The Other Side of Life 24/7: Reuters Oddly Enough Report

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Reuters Oddly Enough Report

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11/29/2012

Reuters Election 2012 Daily round-up of the day's top news from the campaign trail, the White House and all the politics in between

Read all about it: Pope has not cancelled Christmas

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - And so it came to pass that in the eighth year of Pope Benedict's reign, some tabloid and social media decreed that he had cancelled Christmas.

Japanese man's childhood dreams give birth to giant robot

TOKYO (Reuters) - Like many Japanese, Kogoro Kurata grew up watching futuristic robots in movies and animation, wishing that he could bring them to life and pilot one himself. Unlike most other Japanese, he has actually done it.

British farmer hunts buried Spitfires in Myanmar

LONDON (Reuters) - A British farmer and flying enthusiast who has spent the past 16 years scouring the jungles of Myanmar believes he has finally found what he was searching for - a horde of buried Spitfire fighter planes dating back to World War Two.

China party mouthpiece ridiculed after missing "sexy" Kim joke

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Tongue-in-cheek clearly doesn't come naturally to the Chinese Communist Party's official mouthpiece and the stodgy People's Daily faced ridicule on Wednesday for missing a joke about North Korea's leader.

Pot-protecting alligators greet U.S. police probing gunshots

OLYMPIA, Washington (Reuters) - Detectives who responded to reports of a shooting at a home in Washington state found a floor-to-ceiling stripper pole, 15 marijuana plants and two angry, five-foot alligators guarding them, police said on Tuesday.

Gimme shelter and light therapy at Swedish bus stops

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Commuters in the northern Swedish town of Umea are being treated to ultra-violet light therapy as the long, dark winter for which the Nordic state is renowned draws in.

Japan school trains wannabe "Santa-sans"

TOKYO (Reuters) - Magic tricks and straight answers are all part of being Santa in Japan - at least according to Tokyo's Santa Claus Academy, which trains St. Nicks in a country with little Christian tradition and a Christmas that's far more retail than religion.

World's first toilet park flush with success in Korea

SUWON, South Korea (Reuters) - Rodin's Thinker is pondering even harder than usual as he sits astride a toilet at what has been dubbed the world's first theme park dedicated to the humble restroom - a monument to one South Korean man's vision.

South Korean church to end car venture with North: source

SEOUL (Reuters) - One of the more bizarre joint ventures in car-making is set to come to an end following the death of the head of South Korea's Unification Church which it is to give its stake in the Pyeonghwa Motors operation to North Korea.

Police probe how Romney security data became NYC parade confetti

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Police are investigating how shredded documents revealing confidential information, including details about Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's motorcade, wound up as confetti on a Manhattan sidewalk during the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.