Anne Osinga, chairman of the Dutch Friesian Society for the Protection of Birds, was hospitalized with head injuries and a fractured cheek bone after being struck by a falling six-pound goose that was shot by a hunting companion. The 60-year-old explained he was bird-hunting and was aiming "with one eye shut" so he did not see the goose-turned-projectile. According to Osinga, "I'm going to eat it with pleasure."
Firefighters in Jefferson City, Mo., had to use all their resources to rescue a three-and-a-half-month-old German shepherd who got his head stuck in a pipe. According to owner Frayne Fischer, the puppy chased a toy that rolled behind a cast-iron sink lying on the floor during remodeling. The puppy went headfirst into the 6-inch drain and got stuck. Fischer, not able to get 'George' free, brought the sink with pup to the local fire department. Firefighters first tried to use a hacksaw, but the blade broke, so they turned to a chisel. Eventually, a large metal-cutting saw was used to trim much of the sink away from the dog, so the jaws of life could be brought in to finish the job. According to Beck, "We've done a lot of extrications throughout the years, but a dog in a sink being brought to the fire department was a new one."
New Zealanders were disappointed earlier this month when their nation lost the world sheep-shearing doubles title for the first time. The loss is a deep embarrassment to the New Zealanders, who live in a country where sheep outnumber humans by a ratio of 15 to one. Scots Tom Wilson and George Bayne won when the New Zealand team of Colin King and David Fagan were disqualified for accidentally cutting a sheep. In an interview with Radio New Zealand, Wilson was elated, saying, "What can you say? To beat New Zealand on their own ground...and dressed in kilts."
Wade Miller of Santa Fe, NM got a shock when he called the Summer Olympics ticket office in Atlanta, GA to get volleyball tickets. The operator told Miller tickets were still available, but could not be sold to someone who lives outside of the U.S. Miller had no luck with the operator's supervisor, either. "I told her I was calling from New Mexico and emphasized the New," Miller said. The operator responded, "Sir, new Mexico, old Mexico. It doesn't matter. I understand it's a territory, but you still have to go through your nation's Olympic committee."
-Compiled by Michael Rubin from the Philadelphia Inquirer
Copyright 1996, The Yale Herald, Inc. All rights reserved.
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