[rflash8]

Odd 2023: The 10 oddest Guinness World Records of the year



Dec. 14 (UPI) -- Guinness World Records maintains a database of more than 40,000 records, so it shouldn't come as any surprise that the titles can veer quite a bit further into the realm of the odd than the world's largest grilled cheese sandwich.

In keeping with a tradition stretching all the way back to 2022, we have scoured the UPI Odd News headlines to bring you the 10 oddest Guinness World Records of 2022.

Most skips by a cat in one minute

A talented tabby hailing from Missouri vaulted over a jump rope nine times in one minute to break the record for most skips by a cat in one minute.

Owner Trisha Seifried said she and 13-year-old Kit Kat have been practicing jump rope routines since the cat was only 6 months old, and the skill has led to appearances on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and a social media ad campaign for Friskies.

Loudest burp (female)

Maryland woman Kimberly "Kimycola" Winter belted out a belch that was measured at 107 decibels -- about as loud as a motorcycle at full throttle.

Winter told Guinness World Records she had coffee and beer with her breakfast on the day of the attempt to ensure maximum volume for her gargantuan gas, which was just short of the 112.7-decibel male version of the record.

Longest distance full body burn run without oxygen

French firefighter Jonathan Vero, 39, donned a protective suit and was set ablaze on a track in Haubourdin for 893-foot run that earned him the record for the longest distance full body burn run without oxygen.

Vero completed the first 328 feet in a time of 17 seconds, which earned him a second title for the fastest full body burn 100 meter sprint without oxygen.

Longest tongue on a living dog

Rocky, a 9-year-old boxer from Bloomington, Ill., had his tongue measured at 5.46 inches from the tip of his snout to the tip of his tongue.

The canine's lengthy mouth muscle took the record for longest tongue on a living dog from Zoey, a Labrador/German shepherd mix whose 5-inch tongue had earned her the title earlier in the same month.

Most spoons balanced on the body

Abolfazl Saber Mokhtari of Iran bested his own previous title when he managed to balance 88 spoons in various locations around his body.

Mokhtari, who previously set the record at 85 spoons, told GWR officials he first started sticking objects to his skin when he was a child, and he has now developed the skill to where he can use his natural adhesive properties to lift an entire adult person off the ground.

Most magic tricks underwater in three minutes

Avery Emerson Fisher, 13, combined her interests of scuba and stage magic to perform 38 tricks in one minute while submerged in a tank at the Aquarium of the Bay in San Francisco.

Fisher, who holds 12 scuba diving certificates and has been on more than 30 ocean dives, said she hopes her record will inspire others to take up scuba diving and raise awareness of ocean conservation.

Most people eating a single piece of spaghetti simultaneously

German restaurant group Vapiano gathered 465 couples at the Tempelhof airport hangar in Berlin to perform a simultaneous "Italian kiss," which involves two people sharing a single strand of spaghetti and locking lips when they meet in the middle.

The restaurant group initially set the Lady and the Tramp-inspired record in 2020, and decided to take it back when they were bested by a group of 433 couples.

Fastest time to assemble Mr. Potato Head (blindfolded)

Andre Ortolf, a serial world record-breaker with more than 100 titles to his name, donned a blindfold and started with a fully disassembled Mr. Potato Head toy.

Ortolf added the feet, arms, face and hat to the plastic spud in 12.11 seconds, earning the record for the fastest time to assemble Mr. Potato Head (blindfolded).

Longest mustache on a living person (male)

Paul Slosar of Summerville, S.C., had the length of his 2-foot, 1-inch whiskers officially verified at the National Beard and Mustache Championships in Casper, Wyo., earning him the GWR title.

Slosar sports an English-style mustache, defined by the World Beard and Mustache Championships as: "Slender, beginning from the middle of the upper lip with the hairs extremely long and pulled to the side. Tips may be lifted slightly."

Fastest 5 meters on a scooter by a parrot

A speed demon cockatoo named Chico made an appearance on Italian TV show Lo Show dei Record and rode his bird-sized scooter a distance of 16.4 feet in 14.58 seconds to break his own previous record of 17.79 seconds, which was set just days earlier.

Bulgarian man Kaloyan Yavashev, a professional parrot breeder and trainer, said he has had Chico since the avian was only 3 months old, and the bird showed an early aptitude for learning tricks and performing them for crowds.

Wisconsin library solves mystery of long-overdue Nancy Drew book



A Wisconsin library didn't need Nancy Drew's detective skills to solve the mystery of a teen sleuth story returned 20 years past its due date.

