BlogCadre - offbeat news

The Tree That Owns Itself

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 18:25:22 -0500

There is a white oak tree on the corner of Finley and Dearing Streets in Athens, Georgia that is said to own itself.

The earliest known telling of the tree’s story comes from a front page article titled "Deeded to Itself" in the Athens Weekly Banner of August 12, 1890. The article explains that the tree had been located on the property of Colonel William Henry Jackson. William Jackson was the son of one James Jackson (a soldier in the American Revolution as well as a Congressman, U.S. Senator, and Governor of Georgia), and the father of another James Jackson (a Congressman and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia). He was the brother of Jabez Young Jackson, also a Congressman.[1][2] (William Jackson was reportedly a professor at the University of Georgia and is sometimes given the title of Doctor; the nature of his military service and the source of the title Colonel is unknown.[3]) Jackson supposedly cherished childhood memories of the tree and, desiring to protect it, deeded to the tree ownership of itself and the surrounding land. By various accounts this transaction took place between 1820 and 1832.[4][5] According to the newspaper article, the deed read:

I, W. H. Jackson, of the county of Clarke, of the one part, and the oak tree… of the county of Clarke, of the other part: Witnesseth, That the said W. H. Jackson for and in consideration of the great affection which he bears said tree, and his great desire to see it protected has conveyed, and by these presents do convey unto the said oak tree entire possession of itself and of all land within eight feet of it on all sides.
It is unclear whether the story of the Tree That Owns Itself began with the Weekly Banner article or if it had been an element of local folklore prior to that time. The author of "Deeded to Itself" writes that, in 1890, there were few people still living who knew the story.

The current tree is actually the "Son of The Tree That Owns Itself." The original tree fell in 1942 and a new tree was grown from one of the original tree's acorns.

Link

Beijing Olympic fireworks were digitally faked

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 00:10:13 -0500

Were you floored by the fireworks display at the Beijing Olympics? Turns out an almost 1-minute sequence of the display was digitally faked.

The opening to the Bejing Olympics featured a staggering fireworks display, but those watching at home were tricked into thinking what they saw was real. Some of it was actually CGI.

The fakery was unearthed by a local Chinese newspaper, The Beijing Times, which revealed that a 55-second sequence was created by a visual effects team, which included a series of giant footsteps made by fireworks.

Confusingly, this actually took place in the real ceremony, but the organisers felt that the sequence of 28 footprints would not be accurately captured live, so they faked it.

Link

A human foot found on coast of British Columbia, 6th this year

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 23:31:02 -0500

A human foot encased in a running shoe was found along the shorelines of the Strait of Georgia, southwest of Vancouver. This is the second foot encased in a running shoe found this week and the sixth within a year.

Authorities say they haven't reached any conclusions about the origin of the feet but are working to determine if there are any links to any other partial remains recovered in the province.

"Too my knowledge, we have not encountered anything like this," RCMP spokeswoman Annie Linteau told The Associated Press Wednesday evening. She declined to speculate if foul play was involved.

Link.

Update: Turns out the 6th foot found was a hoax. It turned out to be an animal paw that was placed in a sock and athletic shoe that was stuffed with dried seaweed. Link [via]

Guiness World Record's Largest Fake Breasts

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 22:38:06 -0500

Seriously? Stripper Maxi Mounds made the Guiness World Book of Records with her 36MM fake breasts.

Each of her breasts weighs 20 pounds – and they are still growing, thanks to the controversial "polypropylene string" treatment that created them.

Unimpressed by the results of standard silicone implants, Ms Mounds had plastic string inserted into her breasts in 2000.

The implant irritates the breast, causing the release of body fluids that inflate the area still further.

The procedure – which was only really popular among adult entertainers and sex workers – has since been banned in Britain and the United States due to concerns about its safety.

Link.

Update: Sameer Mishra wins 2008 Scripps National Bee

Fri, 30 May 2008 21:54:51 -0500

13-year-old Sameer Mishra of West Lafayette, Indiana, won the 2008 Scripps National Spelling Bee by correctly spelling the word "guerdon." Sameer beat out first time spelling bee competitor Sidharth Chand.

Sameer was definitely the funny one of the bunch almost mistaking "numnah" for "numbnut." Hopefully someone will have that footage up on YouTube soon.

Update: Break.con posted the "numb nut" incident. Link to video.

Scripps website - official results
'Guerdon' wins spelling bee for Sameer Mishra - CNN article

Previously:
Last year's Scripps Spelling Bee winner (LwL)

Is someone living in your closet?

Fri, 30 May 2008 14:59:01 -0500

When a Japanese man was baffled as to how food kept disappearing from his kitchen, he decided to set up a hidden camera which found something quite unsettling.

The 57-year-old unemployed man of Fukuoka in southern Japan called police Wednesday when the camera sent pictures to his mobile phone of an intruder in his home while he was out on Wednesday, the Asahi newspaper said on its Website.

Officers rushed to the house and found a 58-year-old unemployed woman hiding in an unused closet, where she had secreted a mattress and plastic drink bottles, the Asahi said. Police suspect she may have been there for several months, the paper said.

Parrot found, tells veterinarian where it lives

Wed, 21 May 2008 23:27:35 -0500

Tokyo police found an African grey parrot. The parrot was transferred to a veterinary hospital where the parrot eventually opened up and recited its owner's name and street address.

He kept mum with the cops, but began chatting after a few days with the vet.

"I'm Mr. Yosuke Nakamura," the bird told the veterinarian, according to Uemura. The parrot also provided his full home address, down to the street number, and even entertained the hospital staff by singing songs.

