QUIRKY WORLD ... ‘Zodiac’ message a sign of a class gone wrong
Police started an investigation after finding the message that included the cipher associated with the serial killer responsible for several unsolved murders in northern California in the late 1960s and early ’70s.
The message near a student apartment complex stated: “I’m alive and well and I’m going to start killing again.”
Police stepped up patrols and eventually discovered it was done for an English class project. Students were told to write a message in a public forum and take a picture of it.
Tallahassee police spokesman David Northway called it a class project gone wrong.
Postie in feline furore
A couple have been told to restrain their cat or face having their post deliveries suspended.
Matthew Sampson was notified by Royal Mail of a “potential hazard” at his home in Patchway, near Bristol, which was “affecting deliveries”. According to the Royal Mail, four-year-old Bella is a “threat” to staff and has been putting “fingers at risk of injury”.
In the letter, Royal Mail says it has been “experiencing difficulties in delivering mail... because of the actions of a cat”. It said the couple’s postman had reported that when he pushes mail through their letterbox, their black and white cat “snatches the mail and puts his fingers at risk of injury”.
‘I could do better than that’
An oral surgeon made a Rhode Island tourism advert and paid for it to air on television following the botched rollout of the state’s own tourism campaign that featured an image of Iceland.
A tourism video that Rhode Island released in March was quickly pulled after being mocked for showing footage of a Reykjavik concert hall.
Surgeon Stephen Skoly said he saw the state’s mistake and thought, “We could do a lot better”.
Skoly, who owns a production company, created his own 30-second video featuring local footage with the tagline, “Sea Rhode Island”. He said it cost about $575 (€506) to make and $3,000 to air locally on CNN and elsewhere.
“We did it for a small amount of money and I think it’s better than what they spent an awful lot of money on,” he said. “That was my little, subtle protest of how they’re reckless with our capital, to the point that it does frustrate the taxpayers.”
The state also dropped its poorly received marketing slogan, “Cooler & Warmer”. The state chief marketing officer resigned.
Skoly said he wants more transparency and oversight.
When asked about Skoly’s ad, Kayla Rosen, a spokesman for the state’s economic development agency, said the next phase of the tourism campaign is “all about public engagement” and “we’re excited to see everyone contribute”.
Cats to nap later
Felines at Japan’s cat cafes are now officially allowed to stay up until 10pm to interact with customers.
The environment department’s animal rights panel said the cats will be allowed to hang out for two more hours than officially allowed under the new rules. Under the 2012 guidelines, cats and other animals at pet shops are prohibited from being displayed after 8pm.
Cat cafes, however, were allowed to have felines out until 10pm, but only while experts studied the impact of nightlife on the cats’ health. Experts concluded the extra hours made no notable difference on cats’ stress levels.
Racing rhymes
An Indiana University student who is a poet and a performer has been named the Indianapolis 500’s first official poet since the early 20th century.
Adam Henze of Bloomington beat out more than 200 others who submitted Indy 500-themed poems for the contest co-sponsored by Indiana Humanities.
The competition revives an Indy 500 tradition from the 1920s, when an official poem was included in the raceday programme.
Henze is an educator and a doctoral candidate at Indiana University . He receives a $1,000 (€880) cash prize and two tickets to the 100th running of the race on May 29.
His poem is titled ‘For Those Who Love Fast, Loud Things’. It will appear in the official race programme. Henze will also read his poem at the Speedway during qualification weekend.
No easy pass on EZ tolls
Authorities say a New Jersey man who owes $12,000 (€10,500) in unpaid EZ Pass tolls has had his black Mercedes Benz impounded and is facing charges.
Oscar Sanchez was pulled over by agency police because the car didn’t have a front licence plate. The officer discovered Sanchez had an expired driver’s licence and more than 200 counts of missed EZ Pass toll payments amounting to about $12,000.