The Sun Prairie Public Library said in a Facebook post that the book, Carolyn Keene's Nancy Drew: The Cast of the Vanishing Veil, was returned recently along with a sticky note explaining the tome's long absence.

The note reads: "Sorry to return 20 years late (!!) -- found in my parents' basement. I have fond memories of going to SUN growing up. Thanks for all that you do!"

The post said librarians were happy to have the book returned to the collection.

"Better late than never," the post said.

Librarians wrote that the late return provides "an excellent time to remind everyone that the library is fine-free!"

[PennySerenade]

Cocoa Flavanols May Boost Brain Health in Seniors



However, cognitive benefits were not found among participants who already had healthy dietary patterns at the start of the study.

The study, conducted by researchers at Mass General Brigham, included 573 older adults who underwent detailed, in-person cognitive testing and is published online in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Results from detailed neuropsychological assessments given over two years showed that daily cocoa extract supplementation, compared to placebo, had no overall benefits for global or domain-specific cognitive function. However, secondary analyses showed that participants with poor diet quality had cognitive benefits from taking the cocoa extract supplement.

The findings from this study – which was done among COSMOS participants who presented in-person for detailed cognitive testing – are consistent with the results from an earlier study that used a web-based cognitive assessment given over the internet to a separately recruited set of COSMOS participants.

COSMOS is an investigator-initiated large-scale, long-term clinical trial led by Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

More than 21,000 older women and men were enrolled across the United States to participate in this randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study to test whether taking daily supplements of a cocoa extract or a common multivitamin reduces the risk for developing heart disease, stroke, cancer, and other important health outcomes.

Analyses of the data from COSMOS continue to yield insights about the connections between supplements and human health.

NASA tests robot snake on Athabasca Glacier
Alberta glacier used as NASA training ground for robotic snake that will explore outer space
Athabasca Glacier's terrain helps crews finetune how the robot will slither and slide


An early version of the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s EELS robot raises its sensor head. The team did a field test at the Athabasca Glacier in September 2023. (NASA/JPL-Caltech)

A snake-like robot spent a few weeks in Jasper National Park this fall as its NASA handlers trained it for an future mission into outer space.

The Exobiology Extant Life Surveyor, also known as EELS, is a project developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). It spent a few weeks being tested at Athabasca Glacier, one of the biggest toes of the massive Columbia Icefield in Alberta.

As its name conveys (exobiology means life outside of Earth; extant means still in existence), the robot will one day slither through other planets as it searches for evidence of life.

"Yes, it is a giant robotic snake," said Morgan Cable, the science lead of JPL's EELS robotics project. "In this case it's not just an acronym, but a backronym." That's when a descriptive phrase is made to conform to a name as an acronym.

EELS is modular, with cylindrical sections that have their own rotating "screw-like" rings, said Cable.

The team can manipulate the rings to change how EELS moves — for example, using them to grip on ice or mimic the natural movement of real snakes. The robot's movements include straightforward slithering, a screw-like motion and a sideways gait.

These different moves mean that EELS can push up against walls, navigating through challenging and hard-to-fit-into channels like ones on the Athabasca Glacier.

"It was really exciting," said Cable."We're finding that life may be in the hard-to-reach places, in cracks or crevices, maybe down in caves. Places where traditional Rovers can't go."


Version 1.5 of JPL’s EELS robot gets lowered by rope into a vertical shaft on the Athabasca Glacier. (NASA/JPL--Caltech)

This is the second time EELS has been brought to the Athabasca Glacier. The glacier's natural cracks, crevasses and moulins — large, vertical well-like shafts — were used to test the robot's movement capabilities.

As the most-visited glacier in North America, the Athabasca is also eminently accessible, allowing for easy transport of heavy and often complicated pieces of the robot and prototypes to the field site.

Over its three weeks in Jasper National Park this fall, the NASA team tested the robot's horizontal and vertical mobility, and the instruments used to map and sense minerals in these deeper spaces.

Word of the NASA mission quickly spread through town.

"Everyone was just so enthusiastic," Cable said. "It was so neat to see that the work that we do is more than just one institution, one country. Everyone is excited about this exploration."


NASA science lead Morgan Cable works inside of a glacial channel during a September 2023 field test for EELS. The team tested instruments that would map areas underground, and test the mineral qualities of the water. (NASA/JPL-Caltech)

There are no set plans for EELS right now but NASA is preparing the technology so it's ready when the right opportunity arises. At the top of the list is exploring one of the moons of Saturn.

