Police in Akron, Ohio, caught bodycam video of a bandit behind the wheel with a meth pipe in his mouth during a traffic stop on May 5. But Chewy, the bandit in question, did not face arrest, because Chewy is a pet raccoon. WLWT 5 reported that as the driver of the vehicle, Victoria Vidal, 55, was detained for having an active warrant and driving with a suspended license, officers returned to Vidal's vehicle to find Chewy in the driver's seat with the drug paraphernalia. "While our officers are trained to expect the unexpected, finding a raccoon holding a meth pipe is a first!" the Springfield Township Police Department said in a Facebook post, adding, "No raccoons were hurt or injured in this incident." [WLWT 5, 5/8/2025]

Sweet Tooth

Holly LaFavers of Lexington, Kentucky, tried to cancel an Amazon order placed by her second grader son, Liam, over the weekend, but it was too late; when the pair arrived home on May 5, WKYT reported, Liam yelled, "My suckers are here!" and LaFavers was greeted by 22 large cases of Dum-Dums lollipops lining her front porch. Liam, who placed the order while entertaining himself with his mother's phone, actually had ordered 30 cases -- each containing 2,340 lollipops, for a total cost of more than $4,000 -- but eight of the cases wouldn't scan and were returned to sender. "He told me that he wanted to have a carnival," LaFavers said, "and he was ordering the Dum-Dums as prizes for his carnival." Amazon fully refunded the order, and LaFavers vowed to change the access settings on her phone. [WKYT, 5/5/2025]

Joyride

A stray bull in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, India, became an internet sensation when CCTV caught the bold bovine taking a spontaneous ride on a motorized scooter. In the video, which was posted on X and reported on by NDTV, the bull casually strolled down a street before taking an interest in a parked scooter. As a prescient mother scooped up her child and ducked out of harm's way, the bull hopped onto the scooter with its front legs, somehow perfectly balancing the scooter and setting it in motion. The ride covered about 50 feet before the scooter fell over and the bull nonchalantly walked away. One user on X summed it up: "No one would believe if it wasn't captured by CCTV." [NDTV, 5/3/2025]

You Again?

Rescues are not uncommon on Mount Fuji, but one climber may have used up all the good will of the Shizouka prefectural police, who were called to save the man near the mountain's peak twice in a span of four days. The imprudent adventurer, a 27-year-old Chinese student living in Japan, began suffering from altitude sickness and was airlifted to safety after calling authorities on April 22; the Associated Press reported that he returned to the mountain on April 26 "to look for his cellphone and other belongings left behind," according to police. When another climber found him suffering altitude sickness and unable to move, authorities were called in to rescue him once again. There is no penalty for climbing Mount Fuji during the offseason, and no charge associated with being rescued -- even twice in the same week. [The Associated Press, 4/28/2025]

Lay Off Me, I'm Starving

Anyone familiar with A.A. Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh stories knows bears love honey and will go to great lengths for the sweet stuff. So it's not exactly surprising that Jeff Bonner of Bazetta, Ohio, recently caught a bear on the motion-activated cameras he had set up to protect his apiary. What was surprising, Bonner told WFMJ-TV, was what little remained in the aftermath of the bear's late-night snack attack. "He ate the frame, the wax that was there, and the bees," Bonner said. "He literally ate a whole hive of bees." Bonner estimated the hive had held some 10,000-50,000 bees. He expects the bear to return to the newly found food source, and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources recommended that he increase the apiary's security with more cameras and an electric fence. [WFMJ-TV, 5/8/2025]

That's a First

Team members at New Zealand's department of conservation recently bore witness for the first time ever to the egg-laying process of Powelliphanta augusta, a large, carnivorous, hermaphrodite snail that mates and lays eggs through a hole in its neck. Ingrid Gruner, the department's regional biodiversity liaison, told the Guardian that the team had "struck lucky" when video taken during a routine weight check of one of the snails captured the moment the small white egg emerged. "In all the years we've been doing that [work], we've never encountered it," Gruner said. The snails are a threatened species, and the department has been caring for several thousand snails and eggs since 2006, when Solid Energy coal mining began an operation in the snails' sole habitat. [The Guardian, 5/7/2025]

She Has the High Ground

A judge in London, England, recently awarded Lorna Rooke, former training and practice supervisor for the National Health Service's Blood and Transplant division, a whopping $38,729 for being compared to Darth Vader, the Guardian reported on May 7. In 2021, Rooke and her co-workers were asked to participate in a team-building exercise featuring a "Star Wars"-themed questionnaire that would reveal which character from the sci-fi fantasy franchise their personality most resembled. Rooke didn't participate but found out later that co-workers had filled it out for her, and the result came up Sith lord. Though the quiz described Vader as a "very focused individual," Rooke called the comparison "highly unflattering" and said it made her "super unpopular" around the office, leading her to resign a month later. [The Guardian, 5/7/2025]

