Somerset East

3rd October 2013

The final talk in the Thomas Hardy Series will be delivered by Professor Tim Kendal, University of Exeter on Hardy’s Poetry of the First World War.

It will take place at the county museum on Thursday, October 24th at 7.30pm

In 1899, at the outbreak of hostilities in South Africa, Thomas Hardy was moved to express his loathing of war. Yet at the same time he confessed that his passions were stirred as soon as war became inevitable: “Few persons are more martial than I,” he told Florence Henniker, ‘“or like better to write of war in prose and rhyme”.

Unlike his Boer War writings, Hardy’s poems of the Great War rarely attempt a documentary account, but they are similarly divided. ‘Moments of Vision’ (1917) juxtaposes decent and dutiful verses like ‘Men Who March Away’ and ‘A Call to National Service’ with poems like ‘A New Year’s Eve in War Time’ describing horrors, griefs and self-doubt.

In his talk, Professor Tim Kendal of the University of Exeter will attempt to make sense of these apparent contradictions through an account of Hardy’s complex aesthetic and political reactions to the War.

Entry to the talk is free but a donation of £3 is encouraged to cover costs. Everyone is welcome and there is no need to book. Doors open at 7pm.

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A New Hampshire woman’s dreams of satisfying her dead husband’s last wish became dust in the wind after the U.S. Postal Service lost his cremated ashes.

Allison Kelley’s husband, Chuck, died in August from a heart attack. One of his last requests was that some of his ashes be scattered over his favorite fishing spot in the Florida Keys.

She sent two ash-filled urns to Chuck’s daughter in Florida, but when the package arrived, the tape on the box was split and the urns were missing.

“I just felt like I lost him all over again,” she told WMUR-TV.

Tracking records show the package went from New Hampshire to New Jersey before being delivered in Florida. It’s unclear when the urns disappeared. Kelley’s only hope now is if the urns somehow fell out at one of those stops and were recovered, the Associated Press reported.

It’s never easy when ashes go missing. They’ve been lost, stolen and recovered under bizarre circumstances before.

• In July, Monica Thomas of Montgomery, Ala., lost the ashes of her deceased newborn baby when a robber stole the handbag where she was keeping the cremains.
• In October, 2012, the cremated ashes of Henry Lefebvre mysteriously appeared at a San Diego car wash 17 years after his death. They were eventually returned to his family.
• In October, 2011, Angeline O’Grady checked her husband’s ashes aboard a US Airways flight from Philadelphia to London. When she arrived, the ashes were gone.

Also on HuffPost:

Loading Slideshow

• Potato Duck

  Dorothea Clinton who dug up a potato in the shape of a duck. Dorothea Clinton will be having ‘Quack-et Potato’ for dinner after digging up this funny-looking potato Sep 13, 2013. The 73-year-old, of Peaton, near Ludlow, thought it bore an uncanny resemblance to a duck, and wanted to show of the funny looking vegetable.

• Heart Potato

  Sally Colburn holds a heart-shaped potato that she found. (Wendy Victora / a href=”http://www.nwfdailynews.com/local/woman-receives-message-from-the-beyond-from-husband-1.184125?page=1″ target=”_blank”Northwest Florida Daily News/a)

• German Cops Seize ‘Strangest-Looking Convertible’ Pool Car

  On July 22, 2013, German police spotted “a convertible of a slightly different kind.”

  “I saw the strangest-looking convertible I have ever seen – a roofless BMW, without registration plates, bordered around the open top with wooden boards and fake plastic flowers. It was also full of water,” a href=”http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/Drunk_inventors_caught_cruising_in_car_pool?WT.mc_id=ON_MEC_A_AffWin_SkimbitWT.tsrc=AffiliateWT.mc_id=ON_MEC_A_AffWin_SkimbitWT.tsrc=Affiliate” target=”_hplink”the unnamed police officer told Orange News/a.

  The officer observed four young men, clad in bathing suits, splashing around inside the bizarre home-made car pool. According to the police report, “All of them appeared drunk.”

  The car had been sealed with a synthetic material and filled with approximately 530 gallons of water.

  One of the men, a 27-year-old who police suspect was driving, returned to the scene to collect his wallet, police obtained a sample of his blood for a blood-alcohol analysis.

  The investigation is ongoing and no charges have been filed yet.

  Speaking with a href=”http://www.bild.de/bild-plus/news/inland/verkehrsstraftat/polizei-stoppt-rasendes-planschbecken-31511980,view=conversionToLogin.bild.html” target=”_hplink”The Bild newspaper/a, one of the men called the ride a “stupid idea.”

  “It was the first time we drove on a street and we just wanted to have a little fun,” he said.

• Penis Strawberry

  A mother has revealed that she celebrated Andy Murray’s Wimbledon victory with a freshly picked strawberry – shaped like a PENIS. Carole Collen, 52, was pottering about in her garden in Dartford, Kent, this Sunday (7/7) when she spotted the cheekily shaped berry dangling amid her fruit and veg patch. Holding back the laughter she went inside to show her family before taking a quick snap to show her friends. Now the mother-of-two is planning to entering the strawberry into a raffle in a bid to raise money for charity.

• This photo released by the Glendale Police Department shows a black Cadillac that lost control and careened onto the roof of a neighbor’s home on Saturday, March 23, 2013 in Glendale, Calif. The Cadillac driver lost control before leaving his driveway, plunging off a hill “onto the roof of his neighbor’s house directly below his driveway. (Photo courtesy of Glendale Police Department)

• Third Eye Blind

  Tilde Nörgaard, a Swedish sixth grader, is still trying to figure out how she got a third eye in her class photo.

• 150-lb Boulder Crashes Through Car Windshield

  This 150-lb boulder crashed through the windshield of a rental car in Sedona, Az. The passengers, Bob Jaczko and Peter Wilson suffered minor cuts.

• Kid Has LEGO stuck in nose for three years.

  Isaak Lasson can finally breathe easy after three years of sinus problem caused by a single wheel-shaped LEGO that he got stuck up his nose back when he was three.

• Scrapyard Destroys Wrong Car

  Ben Forrer outside Sita UK, a scrap yard in Coventry, today, 25, 2012. Refer to NTI story NTICRUSH. Ben Forrer looked on in horror as a Coventry scrapyard crushed his van by mistake. Ben Forrer had only left his Citroen Relay for a few minutes as he dropped off an old cooker at the Sita yard, in Longford. But workers mistook the van for scrap and began crushing it in the jaws of a mechanical grabber

• Middle Finger Bush

  A bush carved into the shape of a middle-finger has landed a gardener into trouble after somebody failed to share his humour over the shrub. The council received a complaint about the shaped bush eight years after it was carved by Richard Jackson, 53, in his front garden. Despite only receiving one complaint, the council have since contacted Richard to alter the bush as it is considered a public offence. But Richard, from Tamworth, Staffs, said his neighbours are backing his pledge to keep the bush and they have even began a Save the Bush campaign to support him. Credit: Caters News

• Cathedral Licker

  A man has made a 5,000 mile pilgrimage to every Anglican cathedral in England so he can give them a good LICKING. Lawrence Edmonds has staked his claim as Britains first every cathedral licker by tongue tickling an incredible 42 in less than two years. Christian approval, Polish condemnation, and looks of confusion from a flock of Dutch tourists have all been experienced by Lawrence on his epic journey Back in January 2011, Lawrences friend Adam challenged him to a bet- that he couldnt lick every Anglican cathedral in the UK within five years. Credit: Caters News

• Baobab Tree Sculpture

  Mike De Butts adds the finishing touches to a giant Baobab Tree sculpture entitled ‘Under the Baobab’, outside the Southbank Centre on May 24, 2012 in London, England. The Pirate Technics’ installation is made from a selection of brightly coloured fabrics from around the world, and is part of the Southbank Centre’s ‘Festival of the World’ exhibition, which includes a series of large scale pieces of art that will be in place around the Southbank centre over the Summer.

• My Little Ponies

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• Rapunzel Hair

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• Moscow City Lights

  Swirling colors of city lights from a 900ft crane fill the Moscow skyline. Photographer D. Chistoprudov boards the crane, which is being used to build a skyscraper called Federation, and takes pictures over a period of two hours. Chistoprudov, 28, starts taking the swirling snaps around 1am and battles freezing weather to remain completely still so not to ruin the careful process. (Caters News / ZUMA Press)

• iPoo

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• Tamaseseri Festival

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• Snow Church

  Visitors stand around a snow church just after its inauguration on Dec. 28, 2011 in Mitterfirmiansreut, Germany. The circa 25 meters long church was made of 1,400 cubic meters of snow and aims to commemorate the winter of the years 1910/1911, when so much snow fell that believers of Mitterfirmiansreut were no more able to go to church in the neighboring community of Mauth. So they decided to build their own church, made of snow. (Armin Weigel, AFP / Getty Images)

• Snow Church

  Visitors stand around a snow church just after its inauguration on Dec. 28, 2011 in Mitterfirmiansreut, Germany. The circa 25 meters long church was made of 1,400 cubic meters of snow and aims to commemorate the winter of the years 1910/1911, when so much snow fell that believers of Mitterfirmiansreut were no more able to go to church in the neighboring community of Mauth. So they decided to build their own church, made of snow. (Armin Weigel, AFP / Getty Images)

• Heine Braeck, 33, from Sarpsborg, Norway, has been without an right arm since he lost it during a freak accident when he was 13. Now he has decided to make the stump look like a dolpin’s head with the help of Bulgarian tattooist Valio Ska.

• Giant Slipper

  A man who ordered a special slipper to fit his oversized foot was sent a size 1,450 – after manufacturers failed to spot a decimal point in his order. Tom Boddingham, 27, has a size 13 right foot while his left is slightly bigger and measures a size 14-and-a-half. But when he ordered his custom-fit slipper manufacturers in China misread size 14.5 and accidently made a whopping 7ft long size 1,450

• Eight-year-old girl is world’s youngest drag racer

  Eight-year-old girl Belle Wheeler has become the youngest drag racer in the world — just two days after her eighth birthday. The pint-sized dragster then went onto compete against youngsters more than twice her age and qualified for the UK National Finals.

• Lawn Mower Endurance Race

  Competitors race in the 12-hour Lawn Mower Endurance Race on September 24, 2011 in Billingshurst, England. First started in 1973 as a motorsport that would be accessible to as many as possible, this year’s competition included more than 30 teams including some from South Africa, America and Luxembourg.

• Pumpkin Art

  An employee arranges pumpkins to form a fish at the pumkin exhibition of the asparagus and experience farm Buschmann and Winkelmann in Klaistow near Beelitz, northeastern Germany on August 31, 2011. The exhibition will start on September 1 , 2011, with over 100,000 pumkins in 400 different varieties.

• Cable Car High Wire

  High wire artist Freddy Nock balances as he walks up on the rope of a Zugspitze cable car in Grainau near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany, Saturday, Aug. 20, 2011. Nock walked up the 995 meters long rope with an altitude difference of 348 meters aiming at collecting money for the UNESCO. He is attempting to set a new world record by doing seven summits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in seven days. It took him about 90 minutes to arrive on top of Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Germany.

• Third Story Exit

  A 16-ton salt spreader blasted through the fifth-floor wall of a Queens Sanitation Department garage and came within inches of plummeting 50 feet to the street. The driver survived the spectacular 9:30 am crash, which sent bricks and debris raining down on cars parked outside the Maspeth repair facility, but spent 15 terrified minutes dangling in the cab of the bright orange vehicle. It’s unclear how driver Robert Legall, a 10-year Sanitation veteran with a clean record, lost control of the big rig. “There are signs up there warning drivers to slow down,” Commissioner John Doherty told the New York Post. “He’s familiar with the rules. We think it was just an unfortunate accident.”

• Speed Record Spins Out

  Driver Joe Wales crashes through the surf after veering off course during an attempt on the British land speed record for battery-powered vehicles in the Bluebird Electric on Pendine Sands on August 14, 2011 in Pendine, Wales. Driver Joe Wales and his father, fellow driver Don Wales, come from a famous family who have been setting land and water speed records since 1924. Don holds the current UK record of 137 miles an hour in an electric vehicle.

• Giant Cabbage

  Harrogate Autumn Flower show Director Martin Fish with a giant cabbage, as he introduced a series of new classes for Giant Vegetables to mark the 100th Anniversary of the Show. Giant onions, tomatoes and many others will all compete for the top prize of the biggest vegetable.

• Keep Claer

  An incorrectly spelled “Keep Clear” road marking is pictured in Kingswinford, on August 3, 2011 in West Midlands, England.

• Etna Volcano lava

  Lava spewed from a crater of the giant Etna volcano in the southern Italy island of Sicily on July 30, 2011 in Catania. The lava flown into a valley overnight and did not represent a danger to inhabited areas. Etna is the highest active volcano in Europe at 3,295 metres (10,810 feet) which last eruption was in May.

• Killer Plant Eats Bird

  An exotic plant expert was stunned when he inspected one of his garden
  pitcher plants and discovered it had eaten a blue tit.
  Prize winning Nigel Hewitt Cooper one of Britain’s leading carnivorous plant
  growers, from West Pennard, Somerset, couldn’t believe his eyes when he
  checked the Nepenthes x mixta or Monkey Cup pitcher and found the dead bird
  inside.
  Normally the plants which are native to south east Asia consume insects
  which thy attract by secreting a sticky, sweet fluid at the bottom of the
  pitcher.
  Sometimes in the wild they have been known to kill small mammals like mice
  but Mr Hewitt Cooper who regularly wins prizes at the Chelsea flower show
  says for a cultivate plant to capture a bird is incredible.

• Giant Mermaid

  A man adjusts a sculpture “Giant Mermaid” on the Alster lake in the northern German city of Hamburg on August 1, 2011. The sculpture is created by art and advertising agency headed by Oliver Voss.

• Huge Pastry

  People look at a huge khachapuri (Georgian cheese pastry) in central Batumi on July 28, 2011. The cake was baked using 100 eggs, 90 kilograms of cheese, 150 kilograms of flour, has 8 meters length and was eaten within 1minute 32 seconds by people at a street.

• Velomobiles

  Velomobiles, recumbent bicycles with sleek, colorful outer shells, head for the open road in Portland, Ore., Thursday, July 28, 2011. Twenty five riders from Europe and twenty five riders from North America are on a cross-country trip which will finish on the U.S. Capitol steps in Washington D.C. on August 26. The bikers are trying to spread the message that sustainable, clean transportation can be fun.

• Bobblehead Bishop

  Erie Catholic Bishop Donald W. Trautman has been immortalized in miniature with a bobblehead doll made in his likeness. The bobblehead comes as Trautman prepares to end his tenure as bishop of Erie.

• Canadian bubble artist

  Canadian bubble artist Yang Fan, who has set world record by packing 118 people inside a soap bubble, performs at the Gazillion bubble show in Beijing on July 19, 2011. Yang has earned international acclaim as a result of his complex displays of “bubble theater”. In addition to performing he has developed his own bubble solution formulas and equipment to create bubbles.

• Giant Marilyn

  Newly-wed bride Magda Villasenor looks at “Forever Marilyn”, a sculpture by Seward Johnson, on July 15, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois. The stainless steel and aluminum sculpture, which stands 26 feet tall and weighs 34,000 pounds, will be on display in Chicago through the spring of 2012. The sculpture was inspired by Marilyn Monroe’s iconic scene in the 1955 movie “Seven Year Itch”.

• Hot Dog Hot Rod

  The iconic Oscar Mayer Wienermobile vehicle is seen outside of the New York Stock Exchange as part of its day-long 75th birthday celebration, Monday, July 18, 2011. To commemorate the milestone, the Oscar Mayer brand rang the closing bell at NYSE. (Diane Bondareff/AP Images for Oscar Mayer)

• Harry Potter Corn Maze

  An aerial view of Top Pearsy’s Maize Maze in the shape of Harry Potter, on July 11, 2011 in York, England. Farmer Tom Pearcy has cut two portraits of Harry Potter in his crop of maize plants. With some subtle differences the two images create the world’s largest spot the difference competition. At over 50m in diameter, and cut out of over 1 million living maize plants, the York Maze is the largest ‘Maize Maze’ in Europe and one of the largest in the world.

• Recycled Sailboat

  A sail boat made of recycled material makes its maiden voyage to mark World Oceans Day in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, June 8, 2011.

• Pontiac Deluxe Six ‘Ghost Car’

  An extraordinary transparent car could fetch as much as GBP 295,000 when it goes up for auction.The motor, dubbed the ‘Ghost Car’, is a Pontiac Deluxe Six which has been covered in Plexiglas. The first transparent full-sized car to be made in America, it was built in 1939 by General Motors and chemical company Rohm and Haas. Billed as a vision of the future, it was a sensation at the 1939-40 New York World’s Fair and continues to cause a stir today. Just two were ever made and this model, which has a three-speed manual transmission, is thought to be the last of its kind. It has clocked up just 86 miles in its lifetime; and now its set to go on sale for the first time since the early 1980s. It last sold for an undisclosed amount. American auctioneers RM expect it to sell for between $275,000 and $475,000.

• Serbian Brides Race

  Serbian women take part in a wedding dress race in downtown Belgrade on June 19, 2011. More than fifty “brides” took part in an annual wedding dress race in the Serbian capital, competing for numerous prizes. (Andrej Isakovic, AFP/Getty Images)

• World Naked Bike Ride

  People take part in the annual “London World Naked Bike Ride” event in central London on June 11, 2011. Now in it’s eighth year, the event has seen participation grow from 58 in 2004 to 1,200 in 2009. Taking a route that passes many of London’s most famous landmarks, the ride allows those participating to decorate their body with messages of protest against oil dependancy and motor vehicle usage.

• Hanging Around

  British artist Alice Newstead hangs by shark hooks during her demonstration to protest against shark slaughter in Hong Kong on June 14. The protest was organized by marine conservation group Shark Savers, and supported by Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics who are launching a global campaign to protect the sharks.

• Reptile House

  Diska Putra, holds one of his snakes in bed at home on June 10, 2011 in Bintan, Indonesia. Putra, 24, cohabitates in Indonesian with a collection of 30 snakes, some of which are deadly poisonous.

• Monkey God

  An Indian priest walks outside the temple of Hindu monkey God Hanuman in New Delhi early June 12, 2011. The highly popular monkey-god Hanuman known for his strength is worshipped for his unyielding devotion and selfless dedication to the Lord Rama.

• Big Baby

  Ron Mueck’s ‘Big Baby’ sculpture is displayed in front of Jenny Saville’s painting ‘Interfacing’ at the Masterpieces Exhibition at Christie’s on June 13, 2011 in London, England.

• Drunken Knight

  A would-be knight who tried to woo a maiden by riding into her home on a horse is facing five years behind bars for aggravated burglary. Lovelorn Jan Rudnicki, 40, hatched the scheme to bowl over divorcee Gosia Domoslawska after a night’s drinking down his local bar in Jarnoltowka, Poland. But terrified Gosia, 36, dialed 999 when her drunken suitor – stripped to the waist – galloped up her garden path and smashed his way through the front door like a battering ram.

• Sideshow Fat Man Dies

  Bruce Snowdon, the last sideshow fat man, was honored in a memorial service on Jan. 30, 2010. Snowdon performed as “Harold Huge,” and weighed 607 pounds (though by some billing he tipped the scale at 712 pounds). Here he is with fellow sideshow star Peter Terhurne, a fire-eating dwarf.

• So, What Do You Do For a Living?

  Mexican tattoo artist and trained lawyer Maria Jose Cristerna, known as “Vampire Woman”, attends the Fifth International Tattoo Convention in Bogota, Colombia, on June 4, 2011.

• It’s All Fun And Games…

  A Sufi Kalandar (wandering ascetic) performs an act of self torture during devotion at the annual death anniversary of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer, India on June 2.

New Hampshire husband’s ashes lost in mail by WMUR

In 1944 they arrived by multi-deck paddle steamer at Gauhati in Assam, India,
with the monsoon at its height. Two weeks later they were on the road to
Mandalay, spearheading the Fourteenth Army’s pursuit of the retreating
Japanese down the Kabaw Valley. Infested with malaria and scrub typhus, the
Kabaw was a steaming teak forest drenched by torrential rain.

Nunneley became Intelligence Officer and was attached to fighting patrols. As
a white man among black soldiers he was a prime target for Japanese snipers,
and so removed his rank badges and coated his face and hands in black cream
before going out.

The Japanese fought delaying battles with great stubbornness, and the
battalion had some heavy losses. One night, a sentry fell asleep and allowed
the enemy to slip into battalion HQ. Normally the sentry would have been
court martialled and shot. In the middle of a battle, however, witnesses
could not be spared, and the man was sentenced to be flogged instead.

As soon as he heard his sentence, the private broke away from his escort, ran
to a trench, picked up a Mills grenade, pulled out the pin and drew back his
arm. At that range, Nunneley, the colonel, the adjutant and the RSMs stood
no hope of surviving the blast. The colonel, in a quiet voice, ordered
Nunneley to shoot the man. Nunneley aimed to miss, in the hope that the
retort would bring the man to his senses.

In fact, the private simply took a step forward. Nunneley fired again and
shattered the man’s femur. With a scream of agony, he fell, still clutching
the grenade tightly in his hand. The grenade was made safe and the man was
taken to the regimental aid post.

Nunneley’s Intelligence Section and a platoon of 36 (TT) KAR was then attached
to a company of the Ugandan battalion. On one disastrous occasion, the
platoon walked into an ambush, and 30 askaris lost their nerve, threw down
their weapons and ran headlong back to base. To reestablish the unit’s
reputation, Nunneley led a counter-attack.

Wading thigh-deep into a stream, he and two scouts came under a hail of fire.
Charging on, they exchanged grenades at close range with the enemy before
returning back across the stream under covering fire . Nunneley was wounded,
but had been given up for dead. As he rejoined his section, Tomasi, his
servant, who had begged for months — and, at last, successfully — to be
allowed to join the askari fighters, ran across a jungle track to greet him
, only to picked off by an enemy machine-gunner.

Nunneley was mentioned in despatches. Tomasi, meanwhile, was buried under a
wooden cross by the side of the road to Mandalay. Years later, flying over
Burma on his way to Japan, Nunneley persuaded the captain of the British
Airways 747 to dip a wing in tribute.

After resigning from the Army in 1946, Nunneley worked for a number of
different businesses. Meanwhile he also set himself the task of persuading
Burma veterans on both sides to move towards reconciliation. He was
appointed MBE for these services.

As chairman of the Burma Campaign Fellowship Group, he edited Tales from the
Burma Campaign 1942-45, published in 1998; it tells the story of that war
through the eyes of ordinary Japanese soldiers. He also published Tales from
the King’s African Rifles (2000), an account of his own adventures.

John Nunneley married, first in 1945, Lucia Ceruti. They seperated in the
mid-1970s and she died in 2011. He married, secondly, Carolyn Oxton, who
survives him with a son and a daughter of his first marriage.

John Nunneley, born November 22 1922, died July 27 2013

26th September 2013

An innovative interactive musical storytelling project is being launched in primary schools in West Dorset. 

Pilot performances at primary schools in Salway Ash and Evershot have been described as well received by their young audiences. 

The performers, Michael Chamberlain and Astaria Woods, use a variety of world instruments and fun characters to weave together a tale of sustainability, co-operation and world awareness, helped along by the children.

Mr Chamberlain, a qualified sound therapist, drew on his own experiences travelling abroad when creating this project. 

He aims to introduce sounds from a variety of cultures including the earthy tones of the didgeridoo, the shimmering sounds of the Chinese wind gong and the rhythm of the African drums.

The project combines much humour with memorable characters including a clowning Mongolian horseman.

Ms Woods grew up in Australia and draws on this experience to bring the Antipodean characters alive. Taking the role of the main narrator, she is an experienced teacher and writer of children’s stories. 

