Watercooler Stories

Man receives $280,000 gas bill

NEW YORK, June 24 (UPI) -- A New York state man said even his National Grid customer service representative was shocked by the size of his $280,000 gas bill.

Jack Herrick of Long Island, whose gas bill usually hovers around $10 a month, said he called the National Grid immediately after receiving the bill for 17,000 decatherms of gas -- enough to heat 130 homes for a year, WPIX-TV, New York, reported Wednesday.

"She pops in the account number and she says 'Oh my God!'" Herrick said of the customer service representative.

"I said this is the most ridiculous bill I ever saw in my life," he said.

National Grid said in a statement that this type of error is usually found before it reaches the customer.

"While National Grid does have a system in place that flags unusual bills, and catches them before they are mailed to the customers, every once in a while one slips through. However, this would have been caught even if Mr. Herrick didn't bring it to our attention," the utility said in a statement.

Herrick said the company notified him that a revised bill is in the mail.

Calvin Klein replaces racy billboard

NEW YORK, June 24 (UPI) -- Clothing designer Calvin Klein replaced a racy New York billboard evocative of a sexual orgy with a slightly less sexual ad featuring a dampened bikini model.

The billboard, which was criticized by many of its neighbors as too sexually provocative, was quietly replaced without comment from the company Monday, the New York Daily News reported Wednesday.

The original ad depicted a topless woman on top of a shirtless male while kissing another man and a third man, apparently passed out, below them with his shirt and jeans unbuttoned.

The replacement features a model in a string bikini and dripping with water.

The Daily News said the new ad appeared to get more approvals from passersby than the previous billboard.

"I think it's a good thing," said Rae Vermeulen, 36, who lives a few blocks from the billboard.

"The old one bothered people. It was a little too explicit with the threesome," she said. "You didn't even notice the jeans as much as what was going on with the people."

Naked Cowboy: Ohio show must go on

GREENHILLS, Ohio, June 24 (UPI) -- The famed underwear-clad guitarist known as the Naked Cowboy said he plans to perform in his hometown of Greenhills, Ohio, despite a politician's protests.

The performer, whose real name is Robert Burck, said he has not been dissuaded from performing Friday at the Greenhills Summer Festival despite mayoral candidate Pat Andwan's protests, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported Wednesday.

Andwan said in an e-mail to local officials that the Naked Cowboy's costume -- a pair of white briefs -- is "indecent" and his behavior is "deviant."

"It just shows what some parts of society have stooped down to," she said. "I just think it is totally insensitive and an insult to the families in the community. There should be some dialogue about what's appropriate and what's not."

Burck, who described Andwan as a "lunatic," said he is used to the fact that some people do not approve of his act.

"I've been in my underwear for 10 years, going from city to city, so I'm aware there are people out there who are not underwear-friendly," he said.

Double trouble: Identical twins on trial

CARDIFF, Wales, June 24 (UPI) -- Identical twins on trial in Wales are accused of assaulting a man who says he cannot tell them apart and is unsure which brother attacked him first.

One of the pair, Gavin or Rhys Higgins, 21, allegedly hit Darryl Churchill, The Daily Mail reported. Churchill said one of the brothers was angry at him because of his refereeing of a pool match.

Churchill testified Wednesday in Cardiff Crown Court he was threatened during a party at Blaengarw rugby club near Bridgend. He said he refused an invitation to take the dispute outside but was ambushed when he went to the toilet.

"I don't know, they both look the same to me," Churchill said when he was asked which twin threw the first punch.

Rhys Higgins testified he was involved in a fight with Churchill, but said Churchill was the aggressor. He said he got a black eye in the fight and did not notice Churchill had been injured.

A friend testified he found Churchill, bleeding and with his shirt torn, near the toilets.