Blackbeard gets a job

one unbelievably big mouth

blind half the time

A few months ago, I posted the story of an Australian woman who is allergic to water. To be sure, it is a rare and unusual condition.

This week, ABC News (Australia) reported the story of Natalie Adler, a 21-year-old Australian who is blind three out of every six days.

It seems that Adler has a mysterious condition that causes her eyes to spasm shut on a regular basis. The cause of the condition is unknown. When her eyes are shut, she can only see a narrow slit in her left eyelid. When her eyes are open, the left lid sags slightly. They are shut for three days at a time.

The condition is rare, but not unknown. It is called blepharospasm, which causes the involuntary closing of the eyes. However, a person who experiences this condition for three days at a time on a weekly basis is unheard of.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/09/28/2376299.htm
http://www.mypointless.com/2008/02/allergic-to-water.html

for sale: bathroom tissue

one year ago on my pointless

some of my favorite posts from a year ago this week
(click on the link)

Chinese girl has grass growing in her lung.

Robert L. Brock sues himself

Man eats underwear to beat breathalyzer

Woman tries to smuggle iguana into the country... in her bra

video: Blind kid uses self-taught sonar. This isn't funny, but it is amazing.

sickening: Norwegian game show hostess loses it on camera

second thoughts on saving a life

world record: largest nose

no bum rap

This week, Sandra Meiser, 26, was arrested as she stood in line at a bank in Norf, Germany.

Sandra was patiently waiting in the queue line. Her plan was that when she got to the teller, she would take out a gun and rob the bank again. Yes, again.

Sandra robbed the very same bank branch a few weeks ago and got away with $24,000.

Okay. Robbing the same bank twice is stupid enough. But the reason this story is noteworthy has to do with why she was caught.

As Sandra was standing in line, a 61-year-old man who had witnessed the first robbery recognized Sandra and called the police. But how did he recognize her? After all, she was wearing a mask during the first robbery.

Apparently, Sandra has an extraordinarily large posterior. In explaining how she was identified, one bank employee said, "He called the police and they arrested her and found her ski mask and hand gun in her jacket. He said he recognized her bottom straight away - he'd never forget something that big."

Sandra faces 10 years in jail for armed robbery. The 61-year-old witness earned himself an $8,000 reward.

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_3018786.html?menu=

After the first heist, police feared that they'd never get to the bottom of it.

a short gallery of squirrels

amazing sand-sculptures

little errors that weren't so little

mystery on the 12th floor

Why? ...and... how???

This week, police in Prokuplje, a city in southern Serbia, were called to investigate a powerful and sickening odor coming through the ventilation shaft of an apartment building.

When officials arrived, the odor was so horrible that they feared for the health of the tenants and had the building evacuated.

After an investigation they were able to locate the source of the odor: it was a dead horse stuck in the ventilation shaft on the twelfth floor.

One official stated what we all wonder: "How on earth someone managed to get a horse's body 12 stories up and why someone would put it there though we have no idea."

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_3017631.html?menu=

for sale or trade: old people

the third time hurt

creepy eyes

this is one of the weirdest things I've seen in awhile

a good excuse to not pay your rent

A Ukrainian woman owes ten-years of back rent and cannot pay it. Over the course of 10 years, she has accumulated some $13,000 in unpaid bills.

Her plan is to stiff her landlord. She will be a deadbeat tenant because she will not pay. Literally.

Neighbors thought that Eleanora had been taken to a nursing home 10 years ago because she had not been seen since that time. Last week, however, a water main broke in her apartment building, which required workers to enter Eleanora's apartment. There they found her mummified remains.

Apparently Eleanora died in 1997. Her body was completely dehydrated, stiff and mummified. It has remained undisturbed since her death.

http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/bild-english/world-news/2008/09/19/mummified-woman-discovered-in-the-ukraine/owes-rent-for-her-apartment.html

I'll bet her credit score will take a hit.

thief proves the case by posting bail

pom-pom mom

The person in this picture is 15-year old Wendy Brown of Green Bay, Wisconsin. This month, Wendy enrolled in Ashwaubenon High School and became part of the school cheering squad.

Does she look a little older than 15 to you? She is.

