DANBURY, Conn., Mar. 13, 2008

(AP) Danbury officials have been notified they are being sued by a student who was awakened in class by a teacher who made a loud noise. Documents filed with the Town Clerk, a prelude to a lawsuit, claim that a sleeping student suffered hearing damage when his teacher woke him up by slamming her hand down on the boy's desk in December.
Attorney Alan Barry says 15-year-old Vinicios Robacher suffered pain and "very severe injuries to his left eardrum" when teacher Melissa Nadeau abruptly slammed the palm of her hand on his desk on Dec. 4.
A city official says the matter has been referred to Danbury's insurance carrier.

NEW HAVEN, Conn., Mar. 12, 2008

(AP) Contraband candy has led to big trouble for an eighth-grade honors student in Connecticut.
Michael Sheridan was stripped of his title as class vice president, barred from attending an honors student dinner and suspended for a day after buying a bag of Skittles from a classmate.
School spokeswoman Catherine Sullivan-DeCarlo says the New Haven school system banned candy sales in 2003 as part of a districtwide school wellness policy.
Michael's suspension has been reduced from three days to one, but he has not been reinstated as class vice president.
He says he didn't realize his candy purchase was against the rules, but he did notice the student selling the Skittles on Feb. 26 was being secretive.

TAMARAC, Fla., Mar. 13, 2008

(AP) Every vote counts. But what happens when there are no votes at all? That's the situation city officials in Tamarac are facing. No voters showed up Wednesday night to cast a ballot in an annexation referendum for an unincorporated Broward County community.
There are 68 registered voters in the 200-person Prospect Bend neighborhood. Tamarac officials have proposed annexing the neighborhood.
Details were mailed to registered voters. If just one voter had shown up, that one vote would have decided the neighborhood's fate.
The cost of keeping a polling site open for 12 hours with no voters: $2,500.
City officials could take another approach to annexing the area. One option is a mail-in ballot election.

A male passenger was arrested Tuesday, after Los Angeles International Airport Transportation Security Officer Carla Chavez correctly identified an illegal item in during the x-ray screening process. At 11:39 a.m. in Terminal 6, lane 3, Chavez detected an image of brass knuckles while on the X-ray and immediately called  STSO Emmy Lou Martinez.  The deadly item was found in the belt buckle of the passenger, thus making it a dual-use item. TSO Carla Chavez correctly identified brass knuckles which fit into a belt buckle thus making it a dual use item. "This is just another example of the commitment our men and women have to the traveling public," said Larry Fetters, LAX FSD. "Be it brass knuckles, liquids or other prohibited items our employees are working hard to keep dangerous items off of aircraft.

Continental passenger Robert Michael Meschino was charged and handcuffed at the security checkpoint by Los Angeles World Airports Police. At the same time in the same terminal TSO Danae Jackson identified an outline of a derringer firearm in the lane 5 x-ray. Airport Police responded and after searching Continental passenger Lev S. Friedman's bag discovered that the derringer was a torch lighter.  Passenger Friedman was charged with and escorted off the checkpoint by Airport Police.

 a realy cool sight to see 

Missouri is known as the "Show Me State," which some say began in 1899 when Congressman Willard Duncan Vandiver stated, "I'm from Missouri and you've got to show me."

The ice cream cone was invented at the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904 when an ice cream vendor ran out of cups and asked a waffle vendor to help by rolling up waffles to hold ice cream.

The soft drink Dr Pepper was introduced at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis. 7-Up also was invented in St. Louis.

The first ready-mix food to be sold commercially was Aunt Jemima pancake flour. It was invented in St. Joseph, Missouri and introduced in 1899

Iced Tea was first served at the St. Louis World's Fair in 1904

The most powerful earthquake to strike the United States occurred in 1811, centered in New Madrid, Missouri. The quake shook more than one million square miles, and was felt as far as 1,000 miles away.

The most destructive tornado on record occurred in Annapolis, Missouri on March 18, 1925. In three hours, it spun through the town leaving a 980-foot wide trail of demolished buildings, uprooted trees, overturned cars and left in its wake 823 people dead and almost 3,000 injured.

