KEY POINTS:
For those that prefer cutesy animal calendars, this is far better than a ferret up your trousers. A 2007 calendar has been created by Californian Jeanne Carley featuring pictures of ferrets partaking in leisure activities. One month shows a ferret doing an impression of singer Bryan Ferry. Other pictures include surfing, snowboarding and drinking.
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Mt Roskill Community Board chairman Richard Barter is chuffed to have received funding for a youth centre but draws a long bow with the situation in Iraq ... According to the Central Leader, Mr Barter says a lack of youth facilities is the cause of so many problems - "they are out on the street, feeling left out, cold, with nothing but causing trouble on offer," he says. "The situation is exactly the same in Mt Roskill, except the kids in Mt Roskill won't be confronted by soldiers, guns and bulldozers ready to demolish their homes if they can't find who they are looking for."
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After comparing a cricketer with an environmentally aware soft toy, the Sun newspaper offers an apology: "Mr Orinoco of Wimbledon has contacted us to say he was deeply distressed to be compared with an England cricketer in yesterday's Sun. We are happy to point out that his cricketing abilities are much better than any member of the present England team and we apologise for any distress this may have caused. If any other Wombles feel upset we also apologise to them."
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With dozens of puzzled beachcomber witnesses, a cow marched into the surf off the coast of Queensland in Australia in November and swam out as far as 275m for four hours (returning to shore twice but venturing out again) before drowning from swallowing water. (Source: News of the Weird)