Taking It For the Team

In an effort to build up an immunity to the venom of lethal snakes, herpetologist Tim Friede, 57, of Wisconsin, allowed himself to be bitten over 200 times and self-administered more than 650 venom injections over 18 years while steadfastly documenting the effects, The New York Times reported on May 2. Now, as described in a study published in the journal Cell last week, scientists have used the unique antibodies in Friede's blood to create a drug that fully protected mice from the venom of 13 deadly snake species. Researchers hope Friede's work (and blood) will lead to the creation of a universal anti-venom. "I'm really proud that I can do something in life for humanity," Friede told the Times. [New York Times, 4/25/2025]

Trouble Brewing

ChatGPT can perform many impressive tasks -- sometimes with amusing results -- but it may need to stay out of tasseography. Greek City Times reported on April 26 that a Greek woman recently filed for divorce from her husband after the OpenAI chatbot asserted that the man was having an affair and that his mistress was intent on destroying their home, a conclusion the bot came to upon "reading" the coffee grounds in the couple's mugs in a photo the woman uploaded to the app. "I laughed it off as nonsense," the husband said, "but she took it seriously. She asked me to leave, told our kids we were getting divorced, and then I got a call from a lawyer. That’s when I realized this wasn’t just a phase." The husband's lawyer maintains that ChatGPT's claims have no legal standing. [Greek City Times, 4/26/25]

One of the latest advancements in the field of nanomedicine was announced near the end of March in the journal Nano Letters, and it came with a bit of a hardcore theme. Vice reported on April 28 that researchers in China had dehydrated and cooled tardigrades, the famously resilient micro-animals known colloquially as water bears, and used an electron beam and a coating of a compound called anisole to tattoo microscopic patterns on their bodies. According to the abstract, the experiment "has potential applications in cryopreservation, biomedicine and astrobiology." Forty percent of the creatures survived the process, and the researchers hope to improve the survival rate in future tests. [Vice.com, 4/28/2025]

That's Some Reach

Earth-shaking is one thing, but space-shaking? A new study published April 3 in the journal AGU Advances concluded that the January 2022 eruption of the underwater volcano Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai, which registered as one of the most powerful in modern history and blasted ash and gas 31 miles into the atmosphere, actually produced secondary gravity waves that reached the edge of space -- you know, where the satellites we rely on for GPS technology, communication and tracking the weather are in orbit. MSN reported that the findings are "prompting scientists to reassess the potential impacts of volcanic activity on our technological infrastructure." [MSN.com, 4/30/2025]

This Week in Nightmare Travel

A recent Southwest Airlines flight was met by law enforcement after landing in Chicago, where police removed a passenger who had stripped naked and defecated on her seat, NBC Chicago reported on April 25. The plane was taken out of service to be cleaned. Southwest, just the latest airline to be put in the unenviable position of apologizing for the bizarre behavior of an unruly passenger, issued a statement: "Nothing is more important to Southwest than the safety of our customers and employees, and we appreciate the professionalism of our flight crew." [WMAQ, 4/25/2025]

Saw That Coming

Hey, they say you shouldn't let coming into money change you, right? On April 28, James Farthing, 50, of Kentucky, was presented with an oversized check for winning the $167.3 million Powerball jackpot. The next day, Farthing was arrested on felony and misdemeanor charges after an incident at the TradeWinds Resort in St. Pete Beach, Florida, that included kicking a sheriff's deputy in the face and attempting to flee. The Smoking Gun reported that Farthing, an ex-con whose record includes convictions for theft, drug trafficking and engaging in an organized criminal syndicate, got into a drunken argument with a male patron at the resort and punched that man in the face, then assaulted the deputy as he attempted to break up the fight. The police report said Farthing "appeared very intoxicated and was yelling, screaming, and making incoherent statements." The newly minted millionaire's bond was set at only $10,000, but he remains behind bars on felony and misdemeanor charges for violating his parole. [The Smoking Gun, 5/1/2025]

Tough Cookies

As Kristen Savage was walking her dog near her home in Sanford, Florida, on April 25, the pair were beset upon by a black bear, WKMG News 6 reported. While the bear made every effort to snatch Ringo, a 13-pound Chihuahua mix, away from his owner, Savage spun around, dangling Ringo in the air, and fell to the ground before using the only weapon she had at hand: a bag of cookies she had just been given by her mother, who lives down the street. "I whacked the bear across the face with it, and then I threw it," said Savage. "She put her head down and sniffed the cookies and we ran to the front door." Both owner and pet -- as well as the bear -- were safe after the run-in. Bear encounters are fairly common in Savage's Markham Woods neighborhood, with more than 300 reported so far this year; Savage herself has doorbell video of a bear on her front steps. "From now on, I will always carry something," Savage said. "An air horn, whistle, something that can scare her off." [WKMG, 4/28/2025]

