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Man paints lawn to keep it green

INDIANAPOLIS, July 17 (UPI) -- An Indiana man said his lawn has stayed lush and green during the current dry weather due to his secret weapon: paint.

Timothy Birdwell of Indianapolis, an employee of Imperial Painting, said he and a friend came up with the idea to paint the grass when they were confronted with dry weather and a watering ban, WISH-TV, Indianapolis, reported Monday.

Birdwell said the paint, which is specially designed for grass, will last two to three months.

"If it rains, the grass just grows," Birdwell said. "At that point, you can go out there and touch it up if need be. You can have that kind of yard all year round with no water bill from watering your yard."

Woman fined $200 for dry grass in drought

DENVER, July 17 (UPI) -- A Denver woman said her homeowner's association is fining her $200 for having brown spots on her yard amid drought conditions.

Lori Worthman said she has been trying to get her grass to grow, but her attempts have been unsuccessful and the city has declared a Stage 1 drought and imposed watering restrictions, KMGH-TV, Denver, reported Monday.

"I'm glad to try to reseed again when it cools off, but we're in the middle of a heat wave," Worthman said.

However, the Green Valley Ranch Homeowner's Association wants her to pay a $200 fine for failing to make her grass grow.

"We would much rather have her fix the problem than collect the fine," association president James Tanner said. "If your house looks like trash then it's going to depreciate the value of everything around you. That's what an HOA is for is to establish and maintain property values."

Tanner said Worthman was warned about her brown grass last year and given a 9-month extension to deal with the problem.

Aussie team's sails lost by airline

LONDON, July 17 (UPI) -- An Australian Olympic sailing team member said upon arriving in London she learned baggage handlers had lost track of three sets of her team's sails for a time.

Elise Rechichi, 26, initially posted to her Twitter account that Australian airline Qantas misplaced the sails en route to Heathrow Airport and she "wouldn't mind them back please," The Daily Telegraph reported Monday.

Rechichi posted a follow-up to Twitter later saying the sails had been located.

"Just to let everyone know -- everything is fine with our sails now. They just got confused with cargo because they were so big," she said.

"Our sails will be with us shortly! Thanks to the @QantasAirways staff, the ground staff at Heathrow and LOCOG for resolving it so quickly," she posted.

Blue Jays coach uses calligraphy

TORONTO, July 17 (UPI) -- The bench coach for the Toronto Blue Jays said he has found a practical use for his calligraphy skills: making lineup cards.

Don Wakamatsu said his handwriting, derived from the writing style of medieval scribes, helps Manager John Farrell quickly get a sense of his options during the game, The Globe and Mail reported Monday.

"I think he appreciates it," Wakamatsu said. "No. 1, it's legible. I've seen a lot of lineup cards that aren't."

Wakamatsu said his lineup cards are sometimes auctioned after the games or sometimes given to opponents such as Detroit Tigers' Justin Verlander, who pitched a no-hitter against the Blue Jays.