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Family

UK: Unborn Baby Gives "Thumbs Up" from the Womb

Liz Hull
The Daily Mail
Fri, 21 May 2010 12:37 UTC
Image
© MEN SyndicationMarie Boswell was stunned by her unborn son's 'thumbs-up' sign snapped in her 20-week scan at Wythenshawe Hospital, Manchester
Most expectant mothers hope medics will reassure them about their baby's health when they go for their routine scan.

But Marie Boswell's baby boy wanted to tell his mummy himself that he was doing fine in her tummy. As these amazing pictures show, the little fellow gave Miss Boswell the thumbs up when she went for her 20-week check.

The 35-year-old said she couldn't stop laughing when the picture of her son came up on the screen at Wythenshawe Hospital, Manchester.

'It was really funny, I went to the scan with my friend and my mum and we were all just laughing,' she said.' He was giving us the thumbs up, it was just so clear. We couldn't believe it.

'I have big hands, but nothing on the scale of his - he looks like he's wearing boxing gloves. We're thinking he might make a good goalkeeper.

'I've never seen a scan like this before - but we love it.
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Binoculars

Louisiana, US: Man Tells Police God Told Him to Walk Naked


The Associated Press
Thu, 20 May 2010 18:19 UTC
A man who told police that God told him to walk the streets naked to save his soul has been arrested.

Thibodaux police responded to an obscenity complaint around 2 a.m. Thursday and found Shafiq Mohamed walking nude down the street.

When approached, Mohamed reportedly told officers that "America raped him" and added God told him to walk the streets naked to save his soul.

Mohamed was taken into custody and charged with obscenity. He was booked into the Lafourche Parish Detention Center where he awaited bail.
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Binoculars

Australia: Ninjas Rescue Student from Muggers


Reuters
Thu, 20 May 2010 11:00 UTC
Ninjas are not known for having a soft side, but a group of warriors came to the rescue of a student in Sydney who was being viciously assaulted by muggers.

Ninjas scared off three men who were attacking a 27-year-old German medical exchange student in an alleyway outside their warrior school, the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported on Wednesday.

One of the teachers saw the attack and instructed the students, who were decked out in their black garb, to go out and confront the muggers.

"You should have seen their faces when they saw us in ninja gear coming toward them," the school's sensei, or master, Kaylan Soto, told the newspaper.
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Book

George Washington's Library Book Returned 221 Years Late


Reuters
Thu, 20 May 2010 10:59 UTC
Image
© AP Photo
A library book borrowed by the first U.S. president, George Washington, has been returned to a New York City's oldest library, 221 years late.

Washington checked out the book from the New York Society Library at a time when the library shared a building with the federal government in lower Manhattan.

The library said in a statement that its borrowing records, or charging ledger, showed Washington took out The Law of Nations by Emer de Vattel on October 5, 1789.

The book was not returned, nor any overdue book fine paid -- with the overdue fee now calculated at about $300,000.
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Book

SOTT Focus: Satire: Leaked Reports Declare Obama's Unwritten Novel Wins the Lost Man Booker Prize

Ignatious O'Reilly
Sott.net
Fri, 14 May 2010 08:18 UTC
Obama book
© unknownObama shares ideas for his new book with critics
London - Leaked reports reveal that on Wednesday, début Hawaiian novelist Barack Hussein Obama II, 49, will win the Lost Man Booker Prize, one of the world's most prestigious literary awards, with "No Peace for the wicked!". It will be the first time in it's 41-year history that an unwritten book will claim the award.

He will receive a designer bound copy of his novel (once it is published) at a gala dinner in London and can expect not only overnight literary fame but also a sharp rise in much needed popularity he has lost in the run-up to House of Representatives and Senate elections.

The Lost Man Booker Prize is a one-off prize to honour the books which missed out on the opportunity to win the Booker Prize in 1970.

To pre-empt any potential controversy, Booker organizers have announced that they have a written certificate dated 1970 that clearly shows Obama had an intention to write a book about peace one day. The organizers have stated however, that this certificate will never be released to the public and they should just take their word for it.
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Smiley

Yeilding for Grammar

Terri Russell
KOLO-TV
Tue, 11 May 2010 13:30 UTC
Yeah, we know "yield" is misspelled... but does Sparks?

UPDATE: The misspelled signs along Vista Boulevard have been fixed to properly spell "yield."


Sparks, Nevada - Construction on the expansion of Vista Boulevard into Spanish Springs is well underway. If you drive it we don't have to tell you about the lower speed limits, cones, and construction equipment. There is one sign you may have missed, but we suspect you'll "yield" to it anyway.
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Smiley

Council send vote registration letter to woman's pet pig


Telegraph.co.uk
Wed, 12 May 2010 10:14 UTC
A local council sent a letter to a woman's pet pig offering the animal the chance to register for a vote in last week's election.

The letters were addressed to Blossom Grant at Pig Flats - the creature's old sty in Uckfield, East Sussex.

The building was renovated two years ago house volunteers at a local horse rescue centre, and due to a Land Registry error the pig receives several junk letters a month.

Pauline Grant, 73, Blossom's owner, said: "I could not believe it when the letter telling Blossom to register to vote came through it was one of the strangest things I had ever seen.

"I am not sure who Blossom would have voted for but at a guess I would say the Green Party. They would probably look after her needs best.

"She is a very clever animal but I think politics might be a bit complicated for her."

After contacting Wealden District Council bosses to point out the mix-up, Mrs Grant decided to take Blossom down to her nearest polling station on May 6.
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Arrow Down

Regular Storms, Not Perfect Storms : A Nightmare on Wallstreet


The comedy Central
Mon, 10 May 2010 00:00 UTC
The DOW plunging 700 points is blamed on a perfect storm that, for some reason, takes place every two weeks.
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Book

AU: Physicist spots dictionary error


United Press International
Wed, 12 May 2010 14:06 UTC
An Australian physicist said publishers of the Oxford English Dictionary agreed to fix a 99-year-old definition error he discovered during research.

Dr. Stephen Hughes of the University of Technology in Brisbane said he was researching an article for science teachers when he discovered an error in the definition of "siphon," The Daily Telegraph reported Wednesday.

He said the definition falsely claims siphons work due to atmospheric pressure when it is actually gravity that performs the function.
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Smiley

UK: Pig received voter registration reminder


United Press International
Wed, 12 May 2010 13:52 UTC
Pig oink_01
© PopArtUK
A British woman said her pet pig received a letter from officials encouraging it to register to vote in the general election.

Pauline Grant, 73, of Uckfield, England, said her pig, Blossom, receives several pieces of junk mail each month due to a Land Registry error when her building was renovated two years ago and the animal recently received a notice reminding her to register to vote in last week's election, The Daily Telegraph reported Wednesday.
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