Ms Woods ensures that the children are quickly dancing, singing and rhythm-making. This helps to spread the message of peace and co-operation across her world map which the children see unfolding.

One young participant, Ruby, aged seven, said: “I liked Mr Chang as he was very funny, and good at playing the gong.”

The content of the performance links to PSHE, Citizenship and Music learning criteria at key stages 1 and 2.

For more information contact Michael Chamberlain on 01308 424109 or email soundsalive54@btinternet.com

A short video clip can be viewed online at www.soundsalive.org

PICTURE: RHYTHM??DANCE – Performing at Salway Ash Primary School.

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Return to news headlines

2013-09-16 08:40

Johannesburg – The rural development and land reform department plans to hand over management of a new airport to the council of a small town in the Eastern Cape next year, it said on Sunday.

“Somerset East… is poised to make history, when an R413 million [regional] airport which is being constructed by the department… is handed over to the town’s city council next year,” said spokesman Mtobeli Mxotwa.

Minister Gugile Nkwinti made the announcement at a memorial ceremony held at the Zuurberg heritage site on Friday.

“The airport will be a regional operation to boost tourism and commercial activity in the area.

Construction is underway and we expect it to conclude sometime in 2014,” said Mxotwa.

The project was expected to create viable job opportunities over the next eight years.

Nkwinti also announced that new roads would be upgraded and paved by the department’s youth co-operatives division.

“Other projects in and around the Somerset East area are expected to take at least eight years to come into operation, so there will be a lot more opportunities commercially in the region coming up.”

Mxotwa said plans to develop the Addo Elephant Park and the Shamwari game Reserve were also underway.

Once it was completed, the airport would be the fifth operational airport in the province, he said.

 

By 2050 you could be flying in one of these

There’s something new on the menu in Montana and it comes fresh from the local Interstate. Eating roadkill is now legal in the U.S. state, under a new law that takes effect Tuesday.

Some residents there said the potentially good meal should not go to waste, even if the animal came to what some would consider an unseemly end. 

As It Happens host Carol Off spoke to Alex Rich, an avid hunter from Bozeman, Mont. 

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m not going to be out there driving around looking for a deer to hit,” said Rich. “But I don’t think there’s anything ethically wrong with picking up an animal that’s been struck by a vehicle.”

Loading Slideshow

• Potato Duck

  Dorothea Clinton who dug up a potato in the shape of a duck. Dorothea Clinton will be having ‘Quack-et Potato’ for dinner after digging up this funny-looking potato Sep 13, 2013. The 73-year-old, of Peaton, near Ludlow, thought it bore an uncanny resemblance to a duck, and wanted to show of the funny looking vegetable.

• Heart Potato

  Sally Colburn holds a heart-shaped potato that she found. (Wendy Victora / a href=”http://www.nwfdailynews.com/local/woman-receives-message-from-the-beyond-from-husband-1.184125?page=1″ target=”_blank”Northwest Florida Daily News/a)

• German Cops Seize ‘Strangest-Looking Convertible’ Pool Car

  On July 22, 2013, German police spotted “a convertible of a slightly different kind.”

  “I saw the strangest-looking convertible I have ever seen – a roofless BMW, without registration plates, bordered around the open top with wooden boards and fake plastic flowers. It was also full of water,” a href=”http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/Drunk_inventors_caught_cruising_in_car_pool?WT.mc_id=ON_MEC_A_AffWin_SkimbitWT.tsrc=AffiliateWT.mc_id=ON_MEC_A_AffWin_SkimbitWT.tsrc=Affiliate” target=”_hplink”the unnamed police officer told Orange News/a.

  The officer observed four young men, clad in bathing suits, splashing around inside the bizarre home-made car pool. According to the police report, “All of them appeared drunk.”

  The car had been sealed with a synthetic material and filled with approximately 530 gallons of water.

  One of the men, a 27-year-old who police suspect was driving, returned to the scene to collect his wallet, police obtained a sample of his blood for a blood-alcohol analysis.

  The investigation is ongoing and no charges have been filed yet.

  Speaking with a href=”http://www.bild.de/bild-plus/news/inland/verkehrsstraftat/polizei-stoppt-rasendes-planschbecken-31511980,view=conversionToLogin.bild.html” target=”_hplink”The Bild newspaper/a, one of the men called the ride a “stupid idea.”

  “It was the first time we drove on a street and we just wanted to have a little fun,” he said.

• Penis Strawberry

  A mother has revealed that she celebrated Andy Murray’s Wimbledon victory with a freshly picked strawberry – shaped like a PENIS. Carole Collen, 52, was pottering about in her garden in Dartford, Kent, this Sunday (7/7) when she spotted the cheekily shaped berry dangling amid her fruit and veg patch. Holding back the laughter she went inside to show her family before taking a quick snap to show her friends. Now the mother-of-two is planning to entering the strawberry into a raffle in a bid to raise money for charity.

• This photo released by the Glendale Police Department shows a black Cadillac that lost control and careened onto the roof of a neighbor’s home on Saturday, March 23, 2013 in Glendale, Calif. The Cadillac driver lost control before leaving his driveway, plunging off a hill “onto the roof of his neighbor’s house directly below his driveway. (Photo courtesy of Glendale Police Department)

• Third Eye Blind

  Tilde Nörgaard, a Swedish sixth grader, is still trying to figure out how she got a third eye in her class photo.

• 150-lb Boulder Crashes Through Car Windshield

  This 150-lb boulder crashed through the windshield of a rental car in Sedona, Az. The passengers, Bob Jaczko and Peter Wilson suffered minor cuts.

• Kid Has LEGO stuck in nose for three years.

  Isaak Lasson can finally breathe easy after three years of sinus problem caused by a single wheel-shaped LEGO that he got stuck up his nose back when he was three.

• Scrapyard Destroys Wrong Car

  Ben Forrer outside Sita UK, a scrap yard in Coventry, today, 25, 2012. Refer to NTI story NTICRUSH. Ben Forrer looked on in horror as a Coventry scrapyard crushed his van by mistake. Ben Forrer had only left his Citroen Relay for a few minutes as he dropped off an old cooker at the Sita yard, in Longford. But workers mistook the van for scrap and began crushing it in the jaws of a mechanical grabber

• Middle Finger Bush

  A bush carved into the shape of a middle-finger has landed a gardener into trouble after somebody failed to share his humour over the shrub. The council received a complaint about the shaped bush eight years after it was carved by Richard Jackson, 53, in his front garden. Despite only receiving one complaint, the council have since contacted Richard to alter the bush as it is considered a public offence. But Richard, from Tamworth, Staffs, said his neighbours are backing his pledge to keep the bush and they have even began a Save the Bush campaign to support him. Credit: Caters News

• Cathedral Licker

  A man has made a 5,000 mile pilgrimage to every Anglican cathedral in England so he can give them a good LICKING. Lawrence Edmonds has staked his claim as Britains first every cathedral licker by tongue tickling an incredible 42 in less than two years. Christian approval, Polish condemnation, and looks of confusion from a flock of Dutch tourists have all been experienced by Lawrence on his epic journey Back in January 2011, Lawrences friend Adam challenged him to a bet- that he couldnt lick every Anglican cathedral in the UK within five years. Credit: Caters News

• Baobab Tree Sculpture

  Mike De Butts adds the finishing touches to a giant Baobab Tree sculpture entitled ‘Under the Baobab’, outside the Southbank Centre on May 24, 2012 in London, England. The Pirate Technics’ installation is made from a selection of brightly coloured fabrics from around the world, and is part of the Southbank Centre’s ‘Festival of the World’ exhibition, which includes a series of large scale pieces of art that will be in place around the Southbank centre over the Summer.

• My Little Ponies

  Some of Sarah’s ponies. Sarah Butler, 28 from Barnsley, Yorkshire has been collecting 1980’s My Little Ponies for 24 years and now has over 1,000 of them as well as having a themed room in her house including My Little Pony curtains, bedspread and other collectables.

• Rapunzel Hair

  Natasha Moraes de Andrade, 12, is nicknamed Rapunzel because her hair is more than 5 feet long — just one and a half inches shorter than her height. In March, she planned to cut and sell the locks for some $2,600 to help get her family in Rio De Janeiro out of poverty.

• Moscow City Lights

  Swirling colors of city lights from a 900ft crane fill the Moscow skyline. Photographer D. Chistoprudov boards the crane, which is being used to build a skyscraper called Federation, and takes pictures over a period of two hours. Chistoprudov, 28, starts taking the swirling snaps around 1am and battles freezing weather to remain completely still so not to ruin the careful process. (Caters News / ZUMA Press)

• iPoo

  The sleek design, the impressive functionality, the distinctive logo – was it only a matter of time before Apple redesigned the humble toilet with the iPoo? The iPoo is literally a case of toilet humour and Belgrade designer Milos Paripovic makes the tongue-in-cheek claim his work isn’t intentionally related to the Apple brand.

• Tamaseseri Festival

  Naked men wearing only loincloths vie for a wooden treasure ball weighing eight kilos to bring good fortune, during the Tamaseseri festival at Hakozaki shrine in Fukuoka, on Japan’s southern island of Kyushu on Jan. 3, 2012. Two teams of farmers and fishermen competed for the rich harvest or largest catch at a festival that dates back some 500 years.

• Snow Church

  Visitors stand around a snow church just after its inauguration on Dec. 28, 2011 in Mitterfirmiansreut, Germany. The circa 25 meters long church was made of 1,400 cubic meters of snow and aims to commemorate the winter of the years 1910/1911, when so much snow fell that believers of Mitterfirmiansreut were no more able to go to church in the neighboring community of Mauth. So they decided to build their own church, made of snow. (Armin Weigel, AFP / Getty Images)

• Snow Church

  Visitors stand around a snow church just after its inauguration on Dec. 28, 2011 in Mitterfirmiansreut, Germany. The circa 25 meters long church was made of 1,400 cubic meters of snow and aims to commemorate the winter of the years 1910/1911, when so much snow fell that believers of Mitterfirmiansreut were no more able to go to church in the neighboring community of Mauth. So they decided to build their own church, made of snow. (Armin Weigel, AFP / Getty Images)

• Heine Braeck, 33, from Sarpsborg, Norway, has been without an right arm since he lost it during a freak accident when he was 13. Now he has decided to make the stump look like a dolpin’s head with the help of Bulgarian tattooist Valio Ska.

• Giant Slipper

  A man who ordered a special slipper to fit his oversized foot was sent a size 1,450 – after manufacturers failed to spot a decimal point in his order. Tom Boddingham, 27, has a size 13 right foot while his left is slightly bigger and measures a size 14-and-a-half. But when he ordered his custom-fit slipper manufacturers in China misread size 14.5 and accidently made a whopping 7ft long size 1,450

• Eight-year-old girl is world’s youngest drag racer

  Eight-year-old girl Belle Wheeler has become the youngest drag racer in the world — just two days after her eighth birthday. The pint-sized dragster then went onto compete against youngsters more than twice her age and qualified for the UK National Finals.

• Lawn Mower Endurance Race

  Competitors race in the 12-hour Lawn Mower Endurance Race on September 24, 2011 in Billingshurst, England. First started in 1973 as a motorsport that would be accessible to as many as possible, this year’s competition included more than 30 teams including some from South Africa, America and Luxembourg.

• Pumpkin Art

  An employee arranges pumpkins to form a fish at the pumkin exhibition of the asparagus and experience farm Buschmann and Winkelmann in Klaistow near Beelitz, northeastern Germany on August 31, 2011. The exhibition will start on September 1 , 2011, with over 100,000 pumkins in 400 different varieties.

• Cable Car High Wire

  High wire artist Freddy Nock balances as he walks up on the rope of a Zugspitze cable car in Grainau near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany, Saturday, Aug. 20, 2011. Nock walked up the 995 meters long rope with an altitude difference of 348 meters aiming at collecting money for the UNESCO. He is attempting to set a new world record by doing seven summits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in seven days. It took him about 90 minutes to arrive on top of Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Germany.

• Third Story Exit

  A 16-ton salt spreader blasted through the fifth-floor wall of a Queens Sanitation Department garage and came within inches of plummeting 50 feet to the street. The driver survived the spectacular 9:30 am crash, which sent bricks and debris raining down on cars parked outside the Maspeth repair facility, but spent 15 terrified minutes dangling in the cab of the bright orange vehicle. It’s unclear how driver Robert Legall, a 10-year Sanitation veteran with a clean record, lost control of the big rig. “There are signs up there warning drivers to slow down,” Commissioner John Doherty told the New York Post. “He’s familiar with the rules. We think it was just an unfortunate accident.”

• Speed Record Spins Out

  Driver Joe Wales crashes through the surf after veering off course during an attempt on the British land speed record for battery-powered vehicles in the Bluebird Electric on Pendine Sands on August 14, 2011 in Pendine, Wales. Driver Joe Wales and his father, fellow driver Don Wales, come from a famous family who have been setting land and water speed records since 1924. Don holds the current UK record of 137 miles an hour in an electric vehicle.

• Giant Cabbage

  Harrogate Autumn Flower show Director Martin Fish with a giant cabbage, as he introduced a series of new classes for Giant Vegetables to mark the 100th Anniversary of the Show. Giant onions, tomatoes and many others will all compete for the top prize of the biggest vegetable.

• Keep Claer

  An incorrectly spelled “Keep Clear” road marking is pictured in Kingswinford, on August 3, 2011 in West Midlands, England.

• Etna Volcano lava

  Lava spewed from a crater of the giant Etna volcano in the southern Italy island of Sicily on July 30, 2011 in Catania. The lava flown into a valley overnight and did not represent a danger to inhabited areas. Etna is the highest active volcano in Europe at 3,295 metres (10,810 feet) which last eruption was in May.

• Killer Plant Eats Bird

  An exotic plant expert was stunned when he inspected one of his garden
  pitcher plants and discovered it had eaten a blue tit.
  Prize winning Nigel Hewitt Cooper one of Britain’s leading carnivorous plant
  growers, from West Pennard, Somerset, couldn’t believe his eyes when he
  checked the Nepenthes x mixta or Monkey Cup pitcher and found the dead bird
  inside.
  Normally the plants which are native to south east Asia consume insects
  which thy attract by secreting a sticky, sweet fluid at the bottom of the
  pitcher.
  Sometimes in the wild they have been known to kill small mammals like mice
  but Mr Hewitt Cooper who regularly wins prizes at the Chelsea flower show
  says for a cultivate plant to capture a bird is incredible.

• Giant Mermaid

  A man adjusts a sculpture “Giant Mermaid” on the Alster lake in the northern German city of Hamburg on August 1, 2011. The sculpture is created by art and advertising agency headed by Oliver Voss.

• Huge Pastry

  People look at a huge khachapuri (Georgian cheese pastry) in central Batumi on July 28, 2011. The cake was baked using 100 eggs, 90 kilograms of cheese, 150 kilograms of flour, has 8 meters length and was eaten within 1minute 32 seconds by people at a street.

• Velomobiles

  Velomobiles, recumbent bicycles with sleek, colorful outer shells, head for the open road in Portland, Ore., Thursday, July 28, 2011. Twenty five riders from Europe and twenty five riders from North America are on a cross-country trip which will finish on the U.S. Capitol steps in Washington D.C. on August 26. The bikers are trying to spread the message that sustainable, clean transportation can be fun.

• Bobblehead Bishop

  Erie Catholic Bishop Donald W. Trautman has been immortalized in miniature with a bobblehead doll made in his likeness. The bobblehead comes as Trautman prepares to end his tenure as bishop of Erie.

• Canadian bubble artist

  Canadian bubble artist Yang Fan, who has set world record by packing 118 people inside a soap bubble, performs at the Gazillion bubble show in Beijing on July 19, 2011. Yang has earned international acclaim as a result of his complex displays of “bubble theater”. In addition to performing he has developed his own bubble solution formulas and equipment to create bubbles.

• Giant Marilyn

  Newly-wed bride Magda Villasenor looks at “Forever Marilyn”, a sculpture by Seward Johnson, on July 15, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois. The stainless steel and aluminum sculpture, which stands 26 feet tall and weighs 34,000 pounds, will be on display in Chicago through the spring of 2012. The sculpture was inspired by Marilyn Monroe’s iconic scene in the 1955 movie “Seven Year Itch”.

• Hot Dog Hot Rod

  The iconic Oscar Mayer Wienermobile vehicle is seen outside of the New York Stock Exchange as part of its day-long 75th birthday celebration, Monday, July 18, 2011. To commemorate the milestone, the Oscar Mayer brand rang the closing bell at NYSE. (Diane Bondareff/AP Images for Oscar Mayer)

• Harry Potter Corn Maze

  An aerial view of Top Pearsy’s Maize Maze in the shape of Harry Potter, on July 11, 2011 in York, England. Farmer Tom Pearcy has cut two portraits of Harry Potter in his crop of maize plants. With some subtle differences the two images create the world’s largest spot the difference competition. At over 50m in diameter, and cut out of over 1 million living maize plants, the York Maze is the largest ‘Maize Maze’ in Europe and one of the largest in the world.

• Recycled Sailboat

  A sail boat made of recycled material makes its maiden voyage to mark World Oceans Day in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, June 8, 2011.

• Pontiac Deluxe Six ‘Ghost Car’

  An extraordinary transparent car could fetch as much as GBP 295,000 when it goes up for auction.The motor, dubbed the ‘Ghost Car’, is a Pontiac Deluxe Six which has been covered in Plexiglas. The first transparent full-sized car to be made in America, it was built in 1939 by General Motors and chemical company Rohm and Haas. Billed as a vision of the future, it was a sensation at the 1939-40 New York World’s Fair and continues to cause a stir today. Just two were ever made and this model, which has a three-speed manual transmission, is thought to be the last of its kind. It has clocked up just 86 miles in its lifetime; and now its set to go on sale for the first time since the early 1980s. It last sold for an undisclosed amount. American auctioneers RM expect it to sell for between $275,000 and $475,000.

• Serbian Brides Race

  Serbian women take part in a wedding dress race in downtown Belgrade on June 19, 2011. More than fifty “brides” took part in an annual wedding dress race in the Serbian capital, competing for numerous prizes. (Andrej Isakovic, AFP/Getty Images)

• World Naked Bike Ride

  People take part in the annual “London World Naked Bike Ride” event in central London on June 11, 2011. Now in it’s eighth year, the event has seen participation grow from 58 in 2004 to 1,200 in 2009. Taking a route that passes many of London’s most famous landmarks, the ride allows those participating to decorate their body with messages of protest against oil dependancy and motor vehicle usage.

• Hanging Around

  British artist Alice Newstead hangs by shark hooks during her demonstration to protest against shark slaughter in Hong Kong on June 14. The protest was organized by marine conservation group Shark Savers, and supported by Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics who are launching a global campaign to protect the sharks.

• Reptile House

  Diska Putra, holds one of his snakes in bed at home on June 10, 2011 in Bintan, Indonesia. Putra, 24, cohabitates in Indonesian with a collection of 30 snakes, some of which are deadly poisonous.

• Monkey God

  An Indian priest walks outside the temple of Hindu monkey God Hanuman in New Delhi early June 12, 2011. The highly popular monkey-god Hanuman known for his strength is worshipped for his unyielding devotion and selfless dedication to the Lord Rama.

• Big Baby

  Ron Mueck’s ‘Big Baby’ sculpture is displayed in front of Jenny Saville’s painting ‘Interfacing’ at the Masterpieces Exhibition at Christie’s on June 13, 2011 in London, England.

• Drunken Knight

  A would-be knight who tried to woo a maiden by riding into her home on a horse is facing five years behind bars for aggravated burglary. Lovelorn Jan Rudnicki, 40, hatched the scheme to bowl over divorcee Gosia Domoslawska after a night’s drinking down his local bar in Jarnoltowka, Poland. But terrified Gosia, 36, dialed 999 when her drunken suitor – stripped to the waist – galloped up her garden path and smashed his way through the front door like a battering ram.

• Sideshow Fat Man Dies

  Bruce Snowdon, the last sideshow fat man, was honored in a memorial service on Jan. 30, 2010. Snowdon performed as “Harold Huge,” and weighed 607 pounds (though by some billing he tipped the scale at 712 pounds). Here he is with fellow sideshow star Peter Terhurne, a fire-eating dwarf.

• So, What Do You Do For a Living?

  Mexican tattoo artist and trained lawyer Maria Jose Cristerna, known as “Vampire Woman”, attends the Fifth International Tattoo Convention in Bogota, Colombia, on June 4, 2011.

• It’s All Fun And Games…

  A Sufi Kalandar (wandering ascetic) performs an act of self torture during devotion at the annual death anniversary of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer, India on June 2.

CALGARY – A woman has seen her Calgary rental home for the first time since a self-proclaimed sovereign citizen was removed from the property last week.

Rebekah Caverhill has said the man claimed the duplex as his “embassy” shortly after moving in and she has spent nearly two years trying to get him out.

Caverhill cried Friday as she toured the beige-brick duplex with a throng of reporters and cameras.

Windows were covered with towels, clothing was heaped on floors and dirty dishes were piled in the kitchen that smelled like rotten food.

Alphabet magnets on the refrigerator spelled out the word “respect” and a sign on the door of one room called it a meeting place for people of the “First Nations Sovran Embassy of Earth.”

Caverhill said she was glad her father wasn’t alive to see the mess inside the building he used to look after.

“He would be so upset. He worked so hard. He had everything so pristine,” she said.

“And this looks like a complete reno, like a knocker-downer, rather than a nice house.”

Caverhill said she rented the home to Andreas Pirelli in November 2011. A friend had recommended the man and he promised to do some work on the place in exchange for a few months’ free rent.

A few months later, Caverhill went to inspect the property and said she found the kitchen and bathroom had been gutted, all the inside doors removed and the floor of one bedroom painted black.

Pirelli identified himself as a follower of the Freemen-on-the-Land movement, claimed the home as an embassy, changed the locks and placed a lien on the property, she said.

The kitchen didn’t appear gutted on Monday, but was messy. Renovations to other parts of the home appeared to be half finished. Doors had been replaced, but weren’t painted and light-switch plates were missing.

In the basement, there was a room filled with computers in various states of assembly.

Last week, a court ordered the 48-year-old to vacate the rental property. But before he could be evicted, police arrested him on outstanding warrants from Quebec.

He was charged with pushing a landlady down a flight of stairs in Montreal in 2007. An arrest warrant was issued in 2010 when he failed to show up for his assault trial.

The FBI considers the Freemen-on-the-Land a domestic terror threat in the United States but followers in Canada have said violence is not part of the movement.

Several other followers also living in the Calgary home left on the weekend. Police then searched the home and the locks were changed again.

Caverhill said she’s glad the nightmare is over. Now, she has a lot of cleaning up to do.

“Life goes on, doesn’t it? And you pick up the pieces and you move forward.”

Also on HuffPost:

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• Potato Duck

  Dorothea Clinton who dug up a potato in the shape of a duck. Dorothea Clinton will be having ‘Quack-et Potato’ for dinner after digging up this funny-looking potato Sep 13, 2013. The 73-year-old, of Peaton, near Ludlow, thought it bore an uncanny resemblance to a duck, and wanted to show of the funny looking vegetable.

• Heart Potato

  Sally Colburn holds a heart-shaped potato that she found. (Wendy Victora / a href=”http://www.nwfdailynews.com/local/woman-receives-message-from-the-beyond-from-husband-1.184125?page=1″ target=”_blank”Northwest Florida Daily News/a)

• German Cops Seize ‘Strangest-Looking Convertible’ Pool Car

  On July 22, 2013, German police spotted “a convertible of a slightly different kind.”

  “I saw the strangest-looking convertible I have ever seen – a roofless BMW, without registration plates, bordered around the open top with wooden boards and fake plastic flowers. It was also full of water,” a href=”http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/Drunk_inventors_caught_cruising_in_car_pool?WT.mc_id=ON_MEC_A_AffWin_SkimbitWT.tsrc=AffiliateWT.mc_id=ON_MEC_A_AffWin_SkimbitWT.tsrc=Affiliate” target=”_hplink”the unnamed police officer told Orange News/a.