"This one moon of Saturn, Enceladus, is what we call an ocean world," Cable said.

The surface of the planet is a liquid water ocean, under a shell of ice. It's similar to Jupiter's moon Europa or the moon Triton, around Neptune.

But Enceladus has four giant cracks in its South pole that are effectively leaking.

"It's basically the universe's way of saying 'Hey NASA, you want to find out if there's any life in this ocean? Swing on by! Free sample!'" said Cable.

More than just a hope, Enceladus' measurements were used to design the size and shape of EELS segments so that the robot could access the ocean without the need for digging or drilling.

"It's fun to be able to send robotic explorers first to extend our senses out to places that people haven't gone yet," said Cable.

But given the chance, she'd happily go for a dip in Enceladus herself.

"Ultimately I think it's an incredible part of the human experience to go to these places ourselves, to experience them ourselves and to learn things that will impact humanity from now until till the far future."

[goldie0608]

4-Month-Old Tennessee Boy Survives Being Sucked into Tornado ‘by the Grace of God,’ Mom Says

Sydney Moore said her boyfriend attempted to grab the baby as he was being pulled out of his bassinet but got caught in the storm himself



Family members say a 4-month-old baby somehow survived being sucked into one of the tornadoes that touched down in Tennessee during Saturday’s severe weather outbreak.

The mom and her two children were inside their home on Biglen Road in Clarksville when the twister tore through their town, according to a GoFundMe started by the mother’s sister, Caitlyn Moore.

Sydney Moore, 22, said she was with her 1-year-old son in the back bedroom of the mobile home when she heard the winds begin to pick up, according to NBC affiliate WSMV.

The walls of the home collapsed just as the mom of two jumped on top of her eldest son, per WSMV. Then, Sydney’s boyfriend watched as their 4-month-old baby was pulled out of his bassinet and into the funnel cloud.

The boyfriend tried to grab the sleeping child but was pulled into the twister himself, per the report. Simultaneously, Sydney and her 1-year-old were crushed by their trailer.

Sydney and the toddler were somehow able to escape the wreckage, according to WSMV. She initially feared her youngest son was dead, but he was quickly found alive in a fallen tree.

"I was pretty sure he was dead and we weren’t going to find him. But he’s here, and that’s by the grace of God," the mom said.

Luckily, Caitlyn said, almost everyone walked away after the twister with minor cuts and bruises, WSMV reported. Sydney’s boyfriend “suffered a broken arm/shoulder," per the GoFundMe.

However, the family’s home was completely destroyed, and their car is now a total loss, according to the fundraiser. The tornado also “took all of the formula, diapers, wipes, clothing” and other important belongings.

The mobile home’s rental company “has graciously put them in a hotel for a month” while they piece their lives back together following the deadly storm, Caitlyn said.

More than $16,000 has been raised via GoFundMe to support the family following Saturday’s deadly tornado outbreak, which killed six people and injured dozens of others.

[Misstee]

Author Cait Corrain Loses Book Deal For ‘Review Bombing’ On Goodreads—Here’s Why It’s A Longstanding Problem For The Platform
Conor Murray


Topline

First-time author Cait Corrain was set to publish her debut novel next year, but she lost her book deal and literary agent after admitting to “review bombing” other authors on Goodreads, a persistent problem that Goodreads and other review platforms have struggled to contain.


Review bombing has been a longstanding problem for Goodreads. (Photo by Frank Rumpenhorst/picture ... [+]dpa/picture alliance via Getty Images
Key Facts

Corrain admitted she “review bombed” other debuting authors on Goodreads, meaning she intentionally left negative reviews under anonymous accounts so their releases would seem worse in comparison to her own.

Goodreads removed the negative reviews Corrain wrote, and said in a statement it “takes the responsibility of maintaining the authenticity and integrity of ratings and protecting our community of readers and authors very seriously.”

But Goodreads has previously struggled to prevent “review bombing”—in October, it issued a message to users urging them to report suspected review bombers, and earlier this year it adopted a policy to temporarily suspend reviews of books “during times of unusual activity that violate our guidelines.”

Authors have criticized Goodreads for allowing users to review books before publication, even if they hadn’t read an advance copy, alleging it can harm authors by creating negative buzz about upcoming releases.

Slate reported review bombing often targets books based on “disruption of a particular group’s norms,” and literary nonprofit PEN America said review bombing imposes a “moral litmus test” on authors that can lead to self-censorship.



