UPI NewsTrack Quirks in the News

Rare pearl found in restaurant clam

ROYAL PALM BEACH, Fla., Dec. 31 (UPI) -- A Royal Palm Beach, Fla., couple discovered a rare purple pearl in a clam purchased at a restaurant.

George Brock said he tasted the pearl while eating his way through a dozen steamers at Dave's Last Resort & Raw Bar and spit the tiny object out, the Palm Beach (Fla.) Post reported Monday.

"The funny part of it is he hardly ever orders clams," his wife, Leslie, said Sunday.

Vermont gemologist Antoinette Matlins said the value on the pearl rests largely with the eventual auction of a pearl brooch at the American Museum of Natural History. She said the sale is expected to set the price range of purple pearls on the international market.

She said of the Brocks' pearl that "few are round and few are a lovely color, so this is rare. I think they have found something precious and lovely and valuable."

The Brocks plan to sell the item, "unless it's not worth that much," Leslie Brock said. "Then we'll probably put it on a pendant."

Man proud of personal garbage collection

BERKELEY, Calif., Dec. 31 (UPI) -- A California man who saved every piece of trash he generated in the last 12 months said he's proud of his bin-filled home, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Ari Defel, 35, said he decided on the experiment at the end of 2006 to see how much trash he created in a year and has amassed 96 cubic feet, the newspaper said.

Defel said he's proud that his project has inspired others to be more aware of their waste, and said he intended to showcase his trash on the Internet Youtube site to heighten environmental awareness.

He said he has saved every scrap, from cash register receipts to tissues, and he composts biodegradable items outside his home in Berkeley.

Defel said almost every day he has to wash the newest trash to prevent odors and insect infestations and the newspaper said he appears to have succeeded on both fronts.

"When we throw something away, what does 'away' mean?" Defel told the Chronicle. "There's no such thing as 'away.'"

Bill to license strippers unappealing

ALBANY, N.Y., Dec. 31 (UPI) -- A New York state legislator said he is frustrated his bill to license strippers hasn't made it to center stage for the past seven months.

Democrat Felix Ortiz of Brooklyn submitted the bill in May and it's since been stuck in the Economic Development Committee in Albany, N.Y., the New York Daily News reported.

He said it's a bid to ensure dancers are of legal age, legally documented and not victims of sex trafficking. It also stipulates dancers must use their real names instead of stage names, the newspaper said.

Ortiz made inquiries recently about why the bill was being ignored and said he expects it to be taken up in February.

The newspaper said some of the opposition is apparently based on the fee for acquiring the license and the associated fines for unlicensed strippers and their employers.

FBI has 'reignited' Cooper hijacking case

PORTLAND, Ore., Dec. 31 (UPI) -- The FBI is resurrecting the mysterious case of D.B. Cooper, who 36 years ago hijacked a plane and parachuted near Portland with $200,000 in stolen loot.

The bureau said in a news release Monday it is releasing new information to the public, including sketches, saying "You can help."

"Would we still like to get our man? Absolutely," the release said. "And we have reignited the case — thanks to a Seattle case agent named Larry Carr and new technologies like DNA testing."

The hijacker who identified himself as Cooper was never seen again. Some of the money was recovered in a mountain area.

Anyone with information on the unsolved mystery may contact the FBI at fbise@leo.gov.