Rare Sight

Customers at the upscale Treehouse Studios hair salon in the Hollywood Hills had a hair-raising experience on April 26, when a coyote climbed onto the building's roof and lapped at water that had collected in the skylight, in full view of the patrons below. Owner Travis Ogletree shared footage of the unusual encounter on TikTok, with the caption "Just another day at the Treehouse." USA Today noted that while it is not uncommon for coyotes to adapt to and survive in urban areas like the Hollywood Hills, it is unusual for the animals to be in populated areas during daylight. [USA Today, 5/2/2025]

Shell on Wheels

When staff at the Museum of Natural History in Halifax, Nova Scotia, recently noticed that Root, a wood turtle who has been in captivity for 20 years, was beginning to show signs of wear on his bottom shell after years of walking on a front leg that is missing a foot, it was time to get creative. CBC/Radio-Canada reported that's when naturalist interpreter Tessa Biesterfeld, inspired by a recent Lego exhibit at the museum, crafted a wheeled platform made of Legos to fit under the turtle and enable him to tootle around while saving wear and tear on his underside. "We thought that'd be so great because we know it's non-toxic," said Biesterfeld. "We know that we can replace the parts as we need, and should his shell change or grow, we can change the shape and size of that. It's very modular." [CBC/Radio-Canada, 4/27/2025]

Look Out Below

Carletta Andrews was just about to take a sip from her margarita at Patron Mexican Restaurant and Cantina in Sandston, Virginia, on April 16 when something struck her on the forehead, reported WRIC 8News. "I looked at my husband like what was that," Andrews said. "When I turned around, I saw the snake in my margarita." The baby snake, which had fallen from the ceiling, wriggled in the glass and wrapped itself around the straw as restaurant workers attempted to remove it with a stick; finally, another customer was able to grab the snake and set it free outside. The staff offered to move Andrews to a booth, but the shaken patron chose to leave instead. The owner of the restaurant suspects the snake entered through the AC unit. But Andrews was left to wonder: "If that was the baby ... is the mom there?" [WRIC, 4/25/2025]

Deja Vu

Ewan Valentine, 36, of Solihull, England, was devastated to discover on the morning of Feb. 28 that his beloved black 2016 Honda Civic Type-R had been stolen overnight. Determined to replace it with an identical ride, Valentine told the BBC that he searched until he found a perfect match -- same color and year, even the same custom exhaust system, but obviously a different VIN number -- for sale from a Honda garage, and shelled out $26,000 for it. But as he drove it home, he noticed several familiar artifacts in the car, including candy bar wrappers and a tent peg; investigating further, Valentine found that the car's GPS had logged stops at his home and those of his partner, his parents and his partner's parents. Technicians at a Honda dealership were able to confirm that the VIN was fake and that Valentine had, in fact, purchased his own stolen car. The police are working with Valentine's insurance company to straighten the whole situation out. [BBC.com, 4/24/25]

Tien Kung Ultra took home the gold medal on April 19 in the Humanoid Robot Half-Marathon in Beijing, CNN reported. Ultra and more than 20 other robots ran alongside (but in a separate lane from) their 12,000 human competitors, supported by navigators, operators and engineers. It crossed the finish line in 2 hours, 40 minutes and 42 seconds, after three battery changes and one fall. The winner of the men's race finished in 1 hour and 2 minutes. Almost every robot in the race suffered falls or overheating issues, and one spun in two circles after leaving the starting line, hit a wall and dragged its human operators down with it. Another's head repeatedly fell off. [CNN, 4/21/2025]

Best-Laid Plans

In case you hadn't heard, the 250th anniversary of the start of the Revolutionary War was last week. In commemoration of that event, the city of Lexington, Massachusetts, held a Patriots' Day Awards Ceremony, during which an arch was unveiled, Boston.com reported on April 18. But as the arch was moved to the front of the stage at the event, the top part of it fell backward and broke into pieces. Mona Roy, the vice chair of the Lex250 Commission, remarked, "Don't worry, completely fixable" as the audience gasped and laughed. One Reddit user commented, "The symbolism is unbelievable." [Boston.com, 4/18/2025]

Police Report

On April 18, the Bozeman, Montana, police department held a press conference to share that 13 of its officers, including two sergeants, had been involved in a bingo game with different kinds of arrests on the card, KBZK-TV reported. The game took place over 12 days in mid-January, with custom bingo cards with squares reading "Over .30 BAC DUI," "3+ Vehicle Accident," "Butt-Ass Naked" and "Extinguish Fire Before BFD." Police Chief Jim Veltkamp said the game was shut down and an investigation was done to make sure there were no wrongful arrests or officers acting outside their normal duties. He said the officers involved "were warned about how inappropriate this is." He added that participating supervisors were disciplined. [KBZK, 4/18/2025]

