Watercooler Stories

Police use stun gun on enraged naked man

VICTORIA, British Columbia, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- Police in Canada said a naked man who proved unresponsive to threats of gun or baton violence had to be subdued by a stun gun.

Officers responding to the Knockan Hill neighborhood of Victoria at about 10:30 p.m. Sunday discovered a naked man -- described as about 6-foot-1 and 215-pounds -- yelling at a woman who was attempting to park a car in her driveway and kicking the vehicle, the Victoria Times Columnist reported.

Officers said the man did not respond to a strike from a baton and had no reaction when another officer drew his gun. The officers said psychically struggling and pepper spray were also ineffective on the man.

A third officer finally subdued the suspect with a stun gun and he was apprehended. The man was taken to a hospital, where doctors determined he had been under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Police said they were considering mischief and assault charges.

Bill for broadband setup: $70,427.98

CUMBRIA, England, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- A British couple said a broadband service quoted them a $70,427.98 installation price because all of the company's equipment is being used.

Ray and Frei Walker of Cumbria, said they used their dial-up service for nine and years and was finally told by broadband company BT it would cost them $70,427.98 to upgrade because their current network is filled to its capacity and needs new components to add new customers, the Daily Mail reported.

"It's a farce, and obviously we're staggered. We don't have (the money) and if we did we wouldn't spend it on this," Ray Reil said.

A BT spokesman defended the charge.

"There can be very rare cases where the amount of work that's required for the network to deliver a particular service like broadband is exceptional and in those very rare cases excess charge can be applied," he said.

Falling tree crushes house

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- Neighbors of a Southern California home destroyed by a falling tree have several theories about what caused the leaking oak to fall.

Locals said they first began to grow concerned the tree might fall when a utility company made plans to cut power lines from an unstable tree in front of an unoccupied house, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.

The neighbors said they worried the dampness of the soil would not support the tree without the lines, and they were proven correct when workers snipped a cable and the 30-foot-tall tree plunged into the one story home with sage-green siding and white trim.

Authorities said no one was injured in the incident.

"It's just an unfortunate situation," San Diego Gas and Electric spokesman Art Larson said.

Strip club raises funds for Haiti relief

WATERVILLE, Ohio, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- An Ohio strip club said it raised nearly $1,000 during a "Lap dances for Haiti" charity event.

Bosses at Marilyn's on Monroe, which does not actually allow lap dances, said all the money from the club's $10 cover charge Sunday would go to Hope, or ISOH/IMPACT, a charity based in Waterville, Ohio, that is participating in Haitian earthquake relief efforts, the Toledo Blade reported.

General Manager Kenny Soprano said local businesses wanted to give back to the community.

"We'd been racking our brains for about a month or so, thinking about what we could do," he said. "You don't hear much about strip clubs giving back to the community."