ODDLY ENOUGH

ODDLY ENOUGH

Bill would give approval to ‘Ne-VAH-da’ pronunciation

CARSON CITY, Nev.

The misuse of one little vowel frustrates a lot of Nevadans who get irritated by the mispronunciation of the state’s name — using an “ah” instead of “a.”

Outgoing Assemblyman Harry Mortenson is proposing more tolerance. The Las Vegas Democrat is working on a resolution for the 2011 legislative session to make the “Ne-VAH-da” pronunciation equally acceptable to the one with the short “a.”

Mortenson says he’s not asking Nevadans to change. He just wants the Spanish pronunciation recognized.

Nevadans have long bristled over the issue. In 1944, Reno newspapers even scolded former heavyweight boxing champion Jack Dempsey for his “East Coast” pronunciation during an appearance.

Oregon boy takes family pickup on 100-mile joyride

DAMASCUS, Ore.

A 12-year-old Oregon boy had permission to drive the family pickup truck to the end of the driveway to unload trash, but he kept going until he was stopped nearly 100 miles away in Lewis County, Wash.

The Clackamas County sheriff’s office says it received a call from the boy’s mother reporting the boy and the pickup missing from their home in Damascus, Ore., near Portland.

An alert went out, and the eager young driver was safely stopped by a Lewis County deputy sheriff.

Detective Jim Strovink says the case will be referred to juvenile authorities for possible prosecution of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and driving without a license.

Strovink says the mother didn’t do anything wrong in letting the boy drive in the driveway because that’s private property.

Pig wrestling gets canceled after porkers elude capture

GREAT FALLS, Mont.

A pig-wrestling competition at a county fair in northern Montana has been canceled after the porkers eluded fair officials trying to round them up for the event.

Fair office manager Shirley Embleton says the wild pigs spend the year on a 10-mile free-range property along the Marias River and about 30 are captured the Friday of the scheduled event.

But this year, fair officials were only able to locate one boar, despite flying the river.

The event was postponed until Saturday, but neither the landowner nor fair officials could locate the absent pigs.

Embleton says next year, organizers will devise a new plan to locate and capture the animals earlier in the week.

Associated Press