STRANGE STUFF AND ODDITIES

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Justice Man wounded allegedly takes over freight train with bow and arrow

MONTCLAIR, California - In a confrontation reminiscent of the Wild West, police shot and wounded a man who allegedly took over a freight train with a bow and arrow. Juventino Vallejo-Camerena boarded the Union Pacific train Sunday night as it was stopped for a signal and threatened the engineer and conductor, the only people on board, police Capt. Keith Jones said. The crew members escaped and called police. The man was aboard the train in western San Bernardino County when officers arrived. The man cocked the bow and pointed the arrow at officers, who opened fire, Jones said. Vallejo-Camerena suffered gunshot wounds to the left wrist and forearm that were not life-threatening, Jones said. He was treated at a hospital, then booked into jail for investigation of train robbery, assault and resisting arrest. It wasn't known when he would make his first court appearance. Union Pacific representatives did not immediately return calls for comment Monday.

U.S. gas station's mistake briefly allows drivers to fill up at 1955 prices

LINCOLN, Nebraska- One gas station manager's mistake paid off for drivers who were able to buy fuel for about a tenth of the current price. For 30 to 45 minutes Friday, three of the Kabredlo's Convenience Store's four pumps sold premium unleaded gas for $.08 US a litre - about a tenth of the current price. Gas hasn't been that cheap since 1955, according to AAA Nebraska. Until the mistake was caught, lines formed at the store as news of the cheap fuel spread, said Max Wolfe, who was doing landscaping for Kabredlo's. Wolfe and his co-workers took time out to fill up. "I was on E, and I filled my tank up for $4 (US)," Wolfe said. "It made my day." Nathan Olson said he usually pays $72 to fill his gas-guzzling 1998 Ford F-150. On Friday, he filled the tank three-quarters full for $3.50. On average, Lincoln gas stations are charging $.79 a litre for gas, according to AAA.

Even Armani has a fake Armani watch and says imitation is flattering

HONG KONG Imitation is flattering, says designer Giorgio Armani, who has a fake Armani watch to prove it. Armani said he bought the watch for $22 US in Shanghai. "It was an identical copy of an Emporio Armani watch," he said at a news conference Monday. The real timepiece costs many timesas much. "I know I have some stores in China - Giorgio Armani, Armani Fiori, Emporio Armani - that have nothing to do with me," said the designer, who was in China over the weekend to announce the opening of a store on Shanghai's trendy Bund. Armani said the imitations can cause "confusion" among consumers. "On the other hand, it's flattering to be copied. If you are copied, you are doing the right thing," he said with a smile.

Austrians love their bedroom most; Malaysians make love there the most: survey

STOCKHOLM, Sweden - Austrians love their bedrooms, but seldom make love in them. Malaysians often have sex in their bedrooms, but don't get much sleep there. Those are two conclusions of Gallup International poll released Tuesday by Swedish furniture giant Ikea. The company wanted to know how frequently people in Europe, Asia and North America use their bedrooms for different activities, including sleep, relaxation and "romance." In Sweden and Iceland, 72 per cent of respondents said they use their bedrooms for romantic endeavours, while in China the figure was just 20 per cent. All it said about North Americans was that a fifth - about 20 per cent - like to have sex outside the bedroom, but it didn't say where. Malaysians were the most sexually active - 43 per cent said they have sex daily in their bedrooms. Malaysia was also the place were people sleep the least - six hours and 36 minutes a night, about half an hour less than the survey's average. Austrians ranked low in sexual activity, but were the most satisfied with their bedrooms, ahead of Belgians and Swiss. Russians were the least satisfied. The survey was conducted by Isopublic, the Swiss branch of the Gallup organization, in January and included 14,000 Ikea customers in 27 countries. The margin of error was 4.5 percentage points. Spaniards and North Americans were most likely to keep their bedrooms private, while almost half of Chinese allowed their friends access. Other facts in the survey: Three-quarters make their bed daily; people who frequently change their mattresses have more sex; and the most common fixture of a bedroom is the alarm clock.

Jealous husband fined by Austrian court; he spiked wife's food with sedatives

FELDKIRCH, Austria- A jealous husband who spiked his wife's food and drinks with sedatives to keep her away from her lover received his comeuppance from an Austrian court Wednesday. A court in the western province of Vorarlberg found the 47-year-old man guilty of "coercion" and sentenced him to a $540 US fine should he repeat the offence. The trick worked twice, said the Austria Press Agency, with the woman sleeping through the evening instead of meeting her lover after her husband dissolved sleeping pills in her wine. But she pressed charges after finding a tablet concealed in bread. Neither the news agency nor the court identified the couple, in keeping with Austrian practice. APA said divorce proceedings were underway.

Police catch burglar having sex in basement of building he had broken into basement

PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania- Pittsburgh police say they caught a serial burglar in the act - a sex act. Officers found Robert Calloway, 40, in the basement of a Squirrel Hill apartment building he had broken into, police said. Authorities said Calloway was having sex with a woman who was not identified. He was charged with Monday's break-in, as well as in three others in recent weeks. Calloway matches the description of a man caught on surveillance tape breaking into the basements of other apartment buildings, police said. In all the cases, Calloway is accused of prying the locks from storage area doors. Sometimes nothing was reported missing; in other cases, a leaf blower, gas can, and tool box were taken, police said. Storage bins had been broken into in the basement where Calloway was found having sex with the woman, police said. It was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney.