Man Leaves Home For A Week, Finds 15 Squatters Living In It On Return

In the middle of completely refurbishing his five-bedroom house, Connan Gupta felt he deserved a week off.

It is a decision he is now regretting because 15 squatters took advantage of his short absence to occupy the £700,000 property.

The jobless Italians changed the locks and have taken up residence along with their three dogs and two cats.

They claim the fact they cannot afford to rent gives them the right to take over the Victorian property in Camberwell, South-East London.

Police are powerless to intervene because squatting is a civil rather than criminal offence.

‘This is just ridiculous,’ he said. ‘Everything’s in there. All my worldly possessions, clothes, valuables, and medication I need for a skin condition. It is hellish. I always triple-lock the house and when I went away I made sure everything was locked.

‘It is really scary that you can go on holiday and come back and your house has been taken. I’m profoundly shocked that this can happen.

‘I tried to open the door and found the locks had been changed. Then I saw the note, and banged on the door saying I was the owner and a voice inside said “Just go away”.

‘I just have to sit here and wait. It’s as if the squatters have more rights than I do.’

The squatters claim the front door was open when they arrived at the house two weeks ago.

One, Valentina, 26, said: ‘None of us have any money or jobs. I don’t feel guilty about being here because no one else had been here for at least two years, the neighbours told us.

‘There’s no sink, no running water, no electricity, no carpets and the place was filthy. All of the owner’s stuff was packed away and stored.

‘I’ve never squatted before but when three of us found it we called our friends who are having difficulties of their own and told them about it.

An eviction hearing is expected to be held in the next two weeks.

Source: Daily Mail

Child Rapper Posts Music Video Telling People To Stop Ogling At His Mom

He may only be 14 and tiny, but this youngster has a big attitude - and if you look at his mom then he'll beat the living daylights out of you.

At least, that's what Brian Bradley promises in his song, 'Stop Looking at My Moms', which has become an Internet sensation.

The Brookyn-based bad boy, who calls himself Astronomical Kid, has seen his video attract over 210,000 hits on YouTube in less than two months.

Bradley told the New York Daily News: 'I didn't like the way people were staring at my mother when I walked down the street. It was very offending.

'Every kid goes through that; every mother goes through that.

'Women, they are not pieces of meat. They are human beings. They should be respected. Men should know better.

'I decided instead of being violent, and going about it the wrong way, I'd put it on a record. It's a track everyone can relate to. I don't like people lookin' at my moms. I'm pretty sure nobody likes it.

'Sometimes I gotta turn around and give them the evil eye. Mentally, I'm a grown man. Height, I'm a kid.'

His mother, who didn't wish to be named, is delighted with the video. She said: 'It shows he loves his mom, and he knows what it means to respect a woman,' she said.

'I don't think that any child wants anyone catcalling their mother. What he is trying to say is, "This is my mom, have some respect, not only for her, but for me, too". I think it's a good message.

Source: Daily Mail

University Student Sex Rating List Becomes Internet Sensation

Karen Owen made the 'unofficial senior thesis' on her sex life with athletes at Duke University in North Carolina and originally emailed it to three of her friends. The project spread to the university's entire 14,000 student body and from there on to websites across the globe.

In the list, written in the form of a 42-slide PowerPoint presentation, Miss Owen rates 13 of the men she slept with - mainly from the university lacrosse team - out of 10 and created a bar graph charting their sexual prowess.

The project leaves little to the imagination and describes her sexual encounters in the university library during finals week, showers, on a balcony, in cars and while drunk.

In one of the entries, she said: 'In my blackout state, still managed to crawl into bed with a Duke athlete.'

In another, in which she rates a tennis player, she said: 'He was terrible, did not even bother to kiss me more than a few seconds and finished in about five minutes, after which he simply walked out of the room and did not return.'

Miss Owen rates all 13 men according to eight categories: physical attractiveness, size, talent, creativity, aggressiveness, entertainment, athletic ability and a bonus factor including whether they have an accent.

The top ranked man scored 10.25 out of 10, while the worst got just one.

The list has since been taken down from internet sites and Miss Owen has deleted her profiles from social networking sites.

Speaking after it was made public, she told The News Of Today: 'I regret it with all my heart. I would never intentionally hurt the people that are mentioned on that.'

