Monday, February 23, 2015
Gotcha the cockatoo has a lot to say for himself
And whilst what he's saying is incomprehensible, he sounds grumpy. I think he must have got out the wrong side of the bed.
YouTube link.
YouTube link.
Home intruder took photo of woman in shower then posted it on her Facebook page
Police in Altamonte Springs, Florida, say a man walked into a woman's apartment at 11pm on Wednesday, stole her cellphone and took a picture of her while she was in the shower.
While police were at the scene, the intruder then posted that picture to the victim's Facebook page, police said. "Having someone actually in your apartment while you are taking a shower is quite scary honestly," Altamonte Springs police spokesman Rob Pelton said.
"Going to get a victim's cell phone and having the gall to stand inside of a residence that you have broken into to steal someone's cell phone and use it to take a picture of them in the shower is unheard of."
YouTube link.
Police believe the same man has been spotted masturbating while peering inside residences. Two incidents have been reported in the past week. The suspect is described as a white male, between 5 feet 6 and 5 feet 9, wearing all dark clothing and blue jeans.
While police were at the scene, the intruder then posted that picture to the victim's Facebook page, police said. "Having someone actually in your apartment while you are taking a shower is quite scary honestly," Altamonte Springs police spokesman Rob Pelton said.
"Going to get a victim's cell phone and having the gall to stand inside of a residence that you have broken into to steal someone's cell phone and use it to take a picture of them in the shower is unheard of."
YouTube link.
Police believe the same man has been spotted masturbating while peering inside residences. Two incidents have been reported in the past week. The suspect is described as a white male, between 5 feet 6 and 5 feet 9, wearing all dark clothing and blue jeans.
Bus driver's toilet use gets White Rabbit's goat
A New Zealand restaurant owner has sent an $11,000 bill to Auckland mayor Len Brown for the "hurt and humiliation" of having to clean up after bus drivers who use his toilets.
Mark Keddell, from the White Rabbit in central Auckland, said bus drivers whose routes terminate outside his restaurant, then come inside to use the toilets, without asking permission or buying anything. Even worse, they are careless in their aim.
In a letter to Brown, with a $10,998 invoice attached, Keddall said he was "personally sick" of having to clean up after the drivers. Keddell said his staff tried hard to look after customers with boutique soaps, seat sanitisers and cloth hand-towels because clean bathrooms reflected on the restaurant. He and his management team had been cleaning the toilets themselves and had resorted to taking photos of the drivers, who "slipped in stealthily" through a side entrance and avoided talking to staff.
"I can't ask my staff to clean them when they are in this state, so I often have to do it myself." Keddell said he felt a certain amount of sympathy for the drivers as there were few public toilets in the area, but they should show some respect, ask to use White Rabbit facilities - even buy something. "We are a business, too". Keddell got a hasty response from the mayor's chief-of-staff, Phil Wilson, who said he was "very sorry for the situation that exists" and would brief Brown.
Wilson also said he would raise the matter with Auckland Transport chief executive David Warburton, and he was sure "some influence" could be exerted on the bus companies. AT bus services manager Brendon Main said:"It is inappropriate for drivers to use private facilities and I will be saying that to the drivers' employers and AT will work with the employers to find alternatives for the drivers." Keddell said he was pleased with the response, "but it's terrible it's got to this stage and I have to bother people with more important things to deal with. I'm glad they've got back to me, but the proof is in the pudding - I'd like to see the consequences." And he wants his invoice paid.
In a letter to Brown, with a $10,998 invoice attached, Keddall said he was "personally sick" of having to clean up after the drivers. Keddell said his staff tried hard to look after customers with boutique soaps, seat sanitisers and cloth hand-towels because clean bathrooms reflected on the restaurant. He and his management team had been cleaning the toilets themselves and had resorted to taking photos of the drivers, who "slipped in stealthily" through a side entrance and avoided talking to staff.
