-year-old boy was doing what all boys do yesterday afternoon…digging in his yard for buried treasure. But he did something that most boys do not: he found it.
Ryan Baima found wedding rings lost by the original home owners 33 years ago. They were lost in 1976 and belong to retired school teacher Joan Mulligan.
Mom helped Ryan to return the rings to their rightful owner. “She said, ‘I think I have something that belongs to you.’ And immediately it flashed through my mind that’s what it was. I couldn’t believe it,” said Mulligan, who lost the rings when she was gardening.
“I gave (Ryan) $50 in multiple bills and he was in the house throwing it up in the air and going, ‘Woo!” Mulligan told WCVB.
Mulligan said she will have her long-lost rings repaired in time for her 50th wedding anniversary next year.

Three more quit over Nutt sacking

[The Register, read article here]

Usually people just throw out their placentas. Some choose to eat it (they are usually otherwise raw vegans), but I don’t think anyone’s ever tried to make a teddy bear out of it….UNTIL NOW.

British designer Alex Green is taking people’s placentas and turning them into teddy bears. According to parenting site Inhabitots , the teddy bear is a “crafty alternative for those who don’t necessarily want to eat their baby’s placenta , but want to pay their respects to the life-sustaining organ by turning it into a one-of-a-kind teddy bear. Green’s Twin Teddy Kit ‘celebrates the unity of the infant, the mother and the placenta,’ and enables preparation of the placenta so it may be transformed into a teddy bear.”

Green said that the placenta must first be cured with salt to kill the bacteria and remove water. He then softens it with eggs and tannins. Once the placenta is prepared, he sews it into the shape of the bear and fills it with brown rice.

“It’s more heavy than you’d imagine — they’re more the sort of thing that you’d stick on a mantel pieces,” Green told ABC. “It feels soft, somewhere between leather and suede but it’s much more flexible than leather — it’s bendy.”

Green knows that his idea isn’t for everyone. “Of course a lot of people feel it’s grotesque,” said Green. “But, quite a few women have expressed interest in making them.”

Network Rail is transporting 200 staffers on busses from Reading to Coventry for a conference because train tickets are too expensive. The company is saving £24,000 by opting for the bus over rail travel.

If open return tickets were bought for all the staff it could cost up to £27,000 - £135 each. But coach travel, at £12 a head, will cost just £2,400.

The firm said it made no apologies for getting the “best value” for taxpayers.

Network Rail said it looks at cheaper options for journeys as part of cost-cutting, as its workers do not get free travel or discounts.

A spokesman added: “Whilst we have no role in setting train fares, we use rail for the overwhelming number of business journeys.

“Occasionally, if there is a cheaper alternative, we will use that.”

MILWAUKEE—An army reservist was in for a surprise after being mugged at gunpoint in an alley this weekend.
The 21-yr-old student was forced to the ground at about 1:15 a, and let back up a wallet, keys, and cell phone lighter. But they didn’t get far before turning around and returning the wallet with apologies and thank yous for his service.

[And here I quote from the Boston Globe:]The reservist says one robber gave him a quick fist bump before walking away.

Lawmakers in Kyrgyzstan voted Wednesday to reject a United Nations protocol banning the death penalty in a move sharply criticised by human rights activists.

The decision not to adopt the optional protocol to the 1989 UN covenant on civil rights signals that the former Soviet nation may be set to reverse recent reforms that led to the removal of the death penalty from its statute books.

Kyrgyzstan, an impoverished, predominantly Muslim Central Asian nation, imposed a moratorium on executions in 1998 and abolished the death penalty in its 2007 constitution.

But the rejection of the UN protocol could lead to reinstatement of the death penalty. Backers say capital punishment would help combat crime and save the government money spent on prisoners serving life sentences.

Reiko Aoyama, who is lingerie maker Triumph’s image girl for 2010, holds the new Nice Cup in Bra, designed to appeal to Japan’s busy golfing women.

The green corset-style garment can be removed and unrolled to create a 1.5-meter-long putting mat. When the user sinks a putt into one of the cups, a built-in speaker pumps out a congratulatory “Nice shot!” The bra also features pockets for extra golf balls and tees, and a detachable flag pin that serves as a score pencil. The bra set comes with a skirt with the words “Be Quiet” printed on the rear, which doubles up as a flag for use on the course.

A 19-yr-old creeper lured 2 9 yr-old girls into a play house promising htem chocolate cake.
But when they got into the house, there was none.
What was there was an empty wine bottle, sitting in the center of an empty circle on the floor.
The “man,” 17 at the time of the incident, threatened to shoot the girls with a nail gun if they did not proceed to play strip spin the bottle.
He plead not guilty, but was charged anyways. GOOD.

Portland, Oregon reigns when it comes to homebrews, yet there are still some people trying to make their mark in the already saturated market. The 80 men that set to work this weekend may just have the trick: strange, strange ingredients.

A well known homebrewer by the name Michael Brown teaches classes at F.H. Steinbart, my kinda supply store. They are free, and people make the sweetest concotions.
“By brewing your own, you can make just the beer you want,” Brown said. “When was the last time you saw an ordinary bitter on tap in a pub? When did you last see a 60-shilling Scottish ale or a peanut butter porter?”

He knows odd brews because he’s made beers with ingredients such as ham and cheese; Bac-O-Bits; peanut butter and chocolate; and Nutella. His CXI Pumpernickel Ale is the 11th anniversary Widmer/ Oregon Brew Crew Collaborator beer, and yes, pumpernickel bread is an ingredient.

I WANT PEANUT BUTTER BEER! (I could do without the bacos, I think, though I’ve heard good things about the bacon martini)

Feeling fat, ugly and unlovable after your most recent breakup? Think no one will ever care for you again? Too old for young romance?
Don’t feel alone…don’t BE alone.
Head on down to the DIVORCE FAIR!

It’s happening right now in Paris.
What one old bag had to say about it:”I need to boost my self-confidence a bit more. I need someone to tell me whether or not my look reflects my personality.”
You, too, can get a makeover, a wardrobe counsel, and much, much more at the first ever (hopefully annual) Divorce, Separation and Bereavement fair in Paris. Highlights include legal and financial advice, seduction tips, and liposuction.

Guaranteed at least forty people cry during their weekend one-offs.