oddly enough

oddly enough

Discarded Christmas trees a vitamin-filled treat for goats

WESTBROOK, Maine

Christmas trees can be enjoyed long after they are discarded by a family. They’re a great source of vitamin C — for goats.

A Maine farm is extending an invitation to residents who don’t know what to do with their discarded trees.

Hillary Knight, the barnyard manager at Smiling Hill Farm in Westbrook, Maine, says the farm’s goats are more than happy to eat the trees.

She says it’s a win-win. Humans can recycle their trees, and the goats get a treat.

She tells WCSH-TV it’s like humans eating oranges dipped in chocolate — a treat with health benefits.

So far, 200 trees have been donated.

Elsewhere, the Vermont Goat Collaborative also is collecting trees for goats.

Escaped emu turns motorists’ heads running on Israel road

HERZLIYA, Israel

Israeli traffic this weekend was really for the birds.

In the central Israeli town of Herzliya near Tel Aviv, an escaped emu ran through traffic Sunday on a main road between cars in the rain. Local authorities say the bird escaped from a private farm.

Passer-by Iliya Zelser filmed the bird’s run. He says the experience made him feel like he was in a cartoon.

Zelser says he expected to hear the “beep beep” of the cartoon Road Runner.

The 27-year-old told The Associated Press: “I said to myself, ‘In a second, a coyote will appear from behind.’ This was a really absurd situation.”

Dorit Basman, the spokeswoman for the town of Herzliya, says authorities caught the emu Sunday and safely returned it to its owner.

Woman sues over use of her school photo on novelty flask

SANTA FE, N.M.

A New Mexico woman is suing a novelty- products maker over a flask that includes her likeness and the phrase, “I’m going to be the most popular girl in rehab.”

The Santa Fe New Mexican reports Veronica Vigil alleges in federal court that Anne Taintor Inc. obtained and used her high-school graduation picture from 1970 without her permission.

The lawsuit says the Brooklyn, N.Y.-based company then defamed Vigil by linking her image to a product that makes light of substance abuse.

Court documents say the Chimayo, N.M., resident is an active church member and doesn’t consume alcohol or drugs.

The lawsuit seeks an unspecified amount of compensatory and punitive damages.

A spokeswoman for Anne Taintor Inc. said the company does not comment on pending litigation.

Associated Press