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January 14, 2001

GLUB, GLUB, GLUB, CRUNCH! ARGHHH! Two four-inch-long killer shrimp, hiding among display rocks sent from Florida, were apparently shipped inadvertently to California's Monterey Bay Aquarium. Now there's big trouble in the 1,300-gallon tank in the children's section. The mantis shrimp strike with a terrible swiftness. They have been preying on sea snails, barnacles and hermit crabs, the tank's bottom dwellers, reducing the unsuspecting sea creatures to empty shells in seconds with their lightning-quick claws. One of the killer shrimp was snared and removed in November. 
His partner is still on the loose.

ARE YOU SURE ABOUT THAT? The recent lunar eclipse was seriously misinterpreted by Muslim youths in Maiduguri, Nigeria, who felt it was caused by a breakdown in the local morality. In response, they rampaged through the streets and burned down at least 40 bars and hotels. 
One youth told police who arrested him, "The immoral acts committed in these places are responsible for this eclipse."

THE BRIDE LOOKS LOVELY, ARREST HER: Che Dixon stole a wedding dress from a bridal shop in southwest England and gave it to his fiancee. Then, she wore it in a wedding photo that appeared in their local newspaper. The shop owner, Linda Purdey, called the police when she recognized the dress as one of hers. 
The bride and groom were arrested.

NOW, DON'T JUMP TO CONCLUSIONS, BUT ...: Workers at the Wal-Mart store in Winnemucca, Nev., discovered that $200,000 was missing from the safe. 
In what may very well be a coincidence, police, seeking to question the manager, found that he had abruptly left without telling anyone and has not been seen since.

AHHHH, THAT FEELS GOOD ... WHAT THE ...? A cargo plane, trying to take off from the airport in Dundo, Angola, developed engine trouble and crashed. 
All aboard the plane survived, but a man who had stopped near the runway to urinate was killed.

Mike Pingree writes another Looking Glass column in the Boston Sunday Herald. You can read it by clicking here:
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/columnists.html

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