Source: Daily Mail

Flight Attendants Dance to Lady Gaga

Flight attendants for Cebu Pacific Air have turned the preflight safety demonstration into a pop music party with a little help from Lady Gaga and Katy Perry.

Instead of the standard spiel about emergency exits and smoking in the lavatories, video captured by a passenger aboard a flight on the Philippine carrier shows a troupe of flight attendants sashaying their way down the aisle to the sound of Lady Gaga's "Just Dance."

The cabin crew struts its stuff and dances with props including seat belts, flotation devices and oxygen masks while a prerecorded voice narrates the safety instructions.

The presentation might be more entertaining than the in-flight movie, but that doesn't mean Cebu thinks spectacle is more important than safety, said Candice Lyog, the airline's vice president for marketing and distribution.

"We do not compromise safety in anything we do, and it will remain our primary concern. We just really know how to have fun too," Lyog told CNN.com. "The safety demo dance rendition is just another way to bring out our fun culture and showcase our homegrown talents. We plan to roll this out onto more flights after receiving great commendations from the global public."

Here is the video:

 

Source:  AOL News

Newborn’s Picture Goes Viral in Japan

Ten years ago Florida-resident Allen Rout posted a picture of his newborn son, Stephen, on the Internet. Then just two month ago, while googling his own name, he was shocked to discover that his son’s picture had become a sensation in Japan. It was on dolls, in game shows, and even in video games. It was essentially being used as an “open-source stock image.”

According to KnowYourMeme, it all started back in 2004 when a user of 2chan.net, a Japanese imageboard, discovered the picture and added an interactive cartoon talk-bubble to it so users could have the unknown baby say anything they desired. Soon after it was picked up by the Japanese media, and a sensation was born! Nowadays Stephen’s photo is even used to censor explicit images on television!!

Source:  WeirdAsiaNews

TV Host Announces Wrong Winner

Producers of Australia's Next Top Model have been left red faced after supermodel host Sarah Murdoch announced the wrong winner in what newspapers said was the country's most awkward TV moment.

Murdoch, the daughter-in-law of media baron Rupert Murdoch, was close to tears after realizing she had mistakenly announced Sydney 19-year old Kelsey Martinovich as the winner of the Foxtel TV series during the live finale.

Martinovich had completed her acceptance speech before Murdoch backtracked on stage to reveal the real winner from a public vote was 18-year-old Gold Coast rival Amanda Ware.

"I don't know what to say right now. I'm feeling a bit sick about this," Murdoch told a 2,000-strong live audience.

"I'm so sorry. Oh my God, I don't know what to say. This is what happens when you have live TV folks, this is insane, insane, insane."

Foxtel publicity director Jamie Campbell Wednesday blamed a miscommunication between series directors in a broadcasting truck control room and Murdoch on stage.

Series judge and fashion designer Alex Perry told Sydney radio that Murdoch had made a genuine mistake, denying accusations in media reports that the bizarre mix-up was a publicity stunt.

"Everybody wants to tag something sinister on it and say it was done for ratings. I know Sarah and I know the executive producer. It's just not their style," Perry said.

Martinovich may have had a short-lived reign as Australia's Next Top Model, but it wasn't all bad news as Foxtel said she would receive a A$20,000 ($19,360) cash prize and trip to New York as consolation, almost matching Ware's series spoils.

Ware won an appearance in Harpers Bazaar magazine, a modeling contract, A$20,000, a trip to New York and a car.
Source: Reuters

Women Enters into Suicide Pact with Stranger on Internet Forum

Joanne Lee, 34, and truck driver Steve Lumb, 35, were found dead in a Vauxhall Astra parked alongside an area of overgrown wasteland on an industrial estate in Braintree, Essex on Monday.

They had gassed themselves after meeting just hours earlier after making contact on the internet. The pair first made contact on an internet suicide forum. Mr Lumb then drove 200 miles to Braintree to meet Ms Lee.

She is understood to have posted a message pleading for a partner to end her life with and told of her repeated failed bids to kill herself. Miss Lee, who had an eating disorder, wrote on the forum: 'I haven't the strength to do this alone. I'm not a cop, a cannibal or a murderer, just desperate. I ... want to do it ASAP. 'You should... be willing to pick me up when it is time to (kill myself). 'If you are "very" serious, please email me'.

