Things got a little heated -- which is to say 73 vehicles were utterly consumed by raging flames -- at the annual fall festival at the Robinson Family Farm in Temple, Texas on Oct. 15, an event that features a pumpkin patch, hayrides, live music, kids' games and more. The Bell County Fire Marshall's Office is seeking information about an attendee who, according to witnesses reporting on social media, flicked a cigarette butt in the grassy parking lot, which, combined with the gusty winds and dry conditions that had already prompted the county to issue a burn ban, most likely started the blaze. "I have to say that is the most exciting and expensive pumpkin patch we've been to," one attendee posted on Facebook after the disaster claimed their family van. [Autoblog.com, 10/18/2022]

Unsportsmanlike

David Alan Taylor, 41, of Pensacola, Florida, did not follow the guidelines for safe tackling recommended by the various youth, college and professional football organizations when he charged onto the practice field on Sept. 20, donned a helmet, got into a football stance and charged his target, burying his helmet in said target's chest before grabbing him by the arms and pushing him to the ground. But it wasn't Taylor's form that got him in trouble; it was the fact that his victim was 9 years old. The Pensacola News Journal reported that shortly before demonstrating his rusty football skills, Taylor had become enraged upon seeing his son being overpowered by the victim during a one-on-one tackling drill. The tackled youth was not seriously hurt, and Taylor was booked to the Escambia County jail on a first-degree felony count of aggravated child abuse and a misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct. [Pensacola News Journal, 9/29/2022]

Awesome!

When your horse runs off with a herd of wild mustangs, let him go, because man, he's gone. That was the reality Shane Adams of Fielding, Utah, had to accept when his 10-year-old horse, Mongo, joined a passing herd in the middle of the night during a camping trip eight years ago. Adams reported his horse missing and searched the area regularly for years, to no avail. But Yahoo Insider reported that the Bureau of Land Management recently contacted Adams with incredible news: Mongo had been found. The horse is seriously underweight due to the scarcity of food in the region where he and the herd were roaming, but Adams said Mongo is in good health and has not forgotten his training. Adams said his life had taken a downward turn in the years since Mongo disappeared; he and his wife divorced, and an auto accident in 2021 left him disabled. However, he now feels things are looking up: "My life is like down in the dumps, like the car accident. I lost my house, I lost everything. I got my horse back though." [Yahoo! Life, 10/12/2022]

Rare Vintage

A pair of Levi's jeans found in an abandoned mine in the American West sold for a staggering $87,400 at a New Mexico auction on Oct. 1, reported CNN.com. What was so special about the jeans? They dated back to the 1880s, and while it's not uncommon for "denim archaeologists" to find jeans from that period of history, it's incredibly rare to find them so well-preserved. "There's a couple of soft spots on the jeans that could use a bit of reinforcement, but otherwise they're super-duper solid jeans," said Zip Stevenson, who runs a denim repair shop in Los Angeles and placed the winning bid with a partner. Though Stevenson would prefer the jeans were purchased and put on display in a museum, he said he would consider selling them to a private buyer. "I could easily imagine Johnny Depp or Jason Momoa wearing them," Stevenson said. [CNN, 10/20/2022]

Smelly Situations

-- An overturned semi on I-95 in Cumberland County, North Carolina, on Oct. 18 gave commuters more than the usual traffic accident inconvenience. That's because when 22,000 pounds of catfish and 150 gallons of diesel fuel hits the road ... it stinks. State troopers told WBTW-13 that the semi driver was unhurt in the crash, which was caused by another driver pulling in front of him. [WBTV-13, 10/18/2022]

-- The Fairfield Sun Times reported that Ollie the black Labrador was safe and sound, but very stinky, after spending a few hours in the sewer behind his owners' home in Holbury, Hampshire, England on Oct. 18. The dog was missing when his owners returned to the house earlier in the day after a brief outing, and it was discovered that he had fallen through a manhole in the backyard into the sewer about three meters below. Neighbors were asked not to flush their toilets during the rescue operation. [Fairfield Sun Times, 10/18/2022]

People With Issues

Rorie Susan Woods, 55, of Hadley, Massachusetts, is facing multiple assault and battery charges after she took extreme measures in an attempt to prevent what she and other protestors believed was a wrongful eviction being carried out by sheriff's deputies in Longmeadow on Oct. 12. WWLP-22 reported that Woods drove an SUV hauling a trailer loaded with beehives to the residence of Alton King, the homeowner being served an eviction notice. While wearing a protective beekeeping suit, Woods shook the beehives, unleashing a swarm of angry bees on the officers, three of whom were allergic to bee stings. Sheriff Nick Cocchi said Ross' actions could have gotten someone killed: "We had one staff member go to the hospital and luckily, he was all right or she would be facing manslaughter charges." [WWLP-22, 10/20/2022]

But Is It Art?

