Watercooler Stories

Jordan's king in driver's seat

AMMAN, Jordan, July 22 (UPI) -- Jordanian King Abdullah apparently is not above playing chauffeur, ferrying U.S. Democratic hopeful Barack Obama to Amman airport.

Obama, accompanied by Sens. Jack Reed, D-R.I., and Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., were in Jordan Tuesday for talks on Iraq, Afghanistan, the Palestinian conflict and other regional issues.

Following a dinner at Beit al-Urdan palace, Obama, D-Ill., climbed into the front passenger seat of the king's Mercedes 600 and Abdullah got behind the wheel, ABC reported. The vehicle led a parade of Mercedes filled with security forces to the airport, where Obama boarded his plane for a flight to Tel Aviv, Israel.

Wiccan woman stabs self during ceremony

LEBANON, Ind., July 22 (UPI) -- Police in Lebanon, Ind., said a woman performing a Wiccan ceremony in a city cemetery accidentally stabbed herself in the foot with a ceremonial sword.

A Lebanon Police Department release said Katherine Gunther, 36, ran the 36-inch blade through her left foot at about 12:15 a.m. Saturday while performing a ceremony of thanks at Oak Hill Cemetery, The Indianapolis Star reported Tuesday.

Gunther told police she was performing the ceremony because she recently had a string of good luck and wanted to express her gratitude with the religious ceremony. She said the blade hit her foot accidentally while she was attempting to put it into the ground.

"It wasn't the first time I performed the ritual, but it was the first time I put a sword through my foot," she said.

She was taken by fellow participants in the ceremony to Witham Memorial Hospital, where she was admitted in stable condition. Gunther said she suffered a compound fracture and expected to be released from the hospital Tuesday.

Police said they do not expect to file any charges stemming from the incident, but Gunther and her group were warned by officers to avoid trespassing in the cemetery after established visiting hours.

Woman arrested after alleged peanut attack

CORRYVILLE, Ohio, July 22 (UPI) -- A Corryville, Ohio, woman has been charged with attempting to force a peanut into the mouth of her allergic neighbor.

Police and court records indicate Robyn Lee, 23, was riding in neighbor Shenna Ferguson's car just after 6 p.m. Monday when she allegedly tried to shove a peanut into the other woman's mouth, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported Tuesday.

"I told her to stop because I was very (allergic) to peanuts," Ferguson wrote in an affidavit. "She laughed."

Ferguson said Lee continued to threaten her with the peanut after they arrived at the Tri-County Mall in Springdale, Ohio, and allegedly threw peanuts at Ferguson after they exited the car.

"She told me don't forget about the peanuts," Ferguson wrote. "Once she said that I shut up."

Ferguson said she went inside the mall for a short time but came back outside when she realized she had left her ATM card in her car. She said she found that Lee crouched next to her gold Chrysler, "messing with my tires."

Lee had also allegedly torn the windshield wipers from the car and damaged the paint job with keys.

Lee was arrested and charged with aggravated assault and criminal damaging. Her bond was set at $5,000 and the judge ordered her to keep away from Ferguson.

Police: Robber used check for demand note

OCALA, Fla., July 22 (UPI) -- Police said they were led to an Ocala, Fla., bank robbery suspect after he used a personal check to write a demand note he handed to a teller.

Patrick Johnson is accused of handing a note written on a personal check from his own account to a Bank of America teller that informed the worker he was carrying a .45-caliber pistol, WESH-TV, Orlando, Fla., reported Tuesday.

Investigators said he left the bank with an unknown amount of money and then used the same method to rob a second Bank of America later in the day.

Johnson was arrested during a traffic stop, police said.