  The officer observed four young men, clad in bathing suits, splashing around inside the bizarre home-made car pool. According to the police report, “All of them appeared drunk.”

  The car had been sealed with a synthetic material and filled with approximately 530 gallons of water.

  One of the men, a 27-year-old who police suspect was driving, returned to the scene to collect his wallet, police obtained a sample of his blood for a blood-alcohol analysis.

  The investigation is ongoing and no charges have been filed yet.

  Speaking with a href=”http://www.bild.de/bild-plus/news/inland/verkehrsstraftat/polizei-stoppt-rasendes-planschbecken-31511980,view=conversionToLogin.bild.html” target=”_hplink”The Bild newspaper/a, one of the men called the ride a “stupid idea.”

  “It was the first time we drove on a street and we just wanted to have a little fun,” he said.

• Penis Strawberry

  A mother has revealed that she celebrated Andy Murray’s Wimbledon victory with a freshly picked strawberry – shaped like a PENIS. Carole Collen, 52, was pottering about in her garden in Dartford, Kent, this Sunday (7/7) when she spotted the cheekily shaped berry dangling amid her fruit and veg patch. Holding back the laughter she went inside to show her family before taking a quick snap to show her friends. Now the mother-of-two is planning to entering the strawberry into a raffle in a bid to raise money for charity.

• This photo released by the Glendale Police Department shows a black Cadillac that lost control and careened onto the roof of a neighbor’s home on Saturday, March 23, 2013 in Glendale, Calif. The Cadillac driver lost control before leaving his driveway, plunging off a hill “onto the roof of his neighbor’s house directly below his driveway. (Photo courtesy of Glendale Police Department)

• Third Eye Blind

  Tilde Nörgaard, a Swedish sixth grader, is still trying to figure out how she got a third eye in her class photo.

• 150-lb Boulder Crashes Through Car Windshield

  This 150-lb boulder crashed through the windshield of a rental car in Sedona, Az. The passengers, Bob Jaczko and Peter Wilson suffered minor cuts.

• Kid Has LEGO stuck in nose for three years.

  Isaak Lasson can finally breathe easy after three years of sinus problem caused by a single wheel-shaped LEGO that he got stuck up his nose back when he was three.

• Scrapyard Destroys Wrong Car

  Ben Forrer outside Sita UK, a scrap yard in Coventry, today, 25, 2012. Refer to NTI story NTICRUSH. Ben Forrer looked on in horror as a Coventry scrapyard crushed his van by mistake. Ben Forrer had only left his Citroen Relay for a few minutes as he dropped off an old cooker at the Sita yard, in Longford. But workers mistook the van for scrap and began crushing it in the jaws of a mechanical grabber

• Middle Finger Bush

  A bush carved into the shape of a middle-finger has landed a gardener into trouble after somebody failed to share his humour over the shrub. The council received a complaint about the shaped bush eight years after it was carved by Richard Jackson, 53, in his front garden. Despite only receiving one complaint, the council have since contacted Richard to alter the bush as it is considered a public offence. But Richard, from Tamworth, Staffs, said his neighbours are backing his pledge to keep the bush and they have even began a Save the Bush campaign to support him. Credit: Caters News

• Cathedral Licker

  A man has made a 5,000 mile pilgrimage to every Anglican cathedral in England so he can give them a good LICKING. Lawrence Edmonds has staked his claim as Britains first every cathedral licker by tongue tickling an incredible 42 in less than two years. Christian approval, Polish condemnation, and looks of confusion from a flock of Dutch tourists have all been experienced by Lawrence on his epic journey Back in January 2011, Lawrences friend Adam challenged him to a bet- that he couldnt lick every Anglican cathedral in the UK within five years. Credit: Caters News

• Baobab Tree Sculpture

  Mike De Butts adds the finishing touches to a giant Baobab Tree sculpture entitled ‘Under the Baobab’, outside the Southbank Centre on May 24, 2012 in London, England. The Pirate Technics’ installation is made from a selection of brightly coloured fabrics from around the world, and is part of the Southbank Centre’s ‘Festival of the World’ exhibition, which includes a series of large scale pieces of art that will be in place around the Southbank centre over the Summer.

• My Little Ponies

  Some of Sarah’s ponies. Sarah Butler, 28 from Barnsley, Yorkshire has been collecting 1980’s My Little Ponies for 24 years and now has over 1,000 of them as well as having a themed room in her house including My Little Pony curtains, bedspread and other collectables.

• Rapunzel Hair

  Natasha Moraes de Andrade, 12, is nicknamed Rapunzel because her hair is more than 5 feet long — just one and a half inches shorter than her height. In March, she planned to cut and sell the locks for some $2,600 to help get her family in Rio De Janeiro out of poverty.

• Moscow City Lights

  Swirling colors of city lights from a 900ft crane fill the Moscow skyline. Photographer D. Chistoprudov boards the crane, which is being used to build a skyscraper called Federation, and takes pictures over a period of two hours. Chistoprudov, 28, starts taking the swirling snaps around 1am and battles freezing weather to remain completely still so not to ruin the careful process. (Caters News / ZUMA Press)

• iPoo

  The sleek design, the impressive functionality, the distinctive logo – was it only a matter of time before Apple redesigned the humble toilet with the iPoo? The iPoo is literally a case of toilet humour and Belgrade designer Milos Paripovic makes the tongue-in-cheek claim his work isn’t intentionally related to the Apple brand.

• Tamaseseri Festival

  Naked men wearing only loincloths vie for a wooden treasure ball weighing eight kilos to bring good fortune, during the Tamaseseri festival at Hakozaki shrine in Fukuoka, on Japan’s southern island of Kyushu on Jan. 3, 2012. Two teams of farmers and fishermen competed for the rich harvest or largest catch at a festival that dates back some 500 years.

• Snow Church

  Visitors stand around a snow church just after its inauguration on Dec. 28, 2011 in Mitterfirmiansreut, Germany. The circa 25 meters long church was made of 1,400 cubic meters of snow and aims to commemorate the winter of the years 1910/1911, when so much snow fell that believers of Mitterfirmiansreut were no more able to go to church in the neighboring community of Mauth. So they decided to build their own church, made of snow. (Armin Weigel, AFP / Getty Images)

• Snow Church

  Visitors stand around a snow church just after its inauguration on Dec. 28, 2011 in Mitterfirmiansreut, Germany. The circa 25 meters long church was made of 1,400 cubic meters of snow and aims to commemorate the winter of the years 1910/1911, when so much snow fell that believers of Mitterfirmiansreut were no more able to go to church in the neighboring community of Mauth. So they decided to build their own church, made of snow. (Armin Weigel, AFP / Getty Images)

• Heine Braeck, 33, from Sarpsborg, Norway, has been without an right arm since he lost it during a freak accident when he was 13. Now he has decided to make the stump look like a dolpin’s head with the help of Bulgarian tattooist Valio Ska.

• Giant Slipper

  A man who ordered a special slipper to fit his oversized foot was sent a size 1,450 – after manufacturers failed to spot a decimal point in his order. Tom Boddingham, 27, has a size 13 right foot while his left is slightly bigger and measures a size 14-and-a-half. But when he ordered his custom-fit slipper manufacturers in China misread size 14.5 and accidently made a whopping 7ft long size 1,450

• Eight-year-old girl is world’s youngest drag racer

  Eight-year-old girl Belle Wheeler has become the youngest drag racer in the world — just two days after her eighth birthday. The pint-sized dragster then went onto compete against youngsters more than twice her age and qualified for the UK National Finals.

• Lawn Mower Endurance Race

  Competitors race in the 12-hour Lawn Mower Endurance Race on September 24, 2011 in Billingshurst, England. First started in 1973 as a motorsport that would be accessible to as many as possible, this year’s competition included more than 30 teams including some from South Africa, America and Luxembourg.

• Pumpkin Art

  An employee arranges pumpkins to form a fish at the pumkin exhibition of the asparagus and experience farm Buschmann and Winkelmann in Klaistow near Beelitz, northeastern Germany on August 31, 2011. The exhibition will start on September 1 , 2011, with over 100,000 pumkins in 400 different varieties.

• Cable Car High Wire

  High wire artist Freddy Nock balances as he walks up on the rope of a Zugspitze cable car in Grainau near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany, Saturday, Aug. 20, 2011. Nock walked up the 995 meters long rope with an altitude difference of 348 meters aiming at collecting money for the UNESCO. He is attempting to set a new world record by doing seven summits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in seven days. It took him about 90 minutes to arrive on top of Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Germany.

• Third Story Exit

  A 16-ton salt spreader blasted through the fifth-floor wall of a Queens Sanitation Department garage and came within inches of plummeting 50 feet to the street. The driver survived the spectacular 9:30 am crash, which sent bricks and debris raining down on cars parked outside the Maspeth repair facility, but spent 15 terrified minutes dangling in the cab of the bright orange vehicle. It’s unclear how driver Robert Legall, a 10-year Sanitation veteran with a clean record, lost control of the big rig. “There are signs up there warning drivers to slow down,” Commissioner John Doherty told the New York Post. “He’s familiar with the rules. We think it was just an unfortunate accident.”

• Speed Record Spins Out

  Driver Joe Wales crashes through the surf after veering off course during an attempt on the British land speed record for battery-powered vehicles in the Bluebird Electric on Pendine Sands on August 14, 2011 in Pendine, Wales. Driver Joe Wales and his father, fellow driver Don Wales, come from a famous family who have been setting land and water speed records since 1924. Don holds the current UK record of 137 miles an hour in an electric vehicle.

• Giant Cabbage

  Harrogate Autumn Flower show Director Martin Fish with a giant cabbage, as he introduced a series of new classes for Giant Vegetables to mark the 100th Anniversary of the Show. Giant onions, tomatoes and many others will all compete for the top prize of the biggest vegetable.

• Keep Claer

  An incorrectly spelled “Keep Clear” road marking is pictured in Kingswinford, on August 3, 2011 in West Midlands, England.

• Etna Volcano lava

  Lava spewed from a crater of the giant Etna volcano in the southern Italy island of Sicily on July 30, 2011 in Catania. The lava flown into a valley overnight and did not represent a danger to inhabited areas. Etna is the highest active volcano in Europe at 3,295 metres (10,810 feet) which last eruption was in May.

• Killer Plant Eats Bird

  An exotic plant expert was stunned when he inspected one of his garden
  pitcher plants and discovered it had eaten a blue tit.
  Prize winning Nigel Hewitt Cooper one of Britain’s leading carnivorous plant
  growers, from West Pennard, Somerset, couldn’t believe his eyes when he
  checked the Nepenthes x mixta or Monkey Cup pitcher and found the dead bird
  inside.
  Normally the plants which are native to south east Asia consume insects
  which thy attract by secreting a sticky, sweet fluid at the bottom of the
  pitcher.
  Sometimes in the wild they have been known to kill small mammals like mice
  but Mr Hewitt Cooper who regularly wins prizes at the Chelsea flower show
  says for a cultivate plant to capture a bird is incredible.

• Giant Mermaid

  A man adjusts a sculpture “Giant Mermaid” on the Alster lake in the northern German city of Hamburg on August 1, 2011. The sculpture is created by art and advertising agency headed by Oliver Voss.

• Huge Pastry

  People look at a huge khachapuri (Georgian cheese pastry) in central Batumi on July 28, 2011. The cake was baked using 100 eggs, 90 kilograms of cheese, 150 kilograms of flour, has 8 meters length and was eaten within 1minute 32 seconds by people at a street.

• Velomobiles

  Velomobiles, recumbent bicycles with sleek, colorful outer shells, head for the open road in Portland, Ore., Thursday, July 28, 2011. Twenty five riders from Europe and twenty five riders from North America are on a cross-country trip which will finish on the U.S. Capitol steps in Washington D.C. on August 26. The bikers are trying to spread the message that sustainable, clean transportation can be fun.

• Bobblehead Bishop

  Erie Catholic Bishop Donald W. Trautman has been immortalized in miniature with a bobblehead doll made in his likeness. The bobblehead comes as Trautman prepares to end his tenure as bishop of Erie.

• Canadian bubble artist

  Canadian bubble artist Yang Fan, who has set world record by packing 118 people inside a soap bubble, performs at the Gazillion bubble show in Beijing on July 19, 2011. Yang has earned international acclaim as a result of his complex displays of “bubble theater”. In addition to performing he has developed his own bubble solution formulas and equipment to create bubbles.

• Giant Marilyn

  Newly-wed bride Magda Villasenor looks at “Forever Marilyn”, a sculpture by Seward Johnson, on July 15, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois. The stainless steel and aluminum sculpture, which stands 26 feet tall and weighs 34,000 pounds, will be on display in Chicago through the spring of 2012. The sculpture was inspired by Marilyn Monroe’s iconic scene in the 1955 movie “Seven Year Itch”.

• Hot Dog Hot Rod

  The iconic Oscar Mayer Wienermobile vehicle is seen outside of the New York Stock Exchange as part of its day-long 75th birthday celebration, Monday, July 18, 2011. To commemorate the milestone, the Oscar Mayer brand rang the closing bell at NYSE. (Diane Bondareff/AP Images for Oscar Mayer)

• Harry Potter Corn Maze

  An aerial view of Top Pearsy’s Maize Maze in the shape of Harry Potter, on July 11, 2011 in York, England. Farmer Tom Pearcy has cut two portraits of Harry Potter in his crop of maize plants. With some subtle differences the two images create the world’s largest spot the difference competition. At over 50m in diameter, and cut out of over 1 million living maize plants, the York Maze is the largest ‘Maize Maze’ in Europe and one of the largest in the world.

• Recycled Sailboat

  A sail boat made of recycled material makes its maiden voyage to mark World Oceans Day in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, June 8, 2011.

• Pontiac Deluxe Six ‘Ghost Car’

  An extraordinary transparent car could fetch as much as GBP 295,000 when it goes up for auction.The motor, dubbed the ‘Ghost Car’, is a Pontiac Deluxe Six which has been covered in Plexiglas. The first transparent full-sized car to be made in America, it was built in 1939 by General Motors and chemical company Rohm and Haas. Billed as a vision of the future, it was a sensation at the 1939-40 New York World’s Fair and continues to cause a stir today. Just two were ever made and this model, which has a three-speed manual transmission, is thought to be the last of its kind. It has clocked up just 86 miles in its lifetime; and now its set to go on sale for the first time since the early 1980s. It last sold for an undisclosed amount. American auctioneers RM expect it to sell for between $275,000 and $475,000.

• Serbian Brides Race

  Serbian women take part in a wedding dress race in downtown Belgrade on June 19, 2011. More than fifty “brides” took part in an annual wedding dress race in the Serbian capital, competing for numerous prizes. (Andrej Isakovic, AFP/Getty Images)

• World Naked Bike Ride

  People take part in the annual “London World Naked Bike Ride” event in central London on June 11, 2011. Now in it’s eighth year, the event has seen participation grow from 58 in 2004 to 1,200 in 2009. Taking a route that passes many of London’s most famous landmarks, the ride allows those participating to decorate their body with messages of protest against oil dependancy and motor vehicle usage.

• Hanging Around

  British artist Alice Newstead hangs by shark hooks during her demonstration to protest against shark slaughter in Hong Kong on June 14. The protest was organized by marine conservation group Shark Savers, and supported by Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics who are launching a global campaign to protect the sharks.

• Reptile House

  Diska Putra, holds one of his snakes in bed at home on June 10, 2011 in Bintan, Indonesia. Putra, 24, cohabitates in Indonesian with a collection of 30 snakes, some of which are deadly poisonous.

• Monkey God

  An Indian priest walks outside the temple of Hindu monkey God Hanuman in New Delhi early June 12, 2011. The highly popular monkey-god Hanuman known for his strength is worshipped for his unyielding devotion and selfless dedication to the Lord Rama.

• Big Baby

  Ron Mueck’s ‘Big Baby’ sculpture is displayed in front of Jenny Saville’s painting ‘Interfacing’ at the Masterpieces Exhibition at Christie’s on June 13, 2011 in London, England.

• Drunken Knight

  A would-be knight who tried to woo a maiden by riding into her home on a horse is facing five years behind bars for aggravated burglary. Lovelorn Jan Rudnicki, 40, hatched the scheme to bowl over divorcee Gosia Domoslawska after a night’s drinking down his local bar in Jarnoltowka, Poland. But terrified Gosia, 36, dialed 999 when her drunken suitor – stripped to the waist – galloped up her garden path and smashed his way through the front door like a battering ram.

• Sideshow Fat Man Dies

  Bruce Snowdon, the last sideshow fat man, was honored in a memorial service on Jan. 30, 2010. Snowdon performed as “Harold Huge,” and weighed 607 pounds (though by some billing he tipped the scale at 712 pounds). Here he is with fellow sideshow star Peter Terhurne, a fire-eating dwarf.

• So, What Do You Do For a Living?

  Mexican tattoo artist and trained lawyer Maria Jose Cristerna, known as “Vampire Woman”, attends the Fifth International Tattoo Convention in Bogota, Colombia, on June 4, 2011.

• It’s All Fun And Games…

  A Sufi Kalandar (wandering ascetic) performs an act of self torture during devotion at the annual death anniversary of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer, India on June 2.

The legend of Proctershire
Gloucestershire — the shire of the Graces. The county had seen many a legend put on flannels and walk out onto the greens to battle for the team. From WG Grace and his brothers to Gilbert Jessop, from Wally Hammond to Tom Graveney to Zaheer Abbas — great names had been aplenty.

Yet, after the ancient days of the Graces, never was the great west county identified with the name of one cricketer. Even in the days of daily double hundreds and superhuman deeds of the 1920s and 1930s, it was seldom referred to as Hammond-shire.

However, in the 1970s the Bristol crowds were stormed by a man from the Southern Hemisphere, running in from almost the direction of extra-cover, bowling chest on, off the wrong foot and hair-raisingly fast. The ball was propelled just before his left foot hit the ground, with tremendous arm swing, ox-like shoulders and plenty of body weight behind it, most often swinging massively inwards. He could be vicious and hostile and even Barry Richards was laid out by one that struck the great batsman on his head. Wickets were blown away in front of his furious charge, as many as 833 of them for the county at 19.56. This included 42 five-fors and multiple hat-tricks. It was not always raw pace, often on sluggish wearing wickets he resorted to canny cutters as well. And his best figures in First-Class cricket, nine for 71 for Rhodesia against Transvaal in 1972, were achieved with more than 30 overs of off-breaks.

But, that was just half the story. With the bat, this man could hit the fastest of centuries before taking off his pads and coming after the opposition with the ball. He did achieve the incredible feat of a century and a hat-trick in the same match. Neither was he a mere slogger. In the time-honoured tradition of the county, he could be technically unimpeachable, and had a cover-drive that flowed with majesty to match all the great Gloucestershire names from Hammond and Graveney to Zaheer. Time and again he could bat at number four or five and pulverise the best of attacks into submission. His destructive abilities were never so singularly showcased than when he hit six sixes off consecutive deliveries from Dennis Breakwell of Somerset. And at the high noon of his splendid career, he hammered a world record equalling six centuries on the trot — although they came not for the shire but in his native South Africa.

However, when Hammond had played for the county there had been Charlie Parker and Tom Goddard in the outfit. Hence, the man with great all-round ability had been required more as a batsman than a bowler. Similarly, with Sadiq Mohammad and Zaheer in the line-up, Gloucestershire required Mike Procter more as a bowler than a batsman. So, although he could be a classical strokeplayer and could look elegant even when throwing his bat around in List A matches, batting for him remained a secondary endeavour. In spite of that, he scored 14,441 runs for the county at 36.19, with 32 hundreds.

It was not for nothing that during the 1970s, the shire of the Graces became known as Proctershire.

Procter was without any doubt one of the greatest all-rounders of his day. And like many of his talent-oozing compatriots of that era, his continued excellence was showcased in front of just a brief section of the cricketing world.

The radiant spark which touched off his ephemeral career told of immense promise, but it was limited to seven Tests of spectacular bowling and brief flashes of potential with the bat. After that the fire of his willow and leather only lit up the fields of South African Currie Cup and English county championships.

There were brief excursions into manufactured stages of the alternate world, where in matches devoid of Test status, and sometimes even First-Class stamp, he rubbed shoulders with some of the best in business. It happened in England while touring for the Rest of the World side in 1970, and in Australia seven years later for the World XI in Kerry Packer’s World Series Cup. On each of these rare occasions, he underlined the glorious skills that the audience of the wider world had been missing.

In his long association with Gloucestershire he became a phenomenon, a legend and later a captain who radiated inspiration and success. But, what should have been a side show took the centre stage.

By the time the South African Cricket Association had arranged for a sequence of rebel tours by international cricketers in the 1980s, he was one of the senior statesmen and past his best.

His career remained a tale of infinite potential forever looking for a release, an opportunity for fulfilment. Yet, strangely, he himself realised with time that his frustrations were by-products of issues far greater than the plight of a few cricketers, something that he could appreciate only when his horizons that had been broadened by cricket.

Early days
It did not take Procter much to find his way to the cricket grounds. Father Woodrow Procter had played for Eastern Province against the visiting Englishmen in 1938-39, and had dismissed two Yorkshiremen, Paul Gibb and Norman Yardley. Elder brother Anton got into the Natal side before him. Thus, when Procter hit five centuries at Highbury Preparatory School as a 12-year-old, it was but the natural order of things. Among them, 210 not out against an Under-13 Transvaal side spoke of something more than raw natural talent.

It is curious that Procter initially played for his school team as a batsman-wicketkeeper; and but for the scarcity of bowlers in the side, he might have remained one. Coach John Saunders convinced the young Procter to try off-spin. The next year he bowled fast. He continued to bowl fast all his career.

At 15, Procter got into the first team for Hilton College. And he also made it to the Natal Schools XI. As is the case of gifted all-round athletes, his sporting ambitions were not limited to cricket. He was fly-half in the Rugby XV, and also made it to the hockey, squash, lawn tennis and athletic teams.

In the northern summer of 1965, Procter spent a season in England playing for the Gloucestershire Second XI along with another South African youngster called Barry Richards. His all-round skills did not take too long to announce themselves, with 55 wickets at 13.79 and 527 at 31.00 accumulating against his name that season. Additionally, when the touring South Africans arrived in Bristol for their match against the county, Procter was promoted into the senior side. Thus, he curiously made his First-Class debut playing against his own countrymen led by Eddie Barlow. In a rain washed encounter at the Ashley Down Ground, he batted at number six and top-scored with 69.

Returning to South Africa, Procter made it to the Natal team and played his first Currie Cup match against Rhodesia, scoring 56 and picking up a solitary wicket. In his very fifth match, he came in at 19 for four against Transvaal and scored his maiden First-Class hundred, a superb counter-attacking innings of 129.

In the summer of 1966, along with Barry Richards and Lee Irvine, Procter toured England as a member of Wilfred Isaacs XI. Their trip coincided with the visit of Garry Sobers and his West Indies team to England. The youngsters did not have sufficient funds to get tickets for the Test, but managed to come to an arrangement of free entry in exchange of cleaning the kit of the West Indies players. Hence, they watched the day’s play and cleaned the pads and boots of the Caribbean cricketers. It was quite some experience for young white men who had grown up in the sheltered bubble of apartheid, and Procter was to admit as much down the years.

The start and end of the Test career
By late 1966, Procter had developed significantly as a bowler. Eleven wickets were captured against Rhodesia. Next came the quick scalps of Ian Redpath and Bob Cowper among his six wickets when Natal played the visiting Australians. The performances pitch-forked him into the Test team. Procter made his debut in the third Test at his home ground of Old Kingsmead, Durban.