The city of Cheadle, Alberta, Canada, is the temporary home of a newly revealed shrine to snacking. A 17-foot-tall statue commissioned by Frito-Lay was unveiled in early October. The work memorializes the signature Cheetos experience: three fingers holding up one of the crunchy snacks, their tips covered in the powdery orange residue the brand has christened "Cheetle." "We're excited to be celebrating Cheetle and Canadians' cheesy, Cheetle-dusted fingertips on such a grand scale and in such a uniquely mischievous way," said Lisa Allie, senior marketing director at PepsiCo Foods Canada. CNN reports that the Cheetle Hand Statue will be on display in Cheadle until Nov. 4, when it embarks on a tour of Canada. [CNN, 10/12/2022]

Court Jester

A municipal judge in Cleveland, Ohio, was ordered to be removed from the bench on indefinite suspension on Oct. 18 and will undergo evaluations for her physical and mental health after a long series of bizarre incidents and behavior, the Columbus Dispatch reported. The Ohio Supreme Court took action after Judge Pinkey S. Carr wore sneakers, spandex shorts, T-shirts and even tank tops while sitting the bench -- a bench that had become littered with so many cups, dolls and novelty items that Carr's own attorney described it as "resembling a flea market." The 58-page complaint filed by the Ohio Supreme Court states that, among many other incidents, Carr repeatedly discussed the television show "P-Valley" and joked about giving lenient sentences and accepting kickbacks with attorneys and defendants while court was in session. When a prosecuting attorney had not yet arrived for a hearing, Carr is quoted as having stated, "The prosecutor's not here. Let's see how much we can get away with." A temporary replacement for Carr will be appointed by Governor Mike DeWine and will sit the bench until voters elect a new judge in a future election. [Columbus Dispatch, 10/18/2022]

Ewwwww

WRGB in Albany reported the arrests of Chrystal Thomas, 33, on Oct. 4, and Austin Smith, 20, on Oct. 15, for the duo's part in the illegal tattooing of a 10-year-old boy. Thomas, the boy's mother, claimed she was not in the room when Smith permanently inked the child's name on his arm "in full-size block letters." Authorities were made aware of the situation when the boy asked a school nurse for Vaseline to apply to the tattoo. Both Thomas and Smith were charged with endangering the welfare of a child, and Smith was additionally charged with second-degree unlawfully dealing with a child. [WGRB, 10/19/2022]

The Passing Parade

On Oct. 5, the Shizuoka (Japan) prefectural police were alerted to the presence of an unattended attache case, partially hidden among some roadside bushes in the Shimomata neighborhood of Kakegawa. Sora News 24 reported that the bomb squad was dispatched, traffic in the area was shut down, and an onsite command post was set up to assess the case and safeguard against an explosion, but when investigators finally opened the case, they were greeted not with a bomb, but with a collection of sex toys. No one was injured, and the site was cleared after about three and a half hours, but online commentors seized the opportunity to get off some zingers, including "Not a bomb, but still discharge-related," and "I'm sure whoever forgot their attache case there is really hard up right now." [Sora News 24, 10/6/2022]

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

President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus took the opportunity of a meeting at Konstantin Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia, on Oct. 7 to present Russian President Vladimir Putin with a birthday gift, the Associated Press reported. Putin turned 70 years old that day, so naturally, Lukashenko presented him with a gift certificate for a Belarusian tractor. (Tractors are a source of pride in that country's industry.) Lukashenko told reporters that he uses a similar model in his own garden; Putin, however, did not comment on the gift. Instead, he addressed issues such as conflict between ex-Soviet nations, fighting terrorism and illegal drugs. [Associated Press, 10/7/2022]

