Watercooler Stories

Spain allows ads for prostitutes

MADRID, June 9 (UPI) -- The Spanish parliament lifted a ban on advertising sexual services in print ads and online because of the economic recession.

Legislation lifting the ban was put forth by the opposition in parliament, thinkSpain reported Saturday.

The legislation was then passed by the parliament, lifting the ban on brothels, escort agencies or individuals acting as prostitutes placing ads in classifieds in print or online in Spain, where prostitution is legal.

However, the conservative People's Party government is expected to seek some way of eventually outlawing advertising of this type, thinkSpain said.

Shrimper catches prosthetic leg

VALPARAISO, Fla., June 10 (UPI) -- The owner of a prosthetic leg caught in a shrimp net off the Florida coast has been found, the shrimp boat captain says.

Matt Willingham told the Northwest Florida Daily News he got a phone call from a Crestview man after the newspaper ran a story about the mechanical leg he pulled out of Choctawhatchee Bay Thursday.

It turns out that man, Fred Robinson, had lost the $30,000 artificial leg while swimming near Crab Island Memorial Day weekend.

The leg is emblazoned with the University of Kentucky logo. Robinson, a Kentucky native, played football for the Wildcats in the 1980s, WKYT-TV, Lexington, Ky.

"I got the call and I was shocked! I just started laughing, they found my leg!" Robinson told the TV station. "At the end of the day we were coming back and goofing off and swimming in the bay, and I jumped in and I guess at some point in time when I was swimming it sucked my leg off."

Robinson, who lost his own leg in a 2007 work accident, he never expected to get his artificial one back.

"I can't believe this leg is getting so much attention but I can understand, because of the UK emblem I have on it," he said.

"I've always just loved UK, I have two other legs that also have UK something on it so I've just always bled blue."

Robinson says he plans to pick up his leg Monday.

Willingham said he's got several unusual objects in his nets, but never an artificial leg.

"We've caught [portable toilets[, boat trailers and crab traps," Willingham said. "This was the first to catch a prosthetic leg."

It turns out his catch of the day isn't exactly unique. Jack Wiseman lost his prosthetic arm during a fishing tournament at Boca Grande Pass the same weekend Robinson lost his leg and his limb also was recovered.

"Somebody else hooked that same fish and our rod, with my hand, was still attached and they brought it back to us. So that's my fishing story," he told WFTV-TV, Orlando.

Thieves steal 400,000 toothpicks

ATHENS, Ga., June 10 (UPI) -- Police in Athens-Clarke, Ga., are searching for thieves who stole nearly 400,000 toothpicks from a local toothpick manufacturer.

Six cases of toothpicks went missing from Armond's Manufacturing Company Inc. two weeks ago and then seven more cases disappeared last week, the Athens (Ga.) Banner-Herald reported Friday.

Each case of toothpicks contains 288 packages of 100 toothpicks, which means a total of 374,400 toothpicks have been stolen from the manufacturer, police said. The stolen tooth picks are worth $2,808.

Police said there were no signs of forced entry at the company and the owner believes it to be an inside job.

Man 'sells' body fat for charity

BARCELONA, Spain, June 10 (UPI) -- A Barcelona man says he is getting rid of his body fat for charity.

Oscar Rando is raising money by running and walking the full length of Spain -- 1,864 miles -- and having people donate per gram he loses, thinkSpain reported Sunday.

Sponsors are paying Rando 2.5 euros ($3.12) per gram of fat he loses. So far, he has raised 31,500 euros ($39,393) and has lost 63 pounds, or 28,576 grams.

Rando said he hopes to raise 75,000 euros ($93,795) by the end of the year for the El Prat-based charity Gats, which helps local disadvantaged people find jobs and provide for themselves.