News of the Weird: It’s come to this
Sure, the Indianapolis 500 is loud and dangerous, but after 100-plus years of racing, you might not be faulted for stifling a big yawn before the cars cross the finish line. But fear not! On May 23, six Wienermobiles competed in the first-ever Wienie 500, KTLA-TV reported. Each Wienermobile will represent a regional hot dog, to wit: The Chi Dog (Midwest), the New York Dog (East Coast), the Slaw Dog (Southeast), the Sonoran Dog (Southwest), the Chili Dog (South) and the Seattle Dog (Northwest). A finish-line celebration in the “Wiener’s Circle” included a condiment spray for the champion.
Oops!
More than 12,000 chicks that had been shipped out from Freedom Ranger Hatchery in Pennsylvania to clients across the country were discovered in early May abandoned in a USPS truck, the Associated Press reported. The turkey, geese, chicken and quail chicks were found at a Camden, Delaware, distribution center. They had been in the truck for three days without food or water, and some had perished. The surviving chicks were delivered to First State Animal Center and SPCA, where a few hundred were adopted out. Executive director John Parana said the agency is struggling financially to take care of the birds.
Awesome!
As of May 18, Landerneau, France, holds the distinction of being home to the largest gathering of people dressed as Smurfs, United Press International reported. Perhaps because of excitement about an upcoming Smurfs movie, the town gathered 3,076 costumed people together, breaking a record set in Germany in 2019. “Schtroumpfs,” as they are known in France, were created by Belgian cartoonist Pierre Culliford.
That rule doesn’t apply to me
A couple in Great Abington, Cambridgeshire, England, are distraught after being caught in a scheme to build their dream home, the Daily Mail reported. Jeremy and Elaine Zielinski were approved to build a two-story commercial building on 17 acres for a horse semen collection center and laboratory, but instead they constructed a three-bedroom home. When the local council found out, the planning inspector issued an order to demolish the home within 12 months. The Zielinskis told the council that the COVID-19 pandemic had ruined their business, so they switched gears to turn the property into their home. “It doesn’t make sense to tear it down,” Elaine said. “I don’t want to go and live in a caravan.” She said she and her husband didn’t know that converting the property would be illegal. But the inspector dismissed their appeals, saying it had been built as a house from the start. The Zielinskis are seeking legal advice.
Hello? 1973 calling
Ashlee Roberts, 37, of Ypsilanti, Michigan, has been stewing over a flood of prank calls she’s received, the Detroit Free Press reported on May 21. Turns out Roberts’ number was posted on a wall at Cedar Point amusement park in Ohio, and people waiting in line for the Cedar Creek Mine ride are dialing her up. Roberts said at first it was funny, but now it’s “getting a little old.” After the Free Press contacted Cedar Point, a spokesman said they would try to address the issue.
Smooth reaction
- Andrew Smith was fishing on Pensacola Beach in Florida on May 15 when a frantic girl ran up to him and asked if he could swim, WSVN-TV reported. Her friend was being sucked out by a rip current, but Smith doesn’t swim. He does, however, use a drone to set bait for sharks. Thinking fast, Smith attached a flotation device to the drone and sent it out over the water. “I flew it out and it was a terrible miss,” he said. “I released it too early.” A bystander gave him another flotation device, and this time he took his time and waited until the girl had grabbed it before releasing it. EMS and lifeguards told Smith if the girl hadn’t had the floater, she wouldn’t have made it. She was checked out and sent home, and her father called Smith a “guardian angel.” “It was pretty crazy,” Smith said.
- Also in Florida (because, where else?), a tiki boat captain came to the rescue of a drunken patron of TT’s Tiki Bar in Punta Gorda after the man jumped over a railing into the water, hitting the rocks below and bloodying himself dramatically. WMUR-TV reported that on May 17, as Cole Kelly steered a karaoke cruise, he saw a man struggling in the water. “It was apparent that he was bleeding really badly,” Kelly said. “He had a terrible wound on his hand. He wasn’t very coherent.” Police said the man had jumped over the railing to impress his friends and landed on rocks along the shoreline. “This is now the craziest thing that’s happened on the boat,” Kelly said.
Bright idea
Guards at a prison in Costa Rica caught a mule … er, a cat that was ferrying more than 230 grams of marijuana and 67 grams of crack cocaine in early May, the CBS News reported. A guard spotted the tiny black-and-white feline after it jumped over a periphery fence; after it was caught, packages were cut away from its fur. The courier was turned over to the National Animal Health Service for evaluation.
Field report
On May 15, swimmer and environmental advocate Lewis Pugh set out on a special mission: To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the movie “Jaws,” Pugh is hoping to urge people not to view sharks as monsters but as part of a healthy ocean ecosystem. The Martha’s Vineyard Times reported that Pugh is planning to swim all the way around the island, where “Jaws” was filmed — about 60 miles — in 11 or 12 days. “I’m frightened of sharks,” Pugh said, “but I’m more terrified of a world without them. We need a new narrative about these magnificent animals.”
Queen
Olivia Jaquith co-anchors the WRGB-TV morning news in Albany, New York, with Julia Dunn, United Press International reported. On May 21, the pair shared some truly breaking news: At 4:15 a.m., Jaquith’s water had broken, but she went to work, and the show went on with her in the anchor seat. Jaquith, who was two days past her due date, said it was “early labor” and her contractions were far apart, but she headed to the hospital after the broadcast.
News you can use
In 1946, Harvard Law School spent a whopping $27.50 on what it thought was a copy of the Magna Carta, Sky News reported on May 15. It was dated as being made in 1327 under King Edward III. Fast-forward to 2023, when professor of medieval history David Carpenter saw the document on Harvard’s website and realized it might be an original. Further examinations revealed that the Harvard version was indeed an original, dating from 1300 and issued by King Edward I. As such, it’s worth millions of dollars — but Harvard isn’t selling. The Magna Carta was established in 1215; there are four of that original issue and seven of the 1300 version, including Harvard’s. Carpenter, of King’s College London, said he was astonished “that Harvard had been sitting on it for all these years without realizing what it was.”
— distributed by Andrews McMeel Syndication
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