UPI NewsTrack Quirks in the News

'Simpsons' GPS leads writer astray

PEABODY, Mass., Aug. 17 (UPI) -- A writer for "The Simpsons" said a satellite navigator outfitted with Homer Simpson's voice took him and his wife on an accidental trip to a Massachusetts city.

Mike Reiss, 50, said he and his wife, Denise, were staying with friends in Wenham, Mass., and wanted to visit the Peabody Essex Museum, but the global positioning system instead directed them in Homer Simpson's voice to the City of Peabody, a little more than 2 miles off course, The Gloucester (Mass.) Times reported Tuesday.

"We came via a GPS mistake," Reiss said. "I have a Homer Simpson global positioning system. It speaks in the voice of Homer Simpson."

He said the device was a gift "from the show" to celebrate his years as a writer for the animated Fox sitcom.

Reiss said the accidental side-trip worked out when he and his wife were treated to a tour of the city by Bill Power, chairman of the Historical Commission and the Historic Society as well as a self-described television expert.

"I like it," Reiss said of Peabody. "It reminds me of my hometown with a lot more history ... I'm sure it'll make its appearance somewhere. Nothing is wasted."

Long-lost ring found by mail carrier

GADSDEN, Ala., Aug. 17 (UPI) -- An Alabama man said his class ring, which he lost 14 years ago, was returned to him by his mail carrier, who discovered the item while mowing grass.

Michael Amberson of Gadsden said he lost the ring in 1996 while he was a freshman at Jacksonville State University and the fate of the ring was unknown until mail carrier Chad West found it in the grass while mowing a lawn in the Alabama City/Walnut Park neighborhood, the Gadsden Times reported Tuesday.

West said he was able to return the ring Wednesday after recognizing Amberson's name on a piece of mail he was delivering.

"He knew it was me," Amberson said, "but I have no clue how it got from the dorm at JSU to Walnut Park."

Court strikes down mall talk rules

ROSEVILLE, Calif., Aug. 17 (UPI) -- A California appeals court struck down a mall's rules banning strangers from talking about subjects other than the mall while inside the facility.

A three-judge 3rd District Court of Appeals panel issued a 43-page opinion Wednesday describing the rules, which ban the unacquainted for discussing anything other than Roseville's Westfield Galleria mall and its stores while in the mall, as "unconstitutional on their face" due to violations of free speech as outlined in the California Constitution, the Sacramento Bee reported Tuesday.

The mall's rules, which were previously upheld by Placer Superior Court Judge Larry Gaddis, allow for conversations between two strangers on non-mall related topics only if an application is submitted 4 days in advance and approved by officials.

"We are reviewing the court's decision and will consider our options, including appeal to the California Supreme Court," Westfield spokeswoman Katy Dickey said.

Restaurant streaker pleads guilty

MILTON MILLS, N.H., Aug. 17 (UPI) -- A New Hampshire man who admitted to streaking at a restaurant and leading an officer on a nude chase said he was protesting the eatery.

Sheehan Lygren, 22, of Milton Mills, who pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of indecent assault and resisting arrest Monday, said he was protesting the working conditions at the downtown restaurant, where he was employed until the July 12 incident, the Portsmouth (N.H.) Herald reported Tuesday.

"I'm a free-spirited individual and sometimes it gets me in trouble," Lygren said after entering his plea.

Prosecutors said Lygren walked into the restaurant nude July 12 and fled through the Vaughn Mall when a police officer gave chase.

Lygren was fined $1,000, with half suspended pending a year of good behavior, and a 30-day jail sentence, also suspended for a year. He was also ordered to write letters of apology to the restaurant and the police officer.