Watercooler Stories

Neighbors not saluting 7-story 'flagpole'

CRYSTAL LAKE, Ill., Nov. 28 (UPI) -- Folks in an Illinois community say the 75-foot-tall cell phone tower disguised as a flag pole and planned for a local park isn't going to fool anyone.

Neighbors around Ken Bird Park in Crystal Lake are rallying to oppose the plan to erect the giant flagpole that is actually a T-Mobile cell tower.

"I don't know many flagpoles that are seven stories," resident Ron Eberle told the Chicago Tribune. "That's kind of insulting to us."

The Tribune said complaints have focused on the aesthetics of the structure as well as the possibility of harmful radiation.

T-Mobile said it needs the tower to handle increasing demand for wireless communications, and is ready to pay the town $2,000 a month to lease the modest 600-square foot site.

The city council will take up the matter in January.

Auctioned car's GPS had royal address

LONDON, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- A British man who bought a used car at a police auction said the vehicle's satellite navigation system contained addresses for the Duchess of York and others.

Steven Coulson, 31, a taxi driver, said the 2004 Jaguar XJ6 he purchased from a police auction for about $24,000 included a GPS navigation device that contained the home address of Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, as well as the home address of Princesses Beatrice's boyfriend, Dave Clark, The Sun reported Friday.

"This car is a suicide bomber's dream," Coulson said. "He would just have to fire up the sat nav and it would take him to the front doors of some of the biggest targets in Britain."

"The royals can thank their lucky stars the car was bought by me. I'll just delete the addresses," he said.

Woman recreates art with veggies

BEIJING, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- A Chinese artist said her vegetable recreations of famous paintings by Leonardo da Vinci and others have sold for up to $2,000.

Ju Duoqi, 35, said she has created replicas of works by famed artists including Vincent van Gogh and Pablo Picasso from vegetables that were boiled, dried or pickled to prevent rotting, The Sun reported Friday.

The artist said her works include a replica of da Vinci's Mona Lisa comprised entirely of tofu and a copy of Andy Warhol's Marylin Monroe made from cabbage.

Ju said vegetables are the perfect materials for her art projects.

"Wood just doesn't look right," she said.

No muskets for British town Christmas

WIMBORNE, England, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- The deputy mayor of Wimborne, England, said he has ended the town's 400-year-old tradition of firing muskets into the air to celebrate the coming of Christmas.

Deputy Mayor John Burden said he made the decision to bar the town's reenactment group, known as the Militia, from firing their muskets into the air to celebrate the lighting of the town Christmas tree because the noise could frighten children, The Daily Telegraph reported Friday.

Burden, 62, said Mayor Robin Cook, who is on vacation, gave him permission to make a decision on the musket issue.

"I cannot speak for the mayor on what he would do, but before he went away he told me the decision on whether to have muskets was up to me," the deputy mayor said. "Last year there were children who were very upset and crying for some time after the muskets were fired."

Militia member Chris Brown said ending the musket firing tradition "because it might scare children is very sad and almost a bit daft."

"We understand the loud shots can make children jump but we give plenty of notice," he said. "Mollycoddling children will not help them cope with the unexpected, which might not necessarily be in their best interest in the long run."