Watercooler Stories

Teacher punished for 'no Santa' comment

ROYTON, England, Dec. 10 (UPI) -- A British elementary school told parents a teacher was disciplined for telling a rowdy class of 7-year-olds Santa Claus is a myth.

Parents of students in the 25-pupil class at Blackshaw Lane Primary School in Royton, England, complained to school officials that their children came home in tears after a substitute teacher told the class: "It's your parents who leave out presents on Christmas Day," the Daily Mail reported Wednesday.

School officials sent a letter home with students saying the teacher has been disciplined.

"Apparently, they were all talking about Christmas and being a bit rowdy," one parent said. "She just came straight out with it. "

"My lad was in tears and so was everyone else in the class -- especially as it was so close to Christmas," he said. "I thought it was wrong. He was distraught about it. He's only 7 years old and it's part of the magic of Christmas to him."

Bobcat bites Santa Claus

LINWOOD, N.J., Dec. 10 (UPI) -- A Santa Claus posing with pets at a New Jersey Petsmart store says a bobcat brought in by a woman scratched and bit his hand and arm.

Jonathan Bebbington, who was dressed as Santa for the "Santa Paws" charity event in Hamilton Township, said the cat bit him several times during his 5-minute struggle with it, WMGM-TV in Linwood, N.J., reported Wednesday.

The feline's owner, who told volunteers her pet had been shipped from Wyoming for $1,500, left with the bobcat after the incident without giving her name. Bebbington said he will have to undergo a series of rabies shots if the owner is not found.

Bobcat ownership is illegal in the state of New Jersey, WMGM said.

Gap underwear clutters Hawaii highway

HONOLULU, Dec. 10 (UPI) -- A spokesman for the Gap said eight boxes of women's undergarments bound for the store apparently fell off of a truck and covered a Hawaiian highway.

The ladies' undergarments were first reported by motorists on the H-1 Freeway in Honolulu during commuting hours Monday morning, KITV-Honolulu reported Wednesday.

A Gap store manager at the Pearlridge shopping center initially speculated the items might be related to a theft two weeks ago at the location. However, company officials said they later discovered eight boxes of merchandise were missing from a Monday morning shipment and may have fallen from the delivery truck.

A spokesman for the delivery company employed by the store said the matter is being investigated.

2,118 pounds of pot in fake UPS truck

TUCSON, Dec. 10 (UPI) -- Authorities in Tucson said they found 2,118 pounds of marijuana being transported in a fake UPS delivery truck.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety said officers pulled the truck over Nov. 14 after taking note of the vehicle's suspicious license plates and the driver immediately fled on foot, The Arizona Republic reported Wednesday.

Officers said the truck had been painted and decorated with decals to resemble a real UPS truck. They said the license plate that led to the truck being pulled over had been mocked up with a number assigned to a UPS truck in Phoenix.

The department said the marijuana had an estimated street value of $1.2 million.