OFFBEAT NEWS:

Hotel Rooms For Groundhog’s Day Are More Expensive Than For The Super Bowl

While football fans anxiously await Sunday’s Super Bowl showdown between the Falcons and the Patriots, it seems plenty more people are keeping their eyes on a groundhog in Pennsylvania. According to Trivago, it’s more expensive to get a room in Punxsutawney for Groundhog Day on Thursday than in Houston for the Super Bowl.

A room in time to watch Punxsutawney Phil decide whether we’re heading toward spring or staying in winter will cost you $450. A room in Houston? That’ll run you $340.

In case you think Punxsutawney is just a hot, happening vacation destination, Trivago found prices drop by $300 the day after Groundhog Day.

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Saudi Prince Books First Class Seats For 80 Hawks

Think a crying baby is a pain on an airplane? Imagine the noise made by 80 birds. Passengers on a recent flight found out after they discovered 80 hawks sitting in first class. It turns out a Saudi prince booked his avian friends first class seats on the flight, and the plane’s captain took a photo and shared it with his friend, who later posted it online.

Believe it or not, this is not the first time birds have ridden in luxury. AOL News did some digging and found a similar scene on a flight four years ago with a pack of falcons sitting first class.

While this may seem surprising to us, these birds have a lot of legal protection in United Arab Emirates. Hawks can have their own passport and there are laws on the books to prevent against the discrimination of falcons. Now you know.

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STUPID CRIMINALS:

Man under the influence drives in freezing conditions with his convertible top down:

Driving under the influence of drugs is always a bad idea. Driving under the influence of drugs with your convertible top down in freezing conditions? That’s stupid-ER. Just consider the case of an unnamed 24-year-old who was recently pulled over in Wels, Austria. He had his top down in 21-degree weather and cops quickly determined he was under the influence of drugs and not capable of driving. When they tried to take his license away, they found out he had already had his license taken away “some time ago” for other drug offenses, and was thus driving without one. No word on what exactly he was charged with, but the man ended up testing positive for amphetamines and cannabis.

Chase ends when suspect runs out of gas:

If you’re going to lead police on a chase, make sure you fill up the tank beforehand. Police in Des Moines, Iowa chased a car driven by 26-year-old Caleb Wood and including 27-year-old passenger Mark York. The nearly 40-mile chase only ended after Wood’s car ran out of gas. It turns out both men had outstanding warrants and were involved in another chase in Pekin, Illinois. Wood is now facing failure to have a valid driver’s license, eluding, possession of narcotics, and traffic violations. York is being charged with possession of drug paraphernalia.