News of the Weird: September 16, 2021

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That's One Way To Do It

When Hurricane Ida swept through New York, the heavy rain and flooding did an estimated $50 million in damage. But in the Big Apple, there's a silver lining: The storm may have cleared out a significant portion of the rat population that lived in the sewers and subway system. Experts believe hundreds of thousands of rats may have died as sewer systems were overwhelmed and dumped into local bays and estuaries, where the rodents later washed up on beaches. Bobby Corrigan, longtime pest control expert, told Gothamist, "I can't imagine they would've survived." Conversely, those that did weather the storm appear to be seeking shelter on higher ground, as exterminators report a spike in complaints.

Creepy

As Hurricane Ida made its way up the East Coast and Louisiana started to clean up, a Covington Domino's Pizza store tossed some of its leftover dough into a dumpster out back, nola.com reported. Temperatures in the area climbed into the 90s, and the dough climbed ... out of the waste container. Nicole Amstutz, who lives nearby, started documenting the wayward dough blob on Sept. 1, posting updates on Facebook. The dough spilled over onto the pavement, but Amstutz reported on Sept. 4 that it had fallen and boxes were placed on top of it. The general manager of the Domino's store did not respond to an interview request.

Long Live the King

Elvis has left ... the barber shop. Elvis Presley's personal barber, Homer Gilleland, scooped up snippings of the King's hair over multiple haircuts and kept the baseball-sized ball of tresses in a plastic bag, which he then gifted to Thomas Morgan, a friend of both men. United Press International reported on Sept. 8 that the hair, now in a sealed jar and backed up by "extensive documentation," sold at auction for $72,500. A Los Angeles auction house offered the hair alongside one of Presley's concert jumpsuits and other items.

The (Literal) Passing Parade

At midnight on Sept. 9, North Korea held a military parade in the capital, Pyongyang, to celebrate the country's 73rd anniversary, CNN reported. Kim Jong Un appeared on a platform and waved, but reportedly did not speak. Perhaps the late hour was thought to be more dramatic than a daytime spectacle, especially for the dropping of paratroopers from military planes and firing of flares. Observers noted that Kim appeared to have lost a significant amount of weight.

Suspicions Confirmed

Oddity Central reported on Sept. 3 that Li Zhanying of Henan, China, is known in her community for having gone more than 40 years without sleeping at all. Her husband and neighbors confirmed her claims, saying that she stayed up all night to do chores and didn't ever nap. But recently, Li visited a Beijing medical center, where doctors used sensors to monitor her and discovered that Li does sleep -- with her eyes open and while talking to her husband. Doctors called it "sleep when awake," which is similar to sleepwalking. They said Li sometimes had "slow eyeballs and hollow eyes," indicating that she was resting.

Rude

Doug Simmons, 44, and Debra McGee, 43, of Chicago, planned a destination wedding in Jamaica, to which they invited 109 guests. "Four times we asked, 'Are you available to come, can you make it?' and they kept saying yes," Simmons explained to the New York Post in late August. But when the big day arrived, the couple realized not everyone had shown up. So Simmons, a small-business owner, sent invoices for $120 per person to all the no-shows. "This amount is what you owe us for paying for your seat(s) in advance. You can pay via Zelle or PayPal." Simmons said he and his wife were hurt that people didn't show up: "I took that personally." No word on whether they've collected on any of the invoices.

Compelling Explanation

On Aug. 20, officers in St. Augustine Beach, Florida, responded to a call that a woman on the beach was behaving erratically and needed CPR, The Smoking Gun reported. But when first responders tried to escort her to an ambulance, Kailani Jo Kroll, 39, began running back and forth on the street. Because she hadn't committed a crime, officers and rescue workers started to pack up to leave, and that's when Kroll jumped into the cab of a firetruck and tried to drive away. Kroll was pulled from the truck and later told police, "I'm sorry for trying to take the truck, I lost my marbles." When asked if she was under the influence of anything, she told them she had taken the "elixir of life." Kroll was charged with grand theft auto and resisting law enforcement officers.

Great Art

Remember the self-shredding Banksy artwork that sold for $1.4 million in October 2018? Originally called "Girl With Balloon," the piece, now known as "Love Is in the Bin," will be up for auction again in October, the Associated Press reported, and is expected to fetch between $5 million and $9 million. Alex Branczik, chairman of modern and contemporary art at Sotheby's, calls the piece "the ultimate Banksy artwork and a true icon of recent art history." Before the auction, the piece will be on display in London, Hong Kong, Taipei and New York.

Oops

NBC News New York reported on Sept. 10 that a subway power outage on Aug. 29, which resulted in more than 80 trains coming to a stop, was caused by someone just pressing a power switch that should have had a protective cover. The governor's office said things deteriorated after the button was pushed, citing five trains in the Bronx that got stranded between stations, where 300 people had to be helped off the trains. "New Yorkers deserve absolute confidence in a fully functioning subway system, and it is our job to restore that confidence," said Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Awesome!

Financial advice website FinanceBuzz is offering the gig of a lifetime for horror movie fans: They want to pay someone $1,300 to watch 13 classics and monitor their heartbeat while doing so, with the goal of comparing the fear factors of films with different budgets. United Press International reported that the chosen candidate will get a FitBit to monitor their heartbeat and $50 to cover movie rental costs. Applications are open through Sept. 26, and a winner will be selected on Oct. 1.

In Medford, New Jersey, 14-year-old Sammy Salvano had a busy summer. The teenager, who hopes to be an engineer, fashioned a prosthetic hand for his friend, Ewan Kirby, who is missing multiple fingers on one hand, United Press International reported. Salvano used a 3D printer to create the prosthetic, which Kirby said allowed him to pick up his mother's car keys for the first time.

Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com.

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