A couple in Thailand went to the hospital three times after the woman swallowed a fish bone while eating fish soup, Oddity Central reported on June 27. She tried various home remedies, but couldn’t dislodge it from her throat, and at the hospital, doctors couldn’t see anything on an X-ray. The wife, Sang Lan, still felt pain, but assumed the bone had moved on. When her neck became swollen, she returned to the hospital, but again X-rays were negative. At home, the woman was applying a pain relief patch to her neck when she saw a pointy object poking her skin from within. She applied pressure, and the fish bone poked through her skin. Back at the hospital, doctors removed the 2-centimeter bone; they said they had never seen anything like it before. [Oddity Central, 6/27/2025]

Well, That's Curious

A 77-year-old woman in Michigan won $4 million in the state's instant lottery recently, the Detroit Free Press reported on July 1. The woman, who is choosing to remain anonymous, said she plays the game "all the time" and was "frozen in her seat" for a while after scratching the winning ticket. Curiously (in light of her age), the winner chose to receive annual payments of about $133,000 for the next 30 years instead of taking the lump sum of about $2.7 million. She's planning to donate some, do home repairs and share the winnings with her family. [Detroit Free Press, 7/1/2025]

That Rule Doesn't Apply to Me

On July 1, real estate agent Jon Beaulieu of Manayunk, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to one year of probation, a $200 fine and reimbursing American Airlines the $59,143 it cost to cancel a flight on June 26, 2024. Philadelphia magazine reported that on that night, Beaulieu went to great lengths to skip the security line at Philadelphia International Airport, trying to enter Terminal C through an exit line. When he was stopped, he threw a $50 bill at the security guard and asked her if that would get him in. Eventually, Beaulieu got away from her and disappeared into the terminal -- and onto his flight, which was still at the gate. When officials informed the pilot that a passenger hadn't gone through security, they canceled the flight. [Philadelphia magazine, 7/1/2025]

Fail

At Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, riders of the newly opened Siren's Curse roller coaster got a break in their experience when the coaster "experienced a delay," the Akron Beacon Journal reported. The stop, on June 28, left riders suspended in midair for about 10 minutes; park spokesman Tony Clark said the "coaster's safety system performed as designed, the ride was restarted, and guests continued their ride." [Akron Beacon Journal, 6/30/2025]

Ewwwwwww

Rona Davies of Sittingbourne, England, ordered a baby rattle from Shein for her stepdaughter's 5-month-old, Kent Online reported on July 2, but what she saw inside turned her off of online shopping for good. Among the rattling beads inside the toy was a human fingernail. Davies said she was "disgusted" and added, "My concern is, if things like this are getting into a baby's toy, then what are their standards for health and safety?" Oh, Rona. Shein offered her a refund and 100 Shein points, which Davies called "a joke really, because that's not the point of it." Shein had no comment. [Kent Online, 7/2/2025]

The Tech Revolution

We here at Weird World Headquarters are ardent belittlers of AI, so it's with great glee that we bring you this item: MSN reported on July 2 that a Tesla in "self-driving mode" tried to mix it up with a train in mid-June in Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania. Western Berks Fire Commissioner Jared Renshaw said the vehicle turned left onto some train tracks; the three people inside the car were able to get out and gather their belongings before a train came along an adjacent track a few minutes later. The Tesla suffered only a damaged mirror, but it had to be lifted with a crane off the tracks so as not to disturb its highly flammable battery. "We've had accidents involving Teslas," Renshaw said, "but nobody has expressed to us that the vehicle was in self-drive mode when it happened." [MSN, 7/2/2025]

Awesome!

Jason Singer of Portland, Maine, became a "Jeopardy!" champion on July 1, ABC News reported. Four years earlier, Singer's wife, Susan McMillan, won the title on the show. "Jeopardy!" officials say the brainiacs are believed to be the first already-married couple to both win. McMillan said she coached her husband: "I told him he really needs to be on point with the buzzer timing," she said. "Everyone there knows pretty much all the information." [ABC News, 7/2/2025]

Police Report

Raleigh, North Carolina, police were called to the scene of a robbery on July 1, WRAL-TV reported. Victims told officers that a naked man with a wooden post approached them and demanded access to their car. The man also assaulted a woman sitting in her car, hitting her on the arm with the post. He then tried to drive away but couldn't shift the car out of park. He fled and hid in a storage room before being captured and taken into custody. Police didn't release the names of the victims or the suspect. [WRAL, 7/1/2025]

It's a Mystery

In Wirral, England, residents are unsettled by someone in a black cat costume who's been prowling around secluded beach areas, the BBC reported on July 3. One witness wrote on Facebook that she "heard a man making cat noises, shone a torch he was waving his arms at me before crawling up the hill. Never been so scared." A man who was walking his dog along the beach was more amused than frightened: "I don't know his name, I think it's just a wind-up. He's definitely not out to frighten people, he does it for fun," he said. "He just likes being a giant cat." Well, yeah, who doesn't? [BBC, 7/3/2025]