Cyber 'friends' responded by giving her tips on how to successfully kill herself and expressed their sorrow that she had failed to end her life.

Mr Lumb is believed to have then contacted Miss Lee under his username.

The bodies were found in the fume-filled car, which had notes placed on the windows warning of the toxic material inside. A source close to the investigation said: We believe they met a few hours before this tragedy. The bodies were found on Monday morning by a warehouse worker behind two rows of offices. However sources said it is possible the car had been parked on the site over the weekend, when the area is largely deserted.

Essex Police are treating the deaths as unexplained and the vehicle has been taken to a secure compound.

Source:  DailyMail

Miner Digs Underground Home To Avoid Mortgage

ZHENGZHOU - Chen Xinnian, a 64-year-old former miner in Central China's Henan province, is now anxiously awaiting the results of a government investigation into the underground apartment that he has been digging for about four years.

Chen's dream for years has been to improve housing for his family, but because he cannot afford the high housing prices, he has been trying to built a home underground. He successfully dug an 50-square-meter space six meters below the ground in his own yard in Zhengzhou, capital of Henan.

Living in a shantytown about seven kilometers away from downtown Zhengzhou, Chen owns a comparatively big yard in front of his 20-sq-m room.

"It's quite hot in the summer to live in the bunkhouse and the roof leaks. I just wanted my daughters to live in a better place," Chen told China Daily.

A former mineworker, Chen said he came up with the idea four years ago.

"At the beginning, I told my wife about the idea, but she disagreed and said it's too dangerous," he said.

But Chen bought all the necessary tools, safety lamp and helmet, and started the project.

"Seeing that I was so dedicated to the construction, my wife began to assist me," he said.

After nearly two years' effort, a 50-sq-m space was dug out, including an entrance hall, corridors and an 8-sq-m decorated bedroom.

Source:  China Daily 

British MP Wife Works As Prostitute

Mike Weatherley, 53, is one of PM David Cameron’s fresh breed of ­ambitious MPs and a pillar of the ­community in his seaside ­constituency.

But his Brazilian wife Carla, 39 – pictured with him at the House of Commons just two months ago – sells her body to strangers in three seedy brothels.

Twice-married Mr Weatherley met Carla 10 years ago while on a business trip to the hedonistic party city of Rio de Janeiro –when, sources say, she was already selling herself for sex.

They wed in Brighton, East Sussex, in 2003. The marriage certificate gives her ­occupation as housewife. And ­initially, lorry driver’s daughter Carla successfully put her sex-for-sale past behind her.

But by February, as her husband prepared for a rigorous election ­campaign, she had slipped back into the sex industry. And when our ­reporter visited her at a South London massage parlour on Friday she offered to perform a list of sex acts, before stripping off and ­dancing naked.

During the encounter the tattooed blonde, who also goes by her middle name Adriana, revealed that she also plies her trade in two other brothels.  She then recited a price list, “£30 for hand relief, £40 for oral sex with a condom followed by sex and £70 for oral sex without a condom followed by full sex with a condom”.

She then spoke about the other two brothels where she works, nearby North Cheam ­Massage and Intimate Massage in Bedford. She said: “I started working in Bedford in February, but it is very far away. Here we have two houses, this one and one in Cheam. And I work there at the moment. I cover for my friend because she’s on holiday. I work Thursday there and Friday here. Then, when she is back, I will work Mondays. Thursdays here, Mondays there.”

Source:  Mirror

Nurse Cancer Patient Turns Out Long Lost Father

CORTLANDT, N.Y. - Wanda Rodriguez rarely works Wednesday nights, but she was on duty at Calvary Hospital in the Bronx when a new patient was admitted to the medical institution where terminally-ill cancer patients spend their final days.

She couldn't believe it when she heard the patient's name: Victor Peraza, just like her father, a man who had walked out on her and her family when she was just an infant, remaining a stranger for more than 40 years.

It was him, and he's not a stranger any more.

After a tearful reunion that Wednesday night, they've been drawn together as father and daughter even as their time together runs out. The years they've spent apart have been put aside, they said, by compassion and a bond they both can feel, and inside the room where her father lies, Rodriguez has been feeding him meals of rice and beans, bathing him and speaking in soft tones about the times they missed together.

"I welcomed him with open arms," Rodriguez said.