The Continuing Crisis

Electric cars, trips to space, Twitter -- it's never enough for serial entrepreneur Elon Musk. Now, Reuters reported, the joke's on buyers who snapped up 10,000 bottles of Musk's new perfume, Burnt Hair, in just a few hours -- at $100 a pop. "With a name like mine, getting into the fragrance business was inevitable -- why did I even fight it for so long!?" Musk wondered on Twitter. The perfume is described on The Boring Company's website as "the essence of repugnant desire." "Just like leaning over a candle at the dinner table, but without all the hard work," it boasts. The scent won't start shipping until September 2023, so you can cross it off your Christmas list for this year. [Reuters, 10/12/2022]

Awesome!

Ray Ruschel may not be the fastest or strongest defensive lineman on the North Dakota State College of Science football team, but he brings his best game and more to the team, the Associated Press reported. Ruschel, 49, works as a night-shift mechanic at a sugar beet factory. He decided to enroll at the college to study business management, and he learned he was eligible to try out for the football team -- reviving his high school career of more than 30 years earlier. Ruschel's coach gives him high marks: "His personality ... he's just a really likable guy with an ambition not to leave any stone unturned," said Eric Issendorf, who's one year younger than Ruschel. With about a dozen plays per game, Ruschel has helped his team secure a 4-1 record for the season, and they're hoping for a national championship. [Associated Press, 10/6/2022]

Armed and Clumsy

On Oct. 6, Burlington (North Carolina) police officers responded to a call around 7 a.m., the News & Record reported. A homeowner told them that as he walked from his car to his front door, an armed man approached him and tried to force his way inside the house. The two struggled, and a gunshot grazed the victim's chest, but he wasn't seriously injured. The victim was able to slam the door on the suspect -- or, more precisely, on the suspect's hand. As investigators processed the scene, they found a glove with a severed finger inside, which they used to identify Vernon Forest Wilson, 67. He was booked on multiple charges in Alamance County and held on $250,000 bond. [News & Record, 10/11/2022]

Questionable Judgment

Youth pastor Cory Wall of the Fairview Baptist Church in Greer, South Carolina, misstepped in a big way on Oct. 5 when he distributed "I (heart) hot youth pastors" stickers to the young members of his congregation, Only Sky reported. After some social media backlash, Wall admitted that his "joke" was a "mistake," but his church was more reticent about the incident: First, the church sent a private email to members saying it had discussed the matter with Wall and he "understands this should not have been shared with the students." When that wasn't enough, Fairview issued a public statement on Oct. 9, allowing that the sticker was "offensive to some" and confirming that Wall had been placed on administrative leave. Upset congregants are reportedly praying for more. [Only Sky, 10/9/2022]

People With Issues

Police in Smithfield, Utah, responded to a domestic violence call on Oct. 8 that didn't turn out how they expected, KUTV reported. Rachelle Clingo Walker, 35, told officers that her husband had struck her during a psychotic episode, but Walker's husband had video that portrayed a different story. In the video, Walker can be seen "trying to bring out the victim's 'other personality' by speaking in incantations," the report noted. She's shown gripping his arm "tighter, cutting into his hand with her nails." When the husband tells her to stop, Walker grabs a pair of scissors and holds them "above her head in an intimidating fashion," not allowing him to escape. He finally got away from her, and she called police. Walker was arrested for aggravated assault, unlawful detention and other charges. [KUTV, 10/10/2022]

Least Competent Criminal

In Seminole, Florida, 56-year-old Paul James Sinclair summoned his inner 8-year-old on Oct. 10 as he attempted a bank robbery. Sinclair, according to The Smoking Gun, entered a Chase branch with his hand under his shirt making "the shape of a gun with his finger," arrest records said. He advised teller Desiree Stefanik not to "push any buttons" as he waited for her to hand over the loot. Sinclair got away with only $120 and was arrested shortly after the incident. [The Smoking Gun, 10/11/2022]