Actually, the woman in the picture is 33-year old Wendy Brown of Green Bay, Wisconsin. It seems that Wendy has always wanted to be a cheerleader. So, she stole her daughter's identity and enrolled in high school as a 15-year-old.

She went to cheering practices. She was given a cheering locker and uniform. She even went to a cheering party at the coach's house. People at school thought she looked a little older than 15, but noticed that she didn't act it.

Wendy only attended classes for one day, which prompted the school officials to look into the matter. After some investigation, they found that Wendy was actually the mother of a 15-year-old who attends high school in Nevada.

She faces a $10,000 fine and a possible 6 years in prison. And to make matters worse, the check she wrote for the cheering uniform bounced.

http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/wireStory?id=5792084
http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_3007681.html?menu=

Wait a minute, doesn't that football player she was hanging around with look a little old, too??

confusing news

farewell to summer: water bloopers

traffic safety for children

can you find the kid in this picture?
hint: he is the one not wearing a helmet.

even more unfortunate name combinations

Hunt/Kapture


House/Reckker


no strange names... just a fun couple...


for more, click "engaged to wed" label below

I'm leaving you for my Blackberry.

In July and August 2008, Sheraton Hotels asked StudyLogic to take a survey of how their business customers balance their work and personal lives. One of the areas they investigated was how much people use their PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants, like Blackberries, Palm, etc). The results were surprising:

* 84% say they check their PDA's just before going to bed and as soon as they wake up.

* 85% say they check their PDAs in the middle of the night.

* 80% say they check their e-mail before morning coffee.

* 87% of professionals bring their PDA into the bedroom.

* 35% say if forced to choose, they'd pick their PDA over their spouse (!)

The full press release can be found here:
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/09/prweb1330304.htm

via

history remembered: the Exploding Whale

It is history. It ought to be remembered and preserved. Earlier tonight I was talking with a friend and his daughter who never heard of the amazing Exploding Whale. So, I decided to post it here.

It happened back in 1970 when officials decided that the best way to get rid of a dead whale on the beach was to blow-it-up. If you haven't seen it, watching this will complete your education. If you have already seen it, be amazed again.



visit the Exploding Whale website by clicking here

from the police blotter: fast cow, slow bike

it's going to hurt in just one second... part 2

to part 1

attacked by Big Mac 23,000 times

This week, Don Gorske, 54, of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin reported that he achieved milestone that will probably never be surpassed.

Mr. Gorske has eaten at least two Big Macs nearly every day since May 17, 1972. That means that he has eaten 23,000 of the famous hamburgers.

Do you doubt his record? Gorske, who lives with an Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, has kept every Big Mac box and receipt since his obsession began.

“I enjoy them every day, I need two to fill me up.” said Gorske. He also says that he has no intention of changing.

One might expect that a guy who eats at least two Big Macs per day would be pretty rotund. Not so. Gorske is 6-foot 2 and weighs a trim 185 pounds. He keeps himself fit by exercising every day.

Gorske has only missed eating his beloved Big Macs 8 times since 1972. He can clearly remember each day he was deprived (usually due to weather). To prevent another Big Mac-less day, Gorske now keeps a couple in his freezer to use in case of emergency.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26623057/

save a buck. let your gilfriend stay in jail.

This week, Magdalena Czwerwinska, 39, was convicted of theft sentenced to jail for 15 days. Fortunately, Magdalena was told that she didn't have to go to jail if she would pay the fine of £180 (around $360).

Unfortunately, Magdalena has a skinflint for a boyfriend.

She called her boyfriend, Max Schuster, and asked him to come to the jail and pay the fine. But Max refused. It seems Max would rather save the money for himself.

He's not angry with her. He still considers himself her boyfriend. According to a police spokeman, Max just "didn't feel like coming to pay the fine... People are very worried in the current economic climate and they have to make whatever savings they can. He saw not paying the fine as a simple saving."

We are guessing that Max will be looking for a new girlfriend in around 15 days.

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_3000711.html?menu=news.quirkies

kids having a bad day

living on the edge: traffic accidents waiting to happen (part1)

my apologies to someone... I didn't write down where I got these.

moving minivan prank

alert : aliens coming to Alabama

Mark your calendar. Plan to take at least few days off. The aliens are coming to Alabama.