Samuel Clemens, more familiarly known as Mark Twain, was born in Florida, Missouri and grew up in nearby Hannibal. Beginning his career as a printer’s apprentice for the Missouri Courier in Hannibal, he eventually wrote for the Keokuk, Iowa Saturday Post. Soon thereafter, however, he abandoned his literary career and spent 18 months as a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River. After the Civil War, he returned to writing for newspapers and magazines, before writing his novels based on life on the Misssissippi River, such as Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Laura Elizabeth Ingalls, writer of Little House on the Prairie grew up in Missouri.

Harry S. Truman was born in Lamar, May 8, 1884 and was raised in Independence. Beginning as a successful Missouri farmer, he served in France during World War I and after the war, opened a men’s clothing store in Kansas City. An active Democrat, he became a Senator in 1934. As the 33rd President of the United States, Truman ordered the use of atomic weapons against Japan at the end of World War II

Daniel Boone lived longer in Missouri than in any other state and regarded Missouri as his home.

Jesse Woodson James was born in Kearney, Missouri, the son of a Baptist minister. Some believe that cruel treatment by Union soldiers during the Civil War was what turnedJesse and his brother Frank to a life of crime after the war. Their first bank robbery got them $60,000 from a bank in Liberty, Missouri. For 15 years, Frank and Jesse robbed trains and banks throughout the US. In 1876, Jesse and Frank were involved in a robbery along with the Younger Brothers and other gang members. The Pinkerton detectives killed or wounded all of them except Frank and Jesse. From that point, Jesse, his wife, and children went into hiding, but the $10,000 price on Jesse's head led Bob Ford to shoot him at his St. Joseph, Missouri home in 1882 to collect the reward.

St. Louis offers more free, major visitor attractions than anyplace outside of the nation's capital. These include the Saint Louis Art Museum, Saint Louis Zoo, Cahokia Mounds, Museum of Westward Expansion, St. Louis Science Center, Missouri History Museum, Anheuser-Busch Brewery, Grant's Farm and more.

Anheuser-Busch brewery in St. Louis, Missouri is the largest beer producing plant in the nation.

Some of the names of Frontier Missouri chewing tobacco include "Scalping Knife," "My Wife's Hat," "Lock and Chain," and "Wiggletail Twist."

Missouri was the third most fought-over state in the Civil War, right after Virginia and Tennessee.

. The first successful parachute jump to be made from a moving airplane was made by Captain Berry at St. Louis, in 1912.

."Madonna of the Trail" monument in Lexington tells the story of the brave women who helped conquer the west and is one of 12 placed in every state crossed by the National Old Trails Road, the route of early settlers from Maryland to California.

Warsaw holds the state record for the low temperature of -40 degrees on February 13, 1905. It also holds the state’s high temperature record when it reached 118 on July 14, 1954.

Missouri has an official state rock – the Mozarkite adopted by the Missouri legislature on July 21, 1967.

During Abraham Lincoln's campaign for the presidency, a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat named Valentine Tapley from Pike County, Missouri, swore that he would never shave again if Abe were elected. Tapley kept his word and his chin whiskers went unshorn from November 1860 until he died in 1910, attaining a length of twelve feet six inches.

Missouri ties with Tennessee as the most "neighborly" state in the U.S., bordered by eight states.

St. Louis; is also called, "The Gateway to the West" and "Home of the Blues".

On July 3, 1985 the honey bee was officially declared the state insect.

St. Louis was the site of the demonic possession incident that inspired the book, and later the movie, "The Exorcist."

Before 1866 it was illegal to educate blacks in the state of Missouri. The Reverend John Berry Meachum found a way around the law by taking his students out on a boat in the middle of the Mississippi and holding class.

In the early 19th century, the folk song, Shenandoah, was sung about a trader in the Missouri River area who fell in love with the daughter of the Algonquian chief, Shenandoah. Sailors heading down the Mississippi River took up the slow, rolling melody for the slow, rolling work of hoisting a ship's anchor, changing the words to suit their purpose.