A nurse and a married mother of three young children who lives in Cortlandt, N.Y., Rodriguez, 41, said she never expected to meet her long-lost father on an otherwise quiet night at work Aug. 25.

"I overheard the name, 'Victor Peraza.' The second I heard that name, I froze," she recalled, then decided to see for herself who the man was. Yes, the same complexion. Yes, the same hazel eyes that run in the family, and those strong features she has, too.

"I quickly asked him if he had any kids," Rodriguez said. When he responded that he had two daughters named Wanda and Gina, "I couldn't help myself, I ran from the room and started to cry."

After collecting herself, she went back in and told him that she was his daughter. "He looked at me and said, 'I know,' " she recalled, and it became clear that he, too, had sensed quickly that fate had brought them together.

Though it would be understandable to turn her back on the man who left her when she was in diapers, Rodriguez said she never thought of spurning him.

"For 41 years, I've always wondered where my dad had been. Maybe he passed me in the street without me knowing. He's here now. He's terribly ill. It's not my nature to hold a grudge. I want to appreciate the valuable time we have left. You can't change the past, and he's begged me for forgiveness. . . . I'm cherishing every moment," she continued.

Peraza, 60, though racked with pain and sedated with medication, speaks clearly when asked about his daughter.

"I've been waiting for 41 years. When we embraced each other, it was a miraculous moment," he said, speaking with effort and emphasis. "I thank God for my daughter, and for being here."

Other members of the family have been reluctant visitors.

Rodriguez notes that her mother, Esther, a retired mail carrier, and her sister, Gina, are conflicted about the sudden reappearance of Peraza. Esther and Victor Peraza married when they were very young, high-school sweethearts who went to the altar. He was overwhelmed by parenthood, his daughter said, and took the easy way out.

Peraza was working in a bank before being diagnosed with cancer about 18 months ago. He did not start another family.

That was one question posed early on. Wanda Rodriguez has a million others for her father, but she knows as a nurse who works with the terminally ill, that the role of interrogator is not compatible with the role of caregiver.

They've found out they have quite a bit in common. They both like classical music, and they're both dog lovers - he had a Labrador retriever for many years, and she has two Maltese. She hopes to bring her two dogs to the room on his 61st birthday on Sept. 12.

"It makes me feel good to be with him," she said. "When I said good night, I called him 'Daddy, Papi.' I said 'I love you.' I couldn't believe it, it sounded so natural."

The story of their unlikely reunion, with its overtones of the biblical parable of the prodigal son, has astounded those who have heard about it.

"I think it's a wonderful, heartfelt story," Judy Getz of Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., a good friend of Wanda Rodriguez's, said Friday. "My eyes tear up just thinking about it. It's an unbelievable story of fate, forgiveness and the most priceless gift of all, the gift of love."

 

Source:  azcentral.com

Teens Raped 90 year old women

WASHINGTON: In a shocking case, three US teenagers have been charged with a 90-year-old woman's rape in Detroit city, a media report said.

On August 12 the home of a 90-year-old woman was broken into. The woman was raped, beaten and robbed.

Three teens from Detroit have been arrested and charged with home invasion, beating and sexual assault of the 90-year-old woman. They are 17-year-old Maurice Randall, 18-year-old Anthony L. Hardy and a 15-year old. Also being charged for another home invasion are Randall and Hardy. The charges for the 17-year-old and 18-year-old are home invasion, criminal sexual conduct first degree, assault with intent to do great bodily harm and home invasion second degree. In addition Randall is charged with receiving and concealing stolen property. The 15-year-old was charged as a juvenile with home invasion first degree.

detnews.com reports Detroit Police Sgt. Eren Stephens said, "The assistance of the community definitely contributed to us apprehending the suspects." 

A grandson of the victim, Nimrod Sherman said, "I can't thank them enough. My grandma is doing better; she's still healing. So many people sent prayers, and came out and searched with us. It was great to see."

Source:  Digital Journal

Baby Declared Dead Comes Alive After Mother Cuddles Him

It was a final chance to say goodbye for grieving mother Kate Ogg after doctors gave up hope of saving her premature baby.

She tearfully told her lifeless son - born at 27 weeks weighing 2lb - how much she loved him and cuddled him tightly, not wanting to let him go.

Although little Jamie's twin sister Emily had been delivered successfully, doctors had given Mrs Ogg the news all mothers dread - that after 20 minutes of battling to get her son to breathe, they had declared him dead.

