MAYOR OF TOWN CRASHES INTO SCHOOL BUS WITH TRACTOR TRAILER.

MAN TAKES BABY GATOR FOR A RIDE.

MARIAH CAREY AND BABY BUMP PERFORM AT DISNEY.

Mariah Carey

Mark Ashman/Disney

• Facebook
• Twitter
• E-mail

Last week Friday, Carey returned to the Magic Kingdom – but this time, she was a little more covered up. The singer, who is expecting her first child in the spring, was wearing a short but baggy Santa skirt. "You could really see the pronounced belly," says an onlooker. "She's definitely not hiding it."

TOO MUCH CHRISTMAS SPIRIT RANKLES NEIGHBORS.

PRAIRIE VILLAGE, Kan (Reuters Life!) - Mike Babick's display of Christmas spirit has grown too popular for some neighbors, who complain his expanding array of lights and holiday figures draw some unwelcome gawkers.

Babick's passion for the holiday has driven him to adorn his modest one-story home in this Kansas City suburb with more than a thousand figures housed in display cases that go up to his rooftop.

Babick, 69, said his display requires a month to set up and draws some 250,000 visitors each year based on a vehicle-counter he installed on his street.

"It's a gigantic Christmas present to everyone -- from me," Babick said in an interview.

But some neighbors say Babick's Yuletide creation has become too popular. Cars, limousines and tour buses sometimes block the street and driveways. Visitors trudge across their lawns, with some pausing to relieve themselves.

"There are too many people any more who don't have respect for others," said Bob Myhre, who lives two doors down.

In response to complaints from some 30 residents, police made Babick's block temporarily one-way and put up no-parking signs, but that has not stopped visitors from parking in private driveways.

"We're not anti-Christmas, nobody's anti-Christmas," said Myhre, who has a modest light display on his home.

Jessie Novak, who lives across the street, said the traffic drawn to Babick's display is bothersome but tolerable.

"I would move if it wasn't there," Novak said of the display. "I know it's crazy and out of the norm, but I really enjoy it. It would beat any store window in New York."

Babick tries to keep cars moving and picks up litter nightly, saying he understands neighbors' concerns.

"There are only a couple of Grinches in the whole bunch," he said.

"We do have a lot of frowns turn to smiles," he said. "What I really like to see is the kids -- the laughing and the smiling. That's my reward."

Source

SOMEONE POSTS COOKIE MONSTER'S SNL AUDITION VIDEO TO RCMP'S TWITTER.

VANCOUVER - RCMP want cookie.

It appears someone at the national police force was browsing YouTube and came across a viral video of the Cookie Monster auditioning for Saturday Night Live.

But when whoever was logged into the RCMP's account clicked the "like" button below the video, it beamed a link to the clip to the force's Twitter account for British Columbia.

Several of the RCMP's 2,700 Twitter followers poked fun at the force, with one suggesting it was evidence of "our tax dollars at work."

Clearly feeling a little crumby, the RCMP then posted an apology, explaining the tweet was a mistake and they were looking into how it happened.

Source

MUSIC OF THE WEEK :Will.i.am, Nicki Minaj - Check It Out

GERMAN MAN ARRESTED FOR MAILING TARANTULAS TO THE USA.

A German man who allegedly shipped hundreds of live tarantulas into the United States through the mail was charged on Friday with illegally importing wildlife.

Sven Koppler, a 37-year-old German national, was arrested by federal agents late on Thursday, shortly after arriving in Los Angeles to meet an associate, U.S. Attorney's spokesman Thom Mrozek said in a written statement.

Mrozek said the investigation into Koppler began in March, when a routine inspection turned up about 300 live tarantulas in a package mailed to Los Angeles.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agents then intercepted two more packages, one containing nearly 250 live tarantulas, wrapped in colored plastic straws.

The second package was found to hold 22 Mexican red-kneed tarantulas, a species formally known as Brachypelma smithi that is protected under an international treaty.

Mrozek said Fish and Wildlife agents, conducting an investigation dubbed "Operation Spiderman" ordered more spiders from Koppler and were sent a total of five packages containing dozens of live and dead tarantulas.

According to the criminal complaint, agents believe Koppler has received about $300,000 for selling tarantulas to individuals in dozens of countries throughout the world.

Koppler, who prosecutors believe lives in Wachtberg, Germany, was scheduled to make his initial court appearance later on Friday and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted.

While many people considered tarantulas threatening, their venom is weaker than a honeybee and other than a painful bite, is harmless to humans.

The Mexican red-kneed tarantula, which is native to Mexico, can grow to about 4 inches long, with a leg span of 6 inches, and has a dark body with orange patches on the legs, giving it the "red-kneed" appearance.

The spiders are considered docile and females can live for more than 20 years.

The Brachypelma genus of spider is protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species because it is considered threatened, and can only be legally traded with permits from the exporting country.

Source