Review bombing can have serious consequences for authors: Some writers said they’ve been the target of scams, with reviewers threatening to review bomb their titles unless the author sends the scammer money, Time reported.

News Peg

Corrain admitted she “review bombed” authors in a statement posted to X on Tuesday, in which she said she created fake accounts during a psychological breakdown following a long struggle with depression and substance abuse. Corrain said she would reach out to the impacted authors, some of whom she named in the statement, including Molly X. Chang and Danielle Jensen, who share a publisher with Corrain. Hours after Corrain’s statement, her publisher Del Rey Books announced it would no longer publish “Crown of Starlight,” her forthcoming debut novel, and her agent Rebecca Podos said she had cut ties with Corrain. Rumors swirled among literary communities on social media that Corrain had engaged in review bombing in the weeks prior to her statement. On Dec. 5, author Xiran Jay Zhao posted on X: “If you as a debut author are going to make a bunch of fake Goodreads accounts one-star-bombing fellow debuts you're threatened by can you at least not make it so obvious by upvoting your own book on a bajillion different lists with those same accounts,” adding in a separate post the review bombing appeared to target mostly authors of color. Author Bethany Baptiste, who said she was affected by the review bombing, posted screenshots on Dec. 8 of messages Corrain sent in a Slack channel for debuting authors in which she claimed her friend was behind the review bombing. Some authors felt Corrain’s statement was an insufficient apology to the authors impacted. “I'll be waiting for that apology,” Baptiste wrote in response to Corrain’s statement, criticizing her for review bombing what appeared to be mostly authors of color.

Key Background

Review bombing campaigns have led other authors to pull their books before publication. In one high-profile incident, “Eat, Pray, Love” author Elizabeth Gilbert halted publication of “The Snow Forest” in June because some readers felt the book’s setting in Russia was insensitive amid the Russia-Ukraine war. Gilbert’s book was reportedly bombed with hundreds of one-star reviews, months before its scheduled release date of Feb. 13, 2024. In 2019, Kosoko Jackson, who had previously worked as a sensitivity reader, pulled his novel “A Place for Wolves” from publication after an early reader criticized Jackson for using the 1990 Kosovo War as the backdrop for a gay teen romance, sparking a review bombing campaign. Author Keira Drake halted publication of her 2018 debut novel “The Continent” after users had review bombed her, alleging it contained racially insensitive portrayals of Native Americans and Japanese people. She rewrote and released the book, but said she still faced review bombing, as well as criticism from some who felt she bowed to the pressure of “politically correct censorship.”

Tangent

Other platforms, including Metacritic, which hosts reviews for video games, movies and albums, and Rotten Tomatoes, a film and television review website, have also struggled to contain review bombing. In 2019, Brie Larson was the subject of online attacks because of comments she made while promoting “Captain Marvel” lamenting that film critics appeared to be overwhelmingly white and male. Critics, some of whom felt Larson’s comments were “anti-male,” left negative reviews for “Captain Marvel” on Rotten Tomatoes, before the film had premiered. The review bombing incident led Rotten Tomatoes to prevent users from reviewed unreleased films, and the audience score only includes reviews from users whose ticket purchases have been confirmed. Earlier this year, Metacritic said it would work to implement stricter moderation policies after the video game “Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores” was review bombed for including a lesbian storyline.

Deforestation in the Amazon Rainforest Drops Sharply in One Year–Fewest Acres Since 2019


MAAP shows over 50% improvement in forest loss in Brazil over the last year – MAAProject.org

Deforestation across the Amazon Rainforest has fallen by 55% this year, marking the lowest amounts since 2019, and somewhat of a major victory to recently-elected leftist governments in Brazil and Colombia.

The data was provided to Reuters via the Monitoring of the Andean Amazon Project, which tracks forest cover and loss across all the nations of the Amazon using the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellite.

The data showed a 59% drop in primary forest loss in Brazil, which promisingly runs very close to the numbers provided by Brazil’s government under Luiz Ignacio de Silva, who ran on a part-environmental platform.

Peru’s forest loss decreased by one-third, and Colombia’s by two-thirds. Many former guerillas that control parts of the forest have begun working in environmental sectors, and Reuters believes this might be part of why deforestation fell so much in Colombia.

Bolivia also saw a drop in the rate of forest loss by 60% despite battling several severe wildfires.

