I’m not sure how this happens… March 20, 2009

I came across this article about a woman who gave birth on an international flight from Samoa and New Zealand. Apparently, the woman initially abandoned the baby and then tried to come back for the baby. Both mom and baby are now together and are both doing well in the hospital.

The article states that the “New Zealand Press Association quoted an unnamed Auckland Airport staffer saying it was not known if other passengers and crew on the Pacific Blue flight from Samoa noticed the woman was in labor.”

Now, just a few weeks ago, I witnessed the labor and delivery process. It’s kind of loud and kind of messy. It’s something that you would notice if it were going on around you. How could the other passengers and crew not know that this lady was having a baby? One would think that somebody would have seen or heard something.

I’m also not sure how you can leave a baby behind on the plane. It’s not quite like forgetting your book in the seat pocket. Again, one would think that somebody would have said to the much-less-pregnant looking woman, “hey, ma’am, I think you’re forgetting something.”

It’s a crime I tell you August 5, 2008

Some times one vote does make a difference March 18, 2008

What would happen if they held an election and nobody showed up to vote? According to this article, they had that very situation in Tamarac, Florida.

The city of Tamarac, which is located in Broward County in South Florida, is considering annexing the currently unincorporated neighborhood of Prospect Bend. The neighborhood, with its 200 residents and 68 registered voters, had a special election to vote on the annexation.

Although the Tamarac officials mailed details to the each of the residents, not one single voter actually showed up to cast a ballot on the issue.

If just one voter would have showed up to vote, he or she would have determined the election. According to this article from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, it appears that one reason for the lack of turn-out is the fact that most or all of the neighborhood residents rent apartments and aren’t property owners. One registered voter, Juan Vidal, demonstrated this lack of interest when he said, “It doesn’t make a difference to me either way.”

Although no one actually came to vote, the city was forced to keep a polling place open for 12 hours, with a cost of $2,500 to the taxpayers.

Since no one voted, Tamarac is now going to have to try to find another way to annex the neighborhood.

Talk about a mess… March 18, 2008

According to this article from CNN.com, a truck flipped over on the highway during this morning’s commute in Sacramento, California. What made this particular accident unusual was what the truck was carrying.

When the truck flipped over, it spilled it’s load of 400 colonies of honeybees. According to an officer from the California Highway Patrol, somewhere between 6 million and 16 million bees were left flying around the accident site. Officials warned motorists to roll up their windows and turn off their air conditioning to avoid having bees find their way into cars.

It took over 7 hours for authorities to calm the bees down and coax them back into their hives.

In my favorite part of the article, authorities said that, while they had the mess cleaned up, they “didn’t know how many bees remained unaccounted for.”

Some times one vote does make a difference March 14, 2008

What would happen if they held an election and nobody showed up to vote? According to this article, they had that very situation in Tamarac, Florida.

The city of Tamarac, which is located in Broward County in South Florida, is considering annexing the currently unincorporated neighborhood of Prospect Bend. The neighborhood, with its 200 residents and 68 registered voters, had a special election to vote on the annexation.

Although the Tamarac officials mailed details to the each of the residents, not one single voter actually showed up to cast a ballot on the issue.

If just one voter would have showed up to vote, he or she would have determined the election. According to this article from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, it appears that one reason for the lack of turn-out is the fact that most or all of the neighborhood residents rent apartments and aren’t property owners. One registered voter, Juan Vidal, demonstrated this lack of interest when he said, “It doesn’t make a difference to me either way.”

Although no one actually came to vote, the city was forced to keep a polling place open for 12 hours, with a cost of $2,500 to the taxpayers.

Since no one voted, Tamarac is now going to have to try to find another way to annex the neighborhood.

At some point, you have to take their word for it… February 23, 2008

According to this article, Benjamin Lovell from New York City was given access to a $5.8 million bank account that wasn’t his. The bank confused Lovell with another man also named Benjamin Lovell. He apparently tried to tell officials at the bank that he didn’t have an account with nearly $6 million, but the officials insisted that it was his and that he had the right to withdraw the money.

The investment banker, and real account holder, Benjamin Lovell wasn’t so convinced that the other Benjamin Lovell had the right to withdraw the money. The “lesser-funded” Lovell now faces grand larceny charges for the $2 million he took from the account. And he doesn’t even have much to show for it. While he spent some of the money on jewelry and cash gifts to friends, much of the money went into bad investments and has been lost, according to prosecutors.

So much for the “bank error in your favor” card from Monopoly. It might end getting you sent to jail.