Magpie News Collector

World Sword Swallowers Day A Cutting-Edge Holiday For Blade Gobblers

By HuffPost.com | | 2/22/2025 8:00 AM

Sword swallowers all over the world will be participating in a global gulp on Saturday at 2:22 p.m. local time. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Watch: Goat rescued from fifth floor window ledge

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/21/2025 4:07 PM

Firefighters in Madrid came to the rescue of a goat that somehow ended up stranded on a ledge on the fifth floor of an apartment building. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

$50,000 lottery ticket was selected by winner's wife

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/21/2025 3:58 PM

A Kentucky man scored a $50,000 lottery prize from a scratch-off ticket that was selected by his wife. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Watch: Vulture that 'loves people' escapes nature show in Georgia

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/21/2025 1:26 PM

A rescued black vulture escaped from his home with a Georgia nature show and has been seen wandering loose south of Atlanta. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Watch: 'Waldo' the Scottish highland bull on the loose in Connecticut

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/21/2025 12:08 PM

Animal control officials in Connecticut are asking residents to keep an eye out for an escaped Scottish highland bull on the loose for about six weeks. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

'Remarkably rotund' Chicago beaver becomes an online celebrity

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/20/2025 4:45 PM

A Chicago nonprofit is asking social media users to help name a "remarkably rotund" beaver caught on camera in the city. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Distraught Lions fan's mood improves with $500,000 lottery win

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/20/2025 4:27 PM

A Michigan man said his day took a nosedive when the Detroit Lions lost their playoff game, but quickly improved when he won a $500,000 lottery prize. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Micro-artist creates Lego sculpture the size of a blood cell

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/20/2025 3:41 PM

An artist from England broke a Guinness World Record when he created a sculpture of a Lego brick roughly the same size as a human white blood cell. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Look: Escaped porcupine captured in Tennessee

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/20/2025 2:12 PM

Wildlife authorities in Tennessee were called out to rescue an unusual escaped pet: a porcupine. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Birkenstock Calls Its Sandals 'Art' But German Court Says No

By HuffPost.com | | 2/20/2025 12:12 PM

The shoe manufacturer claimed its sandals “are copyright-protected works of applied art" that may not be imitated, but a court ruled they're just comfy footwear. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Mysterious QR code stickers appear on more than 1,000 graves

By Sky News | | 2/20/2025 2:29 AM

More than 1,000 stickers were put on gravestones and wooden crosses at three cemeteries in the southern German city of Munich. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Denver Zoo announces birth of red-necked wallaby

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/19/2025 4:05 PM

The Denver Zoo announced the birth of a red-necked wallaby, the first baby to be born in the facility's new Down Under habitat. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Man wins $1.3M after using same lottery numbers for four years

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/19/2025 3:59 PM

A Michigan Lottery player who stuck with the same set of Lotto 47 numbers for four years found his persistence paid off with a $1.3 million jackpot. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Watch: Pennsylvania man's slide chart collection earns world record

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/19/2025 1:31 PM

A Pennsylvania man earned a Guinness World Records title for his collection of some unusual curiosities: slide charts. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Watch: Bear moves into California crawlspace, relaxes by the pool

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/19/2025 1:01 PM

A California man returned to his home after evacuating during the Eaton fire to discover a large bear was spending its days lounging by his pool, and its nights sleeping under his house. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

QR-Code Stickers Mysteriously Appear On 1,000 Munich Graves

By HuffPost.com | | 2/19/2025 11:23 AM

Police in Munich are investigating why the stickers were put on gravestones and wooden crosses at three cemeteries in the German city. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Female prankster pretending to be marshal sends runners on 2.5km detour during race

By Sky News | | 2/19/2025 5:06 AM

Runners at a 10k trail race in Glasgow were sent in the wrong direction by a prankster pretending to be a marshal and who buried arrow signs marking the course. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Look: Wandering sea lion rescued from California highway

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/18/2025 4:16 PM

The California Highway Patrol came to the rescue of a juvenile sea lion that wandered onto a busy highway in the San Francisco Area. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Watch: Deadly snake found inside family's washing machine

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/18/2025 4:08 PM

An Australian snake catcher responded to a family's home where the world's second most venomous snake was found in the washing machine. ... Read full Story

odd_fun

Clerk's mistake earns Va. woman $2M lottery prize

By United Press International, Inc. | | 2/18/2025 4:01 PM

A Virginia woman scored a $2 million lottery prize thanks to a store clerk who mistakenly gave her the wrong ticket. ... Read full Story

basketball

Jimmy Butler invoking new Warriors jersey retiree Andre Iguodala as he revitalizes team's championship hopes

by CBS Interactive Inc | Feb 23 2025

book

The Strange Case of Jane O.

by BookPage | Feb 24 2025

connecticut

We cannot abandon trans youth in Connecticut

by CT Mirror | Feb 24 2025

exercise

Want To Live Longer? Try Weekend-Only Exercise, Says New Study

by thehealthy.com | Sep 21 2024

FFNEWS

Borderlands Mexico: Organized crime groups fuel rise of US cargo thefts

by FreightWaves | Feb 23 2025

finance

German stocks rise after the election. What analysts expect now.