Having given up on a miracle, Mrs Ogg unwrapped the baby from his blanket and held him against her skin. And then an extraordinary thing happened.

After two hours of being hugged, touched and spoken to by his mother, the little boy began showing signs of life.

At first, it was just a gasp for air that was dismissed by doctors as a reflex action.

But then the startled mother fed him a little breast milk on her finger and he started breathing normally.

'I thought, "Oh my God, what's going on",' said Mrs Ogg.

'A short time later he opened his eyes. It was a miracle. Then he held out his hand and grabbed my finger.

'He opened his eyes and moved his head from side to side. The doctor kept shaking his head saying, "I don't believe it, I don't believe it".'

Source:  Daily Mail

Chicken Feet From India

MANGALORE: Guess what is discarded as waste in India and shipped thousands of miles to land up as a delicacy on dining tables in China? Chicken feet!

The feet, claws and all, as a gastronomical delight might sound comical to Indians who relish chicken legs but definitely nothing below. But hatcheries in Mangalore have found a thriving market for it in places like China, Hong Kong and Vietnam. A prominent hatchery in this coastal town in Karnataka exports 25 tonnes of chicken feet to the Far East every month.

Popularly known as phoenix talons in China, chicken feet is sold as street food, often deep fried, in other parts of Asia as well. It is a culinary delicacy in some regions, most notably in China and South Africa where every part of the bird is utilized to its fullest potential.

Lester D'Souza, managing partner of Souza Hatcheries, told TOI that they had started exports last year, though inquiries were made four years back. "Last year, a person came here, looked at the hatchery and gave us the specifications for the product to be exported," he said. Neatly cut and cleaned without using detergent or chemicals, the chicken feet are shipped out in freezer units used for fish exports, once a month to China, Hong Kong and Vietnam.

Chinese restaurants in India don't use chicken feet simply because desi palates can't take claws on the plate. When asked, they said they never used feet for stock and they get their chicken meat without feet.

Source: TOI

Cat survives 2000 mile journey to find his owner

When Ravila Hairova and Lev Kondratyev moved from Uzbekistan to Russia two years ago， they decided to leave their cat Karim in the care of their neighbor， concerned that he would not adjust well to the drastic change. Recently， however， on her way back from work Ravila saw at a distance a cat who seemed to be waiting at the doorstep of her Liska， Russia home. To her astonishment， she saw that it was ９-year-old Karim， thin and frazzled but recognizable especially by certain marks on his body.

Hairova had made sure to leave the cat's favorites items behind for him, including his favorite chair and food bowls. But a few days after she arrived at her new home and called her neighbors to see how he was doing, she was told he had run away. At that point she assumed she would never see him again.

"I knew he had disappeared from my neighbours' home a few days after we left which was very sad but we never heard another word about him," she told the news provider.

Karim travelled from Uzbekistan to Russia, crossing three state borders, and found his owners once again. He looked frail and malnourished, but was in good spirits.

"He is very happy now and so are we. I've no idea how he found us but I'm very glad he did," she said to the news source.

Source:  The Survivor's Club

Gay Dog Refused Entry

SYDNEY: An Australian restaurant that refused a blind man entry because a waiter thought his seeing-eye dog was "gay" has been ordered to apologise and pay compensation.

Ian Jolly was told he could not take guide dog Nudge into Adelaide's Thai Spice last May because a member of staff objected, The Sunday Mail reported.

The restaurant's owners said a misunderstanding had arisen between Jolly's female companion and a waiter who understood the woman "to be saying she wanted to bring a gay dog into the restaurant".

"The staff genuinely believed that Nudge was an ordinary pet dog which had been desexed to become a gay dog," the owners said in a statement to South Australia's Equal Opportunity Tribunal.

The tribunal on Friday ordered the restaurant to pay Jolly 1,500 dollars (1,400 US) and offer him a written apology for discriminating against him on the grounds of disability.

The restaurant, which displays a "guide dogs welcome" sign, refused to comment to the newspaper and was unavailable to respond on Sunday.

Jolly told the Sunday Mail he was happy with the result.

"I just want to be like everybody else and be able to go out for dinner, to be left alone and just enjoy a meal," he said.

