Jockstrip: The world as we know it

Condo burns as man shops for extinguisher

CHANDLER, Ariz., March 12 (UPI) -- An Arizona man's condo was nearly burned up while he ran off to Wal-Mart to buy a fire extinguisher.

Maricopa County authorities said 19-year-old Jonathan Zaltel of Chandler apparently started the blaze himself while cooking up a batch of methamphetamine in his closet using a toaster oven.

The Arizona Republic said the hapless Zaletel tried to put out the stubborn fire with water and window cleaner before deciding he needed a proper extinguisher and headed off for the local Wal-Mart.

The condo sprinkler system went on while he was gone and doused the flames, but Zaletel was arrested by police who were on the scene with the fire department upon his return.

"When you know the fire department is going to kick the door in no matter what, it wasn't very smart on his part," observed Deputy Doug Matteson.

No word on whether Zaletel used the express line to check out.

Swedes eye fowl as power-plant fuel

UMEA, Sweden, March 12 (UPI) -- A Swedish firm's proposal to use dead chickens to generate electricity probably isn't the first thing that comes to mind in terms of alternative energy.

But Umea Energi is ready to move forward with a proposal that would use chicken carcasses from egg farms as fuel for a power-generating furnace.

Umea operates in the frozen north of Sweden and is seeking a permit to burn as many as 9,000 dead hens per year along with other combustible waste, the newspaper Västerbottens-Kuriren reports.

Company officials said they had plenty of non-poultry fuel sources and would use the carcasses as a favor to the egg ranchers. At the same time, a company spokesman noted that "chickens are just the right size" for the fuel stream.

Magpie makes her way home from exile

NEWTON REGIS, England, March 12 (UPI) -- Maggie the Magpie is back in the English village of Newton Regis after being exiled by an angry resident for the theft of a two pence coin.

Rhona Oxford apologized for her part in Maggie's disappearance, The Daily Mail reports.

Maggie was one of Newton Regis's best-known residents, showing up at the school, at retirees' morning coffees and at Sunday soccer matches. After she stopped appearing, children put up missing posters and wrote elegies to her.

Roz Afford, who handles school lunches, heard a rumor that Maggie had been spotted about 6 miles away. She also heard rumors that Oxford knew more than she was letting on about the bird's change of venue.

Afford and a delegation of village women confronted Oxford. Oxford was reportedly fed up because Maggie, living up to the magpie reputation, had taken one of the coins she puts aside to give to charity.

"I am just sorry I upset so many people," Oxford said. "I have apologized profusely. I explained to the ladies who questioned me that I am a member of the RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) and I have been for over 20 years. I love birds."

The Bookseller's oddest book titles prize

LONDON, March 12 (UPI) -- Britain's Bookseller magazine has released its shortlist for the Oddest Book Titles prize.

The titles include "How Green Were the Nazis?" and "The Stray Shopping Carts of Eastern North America." The winner receives a bottle of champagne, the BBC reported.

Last year's winner was Gary Leon Hill for "The People Who Don't Know They're Dead: How They Attach Themselves to Unsuspecting Bystanders and What to Do About It."

"While rival literary awards like the Costas and the Orange Broadband Prize have sold out, The Bookseller/Diagram Prize has refused all offers of corporate sponsorship for 29 years," said Joel Rickett, the deputy editor of The Bookseller.

"It continues to celebrate the bizarre, the strange, and the simply odd. This year's shortlist shows that despite publishers cutting back their lists, literary diversity continues to flourish," he added.

The winner of the contest will be announced on April 13, just before the London Book Fair.