Latest Religious Messages

One can only imagine the heavenly eye-rolling that must be ensuing. The Signatry, a Christian foundation based in Overland Park, Kansas, is funding a $100 million media campaign designed to redeem Jesus' "brand" from the damage done by his followers, Religion News Service reported. The program will include a website, billboards ("Jesus let his hair down, too"), an online store with free stuff for those who forgive someone or welcome a stranger, and the creme de la creme, come February: a Super Bowl ad. "Our goal is to give voice to ... those who are ready to reclaim the name of Jesus from those who abuse it to judge, harm and divide people," said Jon Lee, a principal at Lerma, the Dallas ad agency driving the "He Gets Us" campaign. He hopes people who see the ads will consider whether Jesus might be relevant to themselves. [RNS, 10/10/2022]

Ewwwww

On Sept. 13, ophthalmologist Katerina Kurteeva, who practices in Newport Beach, California, shared with her Instagram followers a troubling video, Oddity Central reported. Dr. Kurteeva documented the removal of "forgotten" contact lenses from an elderly patient's eye -- 23 of them, to be exact. Some of them were so old they had turned green. "They were essentially glued together after sitting under the eyelid for a month," she wrote. "Don't sleep in your contact lenses!" she warned. [Oddity Central, 10/12/2022]

The Passing Parade

The South China Morning Post reported on Oct. 7 that a new health fad is trending among elderly Chinese: crocodile crawling. Hundreds of people in eastern China, who call themselves the Crocodile Group, dress in matching uniforms and chant rhythmic slogans while they crawl, single-file, on their hands and feet around a jogging track. Afficionados say the exercise helps with back pain. "I previously had problems with a herniated disc," said Li Wei, the group's coach. "After doing this for eight months, I don't feel any pain anymore." One doctor explained that the movement is similar to pushups, except you're moving forward. [South China Morning Post, 10/7/2022]

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

A British artist known as Mr. Doodle (real name: Sam Cox) has doodled throughout his entire mansion in Tenterden, Kent, United Press International reported on Oct. 4. Everything is covered: walls, furniture, kitchen appliances, textiles, floors, ceilings. Cox shared The Doodle House with the world on a YouTube video, taking viewers through the process from stark white to completely doodled. It took him two years, 240 gallons of white paint, 401 cans of black spray paint and almost 2,300 black pens to complete the project. His wife, Alena, is all in with the doodle decor. [UPI, 10/4/2022]

Great Art

Keith Tyssen of Sheffield, England, has maintained a striking topiary he calls "Gloria" in his front garden since 2000 -- the bush depicts a woman lying back in a reclining position with her knees bent. But, MSN reported, Tyssen has a problem with random "drunken louts" entering his yard, usually during the night, and becoming intimate with the shrub. For one thing, he said, the noise wakes him up. But more disturbing, the "act" damages Gloria's figure. "Someone will squeeze the breasts," he said, "so that will damage it. They're climbing on top of her and pulling her legs apart -- you know, it's disgusting." Now Tyssen is begging his community to leave Gloria alone; one Twitter user suggested he grow a thorny vine through her to deter the assaults. [MSN, 10/5/2022]

The American Tourist

On Oct. 5, an American man who appeared to be about 50 years old asked to see Pope Francis at the Vatican in Rome, CNN reported. When he was told that would not be possible, he hurled a Roman bust to the floor in the Museo Chiaramonti, then upset a second one as he rushed out. The man was detained by Vatican police and turned over to Italian authorities. Both statues were around 2,000 years old. Press office director Matteo Alessandrini said the busts were "affixed to the shelves with a nail, but if you pull them down with force they will come off." He said restoration work had already begun. [CNN, 10/6/2022]

The Other Border

KTUU-TV reported that on Oct. 4, a small boat carrying two men landed near the community of Gambell on northern St. Lawrence Island, Alaska. According to town clerk Curtis Silook, the men told villagers they had sailed over 300 miles from Egvekinot in northeastern Russia and were trying to escape the Russian military draft. Sen. Dan Sullivan conferred with the Department of Homeland Security, and Gov. Mike Dunleavy said they were transported to Anchorage, where federal authorities were sorting out their status. "We don't anticipate a continual stream of individuals or a flotilla," Dunleavy said. [KTUU, 10/5/2022]