Saw That Coming

On Good Friday in Weston, West Virginia, an unnamed 84-year-old man went to the hospital after falling about 10 feet from a cross at a crucifixion reenactment at the Masonic Cemetery, WDTV reported. The event was sponsored by the Vandalia Community Christian Church. The reenactor was life-flighted to an emergency facility, but family members said he was doing better, and doctors no longer considered his injuries life-threatening. [WDTV, 4/21/2025]

News You Can Use

On April 19, NOAA Ocean Exploration sent a remote-control camera inside the wreckage of the USS Yorktown, which was sunk in the Pacific Ocean, about 1,000 miles from Honolulu, in 1942 during World War II, the Miami Herald reported. Along with all the expected finds, the researchers discovered something odd: a "1940-'41 Ford Super Deluxe 'Woody' in black," with flared fenders, what's left of a rag top and chrome trim. Ocean Exploration officials called the car "an exciting find. Perhaps the car belonged to someone important on the ship or to the fleet: the captain or admiral." The wreckage, about 3 miles deep, was first discovered in 1998. [Miami Herald, 4/21/2025]

Rude

A 20-year-old Indian man identified only as Rahul disappeared nine days before his planned wedding, The Economic Times reported, taking with him cash and jewelry and, most insultingly, the bride-to-be's mother. On April 9, Rahul said he was going shopping for wedding clothes, but he later called his father to say, "I'm leaving. Don't try to look for me." Around the same time, his future mother-in-law also went missing without leaving a message. Police say the new couple may be in Uttarakhand, where he works, and are investigating there. Invitations for the wedding, scheduled for April 16, had already been sent. Bride-to-be Shivani said her fiance and her mother "used to talk on the phone a lot over the past three to four months. All we want is that the money and jewelry should be returned to us." [Economic Times, 4/9/2025]

Can't Possibly Be True

CNN took a deep dive into the latest fashion trend on April 10, chronicling $150-plus "nap dresses" one could use for ... napping. CNN calls the style "one of the latest iterations of the house dress," which has been a "staple in women's fashion for decades and potentially even centuries." CNN Underscored Director of Social Stephanie Griffin notes that a dress from Hill House Home, which sells for $150, is "comfy enough to nap in, but the ruffled shoulders, elasticized smocking and tiered midi skirt are elevated and sophisticated enough to wear to fancy drinks." Uh, that's just a DRESS. Also, who would spend $150 for something to wear while snoring on the couch? Griffin would: "One word: obsessed." [CNN, 4/10/2025]

Unclear on the Concept

Katelyne Dye, 33, a postal worker in Melbourne, Florida, was arrested on April 12 after she allegedly stopped to attend a house party along her route, ClickOrlando reported. Police were alerted to a postal truck driving the wrong way on South Harbor City Boulevard. When they caught up with the driver, the truck was swerving "in and out of its lane"; Dye "appeared confused and disoriented." She told police she had consumed two shots of vodka at the house party and had been falling asleep while driving, which caused her to swerve. Dye was charged with DUI. [ClickOrlando, 4/22/2025]

There Goes the Neighborhood

A Rockport, Massachusetts, neighborhood is reeling from a wave of vandalism that has claimed at least 25 car mirrors in recent weeks, People.com reported on April 24. When resident Janelle Favaloro caught the culprit in the act, she posted on Facebook: "There has been a vandal breaking car mirrors. He is described as 18"-24" tall, wearing black and white, with a red hat." If that sounds a bit like Woody Woodpecker, that's because the guilty party is a pileated woodpecker -- the inspiration for the cartoon character, and a species that happens to be in the throes of mating season. Experts believe the felonious fowl is mistaking its own reflection for a rival, and residents have taken to covering their car mirrors in the hope of preventing the bird's attacks. [People.com, 4/24/25]

An Unrefined Palate

When Luna, a 7-month-old Bernese mountain dog who had been vomiting and clearly in pain from a distended stomach, arrived at the Corona Animal Emergency Center in Corona, California, on Feb. 16, veterinarians took X-rays that revealed a large buildup in the pup's gastrointestinal system, and quickly began exploratory abdominal surgery. The L.A. Times reported that among their findings were "24 socks, a scrunchie, two hair ties, a shoe insert, a onesie and multiple pieces of cloth," for a grand total of 44 foreign objects. The center posted on Instagram that Luna survived and is recovering, and also served up a helpful PSA: "If your dog swallows something unusual, don’t wait -- act fast and contact your vet." [LA Times, 2/16/25]