South Africa got off to a precarious start with Eddie Barlow hitting the first ball of the Test match straight back to Garth McKenzie. However, a hundred by Graeme Pollock helped them to recover to 300. Procter opened the bowling with Peter Pollock and soon had Bobby Simpson edging to Denis Lindsay. He finished his first outing with three for 27 as Australia were bowled out for 147. In the second innings he got rid of Ian Chappell and Tom Veivers before helping to blow the tail away, ending with four for 71. It was a superb start for the young man.

At Johannesburg, Procter captured four wickets in the first innings, and two more in the second as Australia hung on for a draw, eight wickets down and helped by one full day’s play washed away by rain. He got only two more wickets in the final Test at Port Elizabeth as South Africa won to clinch the series 3-1, but already the Pollock-Procter combination was sending out warnings to the cricket world. Unfortunately for the supremely talented team, this cricket world for them consisted of just England, Australia and New Zealand.

As the drama surrounding Basil d’Oliveira was being played out in the curious politics-tinged cricketing landscape, Procter spent the English summer turning out in his first season for Gloucestershire, scoring 1167 runs and capturing 69 wickets. There were hundreds against Hampshire, Glamorgan and Middlesex, and the double looked in sight when he had to return due to a knee injury.

The England tour planned that year did not take place as Prime Minister John Vorster refused to grant D’Oliveira the permission to enter the country. As a huge question mark hovered above the South African future, Procter returned to England during the summer and captured 108 wickets at 15.02. His batting did not fire but the bowling was marked with sustained hostility.

After three years, Procter tasted the highest form of cricket once more when Bill Lawry’s Australians visited South Africa in 1970-71. He started off with six wickets and scores of 22 and 48 in the first Test, and followed it up with five wickets in the second, six in the third and nine in the fourth. In the final innings of the series, Peter Pollock limped out of the ground after bowling just seven balls. Procter shouldered the attack and fired out six Australian batsmen to complete the 4-0 rout in the series.

The South Africans walked out of the ground in triumph laced with apprehension. They fully believed that they were the number one side in world cricket. And they wondered whether they would continue to be part of that cricket world.

This phenomenal group of cricketers never played Test cricket again. Procter’s Test career had started with a bang … but that was all it amounted to. In seven Tests he captured 41 wickets at 15.02. With men like Eddie Barlow, Barry Richards, Graeme Pollock, Lee Irvine and Denis Lindsay ahead of him in the order, his opportunities of making an impact with the bat were limited. He scored 226 runs at 25.11 with a highest of 48. South Africa won six and drew one of the Tests he had played.

The realisation
Amidst rousing protests, vandalised pitches and condemnation by the British Prime Minister, the scheduled South African tour of England was cancelled. Talks were held to arrange a visit to Australia in 1971-72 but that too came to nought. The International Cricket Council (ICC) refused to acknowledge South Africa as a member.

Procter writes in South Africa: The Years of Isolation and Return to International Cricket: “At the time I felt it would be a short ban, that soon we would be welcomed back into the fold. Then it dawned on me that we were in for a long period of isolation.”

There was a lot of frustration and anger in the beginning. “I was hurt, disappointed, angry at our own government and at world cricket’s ruling authority. An international sportsman can’t wait to have a go at opposition of equal stature, to test his mettle at the highest level. Now we South Africans were out in the cold.”

It was cricket which helped Procter realise the true gravity of the situation in his country. According to his own confession, he had been brainwashed as a boy like most white South Africans of that period. “Coming from a comfortable background, I went to Hilton College, one of the best schools in the country, and the wonderful sports facilities there brought me great happiness and a drive to succeed in sport. It didn’t really occur to me that I came up against only whites on the sporting field, that blacks were mostly involved in the menial aspects of South African society.”

When Procter went to Gloucestershire in 1968, his world view started to change. He played against men like Clive Lloyd and Garry Sobers. And when he turned out for Rest of the World under the leadership of Sobers — a desperate replacement for the cancelled South African tour to England in 1970 — his realisation became deeper. Barlow, Barry Richards, Procter and the Pollock brothers played alongside Rohan Kanhai, Sobers, Lloyd, Mushtaq Mohammad, Intikhab Alam and Farokh Engineer. “The team spirit was fantastic. That summer in England was another educational experience for the South Africans and we came home convinced that things had to change in our country, otherwise we would be out in the cold for a long, long time.”

Procter underlined his claims as an all-rounder in the series. In the five ‘Tests’ he scored 292 runs at 48.66 with two half-centuries and captured 15 wickets at 23.93. England were vanquished 4-1. EW Swanton observed: “The ‘Tests’ were contested with utmost rigour and produced some of the best ‘Test’ cricket seen in England. I suppose that the 1948 Australians might be thought to match this side.”

More importantly, the great South African cricketers came back with schemes to change the situation.

The dream run
Pollock returned to turn out for Rhodesia in supreme form. He started with figures of 10-8-8-5 against Borders and followed it up with a hard-hitting 45.

And then, in a dream run of six matches, he emulated CB Fry and Don Bradman by scoring six hundreds. And going further than the two former joint record holders, he also captured wickets in heaps.

Against Natal, at Bulawayo, he scalped three for 46 and followed it up with 119. Against Transvaal B at Salisbury, he blasted 129. A month later, against Orange Free State at the Ramblers Cricket Club Ground, Blomfontein, Procter opened the bowling and picked up three for 26 as the opponents were shot out for 66. He followed it up with 107.On the New Year’s Day 1971, he blazed away on a difficult pitch at Pretoria, coming in at 56 for three and notching up 174. Not quite satisfied, he took three for 20 and two for 22 as North Eastern Transvaal folded twice and succumbed to an innings defeat. At De Beers Stadium, Kimberley, against Griqualand, Procter came in at No 4 to strike 106. When the opposition batted, he pitched in as usual with three for 15. At the Police B Ground in Salisbury, Rhodesia were soon in trouble against Western Province on a lively wicket. Procter walked in at five for two, and another wicket went down without addition to the score. He put the bowling to sword, thrashing every bowler around the park, and scored his sixth century on the trot. He made it a huge one. Procter ended with 254, the highest he ever scored in First-Class cricket. The effort must have fatigued him somewhat, because he did not bowl a lot in the first innings. He was used more in the second, as a canny off-spinner to get rid of the tail. His figures read 11-7-10-1 and 21.3-6-40-2.

All this while there were plenty of moves to get South Africa back on the international cricket pitch. But, each manoeuvre came up against political roadblocks. When South African Cricket Association’s request to include two non-white cricketers for the proposed Australian tour of 1971-72 was shot down by the government, the cricketers planned a protest. In April, a match took place at Newlands, in effect a Test trial for the uncertain Australian trip. Currie Cup winners Transvaal XI faced off against The Rest. Procter bowled one ball to Barry Richards after which both the teams walked out of the ground. They returned to resume the match, but after the protest had been underlined and a full statement had been released.

The manager of The Rest, Ron Delport, handed a statement to an official of SACA. Jointly penned by the members of the two teams, it read: “We fully support the South African Cricket Association’s application to invite non-whites to tour Australia, if they are good enough; and further subscribe to merit being the only criterion on the cricket field.” It was a trendsetting move. Although only a token demonstration, it did cause a major furore. In some quarters it was taken in ridiculously poor spirit. The players in the match were due to attend a barbecue at the invitation of Frank Waring, the Minister of Sport, but the event was cancelled after the release of the statement.

Glory for Gloucestershire
As South Africa continued to spend their days in wilderness, Procter carried on his saga of success for Gloucestershire. From 1971 to 1980, he played nine full seasons and crossed 1,000 runs in eight of them, scoring 28 centuries along the way. In 1977, he was stopped at 857 but captured 109 wickets to make up for the deficit. Some of the feats were extraordinary.

In July 1972 he notched a century and a hat-trick on the same day against Essex. He won the Gillette Cup for Gloucestershire in 1973, scoring 94 and taking two wickets against Sussex in the final. In the John Player League of 1974, Procter scored 109 not out in Gloucestershire’s score of 135 for three — the lowest team total in List A cricket to contain a century.

He destroyed Worcestershire single-handedly in 1977, scoring a century before lunch and taking 13 wickets for just 73 runs. He notched up another century before lunch in 1979, this time against Leicestershire, and then followed it up with a hat-trick for good measure. In the very next game against Yorkshire, Procter scalped another hat-trick, all trapped leg-before — trapped with big inswingers. This remains a unique feat in First-Class cricket.

He captained Gloucestershire from 1977 to 1981, leading them to Benson and Hedges Cup triumph in 1977. In the semi-final, Gloucestershire scored just 180 in the 60-over game against a Hampshire line up which started with Gordon Greenidge and Barry Richards. When the two legendary opening batsmen came out, Procter got Richards leg before for three. He proceeded to knock over Greenidge, Trevor Jesty and John Rice in another sensational hat-trick, capturing four wickets in five balls. He ended with six for 13 from 11 overs and Gloucestershire emerged winners by seven runs.

 

That year he also won the Professional Cricketers’ Association Player of the Year for the second time, having received the honour earlier in 1970. The following year, 1978, saw him winning the Cricket Society Wetherall Award for the Leading All-Rounder in English First-Class Cricket.

And in 1979, he hit Dennis Breakwell of Somerset for six sixes off six successive balls.

Brushes with top-league
Yet, for all his county heroics, and plenty of runs and wickets back home, there was something lacking. Procter often came close to playing on truly international stage, but most often there were pitfalls along the way.

When he invited Garry Sobers for a double-wicket tournament in Rhodesia, it created huge repercussions and brought the career of the great West Indian all-rounder under scrutiny.

In 1974, along with Barry Richards he received an invitation to play a match in India in aid of flood victims. The Indian government did not allow the duo to enter the country.

While captaining a Rest of the World side against Australia at Arundel, his teammates Zaheer, Mushtaq and Sadiq kept disappearing to take phone calls. On enquiring Procter found out that high-ranking Pakistani officials had been lambasting them for playing under a South African captain. It was doubly incredible because Zaheer and Sadiq had been playing under his leadership for Gloucestershire for quite a while.

And after agreeing to play a double-wicket tournament in South Africa, Bishan Bedi and Farokh Engineer had to withdraw after multiple death threats and warnings that their houses would be burned down.

Procter had to be satisfied with the games which Gloucestershire played against international sides visiting England. There was also a private DH Robin’s XI consisting of decent English cricketers against whom he played in early 1973 and scored 58 to ensure a close one-wicket victory.

Towards the end of 1973, Procter teamed up with Brian Davison to form the Rhodesian pair in the International Datsun Double Wicket competition. The field included Edmund Ntikinca and Edward Habane representing the South African Africans, or the blacks. The others participating were Barry Richards and Eddie Barlow for South Africa, Greg and Ian Chappell for Australia, Tony Greig and Frank Hayes for England and Bev Congdon and Bruce Taylor for New Zealand. Procter and Davison emerged winners in the event.

Yet, these minor brushes with the international cricketers remained lukewarm as experiences. An opportunity for the supreme test of skill at the highest level was finally provided by the quake that created a chasm in world cricket in 1977, Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket.

The Packer experience
It was Ian Chappell who had first spoken of the South Africans to Packer. His cricketing sensibilities could not accept Graeme Pollock, Barry Richards, Eddie Barlow and Mike Procter to languish where ‘the rest of the world cannot marvel at their talent’. It was Graeme Pollock who hinted to Procter in the South African summer of 1976-77 that something might be in the offing the following season.

Packer’s recruiting officer Tony Greig met Procter along with Barry Richards, Barlow, Pollock and leg-spinner Denys Hobson at the Churchill in Portman Square, near Marble Arch in London. The reaction of Gloucestershire management’s Tony Brown was not very encouraging. Procter was informed that he could indeed play for Mr Packer but probably wouldn’t for the county if he did so.

In late May, Packer was at Hove as Tony Greig led Sussex against Gloucestershire in the John Player League. “I’ve never seen Procter play before, I hope to see him bat today,” the tycoon confided to Henry Blofeld. The South African all-rounder took four for 26 to restrict Sussex to 155 and then scored an unbeaten 29 in their eight-wicket win.

The contract was signed at Park Lane after Procter had driven down from Bristol. And after winning the John Player and having been thwarted by Hampshire in the bid to win the county championship, Procter prepared for the exciting new voyage Down Under. Later he wrote, “Cricketers must be the hardest sportsmen to please — they moan about having to get to places on time, about the food and having to do a few promotions for their employer. As far as I was concerned, I was lucky to be there.”

Procter flourished in the World Series. In the Supertests final, he played the supporting role to young Garth le Roux , capturing three for 33 in the first innings to restrict the WSC Australians to 172. And as WSC World XI chased 224 to win in the fourth innings and stumbled to 84 for four, he joined Barry Richards at the wicket. With Richards anchoring the other end, Procter hoisted Ray Bright over extra cover for six. Len Pascoe was hooked and square cut for boundaries. When Bright got him for 44, the score was 175. World XI won by five wickets.

A delighted Procter tallied the South African contribution — two-third of the runs, 16 wickets, five catches. The game would have ended a day earlier if there were more Springboks, he said.

Procter scored 182 runs in the four Supertests at 30.33 and took 14 wickets at 16.07. He had proved himself at the highest level, in the most keenly contested cricket ever played.

However, when the rest of the players returned to their respective national teams to play Test cricket, he had to go back to Gloucestershire to carry on his epic feats while his country languished in wilderness.

The rebel tours
By his last year of his county cricket, Procter had become eligible to play for England. There was a ‘Procter for England’ demand doing rounds as well. But, by then, it was perhaps too late in the day. Procter himself remarked that he could never think of representing any nation other than South Africa.

After playing his last season for Gloucestershire in 1981, Procter concentrated on arranging for international teams to tour South Africa during the eighties.

The first to visit was an English side led by Graham Gooch, playing under the curiously named South African Breweries XI. They arrived in early 1982, and by then Procter was somewhat over the hill and plagued by injuries.

He was named captain of a South African XI of sparkling talent. In the one-day match at Port Elizabeth, he opened the bowling and sent down 10 stingy overs to finish with two for 20 in a seven wicket win. But, in the victorious four-day ‘Test’, he could bowl only off-spin and scored just one run.

Young Adrian Kuiper smoothly slipped into his role and Procter retreated into South African domestic cricket. However, he was incensed by the repercussions of the series. Having been invited to play for an Old Rest of the World XI against an Old England XI for the Ken Barrington Memorial Trust at The Oval, Procter was informed that after playing for South Africa in the rebel serieshe was not welcome to participate in the match any more. He denounced the decision as an insult.

A year and a half later, when a strong West Indian side visited South Africa, a 37-year-old Procter took them on for Natal. Coming in at 67 for four, he negotiated Bernard Julien, Ezra Moseley and Colin Croft with extraordinary assurance to score 102. This earned him a recall to the South African team to play the West Indian rebels, but he appeared only in a solitary one-day game.

Final analysis
After calling it a day in First-Class cricket, Procter took up the role of director of coaching for Northamptonshire and guided them to win the NatWest Trophy in 1989. Later, after South Africa had been reinstated in the cricketing fold, he took up various administrative positions. In 1994, he was in charge when the South African team under the leadership of Kepler Wessels shocked England by 356 runs at Lord’s.

Procter was appointed an ICC Match Referee, and he stood in as many as 47 Tests and 162 ODIs. However, he did have to make some excruciatingly difficult decisions during the infamous Oval Test of 2006 and the acrimonious Sydney showdown of 2007-08.On both occasions his judgement was questioned — after the first forfeited Test match at The Oval and for taking the word of the Australian cricketers against Harbhajan Singh at Sydney. In the second instance, Sunil Gavaskar famously criticised him for discriminating against Indian players — ‘a white man taking a white man’s word against a brown man.’ If we read Procter’s own writings about his experiences in the 1970s, Gavaskar’s proclamation does sound a little harsh. However, his decisions in both the cases did leave a lot to be desired.

In 2008, Procter stood down as an ICC match referee to take up his new role as Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) convener of selectors.

Looking at the career figures of Procter is an experience laced with amazement. He amassed 21,936 runs at 36.01 with 48 hundreds, captured 1,417 wickets at 19.53 with 70 five-fors and 15 10-wicket hauls, and pocketed 325 catches.

During his career and thereafter he was justly compared to the greatest all-rounders the world has known. While parallels with Garry Sobers are often considered audacious, they are not quite that far-fetched. However, with his mix of classical and destructive batting and fast and devastating bowling, the most strikingly similar is perhaps Keith Miller.

During the 1970s, he could definitely have been at par with Ian Botham, Imra Khan, Richard Hadlee and Kapil Dev, although his career did not exactly overlap the fantastic four. And the mind boggles to think of the all-round skills of a South African team that would have had Clive Rice playing alongside Mike Procter.

The great performer sparkled at his brightest during his days in the sun, but political clouds kept all his flourishing acts largely in the shade. But even then, his genius could not be kept secret.

As Vincent van der Bijl said about playing for South African teams against the rebel sides, “It was not exactly playing for the Springboks, but the very experience of playing alongside Mike Procter made it worth it.”

(Arunabha Sengupta is a cricket historian and Chief Cricket Writer at CricketCountry. He writes about the history and the romance of the game, punctuated often by opinions about modern day cricket, while his post-graduate degree in statistics peeps through in occasional analytical pieces. The author of three novels, he can be followed on Twitter at @senantix)

 

For more stories, visit www.cricketcountry.com

//–

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SOMERSET EAST, Eastern Cape – The rural development and land reform department plans to hand over management of a new airport to the council of a small town in the Eastern Cape next year, it said on Sunday.

“Somerset East… is poised to make history, when an R413 million [regional] airport which is being constructed by the department… is handed over to the town’s city council next year,” said spokesman Mtobeli Mxotwa.

Minister Gugile Nkwinti made the announcement at a memorial ceremony held at the Zuurberg heritage site on Friday.

“The airport will be a regional operation to boost tourism and commercial activity in the area. Construction is underway and we expect it to conclude sometime in 2014,” said Mxotwa.

The project was expected to create viable job opportunities over the next eight years.

Nkwinti also announced that new roads would be upgraded and paved by the department’s youth co-operatives division.

“Other projects in and around the Somerset East area are expected to take at least eight years to come into operation, so there will be a lot more opportunities commercially in the region coming up.”

Mxotwa said plans to develop the Addo Elephant Park and the Shamwari game Reserve were also underway.

Once it was completed, the airport would be the fifth operational airport in the province, he said.

-Sapa

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Alviro Petersen will captain the bizhub Highveld Lions during this year’s Champions League Twenty20 (CLT20) tournament and the South Africa batsman will do so having made sure that he has left nothing to chance ahead of his team’s participation in the competition.

A number of Petersen’s team-mates will enter the CLT20 have enjoyed the luxury of a decent off-season but Petersen is one man who has been working tirelessly to ensure that the Lions are well prepared ahead of the limited-overs tournament in India.

Petersen’s ‘off-season’ included being part of South Africa’s Champions Trophy squad, although he did not get a game, playing three one-day internationals (ODIs) against Sri Lanka and playing for Somerset in English county cricket.

One could be forgiven for thinking that Petersen might be a touch jaded after all the cricket that he has played recently but the 32-year-old admitted that any time off he might have is taken up by the game that he loves.

“There is no down time really,” Petersen told supersport.com.

“If there is a bit of down time I generally try to fill it up with cricket, having (Lions coach) Geoffrey (Toyana) on the phone talking about things, a few options. I enjoy cricket, I love cricket and the day that I lose that enthusiasm for the game is probably the day that I will retire.

“There is no relaxing. If I don’t play cricket I’m trying to be the best husband and the best father but I’m always trying to plan. Throughout the whole winter, while playing in England, I’ve actually been planning for our team seminar, what is the message that we want to get across, to make sure that when the season starts the guys are ready. There are a lot of phone calls, a lot of e-mails, a lot of work behind the scenes that people don’t hear about, and that’s how I operate,” he explained.

The Lions kick-off their CLT20 campaign against the Perth Scorchers in Ahmedabad on September 23 while they have also been grouped with Indian Premier League outfits Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals and a qualifier.

The Lions are relatively light on players who have experienced Indian conditions which makes players like Petersen, a veteran of 24 tests, 21 ODIs and two T20 internationals for the Proteas, all the more important to the Gauteng-based team’s cause.

Petersen and the likes of fellow batsman Neil McKenzie will be entrusted with the job of preparing the youngsters in the team for the conditions they are likely to face in India but Petersen warned that there was a danger of over-complicating matters for inexperienced players.

“It’s a difficult role. A lot of people think in India the ball spins massively and you can sometimes clutter a young guys mind with guys going out of their way to face spin but normally in India there are good wickets, certainly in one-day cricket. The ball does stop a bit. We will have to get that sort of knowledge over but we don’t want to clutter their minds.

“It is important to adapt quickly. It is the same as playing at the Wanderers and then going down to play in East London. You have to adapt quickly. We know in T20 cricket that in one or two overs the game could be gone.

The Lions were losing finalists in last year’s CLT20, which was played in South Africa, and Petersen said that the Lions’ success would make sure that their opponents would not take them lightly.

“People will be wary of us. We have played some good cricket and we have a great bunch of guys and the culture is exactly where we want it to be.
The challenge for us will be more in terms of what is expected of us as a team. The format is one where we have to win three out of four games to go through to the semifinals so we have to hit the ground running,” he explained.

SOMERSET, England, September 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ —

UK based carbon management company co2balance are very proud to announce a groundbreaking achievement in the development of international aid projects supported by carbon finance.  

Already an established project developer with a strong track record of working in communities in East Africa, co2balance have pushed the development of project methodologies and standards for more than ten years.  Their latest achievement delivers the registration of the World’s first Multi Country, Microscale, Gold Standard^[1] Program of Activities (mPoA).

The mPoA (GS-1247) is a global framework agreement covering the majority of the UN designated Least Developed Countries (LDC’s) and Land Locked Developing Countries (LLDC’s)^[2] and focuses on the establishment of projects that deliver elements of improved kitchen regimes. In practical terms this means that an unlimited number of projects, each delivering up to 10,000 tonnes of annual voluntary emissions reduction credits can be developed, safe in the knowledge that the complex and potentially risky process of getting approval to go ahead by The Gold Standard Foundation is already secured in principle.  Projects developed under this mPoA can involve either improved cook stove technologies in any form, or clean water technologies such as community boreholes or household water filters. Each micro project is delivered as a separate entity in its own right called a VPA (Voluntary Project Activity) through a relatively straightforward inclusion process, cutting down the time and expense from conception to registration and community delivery considerably. The first VPA is a cookstove project based in Rwanda which has already achieved registration^[1], whilst further VPA’s delivering clean water at scale to households in Uganda and Malawi are already well underway.  

co2balance is seeking interest from other project developers, NGO’s, development organisations and interested investors who have suitable project plans  that would benefit from inclusion under this PoA, delivering swift and low cost access to Carbon finance to support their projects.  

Mark Simpson founder and Managing Director of co2balance said of this achievement “co2balance has always been at the leading edge of carbon project development. However the complex nature and expense of achieving the vitally important endorsement from The Gold Standard has been a daunting prospect for some, potentially great, community projects from pursuing the vital support carbon finance could offer their work. With our Global Registration now in place we hope to be able to support multiple small projects and developers, by simplifying the application process, to realise their own ambitions by working with us to achieve the required high standards.”

^[1] The Gold Standard Foundation is a Swiss based, non-profit organization providing certification of premium quality carbon credits in both the voluntary and compliance markets. The thorough and extensive methodology and approval process of the Gold Standard is designed to certify the highest quality energy efficient and renewable energy carbon reduction projects. All Gold Standard certified projects demonstrate real and permanent GHG emissions and sustainable development for the local communities that are measured, reported and verified.

Certification is not awarded easily. It requires a project to submit substantial quantitative and qualitative research as well as to verify carbon savings and sustainability claims by an outside third party. In addition, each project commits to long term follow through and continued evaluation. Therefore, “Gold Standard certified” implies the most rigorous review of VER credits available on the market. Its VER registry is characterized by transparency and equality of access for all market participants.

