Odd News

NEW YORK, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- A New York man says his 4-year-old daughter won two tickets in a lottery to see U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration.

STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- Bureaucratic mistakes that made a dual-citizenship Swedish citizen a Canadian will cost the Swedish government $130, a government chancellor ruled.

TRINITY, N.C., Dec. 18 (UPI) -- A mother in Trinity, N.C., says her family home has 61 Christmas trees, each of which is decorated with a different theme.

LONDON, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- A company in Britain says it has created a new aftershave that captures the essence of a soccer locker room in all its aromatic glory.

DORAL, Fla., Dec. 18 (UPI) -- The police chief in Doral, Fla., says thieves apparently dumped more than $1.2 million in stolen goods after being unable to sell them in today's economy.

Wash. man can keep fancy tree house ... College underwear event has high price tag ... Wedding goes on despite ice, power outage ... Girl: Cough drops led to drug allegations ... Watercooler stories from UPI.

UPI Almanac for Thursday, Dec. 18, 2008.

Crematorium ovens to heat crematorium ... 'Holy' brain scan brings $730 on eBay ... First-graders offer advice to Barack Obama ... Man loses bet, runs naked to the sea ... The world as we know it from UPI.

HALMSTAD, Sweden, Dec. 17 (UPI) -- New ovens in a crematorium in Halmstad, Sweden, are to be used to heat the crematorium itself and maybe one day the town, says the cemetery administrator.

FORT PIERCE, Fla., Dec. 17 (UPI) -- An MRI scan that purportedly shows an image of the Virgin Mary brought a high bid of $730 on eBay, says the U.S. woman whose brain was scanned.

WAUWATOSA, Wis., Dec. 17 (UPI) -- Letters to President-elect Barack Obama from first-graders in Wisconsin include this advice: "Don't talk to strangers."

ASHDOD, Israel, Dec. 17 (UPI) -- Israeli police say a man in his 20s was arrested in Ashdod for running and swimming naked after he lost a bet.

'Bird Barbie' takes on classic horror role … Police: Robber got laughs and no cash … Salvation Army abandons post office post … Spelling bee entrant gets misspelled kudos ... UPI Quirks in the News.

FALL CITY, Wash., Dec. 17 (UPI) -- A Washington state man ordered to tear down an elaborate tree house overlooking a river can keep it after reaching a compromise, county officials say.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif., Dec. 17 (UPI) -- A new version of the Barbie doll aimed at Alfred Hitchcock fans is hitting U.S. stores in time for Christmas -- "Bird Barbie."