Aug. 7
Elderly woman spent night in well
TISHOMINGO, Okla., Aug. 6 A 79-year-old Oklahoma woman spent 19 hours at the bottom of an old well on her property after taking a wrong step while trimming her hedges.
"I just prayed to God that if I was going to die, not to leave me here," Dorothy Williams of Tishomingo said after being pulled out of the well Sunday, The Daily Ardmoreite in Ardmore, Okla., reported.
Williams was found by a female mail carrier the next day while calling for help. She was treated for dehydration before returning home where she is being cared for by friends.
The well has since been sealed to prevent any similar incidents from happening.
Swan turns to the Internet to find love
HELSTON, England, Aug. 6 The staff at Trevano Garden near Helston, Britain, have set up a group on Facebook.com to try and help Rex, the black-necked swan, find a new mate.
The group started "as a little bit of a joke," said Trevano Garden spokesman Richard Cox, but finding Rex a partner was a serious issue, the Sky News reported Monday.
Rex came to the garden with his mate, Rexanne, who was killed by a fox. Since Rexanne's death, the garden's staff have noticed a change in the swan and think a new mate would help Rex get back to his old self.
"He's fine now, but in early April, May, he was very frustrated, not aggressive to visitors but it was upsetting for everyone to watch him not being able to do what comes naturally," said Cox. "To be honest, I'm not sure how many black-necked swans would be aware of Facebook ... they'd be very clever and people would pay a lot of money for them."
But, he said that Rex is still young and has plenty of time to find a new mate.
Thai cops fear 'Hello Kitty' punishment
BANGKOK, Aug. 6 Police with Thailand's Crime Suppression Division are being threatened with a new disciplinary measure -- bright pink "Hello Kitty" armbands.
Division officials said the Japanese cartoon cat will be worn by officers who fail to report for duty, park in prohibited areas, fight or are the subject of poor service complaints, the Bangkok Post reported Monday.
"The same old warnings no longer work for some officers," CSD acting chief Pongpat Chayaphan said.
"This new approach is intended to engender a feeling of guilt and discourage them from repeating the offense."
A second offense would find the officer at the mercy of a panel comprising 18 warrant officers who may sentence the offender to standing guard, detention or other penalty.
"Like a thief, once the first crime is committed the next one is always a worse offense," Pongpat said.
Britain details UFO sightings
LONDON, Aug. 6 The British Ministry of Defense has released details of 97 alleged encounters with unidentified flying objects reported by Britons in 2006.
The reports, along with details of UFO and extraterrestrial sightings dating back to 1998, were released by the government after a Freedom of Information Act request, The Daily Telegraph reported Monday.
The sightings included reports of discs, pyramids, orbs and cigar-shaped objects traveling through the British sky.
Among the reports was "a silver pyramid that was rotating at a low speed and off center" spotted by a Sunderland resident Oct. 14. In the same area two weeks later, "a black triangular UFO was seen, with three lights on it."
Robert Rosamond, chairman of the British UFO Research Association, said the majority of the reports can be explained away as helicopters, balloons, satellites, cloud formations and other common objects and phenomenon.
"Around 98 percent of cases can be explained. The remaining two percent keep us fascinated," he said.
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