News You Can Use

Americans looking for a wholesome but unusual family vacation destination might want to visit Mountain Air Ranch near Littleton, Colorado. The "family nudist resort" will celebrate its 90th anniversary July 11-13, with "live music, five catered meals, laughter and mountain magic," KDVR-TV reported. "As the second-oldest nudist resort in North America ... growth (especially with younger families) is definitely something to celebrate," said Mountain Air Ranch Manager Chris May. First-time visitors must arrange a property tour before July 11, and children are welcome but must be supervised by an adult. Pack light! [KDVR, 7/2/2025]

HOAs in Action

In the Imperial Heights neighborhood of north Houston, residents are in the dark after their homeowners association failed to pay the electric bill, KTRK-TV reported on July 1. The energy company Reliant said the company that manages the HOA had a past-due bill of $6,000 and that no bills had been paid since January. For their part, the Associa Principal Management Group announced the lights would be back on by July 2, but declined to comment further. [KTRK, 7/1/2025]

The South China Morning Post reported on June 25 that a 64-year-old man underwent surgery in Anhui province to remove a toothbrush that he had swallowed when he was 12 years old. Mr. Yang had begun to feel a strange sensation in his stomach, so he sought medical help; he told doctors he had been too afraid to tell his parents at the time of the incident. He also thought the toothbrush would dissolve on its own. But 52 years later, the nearly 7-inch-long brush was lodged in his small intestine, and doctors worked for 80 minutes to remove it. Dr. Zhou said the brush was stuck in a crook of the intestine and hadn't moved for decades. [South China Morning Post, 6/25/2025]

The Hard Way

An unnamed Bristol, Connecticut, man was charged with burglary, trespassing and criminal mischief on June 22 after he tried to enter a public building through the chimney, the Associated Press reported. According to police, the man's dog was trapped in the building's restroom after the doors automatically locked, and rather than call for help, he tried to shimmy down the chimney but got stuck. Firefighters responded and had to remove parts of the chimney and building, causing $5,000 to $10,000 worth of damage. He was eventually freed and was unharmed. "If he had just contacted police in the first place, we might have been able to avoid the situation," said Erica Benoit of the Bristol parks and rec service. [AP, 6/23/2025]

The Entrepreneurial Spirit

A mother, father and adult son in Havlickuv Brod, Czech Republic, have pleaded guilty to running a fake dental clinic in their home, the Associated Press reported on June 19. They all face up to eight years in prison for the ruse, during which the son would look up how to do procedures (including extractions) on the internet; the mother, a nurse, would assist, and the dad made prosthetic devices. They raked in about $185,000 before being caught after a patient consulted another dentist about complications following treatment. [AP, 6/19/2025]

The Passing Parade

Neighbors in one Indianapolis area flocked to North Pasadena Street on June 18 to see a remnant of the storms that had moved through: a large white dome deposited in the road. WRTV reported that people drove or walked by to see it and even had their photos snapped in front of it. The sphere is believed to be a radome, a weatherproof structure that protects radar antennae or other equipment. "We've not seen anything like this," said neighbor Kirby Jarvis. "Lock the doors, stay inside, aliens, you never know." [WRTV, 6/18/2025]

What's in a Name?

-- Police in Portland, Oregon, finally caught up with a man who had fired gunshots at them and led them on a high-speed chase on June 20, KATU-TV reported. The Milwaukie Police Department said they took Loony John Franklin Toon, 42, into custody on June 23 and charged him with first-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault and fleeing from the police. That's all, folks! [KATU, 6/23/2025]

-- On June 19 in Silver Creek, Minnesota, a car that was "swerving and weaving" hit a curb and careened into a scissor lift, which workers were using to fix a light. The New York Post reported that the car then slammed into a tunnel wall and flipped. One worker, Benjamin Kidd, 27, sustained life-threatening injuries; another managed to hang on to the light fixture until first responders could help him down. Driving the car was none other than Patches Magickbeans, 34, of Wisconsin, who was allegedly intoxicated; police said he was babbling and reaching for objects in the air that weren't there. Officers found psilocybin mushrooms in his car. Magickbeans' bio on his Instagram page says he is a "womb wisdom keeper" and "corn juggler." [NY Post, 6/25/2025]

