Unusual Stuff

It is a huge honor to have something named after you.  From stars to species, getting your name on something is a really cool honor.  However, is it as big of an honor when the creature bearing your name is kind of disturbing and gross?  That’s a big question.  A newly-discovered fish parasite has been […]

Gisela Gagliard, a 53-year-old accountant from Kingston, New York, i is a hardcore Twilight fan.  One look at her Facebook would tell you that.  Unfortunately for Gisela, her Twilight fandom cost her her life yesterday.  On Sunday, fans started lining up to get tickets for a San Diego Comic-Con panel about The Twilight Saga: Breaking […]

Last week, 35 American flags were stolen from the graves of Civil War veterans in Hudson, New York’s Cedar Park Cemetery.  Police figured that the flag thief was probably local kids, or someone looking to cause trouble, and volunteers replaced the flags.  The following night, 17 more US flags were taken.  That’s when police set […]

When it comes to unusual lives, nobody had a better run than Ernest Borgnine.  Born Ermes Effron Borgnino, the actor’s career started out in serious acting, but he would go on to become a sitcom legend before all was said and done.  After spending 10 years in the Navy and fighting in World War II–where […]

Spider-Man remains one of Marvel’s most enduring creations.  The story of Peter Parker, a nerdy teenager who gets super-powers after a bite from a radioactive spider, fits in the classic Marvel comic book mold of accidents granting super powers.  As it turns out, the latest adventure of Spider-Man is only the first part of a […]

Another year, another dominating victory for the world’s best competitive eater.  Joey “Jaws” Chestnut, for the last several years, has been the man to beat at the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island, New York.  This year was no different.  Joey Chestnut ate a staggering 68 hot dogs and buns–besting his closest […]

A day after storms ripped through Bethesda, Maryland, and the debris forced Congressional staff to keep out fans due to safety issues, Tiger Woods would not be denied.  With fans in attendance and golfers swinging away, Tiger Woods took control at the AT&T National.  Firing a -2 69 final round, Tiger Woods claimed his 74th […]

Peter Sagan’s best years as a professional bicycle rider are still ahead of him, but that doesn’t mean he can’t start succeeding early.  Just 22, Sagan won the first stage of the Tour de France to become the youngest stage winner since 1993.  Sagan, from Slovakia, bested Swiss rider Fabian Cancellara on the hilly, 123-mile […]

There are some strange pageants out there.  From the child beauty pageants to beauty pageants for amputees and transgender people, if you can think of a category, there’s a beauty pageant for them.  That includes Holocaust survivors, apparently.  In Israel, 14 women between the ages of 79 and 97 competed to become Israel’s first-ever “Miss […]

The University of Kentucky dominated last night’s draft.  There’s no other way to say it.  The UK Wildcats sent a record-tying six players into the NBA last night, and that’s not all.  UK also sent the top two picks into the NBA, making this the first time in NBA draft history that the top two […]

Good news, fellow fat people!  After 13 long years with no new diet drugs having passed FDA approval, the drought is over and there’s a new weapon in the war against obesity.  Along with your glasses of water a day, prepare to swallow down a new drug called Belviq (generic lorcaserin) to aid your weight […]

Everyone can get in money troubles, and with the economy’s prolonged slump, savings are running out and people are getting a little desperate.  With cities facing record shortfalls, businesses failing, and individuals running record debts, it’s only a matter of time before a major US city faces a tough decision.  Enter Stockton, California.  Facing a […]

There are standard, boring romantic comedies, and then there’s the work of Nora Ephron.  Ephron, one of three Ephron sisters who became a screenwriter and author, was the rare rom com writer whose work contained something of substance, something with brains as well as heart.  She’s the mind behind a host of genre classics:  Julie […]

It has to be tough being the last of a species.  To be completely alone, surrounded by similar creatures but knowing there’s nothing else like you?  That has to be pretty brutal.  Such is the story of Lonesome George, the last Pinta Island Tortoise in existence.  George was middle-aged for a tortoise, about 100 years […]

When LeBron James made The Decision, he promised titles.  Not Finals appearances like last year’s beating by the Dallas Mavericks, but titles plural, and titles in multiple seasons.  The journey to dominance begins with an initial NBA Championship.  Last night, the Miami Heat coasted to an easy 121-106 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.  More […]