Blossom Goodchild, an Australian actress, author, and self-proclaimed alien-channel has stated unequivocally that on October 14, there will be a clear and massive UFO siting.

The aliens, who call themselves "The Federation of Light" told Goodchild (pictured right) that they would make themselves known in an unmistakable fashion. Not only that, but they plan to stick around for 3 days just to silence the skeptics.

In an attempt to lend credence to Goodchild's prediction, Goodchild's proponents report that in 2004, another "psychic" also predicted that extra-terrestrials would make themselves known in 2008 (apparently bypassing the multiple predictions of this sort of thing that happen every year).

The arrival point will be Alabama. You won't need to go there. According to predictions, there will be plenty of media coverage.

http://www.ufodigest.com/news/0908/blossom.html

Intelligent beings from another world make a plan to come to Earth to finally reveal to mankind that they exist. And for their stage they choose... Alabama?? Is this the best plan their vast intelligence could come up with?

I'll bet the city of Denver wishes they had their act together now!

but this story is more evidence that 87% of all aliens are Lynyrd Skynyrd fans.

from the police blotter: bank robber finds new way to get caught

winner: oddest book title of the last 30 years

The votes are in and the winner has been announced. This week, the book that won the award Oddest Book Title of the Last 30 Years was announced by theBookseller.com. Here are the real titles of some of the books that were considered. Which one do you think won?

• Greek Rural Postmen and Their Cancellation Numbers
• People Who Don't Know They're Dead
• Proceedings of the Second International Workshop on Nude Mice
• How To Bombproof Your Horse
• I Was Tortured By the Pygmy Love Queen
• How to Write a How to Write Book
• Are Women Human? And Other International Dialogues
• Cheese Problems Solved
• People who Mattered in Southend and Beyond: From King Canute to Dr Feelgood
• Drawing and Painting the Undead;
• Tiles of the Unexpected: A Study of Six Miles of Geometric Tile Patterns on the London Underground
• Squid Recruitment Dynamics,
• The Stray Shopping Carts of Eastern North America: A Guide to Field Identification
• D. Di Mascio’s Delicious Ice Cream: D. Di Mascio of Coventry: An Ice Cream Company of Repute, with an Interesting and Varied Fleet of Ice Cream Vans

and the winner is.... (click here)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/sep/04/diagram.prize.oddest.book.title?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26578910/
http://www.thebookseller.com/news/53656-oddest-book-titles-prize-shortlist-announced.html
http://www.thebookseller.com/control/?p=6&a=35409

police blotter: in need of a detective

hmmmm... they mighta gotten in that way.

simple mind. simple arrest.

A simple story about a stupid thief:

Last week, police in Iowa City, Iowa arrested a man who stole a credit card from an unlocked apartment last month.

Last week, the man used the stolen card to buy a latte at a coffee shop. Then, he purchased cigarettes at a tobacco store. Later, he used the card in two other locations. He was turned down at one location because the card came up as "stolen."

The arrest was actually quite a simple thing for the police. It seems that the credit-card-thief signed his own name on each of the receipts.

He has been arrested and charged with unauthorized credit card use.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26535945/

that's one tough booger

sold: tattoo-- skin and all

Tim Steiner is rightfully proud of his tattoo. It is an elaborate design of the Virgin Mary that took some 35 hours to create. He believes the world ought to see it.

So, earlier this month, Mr. Steiner sold his tattoo for $218,000 (150,000 euros). The new owner has the right to show the tattoo now AND later. When Mr. Steiner dies, his back skin will be removed so that it can be displayed for future generations.

Steiner's tattoo, which was created by Belgian artist Wim Delvoye, will be on display for the first time next week in Singpore and Shanghai.

http://news.sbs.com.au/worldnewsaustralia/tattoo_fan_sells_the_skin_off_his_back_556685
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hPRNMNAIypvVt7n3HdRGUlTvUwMA

giving new meaning to the phrase "I've got your back."

a small gallery of bad tattoos

for the infamous eyeball tattoo and another horrible mistake tattoo... click on the "tattoo" label below