Among countries that experienced increased rates of forest loss, (Venezuela, Suriname, and Guyana) MAAP says this is down to natural causes like floods, mudslides, and strong winds.

Some scientists believe that the Amazon Rainforest’s capacity to absorb carbon dioxide is the Earth’s greatest tool to prevent climate change. Some rainforests, such as those in Costa Rica are theorized as being net-carbon sources rather than sinks because of the poor soil and rapid decomposition of biomass, but the Amazon hasn’t been studied in this way.

MAAP believes the deforestation data will allow the Amazonian countries to have a strong negotiating position for international conservation funding at the upcoming summit for the signatures of the Paris Agreement, or COP28.

[lush]

Japanese Gummy Candy Tastes Like a Fruit That Doesn’t Exist
102323*

A Japanese candy company has been making national news headlines for its idea to produce gummy candy that tastes like an ‘imaginary fruit’ called Kiraspika (キラスピカ).

Last year was a great one for gummy candy producers, and the market continued to expand throughout 2023, with fruit-flavored gummies being the most popular. While there are plenty of fruit flavors to choose from, including intriguing fruit combinations, companies are still limited to the fruits available in our world. But what if someone broke down barriers and started making candy that tastes like imaginary fruits? That was the genius idea that Japanese sweets maker Kanro recently came up with. Last month, the company launched a new type of gummy candy that tastes like ‘Kiraspika no Mi’, a made-up fruit with an original flavor, design, and even an origin story.



According to the Kanro official website, the star-shaped Kiraspika only grows in the mountainous region of Blue Knife, where temperatures drop to -50 degrees Celsius in winter. It is very difficult to obtain, as when the fruit ripens, on a full-moon night around the winter solstice, the fruit explodes as a mechanism to spread its seeds. Pieces of the fruit fly at a speed of 300 meters per second, and a direct hit can be fatal.

Everything about Kiraspika was invented in Kanro’s fruit lab where its flavor experts combined various existing flavors to create an entirely original one that tastes like nothing you’ve ever eaten. According to its designers, the Kiraspika-flavored gummy candy has a mysterious sweetness combined with a sliced sourness, but many of those who have tried it have their own description of the taste.



To some, the Kiraspika flavor can be compared to that of an energy drink, others say it tastes a bit like a spicy apple, while some compare its sweetness to that of cherry gummies, combined with a tongue-numbing spiciness. It is the mystery of the flavor and the personal interpretations that make Kanro’s product so popular. Having been launched last month in the 7-Eleven convenience store chain, Kiraspika gummies have been selling out like hotcakes, and the Japanese company is already working on new creations in its Fantasy Fruit Lab.

Florida man flings object at car, whips out sword during road rage fight over revving engine, deputies say



OCALA, Fla. - A man from Ocala has found himself behind bars after he allegedly flung an object inside another man's vehicle and whipped out a sword during a road rage fight over his revved up engine, deputies said.

Gervacio Aranca Jr. was arrested and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill, damage to property $1,000 or more, and throwing missile into a vehicle after the incident that unfolded near the 8000 block of SW Hwy 200 in Ocala last Friday, according to an arrest affidavit from the Marion County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies responded and met with the victim, who said he was in a road rage incident with a man later identified as Aranca, a 65-year-old man from Ocala. The incident started when the two were at a traffic light and Aranca started to rev his engine, according to the affidavit. The victim confronted Aranca and tried to speak with him through his window, but Aranca started to drive off.

The two yelled at each other from their cars while driving down Highway 200, according to the affidavit. That's when Aranca allegedly threw an unknown object from his car that hit the back door of the victim's car, ultimately causing about $1,000 in damage, according to the victim. There was also a small dent and scratch on the car.

The incident doesn't end there. After driving down Highway 200, both parties pulled over and Aranca got out of his car with a sword in his hand, according to the affidavit. He came within a few feet of the victim and thrust the sword forward in an attempt to stab him, deputies said. The victim, who said he was in fear of being hurt, was able to get out of the way and run back to his car before calling 911 a second time, the affidavit said.

The victim took a video of parts of the incident which he showed deputies. This video shows the two arguing with one another while driving down the street, and also the moment Aranca allegedly reaches into the pocket on the driver's side door and throwing something at the victim's car, according to the affidavit.

Deputies were able to find Aranca from the license plate on the vehicle in the video. When they went to his house the first time, he wasn't home. The second time, on Sunday, deputies were able to speak to Aranca, who said the victim initiated the road rage incident and "side swiped" his car, the affidavit said. Aranca said he was also in fear for his life as the victim pointed a gun at him, which was disproved by Aranca's wife, who said she never saw a firearm, the affidavit said.