"I can't ask my staff to clean them when they are in this state, so I often have to do it myself." Keddell said he felt a certain amount of sympathy for the drivers as there were few public toilets in the area, but they should show some respect, ask to use White Rabbit facilities - even buy something. "We are a business, too". Keddell got a hasty response from the mayor's chief-of-staff, Phil Wilson, who said he was "very sorry for the situation that exists" and would brief Brown.
Wilson also said he would raise the matter with Auckland Transport chief executive David Warburton, and he was sure "some influence" could be exerted on the bus companies. AT bus services manager Brendon Main said:"It is inappropriate for drivers to use private facilities and I will be saying that to the drivers' employers and AT will work with the employers to find alternatives for the drivers." Keddell said he was pleased with the response, "but it's terrible it's got to this stage and I have to bother people with more important things to deal with. I'm glad they've got back to me, but the proof is in the pudding - I'd like to see the consequences." And he wants his invoice paid.
Dramatic start to life for kiwi chick still inside egg that survived close encounter with 13-ton digger
A kiwi chick called Whisker has had a dramatic start to life after its burrow was run over by a 13-ton digger in a remote part of New Zealand's North Island. Whisker, named because he only survived his ordeal by a whisker, is now safe and well at Rainbow Springs' Kiwi Encounter in Rotorua.
The accident sparked a massive community effort to save the unhatched chick.
Whinray Kiwi Trust volunteer Steve Sawyer said the kiwi chick's adventure began when the digger hit its burrow prompting the adult male kiwi which was incubating the egg to run for his life. Land owner Clive Lewis then spotted the egg at the side of the road, Sawyer said. "He was very surprised to hear a squawk and to see a partially hatched kiwi chick. Clive then carefully placed the egg down his (woollen) top to keep it warm and drove 3 kilometres back to his house to call me."
Lewis then drove into town and handed the chick to local woman and conservation enthusiast Amy England, who assembled a makeshift incubator, plucked her 4-year-old son from daycare and set off on the four-and-a half-hour drive north to the Kiwi Encounter conservation centre in Rotorua. "Not only did Amy have to ensure that the egg was secured safely in the car and remained at a constant temperature of between 26 and 30 degrees [Celsius] she also had to entertain her son Cael for the long journey," Sawyer said.
Kiwi Encounter's assistant husbandry manager, Emma Bean, said the chick had survived the ordeal well. "When the chick arrived it had a lot of soil around its navel and needed a bit of a clean up, but apart from that it managed to complete the hatch itself and is strong and healthy." Whisker will be released into a Kiwi "crèche" near Gisborne in about three weeks. Once it reaches 1kg and is strong enough to survive in the wild, it will be released at Whinray Scenic Reserve.
Whinray Kiwi Trust volunteer Steve Sawyer said the kiwi chick's adventure began when the digger hit its burrow prompting the adult male kiwi which was incubating the egg to run for his life. Land owner Clive Lewis then spotted the egg at the side of the road, Sawyer said. "He was very surprised to hear a squawk and to see a partially hatched kiwi chick. Clive then carefully placed the egg down his (woollen) top to keep it warm and drove 3 kilometres back to his house to call me."
Lewis then drove into town and handed the chick to local woman and conservation enthusiast Amy England, who assembled a makeshift incubator, plucked her 4-year-old son from daycare and set off on the four-and-a half-hour drive north to the Kiwi Encounter conservation centre in Rotorua. "Not only did Amy have to ensure that the egg was secured safely in the car and remained at a constant temperature of between 26 and 30 degrees [Celsius] she also had to entertain her son Cael for the long journey," Sawyer said.
Kiwi Encounter's assistant husbandry manager, Emma Bean, said the chick had survived the ordeal well. "When the chick arrived it had a lot of soil around its navel and needed a bit of a clean up, but apart from that it managed to complete the hatch itself and is strong and healthy." Whisker will be released into a Kiwi "crèche" near Gisborne in about three weeks. Once it reaches 1kg and is strong enough to survive in the wild, it will be released at Whinray Scenic Reserve.
Suspected thief found by police hiding in his mother's fridge
Police in Russia tracked down a suspected thief who had hidden in his mother's fridge.
