062909: Water Cooler News
Water Cooler News for Monday, June 29, 2009
It’s Monday of a Short Work Week for Some!
It’s Monday and we’re rapidly approaching a July 4th holiday! Saturday is the 4th and that means for many, like me, this is the start of a four day work with since Friday will be the holiday. I love short work weeks.
But, just because it’s a short work week, doesn’t mean we don’t need information for the daily Water Cooler gatherings. With that in mind, it’s time for another edition of the Water Cooler News. In this issue, aside from the usual historical and birthday notes, you will find some fun news stories!
- Welcome Mats Not Welcome
- Canoe Kidnapper Wants Beer
- New Use For Caskets
Humorous News Stories!
Welcome Mats…Not Welcome!
The residents of an apartment complex in Great Britain may be welcoming, but you won’t be able to tell from their front door — their welcome mats have been banned. Area officials in Burslem, England have banned welcome mats, potted plants and other homey touches from an apartment complex on the grounds the items are a health and safety hazard. Officials say if people had to evacuate their homes in the event of a fire, they might trip over the plants and welcome mats.
Canoe Kidnapper Wants Beer
Authorities say a man who abducted a 14 year old California boy’s canoe had an interesting, and rather strange, ransom demand. Instead of demanding cash, the man demanded a case of beer. Police say a few weeks after Casey Whittington’s canoe went missing, a man called his home in Redding and said he was willing to exchange the canoe and its paddle for a case of beer. The caller said the time and place for the swap would be disclosed to the family in a few days and warned them not to contact the police.
New Use for Caskets
Dallas Police stopped a van last week for various traffic violations, and later made an amazing discovery. Authorities say after stopping the van, they noticed a casket in the back. Then, when a drug-sniffing dog arrived on the scene they discovered the casket did not contain a body, but marijuana! According to court documents, the casket contained nearly 100 pounds of marijuana. William Crock was arrested and charged with drug possession and several traffic violations.
Historical Tidbits for June 29
Today is…
Interstate Highway System Anniversary – 1956 – President Dwight Eisenhower signed a bill providing $33.5 billion for highway construction. It was the biggest public works program in history.
Please Take My Children To Work Day – Beg someone else to take your kids to work with them today!
Notable birthdays…
Gary Busey, 65, musician / actor
Fred Grandy, 61, actor, former congressman (The Love Boat)
Ian Paice 61/drummer, Deep Purple
Colin Hay 56/singer, Men At Work
Sharon Lawrence, 48, actress (NYPD Blue)
Melora Hardin, 42, actress (The Office)
Born on this date…also known as the late…
Little Eva 1943-2003/singer, “The Loco-Motion”
Ruth Warrick–1915-2005/actress, TV’s All My Children
Movie History
1979 – The first Meatballs flick hit theaters.
1984 – Conan the Destroyer (sequel to Conan the Barbarian) battled its way into theaters.
2005 – The remake of War of the Worlds premiered in theaters.
Music History
2000 – The graves of Ronnie Van Zant and Steve Gaines of Lynard Skynyrd were vandalized. The two men were killed when the band’s plane crashed on October 20th, 1977.
1999 – Leif Garrett was arrested during a sting operation at an apartment in Los Angeles. He pleaded guilty to drug possession on August 14th, 1999.
1969 – The Jimi Hendrix Experience played their last concert on the last day of the Denver Pop Festival.
1967 – Keith Richards was found guilty of allowing his property to be used for the smoking of marijuana. He was sentenced to one year in jail and fined. MICK JAGGER was found guilty of illegal possession of pep pills and sentenced to three months in jail.
1961 – Gary “U.S.” Bonds had the number one single with “Quarter To Three.”
General History
1897 – The Chicago Cubs scored 36 runs in a game against Louisville, setting a record for runs scored by a team in a single game.
1941 – Joe DiMaggio got a base hit in his 42nd consecutive game. He broke George Sisler’s record from 1922.
1956 – Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller were married. They were divorced on January 20th, 1961.
1967 – Thirty-four-year-old Jayne Mansfield and two male companions died when their car struck a trailer truck east of New Orleans.
1987 – Vincent Van Gogh’s Le Pont de Trinquetaille was bought for $20.4 million at an auction in London.
1995 – The shuttle Atlantis and the Russian space station Mir docked, forming the largest man-made satellite ever to orbit the Earth.
Yours in Water Cooler News!
Dr. Rus
