Crazy World: B'day girl gulps gift hidden in cake

Birthday girl swallows necklace hidden in cake

CHINA: This girl will probably never ever be excited again at receiving surprise gifts on her birthday. Wang Xue swallowed a necklace that her 22-year-old boyfriend had hidden inside a muffin, baked by him as well.

The boyfriend thought it would be a good joke but it turned dangerous when he realised that his girlfriend had swallowed it in one bite. He had to reveal the truth on their way to the hospital, reported UK daily Metro. (https://bit.ly/mVmO8V)

Doctors had to perform an endoscopic surgery to remove the necklace from her tummy. Even though the necklace is as good as new, Wang might not feel too comfortable wearing it.

Google glitch: Chrome deleted off Windows PCs

An anti-virus program that targeted Google's Chrome browsing software as a malicious threat and kicked it off computers.

Microsoft said the case of mistaken coding identity lasted about three hours and affected about 3,000 users.

"An incorrect detection for PWS:Win32/Zbot was identified and as a result, Google Chrome was inadvertently blocked and in some cases removed from customers' PCs" (personal computers), Microsoft said at a malware protection Facebook page.

An update to free Microsoft Security Essentials anti-virus software had mistakenly targeted Chrome as a troublesome computer virus tailored to steal online banking information.

Microsoft apologised for the error.

"Mr Penguin" dreams of Antarctic funeral

BELGIUM: Belgian pensioner Alfred David dreams one day he'll find eternal rest in the icy waters somewhere near Antarctica, dressed in his penguin suit and laid out in a coffin decorated with penguins.

The 79-year-old "Monsieur Pingouin" (Mr Penguin), as he is known to locals in his Brussels neighbourhood, dons his favourite hooded black-and-white penguin costume as he looks back at more than 40 years of obsession.

"My ultimate dream is to be buried in a deep ocean close to where penguins live," David told Reuters.

David's life changed in May 1968 when his hip was injured in a car accident. His resulting limp was characterised by his colleagues as a waddle, and they dubbed him Mr Penguin.

As a consequence he embraced an interest in the flightless sea bird and began collecting everything he could find that had a link with the animal.

As his obsession grew, he eventually set up a museum in his home displayed some 3,500 items of penguin memorabilia.

His wife showed him and his collection the door when he told her he wanted to officially change his name to Mr Penguin.

David later donated his penguin collection - which ranged from penguin lavatory paper to cups and toys -- to a local soccer team to raise money for the club.

Proud of the international media interest he has attracted to the penguin cause, David has appeared on dozens of TV shows over the years and was invited as a special guest to the 1992 Amsterdam premiere of Batman Returns -- which featured Danny DeVito as the hero's nemesis "The Penguin."

In an era of movies such as "Happy Feet," "March of the Penguins" and "Mr Popper's Penguins," television spots are rarer for him nowadays.

He is still well-known in the streets of Schaerbeek, the Brussels district where he lives and where the burghers greet him: "How are you today Monsieur Pingouin?"

Taking a glass of red wine between his penguin-suit wings, David said he still needed to use his thumbs after all these years to make sure he does not spill.
 

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