Snowplows are essential to enduring winter in Minnesota, so maybe it’s not surprising that every year thousands of people vote on names for the giant machines that clear the state’s roads, such as Plowy McPlowFace and Darth Blader. The often-icy state began naming its 800 plows in 2020 and is expected to announce winners of […]
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — A 350-pound black bear that perched for hours in a tree, causing a Mother’s Day spectacle last spring in northern Michigan, was killed by a hunter, authorities said. “It makes me sad, because I was just envisioning it living peacefully in the forest somewhere, thriving as a bear does,” said […]
DENVER (AP) — A motorcyclist who authorities say posted a video of himself on YouTube speeding from Colorado Springs to the Denver metro area on Interstate 25 in 20 minutes — a trip that typically takes about an hour — is wanted on multiple charges. Rendon Dietzmann, a 32-year-old from Texas, recorded himself Sept. 28 […]
The recent blast of cold weather has given alligators a chance to show off their way of coping with freezing temperatures. The Swamp Park Outdoor Adventure Center in Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina, posted eerie videos on social media on Sunday showing alligators suspended in frozen ponds with just the tips of their snouts peeking […]
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — A Kentucky city has come up with an out-of-this-world campaign to promote tourism. The Lexington Convention and Visitors Bureau used an infrared laser to beam a message into space to invite extraterrestrial travelers. “The first thing you’ll notice as you descend through Earth’s atmosphere above Central Kentucky is the lush green […]
PHOENIX (AP) — It’s no joke. A federal agency is discouraging humorous and quirky messages that could distract or confuse drivers on highways and freeways across the country. The Federal Highway Administration recently released an updated 1,100-page manual that spells out how signs and other traffic control devices are regulated. In it, the agency strongly […]
LEEDS, Alabama (AP) — A man crashed his car outside a Bass Pro Shop in Alabama, stripped down to his birthday suit and plunged into the giant aquarium inside the store, police said. The ordeal happened Thursday night in front of shocked shoppers in the town just outside Birmingham, Leeds Police Chief Paul Irwin said. […]
DORA, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama woman with two uteri and two cervixes has given birth to two babies after carrying one of them in each uterus. Kelsey Hatcher of Dora, about 28 miles (45.06 kilometers) northwest of Birmingham, gave birth to two girls on Wednesday and Thursday after a combined 20 hours of labor. […]
Jessica Vincent had just started surveying the shelves of a Virginia thrift store when a vase caught her eye. It was shaped like a bottle and had ribbons of color, aqua green and amethyst purple, that spiraled up its glass surface like stripes of paint. The piece looked old amongst the clutter of measuring cups, […]
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Abraham Lincoln’s top hat is missing from a bronze sculpture along the Ohio River in Louisville, Kentucky. The sculptor, Ed Hamilton, posted photos of his artwork at Waterfront Park on Facebook on Saturday and said someone stole the hat from the sculpture. “They had to be strong and determined to pry […]
VISALIA, Calif. (AP) — A county prosecutor’s office says one of its law clerks passed the State Bar of California exam at age 17. The Tulare County District Attorney’s Office said this week that, according to research, Peter Park is the youngest person to pass the exam. The State Bar said Friday in an email […]
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — An Arizona woman got a huge shock when surveillance footage showed the thief who stole her backyard cameras was four-legged and fluffy-tailed. Esmeralda Egurrola, of Tucson, noticed on Monday that her three motion-activated cameras appeared off-line. So, she checked the most recent recording in each camera from an app on her […]
BOSTON (AP) — An official menu for a state banquet that bears the signature of former Chinese leader Mao Zedong has been auctioned for $275,000. Boston-based RR Auction said the menu auctioned Wednesday was for a banquet held in Beijing on October 19, 1956, and commemorated the first state visit to China by Pakistan’s Prime […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s a challenge for all new parents: Getting enough sleep while keeping a close eye on their newborns. For some penguins, it means thousands of mini-catnaps a day, researchers discovered. Chinstrap penguins in Antarctica need to guard their eggs and chicks around-the-clock in crowded, noisy colonies. So they nod off thousands of […]
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska woman bagged a marriage proposal earlier this month along with a big buck during a recent deer hunting trip. Samantha Camenzind’s boyfriend not only gave her the first shot at the deer they had spotted on a trail camera south of Lincoln, but then surprised her by popping the […]
NEW YORK (AP) — A cargo jet headed to Belgium from New York had to turn around mid-flight after a horse escaped its stall and got loose in the hold, according to air traffic control audio. The Boeing 747 operated by Air Atlanta Icelandic had just started its flight across the Atlantic Ocean on Nov. […]
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — In Wisconsin, the old fashioned cocktail comes with brandy, not bourbon. Now, state lawmakers want to make it somewhat official. A bipartisan resolution declaring the brandy old fashioned as the official Wisconsin state cocktail was up for approval Thursday in the state Assembly. It’s a resolution, not a bill, so even […]
JANESVILLE, Wis. (AP) — A live cluster bomblet and ammunition have been found in a donation dropped off at a thrift shop in southeastern Wisconsin. An employee at the Janesville Goodwill made the discovery while conducting inventory Friday morning, according to the Janesville Police Department. The store and surrounding area were evacuated as a bomb […]
NEW YORK (AP) — A man was trapped inside a steel-reinforced concrete jewelry vault in New York City overnight after firefighters had to abandon an attempt to rescue him for safety reasons. Fortunately, the vault was on a timer and opened on its own Wednesday morning, officials said. The fire department was called to the […]
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Federal authorities have released more details and unsealed charges in the theft of more than 2 million dimes earlier this year from a tractor-trailer that had picked up the coins from the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia. The truck driver was bound for Miami when he pulled into a parking lot to sleep […]
SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia man was left reeling after receiving a $1.4 million speeding ticket, but city officials say the figure was just a placeholder, not the actual fine. Connor Cato tells WSAV-TV in Savannah that he received the citation after getting pulled over in September for driving 90 mph (145 kph) in […]
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — When it comes to packing on the pounds to survive an Alaska winter, this year’s undisputed champ is Grazer. Grazer, also known as Bear 128 to the fans of Fat Bear Week at Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Preserve, won this year’s contest, handily defeating Chunk 108,321 to 23,134 in the […]
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal customs agents pooh-poohed the plans of an Iowa woman who wanted to make jewelry from giraffe feces she picked up on a trip to Kenya and brought back to the U.S. in her luggage. The woman declared the small box of feces when she was selected to have her belongings inspected […]
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Momo the monkey’s taste of freedom is over. The primate spurred an hourslong search on Indianapolis’ east side after he escaped Wednesday evening from his owner’s property. But the male patas monkey was finally captured safely Thursday morning, police said. Momo was captured by the brother of the monkey’s owner after police […]