Watercooler Stories

Million-dollar parking space on the market

NEW YORK, May 21 (UPI) -- New York City's first million-dollar parking spot -- offering privacy for "a celebrity or a business person who is camera shy" -- is on the market.

The private garage at 66 E. 11th St. is "for someone who wants complete privacy," said Prudential Douglas Elliman Vice Chairman Dolly Lenz.

"You can drive in and not be seen again," Lenz said. "It's for the type of person who finds that attractive. It could be a celebrity or a business person who is camera shy."

The pricy parking space would belong to either the tenant of the extravagant condo's 8,000-square-foot townhouse or the penthouse, says developer Morad Fareed.

The New York Post reported Fareed is in the process of converting an eight-story prewar loft building in lower Manhattan into six luxury condominiums with whopper price tags. Units would be complete with shower water enriched with vitamin C and aloe, heat reflexology flooring and premium air quality designed to give residents a better night's rest.

The primo parking space would have its own deed and sales contract, and the "tenant" would be responsible for maintenance fees, just like a condo.

"The reality of New York City is that people are willing to pay more for a parking spot than the average person in the country pays for a home," said Robert Knackal, chairman of Massey Knackal Realty.

Fla. hardware store say 'no more pennies!'

COCONUT GROVE, Fla., May 21 (UPI) -- A Coconut Grove, Fla., hardware store has instituted a no penny policy, saying pennies -- to coin a phrase -- just no longer make cents.

Andy Haase, owner of Shell Lumber, has banished the one-cent nuisance from his cash drawers. A sign at the front door reads: "No more pennies! For cash sales, we round in your favor."

Haase told The Miami Herald he was tasked with accounting for nearly 1,200 pennies every day across 10 cash registers. Four weeks ago, he instructed cashiers to start lowering final sales amounts by as much as 4 cents, so customers could keep their cents to themselves.

"The bookkeepers used to come down and say your cash drawer was off by a penny," he told The Herald. "It was just a lot of work for nothing."

Shell Lumber is the latest front on the war on pennies, the newspaper said.

Canada announced in March it would eliminate the 1-cent piece from its economy. The Canadian Mint will no longer make the coin, stores will be asked to return their pennies, and all transactions will be rounded to the nearest 5-cent increment.

The Canadian government estimates the decision will save the country about $11 million.

The Pentagon in 1980 stopped shipping pennies to overseas military bases because they are "too heavy and not cost effective to ship." It costs the federal government 2.4 cents to make a penny.

Pets help fill pews at Florida church

CORAL GABLES, Fla., May 21 (UPI) -- A Florida pastor said if bringing dogs helps bring people to church then "grab your dog and grab your Bible" and come on in.

Pastor David Hughes preached the word to 1,350 people and nearly 500 dogs Saturday at Dog Day Weekend services at the Church of the Glades in Coral Springs.

"To bring someone to Jesus, doggone it, we'll have a dog service," Hughes told the congregation in the first of two pet friendly services this weekend. "Grab your dog and grab your Bible."

Saturday's service was a veritable dog show of mutts from teacup poodles to towering Irish wolfhounds, the South Florida Sun Sentinel said. Noah -- who the Bible said took two of ach species on the ark to survive the great flood -- might have been impressed by some of the other guests, which included eagles and a 600-pound lion.

Hughes, who brought along his Australian shepherd Rev. Bob Diesel Dog, said man's best friend had a lot in common with the values of loyalty, love and protectiveness.

"One term that theologians use for Jesus is the 'Hound of Heaven,'" he said. "I like that."

Weddings go on amid NATO protests

CHICAGO, May 21 (UPI) -- A Chicago couple said this weekend's NATO summit made for an interesting wedding after they tied the knot at a downtown restaurant.

David and Kristen Kosyluk posed for photos and were wished well by both protesters and riot police on the streets, which were unusually clear this weekend.

"It's been awesome -- no traffic," the new Mrs. Kosyluk told the Chicago Sun-Times.

"The NATO convention helped us," added David Kosyluk.

The Kosyluk wedding was one of several that took place on schedule in downtown Chicago despite the city's urgings to stay away from the area due to planned marches in the streets.

Eddie and Patty Villarreal, in fact, were having their wedding photos taken outside the Chicago Theater when a noisy march of about 400 people rolled past. Although the march had a distinctly anti-establishment tone, the institution of marriage wasn't on their target list, the newspaper reported.

"The people are so happy," said Mrs. V. "They were making noise and cheering for us."