Interesting & funny news from around the world, Интересные и забавные новости со всего мира

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Santa Hoo? Owl Flies Down Chimney and Perches on Top of Family's Christmas Tree

The Animal Welfare League of Arlington responded to a call about the unexpected visitor, who has been safely returned to the wild

One lucky family got a hoot of a tree topper this Christmas!

The Animal Welfare League of Arlington (AWLA) revealed on social media that one of their officers was recently called in to carefully remove an owl that made itself at home on top of a Christmas tree.

“Twas the week before Christmas, and perched on the tree was an unexpected visitor as majestic as can be!,” the AWLA wrote alongside a pair of photos of the bird.

The organization jokingly noted that the creature — which they identified as a barred owl — “decided to play Santa” and dropped in through the chimney of a “local home” in Arlington, Va. The bird then flew over to the top of the tree, knocked over the existing star and “declared himself the newest star on top of their Christmas tree.”

An AWLA officer went to the home and “gently” captured the owl before safely releasing it back into the wild.

The Instagram post also served as a reminder for homeowners to keep their chimneys “capped” during the winter season to “prevent curious critters from coming to visit," the organization noted.

The Barred Owl can be found in the middle, northern eastern and U.S. states and parts of Canada and often live in forests and woodlands, according to AllAboutBirds.org. They often nest in large trees — which is why they probably feel so at home in Christmas trees.

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UK Woman Eats Huge Pile Of Cotton Candy In One Minute, Sets New Record

'Serial speed eater' Leah Shutkever has set another Guinness World Record by eating a large quantity of sweet and sticky cotton candy within 60 seconds.

Leah Shutkever from the UK has set a new Guinness World Record for eating the "most cotton candy (candy floss) in one minute," devouring 49 grams (1.72 oz) in 60 seconds. Known for holding multiple food record titles, Shutkever achieved this latest feat just in time for Christmas. The Guinness World Records shared a video of her attempt on Instagram. Staying festive, Shutkever chose green candy floss, representing the Grinch. Candy floss, a sugary treat made by heating and spinning sugar, is often associated with fairs and carnivals. After completing the challenge, Shutkever described the experience as "absolutely delicious."

"Merry cotton candy Grinchmas to one and all," Guinness World Records commented on the video.

The speed eating record garnered a range of reactions in the comments section:

"I feel like I could beat that record easily," an Instagram user wrote. Another added, "I could do that in 20 seconds."

Enjoying this challenge, a viewer said, "Grinch Candy Floss 10/10." One suggested, "You can just roll the Cotten candy into a ball and eat that in 5 seconds."

"Oh the hot dog girl," a user commented, remembering Shutkever's 2021 record for the fastest time to eat a hot dog with no hands. The "serial speed eater" achieved the feat in just 18.15 seconds.

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A life underwater: Germany aims for world record for longest time spent in an underwater wonder

A man in Germany is trying to set a world record for the longest time spent living in an underwater habitat.

Rudiger Koch has spent more than 60 days so far in an underwater capsule off the coast of Puerto Lindo, Panama, in the Caribbean Sea.

He is halfway to his goal.

"Last time I checked, I was still married," he joked.

Koch, 59, began his underwater life on September 26 and plans to return to land on January 24 – 120 days later.

It is known that the current record for the longest time spent in an underwater habitat is 100 days, held by American Joseph Dituri off the coast of Key Largo, Florida, from March to June 2023, the Telegraph reports.

Koch lived and worked underwater in his 322 square meter living space, complete with a portable toilet, TV, computer, stationary bike, satellite internet and solar power.

The aerospace engineer admitted he misses a real shower - saying it's the first thing he'll do when he's back on earth.

Reportedly, the underwater home has a vertical tube that connects it to another room above the water, which houses the other members of his team and is how food is delivered to him.

People can also go down the tube to take a tour.

Apart from reporters and the media, Koch's only visitors have been his doctor, wife and children.

He is monitored by four cameras that provide evidence that he stays underwater at all times and is in good health.

"I don't feel like I'm suffering down here, not at all," Koch said.

The German wants to do more than break a record – he believes life in the ocean is something the human species "should" do.

"What we're trying to do here is prove that the seas are actually a stable environment for human expansion," he explained.

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Parker Solar Probe successfully completes closest-ever approach to sun

The Parker Solar Probe has successfully completed a historic close encounter with the sun, passing through its blazing corona in mankind's nearest approach to the star, NASA announced Friday.

The probe, which was launched in 2018, passed within 3.8 million miles of the sun's surface as it swung around the celestial body at a speed of 430,000 mph, which is faster than any human-made object has ever moved, the agency said in a blog post.

