http://www.mail.com/subjects/7606-oddities.html Mail.com - the best personalized free web-based Email en en http://sec-s.uicdn.com/mail.com/2.28/img/mailcom_logo_rss.png http://www.mail.com/subjects/7606-oddities.html http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2099814-thailand-urged-to-explore-edible-insect-market.html BANGKOK (AP) — Researchers say Thailand is showing the world how to respond to the global food crisis: by raising bugs for eating. The United Nations' Food and Agricultural Organization released a study and handbook Tuesday on what they call 'six-legged livestock' — edible bugs and worms that can help meet global food demand that is expected to grow 60 pe... Tue, 21 May 2013 12:22:39 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2099814-thailand-urged-to-explore-edible-insect-market.html 2013-05-21T12:22:39Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2097648-ferris-wheel-ride-world-record-broken-chicago.html CHICAGO (AP) — A manager of Chicago's Navy Pier rode the tourist spot's Ferris wheel for more than two days — 384 times, up and around — bringing the world record for the longest ride to the birthplace of the amusement park favorite. "I thought Chicago should have that title," Clinton Shepherd said after finishing his record-breaking ride on Sunday. Sheph... Mon, 20 May 2013 19:24:19 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2097648-ferris-wheel-ride-world-record-broken-chicago.html 2013-05-20T19:24:19Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2093312-funeral-bicycle-hearse-1-ride.html EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — An Oregon funeral home in Eugene offers natural burials where the ride to the person's final resting place is on the back of a three-wheeled bicycle. Sunset Hills Cemetery and Funeral Home director Wade Lind says he got the idea from bikers and designed the pedal-powered hearse himself. It has an electric motor to give him a little hel... Fri, 17 May 2013 16:00:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2093312-funeral-bicycle-hearse-1-ride.html 2013-05-17T16:00:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2092896-birth-anteater-conn-zoo-staff-puzzled.html GREENWICH, Conn. (AP) — An anteater has given birth at a Connecticut conservation center, prompting officials there to wonder how the mother conceived. Officials at the LEO Zoological Conservation Center tell the Greenwich Time (http://bit.ly/14wsum4 ) they had removed the only male anteater from the enclosure in August, long before the six-month gestatio... Fri, 17 May 2013 12:47:29 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2092896-birth-anteater-conn-zoo-staff-puzzled.html 2013-05-17T12:47:29Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2092436-alaska-man-runs-frozen-lake-to-avoid-jail.html ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Anchorage police say a young man who didn't want to return to jail ran out onto the uncertain ice of an Alaska lake to escape officers armed with an arrest warrant. Police spokeswoman Dani Myren says officers were sufficiently concerned about the thickness of the ice covering Cheney lake that none of them wanted to venture onto it... Fri, 17 May 2013 05:26:30 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2092436-alaska-man-runs-frozen-lake-to-avoid-jail.html 2013-05-17T05:26:30Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2092394-aussie-minister-liked-exposed-teen-pic.html SYDNEY (AP) — An Australian politician says he has learned a valuable lesson in social networking after he "liked" a Facebook photo without realizing that it showed a teenage prankster exposing himself. Western Australia Minister for Education Peter Collier said he clicked the "like" button under what he thought was an innocent photo of the then-16-year-o... Fri, 17 May 2013 04:46:32 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2092394-aussie-minister-liked-exposed-teen-pic.html 2013-05-17T04:46:32Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2090428-exhibition-secretly-shot-photos-upsets-nyers.html NEW YORK (AP) — Residents of a New York luxury apartment building are livid over an exhibition of photos secretly snapped through their apartment windows. Photographer Arne Svenson pointed his camera at the oversized windows of the Tribeca (try-BEHK'-uh) building from his second-floor apartment across the street. The images show residents doing mundane th... Thu, 16 May 2013 14:38:17 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2090428-exhibition-secretly-shot-photos-upsets-nyers.html 2013-05-16T14:38:17Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2090188-wash-woman-spots-stolen-car-drive-thru.html KENNEWICK, Wash. (AP) — A Washington woman whose car was stolen from her apartment complex saw the stolen