Watercooler Stories

'GOES211' plate makes cut, 'JUGALET' nixed

SALEM, Ore., Feb. 4 (UPI) -- The Oregon committee in charge of hearing complaints about personalized license plates issued by the state allowed "GOES211" but nixed "JUGALET."

The six members of the Department of Licensing's Personalized License Plate Committee, which includes a police representative and a department official, hears about 12 complaints per year about vanity plates, including a complaint in October about Tony Cava's "GOES211" plate, The Seattle Times reported Monday.

Cava, a fan of comedy film "This is Spinal Tap," said the plate is a reference to how the fictional band's amps go up to 11 instead of the standard 10.

However, a man identifying himself as Johnny Dixon had a different interpretation when he emailed the department.

"I find it in poor taste that the great state of Washington would issue a plate that allows a driver to insinuate in public that his penis grows to 11 inches in length. The rest of the citizens of Washington should not be subjected to this vulgarity," the email read.

The board sided with Cava, but it was less kind to Lisa Kleiner, 42, whose "JUGALET" plate was yanked after a complaint from a police officer.

Kleiner said the plate's message was a female version of "juggalo," a name given to fans of recording artists Insane Clown Posse.

The police officer complained the plate represented a gang affiliation.

Man sees Jesus image in beer case

BRADENTON, Fla., Feb. 4 (UPI) -- A Florida man who picked up a portion of a beer case because it was fish-shaped said he flipped it over and saw the image of Jesus.

Fred Truluck of Bradenton said he picked up the piece of cardboard from a Corona beer case while walking with his dog because of the religious symbolism of the fish, WWSB-TV, Sarasota, reported Monday.

Truluck, who described himself as a devout Christian, said the religious symbolism became even more apparent when he took the cardboard fish home and flipped it over.

"I had it on the table, turned it over to the back, for some reason, and I said, 'Wow! There is Jesus,'" he said.

Truluck said he plans to frame the image and one day pass it down to his children.

Joe Davis, pastor at the Church of the Palms in Sarasota, said he is skeptical of the piece of cardboard's connection to the divine.

"I don't think God goes and draws his face on a carton of beer," he said. "If you are one of us that believes in the God of the Bible, the scripture teaches more is that God would rather show his image through the works and love of his people than interact in the world."

Bird snatches cash from man's camper

ARTHUR'S PASS, New Zealand, Feb. 4 (UPI) -- A Scottish tourist in New Zealand said a kea bird stole more than $1,000 cash from his camper while he was taking pictures at a rest stop.

Peter Leach said he stopped Wednesday at a rest stop in Arthur's Pass to take pictures of the scenery and he was snapping pictures of an unusual bird when a couple approached him with some distressing news, The Timaru Herald reported Monday.

"A Canadian couple walked by and said: 'We've just seen that bird take something out of your campervan,'" Leach said. "It took all the money I had. I was left with $40 (U.S. $33.83) in my pocket."

Leach said the bird made off with a small cloth bag containing $1,099.41. He said the bird apparently snatched it from his dashboard.

The tourist said he filed a police report in hope of getting his insurance company to replace the cash.

"The man I dealt with was very serious for the first few questions," Leach said of his police interview. "Then he said, 'Do you mind if I just stop to laugh?'"

Crew works around car in cordoned-off lot

EDINBURGH, Scotland, Feb. 4 (UPI) -- Construction crews resurfacing a parking lot in Scotland said they left a small island with a ramp for a Mercedes-Benz left parked in the way.

The workers said they arrived Friday morning to resurface the pavement at Edinburgh's Waverley train station and discovered a motorist had parked in the cordoned-off area overnight, The Mirror reported Monday.

"We had to work round it," one worker said.

The crew resurfaced around the Mercedes, leaving the luxury car on a small unpaved island with a ramp to allow for escape when the motorist turns up to claim it.