Odd News... February 09

[Bungleau]

Road to driver's exam not easy street for S.Korean

SEOUL, South Korea – A woman in South Korea who has taken the written exam required for a driver's license nearly every day since 2005 has failed again — but is hoping attempt No. 772 will be the charm.

The aspiring driver took her first test in April 2005, according to Choi Young-chul, an official at the North Jeolla Province driver's license agency in Jeonju, 150 miles (240 kilometers) south of Seoul.

She has taken the test a record 771 times, most recently on Monday, but has yet to pass. She said she plans to take the test again but did not say when, he said Thursday.

The 68-year-old has spent 4 million won ($3,000) on fees for the test, he said. Applicants must score at least 60 on the written exam before they can get behind the wheel for a driving test. Choi says she's scored as high as 50.

"I feel sorry every time I see Cha fail. When she passes, I'll make a memorial tablet myself and give it to her," Park Jung-seok, a traffic police officer at the agency, told the Korea Times newspaper.

No other details about her identity were released other than her family name, Cha.
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Hmmmm... at 68, she hasn't been able to pass the written test in four years. I think that if she passes, tickets to see her take the road test could be pretty valuable...

[Bungleau]

Careful! These statues could get you pregnant

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – Starting a family might be a little easier with a trip to Ripley's Believe It or Not museum in Myrtle Beach. The museum on Thursday opens a monthlong display of its fertility statues.

The 5-foot tall wooden statues were acquired on the Ivory Coast of West Africa in 1993. The company says they were then placed in its corporate headquarters in Orlando, Fla., and within months, 13 women became pregnant.

The statues have since been on display around the world. According to the company, more than 2,000 women have reported becoming pregnant after touching the statues.

They will be on display at Ripley's through the first of March. The company says couples wanting to have a baby can touch the statues for free during business hours.
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Got some news for the ladies... you've got to do a *little* bit more than touch a statue...

That said, I'm not planning a trip to Myrtle Beach any time soon anyway...

[Bungleau]

On one hand, great tool for helping toilet train the kids.

On the other, great prank to play during parties... Everybody sing! "If you're happy and you know it, crap your pants"

:evilgrin:

[Bungleau]

Fla. man issued 50 traffic citations in one day

BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – Elvis has left the vehicle. A man was arrested on more than 50 traffic citations — all in one day. Police said Elvis Alonzo Barrett, 46, fled from police trying to stop him for a traffic violation Thursday morning. Police said he ran through red lights, crashed into another car and a fence. Police said they found crack cocaine and a crack pipe in his car.

Barrett faces several charges, including fleeing and eluding and reckless driving.

He was also issued more than 50 traffic citations on charges including speeding, running red lights, and not wearing a seat belt.

Police said Barrett has a lengthy criminal history and his driver license was suspended.

A phone number listed for him was not in service Thursday night.
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Does he get a volume discount?

[Bungleau]

Dung it! Who threw away my 7-year collection?

LONDON – A British university has apologized to a Ph.D. student for throwing away his treasured, seven-year collection of lizard dung. Daniel Bennett has told Times Higher Education magazine that he had collected the dung in the Philippines while studying the rare butaan lizard, a relative of the Komodo dragon. The material was to be studied as part of his doctoral research.

Bennett said the 77-pound bag was thrown away by cleaners at his lab at Leeds University in northern England. He says the dung represented seven years' worth of field work, and its loss "left me reeling."

The university said Friday it had apologized.

Bennett says he rejected the university's compensation offer of 500 pounds ($750) and will "see them in court."
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Was *THAT* what was in the box labeled "Keep for Students"?

I'm not sure how much value to place on a collection of seven years' worth of lizard droppings. I mean, it was more than that... it's all his future earnings as well!

[Arvon]

The December student rioting in Athens, Greece (triggered by a police officer's shooting of an unarmed 15-year-old boy), was so intensive that the police department quickly ran through its arsenal of tear gas and was forced to use supplies that were 25 years old. One demonstrator told a Times of London reporter that it was unfair for police to use canisters that old because they contained dangerous chemicals that caused rioters to get "sick" and to "have trouble breathing." [The Times (London), 12-12-08]

It's Supposed to Be the Other Way Around: On the South Boulder (Colo.) Creek Trail in January, as a woman was standing beside her bicycle, a cow wandered by and tipped her over (and then stepped on her legs before meandering off). [MSNBC-AP, 1-20-08]

[Bungleau]

Is it just me, or did several posts disappear from here?

[Variol (Farseer) Elmwood]

..one can only hope...

[Bungleau]

If you want, Mr Sunshine, I can put 'em back to individual threads....

[Variol (Farseer) Elmwood]

..if you think it will warm you up any...