Don't Panic! Lighten Up!S


Mr. Potato

Ireland: Burglar Caught Out by Leaving Phone Behind

Aoife Nic Ardghail
Irish Independent
Sat, 05 Dec 2009 03:00 UTC
A burglar was caught after leaving his phone at a crime scene and ringing it while looking for its return.

Garda John Ryan picked up the call on Paul Cullen's phone, pretending to be the house owner, and arranged to meet the 30-year-old drug addict to give it back.

Cullen, of Clonmacnoise Road, Crumlin, apologised on the phone to Gda Ryan, believing him to be house owner Mark O'Connor.

He told him the burglary and subsequent assault wasn't his idea.
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Newspaper

UK: Drunk Police Officer Arrested at Her Own Police Station


Metro
Thu, 03 Dec 2009 07:00 UTC
Image
© Metro
A policewoman was arrested for drink-driving at the station where she worked after turning up inebriated, a court has heard.

Philippa Evans was breathalysed after arriving 'dishevelled' and telling a colleague 'I'm still p****d', the hearing was told.

The 42-year-old kept alcohol in her locker and sometimes drank cider before going on duty, it was claimed.

Evans, who is based in Milton Keynes and lives in Wolverton, Buckinghamshire, had denied drink-driving in December last year but was found guilty.

She was banned from driving for 20 months and told to pay £905 in fines and costs at Aylesbury magistrates' court.
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Pumpkin

Germany: Christmas Tree Strikes Back


Daily Express
Tue, 01 Dec 2009 08:00 UTC
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© Europics.atThe Christmas tree came crashing down because of the high winds
A giant Christmas tree came crashing down onto the car of this unlucky fella.

The Christmas tree was toppled by high winds in Berlin, Germany, and came crashing down on top of Uwe Klein's Volkswagen Golf.

The 45-year-old reported the damage to local police - and then cut the tree down to size and drove it home.

He told the Austrian Times: "I thought I might as well at least get something out of it.
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Binoculars

UK: Man on "Chicken-Licking" Charge


BBC News
Fri, 04 Dec 2009 14:12 UTC
A former shelf-stacker who was allegedly filmed licking raw chickens at an Asda supermarket in Preston has been charged with criminal damage.

Adeel Ayub, 30, of Spinney Brow, is accused of putting the chickens back on shelves, slashing colleagues' coats and smashing eggs.

He was charged after police were given mobile phone footage which appeared to show a worker committing the offenses.

He is due before Preston Magistrates on 15 December.
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Mr. Potato

'Face of Virgin Mary' Discovered on Thanksgiving Pancake


Daily Mail
Thu, 03 Dec 2009 10:19 UTC
Image
© SplashSimply divine: Bianca Lopez claims to have found the face of the Virgin Mary on her pancake
When a US woman began making pancakes for her family before the Thanksgiving holiday she was hoping they would be divine.

But Bianca Lopez got slightly more than she bargained for when she discovered what she claims is the face of the Virgin Mary imprinted on the savoury treat.

And she says that the holy image encrusted in batter has brought her family peace and comfort.

Lopez, from Glendale, Arizona came across the 'Thanksgiving miracle' when she made her very last pancake from the batch.
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Newspaper

First Church of Tiger Woods Disbands After Furore


Independent Online
Fri, 04 Dec 2009 00:16 UTC
Image
© Flickr
The transgressions of Tiger Woods have proved too much to take for one of the golf superstar's most fanatical fans, who is now disbanding a church set up in praise of the sports icon.

John Ziegler, the pastor of the First Church of Tiger Woods, has announced in a statement on the blog that the organization is being dissolved because of the golfer's "personal sins".

The church, whose home page has now been renamed The Damnation of Tiger Woods, was launched by radio host Ziegler in 1996 to "celebrate the emergence of the 'true messiah'".

However, the lurid revelations that have swirled around Woods since last week have left Ziegler so disenchanted that he is now ending his church, which has its own Prayer for Tiger and Ten Tiger Commandments.
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Info

Symbolism? -- Snake eats its own tail

Jonathan Liew
Telegraph
Tue, 01 Dec 2009 18:49 UTC
Image
A pet snake required emergency veterinary surgery after it attempted to eat his own tail.

Reggie, a 3ft kingsnake, almost had to be put down when it mistook its tail for another snake and took a bite, but found itself unable to regurgitate the tail due to its backward-facing teeth.

The snake's owner was only alerted when it began to choke. Reggie was rushed to Seers Croft Veterinary Centre in Faygate, West Sussex, where exotic reptiles expert Bob Reynolds prised open its mouth, dislocated its jaw and removed the tail before it had been digested.
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Heart

Best of the Web: Nana Mouskouri - Song for Liberty


YouTube
Wed, 02 Dec 2009 15:19 UTC
When you sing I'm singing with you liberty
When you cry I cry with you in sorrow
When you suffer I'm praying for you liberty
For your struggles will bring us a new tomorrow
Days of sad darkness and fear must one day crumble
For the force of your kindness and love make them tremble
When you sing I'm singing with you liberty
In the void of your absence I keep searching for you
Who are you dream illusion or just reality
Faith ideal desire revolution
I believe you're the symbol of our humanity
Lighting up the world for eternity
I can see why men die to defend you
Try to guard to protect and attend you
When you sing I'm singing with you liberty
With your tears or your joys I love you
Let us sing and rejoice make our own history
Songs of hope with one voice guide us to victory
Liberty, Liberty
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Telephone

California: Wrong Number Miracle

Eric S. Page
NBC San Diego
Mon, 30 Nov 2009 13:18 UTC
Image
© NBC
Mom was going to miss mortgage payment if she sent daughter money

Virginia Saenz could hear the desperation in the voice of the telephone message. It was 5 a.m. on the day before Thanksgiving, and the caller, Lucy Crutchfield, was trying to tell her daughter that she'd send money for groceries -- but she'd have to miss a mortgage payment to do it.

But Crutchfield dialed the wrong number. Instead of getting her daughter, she got Saenz, a real estate agent from the San Diego suburb of Tierrasanta.

"I know right now we are all struggling," Saenz said. "Lisa on the phone, she sounded so desperate for her daughter, it broke my heart."

Saenz did the only thing she could think of -- she called Crutchfield back and said not to worry. Crutchfield would pay the mortgage, and Saenz would handle the groceries.
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Binoculars

India: Man Moves Mountain to Park Truck


news.com.au
Tue, 01 Dec 2009 04:48 UTC
An Indian villager used a hammer and chisel over the span of 14 years to carve a tunnel through a rocky mountain so that he could park his truck in front of his house.

"I could not park my truck near my house since the mountain blocked my path," Ramchandra Das, 53, who lives in eastern Bihar state's Gaya district, said.

Mr Das said fear of thieves stealing his truck prompted him to work on the tunnel all by himself after authorities refused help.

"I had to leave my truck miles away, so I decided to do something about it myself," Mr Das said by telephone.

Local villagers, who had to trek for miles to get around the mountain are using the 14ft wide tunnel to reach their farms, and praising Mr Das for his work.
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