Jockstrip: The world as we know it.

Tots on throne of success in potty class

BOSTON, March 17 (UPI) -- Parents are flush with pride -- and relief -- as their children graduate from the Toilet Training School at Children's Hospital Boston.

Enrollment, the school's supervisor says, usually is prompted by willful toddlers and parents at wit's end, CNN reported.

"By the time the children come in with their families, it has become a power struggle," said Dr. Alison Schonwald, a pediatrician who oversees "poop school," an affectionate nickname given the program.

The six-week program is one of a handful of potty schools nationwide. Kimberly Dunn, a pediatric nurse practitioner who has worked with some of the 450 graduates over the years, says most of her charges admit they're afraid to use that huge, white, cold thing called a toilet.

"Oftentimes, the parents come in and they want to know why they're afraid," Dunn said. "You could ask the kids until they're blue in the face and you hardly ever find out why."

Schonwald, the author of "The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Potty Training," urges parental optimism.

"No one goes to college in diapers, right?" she says, "Everyone will get through this time, as awful as it might feel if you're struggling."

Chicken gets radiation therapy for cancer

HATFIELD NORTON, England, March 17 (UPI) -- Eve, a pet chicken in England, is believed to be the first hen in Britain to receive radiation therapy to treat her cancer.

Elaine and Chris Denney of Hatfield Norton said they decided to pay the more than $2,000 for the treatment after Eve lost a leg to cancer, The Sun reported Monday.

"We would do this for any of our 15 chickens," Elaine Denney said.

The treatment was administered Friday at the Animal Health Trust in the county of Suffolk.

Woman: Four-leaf clover wishes granted

NEWPORT NEWS, Va., March 17 (UPI) -- A Virginia woman who has found five four-leaf clovers and a five-leaf clover in her lifetime maintains all of her wishes made on the charms have come true.

Suzie Webb of Newport News said she found two four-leaf clovers in her backyard on Easter Sunday in 2003, and she used the supposed good luck plants to wish for a new job and a new home, the Newport News Daily Press reported Monday. Webb said the wishes came true within two months -- she found a position as an administrative assistant and she moved to a new home with her husband and son.

The clovers were the third and fourth in her collection -- the first two she found as a teenager.

Webb said she discovered a fifth clover in March 2004 and wished to become pregnant with another child -- a request that was granted within two weeks.

The wife and mother said her final clover discover, in October of last year, also resulted in a wish for a new home, which came to pass after her husband found a new job.

"Life is good, and I believe in the power of four-leaf clovers," Webb said.

Ancient Roman coins found in England

ASHBOURNE, England, March 17 (UPI) -- A treasure hunter in England has discovered two ancient Roman coins that are at least 90 percent gold.

The coins, dated to A.D. 286, bear the image of Emperor Carausius and are two of only 25 of the coins known to survive intact, The Sun reported Monday.

Derrick Fretwell, who found the rare items in Ashbourne, said the coins have been declared legal treasure trove and he is awaiting an official appraisal of the discovery.