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Wedding goes smoother than proposal

DETROIT, Feb. 11 (UPI) -- A Michigan couple rescued by the Coast Guard after a proposal gone wrong had their wedding day go off without any further catastrophes.

Nathan Bluestein and May Goriel, who live in the Detroit area, were married Saturday afternoon at Assumption Grotto Catholic Church in Detroit and said the day went much more smoothly than last summer's proposal, WDIV-TV, Detroit, reported Monday.

Bluestein's romantic proposal to Goriel involved hiding a proposal and romantic poem -- written in French -- in a bottle and slipping it into the water for his beloved to find during a canoe trip along the shore of Lake Huron.

Bluestein presented a ring to Goriel and the pair drifted out into the lake while celebrating their proposal. They soon discovered they were unable to paddle back against the current and had to use a cellphone to summon help.

The canoe was towed back to shore by a Coast Guard vessel.

Condor escapes in area before hockey game

BAKERSFIELD, Calif., Feb. 11 (UPI) -- Video of a California minor league hockey team's mascot, a condor, attempting to escape during the national anthem has become a hit online.

The video depicts the Bakersfield Condors' condor escaping from her handler at Rabobank Arena during the national anthem prior to Friday night's game, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday.

The condor, whose hijinks have been viewed more than 330,000 times on YouTube, slid across the ice and was grabbed by the handler, but got free again when her handler slipped and fell.

The bird flapped onto a railing and made her way to the arena's locker rooms before being recaptured.

The team's Twitter account said the bird was unharmed.

"It was great! She's OK!" the post said.

Neighborhood prefers bird mural to chimp

SAN ANTONIO, Feb. 11 (UPI) -- A Texas artist whose proposed mural featuring a chimp dressed like a hula dancer was rejected said neighborhood leaders preferred a bird in a German hat.

Robert Tatum said his proposed mural of a bird in a German hat to adorn the side of a small office building met with a warmer reception from the San Antonio city Office of Historic Preservation and the King William Association in the King William Historic District than his original design, the San Antonio Express-News reported Monday.

Tatum's original design featured a chimp in a bikini top and grass skirt with "Tibetan dream clouds" coming from its open head. He said neighborhood leaders were concerned the mural could be seen as culturally insensitive.

"I think the most important thing is to be mature about it," Tatum said of the mural dispute.

He said the King William Association will be given a final rendering of the replacement design, a bird with a German hat, and will then vote to give it final approval.

Famous fat cat diagnosed with cancer

HOUSTON, Feb. 11 (UPI) -- The owner of a Houston animal hospital hosting a famously fat feline said the cat does not appear to be suffering after his diagnosis with cancer.

Dr. Alice Frei, owner of Southside Place Animal Hospital, said Tiny Tim, who weighed 35 pounds when he came to live at the hospital more than a year ago, was diagnosed with cancer in mid-January and a veterinary oncologist determined last week the feline had contracted a plasma cell tumor, an uncommon occurrence in cats, the Houston Chronicle reported Monday.

"There is no really good chemotherapy for it," she said. "The best thing to do if you catch it, if it's not up against a body wall, is to remove it."

However, she said Tiny Tim's cancer has already spread to his lymph nodes.

The veterinarian said Tiny Tim is being given light chemotherapy and does not appear to be suffering any ill effects.

"Tiny's handling it much better than I am," she said. "He's happy as a lark. I went through a pretty horrible three- to four-week period."

Frei said Tiny Tim has been taken off his weight reduction diet and receives occasional treats such as slices of rotisserie chicken.

The veterinarian said Tiny Tim is being closely monitored to make sure he isn't in pain.

"We will not let him suffer," she said. "When he's uncomfortable and unhappy, we'll let him go."