by MarketWatch.com | Feb 24 2025

golf

PGA Tour and LIV Golf Look for Merger Deal Under Trump

by NY Times | Feb 18 2025

long_island

‘I survived the Ponquogue Bridge’ apparel emerges amid closure buzz

by greaterlongisland.com | Feb 23 2025

politics

Former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff bids farewell in heartfelt social media post: 'Distinct honor'

by Fox News | Feb 24 2025

religion

What do we know about the brothers and sisters of Jesus?

by Christian Post | Oct 20 2024

retirement

This Midwestern state is considered one of the best places to retire, new study says: see the list

by Fox News | Jan 29 2025

science

NASA supercomputer reveals strange spiral structure at the edge of our solar system

by LIVE SCIENCE | Feb 23 2025

sports

Drake invests in Venezia, will sponsor kit

by ESPN Inc. | Aug 14 2024

technology

World’s largest data center with massive 3 gigawatt capacity approved in Korea

by Interesting Engineering | Feb 24 2025

world

Israeli Defense Forces deploys tanks in West Bank

by United Press International, Inc. | Feb 23 2025

Word of the Day

quip

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 24, 2025 is:

quip • \KWIP\ • noun

Quip can refer to a clever, usually taunting remark, or to a witty or funny observation or response usually made on the spur of the moment.

// They traded quips over a beer and laughed themselves silly.

See the entry >

Examples:

"He's always got a story, is always ready with a quip and isn't afraid to let the four-letter words roll off the tongue in the most creative ways." — Nathan Brown, The Indianapolis Star, 26 Apr. 2023

Did you know?

To tweak a well-known line from Hamlet, brevity is the soul of quip. While jokes are often brief stories with setups followed by surprising and funny endings (chickens crossing roads, elephant footprints in the butter, etc.) quips are even briefer, and not so planned or scripted. They are more likely to arise naturally in conversation when someone is especially quick-witted, firing off zingers, retorts, or—if you want to get extra fancy about it—bon mots. Brevity also plays a role in quip's etymology: quip is a shortening of quippy, a now-obsolete noun of the same meaning. Quippy's origins are uncertain, but they may lie in the Latin word quippe, meaning "indeed" or "to be sure," which was often used ironically. Quip entered English as a noun in the 1500s, but was verbified within decades; the verb quip means "to make quips" or "to jest or jibe at."

World Sword Swallowers Day A Cutting-Edge Holiday For Blade Gobblers

Watch: Goat rescued from fifth floor window ledge

$50,000 lottery ticket was selected by winner's wife

Watch: Vulture that 'loves people' escapes nature show in Georgia

Watch: 'Waldo' the Scottish highland bull on the loose in Connecticut

'Remarkably rotund' Chicago beaver becomes an online celebrity

Distraught Lions fan's mood improves with $500,000 lottery win

Micro-artist creates Lego sculpture the size of a blood cell

Look: Escaped porcupine captured in Tennessee

Birkenstock Calls Its Sandals 'Art' But German Court Says No

Mysterious QR code stickers appear on more than 1,000 graves

Denver Zoo announces birth of red-necked wallaby

Man wins $1.3M after using same lottery numbers for four years

Watch: Pennsylvania man's slide chart collection earns world record

Watch: Bear moves into California crawlspace, relaxes by the pool

QR-Code Stickers Mysteriously Appear On 1,000 Munich Graves

Female prankster pretending to be marshal sends runners on 2.5km detour during race

Look: Wandering sea lion rescued from California highway

Watch: Deadly snake found inside family's washing machine

Clerk's mistake earns Va. woman $2M lottery prize

Jimmy Butler invoking new Warriors jersey retiree Andre Iguodala as he revitalizes team's championship hopes

The Strange Case of Jane O.

We cannot abandon trans youth in Connecticut

Want To Live Longer? Try Weekend-Only Exercise, Says New Study

Borderlands Mexico: Organized crime groups fuel rise of US cargo thefts

German stocks rise after the election. What analysts expect now.

PGA Tour and LIV Golf Look for Merger Deal Under Trump

‘I survived the Ponquogue Bridge’ apparel emerges amid closure buzz

Former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff bids farewell in heartfelt social media post: 'Distinct honor'

What do we know about the brothers and sisters of Jesus?

This Midwestern state is considered one of the best places to retire, new study says: see the list

NASA supercomputer reveals strange spiral structure at the edge of our solar system

Drake invests in Venezia, will sponsor kit

World’s largest data center with massive 3 gigawatt capacity approved in Korea

Israeli Defense Forces deploys tanks in West Bank

Word of the Day

10 Odd & Fun

1.World Sword Swallowers Day A Cutting-Edge Holiday For Blade Gobblers

2.Watch: Goat rescued from fifth floor window ledge

3.$50,000 lottery ticket was selected by winner's wife

4.Watch: Vulture that 'loves people' escapes nature show in Georgia

5.Watch: 'Waldo' the Scottish highland bull on the loose in Connecticut

6.'Remarkably rotund' Chicago beaver becomes an online celebrity

7.Distraught Lions fan's mood improves with $500,000 lottery win

8.Micro-artist creates Lego sculpture the size of a blood cell

9.Look: Escaped porcupine captured in Tennessee

10.Birkenstock Calls Its Sandals 'Art' But German Court Says No