Scientists were anxiously awaiting the reappearance of the probe after it entered the sun's upper atmosphere on Christmas Eve and then orbited around it. When it emerged on the other side unharmed on Friday, they celebrated their success and readied to delve into the unique data it will provide on solar winds and other long-hidden secrets of the solar system.

"Flying this close to the sun is a historic moment in humanity's first mission to a star," said Nicky Fox of NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. "By studying the sun up close, we can better understand its impacts throughout our solar system, including on the technology we use daily on Earth and in space, as well as learn about the workings of stars across the universe to aid in our search for habitable worlds beyond our home planet."

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Panic alarm at South African home triggered by remote-stealing monkey

A South African security firm said teams were dispatched to a home where a panic alarm turned out to have been triggered by a thieving monkey.

Security company Mi7 National Group said on social media that its control room received multiple panic alarm signals from a home in Northdale on the day after Christmas.

"Under the impression that the client must have been under distress, several units were immediately dispatched to the home," the post said. "Upon the first team's arrival, the client informed them that a monkey had gotten into the home and nabbed a remote containing the panic button."

The monkey fled with the remote, and the company continued to receive panic signals until the primate was out of range of the receiver.

"In an unusual turn of events, the client opted not to have our teams chase down the culprit, and let him get away with the loot," officials wrote.


“A great laugh was had, and a new panic button is currently on the way,” the firm added.

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Fisherman finds Lego shark lost into the ocean in 1997

Treasure hunters dedicated to recovering millions of Lego pieces that fell into the ocean in 1997 said hundreds of pieces were found this year, including the first reported discovery of a sunken Lego shark.

The Lego Lost at Sea project is dedicated to finding and chronicling the discovery of the pieces lost into the water when a wave swept 62 shipping containers off the Tokio Express cargo ship about 20 miles off the coast of Land's End, England, on Feb. 13, 1997.

One of the containers was loaded with 4,756,940 Lego pieces.

Tracey Williams, founder of Lego Lost at Sea, said hundreds of the lost Lego toys were found during 2024, including the first discovery of a Lego shark.

Plymouth fisherman Richard West, 35, found the shark on one of his nets about 20 miles south of Penzance.

"I could tell straight away what it was because I had Lego sharks in the pirate ship set when I was little," West told the BBC. "It's priceless — it's treasure!"

Williams said the shark was one of 51,800 lost in the shipment, but West's discovery marked the first one known to have been recovered.

"Interestingly, after Richard's find, another Lego shark came to light — found not by a fisherman or fisherwoman in their nets but by Andrea Hunt from a beach in St. Ives," Williams said. "The sharks sink, which explains why so few have been found. There are probably some 50,000-plus still lying on the seabed, some making their way ashore, others heading into deeper waters."

Williams said many of the lost Lego pieces turn up on beaches, but some have traveled as far away as Norway.

"The aim of the Lego Lost At Sea Project is primarily to raise awareness of the problem of plastic in the ocean — how it gets there, what sinks, what floats, how long it lasts, how far it drifts — both on the surface of the ocean and along the seabed — and what happens to it over time and as it breaks apart," she said.

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[Poison Ivy]

2024's worst movies: Franchises adrift, original nonsense

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 20 (UPI) — The worst movies of 2024 include seven unacceptable franchise entries that either forgot what their series were about or didn't understand why they were starting one.

The three so-called "originals" had no sense of humanity or narrative to qualify them as truly original, and one of those was still a baffling interpretation of a pre-existing product.

Of course, it is impossible to be completely comprehensive and some worse films may have slipped under the radar. Links go to UPI's full reviews, but many of this year's worst movies snuck out into theaters without reviews. Nevertheless, once released they earned their spots on this list.

This list also sticks to movies released to theaters or on prominent streaming services. They had every resource available and in many cases their indulgences sank them.

10. 'Bad Boys: Ride or Die'

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence forgot who their characters were in Bad Boys II. Now they're just making sequels to the worst sequel.

9. 'Rebel Moon - Part 2'

Part 1 of Zack Snyder's sci-fi saga may have been derivative but it moved. Part 2 slows down so much to reveal backstories that are just basic tragedies. Now you've got a derivative story with a full hour before action resumes.

8. 'Moana 2'

Die Hard 2 got grief for putting Bruce Willis in the exact same situation (he even joked about it), but like Moana 2 it didn't hurt that sequel financially either. Since this was supposed to be a Disney+ streaming series, it is so rushed in movie form that it's hard to keep track of all of Moana's new missions. If Disney had only known fans and families would accept this, they could have made just as much money releasing straight-to-video sequels like Return of Jafar or Lion King 1 1/2 in theaters.

