Post insane / odd / unique news releases here

[LWM]

NY vacuum salesmen charged with damaging mattress (June 20th, 2010 @ 4:10pm)

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) - Two vacuum salesmen didn't exactly close the deal at a recent home demonstration in central New York. State police charged the Syracuse men with a misdemeanor after a $1,300 Sealy latex foam mattress was damaged. Trooper Andy Davis said the damage occurred during a demonstration Monday at a home in Richfield Springs. Davis wouldn't elaborate on what was done to the mattress.

Davis said the men were both at the home when police arrived and were trying to save the situation. They were charged with reckless endangerment of property.

The mattress owner is looking for reimbursement.

[LWM]

Pirates seek record, not booty, at Calif. festival (June 20th, 2010 @ 6:56pm)

VALLEJO, Calif. (AP) - Yo-ho-ho, how many pirates can there be?

That's the question this weekend at the fourth annual Northern California Pirate Festival in Vallejo.

Festival-goers are seeking to enter the Guinness Book of World Records for the most costumed pirates in one place. On Saturday, nearly 2,300 pirates had registered. But the festival's official count wouldn't be out until after the event ends Sunday.

Festival spokesperson Shannon Damnavits says each pirate has to wear a red wristband, stand in one place for 10 minutes and be photographed. Guinness then certifies the count.

The current titleholder is Brixham, England, where 1,722 costumed pirates were recorded.

[LWM]

Blonde, pony-tailed burglar found bed just right (June 20th, 2010 @ 8:48pm)

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) - A blonde, pony-tailed burglar ate some food, drank some alcohol, tried on clothes and then found the bed in a New Zealand home just right.

But upon finding a modern-day Goldilocks asleep in his bed, the homeowner in the southern city of Christchurch exercised an option The Three Bears didn't: He called police.

In court Monday, 39-year-old Vanessa Joy Long pleaded guilty and said she blacked out and doesn't remember what happened June 5. The judge ordered a probation report to see if Long was suitable for home detention and could pay for her misdemeanors.

The damage was estimated at 1,500 New Zealand dollars ($1,064).

She was released on bail for sentence on Sept. 1.

[LWM]

NC man hollers 'Summertime' to win title (June 21st, 2010 @ 5:40am)

SPIVEY'S CORNER, N.C. (AP) - A North Carolina man who won the National Hollerin' Contest says he almost disqualified himself by going over the four-minute time limit.

The Fayetteville Observer reports that Tony Peacock of Siler City won the 42nd annual contest Saturday in Spivey's Corner in central North Carolina. His hollerin' rendition of the popular Gershwin tune "Summertime" got him the title.

Peacock says he had to cut short his last holler because he had only two seconds left.

The winner of the contest gets bragging rights and opportunities to perform at events and on television.

Participants competed in several categories: men's national hollerin' contest, ladies callin', conch shell blowin', whistlin' and junior and teen hollerin'.

[LWM]

Rat suspected of starting fire in Yakima (June 21st, 2010 @ 7:04am)

YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) - A rat is suspected of starting a fire at the Veterans of Foreign War building in Yakima.

KAPP-TV reports that investigators discovered a rat had chewed through an electrical cord. The rat apparently caught fire and ran to its nest, igniting flammable items.

The fire last week spread quickly through the building, damaging several rooms and war memorabilia.

The fire department says damage could exceed $1 million.

[LWM]

First day of summer means snowballs at Pa. museum (June 21st, 2010 @ 11:42am)

PITTSBURGH (AP) - The patrons carrying small coolers and plastic bags into Pittsburgh's Carnegie Science Center weren't bringing their lunch. They were packing snowballs.

Monday marked the first day of summer and the science museum's annual Snowball Day. Visitors are encouraged every year to save a snowball from the winter in their freezer and then take it to the science center on the first day of summer. Those who do get to name their own price to get into the museum for the day.

But the most fun comes when they get to throw their snowballs into the Ohio River from the deck of a submarine that is docked outside the museum.

[LWM]

$75M mansion near Orlando selling 'as is' (June 22nd, 2010 @ 6:15am)

WINDERMERE, Fla. (AP) - The brochure promises a "monument to unparalleled success."

The 90,000-square-foot home for sale outside Orlando has 23 bathrooms, 13 bedrooms, 10 kitchens and three pools. All that and more for $75 million "as is."

The catch? It's not finished.

Nicknamed "Versailles" by owner and timeshare tycoon David Siegel, the mansion hit the market recently as the largest home for sale in the United States. Construction was halted last year to save money in a recession that proved particularly hard on Siegel's industry.

The home also has a 20-car garage, a bowling alley, an indoor-roller rink, a movie theater, a video arcade, a fitness center, a baseball field and two tennis courts.

But the mansion's interior has no carpet, tile or interior walls.