Watercooler Stories

Postman says he was forced out over bike

CORFE CASTLE, England, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- A longtime mail carrier in Britain said he was forced out of his job because he refused to switch from his bicycle to a mail truck.

William Blight, 42, who has delivered mail in Corfe Castle, England, for 14 years, said he felt "bullied" and "intimidated" by Royal Mail officials who ordered him to nix his bicycle in favor of a high-capacity mail truck, The Daily Telegraph reported Thursday.

Blight said it would be "dangerous" for him to take a truck on his route due to the narrow roads in the area.

"I even measured the trolley and did a walk of my round, measuring the pavement," he said. "My concerns about it were confirmed -- it was unsafe and dangerous. I'm happy to compromise but I object to being subjected to poor working procedures and dangerous conditions."

Blight said he felt he had no choice but to resign his position.

Birds swarm Kentucky neighborhood

LA GRANGE, Ky., Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Residents of a Kentucky neighborhood said thousands of birds have been descending on the area twice a day for several weeks.

The La Grange neighbors said the birds have taken up residence in some woods and they swarm around their homes twice a day, WAVE-TV, Louisville, reported Thursday.

"It's like a cloud of birds, but a giant cloud," one neighbor said Tuesday. "The whole sky will fill up with black birds."

The residents said they have brought in "sound cannons," which make a shotgun-like noise, and they are hoping the noise will drive away the birds.

Mom arrested for ejecting sons, 9 and 13

FORT PIERCE, Fla., Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Authorities in Florida said they arrested a woman accused of kicking her sons, ages 9 and 13, out of her home.

The St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office said Jayme Beall, 30, told them she stuffed her sons' backpacks full of clothes and sent them outside around 7 p.m. Monday at the Pineview Mobile Home Park in Fort Pierce because she was angry at the 9-year-old for swearing, TCPalm.com reported Thursday.

Beall, who called 911 when she was unable to locate the boys about 20 minutes later, told deputies the 13-year-old has run away before and has a history of violence toward her.

Deputies said the boys were eventually found at their great-grandmother's house in Boynton Beach, more than 70 miles away.

Investigators did not say how the boys made the trip to Boynton Beach.

Beall was arrested on a felony child abuse charge and taken to the St. Lucie County Jail.

Traffic cop from porn wants job back

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- A former Los Angeles traffic officer who was fired after he appeared in a pornographic video while on duty and in uniform is asking for his job back.

John Dancler, 23, who was dismissed by the Los Angeles Civil Service Commission in July after officials were alerted to the video on an adult Web site, appeared before a commission hearing officer Wednesday and asked to be reinstated, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday.

Bobby Samini, Dancler's attorney, said his client was a "convenient scapegoat" and his termination was unwarranted.

Transportation Department spokesman Bruce Gillman said a second officer involved in the incident was subject to "appropriate discipline."