Creepy Cool

Today's post seems perfect for Halloween since it has the weird thing going for it. A 57 year old Michigan man was injured after falling 18 feet from a rope climb when he was 14. The injury made him grow double cartilage and extra tissue in his knee joints,hips and ankles which in turn enables him to turn his feet 180 degrees (backwards) and walk,  which he claims is more comfortable than walking with his feet in the normal position. This ability has garnered him two records,World's most flexible feet and World's fastest man to walk with his feet backwards over 20 meters. He is often referred to as Mr. Elastic. It seems like he should at least have a comic book devoted to his super powers if not a TV show or movie.

Crappy Thing to Steal

How low can they go,a stolen colon,that's how low! A 10 foot tall,10 foot wide,150 lb. inflatable colon was stolen from a driveway in Brookside,MO where it was being stored prior to going on display at a 5 K run for breast cancer. The colon normally resides at the University of Kansas Cancer Center where it is used for community events and as an educational tool. While the colon was missing the Colon Cancer Coalition raised more than $11,000 for a replacement. Once all the contributions were totaled the Coalition had enough money to buy 2 more colons. I can't imagine why they would need or want 3 inflatable colons but it never mentioned any of the funds going to research or being used for other purposes.

Speaking of Great Pumpkins

No,not his orangeness, a real pumpkin,so real in fact that it weighed in at 1,364 pounds. While the weight itself may or may not be a record the fact that it was hollowed out and made into a boat to paddle down the River Ouse to the Skeldergate Bridge (UK) should be a record since it is the largest of its kind to make the trip though oddly enough this is one record Guinness does not record in their world records. Seem like it would be right up their alley...it also seems like the word Skeldergate would be a good name for a political scandal. I wonder if a person would need to pay to import the word or if they would want to save it for their own scandal?
 

Mother's Dress With a Twist

When it comes to weddings people go to great lengths to make their's unique and today's bride to be is really going the extra mile. The 61 year old has been saving her now deceased mother's hair since 2014 and if offering to pay 15,000 pounds (around $19,000 US) for anyone who will to sew the hair into a dress similar to the one worn by her mother in 1953. So far there have been no responses to her ad and she realizes it is a strange request but still wants to have the dress custom made and completed by August 2019 which also coincides with her mother's death. Maybe I'm reading to much into this but she seems a little on the obsessive side to me.

Lighten Your Load

With all the madness surrounding us not to mention the "long dark" beginning in earnest I thought we could use a little humor,so without further ado...
Eraser companies are built on your failures.
Condoms are made by humans,for humans,to prevent humans.
If more people understood that opinions are opinions and not facts,a lot less people would hate each other.
Most part-time jobs ironically want you to have full-time availability.
Earth is a planet that tells other planets whether they are planets or not. (I'm not so sure about this...maybe all the planets think this!)
 

Unbuttoned

A 23 year old woman who was fascinated by body modification had several surgeries in her quest to alter her original body. She had a back corset which is piercings on either side of the spine,she had her tongue split and in an effort to cut ties to everything and everyone she had her belly button removed which she then gifted to her boyfriend. She now regrets having her belly button removed and says it was an impulsive,reckless decision. She did not properly care for the area after the surgery which got infected and caused her days of pain. It has never properly closed and is still sensitive,though I'm guessing she might spend more time thinking about future modifications.

Happiest Place on Earth?

Disneyland (also Magic Kingdom) are often chosen for celebrating important events in life though what isn't widely advertised is the dark side of the parks. Even though it is illegal if done on private property without permission many people smuggle their loved ones cremains in to scatter in a place of happiness. It happens so often that employees even have a code name for it,HEPA cleanup. Often times the ashes are spread on just any old ride or in the landscaping, but the most popular rides are The Haunted Mansion,Small World,Dumbo moat,and Pirates of the Caribbean. I can't imagine anyone wanting their ashes scattered in the Small World with the thought of that music playing for all eternity.but maybe I was just tired and crabby by the time I rode it. If a person is caught in the act of spreading ashes they will be escorted from the park.

Newman Syndrome

After reading about another case of a postal worker dumping his days work in a ditch I began to wonder if these carriers were influenced by the Seinfeld character Newman who hid the mail he was supposed to deliver in the basement. One would think that would be a fairly easy fact to locate,however it took several hours of asking the question different way to finally get an answer. The answer is no! For some reason mail carriers become easily overwhelmed with their work and have been dumping,hiding or burning the mail since as early as 1874. The reason this information was so hard won is that it happens so frequently (around 500 cases per year) that even the internet has trouble finding the information.

Raising the Difficultly Level

One would think that running a marathon or even a half marathon would be hard enough without adding anything to the equation,but that is exactly what 13 runners did at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon. Did I mention they were awarded Guinness World Records at the finish line for their trouble? I can't imagine running anywhere dressed like a poop emoji...wouldn't that particular costume chafe? or what about as a battery? Lucille Ball would be okay as long as heels weren't involved,same deal with a chef though the joggler (juggling while running) would have their work cut out for them.

Initially

Is it just me or does it seem like some people create crisis for lack of something better to do? Here's what got me started on today's path,a mother- to- be went to an online site for moms to ask if the initials for the name she had chosen for her daughter would be a problem. The initials spelled out LIAR. The other moms pretty much went into a feeding frenzy telling her not to use those names. I don't know about everyone else but I didn't consider if the names I had chosen spelled anything or not,it was strictly about the names. I do have to admit that I was always slightly jealous of my sister's initials because they spelled MAW until her second marriage,now they spell MAD. It seems like someone told me that it was lucky to have initials that made a word. At any rate I don't think it should be an issue when choosing a child's name...how often will it even be noticed?

Purrfect Job

Today's post leaves me with more questions than answers. A small town in Russia has recently hired a cat chief to care for the towns 70 some stray cats. Out of  80 applicants  the newly established cat chief has to wear a bright green jacket,black bow tie and hat while making her rounds on a bicycle. Her pay is minimal (around $85 per month) and it never mentions if the cat food is purchased separately or if it comes out of her salary. Another question that went unanswered was if these feral cats have been spayed/neutered and if they receive veterinary care. The whole idea behind the cat chief was to re-brand the town as Russia's most cat loving community but I just keep thinking back to the Sochi Olympics and all the stray dogs in that area who largely went uncared for. 

Just the Facts Ma'am

It must be about time for a learn something new post so without further ado I present some fun trivia facts.
The first advertisement on Channel 5 was for Chanel No. 5
Names of Greek ocean gods included Poseidon,Triton,Oceanus, and Doris.
Most people know that Bruce was the name of the shark in the movie Jaws. He was named for Spielberg's lawyer.
The smell of Play-Doh is trademarked.
Faberge made 50 Faberge eggs and one Faberge potato. (see photo)
Blowing out the candles on a cake increases the bacteria on it by up to 1,400%.
Beyonce has released more perfumes than albums.
The technical name for the heat sleeve on a coffee cup is a zarf. (It seems like I've heard this before.)

The Nose Knows

I had no idea that people actually wore nose warmers,it seemed like more of a joke item but apparently they have caught on and there are several companies who offer different renditions of the warmers though most of them are knitted. All versions sell for around $10...maybe it's just me but with my nasal drip thing going on in cold weather a warmer would get ugly fairly quickly.
In other related nose news a 50 pound nose sculpture was stolen from a Portland,OR front porch. The two young boys who live at the residence are offering $6.27 reward for the return of the sculpture. They wanted to offer $2,000 but their mother wouldn't let them.