Oddly enough

Woman torches house trying to kill spiders: "The spiders are gone though, that problem was solved"
A German woman laid waste to her family home by setting fire to it as she tried to kill spiders in a garage with a can of hairspray and a cigarette lighter. Police said that when the aerosol failed to finish them off, the 34-year-old woman tried to burn them with the lighter. However, this set the area she had just sprayed on fire and the blaze spread to a hedge.

"It was a series of unfortunate events which led to the damage," police said. "She tried to put the fire out with a garden hose, but couldn't. Instead her semi-detached house next to the hedge caught fire. It's now uninhabitable."

Fire-fighters managed to extinguish the blaze and save the neighbouring house, which sustained broken windows and some charring. "The spiders are gone though -- that problem was solved." [news.yahoo.com]

Woman arguing with husband shoots gun in the air to get his attention. Man still not paying attention until she tries the same maneuver while pointing it at his chest. 911 ensues
An US woman is out of jail after police say she shot her husband. Judy Perkins called 911 at night, saying her husband, Thomas, had accidentally been shot in the chest. After sheriff's deputies arrived Mrs. Perkins admitted she had shot her husband during an argument on their front porch.

She said she fired a shot in the air to get Thomas's attention, but she says he thought she was joking. So she then aimed the gun at him and fired. He's recovering today at a hospital. [tricities.com]

If your boss tells you not to drink coffee on the metal plant shop floor do you A- Agree it's a work hazard; B- Neotiate to drink it out of a spillproof cup; or C- Start spiking the coffeemaker with urine and lead acetate?
A suburban Chicago man has been sentenced to three years in prison for spiking an office coffee maker because he was angry at his bosses. Kemarat Vathananand, who was initially also charged with attempted murder, pleaded guilty to felony food tampering and faced a maximum prison term of seven years.

Vathananand dumped a variety of substances into the coffee maker, including urine and a toxic solvent called lead acetate, over several months at a metal-finishing plant where worked for 15 years. He had apparently become enraged when his bosses told him he couldn't drink coffee in the local shop.

Many employees had complained of feeling ill and of vomiting after drinking the coffee - though no one was ever seriously injured. After one employee had a sample of the coffee tested and found it contained lead acetate. Authorities installed a hidden security camera that captured Vathananand pouring liquids into the coffee maker. [phillyburbs.com]

Black Labrador loses his owner, catches a train and gets off at the right station to get home. Your dog need directions to the kitchen
When Archie the black labrador lost his owner at a lonely Scottish railway station, he proved his well-trained pedigree and jumped aboard the first train home. Not only did the dog catch the right train, he got off at the right station.

CCTV footage shows the dog waiting for his master at the station before watching the Aberdeen to Inverness train pull in. Unable to find his owner, the black labrador decided to avoid a long walk home by nipping aboard the train.

He got out at the right stop, Insch, 12 minutes along the line, to the bemusement of signalman Derek Hope. "There was a train conductor standing with Archie on the platform saying he had got on at Inverurie but didn't have a ticket," he said. [news.com.au]

Compiled by Ahmed Ashiful Haque

What kind of a friend are you?

It's summer vacation. What kind of get together do you arrange for you and your friends?
A. Something where everyone's invited and everyone feels comfortable
B. You usually don't arrange get togethers, but you're up for anything!
C. A group trip to Fantasy Kingdom or Extreme Paintball
Your best friend's boy/girlfriend dumped her/him and s/he is a blubbering wreck. How do you cheer her/him up?
A. By coming over with ice cream to help her/him work through this and giving her/him several reasons why they were never right for each other anyway
B. You meet her/him although you have no idea how to make her/him stop crying
C. You take her/him out to her/his favourite fast food joint- your treat, of course, and tell jokes about her/his ex.
Your friend is finally over her/his ex and has her/his eyes set on someone else. Too bad you like the same person too.
A. You have a one on one talk with your friend about it. You'll figure something out.
B. You let your friend win. It's not worth risking the friendship.
C. You make it a bit of a fun contest between you and your friend to see who can nab your crush.
There's an India vs. Pakistan cricket match. You love Pakistan while your friend supports India. How do you handle the conflict?
A. You hear him/her out and try to find something that you both like about each team
B. You keep quiet. No need to rock the boat
C. You tease him/her a little bit, maybe make a friendly bet
You're at a party, and you don't know anyone (except for the very busy host). What do you do?
A. You pick out a few friendly people and ask them interesting questions about themselves
B. You call up a couple of your friends and try to get them to join you at the party
C. You start up a game of truth-or-dare and get everyone to join in
What's the most important thing in a friendship?
A. Looking out for one another
B. Having people who trust and count on you
C. Having fun with people you like
Your best friend calls you but you are on the other line with another friend. Do you
A. Tell him/her you'll call later
B. You hang up the other line to talk to your best friend
C. You arrange a conference call

Results
Mostly A's You are a good friend. You're always willing to listen, or lend a shoulder to cry on and you genuinely care. People like you are hard to come by. When people call you their best friend, they really mean it. Don't change a bit, you rock!

