Odds

New York hotelier leaves billions to the care of dogs

Wed, 2 Jul 2008 16:43:44 +0000

New York hotelier and real estate magnate Leona Helmsley left millions to her beloved dog, Trouble, but she has left billions for the care of dogs in general, The New York Times said on Tuesday.

Helmsley left instructions that an entire charitable trust valued at $5 billion to $8 billion and amounting to virtually all of her estate, be used for the care and welfare of dogs, the newspaper said, citing two people who had seen the document and described it on condition of anonymity.

The two people who had seen the document said Helmsley signed it in 2003 to establish goals for the trust that would disburse assets after her death.

The first goal was to help indigent people and the second to provide for the care and welfare of dogs, the newspaper said. But a year later, she deleted the first goal. But all the money may not go to the dogs, the article said. It said the mission statement also has a provision that Helmsley's trustees may use their discretion in distributing the funds, and some lawyers say the statement may not mean much, given that it was not incorporated into her will or the trust documents.

Helmsley, who was known as "the Queen of Mean" because of the way she dealt with her employees, had a soft spot for her dog. But a New York court last month lowered the dog's inheritance to $2 million from $12 million on grounds that Helmsley was mentally unfit when she made her will.

A spokesman for the executors of Helmsley's estate told the Times they did not want to comment on the statement because they were still working to determine the trust's direction.

Helmsley died in August 2007 at age 87. She amassed a fortune in real estate and hotels with her husband, Harry Helmsley, who died in 1997. Famously quoted as having said "only the little people pay taxes", Helmsley spent 18 months in federal prison for evading $1.7 million in taxes in 1989.

Couple caught having sex in a church confessional box repent

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 13:05:49 +0000

An Italian couple who were caught having sex in a church confessional box while morning Mass was being said have repented and made peace with the local bishop.

British man collects nearly $10000 after betting his life against cancer

Mon, 2 Jun 2008 08:34:38 +0000

A British man who bet on his chances of beating his terminal cancer prognosis walked away with five-thousand pounds (9895 US dollars) in winnings on Sunday, according to a report by British broadcaster Sky News.

Jon Matthews, 58, was diagnosed with a rare form of lung cancer, called Mesothelioma, in April 2006, according to the report. At the time doctors predicted that he would not live until Christmas of that year. After beating those odds, Mathews decided to place a bet with bookmakers, that he would survive until June 1 2008 - a full 25 months after his diagnosis. "I had lasted six months more than they said I would. And I thought, well why not?" Matthews told Sky.

Homeless woman lives undetected in a man’s house

Fri, 30 May 2008 12:31:25 +0000

A homeless woman who sneaked into a man's house and lived undetected in his closet for a year has been arrested in Japan after he became suspicious when food mysteriously began disappearing.

Police spokesman Hiroki Itakura from southern Kasuya town said Friday that police found the 58-year-old woman Thursday hiding in the top compartment of the man's closet and arrested her for trespassing.

The resident of the home installed security cameras that transmitted
images to his mobile phone after becoming puzzled by food disappearing from his kitchen.

One of the cameras captured someone moving inside his home Thursday after he had left, and he called police.

The woman told police she had no place to live and first sneaked into the man's house about a year ago when he left it unlocked.

Watch calculates death date based on health factors

Sat, 24 May 2008 11:31:37 +0000

This watch has been created by Timex technology company .

According to Tecnomagazine online magazine (text in Spanish), its basic function is to keep us constantly informed about how many days of life we have left.

Bull bursts through German home

Mon, 19 May 2008 15:55:42 +0000

A German family were stunned when a rampaging bull burst through the back door of their house, charged around the living room, and then left by the front door.

"The animal basically did a tour of the hall, the kitchen and the living room before leaving the building," said Paul Kemen, a spokesman for police in the western city of Aachen on Monday. "It came in the back and went out the front."

None in the family were injured, but the bull laid waste to
furnishings, causing an estimated 10,000 euros ($15,600) of damage, police said. The bull left after the owner of the house opened the front door for it.

The red-brown Limousin bull was part of a herd of cattle that had escaped from a farmer and overrun a section of the nearby town of Monschau. A huntsman later shot the animal.

Woman fired for giving 16-cent treat to a child

Fri, 9 May 2008 13:19:46 +0000

An attendant at a Canadian restaurant who was sacked for giving a bite-sized doughnut, worth 16 cents, to an agitated toddler was given her job back on Thursday after the case received wide media attention.

Nicole Lilliman, a single mother, said she was dismissed from a London, Ontario, outlet of the Tim Hortons coffee and doughnut chain after video cameras captured the 27-year-old giving a Timbit to a toddler.

"It was just out of my heart, she (the toddler) was pointing and going 'ah, ah' I should have gone to my purse and got the change, but it was busy", Lilliman told the Toronto Star newspaper.

Tim Hortons said on Thursday that the firing was a mistake. "It was the unfortunate action of one manager who unfortunately made an overzealous decision, and thankfully we were able to rectify the situation", said company spokeswoman Rachel Douglas.

Germany's Social Democrats head to auction his beard

Tue, 6 May 2008 14:48:15 +0000

The head of Germany's Social Democrats, who has ambitions to be his country's next leader, is thinking about donating his beard to charity, but is not quite sure.

Kurt Beck, who as party leader has a strong claim to lead the SPD into next year's national election, said in a panel discussion in Mainz that he might shave off his beard to raise 1 million euros ($1.5 million) for charity, the newspaper Bild am Sonntag reported.

Greek islanders want to ban gay groups to stop using word "Lesbians"

Fri, 2 May 2008 16:38:04 +0000

Some residents on the Greek island of Lesvos say they are the only true Lesbians and they want gay groups to stop using the word.

Several residents have begun legal proceedings and pending a ruling have asked a court to ban the Gay and Lesbian Community of Greece from using the word lesbian in their title. Plaintiff Dimitris Lambrou says the dispute is over identity and not sexuality. "We must protect our identity, the name that defines our origin from being stolen", he told Reuters TV on Friday. "Our legal actions have nothing to do with the sexual orientation of our adversaries".

Dogs `rescue´ girl abandoned by mother

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 12:31:29 +0000

Hundreds of villagers have flocked to a remote Indian village to see a baby girl who was saved by stray dogs after she was abandoned in a mound of mud by her mother, officials said on Tuesday.

Villagers in the eastern state of Bihar saved the newborn on the weekend after they saw three dogs barking near a baby covered with mud.

"The dogs removed the soil around and began to bark and the baby started crying which drew attention of the local villagers," Ram Narayan Sahani, a senior government official, said on Tuesday from Bihar's Samastipur district.

"The girl is crying but is safe in the lap of a childless couple who have adopted her." Police said they were looking for the girl's mother, who they think had left the girl to die.