OFFBEAT NEWS:

Girl’s Backpack Saves Her From Icy Pond

A nine-year-old girl in Austria owes her life to her backpack. She and some other kids were playing on a frozen pond when the ice broke and she fell in.

Fortunately, a passerby noticed the kids and called police because he thought the ice was too thin. When authorities arrived, they saw the girl was still afloat thanks to her backpack. which had inflated once she hit the water.

Two officers also fell in to the water because of how thin the ice was and all in all team of police officers, firemen, and lifeguards were called to the pond, as well as an emergency helicopter. The little girl and one of the cops that fell in were taken to the hospital with hypothermia.

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New Jersey Man Finds Message In A Bottle From England

Vince Stango was walking his dogs along the beach near his Long Beach Island, New Jersey home when he spotted something in the sand: a message in a bottle.

“It was probably a whiskey bottle, scotch or something, sealed with a screw cap,” he explains. “I brought it home and I was going to break it open, but when it warmed up the note opened so you could read it without breaking the bottle.” The note read “Found the bottle? Read this note? I’m Stuart, if you wish, call or mail me. Speak or mail soon. England Stuart.”

The message is undated, and it’s written on stationery from Cunard cruise line, which does transatlantic crossings from England to New York, so it’s unclear when and where exactly Stuart tossed the bottle.

Stango and his family left messages after calling the two phone numbers on the note. They also sent an email trying to get in contact with Stuart. “I think it’s so exciting,” Vince’s wife Shawna adds. “It’s the kind of thing you only see in movies.” They’re still waiting for a response.

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Couple Arrested After They Sent Takeout To Their Neighbor’s House

English couple Alan Ward and Kirsty Ogle thought it would be funny to order takeout to their neighbor’s house 13 times over a 10-day period. Unfortunately, their neighbor doesn’t have the same sense of humor and now, 23-year-old Ward and 19-year-old Ogle have to cough up $375 each in a “prank gone too far.”

“I have never been so nervous and paranoid,” their victim says. “I was suspicious of everyone I know and I was accusing people wrongly of being behind the deliveries.”

The best part? Even Ward and Ogle’s lawyer admits it was a stupid thing to do. “There is no history of bad blood between these parties. It’s quite simply juvenile behavior gone too far,” Andrew O’Hanlon admits. “They weren’t working and I think it was unemployment making silly work for idle hands.”

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STUPID CRIMINALS:

Bishop gets nabbed for stealing power:

One thing Jesus would not do is steal. Bridgeport, Connecticut bishop William Marshall found that out the hard way when he was nabbed for stealing more than $8,000 in electricity from the United Illuminating Company. He was arrested at his home and now faces a third-degree larceny charge.

Casino in trouble for serving man 27 drinks:

We’ve all had a few to many, but one man at Mount Airy Casino in Pennsylvania had enough for a whole family. The casino is facing $25,000 in fines because three different bartenders served the unidentified man 27 drinks in nine hours. It turns out casinos in that state are not permitted to serve alcohol to visibly intoxicated gamblers so Mount Airy is on the hook for the 18 drinks past the visibly sloppy point. Not surprisingly, the man fell off his stool, which is when casino security attempted to put the man in an ambulance. After he resisted, he was instead taken to Monroe County Prison. All three bartenders were fired.