oddly enough

oddly enough

Maple syrup sticky issue for Ohio councilman

TOLEDO

It’s a sticky problem for a big-city councilman in Ohio, who prides himself on being a back-to-the-land type.

Steven Steel tapped a century-old maple tree in front of his home in Toledo and collected enough sap for 2 gallons of syrup.

But The Blade newspaper reports the tree is owned by the city, and a neighbor complained. Officials reminded Steel on Wednesday that Toledo law requires citizens to get approval from the city’s forestry department before they can do anything to a tree.

Steel says he went home and removed the taps and buckets right away.

Besides making their own maple syrup, he and his family also keep chickens to lay eggs, collect honey from a beehive and cook up their own soap.

March soreness: Now’s the time for a vasectomy?

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa

A West Des Moines clinic’s ad campaign hits below the belt by urging sport fans to indulge in some alternative March madness: Have a vasectomy on Thursday or Friday then spend the weekend recovering while watching NCAA-tournament basketball.

Iowa Clinic marketing executive Jessica Grant tells the Des Moines Register that the campaign is designed to appeal to men whose partners want them to get the snip and who complain they spend too much time in front of the TV.

The ad reads, “After your vasectomy: Stay on couch. 32 games in two days. Return to work on Monday.”

Urologist Dr. Mark Kellerman says he thinks the campaign is “a great idea.”

The clinic performed 102 vasectomies in March 2010 when the ads debuted. This month, 129 are scheduled.

Bounty at Ohio foodbank: Baby born in parking lot

AKRON

An ambulance crew in Ohio delivered a baby in the parking lot of a foodbank as the staff watched and cheered.

The healthy 5-pound baby girl was born Wednesday to 30-year-old Erika Ostapowicz. While speeding toward the hospital, her husband pulled off the road at the last minute at the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank.

When EMTs arrived, the mother said she was about to deliver. They’d heard that before, but she was right. Her water broke in their vehicle, and the baby was delivered there.

The foodbank told the Akron Beacon Journal it was thrilled with the excitement and posted the birth announcement on Facebook.

Associated Press