Missouri's state musical instrument: fiddle and the state folk dance is the square dance.

Missouri has 5,500 recorded caves. Nearly 20 Missouri caves are called or connected to saltpeter, which was mined in some Missouri caves in the early 1800’s because nitrate was needed for the manufacture of gunpowder. At least 13 cave names are associated with "beaver," 36 with "bear," 13 with "panther," and 17 with "wildcat." More than 30 have "buzzard" in their names.

Many historians believe that the Civil War began along the border of Missouri and Kansas when Missourians and Kansans battled over whether Kansas would become a "free-state" or a "slave state." The border warfare began in 1854, seven years before the start of the Civil War.

Creve Coeur's name means broken heart in French, comes from nearby Creve Coeur Lake. Legend has it that an Indian princess fell in love with a French fur trapper, but the love was not returned. According to the story, she then leapt from a ledge overlooking Creve Coeur Lake; the lake then formed itself into a broken heart.

The "Missouri Waltz" became the state song under an act adopted by the General Assembly on June 30, 1949

The present Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City was completed in 1917 and was the sixth in Missouri history. The first seat of state government was housed in the Mansion House in St. Louis, the second was in the Missouri Hotel in St. Louis, St. Charles was designated as temporary capital of the state in 1821 and remained the seat of government until 1826 when Jefferson City became the permanent capital city. The current building was the third in Jefferson City as the first burned in 1837, the second burned in 1911.

Jefferson National Expansion Memorial consists of the Gateway Arch, the Museum of Westward Expansion, and St. Louis' Old Courthouse. During a nationwide competition in 1947-48, architect Eero Saarinen's inspired design for a 630-foot stainless steel arch was chosen as a perfect monument to the spirit of the western pioneers. Construction of the Arch began in 1963 and was completed on October 28, 1965.

The tallest man in documented medical history was Robert Pershing Wadlow from St. Louis. He was 8 feet, 11.1 inches tall

Missouri was named after a tribe called Missouri Indians; meaning "town of the large canoes"

The tallest monument built in the U.S., the Gateway Arch, in St. Louis, is 630 feet tall.

Missouri's oldest community, Saint Genevieve, was founded as early as 1735.

Hermann, Missouri is a storybook German village with a rich wine-making and riverboat history that is proudly displayed in area museums. Built in 1836 as the "New Fatherland" for German settlers, the town has achieved national recognition because of its quality wines and distinctive heritage.

On Sucker Day in Nixa, Missouri, school closes officially and the little town swells to a throng of 15,000 hungry folks. All craving a taste of the much maligned but delicious bottom dweller fish loathed by almost everyone else.

During the Civil War, Missouri was the scene of more than 1,000 battles.

It is unlawful to throw hard objects by hand in Missouri.

Worrying squirrels is not tolerated in Missouri

Called the Brothel Law, it is illegal in Missouri for more than four unrelated persons to occupy the same dwelling.

Anyone under the age of 21 who takes out household trash containing even a single empty alcohol beverage container can be charged with illegal possession of alcohol in Missouri.

In Buckner, Missouri, yard waste may be burned any day except Sunday.

Installation of bathtubs with four legs resembling animal paws is prohibited.

In Missouri, minors are not allowed to purchase cap pistols, however they may buy shotguns freely.

A milk man may not run while on duty in Missouri.

Frightening a baby is in violation of the law in Missouri

Should you decide to provide alcoholic beverages to an elephant in Missouri, you could be arrested.

Reportedly, Oregon has more ghost towns than any other state. Check out Hardman, Sumpter, and Shaniko.

The state of Oregon has one city named Sisters and another called Brothers. Sisters got its name from a nearby trio of peaks in the Cascade Mountains known as the Three Sisters. Brothers was named as a counterpart to Sisters.

Oregon and New Jersey are the only states without self-serve gas stations. According to Oregon state law, an attendant must pump your gas.

Eugene was the first city to have one-way streets.

The Oregon Trail is the longest of the overland routes used in the westward expansion of the United States. The Trail used from 1840 to 1860 began in Missouri and ended in Oregon. It was about 2,000 miles long.

