Hump Day Harrumph: Today we thought it would be fun to do something different.
Devil’s Work : As fans of “News of the Weird” (and anything odd in general), this Reuters story was fascinating: By Jason Hopps LONDON (Reuters) - The world's first Internet church has fallen victim to a plague of virtual demons, some of whom have been logging on as Satan and unleashing strings of expletives during sermons.
The "Church of Fools" was launched last week as a unique chance for Christians to worship interactively by choosing a "3D" animated character who could kneel, sing hymns, talk to others, hear a sermon, or shout "Hallelujah."
The site attracts between 5,000 and 10,000 worshippers daily and those who log on can also give money to a collection plate via mobile phone.
But the temptation to misbehave has proved too much for some.
"We have had problems from a small number of worshippers, which happens in any Internet chat room, and we are bothered about individual harassment, which we are taking seriously," said the site's deputy editor, Stephen Goddard.
"We're increasing security day by day to eliminate the disruptive behavior, such as the profanity, but we're determined to carry on...At least we're not preaching to the converted," he added.
The Church, sponsored by the Methodist Church but organized by the multi-denominational "Ship of Fools" project, said it had removed a "shout" function where people could speak to the whole congregation. Some were using it to hurl abuse or yell: "Satan loves you."
The pulpit, altar and lectern areas will be closed to the public after some worshippers walked their animated character into those areas during sermons.
But the strongest measure against the unruly will be the online equivalent of damnation: wardens will be able to smite the wicked by instantly logging them out of the church if they misbehave.
"In a way, we are facing the same problems faced by the first preachers who met resistance when they moved into new communities," said Goddard.
"But the church has always expanded into new communities and some of those are to be found in cyberspace now, so we are determined to carry on."
The Church of Fools is found at www.shipoffools.com.
Wednesday Weirdies: (As reported by Reuters)
A German court convicted a police sergeant with a fetish for women's handbags on 15 counts of theft and sentenced him to two and a half years in jail, a court in the eastern town of Gera said Wednesday
Spectacles with a built-in memory could help forgetful humans, a German researcher who has built a prototype of the "memory spectacles" said on Wednesday.
A Los Angeles nurse found a stolen Stradivarius cello worth $3.5 million next to a dumpster and planned to turn it into a CD cabinet until she discovered it was the instrument the whole town was searching for, her lawyer says. (We love this one) : By Gina Keating
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A Los Angeles nurse found a stolen Stradivarius cello worth $3.5 million next to a dumpster and planned to turn it into a CD cabinet until she discovered it was the instrument the whole town was searching for, her lawyer says.
The "General Kyd" cello, made in 1684 and named for the man who brought it to England, was returned on Saturday to the Los Angeles Philharmonic, which owns it and offered a $50,000 reward for its return, attorney Ronald Hoffman said Tuesday.
Police said the cello was taken from the porch of principal cellist Peter Stumpf on April 24 by a thief riding a bicycle.
Three days later, nurse Melanie Stevens spotted the cello peeking from its silver case beside a dumpster while she waited at a red light. "She recognized it as a musical instrument case because she plays guitar. She wasn't thinking that it was old," Hoffman said.
Stevens, 30, asked a homeless man to help load it into her car and took it home to show her cabinetmaker boyfriend, Igal Asseraf, to see if he could fix a crack in it. "She said if you can't fix it, we can turn it into a CD case," Hoffman said.
"We are very lucky that Igal was not a person that works real quickly."
The instrument sat in the couple's spare bedroom until last Friday, when Stevens caught the end of a TV news report on the missing cello, and realized she had found the instrument that all of Los Angeles was looking for.
The couple met detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department's art theft detail, who interviewed them extensively to make sure they were not involved with the theft, the lawyer said.
They also contacted officials at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, who were "jubilant" at the rare instrument's return, Hoffman added.
He said Stevens was thrilled to learn that she may receive the $50,000 reward for not turning the cello into a CD case.
This qualifies as a weirdy bit, even though it’s covered in the photo wires as a news event. Held in London, the “Rear of the Year” Award went to Alex Best (and no, we don’t know who she is either).
Fashion Bits:
A beautiful Keira Knightley – the official spokesperson – helped celebrate Asprey Re-opens Bond Street Store in London yesterday. Knightley chose a beautiful, yet simple black strapless silk chiffon dress with a grosgrain ribbon belt and a full skirt. Of course, she carried a clutch to complete the look and a stunning Asprey necklace. It’s apparently a celeb affair, as also in attendance was Jade Jagger, creative director of the jewelry shop. A healthy-looking Molly Ringwald (in a pink print Pucci-style outfit) was also there, as was Prince Pavlos of Greece and wife Marie-Chantel, the Duchess of York, Elton John, Andrew Lloyd Weber, Sir David Frost and tongue-pierced Zara Phillips.
Despite the fact that the event was Book Launch of "Picture This: Debbie Harry and Blondie" by Mick Rock and the Blondie leader was in full attendance, photographers seemed fascinated by Courtney Love, sporting a little bit of the early Hole look (translated: vintage slip dress).
Film stars may be at Cannes, but everyone in TV is in NYC for the upfronts. ABC and the WB had their presentations yesterdays, with the requisite parties following.
