March Postings Reprised

   [Seven Firestarters]
   * "Boy angry at TV show allegedly starts apt. fire"
      < http://www.local6.com/news/2916090/detail.html >
   "A boy's reported temper tantrum over a television show not airing Thursday
    has been blamed for an apartment complex fire"

   [Follow the Trail]
   * "White stick theft stinks"
      < http://smh.com.au/articles/2004/03/05/1078378939931.html >
   "Police are on the scent of a mugger who robbed a blind woman of her white
    stick in the UK - after she recognised his deodorant"
   * "Man charged with stealing tracking device"
      < http://www.rednova.com/news/stories/5/2003/09/01/story102.html >
   * "GPS bicycles used to bait thieves"
      < http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/ptech/03/10/bikes.gps1.reut/index.html >

   [Freaks of Nature]
   * "German family cops an earful"
      < http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s1074264.htm >
   "A four-eared German kitten has been given a new home, after an animal shelter
    was deluged with requests to adopt her"

Buy a Town on eBay (a John West post)

   I keep an electronic scrapbook of potential B-List posts, organised by topic.
   Some topics seem to hang around for ages, and aren't really that funny.  So
   I've decided to start getting rid of them under the banner "the b-list posts
   that John West would reject", or for the H2G2 afficionados, "Golgafrincham
   B Ark b-lists".

   ----

   Why settle for a mere house when you can buy a whole town or even a state?

   1. "Town for sale on Internet"
      < http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,8856006%255E1702,00.html >

   2. "Aberystwyth available on eBay"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_778617.html >

   3. "For sale: Town with a view"
      < http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2000/Jul-10-Mon-2000/news/13865636.html >

   4. "Arizona town for sale on eBay for $5.5M"
      < http://www.softcom.net/webnews/wed/ap/Atown-for-sale.RwLB_DDI.html >

   5. "EBay pulls plug on auction of W.Va."
      < http://www.usatoday.com/news/offbeat/2004-01-15-wvasale_x.htm >

   ----

   If you don't know what in the universe Golgafrincham is, and you're curious ...
      < http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/hitchhikers/guide/golgafrincham.shtml >

Take Your Time Part 1 - Late Mail

   Yes it's been a while since the last b-list posting - two weeks in fact.
   A couple of things popped up which prevented me from having the time to
   prepare the b-lists.  Things should get back to normal (whatever that is)
   soon.

   1. "Better late than never"  [USA]
      < http://www.usatoday.com/news/offbeat/2003-06-23-postal_x.htm >
   "A letter posted with a 10-cent stamp in San Francisco has arrived in Council
    Bluffs - 35 years after it was sent"

   2. "Better late than never"  [Sweden]
      < http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/01/13/1073877794449.html >
   "A postcard sent from southern Sweden in 1982 arrived at its destination in
    the centre of the country last month, more than 21 years later"

   3. "Bulgarian postcard mailed in 1988 finally reaches its destination"
      < http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=29672 >
   "A postcard mailed from Bulgaria in 1988 has reported finally reached its
    Czech destination 15 years late"

   4. "Xmas card arrives after 10 years"
      < http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/12/20/1071868701460.html >
   "A Christmas card sent from Zagreb has taken 10 years to reach its destination
    in Sesvete, 10km from the capital"

   5. "59-year-old paycheck finally delivered to rightful owner"
      < http://www.msnbc.com/local/ksnw/m330307.asp?0ct=-302&cp1=1 >
   "A Hays man was surprised recently to receive a paycheck. He doesn't remember
    doing anything to earn it, and the check was issued in 1944"

   6. "Council responds to letter seven years late"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_782961.html >
   "A man who wrote to the local council to oppose a planned tree-felling operation
    has received a reply seven years later"

The Ides of March

   Today is March 15 - the legendary "Ides of March".  Julius Caesar was warned:
   "beware the Ides of March".  Read about the significance of the term "Ides"
   and how it relates to the Roman calendar:
      < http://www.infoplease.com/spot/ides1.html >

   Basically there's nothing particularly fateful about the date, it's just one
   of the three named reference dates in a month.  The remaining dates in the
   months have their names derived by counting back from the reference dates.

Far Side Cartoons Made Real + Freaks of Nature

   A. Far Side Cartoons Made Real

   A selection from a recent competition to submit real-life interpretations of
   Far Side cartoons:
      < http://www.worth1000.com/cache/gallery/contestcache.asp?contest_id=2455
          &display=photoshop >

   The rest of the site is also interesting, but some sections require you to
   register first.


   B. Freaks of Nature

   1. "Gargantuan pig battles Big Bill for world record"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_874955.html >

   2. "Boy finds two-headed snake"
      < http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/science/10/17/offbeat.twoheaded.snake.ap/ >

   3. "'Warning' over three-headed frog"
      < http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/somerset/3534361.stm >

   4. "Rare cow is a sixy beast"
      < http://www.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-12815981,00.html >

   5. "Five-legged dog steals hearts"
      < http://newsobserver.com/news/triangle/story/2986218p-2735969c.html >

   6. "Zenkey foal a hybrid star"
      < http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/08/28/1062050609625.html >

Order of Skull and Bones

   It's reassuring to know that whoever wins the upcoming presidential election
   in the United States, he will be a member of an elite secret society known as
   the "Order of Skull and Bones".

