Quick Takes

Routine robbery

It worked the first three times. But Jason Pyper’s fourth robbery attempt of a Winnipeg, Manitoba, 7-Eleven didn’t go as he’d planned. Despite a flawless execution of three consecutive robberies at the 7-Eleven last summer, police caught up with Pyper as he and an accomplice fled with $7,000 worth of stolen cigarettes on his fourth attempt on the same store. “His movements throughout the store are almost choreographed carbon copies,” prosecutor Paul Cooper told a sentencing court on March 4, describing security video. “Mr. Pyper basically comes into the store masked and gloved, and with purpose and large arm motions orders the staff in the store far away from the counter … and immediately goes for the cigarette drawer. You can almost count out the steps.” The court gave Pyper a five-year prison sentence.

Dog sled essentials

As the opening day of the Iditarod dog sled race approached in Alaska, race officials still lacked one thing—snow. Since July, only 27 inches of snow, less than half the normal amount, has fallen in Anchorage, the trek’s starting point. To fix the problem, organizers of the 1,000-mile endurance race ordered 350 cubic yards of snow imported to the city. The shipped snow arrived courtesy of the Alaska Railroad two days ahead of the race’s March 5 ceremonial start.

Class of ’42

Dorothy Louise Liggett is finally graduating from high school—74 years behind schedule. The 93-year-old from Fairlawn, Ohio, was two months shy of graduating from North High School in 1942 when the school learned she was married and permanently expelled her. Liggett ultimately left town to travel the country with her husband, a member of the Army Air Forces. Yet she regretted having no diploma. “I felt terrible for the way Mrs. Liggett was treated all of those years ago,” Akron Public Schools Superintendent David James told the Akron Beacon Journal. He made it up to her on March 9: In a surprise visit to Liggett’s home on her birthday, James presented a diploma in her name. “I always felt bad not having this,” Liggett said. “Even though I’m 93 years old, I still like having it.”

Paid in prayer

Short on money, a Russian Orthodox diocese in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, worked out an unusual payment plan with a creditor. In exchange for a construction company waiving more than $3,000 in debt, Orthodox clergy agreed to pray for the company and its employees. The construction firm had installed a boiler heating system in a building owned by the diocese, but asked for the prayers when church officials failed to pay off the entire bill. “We respect the diocese and we are all Orthodox believers,” a company official said. “It’ll be on their conscience if they don’t, but we trust them and have already felt the fruits of their prayers, as prosperity indicators for both the company and its employees are growing.”

Overdue honor

Better late than never. After seven decades, a World War II veteran and Pearl Harbor survivor has finally received a half-dozen military medals for his combat service. About 100 well-wishers turned out for an event honoring 96-year-old James Blakely at the Fort Hamilton Community Club in New York City on March 5. The Brooklyn event brought back many memories for the former Navy cook. “I’m getting what I didn’t think I would ever get,” Blakely said. “I have a lot of memories. I wish I could say all my memories were joyful.”

Reimagined road

Tired of honoring a former Soviet leader with a street name, a Ukrainian village has changed Lenin Street into Lennon Street. Regional Gov. Gennadiy Moskal says he made the decision to honor former Beatles member John Lennon in the tiny village of Kalyny on his own. The March 2 road rebranding sprang from an April 2015 law banning public displays of Ukraine’s Communist past.

Wily caddie

Never trust a fox with your golf bag. An unidentified man in Louth, Ireland, learned that lesson the hard way when a crafty fox nearly got away with his wallet. According to a video of the incident posted to Twitter in early March, several golfers at County Louth Golf Club paused on the links in order to watch a curious fox rummage through one player’s golf bag. But amusement turned to panic for the nearest onlooker as the mischievous red fox snatched an item from the bag and darted toward a nearby hill. “Hey, that’s me wallet!” the man cried. A brief foot chase persuaded the animal to drop the purloined billfold.

Wild kids in town

Authorities in Blackball, New Zealand, say a herd of wild goats is causing thousands of dollars’ worth of property damage in the small town. The 16 goats are also causing a general panic among the 330 village residents. “They just come through and wreck everyone’s garden,” Grey District Council animal control officer Murray Malloch told The New Zealand Herald. “They eat it and then move on to another one.” Malloch said the wild goats have existed for years, but through rampant reproduction have become pests. One local resident has offered to shoot the herd and turn it into meat.

Invasive maneuvers

New Zealanders who frequent the Marlborough Sounds are accustomed to inconsiderate boaters creating disruptive wakes in the bays. But recent actions by one Australian navy frigate really made waves. According to more than a dozen complaints received by a harbor master, the 387-foot-long HMAS Warramunga made a series of sharp, high-speed turns in a local harbor in late February, creating a wake so large it damaged multiple boats and a fish farm. “Maritime hoonery would be a good way to describe [it],” harbor advocate Paul Keating told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. A spokesman for the Australian military said the navy would alter its training practices.