When deputies asked Aranca why he didn't call 911 during the incident, he said he "didn't need to because the victim advised he was calling 911," the affidavit said.

After Aranca was read his Miranda Rights, he refused to speak with deputies. He was transported to the Marion County Jail, where he remains on $19,000 bond.

https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/flori ... puties-say

[johngriffen]

I sometimes get REALLY DEPRESSED reviewing the news these days.
It's always about a global pandemic threatening life as we know it,
protests around the world, stupid politicians, natural disasters,
or some other really bad story.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

Welcome to The mobi weekly news magazine
IN OTHER NEWS
FRIDAY DECEMBER 15
What is it?
Here is your chance to become an "ACE REPORTER" for our weekly news magazine.
It is your job to fine weird, funny or "good feel" stories from around the world and share them with our readers in our weekly magazine

How do you play?
Just post a story that you have come across that made you smile, laugh, feel good...
BUT NOTHING DEPRESSING

EXAMPLE POST

​Naked sunbather chases wild boar through park after it steals his laptop bag

A naked sunbather was seen chasing wild boar through a park after it stole his laptop bag.
Amusing photographs from Germany show the man running after the animal to try and claim the plastic bag back.
But the cheeky boar and its two piglets appear to be too quick for the sunbather, who can't keep up with their speedy little trotters.
As the incident unfolds, groups of friends and family sat on the grass watch on and laugh.
Heads are seen turning in surprise and amusement in the hilarious photographs.
The incident happened at Teufelssee Lake - a bathing spot in the Grunwell Forest in Berlin, Germany.

[/quote]
Rules:
Each Edition of IN OTHER NEWS will be open for 7 days...
You can post as many stories as you like, but you will only get paid for One Story in any 24 hour period
So in other words, you can only earn WRZ$ once a day.
Each news day will start when I post announcing it
OR at:
9:00 AM CHICAGO TIME (UTC -6)
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on those days I space out and forget to post or can't due to Real Life
Stories may be accompanied with images - but No big images, please! 800x800 pixels wide maximum
Videos are allowed, but please keep them short, and post a short summary for those that don't like to click on videos
No Duplicate stories - Where a post has been edited resulting in duplicates, then the last one in time gets disallowed.
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If you post multiple stories on any given day, you will only earn 50 WRZ$ for the first story of the Day
All payments will be made at THE END of the weekly news cycle.
Special Bonus - Each week I will award "The Pulitzer Prize" for the best story of the week
The weekly winner of the "The Pulitzer Prize" will receive a 100 WRZ$ bonus
It's just my personal opinion, so my judgement is final

So help bring GOOD news to the members of mobi, and join our reporting team...

IN OTHER NEWS

[ozswede]

Love-thirsty "horny goats" create a Christmas atmosphere in Swedish Kävlinge

It starts with an innocent kiss, but soon develops into an intimate mating act.

The love encounter between the two fir-clad Christmas goats in a roundabout has become an annual Christmas treat in Kävlinge in Scania - but who is giving them a helping hand remains a mystery.


This is how the municipality set up the goats

The mating act on display in the Solanum roundabout in Kävlinge, a few miles outside of Lund in southern Sweden, has a history as long as the goats themselves.

"It started eight years ago when our landscape architect came up with the idea that we should decorate the roundabout with two goats", says Thomas Landén, technical manager in Kävlinge municipality.

Since then, the pattern has repeated itself. Just in time for Advent, the goats are placed with their noses facing each other, only to lose themselves in a hot love act just hours later - seemingly completely unfazed by the furtive glances of passing Kävlinge residents.

The measure divides the village into two camps. Most people think it's fun and harmless. Some think it's nonsense and vandalism. The municipality says that a few complaints are usually received each year, but there is no attempt to separate the loving goats.


The love meeting between the Christmas goats in Kävlinge has become the talk of the region.

In the first few years, the municipality's operating contractor has tried to separate the couple. But in vain, as it didn't take long until they were intimate again, says Thomas Landén.

He says that some residents thought the goats' promiscuous behavior was indecent at first and the municipality would receive questions along the lines of "is this really how it was intended?".

But these days the people of Kävlinge seem to appreciate the annual act of love.

"It is great Kävlinge is being put on the map. And love is a good thing, isn't it?", ponders Siw Morin as she sits and waits for the fish truck at the local store.