Inexplicable

-- Tyler Monk, 34, an exterminator in Kinder, Louisiana, is ... changing. That is, his skin is darkening from white to black, apparently because he briefly tried Prozac in January 2021 to help with anxiety, the New York Post reported. "The fact is, (doctors) don't know why I'm changing colors," Monk said. After two months, Monk's arms and face took on a grayish tone that continued to darken even after he stopped the drug. "First they thought it was photosensitivity ... but I've been covering up and I'm still getting darker," he said. He has seen eight specialists, and more appointments are on his calendar. His family is supportive: "We really don't mind the color change, as long as he's healthy and OK with it," said his wife, Emily. [NY Post, 9/27/2022]

-- Time to decorate the man cave? Three men were arrested on Sept. 24 in Hernando County, Florida, after an off-duty detective spied them using saws to cut traffic lights off the poles, WFTV reported. By the time deputies arrived at the scene, the men had put three lights into their van. Aaron Wood, James Donnelly and Oleksiy Naumenko were arrested for theft and admitted to stealing the lights. Each is valued at $5,000. [WFTV, 9/28/2022]

Least Competent Criminal

An unnamed 32-year-old woman didn't get far in the Mini Cooper she stole in Lakewood, Washington, on Sept. 19, Fox News reported. The driver, who had her 4-year-old son in the back seat and a bottle of whiskey in her hand, steered the car right into a section of wet cement that had just been poured by city crews. When she emerged from the car, she threw a television and an Instant Pot out of the car before trying to walk away. All items were stolen from the suspect's mother's home. After her arrest, crews went back to work on the pavement. [Fox News, 9/21/2022]

Oops

The Bay County (Florida) Sheriff's Department has declared it's "officially out of the bonfire business" after an incident at A. Crawford Mosley High School in Lynn Haven on Oct. 5, the Panama City News Herald reported. Although the agency has assisted with bonfires for many years, the 2022 homecoming event blew up when the bonfire literally exploded. No one was injured, and firefighters were already on hand as a precaution. Sheriff Tommy Ford said it was unclear what had caused the explosion, but his agency would take responsibility for the incident. The district also announced that they would no longer host bonfire events. [Panama City News Herald, 10/6/2022]

Wait, What?

Two men were arrested in Palm Coast, Florida, on Oct. 6 for a heist of goods valued at $5,000, Fox35-TV reported. Rui Gen Lin, 48, and Rong Chen, 41, were caught red-handed by a deputy making a security check at Woody's Bar-B-Que; the two men wore headlamps as they transferred a substance from a vat behind the restaurant into a box truck with large storage containers inside. Here's the weird: They were stealing used cooking oil, about 7,000 pounds of it. Lin owns L&L Recycling, a company that buys and recycles cooking oil. "But in this case, they tried to increase their profits by stealing the oil," said Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly. Who knew used cooking oil was so useful? It can be recycled for use in diesel fuel and other substances, Staly noted. [Fox35, 10/7/2022]

What's in a Name?

Brian Taylor, a custodial and grounds worker for the Wayne Township Public School District in New Jersey for the last 27 years, has filed a lawsuit against the district, NJ.com reported on Oct. 6. In the suit, he claims his performance evaluations were always "superior or above average" and that he earned a manager certificate from Rutgers University -- but he was still passed over for promotions. Why? Taylor asserts that his managers gave higher-paying jobs to people with Italian last names. For example, he says, his groundskeeping duties, which offered more opportunity for overtime, were transferred to the Italian-American brother-in-law of a supervisor. "This unfortunate reality makes working for the (district) very difficult for a person like Taylor, as he is a man of integrity," the suit reads. The board of education "disputes all allegations made by Mr. Taylor and looks forward to presenting the district's case in court," attorney John G. Geppert Jr. said. [NJ.com, 10/6/2022]

Is It Genius? Or Is It Sad?

A Lithuanian potato chip company called Chazz has just introduced a new limited edition flavor that's intended to cater to sex-starved millennials, Indy100 reported on Sept. 22. The P----- Flavour crisps will transport consumers to "your wildest love adventures, your first real love," reps for Chazz promise. "The Chazz team is young, bold and socially responsible," and the snack is meant for those who are "brave" and "free." The company also suggests the chips can be a humorous gift or can "initiate a romantic evening." Unfortunately, at this time, they're available only in Europe. [Indy100, 9/22/2022]