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Cat-loving robin returns to wild

OTSEGO, Mich., June 21 (UPI) -- A Michigan woman whose cats took a liking to a wounded robin she found in her yard said the bird had returned to the wild.

Karin Caston of Otsego, who said Peeps the young robin appeared to have an injured wing when she found it chirping in her yard June 6, said she took the bird into her home and soon discovered the young bird liked to nestle in the fur of her cats, the Kalamazoo (Mich.) Gazette reported Wednesday.

"I've never done anything like this before, but it was something that I felt that I could do -- I just had an inner sense that I had to take care of him -- to give him a chance," Caston said.

She said Peeps returned to the wild Monday at Otsego's Brookside Park.

"He's brought me a lot of joy, and it's been an amazing couple of weeks," she said. "I'm sad, yet I know it's a wild animal and needs to return to nature."

Free beer promotion becomes $1 beer

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, June 21 (UPI) -- An Alaska airline's "free beer" promotion ran afoul of state laws and the company will now charge $1 a glass, officials said.

Micah Lillard, marketing manager for the Era Alaska airline, said officials ran into some "unforeseen challenges" with the promotion, which would have offered free samples of Denali Brewing Co.'s "Single Engine Red" with each additional 6-oz. beer costing $3 per glass, KMXT-FM, Kodiak, reported Wednesday.

"We have gone ahead and decided to charge for the first one and lower any additional samples after that," Lillard said.

Shirley Gifford, director of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, said the "unforeseen challenges" were state pricing and marketing statutes banning free alcoholic beverages from being used as a marketing tool.

"We'd gotten wind of it yesterday and I saw it on the news last night and of course it created some questions for us. And working with Era, they decided they would just go ahead and charge for the beer," Gifford said.

Man's new wife is perfect kidney match

DALLAS, June 21 (UPI) -- A Dallas man said it was a "miracle" when his new wife turned out to be a perfect match for the kidney transplant he needs to survive.

Jonathan Woodlief said lupus destroyed his kidneys as a child and the transplant he received from his mother at the age of 18 began to fail last year, WFAA-TV, Dallas, reported Wednesday.

Woodlief said the state of his antibodies meant he needed to find a 99 percent match for a second transplant to work.

"So my antibodies are about 99 percent, which means that I match to about 1 percent of the population," Woodlief said. "That was definitely ... just heartbreaking to hear."

Woodlief said he and his fiancee, Caitlin, decided to go ahead with their wedding in October. He said his health began declining this year and he and his wife were shocked and amazed to discover her kidneys were a perfect match for him.

"The doctor called it a miracle," Jonathan Woodlief said. "We believe it's a miracle, and we're grateful for that."

The couple said their surgery is scheduled for Tuesday.

Boy carries 'homeless' sign as punishment

WALDORF, Md., June 21 (UPI) -- A Maryland man said he made his 12-year-old son carry a sign proclaiming him to be "homeless" because he failed to call home as instructed.

Kevin Burks of Waldorf said he made his son, Kenny, carry a sign up and down his street Monday reading, "Homeless, Won't Listen to Parents," because he failed to call home as instructed when spending the night at a friend's house, WRC-TV, Washington, reported Wednesday.

"All he has to do is check in at 8:30," Burks said. He said Kenny did not call until 9 p.m.

"I pay for his clothes, his shoes, the roof over his head, his safety and everything he has," Burks said. "My thing is if you want to be your own adult, you'll sit outside and be your own adult."

Burks said he supervised his son during the punishment, which lasted from 9:15 a.m. until 5 p.m., and gave him meals and breaks every 2 hours.

A police officer responded when neighbors complained, and Burks said the officer complimented him on his creative discipline.