The Gold Standard quality benchmark is derived from the actions of the Kyoto Protocol and its methodology is currently endorsed by over 70 non-governmental environmental and development organizations worldwide. The backing of this wide variety of supporters boosts the integrity of the Gold Standard and allows its credits to be sold at a premium price.

^[2] The location of the PoA will be in LDCs and LLDCs across the world, including the following countries: Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Botswana, Burundi, Cambodia, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Haiti, Laos, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Further countries may be added at later stages in the project.

About co2balance

Established in 2003, co2balance UK Ltd is a leading, UK based, carbon management provider offering carbon calculation, management and reduction services to leading blue chip companies including, BSkyB, Toshiba Europe, Gaz De France, Fiat and Flybe. As a project developer co2balance UK Ltd creates African Gold Standard and CDM projects that focus on social, health and community benefits to the families within the project area, in addition to carbon savings.

Contact: Suzanne.Longworth@co2balance.com, +44(0)1823-332233, http://www.co2balance.com

SOURCE Co2balance UK Ltd

SEE ALSO: ‘Lethargic’ Pig In Jogging Bottoms Rescued From Hot Car By Police

A feral pig burst into a Western Australian campsite this weekend where it chugged 18 cans of beer, challenged a cow to a fight and then collapsed under a tree.

The animal caused havoc amongst campers at the De Grey River in the Pilbara region on Sunday, ABC News reported.

“It was the middle of the night and it was these people camping opposite us and they heard this crunching of the can and they got their torch out and shone it on the pig and there he was scrunching away at their cans,” one camper recounted.

The feral pig was spotted collapsed under a tree after its rampage (file picture)

The rampaging pig was then spotted tearing a bag of rubbish to pieces before it tried to take on a nearby cow.

However the bovine did not take kindly to the challenge of the swine and responded by chasing it around a vehicle, the Guardian reported.

The inebriated pig was later spotted collapsed under a tree, presumably sleeping off a hangover.

In the aftermath of the incident, campers are being reminded to securely store any food and drink while staying in the area.

There are anywhere between 3.6 and 23.5 million pigs Australia-wide, a spokesman for the NSW Department of Primary Industries told The Australian in August.

“Numbers of feral pigs fluctuate depending on seasonal conditions and availability of feed,” he added.

Loading Slideshow

• Heart Potato

  Sally Colburn holds a heart-shaped potato that she found. (Wendy Victora / a href=”http://www.nwfdailynews.com/local/woman-receives-message-from-the-beyond-from-husband-1.184125?page=1″ target=”_blank”Northwest Florida Daily News/a)

• German Cops Seize ‘Strangest-Looking Convertible’ Pool Car

  On July 22, 2013, German police spotted “a convertible of a slightly different kind.”

  “I saw the strangest-looking convertible I have ever seen – a roofless BMW, without registration plates, bordered around the open top with wooden boards and fake plastic flowers. It was also full of water,” a href=”http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/Drunk_inventors_caught_cruising_in_car_pool?WT.mc_id=ON_MEC_A_AffWin_SkimbitWT.tsrc=AffiliateWT.mc_id=ON_MEC_A_AffWin_SkimbitWT.tsrc=Affiliate” target=”_hplink”the unnamed police officer told Orange News/a.

  The officer observed four young men, clad in bathing suits, splashing around inside the bizarre home-made car pool. According to the police report, “All of them appeared drunk.”

  The car had been sealed with a synthetic material and filled with approximately 530 gallons of water.

  One of the men, a 27-year-old who police suspect was driving, returned to the scene to collect his wallet, police obtained a sample of his blood for a blood-alcohol analysis.

  The investigation is ongoing and no charges have been filed yet.

  Speaking with a href=”http://www.bild.de/bild-plus/news/inland/verkehrsstraftat/polizei-stoppt-rasendes-planschbecken-31511980,view=conversionToLogin.bild.html” target=”_hplink”The Bild newspaper/a, one of the men called the ride a “stupid idea.”

  “It was the first time we drove on a street and we just wanted to have a little fun,” he said.

• Penis Strawberry

  A mother has revealed that she celebrated Andy Murray’s Wimbledon victory with a freshly picked strawberry – shaped like a PENIS. Carole Collen, 52, was pottering about in her garden in Dartford, Kent, this Sunday (7/7) when she spotted the cheekily shaped berry dangling amid her fruit and veg patch. Holding back the laughter she went inside to show her family before taking a quick snap to show her friends. Now the mother-of-two is planning to entering the strawberry into a raffle in a bid to raise money for charity.

• This photo released by the Glendale Police Department shows a black Cadillac that lost control and careened onto the roof of a neighbor’s home on Saturday, March 23, 2013 in Glendale, Calif. The Cadillac driver lost control before leaving his driveway, plunging off a hill “onto the roof of his neighbor’s house directly below his driveway. (Photo courtesy of Glendale Police Department)

• Third Eye Blind

  Tilde Nörgaard, a Swedish sixth grader, is still trying to figure out how she got a third eye in her class photo.

• 150-lb Boulder Crashes Through Car Windshield

  This 150-lb boulder crashed through the windshield of a rental car in Sedona, Az. The passengers, Bob Jaczko and Peter Wilson suffered minor cuts.

• Kid Has LEGO stuck in nose for three years.

  Isaak Lasson can finally breathe easy after three years of sinus problem caused by a single wheel-shaped LEGO that he got stuck up his nose back when he was three.

• Scrapyard Destroys Wrong Car

  Ben Forrer outside Sita UK, a scrap yard in Coventry, today, 25, 2012. Refer to NTI story NTICRUSH. Ben Forrer looked on in horror as a Coventry scrapyard crushed his van by mistake. Ben Forrer had only left his Citroen Relay for a few minutes as he dropped off an old cooker at the Sita yard, in Longford. But workers mistook the van for scrap and began crushing it in the jaws of a mechanical grabber

• Middle Finger Bush

  A bush carved into the shape of a middle-finger has landed a gardener into trouble after somebody failed to share his humour over the shrub. The council received a complaint about the shaped bush eight years after it was carved by Richard Jackson, 53, in his front garden. Despite only receiving one complaint, the council have since contacted Richard to alter the bush as it is considered a public offence. But Richard, from Tamworth, Staffs, said his neighbours are backing his pledge to keep the bush and they have even began a Save the Bush campaign to support him. Credit: Caters News

• Cathedral Licker

  A man has made a 5,000 mile pilgrimage to every Anglican cathedral in England so he can give them a good LICKING. Lawrence Edmonds has staked his claim as Britains first every cathedral licker by tongue tickling an incredible 42 in less than two years. Christian approval, Polish condemnation, and looks of confusion from a flock of Dutch tourists have all been experienced by Lawrence on his epic journey Back in January 2011, Lawrences friend Adam challenged him to a bet- that he couldnt lick every Anglican cathedral in the UK within five years. Credit: Caters News

• Baobab Tree Sculpture

  Mike De Butts adds the finishing touches to a giant Baobab Tree sculpture entitled ‘Under the Baobab’, outside the Southbank Centre on May 24, 2012 in London, England. The Pirate Technics’ installation is made from a selection of brightly coloured fabrics from around the world, and is part of the Southbank Centre’s ‘Festival of the World’ exhibition, which includes a series of large scale pieces of art that will be in place around the Southbank centre over the Summer.

• My Little Ponies

  Some of Sarah’s ponies. Sarah Butler, 28 from Barnsley, Yorkshire has been collecting 1980’s My Little Ponies for 24 years and now has over 1,000 of them as well as having a themed room in her house including My Little Pony curtains, bedspread and other collectables.

• Rapunzel Hair

  Natasha Moraes de Andrade, 12, is nicknamed Rapunzel because her hair is more than 5 feet long — just one and a half inches shorter than her height. In March, she planned to cut and sell the locks for some $2,600 to help get her family in Rio De Janeiro out of poverty.

• Moscow City Lights

  Swirling colors of city lights from a 900ft crane fill the Moscow skyline. Photographer D. Chistoprudov boards the crane, which is being used to build a skyscraper called Federation, and takes pictures over a period of two hours. Chistoprudov, 28, starts taking the swirling snaps around 1am and battles freezing weather to remain completely still so not to ruin the careful process. (Caters News / ZUMA Press)

• iPoo

  The sleek design, the impressive functionality, the distinctive logo – was it only a matter of time before Apple redesigned the humble toilet with the iPoo? The iPoo is literally a case of toilet humour and Belgrade designer Milos Paripovic makes the tongue-in-cheek claim his work isn’t intentionally related to the Apple brand.

• Tamaseseri Festival

  Naked men wearing only loincloths vie for a wooden treasure ball weighing eight kilos to bring good fortune, during the Tamaseseri festival at Hakozaki shrine in Fukuoka, on Japan’s southern island of Kyushu on Jan. 3, 2012. Two teams of farmers and fishermen competed for the rich harvest or largest catch at a festival that dates back some 500 years.

• Snow Church

  Visitors stand around a snow church just after its inauguration on Dec. 28, 2011 in Mitterfirmiansreut, Germany. The circa 25 meters long church was made of 1,400 cubic meters of snow and aims to commemorate the winter of the years 1910/1911, when so much snow fell that believers of Mitterfirmiansreut were no more able to go to church in the neighboring community of Mauth. So they decided to build their own church, made of snow. (Armin Weigel, AFP / Getty Images)

• Snow Church

  Visitors stand around a snow church just after its inauguration on Dec. 28, 2011 in Mitterfirmiansreut, Germany. The circa 25 meters long church was made of 1,400 cubic meters of snow and aims to commemorate the winter of the years 1910/1911, when so much snow fell that believers of Mitterfirmiansreut were no more able to go to church in the neighboring community of Mauth. So they decided to build their own church, made of snow. (Armin Weigel, AFP / Getty Images)

• Heine Braeck, 33, from Sarpsborg, Norway, has been without an right arm since he lost it during a freak accident when he was 13. Now he has decided to make the stump look like a dolpin’s head with the help of Bulgarian tattooist Valio Ska.

• Giant Slipper

  A man who ordered a special slipper to fit his oversized foot was sent a size 1,450 – after manufacturers failed to spot a decimal point in his order. Tom Boddingham, 27, has a size 13 right foot while his left is slightly bigger and measures a size 14-and-a-half. But when he ordered his custom-fit slipper manufacturers in China misread size 14.5 and accidently made a whopping 7ft long size 1,450

• Eight-year-old girl is world’s youngest drag racer

  Eight-year-old girl Belle Wheeler has become the youngest drag racer in the world — just two days after her eighth birthday. The pint-sized dragster then went onto compete against youngsters more than twice her age and qualified for the UK National Finals.

• Lawn Mower Endurance Race

  Competitors race in the 12-hour Lawn Mower Endurance Race on September 24, 2011 in Billingshurst, England. First started in 1973 as a motorsport that would be accessible to as many as possible, this year’s competition included more than 30 teams including some from South Africa, America and Luxembourg.

• Pumpkin Art

  An employee arranges pumpkins to form a fish at the pumkin exhibition of the asparagus and experience farm Buschmann and Winkelmann in Klaistow near Beelitz, northeastern Germany on August 31, 2011. The exhibition will start on September 1 , 2011, with over 100,000 pumkins in 400 different varieties.

• Cable Car High Wire

  High wire artist Freddy Nock balances as he walks up on the rope of a Zugspitze cable car in Grainau near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany, Saturday, Aug. 20, 2011. Nock walked up the 995 meters long rope with an altitude difference of 348 meters aiming at collecting money for the UNESCO. He is attempting to set a new world record by doing seven summits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in seven days. It took him about 90 minutes to arrive on top of Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Germany.

• Third Story Exit

  A 16-ton salt spreader blasted through the fifth-floor wall of a Queens Sanitation Department garage and came within inches of plummeting 50 feet to the street. The driver survived the spectacular 9:30 am crash, which sent bricks and debris raining down on cars parked outside the Maspeth repair facility, but spent 15 terrified minutes dangling in the cab of the bright orange vehicle. It’s unclear how driver Robert Legall, a 10-year Sanitation veteran with a clean record, lost control of the big rig. “There are signs up there warning drivers to slow down,” Commissioner John Doherty told the New York Post. “He’s familiar with the rules. We think it was just an unfortunate accident.”

• Speed Record Spins Out

  Driver Joe Wales crashes through the surf after veering off course during an attempt on the British land speed record for battery-powered vehicles in the Bluebird Electric on Pendine Sands on August 14, 2011 in Pendine, Wales. Driver Joe Wales and his father, fellow driver Don Wales, come from a famous family who have been setting land and water speed records since 1924. Don holds the current UK record of 137 miles an hour in an electric vehicle.

• Giant Cabbage

  Harrogate Autumn Flower show Director Martin Fish with a giant cabbage, as he introduced a series of new classes for Giant Vegetables to mark the 100th Anniversary of the Show. Giant onions, tomatoes and many others will all compete for the top prize of the biggest vegetable.

• Keep Claer

  An incorrectly spelled “Keep Clear” road marking is pictured in Kingswinford, on August 3, 2011 in West Midlands, England.

• Etna Volcano lava

  Lava spewed from a crater of the giant Etna volcano in the southern Italy island of Sicily on July 30, 2011 in Catania. The lava flown into a valley overnight and did not represent a danger to inhabited areas. Etna is the highest active volcano in Europe at 3,295 metres (10,810 feet) which last eruption was in May.

• Killer Plant Eats Bird

  An exotic plant expert was stunned when he inspected one of his garden
  pitcher plants and discovered it had eaten a blue tit.
  Prize winning Nigel Hewitt Cooper one of Britain’s leading carnivorous plant
  growers, from West Pennard, Somerset, couldn’t believe his eyes when he
  checked the Nepenthes x mixta or Monkey Cup pitcher and found the dead bird
  inside.
  Normally the plants which are native to south east Asia consume insects
  which thy attract by secreting a sticky, sweet fluid at the bottom of the
  pitcher.
  Sometimes in the wild they have been known to kill small mammals like mice
  but Mr Hewitt Cooper who regularly wins prizes at the Chelsea flower show
  says for a cultivate plant to capture a bird is incredible.

• Giant Mermaid

  A man adjusts a sculpture “Giant Mermaid” on the Alster lake in the northern German city of Hamburg on August 1, 2011. The sculpture is created by art and advertising agency headed by Oliver Voss.

• Huge Pastry

  People look at a huge khachapuri (Georgian cheese pastry) in central Batumi on July 28, 2011. The cake was baked using 100 eggs, 90 kilograms of cheese, 150 kilograms of flour, has 8 meters length and was eaten within 1minute 32 seconds by people at a street.

• Velomobiles

  Velomobiles, recumbent bicycles with sleek, colorful outer shells, head for the open road in Portland, Ore., Thursday, July 28, 2011. Twenty five riders from Europe and twenty five riders from North America are on a cross-country trip which will finish on the U.S. Capitol steps in Washington D.C. on August 26. The bikers are trying to spread the message that sustainable, clean transportation can be fun.

• Bobblehead Bishop

  Erie Catholic Bishop Donald W. Trautman has been immortalized in miniature with a bobblehead doll made in his likeness. The bobblehead comes as Trautman prepares to end his tenure as bishop of Erie.

• Canadian bubble artist

  Canadian bubble artist Yang Fan, who has set world record by packing 118 people inside a soap bubble, performs at the Gazillion bubble show in Beijing on July 19, 2011. Yang has earned international acclaim as a result of his complex displays of “bubble theater”. In addition to performing he has developed his own bubble solution formulas and equipment to create bubbles.

• Giant Marilyn

  Newly-wed bride Magda Villasenor looks at “Forever Marilyn”, a sculpture by Seward Johnson, on July 15, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois. The stainless steel and aluminum sculpture, which stands 26 feet tall and weighs 34,000 pounds, will be on display in Chicago through the spring of 2012. The sculpture was inspired by Marilyn Monroe’s iconic scene in the 1955 movie “Seven Year Itch”.

• Hot Dog Hot Rod

  The iconic Oscar Mayer Wienermobile vehicle is seen outside of the New York Stock Exchange as part of its day-long 75th birthday celebration, Monday, July 18, 2011. To commemorate the milestone, the Oscar Mayer brand rang the closing bell at NYSE. (Diane Bondareff/AP Images for Oscar Mayer)

• Harry Potter Corn Maze

  An aerial view of Top Pearsy’s Maize Maze in the shape of Harry Potter, on July 11, 2011 in York, England. Farmer Tom Pearcy has cut two portraits of Harry Potter in his crop of maize plants. With some subtle differences the two images create the world’s largest spot the difference competition. At over 50m in diameter, and cut out of over 1 million living maize plants, the York Maze is the largest ‘Maize Maze’ in Europe and one of the largest in the world.

• Recycled Sailboat

  A sail boat made of recycled material makes its maiden voyage to mark World Oceans Day in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, June 8, 2011.

• Pontiac Deluxe Six ‘Ghost Car’

  An extraordinary transparent car could fetch as much as GBP 295,000 when it goes up for auction.The motor, dubbed the ‘Ghost Car’, is a Pontiac Deluxe Six which has been covered in Plexiglas. The first transparent full-sized car to be made in America, it was built in 1939 by General Motors and chemical company Rohm and Haas. Billed as a vision of the future, it was a sensation at the 1939-40 New York World’s Fair and continues to cause a stir today. Just two were ever made and this model, which has a three-speed manual transmission, is thought to be the last of its kind. It has clocked up just 86 miles in its lifetime; and now its set to go on sale for the first time since the early 1980s. It last sold for an undisclosed amount. American auctioneers RM expect it to sell for between $275,000 and $475,000.

• Serbian Brides Race

  Serbian women take part in a wedding dress race in downtown Belgrade on June 19, 2011. More than fifty “brides” took part in an annual wedding dress race in the Serbian capital, competing for numerous prizes. (Andrej Isakovic, AFP/Getty Images)

• World Naked Bike Ride

  People take part in the annual “London World Naked Bike Ride” event in central London on June 11, 2011. Now in it’s eighth year, the event has seen participation grow from 58 in 2004 to 1,200 in 2009. Taking a route that passes many of London’s most famous landmarks, the ride allows those participating to decorate their body with messages of protest against oil dependancy and motor vehicle usage.

• Hanging Around

  British artist Alice Newstead hangs by shark hooks during her demonstration to protest against shark slaughter in Hong Kong on June 14. The protest was organized by marine conservation group Shark Savers, and supported by Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics who are launching a global campaign to protect the sharks.

• Reptile House

  Diska Putra, holds one of his snakes in bed at home on June 10, 2011 in Bintan, Indonesia. Putra, 24, cohabitates in Indonesian with a collection of 30 snakes, some of which are deadly poisonous.

• Monkey God

  An Indian priest walks outside the temple of Hindu monkey God Hanuman in New Delhi early June 12, 2011. The highly popular monkey-god Hanuman known for his strength is worshipped for his unyielding devotion and selfless dedication to the Lord Rama.

• Big Baby

  Ron Mueck’s ‘Big Baby’ sculpture is displayed in front of Jenny Saville’s painting ‘Interfacing’ at the Masterpieces Exhibition at Christie’s on June 13, 2011 in London, England.

• Drunken Knight

  A would-be knight who tried to woo a maiden by riding into her home on a horse is facing five years behind bars for aggravated burglary. Lovelorn Jan Rudnicki, 40, hatched the scheme to bowl over divorcee Gosia Domoslawska after a night’s drinking down his local bar in Jarnoltowka, Poland. But terrified Gosia, 36, dialed 999 when her drunken suitor – stripped to the waist – galloped up her garden path and smashed his way through the front door like a battering ram.

• Sideshow Fat Man Dies

  Bruce Snowdon, the last sideshow fat man, was honored in a memorial service on Jan. 30, 2010. Snowdon performed as “Harold Huge,” and weighed 607 pounds (though by some billing he tipped the scale at 712 pounds). Here he is with fellow sideshow star Peter Terhurne, a fire-eating dwarf.

• So, What Do You Do For a Living?

  Mexican tattoo artist and trained lawyer Maria Jose Cristerna, known as “Vampire Woman”, attends the Fifth International Tattoo Convention in Bogota, Colombia, on June 4, 2011.

• It’s All Fun And Games…

  A Sufi Kalandar (wandering ascetic) performs an act of self torture during devotion at the annual death anniversary of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer, India on June 2.

• Indian spiritual guru Swami Baba Ramdev

  Indian spiritual guru Swami Baba Ramdev performs yoga during his hunger strike at the Pitanjali Yogpeeth in Haridwar, some 240kms from New Delhi, on June 7, 2011. India’s embattled prime minister on June 7 defended a police crackdown on a peaceful anti-graft demonstration led by a famous yoga guru, saying authorities had been left with no choice.

A Southern California hospital is under fire after a former patient and employee has come forward with a humiliating photo taken while she was anesthetized for a procedure in Oct. 2011.

Veronica Valdez, 27, is suing Torrance Memorial Hospital because an anesthesiologist took the liberty of decorating her face with a mustache and teardrops while she was unconscious. A nursing attendant then snapped a photo of Valdez’s face, which was seen around the medical office where Valdez also used to work.

LOOK:

The photo of Valdez, obtained by KCAL9.

In the lawsuit, Valdez says that her humiliation over the photo grew so intense that she eventually had to step down from her job. Now, two years later, she’s suing the hospital to make sure patients never have to go through a similar experience.

Watch KCAL9’s video report above or head over to KCAL9 to see what Valdez’s lawyer has to say about the photo.

There is some dispute over how the photo of Valdez spread, according to the Los Angeles Times. Patricia Gomez, the nursing attendant, testified that she did not email or post Valdez’s photo anywhere. Instead, she claims, she deleted the photo after showing it to Valdez. However, others at the hospital testified they saw the photo on Facebook.

Dr. Patrick Yang, the anesthesiologist, was suspended for two weeks from his job over the incident but is working in good standing with the hospital now, reports the Times. Gomez was also disciplined, but not fired.

In a statement to KCAL9, the hospital explained that they’ve since put safeguards in place to protect patients’ safety and confidentiality during operations. From KCAL9:

The anesthesiologist and the nurse employee who took the photograph, both friendly with the patient, demonstrated poor judgement. This type of behavior, despite the familiarity of the patient is not condoned and cannot happen in an operating room.

The hospital wants the lawsuit to be dismissed.

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• Heart Potato

  Sally Colburn holds a heart-shaped potato that she found. (Wendy Victora / a href=”http://www.nwfdailynews.com/local/woman-receives-message-from-the-beyond-from-husband-1.184125?page=1″ target=”_blank”Northwest Florida Daily News/a)

• German Cops Seize ‘Strangest-Looking Convertible’ Pool Car

  On July 22, 2013, German police spotted “a convertible of a slightly different kind.”

  “I saw the strangest-looking convertible I have ever seen – a roofless BMW, without registration plates, bordered around the open top with wooden boards and fake plastic flowers. It was also full of water,” a href=”http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/Drunk_inventors_caught_cruising_in_car_pool?WT.mc_id=ON_MEC_A_AffWin_SkimbitWT.tsrc=AffiliateWT.mc_id=ON_MEC_A_AffWin_SkimbitWT.tsrc=Affiliate” target=”_hplink”the unnamed police officer told Orange News/a.

  The officer observed four young men, clad in bathing suits, splashing around inside the bizarre home-made car pool. According to the police report, “All of them appeared drunk.”

  The car had been sealed with a synthetic material and filled with approximately 530 gallons of water.

  One of the men, a 27-year-old who police suspect was driving, returned to the scene to collect his wallet, police obtained a sample of his blood for a blood-alcohol analysis.

  The investigation is ongoing and no charges have been filed yet.

  Speaking with a href=”http://www.bild.de/bild-plus/news/inland/verkehrsstraftat/polizei-stoppt-rasendes-planschbecken-31511980,view=conversionToLogin.bild.html” target=”_hplink”The Bild newspaper/a, one of the men called the ride a “stupid idea.”

