Watercooler Stories

Pizza record quickly broken

FORT PIERCE, Fla., June 10 (UPI) -- The owner of a Fort Pierce, Fla., pizzeria said he was surprised to hear his recent world record for the longest line of pizzas may have already been broken.

Scott Van Duzer and about a dozen volunteers at his Big Apple Pizza and Pasta restaurant made 722 pizzas and lined them up end to end, creating a line of pizzas 722 feet 1 inch long, the Palm Beach (Fla.) Post reported Tuesday.

The May 17 feat, which the restaurant owner said was designed to draw attention to his Van Duzer Foundation for families struck by tragedy, was certified by the Guinness Book of World Records.

However, Italian cruise ship company Costa Cruises said 826 freshly cooked pizzas created a 725-foot line at a Sunday event in Sydney.

"Records are made to break," Van Duzer said. "But I was anticipating it to last a little longer than three weeks."

Van Duzer said he and his team still have one victory to celebrate -- their event raised about $8,600 for a firefighter whose home was destroyed by a wildfire, while the Sydney event raised only $5,000.

"At least we beat 'em there," Van Duzer said.

Dating on Demand draws South Floridians

MIAMI, June 10 (UPI) -- Cable company Comcast says 30 South Floridians so far have created video profiles for its Dating on Demand service and it expects dozens more in coming months.

Comcast spokesman Spero Canton said 30 people created profiles at events in the cities of Miami and Davie and the company is planning to hold parties every two weeks with an aim of creating 40 to 50 new profiles each month, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported Tuesday.

"In other cities, we've seen a lot of participation and a lot of excitement," Canton said.

Dating industry experts said they expect video dating to grow in popularity as people become more disillusioned with Internet dating.

Ann Robbins, a matchmaker and dating coach from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., said many people turn away from dating sites such as Match.com because so many users lie about personal details.

Man drives ambulances sans license

TAKAOKA CITY, Japan, June 10 (UPI) -- Fire officials in Takaoka City, Japan, said they fired a man after he was found to have driven rescue vehicles for more than two decades without a license.

The officials said the firefighter was found to be using his father's license last week during a routine inspection, the BBC reported Tuesday.

They said he admitted to his bosses that he had failed the written exam at driving school and kept his lack of a license secret from the fire department. The officials said the man had driven ambulances on more than 300 occasions and driven fire engines nearly 100 times.

The man is being questioned by police, the officials said.

SUV drives through Tennessee home

BRENTWOOD, Tenn., June 10 (UPI) -- Police in Brentwood, Tenn., said a man who drove his SUV through a family's home while they were on vacation was cited only for speeding.

A police report said Corey Willis, 25, told officers that his brakes failed about 30 yards before he reached the intersection where his gray Toyota Land Cruiser left the road and drove through the front door of Mike Purcell's home, The Nashville Tennessean reported Tuesday.

Purcell and his family were vacationing in Florida at the time of the crash. Willis' vehicle destroyed drywall, a couch and a coffee table before crashing through the back wall of the house and stopping on a patio.

Officer Mike Hansel wrote in the report that Willis "had been drinking, but was not impaired." He said the Land Cruiser's brakes "appeared to be in working order."

Willis was given a citation for speeding. No Breathalyzer test was administered by police.

"He was given two field sobriety tests on the scene, and he passed both of those tests. If you don't have probable cause, you can't give a Breathalyzer test," Brentwood police Chief Ricky Watson said.

Purcell said his home insurance has estimated damage to the house at $50,000 to $60,000.