SUV hours later — in the drive-thru of the McDonald's restaurant where she works. The Tri-City Herald reports (http://bit.ly/11H2tDS ) Virginia Maiden called police Tuesday after seeing her SUV in the drive-thru. Officers arrested the driver, a 22-yea... Thu, 16 May 2013 13:23:55 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2090188-wash-woman-spots-stolen-car-drive-thru.html 2013-05-16T13:23:55Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2089378-coin-tossing-breaks-tie-philippine-mayoral-race.html MANILA, Philippines (AP) — What do you do when two candidates running for mayor in the Philippines get exactly the same number of votes? You get them to toss a coin. Marvic Feraren and Boyet Py both received 3,236 votes for mayor of San Teodoro town in Mindoro Oriental province in Monday's elections. The Elections Commissions suggested the two men flip a ... Thu, 16 May 2013 05:06:01 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2089378-coin-tossing-breaks-tie-philippine-mayoral-race.html 2013-05-16T05:06:01Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2088828-deer-smashes-pa-bus-windshield-takes-short-ride.html JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (AP) — A deer has taken a ride on a western Pennsylvania bus. The Johnstown Tribune-Democrat newspaper (http://bit.ly/14nGOx0) reports the white-tailed deer crashed through the windshield of a public bus being driven Tuesday evening in Johnstown, about 65 miles east of Pittsburgh. The deer hopped around frantically near ... Wed, 15 May 2013 22:42:07 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2088828-deer-smashes-pa-bus-windshield-takes-short-ride.html 2013-05-15T22:42:07Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2087306-students-ghana-launch-mini-satellite.html KOFORIDUA, Ghana (AP) — Their project might not sound like much: The college students on Wednesday launched a tiny model of a satellite the size of a soda can on a big yellow balloon. It went aloft to a height of 165 meters (yards) and then came back down attached to a parachute. Yet in this developing West African country, ambitious organizers, —who rece... Wed, 15 May 2013 20:20:54 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2087306-students-ghana-launch-mini-satellite.html 2013-05-15T20:20:54Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/2087000-conn-chef-set-to-feast-cicadas-invasion.html NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) — Connecticut chef Bun Lai is already known for his Mexican grasshopper dish and his fried rice with meal worms and crickets. But he might soon also be recognized as the cicada chef. Lai, owner of Miya's Sushi, tells the New Haven Register (http://bit.ly/16eNZfy ) that he plans to fill a big freezer full of Brood II cicadas, once the... Wed, 15 May 2013 15:19:36 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/2087000-conn-chef-set-to-feast-cicadas-invasion.html 2013-05-15T15:19:36Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2087050-nh-city-sues-parking-meter-robin-hood-group.html KEENE, N.H. (AP) — The city of Keene, N.H., has sued a group that feeds change into parking meters that are about to expire, saying members are harassing enforcement officers. The group calls itself "Robin Hood of Keene." Members walk city streets with rolls and dimes of quarters to feed the meters. WMUR-TV reports (http://bit.ly/10Gn9VW) the city accuses... Wed, 15 May 2013 13:04:25 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2087050-nh-city-sues-parking-meter-robin-hood-group.html 2013-05-15T13:04:25Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2085930-stinky-corpse-flower-blooms-ohio.html COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A large rainforest plant known as a corpse flower because of its awful smell has bloomed again at an Ohio State University greenhouse, and there's more excitement because another corpse flower there is expected to open soon, a spokeswoman said. A 6-foot titan arum, nicknamed Woody after Buckeyes football coach Woody Hayes, opened Tue... Wed, 15 May 2013 04:07:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2085930-stinky-corpse-flower-blooms-ohio.html 2013-05-15T04:07:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2084008-man-charged-overnight-feast-ky-supermarket.html MOUNT WASHINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Authorities in Kentucky have charged a man who officers say had an overnight feast in a closed supermarket outside Louisville. The manager of a ValuMarket says he found 57 empty whipped cream cans in the garbage when he arrived Monday morning. WAVE-TV (http://bit.ly/15HQ8k7) in Louisville reported 30-year-old Trevor Runyon was... Tue, 14 May 2013 11:39:42 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2084008-man-charged-overnight-feast-ky-supermarket.html 