What's the Big Deal?

A 17 year old Sacramento girl, Christina Almanza, was freaking out because she thought she may be pregnant. Again. She already is the mother of a 2 year old child. So she did what any normal teenager in distress would do- she faked her own kidnapping. She left her family a voicemail and text messages saying she had been abducted by several men and was being held hostage in a basement with two other girls. She also claimed that she didn't know where she was, and her abductors may be murderers. Police, deputies, FBI agents, and US Marshals went into a frenzy looking for the girl, even issuing a statewide Amber Alert. The next day, she was found unharmed in the home of a man she had met online. When police questioned Almanza, she admitted she made the whole thing up because she wanted her family to feel bad for her and be sympathetic about her pregnancy. She said she had no clue that making up a story about her kidnapping and being held hostage in a basement by murderers would scare people so much. Jeeze, people are so sensitive. Thankfully, police didn't have much sympathy for Almanza and arrested her for being so stupid. Kids these days...

Rash Decisions

A fourth grade student in Gaston County, NC, was suspended for sexual harassment for calling a teacher "cute". Emanyea was suspended for three days as the school claims they have had previous problems with the boy calling other students names. I've heard kids say much worse things to teachers and not even get in trouble. The boy's mother was outraged at his suspension and contacted the local news. Soon CNN and The Huffington Post reported the story to the nation, and a hail-storm of criticism was aimed at the Brookside Elementary school and their decision to suspend the child. Not long after, school officials determined there was no sexual harassment and offered an apology to the child and his parents. OK, I understand the suspension was a harsh decision, but in an equally harsh decision the principal who suspended the child lost his job. Principal Jerry Bostic was given an hour to decide whether he was going to retire or be fired. What he did was wrong, but the man has been working in the school system for 44 years and this was his only real mistake. He has a 98 percent approval rating from parents. Give him the benefit of the doubt. Expunging the boy's record, national attention, and apologies should make his mother happy right? Apparently not, because she is threatening to sue. This whole situation has gotten completely out of hand.

A Standing Avaition

Aurthur Berkowitz is a very unsatisfied customer with US Airways. Why, you ask? He was forced to stand during an entire seven hour flight from Anchorage to Philadelphia. The seat next to him was occupied by a man weighing a staggering 400 pounds. “His size required both armrests to be raised up and allowed for his body to cover half of my seat,” Berkowitz says. Since there were no other seats on the plane, there was nothing the flight attendants could do. Usually it's standard airline policy to make morbidly obese individuals purchase two seats, but clearly it was ignored in this case. The flight attendants acknowledged the gate agent's mistake, but wouldn't allow Berrkowitz to sit in their jump seats. Standing for seven hours sounds awful, I would have at least sat on the floor or something. Not to mention the fact that making a passenger stand during a flight is extremely unsafe. This is the part that blows my mind- he wrote US Airways a letter requesting a full refund for his $800 flight, and all they offered was a measly $200. C'mon US Airways... I mean if there is ANY situation where a full refund is appropriate, this is it. And if there is any reason to boycott this airline, this is also it. If this is how they treat their customers, they don't deserve the business. US Airways has refused to offer any more money, solidifying the fact that not much value is placed on the customer. How is this not illegal or something? I hope he sues their cheap asses!

Shopping Rage

Another Walmart story. Shocking. On Black Friday, at the store located in the San Fernando Valley, a large crowd formed around a crate of Xboxes that were about to be unwrapped by store employees. To the surprise of everyone, a psychotically greedy woman sprayed as many as 20 people with pepper spray "in order to get an advantage." Over an Xbox?? Really?? Ten people were slightly injured by the pepper spray and ten others suffered bumps and bruises in the chaos. Apparently, the woman had sprayed other people in other areas of the store also. She actually got away with it! No one was able to provide a clear description because the victims' eyes were burning like hot coals and they couldn't see. Walmart is unsure if she actually bought anything and are going through receipts, but I can't imagine she would take such drastic measures just to leave the store empty handed. If the woman is found, she will face felony battery charges.
I try to avoid the mall on Black Friday, especially when stores open late at night. I feel like it attracts the craziest people. Drama is pretty much a guarantee. 