Her friend Gunvor Pålsson agrees.

"They are a big part of our Christmas. They have to be here in some way and it's fun when it's decorated.

One year, the technical administration decided to give nature a helping hand and produced a small kid which was also added to the roundabout display.

It disappeared inexplicably. But since then, kids have appeared that "we have not been mother and father to", says Thomas Landén at Kävlinge municipality.

Nowadays, he almost never hears negative opinions about the goats. On the contrary, they are good PR for Kävlinge.



Lately, the love-thirsty Christmas goats have become the talk of the town far beyond Scania's borders. Newspaper articles have been written and television features made. However, one question remains. Who is it that, under the cover of darkness, moves the goats and places them in the copulating position? And who puts the kids there? It's the talk of the town.

Over the weekend, two little kids were spotted near their parents. They have also been dressed with red silk ribbons. Since they arrived at the same time, it can be assumed that they are twins.

And during the night to Tuesday, a little brother or sister was added. Now there are a total of five. A real baby boom, then.

Camilla Persson at Kävlinge municipality, stands firm in her opinion that the goats should be allowed to remain. It applies to the whole family.

- Absolutely. Our motto in the municipality is that they are, just like our future residents and visitors, 100 percent welcome.



You have not been accused of involvement?

Christmas tree seller Glenn Willman is behind the Ica store. Among the rows of fir and red spruce he looks more than a bit suspicious.

The horny goats in the roundabout? Yes, they are made of red spruce. And the kids seem to have the same genetics, he exclaims.

However, he categorically denies that the wood came from him or that he has anything to do with the goats in any other way.

- No, no, I don't want to be associated with this at all, he says with a mischievous grin.

- No, it's a secret in the village who it is, he says.

So for now, the person responsible for repositioning the love-thirsty goats and their offspring remains a mystery.

(and before you all ring the authorities to grass up ozswede, this town is 513 km (320 miles) south of where I live. )

Brewery, creamery team up to create blue cheese beer



A brewery and a creamery teamed up in Oregon to create a product they admit might inspire some "skepticism" -- blue cheese beer.

Rogue Creamery and the Crux Fermentation Project teamed up to create Coolship Beer No. 6, a lambic-style ale brewed using Rogue River Blue Cheese and aged in oak barrels for nearly 2 years.

"I think we handled a healthy dose of skepticism even from our blue cheese devotees," Marguerite Merritt, cheese emissary for Rogue Creamery, told KOIN-TV.

Larry Sidor is the founder and master brewer for the Crux Fermentation Project, said it was a hard sell for his own team.

"When I told my brewers what we were doing, they pretty much laughed. They thought, 'no way, this will not work,'" Sidor said.

The duo said that despite the doubters, Coolship Beer No. 6 proved to be a tasty brew.

"It's got nuance and complexity, but it's not too cheesy, it's not too strong. It's a really nice balanced product that once you get to know it a little more, maybe sip two, three, glass, two or three, you may begin to pick up on that very, that slight hint of blue cheese on the finish," Merritt said.

Sidor said he was similarly pleased with the outcome.

"I was really impressed. And the brewers that were skeptical were very impressed," he said.

The Crux Pub in Southeast Portland is holding a tasting event for the new brew on Friday, and it will then be available to buy at both the pub and the creamery.

[Alessa9]

USPS releases shipping deadlines for holiday season



The United States Postal Service has announced its holiday shipping and mailing deadlines for the 2023 holiday season.

This holiday season, USPS is offering a new option called USPS Ground Advantage. It provides a simple yet reliable way to ship packages on certain dates with delivery between two to five days.

“The Postal Service is built for the holidays, serving 165 million addresses across the country and covering every state, city and town. Everyone living in the United States and its territories has access to postal products and services,” USPS said.

Here are the deadlines, according to USPS:
Within the Lower 48 (excludes Alaska and Hawaii)
USPS Ground Advantage — Dec. 16.
First-Class Mail (including greeting cards) — Dec. 16.
Priority Mail — Dec. 18.
Priority Mail Express — Dec. 20.
Alaska
USPS Ground Advantage — Dec. 16.
First-Class Mail — Dec. 16.
Priority Mail — Dec. 18.
Priority Mail Express — Dec. 20.
Hawaii
USPS Ground Advantage — Dec. 16.
First-Class Mail — Dec. 16.
Priority Mail — Dec. 16.
Priority Mail Express — Dec. 20.
Air/Army Post Office (APO), Fleet Post Office (FPO), Diplomatic Post Office (DPO)
USPS Ground Advantage — Nov. 6.
First-Class Mail — Dec. 9.
Priority Mail — Dec. 9.
Priority Mail Express Military Service — Dec. 15*.
*PMEMS are not available for APO/FPO/DPO AE ZIPs 093.