2013-05-14T11:39:42Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2084002-wisconsin-boy-handwritten-response-biden.html MILWAUKEE (AP) — It might not be unusual for schoolchildren to write to the president or vice president. But one Wisconsin boy got an unexpectedly personal response. The 7-year-old, second-grade student at Downtown Montessori Academy wrote a letter to Vice President Joe Biden and other officials a few months ago with a simple idea for making the world saf... Tue, 14 May 2013 11:25:51 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2084002-wisconsin-boy-handwritten-response-biden.html 2013-05-14T11:25:51Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2083352-calif-man-who-fled-zombies-pleads-guilty.html TEMECULA, Calif. (AP) — A Tennessee man who stole a big-rig truck in California, caused several accidents and told investigators he was fleeing zombies when he did it has pleaded guilty to several felonies. U-T San Diego (http://bit.ly/17Yg8VO ) reports Jerimiah Hartline pleaded guilty Monday to assault with a deadly weapon, hit-and-run causing death or i... Tue, 14 May 2013 02:50:24 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2083352-calif-man-who-fled-zombies-pleads-guilty.html 2013-05-14T02:50:24Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2083262-ohio-awaits-bloom-stinky-corpse-flower.html COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Researchers at an Ohio State University greenhouse are awaiting a rare second bloom by a rainforest plant known as a corpse flower because of its unpleasant odor. The university says the nearly 6-foot titan arum is expected to open this week, releasing another round of its rotting-flesh smell a little more than two years after it fir... Tue, 14 May 2013 02:08:38 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2083262-ohio-awaits-bloom-stinky-corpse-flower.html 2013-05-14T02:08:38Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2083208-nypd-officer-tries-to-help-cat-tree-stuck.html NEW YORK (AP) — Authorities say a New York police officer who went after a cat stuck in a tree got caught himself and needed a little help getting back down to the ground. The Fire Department of New York says it happened Monday afternoon in Queens. A call came in that a man attempting to get a cat out of a tree had gotten stuck. Fire department personnel ... Tue, 14 May 2013 01:43:49 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2083208-nypd-officer-tries-to-help-cat-tree-stuck.html 2013-05-14T01:43:49Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/2081864-un-eat-insects-good-you-good-world.html ROME (AP) — The latest weapon in the U.N.'s fight against hunger, global warming and pollution might be flying by you right now. Edible insects are being promoted as a low-fat, high-protein food for people, pets and livestock. According to the U.N., they come with appetizing side benefits: Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and livestock pollution, creatin... Mon, 13 May 2013 15:14:46 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/2081864-un-eat-insects-good-you-good-world.html 2013-05-13T15:14:46Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2080674-ice-minn-lake-pushed-ashore-to-doorsteps.html LAKE MILLE LACS, Minn. (AP) — Strong winds have pushed huge ice sheets ashore at a northern Minnesota lake and right up to people's doorsteps. WCCO-TV reports that the ice from Lake Mille Lacs (MILL LAX) reached the doors and windows at the Izatys (eye-ZEHT'-ees) Resort on Saturday morning. National Weather Service Meteorologist Shawn Devinny says 30 to 4... Sun, 12 May 2013 21:41:07 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2080674-ice-minn-lake-pushed-ashore-to-doorsteps.html 2013-05-12T21:41:07Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/health/2077388-bold-turkey-woman-hits-cop-to-kick-smoking-habit.html SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Think you've heard of every way possible to quit smoking? Etta Mae Lopez came up with a new one: slap a cop and go to jail, where smoking isn't allowed. Lopez smacked Sacramento County sheriff's Deputy Matt Campoy in the face Tuesday as he left the main jail at the end of his shift. He grabbed her and took her inside the jail, wh... Fri, 10 May 2013 21:48:26 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/health/2077388-bold-turkey-woman-hits-cop-to-kick-smoking-habit.html 2013-05-10T21:48:26Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2076840-durango-colo-area-couple-up-catwalk-fight.html DURANGO, Colo. (AP) — A Durango area couple is giving up their fight to keep a 13-foot escape route for their cats outside their Colorado apartment. Martha Spence and her husband built the catwalk from a window to a nearby tree to allow