Mostly B's You're the loyal friend, the Jughead to Archie, the Monica to Rachel, the…you get the point. You stick by your friend no matter what and you're always up for a good time or conversation. But if you've been at the receiving end of more than a few chamcha jokes, try living life just for you once in a while and not in someone else's shadow.

Mostly C's You are a fun friend. You're the one who keeps your group laughing and you've always got an idea for something fun to do. It's a wonderful quality; but many people can't take life as light-heartedly as you can. So if the friend with the bad haircut isn't laughing, don't tell him/her to audition for the next Double Cola ad.

Cool Adda

Location: TV ROOM
Equipment: A television set is obviously a must, paired up with a comfortable sofa
Chatters: All the female members of the household.
Chat topic: Hindi soaps.
"Oh no! How come they killed Kulsum? She was the star of the show," says sister.
"She should die. She is a villain!" says mom.
" Ai hai oi polada chehara senz hoilo kemney?" says the kajer bua.
" Arey na oi ager pola gese kam saira. Ey dekhtey bhaloi asey!" giggles the little helper girl.
The chat usually goes on in the time of advertisement breaks, and at that time, no male species can request to change the channel even during commercial breaks. The TV Room remains booked from 8pm to 12 at night and so there is no chance for dads wanting to watch BBC or CNN. Discussing why someone got divorced or why after a failed love, they united again, are the hot topics of the TV room. Undoubtedly you are very likely to overhear mom warning her daughter to beware from betrayers such as those in the TV soaps.
Word of caution: Guys stay out!
Word of advice: Whenever someone predicts the series outcome and it turns out right, do not forget to over-enthusiastically say, " You should be the director!" Otherwise the predictor is likely to say it herself.

By Shamma M. Raghib

RS Mailbox

First of all I'd like to thank RS for starting 'Teen Central' (Aug18) for us teenagers. However, I think some points should be mentioned about last week's 'Desperate Teenagers' (Aug 25). The article is over-all entertaining and straightforward. But there's one thing I want to say to the writer of this article "If you think too much attention is bad enough, give too much inattention a try", because not all moms are housewives, and as you put it, teens with 'Official' moms also face 'desperate' desperation in life. Enjoying "Privacy' to the greatest extent has its dark sides as well. And it's my personal opinion that an RS article should try to focus on both sides of the coin.

At one part of the article the writer mentioned, "It is tough to enjoy music when you cannot comprehend half of the words, which you are listening to!" As far as I'm concerned, the remark is made about "Rabindro Shongeet", which I find completely insensible .I don't understand why the comprehension of "Rabindro Shongeet" should be so difficult while that of foreign songs is not. I know many people who think Eminem songs are nothing but gibberish prattles 'cause they can't make out half of the speed-rap unless they have the lyrics with them. I, of course, mean no offence. I myself adore western metal and alternative rock. But that doesn't mean I have to disrespect what actually belongs to 'my' origin. Of course, it's not right for the parents to force something on us. But then again, we ourselves should be sensible enough to understand why sneering at something as majestic as "Rabindro shongeet" can be so offensive to the grown-ups. 'Dislike' is one thing, but 'disrespect' is something else. If you don't like something, don't. Why try to belittle it? Especially when there are so many teenagers out there who actually love Rabindro Shongeet (including myself).

The common idea that resides among the grown-up community regarding us, the teenagers, is that, teens are careless, silly, immature, regardless of consequences and so on. Often teens are found screaming about "My parents don't give me any importance" or "Nobody understands me, why can't I do whatever I do whatever I like?" or "Why doesn't anyone listen to me?" and blah blah blah… The only way we can earn the 'importance' we demand is by proving to our parents that we are responsible enough to handle things the right way. Otherwise, 'what WE resist' will never stop to persist.

Last but not the least, I'd like to mention that RS is a widely read and admired teen magazine. RS articles work as sources of immense entertainment and motivation for us teenagers, which is exactly why I don't think it'd be wise to delude the readers with personal judgement and feelings only.
--- Raisa Rafique

Thank you, Raisa for your careful and well thought out criticism on the article. What you said is very true teens are pretty misunderstood, and they are confused as well as confusing to their parents and all other grown ups. Which is why the Teen Central column is trying to take it one issue, one problem at a time. So please bear with us, and let's explore not only the 'other side of the coin', but all the different facets of this wild and wonderful phase of life that is adolescence.

RS Desk