Eduard Bulgakov, 31, had been due to appear in court in Yekaterinburg, central Russia, but he did not turn up.
Judges issued an arrest warrant and officers turned up at his flat, only for his mother to claim she didn’t know where he was. Officers decided to wait outside in case he turned up, and after seeing a delivery man turn up with two large pizzas addressed to the woman who was supposedly on her own, they went back for a second look.
Police spokesman Kuzma Alekseeva said: "When officers and bailiffs went inside they could see that the pizzas had been eaten, and they doubted that the woman had done it on her own. So they searched the property, but could not find any sign of him."
YouTube link.
The mother later became uncomfortable when police asked why she wasn’t putting the leftovers in the fridge. They opened the fridge door and found her son inside, shivering from the cold. Suspected thief Bulgakov was allowed to warm up and given a hot drink before being taken into custody.
Judges issued an arrest warrant and officers turned up at his flat, only for his mother to claim she didn’t know where he was. Officers decided to wait outside in case he turned up, and after seeing a delivery man turn up with two large pizzas addressed to the woman who was supposedly on her own, they went back for a second look.
Police spokesman Kuzma Alekseeva said: "When officers and bailiffs went inside they could see that the pizzas had been eaten, and they doubted that the woman had done it on her own. So they searched the property, but could not find any sign of him."
YouTube link.
The mother later became uncomfortable when police asked why she wasn’t putting the leftovers in the fridge. They opened the fridge door and found her son inside, shivering from the cold. Suspected thief Bulgakov was allowed to warm up and given a hot drink before being taken into custody.
Man fell asleep while allegedly trying to steal bus
A 20-year-old man from north Belfast, Northern Ireland, who fell asleep on a bus he allegedly tried to steal has been refused bail.
Joseph McMahon, from the Antrim Road, is charged with trying to steal a double decker bus.
He is also accused of stealing two mobile phones from a shop, causing criminal damage to a phone, and possessing cannabis.
All the alleged offences took place on 19 February. He is further charged with disorderly behaviour at the Royal Victoria Hospital the following day. A detective constable told Belfast Magistrates Court that with 128 convictions, along with drink and drug addictions, Mr McMahon "appears to have no concern for the consequences of his actions, so is a danger to both himself and others".
"He passed out on the bus he attempted to steal, so given the circumstances, it's alarming to think about the consequences that may have ensued if he had managed to steal the bus," the detective said. He also said Mr McMahon had numerous breaches of bail and court orders, adding that he was currently under two suspended jail terms for burglary and theft and was only released from custody last month.
Mr McMahon's solicitor said he had instructed her that he would abide by any bail conditions set by the court, but a judge told the solicitor it was "very difficult for me to say that there's any chance of him keeping to conditions". The accused is due back before the court via videolink on 20 March.
All the alleged offences took place on 19 February. He is further charged with disorderly behaviour at the Royal Victoria Hospital the following day. A detective constable told Belfast Magistrates Court that with 128 convictions, along with drink and drug addictions, Mr McMahon "appears to have no concern for the consequences of his actions, so is a danger to both himself and others".
"He passed out on the bus he attempted to steal, so given the circumstances, it's alarming to think about the consequences that may have ensued if he had managed to steal the bus," the detective said. He also said Mr McMahon had numerous breaches of bail and court orders, adding that he was currently under two suspended jail terms for burglary and theft and was only released from custody last month.
Mr McMahon's solicitor said he had instructed her that he would abide by any bail conditions set by the court, but a judge told the solicitor it was "very difficult for me to say that there's any chance of him keeping to conditions". The accused is due back before the court via videolink on 20 March.
Charity believes it is running the only dedicated retirement home for elderly cats
A charity believes it is running the only dedicated "retirement home" for Old Age Pussycats (OAPs).
Lincolnshire Trust For Cats has almost 80 cats living out the end of their nine lives, with luxuries including heated beds, sofas and an open fire.
Some of the cats live there because their owners have died, while other owners have moved abroad. Finding new homes for elderly cats like these is more difficult because people prefer to adopt young cats. Older cats can also be more expensive to look after, due to veterinary bills, so many are put down when their owners die.