   * "Skull & Bones: The Secret Society That Unites John Kerry and President Bush"
      < http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0122-10.htm >

   * "The Order of Skull and Bones"
      < http://www.parascope.com/articles/0997/skullbones.htm >
   "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know, But Were Afraid to Ask"

   * "CBS 60 Minutes: Skull And Bones"
      < http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/10/02/60minutes/main576332.shtml >

From the eBay Files

   1. "'Claytons' girlfriends offered on eBay"
      < http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s1038319.htm >

   2. "Man auctions wife on internet"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_804636.html >

   3. "German women promise party oomph after Internet auction"
      < http://quickstart.clari.net/qs_se/webnews/wed/ah/Qlifestyle-germany.RaeN_DNA.html >

   4. "Latest e-sign of lousy job market"
      < http://www.wired.com/news/ebiz/0,1272,57472,00.html >
   "a group of writers, editors and producers formerly employed at a ZDNet website
    geared toward IT managers are auctioning their talents on eBay"

   5. "Soul for sale on eBay"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_844462.html >

   6. "Area man pulls eBay auction for his vote"
      < http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/front/2435761 >

   7. Sites that list unusual eBay items
      * Ain't Capitalism Grand? The Weird eBay Auctions Warehouse
      < http://www.whattheheck.com/ebay/ >
      * Who Would Buy That? (auction oddities from all over the web)
      < http://www.whowouldbuythat.com/ >
      * The Strangest - Weirdest - Funniest - Most Bizarre eBay auctions EVER!
      < http://www.dotcomscotland.co.uk/weirdsites/ebayauctions.htm >
      * Webshots Community - Weird Ebay items
      < http://community.webshots.com/album/3671602SBjnqQJIBz/2 >

Follow the Trail

   1. "Brazilian bandit caught red-footed"
      < http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s1059490.htm >
   "A Brazilian crook shot himself in the foot while trying to rob a bar,
    then left a trail of blood that led police straight to his home"

   2. "Footprints in the snow led police to robbers"  [Austria]
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_859868.html >
      "Snow help police track alleged robbers"  [USA]
      < http://www.thewbalchannel.com/news/2793378/detail.html >

   3. "Paint tracks led to burglary suspect"
      < http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1299058 >

   4. "Trail of ham led police to meat thief suspect"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_758878.html >

   5. "Sweet lolly trail lands dumb burglar in the slammer"
      < http://abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s757890.htm >

   6. "Trail of broken parts leads police to cash machine thief"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_867907.html >

   7. "Robbery suspect wore electronic monitor"
      < http://www.indystar.com/articles/9/126630-7369-102.html >

Seven Firestarters

   Seven excuses to start a fire ...

   1. "Man set house alight because he couldn't walk dog"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_779408.html >

   2. "Man started fire to get out of sex"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_802216.html >

   3. "Firefighter torches home because it's untidy"
      < http://www.irishexaminer.com/breaking/2004/01/15/story129650.html >

   4. "Lawton woman burns apartment to get rid of ghost"
      < http://kfor.com/Global/story.asp?S=1566470 >

   5. "Gillette man lights self on fire to ward away officers"
      < http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=1&display=rednews/
          2003/08/05/build/wyoming/30-gillette.inc >

   6. "Man torches car after failing driving test"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_813569.html >

   7. "Accused firestarter allegedly kept girlfriend locked in box"
      < http://www.thelouisvillechannel.com/news/2872604/detail.html >
   "A Louisville man was indicted on charges Tuesday that he set fire to
    three homes in order to keep his girlfriend"

Livio De Marchi, Sculptor

   Livio De Marchi, Sculptor
      < http://www.liviodemarchi.com/ >

   "Livio De Marchi is a sculptor from Venice whose specialty is creating things
    in wood that you wouldn't have imagined possible"

   A couple of highlights:
    * Floating Ferrari F50, with motor, life size
      < http://www.liviodemarchi.com/f501_uk.htm >
    * Fiat Topolino
      < http://www.liviodemarchi.com/topolinouk.htm >

Some Mad Cows and a Raging Bull

   1. "Wedding guest cow wanders into bank"
      < http://sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=13384225 >
   Perhaps she was inspired by the TV ad where another cow uses an ATM?

   2. "Slaughterhouse cow has last laugh in town rampage"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_855613.html >

   3. "MOO-OO-VE: Cow attacks Union City man"  [broken]
      < http://www.theargusonline.com/Stories/0,1413,83~1971~1918192,00.html >
      Archived at:
      < http://www.livejournal.com/users/canadianknight/3937.html >

   4. "Cow swallows 1722 diamonds"
      < http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_857161.html >

   5. "Rodeo bull jumps into Perry crowd, injures 10"
      < http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/0204/28rodeobull.html >