  “It was the first time we drove on a street and we just wanted to have a little fun,” he said.

• Penis Strawberry

  A mother has revealed that she celebrated Andy Murray’s Wimbledon victory with a freshly picked strawberry – shaped like a PENIS. Carole Collen, 52, was pottering about in her garden in Dartford, Kent, this Sunday (7/7) when she spotted the cheekily shaped berry dangling amid her fruit and veg patch. Holding back the laughter she went inside to show her family before taking a quick snap to show her friends. Now the mother-of-two is planning to entering the strawberry into a raffle in a bid to raise money for charity.

• This photo released by the Glendale Police Department shows a black Cadillac that lost control and careened onto the roof of a neighbor’s home on Saturday, March 23, 2013 in Glendale, Calif. The Cadillac driver lost control before leaving his driveway, plunging off a hill “onto the roof of his neighbor’s house directly below his driveway. (Photo courtesy of Glendale Police Department)

• Third Eye Blind

  Tilde Nörgaard, a Swedish sixth grader, is still trying to figure out how she got a third eye in her class photo.

• 150-lb Boulder Crashes Through Car Windshield

  This 150-lb boulder crashed through the windshield of a rental car in Sedona, Az. The passengers, Bob Jaczko and Peter Wilson suffered minor cuts.

• Kid Has LEGO stuck in nose for three years.

  Isaak Lasson can finally breathe easy after three years of sinus problem caused by a single wheel-shaped LEGO that he got stuck up his nose back when he was three.

• Scrapyard Destroys Wrong Car

  Ben Forrer outside Sita UK, a scrap yard in Coventry, today, 25, 2012. Refer to NTI story NTICRUSH. Ben Forrer looked on in horror as a Coventry scrapyard crushed his van by mistake. Ben Forrer had only left his Citroen Relay for a few minutes as he dropped off an old cooker at the Sita yard, in Longford. But workers mistook the van for scrap and began crushing it in the jaws of a mechanical grabber

• Middle Finger Bush

  A bush carved into the shape of a middle-finger has landed a gardener into trouble after somebody failed to share his humour over the shrub. The council received a complaint about the shaped bush eight years after it was carved by Richard Jackson, 53, in his front garden. Despite only receiving one complaint, the council have since contacted Richard to alter the bush as it is considered a public offence. But Richard, from Tamworth, Staffs, said his neighbours are backing his pledge to keep the bush and they have even began a Save the Bush campaign to support him. Credit: Caters News

• Cathedral Licker

  A man has made a 5,000 mile pilgrimage to every Anglican cathedral in England so he can give them a good LICKING. Lawrence Edmonds has staked his claim as Britains first every cathedral licker by tongue tickling an incredible 42 in less than two years. Christian approval, Polish condemnation, and looks of confusion from a flock of Dutch tourists have all been experienced by Lawrence on his epic journey Back in January 2011, Lawrences friend Adam challenged him to a bet- that he couldnt lick every Anglican cathedral in the UK within five years. Credit: Caters News

• Baobab Tree Sculpture

  Mike De Butts adds the finishing touches to a giant Baobab Tree sculpture entitled ‘Under the Baobab’, outside the Southbank Centre on May 24, 2012 in London, England. The Pirate Technics’ installation is made from a selection of brightly coloured fabrics from around the world, and is part of the Southbank Centre’s ‘Festival of the World’ exhibition, which includes a series of large scale pieces of art that will be in place around the Southbank centre over the Summer.

• My Little Ponies

  Some of Sarah’s ponies. Sarah Butler, 28 from Barnsley, Yorkshire has been collecting 1980’s My Little Ponies for 24 years and now has over 1,000 of them as well as having a themed room in her house including My Little Pony curtains, bedspread and other collectables.

• Rapunzel Hair

  Natasha Moraes de Andrade, 12, is nicknamed Rapunzel because her hair is more than 5 feet long — just one and a half inches shorter than her height. In March, she planned to cut and sell the locks for some $2,600 to help get her family in Rio De Janeiro out of poverty.

• Moscow City Lights

  Swirling colors of city lights from a 900ft crane fill the Moscow skyline. Photographer D. Chistoprudov boards the crane, which is being used to build a skyscraper called Federation, and takes pictures over a period of two hours. Chistoprudov, 28, starts taking the swirling snaps around 1am and battles freezing weather to remain completely still so not to ruin the careful process. (Caters News / ZUMA Press)

• iPoo

  The sleek design, the impressive functionality, the distinctive logo – was it only a matter of time before Apple redesigned the humble toilet with the iPoo? The iPoo is literally a case of toilet humour and Belgrade designer Milos Paripovic makes the tongue-in-cheek claim his work isn’t intentionally related to the Apple brand.

• Tamaseseri Festival

  Naked men wearing only loincloths vie for a wooden treasure ball weighing eight kilos to bring good fortune, during the Tamaseseri festival at Hakozaki shrine in Fukuoka, on Japan’s southern island of Kyushu on Jan. 3, 2012. Two teams of farmers and fishermen competed for the rich harvest or largest catch at a festival that dates back some 500 years.

• Snow Church

  Visitors stand around a snow church just after its inauguration on Dec. 28, 2011 in Mitterfirmiansreut, Germany. The circa 25 meters long church was made of 1,400 cubic meters of snow and aims to commemorate the winter of the years 1910/1911, when so much snow fell that believers of Mitterfirmiansreut were no more able to go to church in the neighboring community of Mauth. So they decided to build their own church, made of snow. (Armin Weigel, AFP / Getty Images)

• Snow Church

  Visitors stand around a snow church just after its inauguration on Dec. 28, 2011 in Mitterfirmiansreut, Germany. The circa 25 meters long church was made of 1,400 cubic meters of snow and aims to commemorate the winter of the years 1910/1911, when so much snow fell that believers of Mitterfirmiansreut were no more able to go to church in the neighboring community of Mauth. So they decided to build their own church, made of snow. (Armin Weigel, AFP / Getty Images)

• Heine Braeck, 33, from Sarpsborg, Norway, has been without an right arm since he lost it during a freak accident when he was 13. Now he has decided to make the stump look like a dolpin’s head with the help of Bulgarian tattooist Valio Ska.

• Giant Slipper

  A man who ordered a special slipper to fit his oversized foot was sent a size 1,450 – after manufacturers failed to spot a decimal point in his order. Tom Boddingham, 27, has a size 13 right foot while his left is slightly bigger and measures a size 14-and-a-half. But when he ordered his custom-fit slipper manufacturers in China misread size 14.5 and accidently made a whopping 7ft long size 1,450

• Eight-year-old girl is world’s youngest drag racer

  Eight-year-old girl Belle Wheeler has become the youngest drag racer in the world — just two days after her eighth birthday. The pint-sized dragster then went onto compete against youngsters more than twice her age and qualified for the UK National Finals.

• Lawn Mower Endurance Race

  Competitors race in the 12-hour Lawn Mower Endurance Race on September 24, 2011 in Billingshurst, England. First started in 1973 as a motorsport that would be accessible to as many as possible, this year’s competition included more than 30 teams including some from South Africa, America and Luxembourg.

• Pumpkin Art

  An employee arranges pumpkins to form a fish at the pumkin exhibition of the asparagus and experience farm Buschmann and Winkelmann in Klaistow near Beelitz, northeastern Germany on August 31, 2011. The exhibition will start on September 1 , 2011, with over 100,000 pumkins in 400 different varieties.

• Cable Car High Wire

  High wire artist Freddy Nock balances as he walks up on the rope of a Zugspitze cable car in Grainau near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany, Saturday, Aug. 20, 2011. Nock walked up the 995 meters long rope with an altitude difference of 348 meters aiming at collecting money for the UNESCO. He is attempting to set a new world record by doing seven summits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in seven days. It took him about 90 minutes to arrive on top of Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Germany.

• Third Story Exit

  A 16-ton salt spreader blasted through the fifth-floor wall of a Queens Sanitation Department garage and came within inches of plummeting 50 feet to the street. The driver survived the spectacular 9:30 am crash, which sent bricks and debris raining down on cars parked outside the Maspeth repair facility, but spent 15 terrified minutes dangling in the cab of the bright orange vehicle. It’s unclear how driver Robert Legall, a 10-year Sanitation veteran with a clean record, lost control of the big rig. “There are signs up there warning drivers to slow down,” Commissioner John Doherty told the New York Post. “He’s familiar with the rules. We think it was just an unfortunate accident.”

• Speed Record Spins Out

  Driver Joe Wales crashes through the surf after veering off course during an attempt on the British land speed record for battery-powered vehicles in the Bluebird Electric on Pendine Sands on August 14, 2011 in Pendine, Wales. Driver Joe Wales and his father, fellow driver Don Wales, come from a famous family who have been setting land and water speed records since 1924. Don holds the current UK record of 137 miles an hour in an electric vehicle.

• Giant Cabbage

  Harrogate Autumn Flower show Director Martin Fish with a giant cabbage, as he introduced a series of new classes for Giant Vegetables to mark the 100th Anniversary of the Show. Giant onions, tomatoes and many others will all compete for the top prize of the biggest vegetable.

• Keep Claer

  An incorrectly spelled “Keep Clear” road marking is pictured in Kingswinford, on August 3, 2011 in West Midlands, England.

• Etna Volcano lava

  Lava spewed from a crater of the giant Etna volcano in the southern Italy island of Sicily on July 30, 2011 in Catania. The lava flown into a valley overnight and did not represent a danger to inhabited areas. Etna is the highest active volcano in Europe at 3,295 metres (10,810 feet) which last eruption was in May.

• Killer Plant Eats Bird

  An exotic plant expert was stunned when he inspected one of his garden
  pitcher plants and discovered it had eaten a blue tit.
  Prize winning Nigel Hewitt Cooper one of Britain’s leading carnivorous plant
  growers, from West Pennard, Somerset, couldn’t believe his eyes when he
  checked the Nepenthes x mixta or Monkey Cup pitcher and found the dead bird
  inside.
  Normally the plants which are native to south east Asia consume insects
  which thy attract by secreting a sticky, sweet fluid at the bottom of the
  pitcher.
  Sometimes in the wild they have been known to kill small mammals like mice
  but Mr Hewitt Cooper who regularly wins prizes at the Chelsea flower show
  says for a cultivate plant to capture a bird is incredible.

• Giant Mermaid

  A man adjusts a sculpture “Giant Mermaid” on the Alster lake in the northern German city of Hamburg on August 1, 2011. The sculpture is created by art and advertising agency headed by Oliver Voss.

• Huge Pastry

  People look at a huge khachapuri (Georgian cheese pastry) in central Batumi on July 28, 2011. The cake was baked using 100 eggs, 90 kilograms of cheese, 150 kilograms of flour, has 8 meters length and was eaten within 1minute 32 seconds by people at a street.

• Velomobiles

  Velomobiles, recumbent bicycles with sleek, colorful outer shells, head for the open road in Portland, Ore., Thursday, July 28, 2011. Twenty five riders from Europe and twenty five riders from North America are on a cross-country trip which will finish on the U.S. Capitol steps in Washington D.C. on August 26. The bikers are trying to spread the message that sustainable, clean transportation can be fun.

• Bobblehead Bishop

  Erie Catholic Bishop Donald W. Trautman has been immortalized in miniature with a bobblehead doll made in his likeness. The bobblehead comes as Trautman prepares to end his tenure as bishop of Erie.

• Canadian bubble artist

  Canadian bubble artist Yang Fan, who has set world record by packing 118 people inside a soap bubble, performs at the Gazillion bubble show in Beijing on July 19, 2011. Yang has earned international acclaim as a result of his complex displays of “bubble theater”. In addition to performing he has developed his own bubble solution formulas and equipment to create bubbles.

• Giant Marilyn

  Newly-wed bride Magda Villasenor looks at “Forever Marilyn”, a sculpture by Seward Johnson, on July 15, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois. The stainless steel and aluminum sculpture, which stands 26 feet tall and weighs 34,000 pounds, will be on display in Chicago through the spring of 2012. The sculpture was inspired by Marilyn Monroe’s iconic scene in the 1955 movie “Seven Year Itch”.

• Hot Dog Hot Rod

  The iconic Oscar Mayer Wienermobile vehicle is seen outside of the New York Stock Exchange as part of its day-long 75th birthday celebration, Monday, July 18, 2011. To commemorate the milestone, the Oscar Mayer brand rang the closing bell at NYSE. (Diane Bondareff/AP Images for Oscar Mayer)

• Harry Potter Corn Maze

  An aerial view of Top Pearsy’s Maize Maze in the shape of Harry Potter, on July 11, 2011 in York, England. Farmer Tom Pearcy has cut two portraits of Harry Potter in his crop of maize plants. With some subtle differences the two images create the world’s largest spot the difference competition. At over 50m in diameter, and cut out of over 1 million living maize plants, the York Maze is the largest ‘Maize Maze’ in Europe and one of the largest in the world.

• Recycled Sailboat

  A sail boat made of recycled material makes its maiden voyage to mark World Oceans Day in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, June 8, 2011.

• Pontiac Deluxe Six ‘Ghost Car’

  An extraordinary transparent car could fetch as much as GBP 295,000 when it goes up for auction.The motor, dubbed the ‘Ghost Car’, is a Pontiac Deluxe Six which has been covered in Plexiglas. The first transparent full-sized car to be made in America, it was built in 1939 by General Motors and chemical company Rohm and Haas. Billed as a vision of the future, it was a sensation at the 1939-40 New York World’s Fair and continues to cause a stir today. Just two were ever made and this model, which has a three-speed manual transmission, is thought to be the last of its kind. It has clocked up just 86 miles in its lifetime; and now its set to go on sale for the first time since the early 1980s. It last sold for an undisclosed amount. American auctioneers RM expect it to sell for between $275,000 and $475,000.

• Serbian Brides Race

  Serbian women take part in a wedding dress race in downtown Belgrade on June 19, 2011. More than fifty “brides” took part in an annual wedding dress race in the Serbian capital, competing for numerous prizes. (Andrej Isakovic, AFP/Getty Images)

• World Naked Bike Ride

  People take part in the annual “London World Naked Bike Ride” event in central London on June 11, 2011. Now in it’s eighth year, the event has seen participation grow from 58 in 2004 to 1,200 in 2009. Taking a route that passes many of London’s most famous landmarks, the ride allows those participating to decorate their body with messages of protest against oil dependancy and motor vehicle usage.

• Hanging Around

  British artist Alice Newstead hangs by shark hooks during her demonstration to protest against shark slaughter in Hong Kong on June 14. The protest was organized by marine conservation group Shark Savers, and supported by Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics who are launching a global campaign to protect the sharks.

• Reptile House

  Diska Putra, holds one of his snakes in bed at home on June 10, 2011 in Bintan, Indonesia. Putra, 24, cohabitates in Indonesian with a collection of 30 snakes, some of which are deadly poisonous.

• Monkey God

  An Indian priest walks outside the temple of Hindu monkey God Hanuman in New Delhi early June 12, 2011. The highly popular monkey-god Hanuman known for his strength is worshipped for his unyielding devotion and selfless dedication to the Lord Rama.

• Big Baby

  Ron Mueck’s ‘Big Baby’ sculpture is displayed in front of Jenny Saville’s painting ‘Interfacing’ at the Masterpieces Exhibition at Christie’s on June 13, 2011 in London, England.

• Drunken Knight

  A would-be knight who tried to woo a maiden by riding into her home on a horse is facing five years behind bars for aggravated burglary. Lovelorn Jan Rudnicki, 40, hatched the scheme to bowl over divorcee Gosia Domoslawska after a night’s drinking down his local bar in Jarnoltowka, Poland. But terrified Gosia, 36, dialed 999 when her drunken suitor – stripped to the waist – galloped up her garden path and smashed his way through the front door like a battering ram.

• Sideshow Fat Man Dies

  Bruce Snowdon, the last sideshow fat man, was honored in a memorial service on Jan. 30, 2010. Snowdon performed as “Harold Huge,” and weighed 607 pounds (though by some billing he tipped the scale at 712 pounds). Here he is with fellow sideshow star Peter Terhurne, a fire-eating dwarf.

• So, What Do You Do For a Living?

  Mexican tattoo artist and trained lawyer Maria Jose Cristerna, known as “Vampire Woman”, attends the Fifth International Tattoo Convention in Bogota, Colombia, on June 4, 2011.

• It’s All Fun And Games…

  A Sufi Kalandar (wandering ascetic) performs an act of self torture during devotion at the annual death anniversary of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer, India on June 2.

• Indian spiritual guru Swami Baba Ramdev

  Indian spiritual guru Swami Baba Ramdev performs yoga during his hunger strike at the Pitanjali Yogpeeth in Haridwar, some 240kms from New Delhi, on June 7, 2011. India’s embattled prime minister on June 7 defended a police crackdown on a peaceful anti-graft demonstration led by a famous yoga guru, saying authorities had been left with no choice.

With the defeat in Parliament of the UK Government for an attack on Syria, the British war weary public has got some respite for now. Across the Atlantic, President Obama’s decision to go to Congress and get the endorsement for an attack on Syria has also given some breathing space before any contemplated intervention on Syria may take place. In the meantime, I hope common sense prevails and a ceasefire along with a political solution to include all warring parties (Sunni, Shia and Kurds) with a democratic decision making government can be put in place in Syria.

The familiar menace of US war drums is at a feverish pitch as Syria finds itself a target of the Pentagon’s next attack. The US, the nation most addicted to war and military spending, now is in the midst of a massive military build-up in the Persian Gulf on a scale not seen in the region since 2003 US invasion of Iraq. Western military hardware in the area includes five US Navy destroyers equipped with Tomahawk cruise missiles, F22 Raptor strike aircraft from Turkey, F-16 fighters and Patriot anti-missile batteries in Jordan with 1,000 US troops and including fleet of ten British vessels in the Mediterranean.

At present Syria is in real mess and the situation is likely to worsen with continued fighting, bloodshed and suffering further exasperating sectarianism in the Middle East. The atrocities taking place in the Syria conflict, running into the third year with approximately 100,000 deaths and more than a million refugees driven into neighbouring states, is repeating the humanitarian tragedies similar to those witnessed in Bosnia, Rwanda and Darfur.

The attack is unlikely to help those in need of aid and shelter in Syria or neighbouring countries. Big power military intervention is likely to cause more people to flee and lose their homes. With US, Saudi Arabia and Qatar heavily funding the opposition and Russia with Iran backing Assad, the Syrian civil war has spiralled into a global struggle for power with the potential for greater catastrophe including becoming a breeding ground for anti-western militants.

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A military attack on a sovereign member state of the UN which has not threatened another country is an act of aggression and against international law (Treaty of Rome and Article 2(4) of the UN Charter). Launching a war of aggression is indictable under the International Criminal Court (ICC) Act 2001.

There is no evidence that the Syrian Army launched the Chemical Weapons attack on August 21. UN Secretary General Ban ki Moon was outspoken over the necessity to act if his inspectors find evidence of chemical weapons use. “If proven, any use of chemical weapons by anyone under any circumstances is a serious violation of international law and an outrageous crime. We cannot allow impunity in what appears to be a grave crime against humanity,” he said.

If the attack on Syria goes ahead without the results of the UN inspection being made available, then leaderships may be guilty again, as over Iraq, of using flawed intelligence to strike a sovereign state. This attack will also kill many more people and probably lead to the devastation of the whole country as is happening in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya.

If the ongoing crisis under Syria is not brought under control soon by the international community with a ceasefire and a peaceful political solution, then there is a risk of conflict to a full scale regional or a possible third world war.

The priorities of the international communities should be:

A ceasefire to halt the killing and destruction, followed by a dialogue of all parties including Assad – a broad coalition committed to non-violence, democracy, pluralism and non sectarianism.

A UN-brokered agreement by all sides for international humanitarian relief to work effectively into war-stricken areas.

UN Peacekeepers to protect the above and ensure no more fighting between warring parties. UN Peacekeepers should come from non-Western and non-Muslim countries (e.g. Brazil, India etc.)

UN conference of all parties to secure a political solution and state building of Syria.

My book, The Economics of Killing has explored the alternatives to this tragic scenario and has advocated an end to wars and violence around the world, which can result in a global stimulus of $9 trillion – enough not only to build the war torn infrastructure and a safer future for Syria but also bring lasting peace for the wider Middle East and North Africa.

Peace is possible in Syria if all outside interference is stopped and Syrians are allowed to solve their own problems upholding their right to self-determination. There should be an immediate ceasefire to the conflict and all warring parties and their proxies (US, UK, France, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Qatar) engage in an international conference for not only conflict resolution but also rebuilding the infrastructure of the country. A healing process should follow with a Truth and Reconciliation Commission on the model successfully established in South Africa.

The bottom-line is, there will never be a military solution, now or ever. Iraq and Afghanistan are powerful reminders that US and Western countries relying on force without a workable peace or a political plan have been a disaster.

Syrian people wish dialogue and negotiation as a way forward. We all remember the fear, panic and lies spun by the British and American governments, and others that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, and it was not true. Let us learn the lesson of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya where so many millions have been killed in invasions and war, and many continue to die in roadside bombs which are detonated on a daily basis.

Violence is not the answer, let’s end this “war on terror” and give non-violence and peace a chance. There is a golden opportunity not to be missed to conclude a peace agreement among leaders of the G20, as they meet at St. Petersburg, in Russia.

The UN Secretary General Ban ki Moon, is attending the leaders’ summit.

I hope that common sense will prevail once again as the recent postponement of the war and a peace deal can be concluded. A peaceful Syria, a peaceful Middle East can be the beginning of a peaceful world.

Pre-Commonwealth Games Eight Nations Challenge at Kelvingrove (Glasgow), Play-off results, Men’s singles – Gold: Australia (A Sherriff) bt Canada (R Bester) 21-16. Bronze: Kelvin (P Foster) bt New Zealand (S McIlroy) 21-15. Fifth place: England (J Chestney) bt Clyde (S Anderson) 21-19. Seventh place: Malaysia (H Rais) bt South Africa (G Vermeulen) 21-14. Men’s pairs – Gold: Clyde (S Anderson D Burnett) bt Australia (B Wilkie M Flapper) 12-11. Bronze: Kelvin (P Foster G Archer) bt England (A Knapper R Catton) 22-8. Fifth place: Canada (J Bezear R Bester) bt New Zealand (D Delaney B Signal) 14-11. Seventh place: South Africa (J Evans G Baker) bt Malaysia (H Rais F Izwan) 22-12. Men’s triples – Gold: Australia (Sherriff) bt England (Chestney) 15-12. Bronze:Canada (Whitelaw) bt New Zealand (McIlroy) 18-10. Fifth place: Kelvin (Speirs) bt Clyde (Logan) 16-13. Seventh place: South Africa (Rusling) bt Malaysia (Saufi) 17-11. Men’s fours – Gold: New Zealand (Forsyth) bt Australia (Flapper) 21-12. Bronze: Clyde (Grant) bt South Africa (Baker) 26-8. Fifth place: Canada (Whitelaw) bt England (Hubbard) 19-11. Seventh place: Malaysia (Saufi) bt Kelvin (Speirs) 21-10. Women’s singles – Gold: England (N Melmore) bt South Africa (C Piketh) 21-15. Bronze: Kelvin (C Brown) bt Malaysia (S Z Ahmad) 21-16. Fifth place: New Zealand (V Smith) bt Clyde (S Murray) 21-16. Seventh place: Canada (K McKerihen) bt Australia (C Odgers) 21-8. Women’s pairs – Gold: Clyde (B Craig L Malloy) bt New Zealand (V Smith J Edwards) 14-13. Bronze: Kelvin (C Johnston L Baillie) bt England (S Branfield N Melmore) 16-12. Fifth place: South Africa (T L Botha C Piketh) bt Malaysia (S Z Ahmad N H Ismail) 14-9. Seventh place: Australia (N vanEldik K Murphy) bt Canada (Berg K McKerihen) 23-10. Women’s triples – Gold: England (Gordon) bt Malaysia (Fidrah) 31-5. Bronze: Kelvin (Letham) bt Clyde (Stein) 10-8. Fifth place: New Zealand (Keith) bt Australia (Cottrell) 14-9. Seventh place: South Africa (Steyn) bt Canada (Beath) 18-13. Women’s fours – Gold: Kelvin (Letham) bt Malaysia (Ismail) 23-8. Bronze: Australia (Cottrell) bt England (Falkner) 24-13. Fifth place: New Zealand (Boyd) bt South Africa (Steyn) 19-17. Seventh place: Clyde (Malloy) bt Canada (Beath) 15-10. Para triples – Gold: Clyde (Wallace) bt South Africa (Lobban) 22-4. Visually Impaired mixed pairs – Gold: Australia (M Morrison T Scott) bt Wales (G Miles R Crean) 15-10.