Repeat Offender

Jacky Jhaj, 39, has been on Britain's sex offenders list since 2016, but that didn't stop him from arranging a mock wedding to a 9-year-old Ukrainian girl at Disneyland Paris on June 21, the BBC reported. Police were alerted to the event by an actor who had been hired to portray the father of the bride; about 100 other extras were recruited to take part. On June 23, Jhaj was charged with fraud, breach of trust, money laundering and identity theft. His other notable offenses include hiring hundreds of children to act like fawning fans at a fake film premiere in London in 2023. He films the escapades and uploads them to a YouTube channel. The fake wedding, which included a cake and musicians, took place at the Sleeping Beauty castle and was reported to have cost about 130,000 euros, but it's unclear how he funds the projects. [BBC, 6/24/2025]

It's a Mystery

The French Interior Ministry reported that about 150 people were pricked by syringe needles during a nationwide music festival, according to CNN. Over the weekend of June 21, French police detained 14 people in connection with the "spiking" incidents, which left some victims feeling unwell. Some were hospitalized for testing. One 22-year-old concertgoer said she went to the hospital and then filed a police report. "I told myself maybe it can have an impact," she said. [CNN, 6/25/2025]

Bright Idea

Out in ski country, employees at Breckenridge Ski Resort in Colorado hit the slopes in early June for a completely different event: the Mountain Cleanup Day. KDVR-TV reported that 150 workers cleared about 780 pounds of debris off the mountains -- stuff that had fallen out of pockets or flown off skiers as they schussed down the runs. Unusual items included a hamburger flipper, a $2 Canadian coin, piles of ski poles and a message in a bottle, which turned out to be a COVID-19 vaccination record. The resort hopes the cleanup will remind people to "pack out what you bring in." [KDVR, 6/24/2025]

Freak Accident

A lifeguard in Asbury Park, New Jersey, was trying to set a chair umbrella in its holder on June 25 when it got away from her and ended up impaling her through her shoulder, WABC-TV reported. "She fell backwards off the bench and the umbrella came with her ... and landed on her arm," said lifeguard Joe Bongiovanni. Firefighters cut most of the pole away but left a piece about a foot long in her arm before she was transported to the hospital. She is in stable condition. [WABC, 6/25/2025]

News That Sounds Like a Joke

The Chongqing Forestry Bureau has sucked all the fun out of a gimmick at a hotel in Pengshui, China, according to United Press International. The bureau ordered the Lehe Ledu Liangjiang Holiday Hotel to cease using red pandas to make wake-up calls to guests, UPI reported on June 25. For an extra charge, hotel guests could sign up for one of four red pandas to come to the room and climb onto the bed. They could linger with guests depending on their mood. The forestry bureau said the service could be considered animal abuse because the pandas are sensitive and their stress responses could endanger themselves or the humans. [UPI, 6/25/2025]

The Golden Age of Air Travel

The U.S. Sun reported on June 26 that a woman aboard Aeroflot flight SU734 from St. Petersburg, Russia, to Egypt finally had to be restrained after she launched into a tantrum about not being upgraded to business class. The woman screamed at flight attendants that she had "pain in my butt" and needed business class "because I was working." She then threatened to open the emergency exit and began to remove her shirt, presumably hoping that would help her cause, but no: Some burly passengers moved her to the back of the plane, where she was restrained until Egyptian authorities took her off after landing. [U.S. Sun, 6/25/2025]

A 42-year-old man contacted Beverly Hills, Texas, Police Chief Kory Martin on June 13 about a package he had received from his ex-girlfriend, KWKT-TV reported. Inside was a copy of a marriage certificate, indicating that the man was married. But he told Martin that while he had been in a relationship with the woman, Kristin Marie Spearman, 36, of Waco, and even obtained a marriage license, they broke up before the wedding. After investigating, Martin determined that Spearman had convinced a pastor to certify the marriage without the groom present, and then filed the certificate at the county clerk's office. Martin said he researched the law and found only one scenario that allows for an absentee spouse-to-be: "active military overseas, unable to make it." And even then, "You still had to have a proxy to stand in ... so (in this case) the groom should have been there." Spearman was arrested for third-degree felony stalking and taken to jail. [KWKT, 6/16/2025]

Saw That Coming

The Madison (Wisconsin) Fire Department responded to a boozy blaze on June 15, WMTV reported. Someone reported an oven fire around 6 p.m.; the caller told firefighters they had been cooking a turkey for about eight minutes when the oven door blew open. First responders removed the oven from the apartment, and the fire went out. They later learned the turkey had been marinated in tequila, and they believe the accumulated vapors from the alcohol were not properly vented from the oven, which caused the fire. No one was hurt (except the turkey). [WMTV, 6/16/2025]

News You Can Use

The Blue Ash (Ohio) Police Department is recommending that drivers in the area "keep the windows up for the next several weeks" after a cicada caused a crash on June 12. KKTV reported that no one was hurt when a driver veered into a pole after a cicada flew into their car; the car ended up on its side, and the cicada made a clean getaway. "These pesky cicadas don't respect personal space," police said. "A cicada attack can be dangerous." [KKTV, 6/16/2025]

