Quick Takes

Sticky situation

Months before Halloween, one park in Rowlett, Texas, already looks the part. Residents of the Dallas suburb complained in August of a 100-yard stretch of trees covered in cobwebs at Lakeside Park. Upon closer inspection, park officials discovered the webs were indeed real—the product of a rare colony of Tetragnatha guatemalensis spiders. According to spider experts, the spiders infesting the Texas park only build communal webs this far north when conditions are right. Entomologist Mike Merchant says residents should be happy the massive but spooky web is there: It’s putting a dent in the city’s population of midges.

Dry idea

He had the venue, the decorations, and the staff. One thing businessman Grady Elliot lacked when he opened a new bar in Auckland on July 3 was alcohol. Billed as the first dry bar in New Zealand, Elliot hoped to attract customers who didn’t want to go home after the alcohol bars closed at 4:30 a.m. and were willing to pay $15 at the door and buy energy drinks. Elliot had to shutter his business in early August. The reason: The few customers he had usually only ordered water. After locking the doors at TAP, Elliot told local press he had applied for a liquor license.

Seaweed surprise

Vacationers looking for a holiday near the sea may want to cross Orcombe Point in Southwest England off their list. A massive hole that has developed on the beach has begun erupting, spewing stinky seaweed and snails. East Devon District Council officials say they don’t know what caused the unusual 6-foot-wide by 10-feet-deep geyser to form. The mystery geyser—formed most recently in early August—has appeared on the beach three times since the beginning of July and each time been filled in by the tide. Even more worrisome: Officials say the geyser is dangerously close to a sewer main that may become compromised and contribute to the next gusher.

Prescription: proscription

Mayor Davide Zicchinella of Sellia, Italy, is tired of village residents getting sick. So he outlawed it. Mayor Zicchinella issued an Aug. 5 directive on the city council website advising citizens that illness in the tiny town of 500 is now “banned.” According to the memo, the mayor is concerned about the health of his constituents and doesn’t want the village to “die of depopulation.” Zicchinella is not only the local mayor; he’s also a trained physician.

Getting their goats

Faced with massive overgrowth and a limited budget, the Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C., turned to a solution that can chew through high weeds as well as red tape: goats. More than 30 goats from Prosperity Acres in Sunderland, Md., arrived at the historic capital cemetery in August to clear through the tangled mess of poison ivy and other weeds threatening to take over the resting ground. Cemetery officials invited the public to visit the animals during daylight hours, with cemetery president Paul Williams telling NPR the arrangement was a win-win-win. “We get our land cleared, we get it fertilized, and the goats attract thousands of people. A lot of families with kids are coming into the cemetery and often seeing a goat for the first time.”

Purple haze

A conflict with a homeowners association over a purple swing playhouse has left one Lee’s Summit, Mo., family blue. Last year, officials with the Raintree Lake Property Owners Association ordered Marla Stout to remove a purple playhouse erected at her home for her 5- and 8-year-old daughters because the association believed the color clashed with the environment and the association’s rulebook. In November, the association sent Stout a letter warning that the HOA would sue the family. Undaunted, Stout refused and rallied community support against her homeowners association. On Aug. 11, a rowdy group of 30 Stout supporters angrily berated the association’s board for pursuing the lawsuit. Equally undaunted, the board indicated it would move ahead with the lawsuit.

House call

After concocting an elaborate ploy allegedly to steal Queens homeowner Wah Chan’s home out from under him, three bizarre bandits will likely find residence in New York’s big house. According to police, Brandon Sestoso, Chas Sestoso, and Jesse Kusinow broke into the Chan home in Queens on April 29 and changed the locks before wife Anita Chan returned from work, claiming they were from the bank that held the Chinese couple’s mortgage. Police believe the trio was trying to convince the elderly immigrant family they were there to repossess the home. Refusing to sign a deed transfer presented to him via email by the alleged crooks, 73-year-old Wah Chan returned to the United States from China on May 16 with his own locksmith and broke back into his own home only to find the premises ransacked. That’s when the couple phoned police, who promptly arrested the trio. The suspects’ trial began Aug. 11, and each could face up to 15 years in prison.

Choco’s journey

Hunting feral pigs on July 31 in the Queensland, Australia, Outback, Wayne Best’s dog Choco found himself in trouble. When he cornered a pig against a riverbank, a massive crocodile emerged from the river’s depths, chomped into Choco’s hindquarters, and dragged him below the surface. Choco managed to struggle free and rise to the surface, but the dog’s trouble had only begun. Best cleaned the dogs wounds, but was unable provide the sort of veterinary care Choco required. So the pair began a slow 62-mile walk to the nearest community. With some help from infrequent passersby, the man and his dog were able to shave a dozen miles off their trip. And finally on Aug. 4, Choco underwent surgery to mend his wounds and broken leg.

Inside job

Ryan Payne of Missoula, Mont., may need a brush-up course on getaways after trapping himself in a car he was allegedly trying to steal. According to Missoula police, Payne, 31, broke into a vehicle Aug. 11 only to somehow lock himself inside the car’s trunk. Unable to free himself, Payne phoned police for help—and to turn himself in. After freeing the man, police charged Payne with multiple misdemeanors.