Gloucestershire County Cup at Lydney – Semi-finals: Cheltenham bt Barnwood 58-56; Olveston bt Victory Park 77-43. Final: Cheltenham bt Olveston 78-50 – Rink scores (Cheltenham names first): N Kitchen, P Nelmes, M Woodbridge, L Williamson 37, I Copley, M Humphries, T Mangan, I Curtis 20; J Horrill, R Purser, M Perry, M Cuthbert 27, J Veasey, K Tudor, J Drysdale, T Iles 13; N Charlwood, G Griffiths, R Griffiths, J Roach 13, J Smallwood, C Bentley, I Gauld, P Bryant 17. Third place play-off: Victory Park bt Barnwood 68-57.

Somerset county finals at Victoria, Men – Singles: N Yeoman (Bristol) bt K Jones (Bloomfield) 21-19. Two-wood singles: B Forse (Weston St Andrew’s) bt L Ridout (Ilminster) 13-12. Pairs: S Barnard J Amery (Taunton) bt A Owens S Davies (Weston St Andrew’s) 26-24. Triples: M Hamilton, C Robinson, L Ridout (Ilminster) bt R Withers, S Withers, N Pearce (Clevedon) 15-14. Fours: N Rowe, B Brister, J Ridout, P Mattravers (Ilminster) bt J Branfield, P Branfield, S Withers, J Hick (Clevedon) 23-8. Under 25 singles: L Ridout (Ilminster) bt L Hembrow (Taunton Deane) 21-11. Junior pairs: Watchet bt Knowle 22-13. Unbadged singles: B Herbison (Congresbury) bt J Towells (Purnell) 23-12.

Women – Singles: E Amery (Williton) bt S Branfield (Clevedon) 21-13. Two wood singles: J Walmsley (Bath) bt E Amery (Williton) 15-13. Pairs: S Every E Amery (Williton) bt J Staunton J Walmsley (Bath) 21-20. Triples: C Symonds, C Ball, K Holmes (Bath) bt J Branfield, L Holden, S Branfield (Clevedon) 22-8. Under 25 singles: K Holmes (Bath) bt L Holden (Clevedon) 21-19. Unbadged singles: L Newport (Bloomfield) bt M Hawkins (Wessex) 21-9.

Mixed – Open singles: D McGovern (Bath) bt D Fowkes (Taunton Deane) 21-17. Mixed pairs: D M Sutton (Somerton) bt L Newport K Jones (Bloomfield) 23-16. Hon Secretaries singles: C Wilson (Banwell) bt V Nicholls (Yeovil) 21-20.

County match – At Cadoxton: Glos women bt Glamorgan 136-97 –Rink scores (Glos skips first): A Jones 27, R Jones 7; M Kennedy 28, L Anderson 14; S Latham 27, A Dainton 18; V Osmond 17, B Stanton 17; A White 18, N Shipperlee 19; G Fry 19, J de Souza 22.

Somerset League – Premier 1: Bloomfield A bt Watchet A 62-53 (9-3); Portishead RBL A t/w Bristol A 58-58 (7-5); Yeovil A bt Purnell A 73-54 (12-0); Bath A bt Street A 60-55 (10-2); Clevedon A bt Banwell A 61-51 (10-2). Premier 2: Victoria A bt North Petherton A 65-51 (12-0); Bridgwater A bt Bath B 63-60 (10-2); Knowle A bt Nailsea A 78-44 (10-2); Clevedon Promenade A bt Chew Stoke A 83-29 (12-0); Taunton A bt Clarence A 67-61 (10-2). East 1: Paulton bt Keynsham A 62-60 (10-2); Stothert Pitt A bt Knowle B 61-52 (12-0); Frome Park A bt Fosseway 59-53 (10-2); Alexandra A bt Norwest A 71-63 (8-4); Bloomfield B bt Frome Selwood 52-51 (8-4). East 2: Imperial A bt Purnell C 73-42 (12-0); Norwest B bt Weston (Bath) B 56-53 (10-2); Sydney Gardens bt Prattens 66-50 (12-0); City of Wells bt Knowle C 92-46 (12-0); Alexandra B bt Bloomfield C 80-34 (12-0); Keynsham B bt Bath C 53-51 (8-4). East 3: Keynsham C bt Stothert Pitt B 59-48 (12-0). North 1: Portishead RBL B bt Congresbury A 56-55 (9-3); Burnham-on-Sea A bt Clevedon B 56-44 (8-4); Winscombe B bt Bristol B 59-57 (10-2); Weston St Andrew’s A bt Winscombe A 60-54 (8-4); West Backwell bt Isle of Wedmore A 71-63 (12-0). North 2: Weston St Andrew’s B bt Wrington 75-44 (12-0); Victoria B bt Burnham-on-Sea B 63-60 (10-2); Isle of Wedmore B bt Portishead RBL C 77-48 (10-2); Banwell B bt Ashcombe B 60-51 (12-0); Nailsea B bt Ashcombe A 69-54 (10-2). North 3: Bristol C bt Clarence B 62-54 (10-2); Mark Moor bt Chew Stoke B 55-50 (12-0); Portishead bt Victoria C 64-34 (12-0); Victoria D bt Winscombe C 60-58 (10-2); Clevedon Promenade B bt Congresbury B 69-48 (10-2). South West 1: Ilminster B bt Bridgwater Victoria Park 65-63 (10-2); Taunton Deane A bt Minehead A 60-54 (9-3); Wyrral Park A bt Williton 61-57 (11-1); Westland Sports A bt Taunton B 59-51 (8-4); Watchet B t/w Bridgwater B 62-62 (6-6); Yeovil B bt Crewkerne 72-58 (10-2). South West 2: North Petherton B bt Minehead B 80-51 (10-2); Westland Sports B bt Wyrral Park B 67-37 (12-0); Taunton C bt Wellington B 63-57 (10-2); Ilminster C bt Yeovil C 62-61 (8-4).

RECENT STORIES

LATE WICKETS LEAVE SOMERSET MATCH FINELY POISED AT CLOSE ON DAY TWO –
Derbyshire claimed two late wickets – including one with the final ball of the day – to stall the Somerset fightback and keep the match in the balance after Day Two at Taunton. More…

DERBYSHIRE HOLD ADVANTAGE AFTER EXTRAORDINARY OPENING DAY –
Derbyshire blew Somerset away, dismissing them for just 103 before closing yesterday on 220-5, as 15 wickets fell on an extraordinary opening day at Taunton. More…

WORLD NUMBER ONE BATSMAN CONDEMNS DERBYSHIRE TO DEFEAT –
A high class innings of 88 from Hashim Amla helped steer Surrey past their 217-run victory target at the Kia Oval. More…

BATTLING DERBYSHIRE STILL IN THE HUNT ON FINAL DAY AT THE OVAL –
A battling half century from Wayne Madsen – and some useful runs from the tail – has left the match with Surrey still in the balance after Day Three at the Kia Oval. More…

A DIFFICULT OPENING DAY FOR DERBYSHIRE AT THE OVAL –
Shivnarine Chanderpaul top scored with 46 – but four wickets from Tim Linley helped Surrey dismiss Derbyshire for 219 on Day One at the Kia Oval. More…

HUGHES STARS, BUT HAMPSHIRE CLAIM THE WIN AT DERBYSHIRE –
Chesney Hughes struck an explosive 74 – but Hampshire Royals defeated the Derbyshire Falcons by 41 runs at the County Ground, Derby More…

GODLEMAN’S DEFIANCE IN VAIN AS ESSEX SEAL YB40
WIN –
Billy Godleman’s defiant 59 was in vain, as Essex Eagles claimed victory at Castle Park Cricket Ground, Colchester. More…

DERBYSHIRE DELIGHT AFTER A SECOND STRAIGHT FOUR DAY WIN –
Derbyshire claimed their second consecutive LV= County Championship Division One victory and move out of the bottom two after thrilling 56-run win against Middlesex at the County Ground. More…

LATE WICKETS COMPLETE A TERRIFIC DAY THREE FOR DERBYSHIRE –
Two late wickets – after an excellent half-century from Richard Johnson – completed a terrific day for Derbyshire against Middlesex at the County Ground. More…

DERBYSHIRE IN A STRONG POSITION AFTER DAY TWO AT MIDDLESEX –
Some late hitting from Tim Groenewald and a disciplined bowling performance has put Derbyshire in a strong position after Day Two against Middlesex at the County Ground. More…

MADSEN STARS FOR DERBYSHIRE ON OPENING DAY AT MIDDLESEX –
Wayne Madsen became the first man to reach 1,000 LV= County Championship runs this season on Day One against Middlesex at the County Ground. More…

DERBYSHIRE SEAL A DOMINANT VICTORY OVER DURHAM –
Derbyshire Falcons produced a dominant performance in the field to seal a convincing 107-run victory at the County Ground. More…

CRICKET DERBYSHIRE LAUNCHES APPRENTICESHIP SCHEME –
Cricket Derbyshire launch new Sports Leadership Apprenticeship Scheme for 16 to 18 year olds. More…

LIGHTNING CLAIM VICTORY OVER THE FALCONS AT OLD TRAFFORD –
Despite Derbyshire Skipper Wayne Madsen and David Wainwright hitting career-best scores, a composed innings from Ashwell Prince helped guide Lancashire Lightning to victory at Old Trafford. More…

WHITTINGTON CRICKET, COMMUNITY CHARITY FESTIVAL THIS SUNDAY 18th –
To celebrate 60 years since Old Whittington Cricket Club was founded, there’s a gala event on Brearley Park, Sunday 18th August. More…

HUGHES AND BORRINGTON KNOCKS IN VAIN AS SURREY SEAL DRAMATIC WIN –
Gary Wilson’s brutal 85 helped Surrey claim a dramatic final-ball victory against Derbyshire Falcons at the Kia Oval. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC RECEIVES GROUND DEVELOPMENT FUNDING BOOST –
Derbyshire CCC has announced that ground development plans are being reviewed following confirmation of potential ECB grant funding totalling £1.7million. More…

DERBYSHIRE DELIGHT AT 1st
CHAMPIONSHIP WIN – WITH A DAY TO SPARE! –
An outstanding performance in the field, followed by a composed showing with the bat, helped Derbyshire claim their first LV= County Championship victory of the season against Sussex at Hove. More…

MADSEN BURGOYNE SPARK DERBYSHIRE FIGHTBACK ON DAY 2 –
Wayne Madsen led by example hitting a superb 97, as together with Peter Burgoyne, the pair helped kick-start the Derbyshire fightback on Day Two against Sussex at Hove.
More…

ALEX HUGHES STARS ON FIRST CLASS DERBYSHIRE DEBUT –
Academy graduate Alex Hughes enjoyed a dream first-class debut claiming three wickets to help dismiss Sussex for 314 on the opening day at Hove. More…

DERBYSHIRE’S DEFEAT TO DURHAM ENDS T20 QUARTER FINAL HOPES –
Gordon Muchall’s explosive half-century helped Durham Dynamos secure a 37-run victory against Derbyshire, finally laying to rest Falcons’ slim hopes of T20 Quarter Final qualification More…

DERBYSHIRE’S T20 HOPES HANG IN THE BALANCE AFTER CRUSHING DEFEAT –
Derbyshire’s T20 campaign is all but over, as they lost a vital encounter at the County Ground on Friday evening to Leicestershire Foxes.
More…

FALCONS v FOXES T20 MATCH PREVIEW AND NEWS OF ONE OUT FOR DERBYSHIRE –
Derbyshire appear to be on the cusp of something unusual – a place in the Quarter Finals of the Friends Life T20 competition as Ross Whiteley leaves for Worcestershire More…

DERBYSHIRE DELIGHT IN EAST MIDLAND T20 BATTLE –
Derbyshire beat Nottinghamshire for the first time in nine attempts in T20 cricket at a rain affected Trent Bridge. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC APPOINT REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES –
Derbyshire County Cricket Club has announced the first seven Members’ Regional Representatives following the recent change in the Club’s governance More…

DERBYSHIRE END CHESTERFIELD FESTIVAL OF CRICKET WITH T20 DEFEAT –
Derbyshire’s T20 Campaign is hanging by a thread as Durham won at Queen’s Park with an over to spare, thanks to Durham’s Ben Stokes and Gordon Muchall More…

YORKSHIRE CRUISE TO AN INNINGS WIN OVER A DEFIANT DERBYSHIRE –
As defeats go, this was a bad one as Derbyshire lost by an innings as Yorkshire cruised to the top of the table. More…

DERBYSHIRE STARING AT DEFEAT AFTER HUGE YORKSHIRE INNINGS ON DAY 2 –
At the close of play on Day 2, Derbyshire were in a horrible position to avoid defeat at Queen’s Park in this LV= County Championship Div 1 match. More…

YORKSHIRE DOMINATE DERBYSHIRE ON OPENING DAY AT QUEEN’S PARK –
Yorkshire totally dominated the opening day of this County Championship match at Queen’s Park, Chesterfield. More…

COUNCILLOR CALLS FOR CRICKET TO INSPIRE ACTIVE LIFESTYLES –
The four day cricket match between Derbyshire and Yorkshire at Queen’s Park, Chesterfield this week, will be attended by 500 local school children. More…

LOCAL YOUNGSTER SET FOR FAIRY TALE QUEEN’S PARK APPEARANCE –
Local boy Ben Slater is set to play on his home patch – as Derbyshire face Yorkshire at Chesterfield starting tomorrow (Wednesday 17th) at 11am. More…

VIKINGS PIP THE FALCONS DESPITE MORKEL HEROICS –
Despite heroics from the Falcons overseas star, Albie Morkel, Derbyshire went down to a third consecutive defeat in their Friends Life T20 campaign at a sold out Queens Park yesterday. More…

CHESTERFIELD FESTIVAL OF CRICKET TICKET WINNERS –
We now know the 4 lucky winners of our Free Pair of Tickets Competition for games during this week’s Chesterfield Festival of Cricket at Queen’s Park, Chesterfield More…

LIGHTNING DOESN’T STRIKE TWICE FOR THE FALCONS –
Lightning doesn’t strike twice for the Falcons as they took a competitive score set by Lancashire to the last over in their Friend Life t20 game at Old Trafford this evening More…

DURHAM DEFEAT DERBYSHIRE ON FINAL MORNING –
Chris Rushworth sealed career-best match figures on the final morning, as Durham quickly picked up the last three Derbyshire wickets to complete a 279-run victory at Chester-le-Street. More…

‘LOADS OF LEGENDS’ AS TEAMS ANNOUNCED FOR CHARITY MATCH –
Aussie Legend Glenn McGrath has named a side packed with former Australia and England internationals as Derbyshire Legend Kim Barnett leads a Cricket Derbyshire side containing a further array of club legends More…

DURHAM DOMINATE ON DAY 3 –
Derbyshire suffered another chastening day in their LV=County Championship match against Durham despite half-centuries for Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Tom Poynton. More…

BORTHWICK KNOCK PUTS DURHAM FIRMLY ON TOP ON DAY 2 –
Chris Rushworth claimed six wickets, before Scott Borthwick compiled a career-best score with the bat to put Durham firmly in control after Day 2, yesterday at Chester-le-Street. More…

OWZAT FOR A GREAT SET OF PINK WHEELS-
Chesterfield Auto Retailer, Autoworld Suzuki – has entered into the spirit of the Chesterfield Turns Pink Twenty20 – by donating a pink car! More…

FOOTITT PUTS DURHAM TO THE SWORD ON OPENING DAY –
Mark Footitt claimed career-best figures to dismiss Durham on the opening day of the LV= County Championship fixture at Chester-le-Street. More…

WIN TICKETS FOR CHESTERFIELD FESTIVAL OF CRICKET AT QUEEN’S PARK –
To celebrate this year’s Hill Dickinson Chesterfield Festival of Cricket, we have 4 PAIRS OF TICKETS TO GIVE AWAY in our great, FREE to Enter competition. More…

‘NORMAL SERVICE RESUMED’ FOR THE FALCONS? MATCH REPORT –
It was ‘normal service resumed’ for the Falcons tonight at a sold out County Ground, as Derbyshire lost for the eighth consecutive time in a Twenty 20 match versus their East Midlands rivals. More…

FALCONS v OUTLAWS GAME IS A SELL OUT –
Following three successive victories for Wayne Madsen’s table-toppers – Derbyshire Falcons’ Friends Life t20 derby, v Nottinghamshire Outlaws tonight (Friday 5th July) has sold out. More…

FALCONS v OUTLAWS HEADING FOR A SELL OUT THIS FRIDAY –
Sales for the Friends Life t20 East Midlands derby between the Falcons and Nottinghamshire Outlaws have already topped 4,000. More…

FALCONS MAKE IT A PERFECT 3 OUT OF 3 SO FAR IN THE T20 –
Derbyshire again won a last over T20 thriller last night, this time at the County Ground against Lancashire. More…

DURSTON’S DELIGHT AT DERBYSHIRE’S T20 START –
This has been a great start to Derbyshire’s Friends Life T20 campaign, a victory at Headingley and a win at Grace Road and Wes Durston is delighted. More…

DERBYSHIRE MAKE IT A T20 DOUBLE AS THEY BEAT THE FOXES –
Derbyshire made it two wins out of two with a victory at Grace Road with excellent individual performances from Wes Durston (83, 1-17), Dan Redfern (2-24) and David Wainwright (3-24) More…

FALCONS START T20 CAMPAIGN WITH VICTORY OVER THE VIKINGS –
Derbyshire’s T20 Campaign got off to a winning start at Headingley tonight, although the manner of the win had all hearts racing More…

FALCONS T20 CAMPAIGN KICK OFF TONIGHT AGAINST YORKSHIRE VIKINGS –
Derbyshire’s T20 campaign gets underway at Headingley, Leeds tonight, in what could be described as one of the toughest opening matches they could have. More…

NEW STAR STUDDED FIXTURE ANNOUNCED AS CHESTERFIELD TURNS PINK –
Chesterfield will turn pink on Monday 15th July as Australian Test Cricket legend and Co-Founder of the McGrath Foundation, Glenn McGrath, spearheads a star-studded charity Twenty20 line-up More…

BAD BATTING SESSION COSTS DERBYSHIRE –
The hopes of a first championship win of the season were dashed in the most crucial of games at Derby. More…

BOWLERS STAR FOR DERBYSHIRE ON THIRD DAY –
On a day spoiled by the rain at the County Ground, Derbyshire did their best to stick their noses in front by quickly dismissing Somerset with a lead of 50 runs. More…

DERBYSHIRE EDGE A RAIN AFFECTED SECOND DAY –
Tony Palladino made a welcome return with the ball for the Derbyshire attack, with a four wicket salvo against an experienced Somerset batting line-up More…

NEITHER SIDE TAKES ADVANTAGE ON DAY 1 AT THE COUNTY GROUND –
On a day which ebbed and flowed, both sides will claim they had a decent enough one. Day one’s Match Report by Paul Fisher More…

DERBYSHIRE v SOMERSET. 4 DAY MATCH PREVIEW –
Derbyshire face their biggest match of the season to date as they host fellow championship strugglers Somerset at the County Ground More…

RAIN FALLS ON THE FALCONS AGAIN. MATCH REPORT –
Yorkshire Bank 40, Group B. County Ground, Derby.
Derbyshire Falcons, 36-2 v Scotland Saltires. Match Abandoned Derbyshire 1 point, Scotland 1 point. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC v SCOTLAND YORKSHIRE BANK 40 MATCH PREVIEW –
Derbyshire’s home campaign in the Yorkshire Bank 40 competition sees them without defeat. More…

DERBYSHIRE DRAW AT THE BRIDGE –
Michael Lumb struck a career-best 221 not out as Nottinghamshire versus Derbyshire ended in a rain-affected draw at Trent Bridge. More…

TIM GROENEWALD REACHES CAREER MILESTONE AT TRENT BRIDGE ON DAY 3 –
Tim Groenewald claimed his 200th career first-class wicket – but an unbeaten century from Michael Lumb frustrated the Derbyshire bowlers on another rain-affected day at Trent Bridge. More…

MATCH FINELY POISED AFTER A RAIN AFFECTED SECOND DAY –
Heavy rain washed out the final two sessions at Trent Bridge after Derbyshire lost quick wickets in the morning to leave the LV= County Championship fixture finely poised after the second day against Nottinghamshire More…

MADSEN AND CHANDERPAUL DEFIANT IN THE RAIN –
A fine 145-run partnership between Wayne Madsen and Shivnarine Chanderpaul has put Derbyshire into a strong position after a rain-effected opening day against Nottinghamshire. More…

RECORD BREAKING DERBYSHIRE STUN ESSEX AT LEEK –
Falcons took an impressive 63 run victory in the Yorkshire Bank 40 game against Essex Eagles at Highfield, Leek yesterday. More…

FALCONS EAGLES DO BATTLE ON LEEK’S BIG DAY IN THE SUN –
The weather forecast is good – AND – supporters who purchase tickets in advance for Derbyshire Falcons v Essex Eagles, at Leek CC on Sunday, can still reap the benefits of discounted prices. More…

CARIBBEAN T20 ENDS DERBYSHIRE’S HOPES OF MARTIN GUPTILL’S RETURN IN 2013 –
Martin Guptill has ended speculation linking him with Derbyshire for the 2013 Friends Life t20 competition – but he has confirmed ambitions to play for the Club again. More…

DERBYSHIRE EARN A DRAW AFTER HUGHES’ QUICK FIRE HALF CENTURY. REPORT –
A quick-fire half century from Chesney Hughes in Derbyshire’s second innings, ensured the home fixture against Surrey ended in a draw today More…

FALCONS’ BAD LUCK IN YB40 COMPETITION CONTINUES AS MATCH IS ABANDONED –
Derbyshire’s bad luck at home in the Yorkshire Bank 40 over competition continued – not in losing the match in a cricketing format, but by being defeated by the English weather. More…

DERBYSHIRE v SURREY YB40 MATCH PREVIEW –
Derbyshire return to the County Ground this afternoon after a weekend trip to the North which saw the Falcons return with a win and a rain affected defeat. More…

TICKET OFFER AND DERBYSHIRE FIRE SERVICE AT FALCONS v SURREY GAME –
Falcons face Surrey in Wednesday’s YB40 fixture and there’s a special price half term ticket – along with the attendance of Derbyshire Fire Service after launch of new Community Partnership. More…

RAIN ENDS FALCON’S HOPES AT DURHAM –
Despite a fluent innings from Paul Borrington, rain ended any chances of Derbyshire reaching their revised target at the Durham Emirates ICG – as Durham claimed a 43-run Duckworth Lewis victory. More…

FOOTITT PUTS SCOTLAND TO THE SWORD. MATCH REPORT –
A career-best bowling performance from Mark Footitt blew the Scots away as Derbyshire captured victory in Edinburgh. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC ANNOUNCE TRIO OF CHARITY PARTNERS FOR 2013 –
Cricket Derbyshire has announced its Official Charity Partners for 2013 – Sight Support Derbyshire, Derbyshire Community Foundation and Derbyshire, Leicestershire Rutland Air Ambulance. More…

