Quirky World: US woman allowed to wear colander on head for driving licence on religious terms
A Massachusetts agency is letting a woman who belongs to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster wear a colander on her head in her driver’s license photo after she cited her religious beliefs.
Lindsay Miller said she “absolutely loves the history and the story” of Pastafarians, whose website says has existed in secrecy for hundreds of years and entered the mainstream in 2005. Miller says wearing the spaghetti strainer allows her to express her beliefs, like other religions are allowed to do.
Member of Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster wins fight w/ RMV to wear colander on her head in license pic pic.twitter.com/tcwGnIEH73
— Jim Armstrong (@JimArmstronger) November 13, 2015
A spokesman for the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles says policy does not permit head coverings or hats on license photos, but exceptions are made for religious reasons.
Lawyer Patty DeJuneas calls Pastafarianism a “secular religion that uses parody to make its point.”
An emu on the run for more than 60 days has prompted lockdowns at two primary schools in Delaware.
The animal was spotted near Spring Meadow Elementary School and Old State Elementary School on Monday, leading to a “soft lockdown” at both schools. Officials sent a letter alerting parents and saying students remained inside while normal activity continued.
A Delaware Department of Agriculture spokesman said it is not clear who owns the bird. The agency has asked police to shoot the emu if public safety is at risk.
The reigning Mister Ugly faces tough competition in this year’s contest, with organisers saying they received a record number of entries.
For the first time since the competition began in 2011, organisers will hold preliminary rounds to whittle the number of hopefuls who will compete in the finale on November 20 from 36 to 12. Organiser David Machowa said: “We are looking for natural ugliness.”
Facial features count the most, but contestants will also be judged according to their confidence when walking the runway and how they handle the question-and-answer round.
A leather jacket that belonged to former US president John F Kennedy is now thought to be worth a six-figure sum.
The garment will be valued on the Antiques Roadshow. Its owner, Canon Carl Arvidsson, told the BBC programme how the jacket was handed down to him by his father whose best friend had family connections with Swedish aristocrat Gunilla von Post. He said: “Gunilla was 21, 22, and lived in the south of France and then in Paris, and she was JFK’s lover before he got married to Jacqueline Bouvier.
“I believe the relationship ended in 1955 or 1956. She kept the jacket. It’s size 44, which was his size. Some of her belongings and love letters from JFK were sold recently in America and some of his goods were left in the apartment.
“She had three children and a nephew. The nephew was given some of the items and his best friend is my father.”
Antiques Roadshow expert Jon Baddeley — who valued the jacket at a six-figure sum to be revealed on the show — told a delighted Canon Arvidsson: “In America or anywhere worldwide, it is an iconic piece. The story’s everything, please write it down. I feel confident the market will pay that price.”
Two primary schools were forced to close after they became infested with false widow spiders.
Hundreds of pupils who attend The Osmani and Thomas Buxton Primary Schools in east London, were sent home.
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