Listen to this in a PODCAST

The Worst Hotel in America

OK, this story happened a few months ago, but I thought I'd share it with you anyway to make your next hotel stay as uncomfortable as possible. It always grossed me out that they never wash the top comforter on the bed. Ew. Anyways, there are many hotels that are candidates for being the worst hotel in the country, but the Value Place Hotel in Arnold, Missouri wins the grand prize. It has since been foreclosed by the city of Arnold because in the 23 months it was open, police had been called there over 200 times. 200 times in 23 months?! It's like this place immediately became Arnold's largest crack house. The Drug Task Force, the DEA, and the FBI responded to prostitution, drug sales, drug manufacturing, child pornography, drug overdoses, theft, assault, rape, and other felonious activity. At the rate this place was going, I'm surprised murder wasn't on the list. The extended-stay hotel was a real bargain, charging guests only $30 a night, or $199 per week. This is what happens when hotels charge insanely cheap prices- they turn into drug dens.
The room actually doesn't look that bad, it just looks like a generic hotel room. The picture lends no hint that the place is actually prostitute and drug infested. Ironically, their slogan was "So clean, you have to see it to believe it." Umm, I think not...
Listen to this in a PODCAST

Pain in the Face

A 45-year old Canadian man went to the doctor complaining of testicular pain. When the doctor scanned the ultrasound he preformed, he was was shocked to see the image of a face staring up at him. Making this even weirder is that the face has a pained expression, which seems to be a reflection of the actual pain the man is feeling in real-life. Is this pure coincidence or a supernatural occurrence? There is no way to know for sure, but if you happen to know a psychic, tell her to call me. I showed this picture to a coworker and she said, "Oh people see faces in anything." I disagree. The face looks very pronounced and defined to me. No one looking at the picture is going to say, "I don't see it."

In fact the picture was so amazing that Dr. G. Gregory Roberts, and urologist Dr. Naji J. Touma, submitted their amazing find in a recent issue of the medical journal, Urology. In the article, "The Face of Testicular Pain: A Surprising Ultrasound Finding," The doctors claim that when they found the extraordinary tumor, a "brief debate ensued on whether the image was deity (perhaps "Min" the Egyptian god of male virility); however, the consensus deemed it a mere coincidental occurrence rather than a divine proclamation." They also claim that a perfect image showing up in an ultrasound is nearly impossible.
I remember a few years ago when I lives in Boston, everyone was freaking out about the image of the Virgin Mary showing up in the window of a hospital. I couldn't really make it out, it just looked like window condensation to me. I tend to be skeptical about these things, but this ultrasound picture is unarguably a face.

Cat vs. Mountain Lion

A sliding glass door was the only thing that stood between a house-cat named Zeus, and a mountain lion in Boulder, CO. Zeus's owner, Gail Loveman, heard a strange noise when she was in her home office and came out to investigate. Zeus followed her and they were both surprised to see a mountain lion on the porch. The 11 year-old Maine Coon cat got into an epic stare-down with the large predator. Her other cat, Bacchus, peeked his head in, but decided he was better off staying in the hallway. Loveman grabbed her camera and started snapping away until the big cat left after about five minutes. Zeus, who is a large cat himself, is pretty aggressive and hisses at other smaller animals (like squirrels) he sees through the glass door. But he kept his manners with the mountain lion and remained calm. "I think he thought 'Hmmm! This is different,' " Loveman said. He knows who's boss.

The foothills of Boulder have a healthy mountain lion population and although encounters with humans are rare, they can occur. Unfortunately, our pets are easy targets for them. I used to work at a veterinary clinic and let me tell you the best way to keep your kitty safe is to not let it outside at all. If you have a dog, invest in a very tall fence. Responsible pet owner = happy pet.