Sounds like a ssssteal. A beautiful five-bedroom house in Idaho for only $109,000. It comes with a tiny catch: The house is infested with thousands of live, writhing garter snakes. [More]
readers
Apple Switching To New Kind Of Screw So You Can't Open Your iPhone
By 1.20.11
Apple has started to use a new kind of 5-pointed screw that no one has a screwdriver for except Apple. [More]
Reasons It's Not So Great To Rent
By 1.20.11
Two weeks ago we told you about a couple of reasons it’s not necessarily super-awesome to own your own house. Well, now here’s the flip side of the coin. Renting has plenty of financial drawbacks too. [More]
Too Good To Be True Rental Listing Leads To Credit Score Scam
By 1.20.11
We’ve been getting a few emails about a new kind of rental scam where they try to lure you into giving over your credit card and personal information to a “free credit score” site. One was from Reader Benjamin, who was looking for a house to rent when he and his wife stumbled across a too good to be true deal, a fully-furnished 3-bedroom house in Maryland for only $1200. Seeing as they had nothing to lose, they emailed the lister, just to see what would happen. [More]
Protected By Cops, Emergency Locksmith Rips Woman Off For $613
By 1.19.11
A woman blogs that she found herself locked out of her apartment because her keys were getting stuck and the lock wasn’t working. So she called an emergency locksmith who arrived 15 minutes later, drilled off the cylinder, replaced it, and presented her with a bill for $613. When she refused to pay, the locksmith called (what were presumably) the cops. When they arrived the said, “Pay the man now or you’re under arrest.” [More]
Chase Overcharged Over 4,000 Military Families On Mortgages, Improperly Foreclosed On 14
By 1.19.11
Chase has admitted that it overcharged over 4,000 military families on their home mortgages, as well as wrongly foreclosed on 14 of them. Some of these are families of troops that are fighting in Afghanistan. [More]
Sprint Raising Data Rates By $10 Per Month For New Activations
By 1.18.11
Starting January 30, Sprint is raising data rates by $10 a month for new phone activations. The rate increase will not apply to existing customer unless they upgrade or activate another smartphone. [More]
Guy Recreates Steve Carell Bit To Save House From Foreclosure, Fails
By 1.14.11
All he wanted was to delay things just a little bit more so that his dad would have some more time to try to work out a deal between the lender to get that holiest of holies, a loan modification. So, in a desperate attempt to save his dad’s house, a guy shows up at the foreclosure auction and tries out two classic comedy bits. [More]
Verizon Good At Overbilling, Not So Much The Other Stuff
By 1.12.11
Elliot has been to heck and back with Verizon. His Samsung Rogue refused to charge, so he got them to replace it with a refurbished one. The “new” phone began randomly shutting off by itself. Elliot got Verizon to give him a full replacement, but they mailed it to his old address. After more shipping woes, he finally got a working phone. Then his bill arrives, about $1,000 higher than it’s supposed to be. [More]
Gym Guards Beat Man To Pulp When He Tried To Cancel
By 1.12.11
A computer programmer who has been trying to cancel his gym membership since August says two gym security guards jumped him and pulverized his face when he wouldn’t back down from his cancellation request. [More]
Boll Weevils Found In School Lunch Noodles, Removed, Then Noodles Served
By 1.12.11
An Ohio school district sent a letter home to parents informing them that cafeteria staff had found boll weevils inside bags of dried eggs noodles that were to be served for lunch. The workers removed the weevils, boiled the noodles, and later served the noodles. [More]
Southwest Pilot Holds Plane For Murdered Child's Family
By 1.12.11
Elliott.org has the incredible story of a grandfather who was trying to race through the airport to get to the hospital to say goodbye to his 3-year old grandson who being taken off life support after being body-slammed by his daughter’s live-in boyfriend. Despite getting to the airport early, long lines were going to make him late for the plane and all the TSA drones couldn’t give a damn. Finally through security, he ran through the airport in his socks, clutching his shoes, before arriving, gasping at the Southwest gate—12 minutes late. [More]
Dine And Dashers On The Rise, Wearing Ties
By 1.12.11
In the last year the NYPD says there was a 20% increase in the number of “chew and screwers” – customers who run up a restaurant or bar tab and then duck out before paying it. And it’s not just the usual “live fast die young crowd,” entire families and guys with Monopoly mustaches are getting in on the action. [More]
Dirty Debt Collectors Sued Under RICO Act
By 1.11.11
A judge has set an interesting precedent, allowing a pack of skeevy debt collectors get sued under the RICO act, the Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organization law. [More]
Man Arrested For Bringing Suspicious Bagel Onboard
By 1.11.11
Travelers onboard a US Airways flight from Boston to Washington DC reported hearing “strange noises” from the plastic bag a fellow passenger had stored in the overhead compartment. He was arrested and charged with interfering with the operation of an aircraft. Subsequent inspection revealed the plastic bag to contain a bagel with cream cream cheese and a hat. [More]
Brain Cells In Fear And Rage Sector Change When You Shop
By 1.10.11
Single brain cells become altered in unison when you’re shopping, a new study finds. [More]
Will I Or Won't I Get Wet?
By 1.7.11
This sign advertising $5 for five minutes of bubble fun is confusing. Not the part where your child is placed inside a giant rubber bubble and then allowed to run around on top of a pool of water. We’re cool with that. But at the top it says, “walk, jog, run, job and have lots of fun on the water… while completely dry!” At the bottom of the sign it says, “YOU MAY GET WET.” Well, which is it? [More]
Pittsburgh Man's House Gets Demolished By Accident
By 1.6.11
A Pittsburgh man came back home after the holidays to find his house was completely gone. Where it stood was an empty lot, covered in hay. It turns out the city had demolished it, by mistake. They really meant to tear down the house next door. Whoops! [More]