Source: TOI (link)

Son Sues Mom Over Facebook

SAN FRANCISCO (US): A 16-year-old boy from Arkansas is suing his mother for harassment, claiming that she hacked his Facebook account and posted slanderous remarks, according to Arkansas TV station KATV Thursday.

The mother, Denise New, denied the charges, claiming that her son left his Facebook page open on her computer and that she was entitled to take over his account because he had posted incriminating information on his Facebook page.

According to the boy, who was not named because he is a minor, his mother hacked into his Facebook and email accounts, then changed both passwords so he could no longer access them. She also allegedly posted remarks that involved slander and information about his personal life.

According to the report, the mother was upset about a post that suggested he had driven home one night at 95 mph (152 kph) because he had been upset with a girl. She plans to fight the charges, as she believes she was fully within her legal rights as a parent to monitor her son's online behaviour.

"Oh yeah, I'm going to fight it. If I have to go even higher up, I'm going to. I'm not gonna let this rest. I think this could be a precedent-setting moment for parents," she told KATV-TV. "You're within your legal rights to monitor your child and to have a conversation with your child on Facebook whether it's his account, or your account or whoever's account."

Source: TOI(link)

6000 Trees Axed to Prevent Sex Romps

LONDON: As many as 6,000 trees have been felled in a forest near a British town to prevent couples from having sex there, a media report said.

The trees were hacked at the 12-hectare site on the outskirts of Darwen, Lancashire, after a "health and safety survey", Daily Express reported Tuesday.

Officials say the forest that runs for kilometers along the busy A666 was cleared as some of the trees, planted after the Second World War, were in danger of falling.

Police and councillors have, however, confirmed another reason was to discourage strangers from the known "dogging" area.

Dogging is a term for people having sex with strangers in public places, or watching others have sex, often in woods or country lay-bys.

The felling of 6,000 trees to try to stop couples having sex there has prompted an angry backlash.

"It's awful that a public green space, an asset to the local community, has been destroyed mindlessly. If the law was enforced properly then there would be no need to chop down these trees," Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, was quoted as saying.

Terry Hardman, who travels past the clearance site every day, said the work had "absolutely devastated the area", adding: "There was a massive forest that's been reduced to open space. Surely that can't be good for the environmental situation?"

Sergeant Mark Wilson said the sexual activities in the area were "an on-going problem and very worrying for members of the public". "It's far too early to tell if cutting the trees back has had any impact on the dogging situation, but we'll be paying regular attention to the area."

"I'm more than happy this is being carried out and it has a double whammy in terms of the sexual behavior. I've heard anecdotal that since the trees have been cleared it's quietened down a lot," ward councillor Jean Rigby was quoted as saying.

Source:  Times of India (link)

Dad on Moped Killed by Son on Motorcycle

PUNE (India): In a strange twist of fate, a moped rider was killed in a head-on collision with a motorcycle driven by his own son at the Pirangut ghat section of the Pune-Paud road around 8 pm on Wednesday.

The deceased has been identified as Laxman Kudle (46), a resident of Khatpewadi, a hamlet in the interiors of Bhukum grampanchayat of Mulshi taluka. Sagar (21), who sustained injuries on the chest and legs is recuperating in a private hospital. He was not told, for obvious reasons, till Friday evening, that the man he knocked down was his own father.

Ironically, Kudle’s relatives, who rushed to the hospital to enquire about Sagar’s condition, were not even aware that the body of the youth’s father was kept in an adjacent room of the hospital until one of them went to check out of curiosity. “After about an hour, when one of the relatives went to check who the deceased was, he got the shock of his life when he discovered it was Sagar’s father,” Vijay Mazire, a local resident who helped rush Sagar to the hospital told TOI.

When TOI visited Kudle’s home at Khatpewadi, his younger brother Sopan Kudle said that on the day of the incident, Laxman was working in the fields till 4 pm. “Soon after, he left for Pirangut, a few kilometres away from his village, on his moped to meet his married daughter Sheetal. It was also the day of Urs (a local festival) in Pirangut.”

Bridegroom Dumped Twice in 24 Hrs

KOLAR (India): Brides being dumped at the altar is the stuff soppy movies are made of. But heard of a bridegroom being ditched at the marriage mantap, that too not once but twice inside of 24 hours? Filmi as it may sound, that's what happened in Kolar, 70 km from Bangalore, on Sunday.