In short, the important dates are Dec. 16, Dec. 18 and Dec. 20, according to KTLA.

USPS has also announced that there will be no holiday peak or demand surcharges this year, the news outlet reported. This will help allow customers to budget more accurately for shipping costs.

International shipping depends on the destination. More information can be found on the USPS website.

To buy stamps, you can visit the USPS website or call 844-737-7826.

[rflash8]

Dolphin with ‘thumbs’ stuns scientists



Move over Flipper, there’s a far more impressive dolphin in town – one with ‘thumbs’.

Researchers studying dolphins in the Gulf of Corinth off Greece spotted the curious creature in July, noting its flippers are shaped like mittens, with two hooks like thumbs.

However, they said the deformity does not appear to affect how the dolphin swims, eats or interacts with its pod.

In fact, it was seen ‘swimming, leaping, bow-riding and playing’ in the crystal blue waters, according to Dr Alexandros Frantzis, president of the Pelagos Cetacean Research Institute which carried out the study.

‘It was the very first time we saw this surprising flipper morphology in 30 years of surveys in the open sea and also in studies while monitoring all the stranded dolphins along the coasts of Greece for 30 years,’ said Dr Frantzis, speaking to Live Science.

The flipping fantastic animal is a striped dolphin, one of several species including common dolphins and Risso’s dolphins that live in the gulf – a sort of dolphin commune, if you will.



Dr Frantzis suggests the unusual flipper anatomy may be the ‘expression of some rare and “irregular” genes’ that cropped up due to constant interbreeding, rather than any kind of illness.

Interestingly, the bones in a dolphin’s flipper are not that different from those in the human hand, but while the long fingers bones in people are individually encased in tissue, in dolphins they are wrapped up all as one.



But while in this case the dolphin’s skin has formed unusually, there’s no chance the ‘thumb’ is really a flexible finger.

Lisa Noelle Cooper, an associate professor of mammalian anatomy and neurobiology at the Northeast Ohio Medical University, assessed the images and agreed the cause is likely genetic.

‘I’ve never seen a flipper of a cetacean [dolphins, porpoises, whales and narwhals] that had this shape,’ said Professor Cooper, speaking to Live Science. ‘Given that the defect is in both the left and right flippers, it is probably the result of an altered genetic program that sculpts the flipper during development as a calf.

‘It looks to me like the cells that normally would have formed the equivalent of our index and middle fingers died off in a strange event when the flipper was forming while the calf was still in the womb.



‘The hook-shaped ‘thumb’ may have some bone inside of it, but it certainly isn’t mobile.

‘No cetaceans have mobile thumbs’

She added: ‘It is lovely to see that this animal is thriving.’

[HogwartsExpress]

Woman steals Uber driver’s car before flight in Texas for being ‘too slow’

A 27-year-old woman in the US, Neusha Alexandra Afkami, stands accused of stealing an Uber driver’s car because she deemed the journey to the airport “too slow,” as reported by Fox News.

The incident occurred on Sunday, December 10, when Afkami, dissatisfied with the pace of the ride, allegedly threw the driver’s phone out of the car in frustration.

Seizing the opportunity when the driver left the vehicle to retrieve his phone, Afkami purportedly commandeered the driver’s seat and drove away, leaving the Uber driver stranded.

According to police documents, she informed the driver that she intended to drop off the car at Southwest Airlines, claiming to feel kidnapped, although she did not make an attempt to call 911.

Afkami, driving the stolen car, headed to Austin airport, where she reportedly spent $130 on various items using the Uber driver’s credit card. Simultaneously, the Uber driver reported the theft to the police.

Subsequently, officers discovered the abandoned stolen car at the airport and apprehended Afkami as she tried to board a plane. The purchased items were found in her possession. Afkami faces charges of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and credit card abuse, both state jail felonies.

As reported by CBS Austin, Afkami was booked in the Travis County Jail under a $16,000 bond. The Travis County Sheriff’s Office confirmed her release on Tuesday, December 12, on a personal recognizance bond.

src.. https://inshort.geartape.com/woman-stea ... -too-slow/