Rubber Ducky Race
July 30, 2008
This August 6-17, the Northern Michigan town of Bellaire is holding its Rubber Ducky Festival.
The 12-day celebration will culminate with a duck race in the Intermediate River in which 2,000 yellow rubber ducks will be competing. Thousands of spectators line the river banks to watch the quarter-mile long race.
The ducks are numbered, and spectators are allowed to place a $5 bet per duck. The person who has the first place duck is awarded $500 and cash prizes are awarded all the way up to the duck that wins 27th-place.
In 2007, documentary filmmaker Michael Moore actually chose the festival as the site for the unofficial premiere for his film “Sicko.”
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Crocodile Cage of Death
July 29, 2008
Ever wanted to come face-to-face with a real live crocodile? Well, now you can, at the newly-opened Crocosaurus Cove theme park in Darwin, Australia.
The park’s star attraction, the “Cage of Death”, allows visitors to have a close-encounter with a crocodile from within the safety of a 4-cm-thick acrylic tank that separates them from “Choppa,” a saltwater crocodile who lost both front feet from fighting with other crocodiles.
Visitors will be submerged in the tank for 15 minutes while Choppa tries to take a bite out of them.
While this may sound appealing to thrill seekers, the attraction has sparked criticism from animal rights activists who see it as a cruel way of taunting the crocodile and intruding its home.
World’s Largest Coffin Bar… It’s To Die For
July 17, 2008
Most people don’t look to end up in a coffin, but in the resort town of Truskavet, Ukraine, that’s the place to be.
Aptly named “Eternity,” the bar is actually a gigantic wooden coffin. The bar’s interior is complete with real coffins that serve as tables, walls adorned with funeral floral arrangements and servers dressed all in black as funeral dirges play in the background.
The idea for the bar was conceived by a group of local undertakers.
Constructed from 30 cubic meters of pine, the coffin is 20 meters long, 6 wide and 6 meters tall.
The owner is hoping “Eternity” will make it into the Guinness Book of World Records.
Airlines are Now Selling Ads on Boarding Passes
July 15, 2008
It seems that selling alcohol for $5, or $6 on some airlines, is not the only way that airlines are trying to make a few extra bucks.
Several major airlines have decided to sell advertisement space on your boarding passes when you check-in from home to help deal with the increasing costs of oil prices.
If you happen to fly on Delta to Las Vegas, you may already have noticed the ads. If not then you should start to see them on all domestic Delta flights soon and other major airlines are soon to follow. Sojern Inc., the company selling the ads, indicated that American Airlines, Northwest Airlines, Continental and United, are all set to start putting ads on their boarding passes in the near future.
“I think this is going to be responsible for many millions of dollars for each airline”
Country Music Hall Of Fame Inductees Announced
July 12, 2008
Brian Ferriman, founder of Savannah Records, and Wes Montgomery, a famous radio show host, will both be inducted into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame during Country Music Week in September, 2008.
The inductees will be recognized during the four-day Country Music Week conference, which will begin Sept. 8 with the CCMA Awards ceremony.
US Airways Cuts Movies on Domestic Flights
July 9, 2008
If you are one of the many who enjoyed passing the time on your flights by watching complimentary movies, you might want to avoid flying on US Airways.
Starting in November, Us Airways will begin removing all in-flight entertainment systems on their domestic flights in an effort to save up to $10 million in fuel and other various costs.
Each entertainment systems weighs approximately 500 pounds and thus takes more fuel to fly around. Rising fuel costs have also caused airlines to have to slash profits, layoff employees, and cut flights across the nation.
Later this year, test will begin on a lighter seat-back entertainment system, but it may be a long time before we see the return of any entertainment systems on domestic US Airways flights.
Not all companies have decided to cut back on passenger entertainment. Jet Blue currently offers a seat-back entertainment system that provides around 60 channels of DirectTV.
Muttrimony: Getting Married Doggy Style
July 7, 2008
It goes without saying that Americans are pretty insane about their pets.
It’s a common sight these days to see little dogs dressed up in sweaters and jackets, or sporting fancy rhinestone-studded collars. Many owners pamper and spoil their pets as if they were one of their own children.
One of the latest trends, and probably one of the weirdest, is when dog owners get together to marry their pets in Holy “Muttrimony.”
Believe it or not, marrying pets has become a huge. The entire process is almost identical to human marriages in that they have a receptions, real priests to marry them, and much more.
As one reverend told the Chicago Tribune:
“Marriage for an animal is almost like marriage for a human. An animal union is more like a blessing under God.”
“Well, I am a reverend,” Scott said. “If you’re in a family with two animals and they want to unite in a wedding, what difference does it make? It is not a sign of the Apocalypse. It is a sign that animals often seek to form a lasting bond and have deep commitment.”
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