Manjunath and Anitha were engaged eight months ago. The March 7 marriage seemed on track with all the pre-marriage rituals going swimmingly well. Just as the groom was preparing to tie the mangalsutra, the bride — a la Kareena Kapoor in 3 Idiots — stunned her family and friends saying she wasn’t willing to go through the marriage as she was in love with Nagaraja, who, incidentally, was present in the wedding hall.

It soon dawned on the guests that the object of Anitha’s affection was amidst them. Unsurprisingly, he and his friends were at the receiving end of blows rained on them by the irate gathering. In the melee, Anitha and Nagaraj escaped and sought police protection, which was promptly given.

Here’s where the drama restarts. The elders figured that an eloping bride was no reason to stop Manjunath’s marriage and they would look for a bride for him from among those present. They settled on Mamatha, a 16-year-old, first-year PU student and a close relative of the brideless Manjunath. Mamatha, playing outside the marriage hall with other children, was brought in and dressed up. She went through the ceremony crying as she had no desire to marry Manjunath.

The twist in the tale starts now. The newly-wed went to Manjunath’s house, but Mamatha left with her brother as she had exams on Monday. Her brother did, indeed, drop her off at the college. However, a couple of hours later, he was horrified to know Mamatha, instead of taking the exam, had eloped with her boyfriend, Anil Kumar.

Shivaswamy, sub-inspector of police of Bangarpet in Kolar pleaded ignorance of Mamatha’s minor status. Manjunath, dumped twice in a day, is left wondering if he will ever find a bride again.

Two Bottled Ghosts for Sale

MELBOURNE (Australia): Spooky as it may sound, but online auction site TradeMe is putting two vials, which apparently contain spirits of ghosts exorcised from a house in New Zealand, up for sale.

Entitled "Two Captured Ghosts" the auction had reached a top price of 62 New Zealand dollars after 35 bids yesterday (AEDT).

The auction description claims the spirits were captured by an exorcist from a spiritual church at a property in Christchurch, the largest city on New Zealand's South Island.

And the seller has claimed that one spirit belongs to a man who died in the house in the 1920s.

"We have had no (paranormal) activity since they were bottled on July 15, 2009," the Herald Sun quoted the seller as saying.

"So I believe they are in the bottles," he added.

The auction said the "holy water" in the vials dulled the spirit's energy and put them to sleep.

To revive the spirit, the buyer would need to pour the contents into a dish and let it "evaporate into your house''.

"I just want to get rid of them as they scare me,'' said the seller.

Indian Polygamist Expecting 31st Child

Assam(India):  Most family men just want a beautiful wife, a few adorable kids, and a big-screen HDTV.

80-year-old Hussain Ali, a frail skeleton of a man from Mohkuli village in Assam, has always sought much more, which is why he’s beaming with joy now that his third of four wives is pregnant with his 31st child.

The self-proclaimed polygamist already has 30 children, 15 of who have their own children to boast. Added to that, his 30th child is only two-months old and in need of frequent diaper changes.

In spite of his age, Ali remains quite content. In fact, during a recent interview with reporter Syed Zarir Hussain from the Indo-Asian News Service, he claimed to have zero regrets and even admitted to finding his wives to be “very good and caring.” He added, “It is all god’s gift and wish that I have a large family of four wives and 30 children.”

Ali’s wives share the same sentiment about him, even though they are each confined to a separate hut and afforded only one or two nights with him per week. Mohirun Nessa, his first wife and mother to 11 of his children, said, “He is a very nice man and very responsible.”

Ali’s only discernible stress stems from his inability to correctly remember the names of all his children. He was, in fact, unable to list all his children to Syed. He explained, “At times I do forget their names but recognize them from their faces.”

Divorce Seekers Must Compensate Workplace

Whilst many complain about strict company policies enforced by Catbert types bosses, none sounded as strange as this recent ruling by a Chinese company. Based in Chongqing, this workplace has enforced an unusual divorce regulation which asks the couple to compensate their colleagues.

Thus, any of the employees planning to tie the knot must agree to this company policy that paves way for later repayment.

According to this premarital agreement, the divorced couple are obliged to pay back any cash gifts handed in their work colleagues.

In this way, a divorce meant that their co-workers would receive double the amount they gave away as monetary gifts.

Jia Lichun, the company manager, justified this policy by noting that the younger employees were less committed to the idea of a married life.

