Latest Oddities News
NORAD's Santa tracker was a Cold War morale boost. Now it attracts millions of kids
The Christmas tradition has become nearly global in scope: Children from around the world track Santa Claus as he sweeps across the earth, delivering presents and defying time. Each year, at least 100,000 kids call into the North American Aerospace Defense Command to inquire about...
Santa braves the sticky heat of the Amazon jungle to bring gifts to children in Brazilian village
CATALAO, Brazil (AP) — Santa Claus braved the sticky heat of the Amazon rainforest this weekend, taking two boats to bring gifts to children in a village near the Brazilian city of Manaus. The visit was arranged by Amigos do Papai Noel, a Brazilian charity that has been taking...
Baby pigs get Christmas pardon from Florida mayor in a Cuban twist on White House turkey tradition
MIAMI (AP) — As the stars of Friday's show in downtown Miami, baby pigs Glinda and Elphaba will never have to worry about gracing the dinner table at a Cuban American family's home on Christmas Eve. Public pardons for the two piglets were granted by the mayor of Miami-Dade County,...
Detroit-area library says Chicago man can keep overdue baseball book -- 50 years later
DETROIT (AP) — Fifty years later, a man who grew up in suburban Detroit tried to return a very overdue baseball book to his boyhood library. The answer: You can keep it — and no fine. Chuck Hildebrandt, 63, of Chicago said he visited the public library in Warren...
Thousands of Santas and a few Grinches hit the streets for annual SantaCon bar crawls
NEW YORK (AP) — Santa Clauses are coming to town. Thousands of Kris Kringles and jolly Old St. Nicks are jamming streets, sidewalks and bars from Adelaide to Vancouver on Saturday for annual SantaCon charity pub crawls. In New York City, where temperatures hovered...
Mysterious googly eyes go viral after appearing on public art in Oregon
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Googly eyes have been appearing on sculptures around the central Oregon city of Bend, delighting many residents and sparking a viral sensation covered widely by news outlets and featured on a popular late-night talk show. On social media, the city shared...
Homeland Security shares new details of mysterious drone flights over New Jersey
The large mysterious drones reported flying over parts of New Jersey in recent weeks appear to avoid detection by traditional methods such as helicopter and radio, according to a state lawmaker briefed Wednesday by the Department of Homeland Security. In a post on the social media...
A New Zealander studied for a year to win the Spanish world Scrabble title. He doesn’t speak Spanish
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A New Zealand man playing his first-ever competitive Scrabble game in Spanish, a language he doesn’t speak, has won the board game’s Spanish-language world title. Nigel Richards, a professional player who holds five English-language world titles,...
2024 in pop culture: In a bruising year, we sought out fantasy, escapism — and cute little animals
NEW YORK (AP) — I’ll get you, my pretty! And your little pygmy hippo, too! Forgive us the shameless attempt to link the fantasy hit “Wicked” to the delightful Moo Deng. But, hear us out — there’s something the two have in common as the year draws to a close. Escapism....
UK spy agency releases annual Christmas card puzzle to uncover future codebreakers
LONDON (AP) — What does a spy agency give for Christmas? How about a riddle wrapped in an enigma inside a mystery. GCHQ, Britain’s electronic and cyber-intelligence agency, on Wednesday published its annual Christmas Challenge – a seasonal greeting card that doubles as a set of...