Trust founder Jain Hills believes the home is unique. "I know of some charities that have a few elderly cats, but they are not doing it on the scale we are," she said. "For cats to come to us people have either got to make a provision in their will, or people come to look round. I don't think anywhere else does it because people come all the way from London with the cats to come here."
The home is set in seven acres of land on the outskirts of the village of Osgodby. There is a one off payment on admission, which currently stands at £850, thereafter the Trust bears the cost of all treatment and any surgery the cat may need in the future. The premises are manned twenty four hours a day and the Trust administrator lives on site. "There's three sitting rooms and they are connected by enclosed outdoor areas," said Ms Hills. "It's all south-facing which means the cats have a lot of sunbathing options."
Some of the cats live there because their owners have died, while other owners have moved abroad. Finding new homes for elderly cats like these is more difficult because people prefer to adopt young cats. Older cats can also be more expensive to look after, due to veterinary bills, so many are put down when their owners die.
Trust founder Jain Hills believes the home is unique. "I know of some charities that have a few elderly cats, but they are not doing it on the scale we are," she said. "For cats to come to us people have either got to make a provision in their will, or people come to look round. I don't think anywhere else does it because people come all the way from London with the cats to come here."
The home is set in seven acres of land on the outskirts of the village of Osgodby. There is a one off payment on admission, which currently stands at £850, thereafter the Trust bears the cost of all treatment and any surgery the cat may need in the future. The premises are manned twenty four hours a day and the Trust administrator lives on site. "There's three sitting rooms and they are connected by enclosed outdoor areas," said Ms Hills. "It's all south-facing which means the cats have a lot of sunbathing options."
Mother angry after playground slathered in lube
A brand new playground in Plymouth, Devon, was coated with lubricant in a dangerous stunt by mindless yobs.
Angry Clarice Thacker discovered the vandalism at the £40,000 park in Frogmore Field when she took her two-year-old boy Sonny along for one of their regular afternoons playing on the equipment.
After noticing Sonny slipping on climbing frame steps, Clarice realised the whole play park has been tarnished with the slippery substance. “At first I thought he’d just slipped, but then he went down the slide and he absolutely flew down it. Then his clothes and his hands were covered in lubricant.
“Another lady was there with her grandchild and she thought it was glue, but it was like jelly and we realised it was lubricant. I found an empty packet of lubricant on the way out and took a picture of it before I put it in the bin. It’s disgusting that someone would do this.” And Clarice says it’s just good fortune that Sonny, nor any other child, was badly hurt. “He could really have hurt himself when he slipped from the bars. And it was all over the climbing frame.
“We phoned the council straight away and they said they’d be out to clean it up.” A spokesman for Plymouth City Council said: “We take very seriously any reports of damage to our playgrounds and deal with them as quickly as possible. It’s disappointing that this act of vandalism has taken place on a playground that is primarily designed for younger children. All our playgrounds are cleaned and inspected on a weekly basis, but we would encourage anyone who finds any damage to contact us.”
After noticing Sonny slipping on climbing frame steps, Clarice realised the whole play park has been tarnished with the slippery substance. “At first I thought he’d just slipped, but then he went down the slide and he absolutely flew down it. Then his clothes and his hands were covered in lubricant.
“Another lady was there with her grandchild and she thought it was glue, but it was like jelly and we realised it was lubricant. I found an empty packet of lubricant on the way out and took a picture of it before I put it in the bin. It’s disgusting that someone would do this.” And Clarice says it’s just good fortune that Sonny, nor any other child, was badly hurt. “He could really have hurt himself when he slipped from the bars. And it was all over the climbing frame.
“We phoned the council straight away and they said they’d be out to clean it up.” A spokesman for Plymouth City Council said: “We take very seriously any reports of damage to our playgrounds and deal with them as quickly as possible. It’s disappointing that this act of vandalism has taken place on a playground that is primarily designed for younger children. All our playgrounds are cleaned and inspected on a weekly basis, but we would encourage anyone who finds any damage to contact us.”
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