Quick Takes: Riding shotgun

Lee Meyer believes in bucking convention when it comes to transporting his beloved Watusi bull. Meyer’s unusual setup, however, grabbed the attention of Norfolk, Neb., police who received reports of a bull riding shotgun through town Aug. 30. A video of the traffic stop with pet bull Howdy Doody sitting on the modified passenger side of Meyer’s Ford Crown Victoria earned the man plenty of publicity. According to police, Meyer said he’d been driving Howdy Doody in parades for several years. In a later interview with a local radio station, Meyer’s wife Rhonda said she hasn’t always been keen on the money and time her husband invested in the car and animal. “The amount of money that he’s spent on this whole darn project between the car and the bull,” Meyer told KUSO, “I could’ve had a brand-new kitchen.”

Bay Area scallywags

After more than 100 years, pirates have returned to San Francisco Bay. Boat owners have complained to local police and the San Francisco Chronicle that criminals are using small boats to enter a marina complex in Oakland, Calif., and then break into anchored and docked ­vessels. The pirates have stolen small boats, motors, and tools. In an Aug. 28 newspaper report, owners at the marina blamed nearby homeless encampments for the acts of piracy. The waters of San Francisco Bay have been largely free of piracy since local authorities corralled oyster pirates in the early 20th century.

Spilling the bees

An intersection in Burlington, Ontario, started buzzing just after 6 a.m. Aug. 30—and it wasn’t due to an early start to commuter traffic. Police said a truck transporting bee hives lost its cargo, spilling an estimated 5 million bees into the intersection. Police called in local beekeepers to help with the cleanup. The professionals searched for queen bees while police diverted traffic around the scene. By 9 a.m., ­beekeepers had tamed the hives at the cost of a few stings, and police reopened the roadway.

Feline fiasco

A lion in Pakistan briefly became the king of the concrete jungle when it got loose during transport in the nation’s largest city. Karachi police said the lion escaped from a private vehicle during rush hour. The beast halted traffic and attracted a crowd before retreating into the basement of a nearby building where wildlife officials captured it. Police ­eventually found and arrested the lion’s owner, who faces charges of illegally possessing an exotic creature.

Medical mistake

So that’s where it went. A New Zealand hospital discovered a surgical tool sewn up inside the abdomen of a woman complaining of acute pain. In a report released Sept. 4, the nation’s Health and Disability Commissioner said surgeons performing a cesarean delivery in 2020 at Auckland City Hospital inadvertently left a plate-shaped Alexis retractor measuring up to 6 inches in diameter inside the patient. After the delivery, the woman complained of abdominal pain, but X-rays revealed nothing. A CT scan discovered the device in 2021—a year and a half after the birth. Surgeons immediately removed it.

An incredible journey 

After 12 years missing, a dog named Minion reunited with his Arizona family. In an Aug. 29 social media post, officials with the Maricopa County Animal Care and Control said one of its officers found the pensive pup on the street and checked the animal for a microchip. After retrieving data from the microchip, the agency was able to ­contact Minion’s owners—who said they hadn’t seen their dog since he escaped their yard in 2011. Neither the family nor ­animal welfare officials could account for Minion’s past 12 years. MCACC officials drove Minion home and reported the now-15-year-old dog wagged his tail in recognition of his family.

A whopper of an ad?

Fast food giant Burger King will soon have to defend itself in court against claims the chain is ripping off customers by delivering burgers that are anything but whoppers. On Aug. 25, a U.S. District Court judge in Florida ruled a class-­action lawsuit against Burger King for false advertising may proceed to trial. According to the suit, Burger King advertises its Whoppers as overflowing with beef, cheese, and toppings. In reality, the lawsuit alleges, the pictures portray Whoppers 35 ­percent larger and with double the meat as what gets served in the restaurant. McDonald’s and Wendy’s are facing similar class action suits in New York.