7. 'Argylle'

For whatever appeal the action comedy could have, Argylle ruins all the action. CGI is a fact of life in modern visual effects, but when it doesn't even look like actors are in a real hallway, what is the point? Big ideas like skating through an oil spill or a car straddling two rooftops don't look like real humans or vehicles, so there's no excitement. The CGI cat looks fake too and Captain Marvel got that right before Argylle. The story of an author caught up in a real adventure is overly convoluted. Actually, a post-credits scene tries to connect this to director Matthew Vaughn's Kingsman franchise, so it can't even commit to being an original.

6. 'Borderlands'

Video games continue to confound screenwriters, as in this loud, obnoxious video game movie that's all exposition about finding three keys to a space vault. The plot wouldn't matter if the adventure was fun, but it's not either.

5. 'The Crow'

This remake may make more sense than Borderlands but it's boring. What it tries to add to the Crow legend just makes it take longer. In trying to make different choices it loses the simple poignancy of the comic and its first tragic adaptation.

4. 'IF'

A movie about imaginary friends sounds fun, but IF never creates a logical mythology for its imaginary creatures. Worse, it contains outright harmful messages about families coping with health crises. The film encourages its young heroine not to worry about having lost one parent and having another in the hospital. This is toxic positivity. Hospitalizations and mourning are appropriate times for people of any age to feel sad or anxious. Denial only does more damage.

3. 'Unfrosted'

Writer/director Jerry Seinfeld was interested in what led Kellogg's to create Pop-Tarts, but not so interested that he told the true story. If the actual story wasn't interesting enough to be a biopic like Air or Flamin' Hot, then Seinfeld's farcical historical fiction does not make a case for the alternative. In many cases, Unfrosted relies on outdated stereotypes, the opposite of his perceptive observational comedy.

2. 'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire'

There was a perfectly funny Ghostbusters movie in 2016 but a bunch of trolls freaked out that it was women being funny. Now they've got two joyless legacy sequels so hopefully, they're happy.

1. 'Madame Web'

This is probably the most incompetence you're likely to see in a studio movie. Dialogue that doesn't sound real, spurious connections to Spider-Man, lack of character relationships, boring action and losing sight of Madame Web's power are among this film's offenses.

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Drone operator helps rescue dog stranded on thin ice

A concerned neighbor with a drone helped rescue a dog that spent nearly a full day stranded on the thin ice covering a New Jersey lake.

The 20-month-old pooch, named Brooklyn, was spotted on the thin ice covering Lake Parsippany and appeared to be too afraid of strangers to venture off the ice.

Neighbor Kishan Patel attached some chicken to his drone and attempted to lure Brooklyn to shore, and it initially appeared to be working, but Brooklyn fled back out onto the lake when she spotted the rescuers on shore.

Once the sun went down, Patel used his drone to pinpoint Brooklyn's location for a police officer who went out onto the ice.

The officer was able to find the canine, who fled to shore — and kept on fleeing.

Brooklyn was safely found the next morning on a local resident's porch.

"As a dog owner myself, I can sympathize with what the owner must have been feeling during this ordeal," Patel told Good Morning America. "I am really happy the dog is off the ice now, warm and back home."

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'Person-shaped' object rescued by British Coastguard was a training dummy

A maritime rescue team in Britain was dispatched on a report of a "person-shaped" object in the water, but members arrived to find it was merely a training dummy.

HM Coastguard Fleetwood said a crew was called out to Cove Cafe in Cleveleys, Lancashire, where a witness reported seeing something human-like in the water.

The team arrived at Cove Cafe, where the witness told them the object "was suspiciously person-shaped, but clearly not a person," the Coastguard said on social media.

"Upon closer inspection of a video taken by the informant, we immediately recognized it as the type of dummy used for 'man overboard' drills by maritime organizations and training schools," the post said.

The team decided to retrieve the faux-victim "to prevent the dummy causing more concern and confusion as it drifted up the shoreline."

"After we had safely recovered our casualty to the promenade and made sure they didn't require any further assistance, we handed them over to Wyre Council for disposal," officials wrote.

Coastguard officials said the witness did the right thing in contacting the organization, as "from a distance this made for a very concerning sight in the water."

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California surfer catches possible world record wave

A California surfer may have broken a world record when he shredded a wave estimated to be 108 feet tall.

Alessandro "Alo" Slebir, 23, was surfing with friends on Dec. 23 at Mavericks, near Half Moon Bay, when he caught the enormous wave.

"You're going so fast on those surfboards — you're probably going 30, 40, 50 miles an hour — and that wave was so tall that it was sucking so much water coming back at you that it was a weird feeling, feeling the friction of the water underneath the surfboard. I've never felt that on really any other wave that I've ever caught," Slebir told KSBW-TV.

If the wave's height is confirmed by Guinness World Records and the World Surf League, Slebir will hold the record for the largest wave surfed — a title currently held by Sebastian Steudtner, who rode an 86-foot wave off the coast of Portugal in 2020.

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