ODDLY ENOUGH


ODDLY ENOUGH

Officials say postal worker hoarded over 17,000 pieces of mail

NEW YORK

A postal worker who prosecutors say hoarded away more than 17,000 pieces of undelivered mail in New York City allegedly told investigators he was overwhelmed by the amount of mail he had to deliver.

But officials say Aleksey Germash told them he “made sure to deliver the important mail.”

Germash was charged April 19 in Brooklyn with delaying or detaining mail. He declined to comment as he left the federal courthouse.

Federal officials say they arrested the 16-year employee after receiving a tip about a car owned by Germash that contained 20 full mail bags.

Authorities say they found 10,000 pieces of mail in his car, 6,000 pieces in his apartment and 1,000 in his work locker.

Mom: Preschool’s ban of the term ‘best friend’ is silly

GEORGETOWN, Mass.

A Massachusetts family is looking for a new preschool for their 4-year-old daughter because her current school has barred use of the term “best friend.”

Christine Hartwell says her daughter, Julia, appeared sad recently when she came home from the Pentucket Workshop Preschool in Georgetown.

The little girl told her mother she was upset because her teacher told her she couldn’t call one of her classmates her “best friend.”

School officials did not comment. But, in a letter to the Hartwells they said, it had been their experience that the use of the term “best friend,” even when used in a loving way, can lead some children feeling excluded.

Hartwell called the ban “outrageous” and “silly.” She says children should be allowed to speak from their heart.

Associated Press