Silliness

The Guardian reports: A runaway kangaroo named Sheila shut down a stretch of interstate in Alabama on Tuesday before state troopers and the animal’s owner wrangled the wayward marsupial. The Alabama law enforcement agency said the kangaroo was spotted on Tuesday hopping along the side of Interstate 85 in Macon county, which is between Montgomery and Auburn. The sight snarled traffic, …

From the potato marketing group Potatoes USA: Why put all your eggs in one basket? With food prices rising, families are embracing a playful, budget-friendly tradition— Easter potatoes! Potatoes USA is celebrating the growing Easter trend by painting, crafting, and cooking potatoes, proving that creativity and tradition go hand in hand. Durable, versatile, and already a pantry staple, potatoes make …

ABC News reports: Punxsutawney Phil woke up on Sunday and saw his shadow, meaning we are destined for six more weeks of winter, according to legend. Legend has it that if Punxsutawney Phil, perhaps the world’s most famous groundhog, sees his shadow then winter will continue for another six weeks, but if he doesn’t see his shadow spring will come …

The Independent reports: Every Christmas Eve, Norad – the North American Aerospace Defense Command – provides real-time tracking of Santa’s sleigh as it navigates the skies. The cherished tradition dates back to 1955 when a misprint in a department store advert led a young child to call a Colorado military command center asking to speak to Santa Claus. Air Force …

The Daily Beast reports: Pete Buttigieg offended an entire state by dismissing the idea that the SUV-sized drones spotted over New Jersey were part of a UFO invasion. Buttigieg quickly tried to backtrack the slight after being taken to task for saying New Jersey was a “very unlikely” location for a UFO landing on The Breakfast Club, co-hosted by Charlamagne …

NPR reports: Each year, since the turn of the millennium, word arrives from on high: Pantone, the self-described world’s authority on color, announces its Color of the Year. On Thursday, Pantone declared “Mocha Mousse” as the color for 2025. The “evocative soft brown” or “warming rich brown hue,” the company said in a press release, “nurtures with its suggestion of …

Via press release from NASA: Just what you need for the holidays… the coziness of a crackling and roaring rocket engine! Technically, this fireplace packs the heat of FOUR RS-25 rocket engines and a pair of solid rocket boosters – just enough to get you to the Moon. (And get through the holidays with your in-laws.) Video description: A stock …

NewsNation reports: Generally, solid food can go through checkpoints hassle-free, but “if you can spill it, spread it, spray it, pump it or pour it” (and it’s larger than 3.4 ounces), it’ll need to go in a checked bag. Common Thanksgiving foods that can be carried through a TSA checkpoint include baked goods, meats, stuffing, casseroles, macaroni and cheese, fresh …

The Guardian reports: An “amorous couple in a stairwell” has been blamed for causing a flood in Melbourne’s city rail loop last week, which forced the evacuation of two stations and significant delays for people travelling home from an Olivia Rodrigo concert. Melbourne Central and Flagstaff stations had to be evacuated, causing delays across the metropolitan rail network. While it …

Ars Technica reports: You can’t just ask the Internet to vote on something and assume you’ll get a “normal” result. So, despite many years of cautionary tales, the state of Michigan this year launched a contest to design some new “I Voted” sticker designs. And they let the Internet weigh in on the results. More than 57,000 people did so …

The Huffington Post reports: Stephen Colbert found out where Melania Trump was hiding on Tuesday with the help of Laura Benanti’s impression of the former first lady. In character as Melania Trump, Benanti, standing in front of a Democratic National Convention background, greeted viewers, “Hello, Chicago!” “Why are you there?” Colbert asked. “Oh, Stephen,” Benanti replied. “I am trying to …

USA Today reports: Ever wanted to smell a little bit like mayonnaise? Will Levis and Hellmann’s have you covered. The Tennessee Titans’ second-year quarterback and the condiment brand announced a new fragrance partnership with a video posted to social media on Tuesday. “Will Levis No. 8: Parfum de Mayonnaise” retails for $8 per 30 mL bottle. Within 90 minutes of …

The Associated Press reports:  The Associated Press Stylebook says “use only an apostrophe” for singular proper names ending in S: Dickens’ novels, Hercules’ labors, Jesus’ life. But not everyone agrees. Is it Harris’ or Harris’s? The selection of Walz with his sounds-like-an-s surname really ramped it up, said Benjamin Dreyer, the retired copy chief at Random House and author of …

The Daily Beast reports: The world is extending its deepest sympathies to an Olympic hopeful whose dreams were dashed on Saturday. Or, maybe, its congratulations. You know that thing that happens all the time, where your penis is just so big it prevents you from winning a medal at the Olympics? I know, right? Same. And that’s what happened to …

The New York Daily News reports: Monday’s solar eclipse had a knock-down, drag-out fight with Friday’s NYC-area earthquake — in a wild Saturday Night Live Weekend Update sketch that found the comic side of both headline-making phenomena. Cast member Marcello Hernández dressed up as the earthquake — complete with a hat featuring city landmarks — and had it out with …

The Associated Press reports: More and more businesses are taking advantage of the total solar eclipse set to dim skies across North America on Monday. In the snacks department alone, Krispy Kreme is teaming up with Oreo to sell a limited doughnut-cookie creation. Sonic Drive-In is selling a “Blackout Slush Float.” And Frito-Lay’s SunChips has unveiled a new flavor that …

The Hill reports: A California police department said it would no longer use Lego heads to obscure suspects’ faces in social media posts, after the Lego Group requested the department cease the practice, citing intellectual property concerns. “The Lego Group reached out to me on March 19th and respectfully asked us to refrain from using their intellectual property in our …

NewsNation reports: It’s Groundhog Day and Punxsutawney Phil made his prediction on what the weather will be like for the next six weeks. Punxsutawney Phil didn’t see his shadow — presaging early springlike weather. The expert groundhog made his annual winter weather forecast Friday at Gobbler’s Knob In Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, the scene of the country’s largest and most well-known Groundhog …

Courthouse News reports: For 75 years after its discovery at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, Pluto inched around the outskirts of our solar system known to all as the ninth planet from the sun. But when the International Astronomical Union voted to strictly define what does and doesn’t qualify as a planet, Pluto didn’t quite meet the criteria. Despite …

New York City’s ABC affiliate reports: A loose bull was spotted running on the New Jersey Transit train tracks in Newark, New Jersey on Thursday morning. The first reports came in just after 10:30 a.m. at Newark Penn Station. NJ Transit said there were delays of up to 45 minutes between Newark Penn Station and Penn Station New York due …