It's Good To Have a Hobby

Samuel Lee Thomas, 72, of St. Petersburg, Florida, is a prolific 911 caller, The Smoking Gun reported on June 16. Just in the first five months of 2025, Thomas has called emergency services 3,400 times, bringing his five-year total to 16,000 calls. His latest call involved what he said was someone "shooting an AR-15 rifle in the roadway," but when police arrived, they found a family having a barbecue and kids at play. Anqunette Peterson, 34, who lives in the targeted home, has been the victim of his calls 647 times and said Thomas "frequently stops in front of their residence to yell obscenities at her and her family," police said. Thomas was arrested for stalking and false report of a crime. He pleaded not guilty and was released on $1,500 bond. [The Smoking Gun, 6/16/2025]

Compelling Explanation

Jose Manuel Perez, 24, was charged with aggravated battery on June 14 in Salt Lake City after he attacked the person he was having lunch with, Fox13-TV reported. As the assault played out, the victim tried to escape numerous times, but Perez put them in a chokehold and produced a "wooden stake with a nail in it," telling them that they were a werewolf and "he was going to pierce their heart." Eventually, Perez ran off with the victim's backpack, which was recovered when cops caught up with him. Police said Perez also had rocks in his pockets, which he carried out of fear the victim would attack him. He was held without bail. [Fox13, 6/15/2025]

Awesome!

When Gwyneth Griffiths of Swansea, Wales, turned 102 years old recently, she had just one wish for her birthday party: a stripper. Wales Online reported on June 16 that the Hawthorn Court Care Home where Griffiths lives was happy to oblige with a "butler in the buff." Griffiths, who has dementia, has become feisty and fun in her advanced years, spewing swear words when, her son Peter said, "She wouldn't say boo to a goose" as he was growing up. About the stripper, Griffiths told her son, "I hope I get a cheeky pinch of his bum!" The centenarian also has a weekly wedding to her imaginary friend "Dr. John," for which she gets her hair done and dons a tiara. When Peter told her she'd be turning 102 soon, she argued: "No I am not. Look at my t--s, not a wrinkle!" Party on, Gwyneth! [Wales Online, 6/16/2025]

Weird in the Wild

Say you're trekking through the Namib Desert in Namibia and you get a little thirsty. No problem! According to Oddity Central, about a 20-minute drive from the main road crossing the desert is an unexpected oasis: a pink solar-powered refrigerator full of cold drinks and a little table with two chairs. Drinks are provided free of charge, and the fridge is restocked several times a day. The government's tourist board installed the fridge in the spirit of hospitality, the website reported on June 16. So friendly. [Oddity Central, 6/16/2025]

Irony

At Difficult Campground in White River National Forest near Aspen, Colorado, camping is taking on a new look: The U.S. Forest Service has banned camping in tents or other soft-sided structures, The Aspen Times reported. Blame it on a black bear. During the night of June 9, a "curious" bear pawed at a tent with two children under age 12 inside, puncturing the material but failing to get inside. The children didn't tell their parents, who were sleeping in a tent next to them, until the next morning. "The kids were totally fine," a campground host reported. "They were not traumatized." Campers using tents were relocated to other campgrounds. The order was to remain in place for two months. [Aspen Times, 6/12/2025]

Questionable Judgment

The York Catholic District School Board in Vaughan, Ontario, has relieved a bus driver of their duties after inappropriate behavior, CP24-TV reported on June 17. It all started with a video posted to social media of a parent confronting the driver, who had placed a sign in the bus's front window that said "Lolita's Line." "Why do you call your bus 'The Lolita Line'?" the parent asked the driver, who was dressed in a schoolgirl's uniform. ("Lolita" is a 1955 novel about a professor who kidnaps a 12-year-old girl.) The bus driver responds that they "do this every week. And I don't think there's any problem." The school board, however, did perceive a problem and brought the incident to the bus company's attention, assuring parents that "the driver will no longer provide busing to and from the school." [CP24, 6/17/2025]

That Rule Doesn't Apply to Me

A 42-year-old man sustained a gunshot wound in his back on June 15 as he and friends rode bikes through the Central Catchment Nature Reserve in Singapore, AsiaOne reported. Nobody was hunting him; he was riding in an area restricted to the public and reserved for the Singapore Armed Forces live-firing activities. Several large signs read "Do Not Go Beyond This Point -- Living Firing Area -- Keep Clear!" and "Danger," illustrated with a skull and crossbones. At the time of the shooting, the SAF was conducting an authorized live-firing activity. The man underwent surgery to remove the slug and is in stable condition. [AsiaOne, 6/16/2025]