their two cats to go outside from their second-floor unit whenever they wanted. The Durango Herald (http://bit.ly/YKl7Jb... Fri, 10 May 2013 15:39:45 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2076840-durango-colo-area-couple-up-catwalk-fight.html 2013-05-10T15:39:45Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/celebrity/2076284-celebrity-panda-center-thai-china-deal.html BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand's celebrity baby panda Lin Ping is almost 4 years old now. It's time to move to China, find a mate and have cubs. The move won't be permanent, however, thanks to a deal hammered out between the two countries that will cost Thailand $1 million a year, the Thai foreign minister said Friday. Once the star of a Thai reality show, the p... Fri, 10 May 2013 11:13:38 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/celebrity/2076284-celebrity-panda-center-thai-china-deal.html 2013-05-10T11:13:38Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2075480-ore-smokejumpers-skydive-illegal-pot-garden.html MEDFORD, Ore. (AP) — A team of smokejumpers parachuting into a fire in the mountains of Southern Oregon landed in an illegal marijuana garden being prepared for growing season. The six smokejumpers from a base in Redmond found the site Monday evening, when there was a rash of lightning strikes. Jackson County sheriff's spokeswoman Andrea Carlson says the ... Thu, 09 May 2013 23:20:28 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2075480-ore-smokejumpers-skydive-illegal-pot-garden.html 2013-05-09T23:20:28Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2073866-mass-panel-profanity-rappers-headstone.html LYNN, Mass. (AP) — Commissioners at a Massachusetts cemetery have said no to profanity on headstones. Sonny Santiago, 23, was a rapper who died in a car crash in February. Commissioners at Pine Grove Cemetery in Lynn this week unanimously rejected his family's request to inscribe his gravestone with a song verse that included profanity. ... Thu, 09 May 2013 15:14:08 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2073866-mass-panel-profanity-rappers-headstone.html 2013-05-09T15:14:08Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2071908-brazilian-woman-survives-harpoon-shooting.html RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — A 28-year-old woman miraculously survived after her husband accidentally shot her in the mouth with a harpoon, Brazilian officials said Wednesday. The Rio de Janeiro State Health Department said in a statement that the woman's husband was cleaning his spear gun when it went off, firing a harpoon that hit her cervical spine. Elisangel... Wed, 08 May 2013 22:22:49 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2071908-brazilian-woman-survives-harpoon-shooting.html 2013-05-08T22:22:49Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/2072142-scratch-and-sniff-cards-prompt-natural-gas-scare.html GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP) — Those scratch-and-sniff cards the energy company sends to customers to teach them to recognize the artificial smell added to natural gas? Turns out they work pretty well. Energy West general manager Nick Bohr tells the Great Falls Tribune (http://gftrib.com/18u3gYG ) that workers recently discarded several boxes of expired scratc... Wed, 08 May 2013 19:14:19 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/2072142-scratch-and-sniff-cards-prompt-natural-gas-scare.html 2013-05-08T19:14:19Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/2070888-kenya-co-turns-sandals-colorful-objects.html NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The colorful handmade giraffes, elephants and warthogs made in a Nairobi workshop were once only dirty pieces of rubber cruising the Indian Ocean's currents. Kenya's Ocean Sole sandal recycling company is cleaning the East African country's beaches of used, washed-up flip-flops and other sandals. About 45 workers in Nairobi make 100 ... Wed, 08 May 2013 15:35:24 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/2070888-kenya-co-turns-sandals-colorful-objects.html 2013-05-08T15:35:24Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/2070862-rodman-to-kim-do-solid-free-american.html SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Former NBA star Dennis Rodman is tapping his friendship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to ask for the release of a Korean-American man sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in the North. "I'm calling on the Supreme Leader of North Korea or as I call him 'Kim', to do me a solid and cut Kenneth Bae loose," Rodman said on Twitte... Wed, 08 May 2013 10:54:05 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/2070862-rodman-to-kim-do-solid-free-american.html 2013-05-08T10:54:05Z