According to him, there was higher probability of divorce because more than half those in his workplace were born in the 1980s, a generation that is considered immature in their handling of relationships.

Lichun’s view is not an uncommon one in modern day China. In fact, many researchers have also commented on the prevalence of this particular mindset, especially amongst China’s 80’s born folks.

In effect, they partly blame the controversial one-child policy which was introduced around the same time.

In their view, these children were pampered by family members where they learnt to become self-absorbed and got caught up with their own needs.

Families Bury Children Alive During Eclipse

Meerut(UP)India:  Not everybody celebrates a solar eclipse with a traditional pinhole projector. The folks in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India, for instance, like to commemorate the occasion by burying their children.

Local authorities in Meerut were shocked to discover their local graveyard filled with families on January 15th, the day of India’s latest annular eclipse.

What’s even more shocking is that the parents were burying their children’s body parts, in hopes that a combination of the eclipse and graveyard dirt would somehow cure their polio.

According to Manzoor Ahmed, one of the parents at the scene, “Solar eclipse affects everything. It has been scientifically proven.”

Shaheen Fatima, who buried her son’s leg in the dirt, further clarifies this strange behavior, saying, “We believe that the solar eclipse affects the soil also…the soil undergoes some changes during the eclipse and hence it may correct the deformity in the children.”

Dr. Vinod Mishra, a local astrologer, discredits these claims, noting that a solar eclipse has zero effect on soil, let alone disease.

Women Cuddles with Burglar Accidentally

A Chinese woman, Qiu, received a rude shock recently when she discovered that her night-time cuddle partner was in fact a burglar. The Changasha-based woman had pounced on the intruder in the dark, mistaking him for her husband.

Qiu had been sleeping when she was awaken by the intruder moving about in her room.

She guessed wrongly that it was her husband and had jumped on him. As for the burglar, he was all too pleased to accommodate her wishes and had started cuddling with her on the bed.

Qiu then realized that this particular person had longer hair than her husband.  This was when she turned on the lights and discovered an eager looking stranger on her bed.

What followed was a frenzy of activity which involved her alerting others about the burglar and her worried husband abandoning his mahjong game from next door to come to her rescue.

The Twins Town in India

Kodhini(India):  For decades now, Minnesotans have spoken with pride of their “Twin Cities.” “Twin” refers to the fact that the two Mississippi River-straddling towns combine into a single large urban area. But a look at the tiny Indian village of Kodhini, in Kerala state, may leave you skeptical of any other place’s claim to the word “twin.”

The reason is that Kodhini boasts at least 250 sets of twins—and that’s out of only about 2,000 families! Some families even have multiple pairs.

The number is freakishly high, nearly six times the global average, and so far no one’s come up with a plausible explanation for it.

It’s not for lack of trying: Dr. Krishnan Sribiju has studied the town for a couple of years now, but every new statistic he unearths only makes the case more baffling.

For one thing, he says, the frequency of twin births seems to grow every year.

“Also,” Sribiju says, “twins are born usually to older, more mature women. In Kodinhi that is not the case, because marriage happens much younger here, at around 18 to 20 years old, and families begin very soon after.”

Twin sisters Fatima Kutty and Kuhni Pathutty are the town’s oldest, at the age of 65. Records suggest that their birth took place at the beginning of Kodhini’s unique trend.

The year 2008 saw an impressive 15 twin births out of only 300 healthy deliveries, and 2009’s total could be even higher. At least that should cut down on the number of hospital visits by pregnant women!

Tunnel Carved Out of Hammer & Chisel

Patna (India): A villager used a hammer and chisel over the span of 14 years to carve a tunnel through a rocky mountain so that he could park his truck in front of his house.

"I could not park my truck near my house since the mountain blocked my path," Ramchandra Das, 53, who lives in eastern Bihar state's Gaya district, told Reuters.

Ramchandra Das said fear of thieves stealing his truck prompted him to work on the tunnel all by himself after authorities refused help.

"I had to leave my truck miles away, so I decided to do something about it myself," said Das.

Local villagers, who had to trek for miles to get around the mountain are using the 14 feet (4.2 metre) wide tunnel to reach their farms, and praising Das for his work.

"We rarely come across a man who can work so hard to achieve his goal," said a local government official, Prabhat Kumar Jha.