SUSSEX CLAIM NINE WICKET VICTORY ON FINAL MORNING AT COUNTY GROUND –
Sussex sealed a nine-wicket victory against Derbyshire on the final morning of their LV= County Championship Division One fixture at the County Ground. More…

STEVE STUBBINGS TO COACH SECOND XI –
Former Derbyshire batsman Stephen Stubbings has been added to the coaching team which will see Andrew Harris re-deployed as specialist Bowling Coach. More…

AUTOWORLD NEW SPONSORS OF 2013 CRICKET COVERAGE –
The Chesterfield Post are pleased to announce that Autoworld Chesterfield are the new sponsors for our expanded coverage this season of newly promoted Derbyshire CCC. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC EXTEND PARTNERSHIP WITH UNIVERSITY OF DERBY –
Derbyshire County Cricket Club and The University of Derby have stepped up their established partnership ahead of the 2013 season. More…

SPIREITE SLATER HOPES TO SHINE FOR DERBYSHIRE CCC –
One to come through the Derbyshire CCC ranks is Ben Slater, born in Chesterfield, grew up in Bolsover More…

ALL ROUNDER HUGHES COMPLETES ENGLAND QUALIFICATION –
Derbyshire CCC announced today that Chesney Hughes has completed his residency and now plays for Derbyshire as an England Qualified cricketer More…

ALL ROUNDER HUGHES SIGNS NEW DEAL –
Chesney Hughes has signed a new two-a-half-year contract committing the all-rounder to the Club until September 2015. More…

DERBYSHIRE MEMBERS RUBBER-STAMP GOVERNANCE CHANGE –
Derbyshire County Cricket Club is welcoming a new era of corporate governance after crucial proposals for reform gained 96% of the Members’ Vote. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC APPOINT NEW PRESIDENT –
Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant of Derbyshire since May 14th 2009, Willie Tucker, has been appointed President of Derbyshire County Cricket Club. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC TO MAKE LEEK RETURN –
The Derbyshire versus Essex Yorkshire Bank 40 fixture on Sunday 9th June has been switched from the County Ground, Derby, to Highfield, Leek. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC ANNOUNCES ANOTHER PROFIT –
Derbyshire County Cricket Club has recorded a profit of £23,310 for 2012; the club’s sixth surplus in seven years. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC CONFIRM PRE-SEASON SCHEDULE –
Derbyshire CCC’s pre-season tour of Barbados will be followed by further friendly matches versus Somerset and Nottinghamshire prior to the start of the 2013 campaign More…

CRICKET DERBYSHIRE UNVEILS NEW DUO –
Derbyshire CCC have captured the headlines with their on-field recruitment recently; but the newly recruited off-field duo of Ryan Duckett and Andrew Bowley could prove equally important. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC CONTINGENT ARRIVE IN SRI LANKA –
Captain Wayne Madsen is leading a seven-strong party to Sri Lanka as Derbyshire’s preparations for the 2013 campaign continue. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC 6 POINT STRATEGY FOR 2013-2019 –
Derbyshire County Cricket Club has released it’s strategic six-point plan with the aim of inspiring ambition and purpose by promoting cricket in Derbyshire. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC ANNOUNCE 2013 ACADEMY –
Cricket Derbyshire has announced its Academy intake for 2013 and a groundbreaking Academy partnership with the University of Derby. More…

DERBYSHIRE CCC SIGN CHANDERPAUL –
The current number two Test batsman in the world, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, has signed for Derbyshire CCC More…

KRIKKEN ISSUES RALLYING CRY AS DERBYSHIRE LAUNCH 2013 MEMBERSHIP –
Derbyshire will play First Division cricket next summer following their recent promotion as champions – but the price of Membership remains unchanged. More…

 

 

 

 

Busy moms have to multitask, but a woman in Yuzhou, China, recently got stopped by police for breastfeeding her 18-month-old son while riding on a moped.

The young mom was allegedly weaving her scooter through traffic while holding her 18-month-old son in her arms, when the kid started crying, the Hollywood Gossip reported.

Witnesses said the mom started to breastfeed the child while keeping a hand on the handlebars, Orange News reported.

Officers pulled over the woman before she caused an accident.

“She was risking her life, her son’s life and the lives of all the other road users,” a police spokesman said according to the website. “We told her that if she carried on we would confiscate her bike,” they added.

The unidentified woman isn’t the first mom accused of this sort of distracted driving.

In June 2008, Catherine Donkers, 29, was accused of child endangerment for trying to breastfeed her daughter while driving from Detroit to Pittsburgh on the Ohio Turnpike. She was also cited for not having a license.

Donkers told ABC News that she thought the citation was out of line and planned to fight it all the way.

“It’s not like I’m trying to change a diaper while I’m driving, she pretty much just lays there on the pillow in my lap,” she said. “I would certainly submit that talking on a cell phone causes far more distraction than nursing a child while she’s just laying there.”

In February, 2009, police in Kettering, Ohio, pulled over Genine Compton because she was allegedly breast feeding and talking on the cell phone while driving, WHIO-TV reported.

She reportedly had the child in the lap with the baby’s head up against the steering wheel, adding not only the risk of injury if there was a crash, but possible deployment of the airbag.

Although she was issued citations for child endangering and violating the child restraint law, she told the station, “If my child’s hungry, I’m going to feed it.”

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  One of the men, a 27-year-old who police suspect was driving, returned to the scene to collect his wallet, police obtained a sample of his blood for a blood-alcohol analysis.

  The investigation is ongoing and no charges have been filed yet.

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• Snow Church

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Garth le Roux was unable to play for South Africa due to their ban from international cricket as a result of apartheid.

Garth le Roux was born on September 4, 1955 — too late to play Test cricket before South Africa’s isolation and too early to represent his country after their return to the fold. But, as he demonstrated in World Series Cricket, during his stint for Sussex and in the ‘Tests’ played against the rebel sides, he was one of the foremost fast bowlers of his generation. Arunabha Sengupta looks back at the playing days of the man who finished as the highest wicket taker for South Africa in the rebel ‘Tests’.
 

Big, fast and lethal
 
December 4, 1978. The evening news in the eastern states of Australia had just made way for the live telecast of the World Series Cricket one-day game from the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).
 
Kerry Packer’s parallel world of cricket was at last attracting some eyeballs. The match was strategically scheduled on the rest day of the First Test between Graham Yallop’s second string Australians and Ray Illingworth’s almost full strength England being played at the Gabba.
 
In the traditional form of the game, Australia were doing badly. They had gone into the day of rest at 157 for three in their second innings after trailing by 170 in the first. The fans around the country perhaps switched their attention to something more regaling, with the WSC Australians starting their chase of a paltry 163 scored by the WSC World XI. They were in for a shock.
 
Clutching the new ball was a new name that did not ring any bell. And in three deliveries Garth le Roux had removed both the Chappell brothers, Greg and Ian. Breathtakingly fast, he was anything but Whispering Death. As his big brawny form hustled in to bowl, the earth almost shook as his large boots thudded on the ground. Everyone knew that he was on his way to deliver the ball.
 
An over later, he sent through another ball, hair-raisingly quick, and beat Bruce Laird for pace. The 23-year-old, a fresh recruit in the championships, was given a breather by skipper Tony Greig. He walked away to the outfield with figures reading 5-2-6-3.
 
By the time he was called back after two hours, Clive Rice, Imran Khan and Asif Iqbal had reduced the Australian team to the brink of defeat. And the young man charged in and hit Dennis Lillee painfully with three successive deliveries. Greig could hardly conceal his glee. An unhappy Lillee skied a catch off Rice. The home side were all out for 100.
 
It was on Greig’s recommendation that Packer had accepted le Roux, a slippery fast bowler who had taken 53 wickets for Eddie Barlow’s Western Province in the 1977-78 Currie Cup. A small complication needed to be sorted out — termed the Pollock-Hobson problem after the great Graeme Pollock and South African leg-spinner Denys Hobson. It was a political issue that plagued the West Indian cricketers. Their board had no issues about their playing in county cricket alongside or against South African cricketers. And as long as they did not play in South Africa, they could share the ground with the South African county cricketers without uncomfortable questions. However, it was politically sensitive to play South Africans who did not play in the county circuit.
 
This difficulty was astutely resolved. Eddie Barlow recommended le Roux for half a season with the Sussex second XI. And after a First-Class game against New Zealand, he was politically emancipated.
 

WSC heroics
 
After the showdown at Sydney, le Roux took on the WSC Australians in a Supertest at VLF Park Melbourne. Lillee had not forgotten the three stinging blows. He ran in and unleashed a quick, full delivery that thudded on the pads of the South African. The appeal that followed had characteristic Lillee menace written all over it. The finger went up. The Australian fast bowler took four for 53 in 32.4 overs and World XI were bowled out for 175.
 
Le Roux responded by bowling Laird before close of play. He came back the next day to get night-watchman Ray Bright, Ian Chappell and David Hookes, before sending down a snorter that Lillee fended into the waiting hands of Majid Khan. The South African finished with five for 39 and WSC Australians were all out for 150. The spinners played a bigger role as the match went on and Majid’s six hour 77 enabled World XI to win by 102 runs.
 
As the year drew to an end, the WSC West Indies took on World XI for a one-day match at the Gabba. Andy Roberts, Bernard Julien, Wayne Daniel and Joel Garner restricted the World side to 197. In response, Le Roux blew them away with the wickets of Richard Austin, Viv Richards, Clive Lloyd and Julien while conceding just 27. With Sarfraz Nawaz charging in from the other end, the West Indians were bundled for 107. Le Roux was proving to be as fast and as good as the best of them.
 
On New Year’s Day, 1979, the WSC Australians were sent in to bat at Brisbane on one of the fastest pitches ever seen. Le Roux sent the ball darting across like a streak of white lightning. Barry Richards recalled, “When I caught Greg Chappell at slip off the second ball, it was like catching a razor blade at 100mph. The pitch was a Clem Jones special.” By noon, le Roux had  figures of 6.1-2-6-5. With Rice claiming four for 14, the Australians were crushed for just 54. The World XI got the runs in 12.3 overs.
 
Next, it was the turn of the World Series Cricket Cavaliers, to experience the heat generated by the South African. Facing the World XI in a two-day game, the line up consisting of Rick McCosker, Trevor Chappell, Martin Kent and Ian Redpath lasted just 54.4 overs in the first innings and 33.4 in the second as they lost by an innings. Again, le Roux was the principal destroyer, with five for 27 and two for 10.
 
However, the best of le Roux’s incredible displays was saved for the last. World XI and WSC Australians met at the Sydney Cricket Ground for the grand final of the SuperTests series.

Garth le Roux (third from left) rolls up his sleeves amid players representing the World in the Grand Final of the Supertest against Australia in Sydney on  February 4, 1979. Other in the pix are (from left) Tony Greig, Barry Richards, Clive Rice, Derek Underwood, Eddie Barlow, Mike Procter and Zaheer Abbas © Getty Images

On a helpful SCG pitch, the South African pacemen showed the world — at least the meagre numbers who bothered to watch — what they had been missing. With Greg Chappell sitting in dark glasses in the commentary box after a sudden affliction of Bell’s palsy, Le Roux soon had the other Australian batsmen hopping all over the place. And along with him, compatriots Mike Procter and Clive Rice chipped in with regular wickets. Three hours after the 1:30 PM start, the hosts had been reduced to 80 for seven. Some rearguard action by the tail hauled the total to 172. Le Roux had five for 57, Rice two for 38 and Procter three for 33. Among the four pronged pace attack the bowler who remained wicket-less was Imran Khan.
 
Lillee and Gary Gilmour returned the compliments for the WSC Australians, restricting the World XI to 100 for eight by the end of the first day. The ninth wicket went early enough the following morning when Gilmour bowled Alan Knott at 104. Now le Roux, bat in hand, added 64 dogged, determined runs with Derek Underwood, keeping the Australian lead down to just four runs. Le Roux remained unbeaten with 33.
 
And now, when WSC Australia batted again, he dismissed the fighting Hookes for 96 and followed it up with the three remaining wickets, hastening the innings from 203 for six to 219 al-lout. Le Roux’s haul in the second innings was four for 44 — nine for 101 in the match. And then Richards essayed one of his best ever innings to take World XI home by five wickets.
 
Le Roux had become the unknown great fast bowler. It is a pity that very few watched him in action during those incredible days. Those who did were convinced he was one of the very best in business.
 
Imran Khan, who shared the new ball with him for much of the World Series, was suitably impressed to recommend him to Sussex. And down the years, the two of them formed a lethal opening attack for the county, matched only by Clive Rice and Richard Hadlee of Nottinghamshire. It was quite a giant step for someone whose cricketing formative years had been largely concealed from the world.
 

Absence of a stage
 
The Pollocks, Procter, Richards and the others had at least managed to enjoy the spotlight for some ephemeral moments. But le Roux, born in 1955, was perhaps one of the most unfortunate.
 
He was only eight when the insanity of South African sports was revealed in the most striking manner in 1963. Papwa Sewgolum, a self-taught golfer classified as an Indian, achieved success abroad with two Dutch Open championships under his belt. He was given special dispensation to participate in the Natal Open. Sewgolum won the tournament. And as The Group Areas Act forbade a black man from entering the clubhouse except as a servant, he stood outside in the rain to receive his trophy through an open window.
 
Le Roux was only 13 when momentous events were shaking the world. The US Civil Rights movement was drawing to an end; it was the beginning of the end of the Vietnam War; Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy were assassinated; there was increasing excitement surrounding the first manned Apollo Missions; Swaziland, Mauritius and Equatorial Ghana were attaining independence; the Soviet Union was meeting attempted reforms in Prague with brutal military force. And amidst all this, a Cape Coloured South African-born cricketer was scoring 158 for England against Australia at The Oval. The Basil D’Oliveira affair took place before le Roux had reached the age of cricketing maturity. The same year, the country was boycotted from the Olympic Games.
 
International demands for decoupling politics and sports fell on the deaf years of Prime Minister John Vorster. This was demonstrated by two tournaments under the Olympic Symbol — white South African games held at Bloemfontein in 1969 and a black counterpart in Soweto in 1970.
 
And by the time he was making his mark in junior grade cricket, South Africa had already played their last Test before isolation.
 
For the initial years, le Roux’s international exposure had been limited to one game for Western Province against DH Robin’s XI. Robins, a flamboyant businessman who had for a brief while been a Warwickshire batsman, organised private tours to the country. Although not comparable to official matches, these provided the only taste of international cricket at a time when it was most needed. This team that visited in early 1976 had stalwarts like David Lloyd, Roger Tolchard, David Steele, Trevor Chappell, Frank Hayes and Derek Randall. Le Roux bowled Western Province to a 78 run victory with five for 30 and two for 44.
 
Yet, for years he had been hankering for a chance to prove to the world that the new crop of South Africans were still some of the best cricketers of the world. And he used the stage of Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket to perfection.
 
It opened the doors for a long relationship with Sussex, and le Roux enjoyed himself. As many as 81 wickets were captured in 1981. It included a spectacular combination of 65 not out, two for 39 and eight for 107 in a resounding victory against Somerset. In that match, le Roux claimed Viv Richards in both innings, Ian Botham in one and then thrashed the England all-rounder for valuable late order runs.
 

The rebel tours
 
In between the county championships, bushels of wickets were taken in the domestic South African Currie Cup. From the late seventies, he could also be counted upon for some useful runs. As many as six half centuries were scored in the English summer of 1982, on the way to 737 runs at 32.04 and 65 wickets at 18.01.
 
Yet, for all the success, something was missing. A cricketer of le Roux’s calibre yearned to pit his skills against the best in the world. And opportunity presented itself in the early eighties, as England toured India in 1981-82 to play a series that sucked every bit of passion out of the game.
 
Sunil Gavaskar’s team won the first of the six Tests at Bombay and proceeded to play five draws that were as close to doldrums as possible. According to Bob Willis, even with spinners in operation, nine or ten overs were bowled per hour. “It was the most mind-numbingly tedious cricket series you could imagine.” The tourists were also upset by the standard of umpiring and Graham Gooch would later write that visiting India had bored and disillusioned him off the field as well as on.
 
Plans were hatched during this tour. The interested players used a chess code to arrange clandestine get-togethers: “knights and castles meet in bishop’s room at nine.” Amidst severe reprimands of politicians, press and former players from all over the world, a quiet, private tour was arranged, which soon got very loud in the media. Gooch led the side, and it featured Geoff Boycott, Wayne Larkins, Dennis Amiss, Bob Woolmer, Peter Willey, Derek Underwood, Alan Knott, Chris Old, John Lever and Mike Hendrick. The average age was over 34, the balance was perhaps lacking with Willey batting at number five and Knott at six. But, the quality of the side could not be questioned.
 
In March 1982, the sides met for the first ‘Test’ between the South African XI and the curiously named South African Breweries England XI. Mike Procter led the South African side, and the players were hand-picked by their last international captain, Dr Ali Bacher. In the end it was a surfeit of talent — Barry Richards, Graeme Pollock, Jimmy Cook, Peter Kirsten, Clive Rice, Ray Jennings, Alan Kourie, Stephen Jefferies, Vincent van der Bijl and Garth le Roux.
 
Having waited years for such a showdown, le Roux picked up four for 44 in the second innings as the South Africans won by eight wickets.
 
Later that year, another international side visited–limited in ability but vital for the continuation of South African cricket. Le Roux routed the Bandula Warnapura led Sri Lankans with six for 55 in the first innings.
 
Perhaps the strongest team arrived in early 1983. The West Indian rebels were led by Lawrence Rowe and included names like Alvin Kallicharran, Bernard Julien, Collis King, Colin Croft, David Murray, Franklin Stephenson, Ezra Moseley and Sylvester Clarke. The grounds were packed for every game and the black fans now discovered identifiable heroes. It was perhaps a tour that worked miracles against the apartheid system.
 
The series was extremely competitive. The two ‘Tests’ were tied 1-1, and the South Africans won the one-day series 4-2. Le Roux picked up four wickets in each ‘Test’ and scored some useful runs in the first. In one of the limited over games he also got into a heated exchange with Colin Croft. More than anything else, the face-off between the two fast bowlers underlined the intensity with which the series was contested.
 

Hat-trick and all that
 
The visits of the international teams continued all through the eighties.The West Indian rebels returned under Alvin Kallicharran in 1983-84 and beat South Africa in both the ‘Test’ series and one-dayers. This was followed by the visit of the Australians under Kim Hughes in 1985-86 and again in 1986-87.
 
In all 19 ‘Tests’ were played against these rebel teams. Batsmen Jimmy Cook and Peter Kirsten played in every one of them. Clive Rice took part in 18. Le Roux appeared in 15 ‘Tests’, capturing 59 wickets in all — by far the highest by a South African in these encounters. These came at 23.27 apiece with two five-wicket hauls.
 
Perhaps his greatest performances were produced within the course of a few days in January, 1986. Playing the third and final ‘Test’ of the series till then tied 0-0, Kim Hughes’s Australians needed 250 to win in the final innings at Johannesburg. And with the score on 29 for one, le Roux bowled Greg Shipperd, got Kim Hughes caught behind and trapped Mick Taylor leg before off successive balls. The hat-trick broke the back of Australian batting and their innings tottered and crashed for 61.
 
A week later, at Port Elizabeth, he produced another searing, hostile spell of bowling in the third match of the one-day series, taking five for 13 off eight overs and a ball.
 
When Australia returned the next season in 1986-87, le Roux produced a spectacular spell of swing bowling during the third one-day match at Cape Town, blowing the Australians away to 15 for seven in less than an hour. They recovered, if such a term may be used, to score 85, and le Roux bagged six wickets for 21 off his 10 overs. He was modest about his deed, “It was just one of those days where the ball swung nicely. It wasn’t particularly fast or aggressive but the ball just swung and they kept nicking it. It was quite bizarre. People were still coming in when the game was over.”
 

The final analysis
 
The following summer, le Roux played his last season in England. He appeared in just 14 matches and took 32 wickets at 24.00. For a big fast bowler of his times, he was getting on in years at 32. He played intermittently in two more domestic seasons before finally calling it a day, leaving the pace bowling department in excellent hands of Allan Donald and Richard Snell.
 
Le Roux finished his career with 838 wickets in First-Class cricket at 21.24, with 35 five-fors and three 10-wicket hauls. He also scored over 5,000 runs in 238 matches, with 26 fifties, averaging a thoroughly respectable 25.71. For Western Province, his 372 wickets came at just 18.98. For Sussex he captured 393 at 23.16.
 
For a while, le Roux remained associated with the game as a selector. He later made his living as an agent selling property at an upmarket gold estate near George in South Africa’s Western Cape Province. In April 2006, he was sentenced to four years in jail for tax fraud along with his accountant Deon van Heerden. The charges involved more than Rand 1.9million.
 
The conviction was overturned by the Cape High Court overturned the conviction in September 2010 Le Roux was cleared of all charges.
 
However, let us stick to le Roux the cricketer. Deceptively nicknamed ‘Grumps’, during his playing days he was excellent company off the field and gave it his all when running in with the ball. While bowling, he expected to get a wicket with every ball. He was also characterised by his very low opinion of batsmen, which was often made abundantly clear.
 
With enormous reserves of strength and energy, le Roux could run in all day at his very peak. And on his day he could be as quick as the fastest of them. In helpful conditions, he could swing it as well.
 
According to Mike Procter, “Having played with Peter Pollock in Test cricket, I am certain Garth le Roux would have been a worthy successor in the business of unsettling batsmen with pace, hostility and aggressive personality.”

(Arunabha Sengupta is a cricket historian and Chief Cricket Writer at CricketCountry. He writes about the history and the romance of the game, punctuated often by opinions about modern day cricket, while his post-graduate degree in statistics peeps through in occasional analytical pieces. The author of three novels, he can be followed on Twitter at http://twiter.com/senantix)

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On WMAL 105.9 FM’s “Mornings on the Mall” radio program in Washington, D.C., on the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I have a dream” speech, George Mason University professor Walter E. Williams declared that the civil rights struggle is “over” and “won,” but acknowledged the black community still faces struggles.

“The civil rights struggle is over, and it is won,” Williams said. “Now, I’m not saying that every vestige of discrimination has been eliminated, but the civil rights struggle is over and won. At one time, black Americans did not have the constitutional guarantees of everybody else. Now we do. The fact that the civil rights struggle is over and won does not mean that there are not major problems that black Americans face, but they’re not civil rights problems. And if we view them as civil rights problems, the solutions will be elusive forever.”

Listen:

 

One example Williams cited was the increase in the illegitimacy rate, which he said was not a civil rights issue.

“For example, let me list two or three — the illegitimacy rate among blacks is around 75 percent,” he continued. “That’s a devastating problem, but it’s not a civil rights problem. In 1940, the illegitimacy rate was 14 percent. At the time Martin Luther King spoke, it was 25 percent. Only 30 percent of black kids are raised in two-parent families. That’s a devastating problem, but it’s not a civil rights problem. In the 1880s, up to 80 percent of black kids lived in two-parent families.”

Others problems he cited were the lackluster education system in the black community and the high homicide rate among African-Americans, neither of which were civil rights issues in his opinion.

“Another major problem that blacks face that’s not a civil rights problem is the grossly fraudulent education that most black youngsters receive,” he added. “And Washington is a good example of that — that is the average black student who is a 12th grader — he has the reading, writing and computational skills of a white seventh or eighth grader. That’s a devastating problem. But it’s not a civil rights problem. Over 50 percent of all homicide victims in the United States are black people. And it’s not the Klan killing them — 94 and 95 percent of them are killed by other blacks. Again, if we say that this is a civil rights problem — we need to do something about white people, then the solution is going to be elusive forever.”

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