"We checked the address, and what do you know, a Nakamura family really lived there. So we told them we've found Yosuke," Uemura said.

The Nakamura family told police they had been teaching the bird its name and address for about two years.

Link.

Also check out:
Beatboxing parrot
Parrot that does special effects and animal sounds (LwL)
Famed research parrot dies

Girl's twin found inside her stomach

Thu, 15 May 2008 22:36:19 -0500

A nine-year-old girl was admitted to a hospital in central Greece due to complaints of severe stomach pains. The pain was caused by an embryo about six centimeters long with a head, hair, and eyes. The embryo was surgically removed and the girl has made a full recovery. Link.

Mom wrongfully jailed for daughter's murder

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 15:47:19 -0500

Tabitha Pollock was charged with first degree murder after her boyfriend killed Tabitha's 3-year-old daughter. Prosecutors believed she should have known of the danger so she spent more than six years in prison. The Illinois Supreme Court threw out of the conviction, but Pollock is still waiting for an official pardon from the governor of Illinois to completely clear her name. She's been waiting since 2002. Link

Oyster eating champ wins with 35 dozen

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 00:08:31 -0500

22-year-old Patrick Bertoletti from Chicago became the Acme World Oyster Eating champion by downing 35 dozen oysters in eight minutes. Defending champing Crazy Legs Conti came in third by eating 24 dozen oysters. Link

Previously:
Hot Dog Eating Record Broken by California Man

Parents disagree on which gang their toddler should join

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 21:38:19 -0500

Joseph Manzanares is a member of the Westside Ballers gang and his girlfriend is a member of the Crips gang. Apparently, Manzanares threatened to kill his girlfriend because they had been arguing about which gang their 4-year-old son should belong to.

Would Maria and Tony had this problem if they ended up together in Westside Story? A Shark or a Jet? That's a tough decision. I didn't even know cross-gang relationships were allowed.

But seriously, what is wrong with youth today? 4-year-olds should be playing in sandboxes and picking their noses. This is such a sad story.

Link [via Neatorama]

Arrested for forgetting soda underneath shopping cart

Tue, 08 Apr 2008 22:27:22 -0500

I know I've left the grocery store without paying for a case of soda that was under the shopping cart at least a couple of times. Anything left underneath the cart can easily be forgotten. It's not like I was stealing -- I think I can spare an extra $4 when I typically have over $100 in other groceries in the cart. Honest mistake, right? Well, it was an honest mistake for Tom Sturgis, but he was arrested:

Tom Sturgis has a long receipt showing the $157.20 worth of two grocery carts full of groceries that he bought at a Brooklyn supermarket Saturday night. After going through the self checkout, Sturgis said he forgot a $4 case of pop under the cart.
A police officer working security at the store asked to see his receipt.

"I went looking for the receipt, the pop wasn't on it and they decided to have me arrested," he said.

Sturgis was arrested on a petty theft charge.

Sturgis, who said he has never had so much as a parking ticket, found himself being led out of the store in handcuffs. He spent 11:30 p.m. until 3 a.m. in jail that night.

At home, his wife said she couldn't believe what was happening.

"It's over a case of pop," said Wendy Sturgis. "He turned around and offered to go back in and pay for it and the cop told him it's like robbing a bank, you just can't get caught robbing a bank and say, 'I'm sorry, I'll give you your money back.'"

Yes, it's just like robbing a bank.

Update: Turns out Tom Sturgis really meant to steal the case of soda. Link (Thanks, Jonathan!)

Girl with two faces is "gift from God"

Tue, 08 Apr 2008 09:53:43 -0500

An Indian girl born with two faces was born to Vinod and Sushma Kumar.

The reason for the crowds is the child's appearance: she has two pairs of eyes, two noses and two lips but only one pair of ears.

The child's 19-year-old mother, says that she has "accepted the way she is and so will the rest of the world. Why should [I regret], after all God formed her features and it is he who decided how she should be."

The family, who are poor and largely illiterate, do not believe modern science can help their child and are already building a small temple to the girl in the village.

Kumar said that when his daughter was born, hospital staff told the family that everything was normal. "So where's the need to get medical help? She's feeds through one mouth and sucks her thumb with the other. She's just a baby."

Doctors predict a difficult life ahead for the girl, who was born without any pre-natal care. They said it was an extremely rare case, with the baby having two skulls joined together, and that separating them was out of the question.

Link to full article.

Kid assaulted with a hedgehog

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 15:26:19 -0500

William Singalargh of New Zealand was arrested for assault with a weapon after throwing a hudgehog 16 feet at a 15-year-old boy. Singalargh could face up to 5 years in prison if charged.

The victim suffered several puncture marks and a large, red welt on his leg. The hedgehog was found dead. Authorities are unsure if the hedgehog was already dead or if the impact caused its death.

Link.

French Mayor Tells Residents They Cannot Die

Fri, 07 Mar 2008 22:09:51 -0600

The cemetary in the village of Sarpourenx, France is overcrowded and the Mayor is forbidding the village of 260 residents from dying.

In an ordinance posted in the council offices, Mayor Gerard Lalanne told the 260 residents of the village of Sarpourenx that "all persons not having a plot in the cemetery and wishing to be buried in Sarpourenx are forbidden from dying in the parish."

It added: "Offenders will be severely punished."

The mayor said he was forced to take drastic action after an administrative court in the nearby town of Pau ruled in January that the acquisition of adjoining private land to extend the cemetery would not be justified.

So, in other words, if someone dies he will be severely punished? Interesting.

Link.