Denver International Airport (DIA), which was delayed for 16 months because its baggage system chewed up luggage, will experience a new obstacle in this year. The Denver White Pages accidentally deleted all telephone listings for the airport in the new edition. Well, actually one mention of a Denver International Airport remains: a model-airplane airfield owned by John Palombo. Jumbo jets usually cannot land on a 100 foot runway, although USAir pilots have been known to try. According to Denver Councilwoman Cathy Reynolds, "Nobody wants an airport you can't find. The stealth airport is not going to make us any money." The mistake might make Palombo very rich, though. DIA is in negotiations to take over his phone number.
The Parish Council of Bruntingthorpe, England, announced last week that all 30 dogs in the village will need to be DNA tested. It seems that villagers were getting mighty upset by all the dog feces being left around. The results of the DNA tests will be kept on file at a local university and, when an infringement is found, the poop will be tested to match the pooch. According to Councilor Ian Eperon, "It will not be a pleasant job, but better by far than cleaning the stuff off your shoes every day."
Jeanne Calment, 121, of Arles, France, who gained fame last year when she became the oldest person in the world after Japan's Schigechiyo Izumi died, is now the oldest person to release a compact disc. In Mistress of Time, she tells anecdotes about her life-including meeting Vincent Van Gogh-to a background of funk, rap, and techno music. According to Calment, the proceeds will be used to buy a bus for her old-age home so that she and the fellow residents can enjoy the French countryside in the time they have left.
A retired French factory owner was not too happy when the government told him he owed 3,730,606 francs (about $745,000) in taxes. However, being an honest man, he decided that he would pay on time. He gathered 3,730,606 one-franc coins weighing a mere 22 tons, and hired three armored cars to haul the 920 bags of coins to the local tax office. According to Danielle Le Faveur, tax collector in Viarmes, France, "We were a bit surprised. But we greeted him with a smile. He paid his taxes on time." -Compiled by Michael Rubin from The Philadelphia Inquirer
Copyright 1996, The Yale Herald, Inc. All rights reserved.
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