The world’s tallest barber shop pole stands in Forest Grove, Oregon.

Oregon is home to the world’s shortest river. The D River is only 121 feet long.

In 1905 the largest long cabin in the world was built in Portland to honor the Lewis and Clark expedition.

Oregon's state flag pictures a beaver on its reverse side. It is the only state flag to carry two separate designs.

The hazelnut is Oregon's official state nut. Oregon is the only state that has an official state nut.

There are nine lighthouses standing along the Oregon coastline. Five are still being used; the others are designated as historic monuments. The nation's most photographed lighthouse is the Heceta Head Lighthouse located in Lane County.

The Tillamook Rock Lighthouse, built in 1880, is currently used as the site of the final resting place of up to 467,000 cremated individuals.

Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States. It was formed more than 6,500 years ago. Its crystal-blue waters are world renowned.

Discovered in 1874 the caves located in Oregon Caves National Monument are carved within solid marble.

In 1880 a sea cave was discovered near what is now known as Florence. Sea Lion Caves is the largest sea cave in the world

The Nike "swoosh" logo was designed by University of Oregon student Carolyn Davidson in 1964 -- four years after business undergrad Phil Knight and track coach Bill Bowerman founded the company they originally called Blue Ribbon Sports. Ms. Davidson was paid $35 dollars for her design.

The Carousel Museum contains the world's largest and most comprehensive collection of carousel horses.

In Bend, Oregon is a Bowling Ball Garden at a place called the Funny Farm, whee you can actually buy bowling ball seeds in the gift shop. Lots of other odd things here such as an electric kaleidoscope which continuously shows the Wizard of Oz in cascading psychedelic images, a Tire Totem Pole, and the Dead Halloween Mask Burial Grounds

Deadman Creek in Wallowa County was named by James Dale, a sheepherder who said he might just as well be dead as to be in such a lonesome place (1890).

Whorehouse Meadows in Harney County was exactly that during the days of the Old West. Setting up facilities under a canvas tent in the secluded meadow about a mile east of Fish Lake they would then meet up with cattle and sheep herders. In the 1960's the Bureau of Land Management issued a recreation map renaming the meadow, "Naughty Girl Meadows" But in 1971 the Oregon Geographic Names Board took strong objection to the change and brought their argument before federal arbiters. After ten years the old name was restored in 1981

Silver Falls State Park is the Oregon's largest state park. It features 10 waterfalls and contains a wide variety of forested hiking trails

At 11,239 feet Mount Hood, a dormant volcano, stands as the tallest peak in Oregon.

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It is against the law in Myrtle Creek to box with a kangaroo.

In Oregon it is illegal to use canned corn as fish bait.

While it is illegal to buy or sell marijuana in Oregon, it is legal to smoke it on your own property.Up until the 1970s it was illegal to show movies or attend car races on Sundays in Eugene, Oregon.Oregon has no sales, restaurant or liquor tax.

In Marion, ministers are forbidden from eating garlic or onions before delivering a sermon.

In Stanfield, Oregon, no more than two people are allowed to share a single drink

In Portland, people are banned from whistling underwater.In Beaverton, Oregon, you are required to buy a $10 permit before installing a burglar alarm.

Harbor Island is the largest man made island in the nation.

Eighty percent of the glacial ice in the U.S is found in Washington State.

There are over 40,000 miles of rivers and streams and more than 8,000 lakes in Washington

The Washington State Ferry System is the largest Ferry System in the US and the state's number one tourist attraction.

Snoqualmie Falls plunges 100 feet further than Niagara Falls.

The Ginkgo Petrified Forest is the largest in the world.

At low tide, there can be up to 786 islands in the Puget Sound.

La Push is the western most town in the contiguous United States.

The Northwestern most point in the contiguous U.S. is Cape Flattery on Washington's Olympic Peninsula.

The First permanent settlement in the state was Tumwater

Seattle was the first American city to put police on bicycles.

Spokane was the smallest city in size to host a World's Fair in 1974

The world's first soft-serve ice cream machine was located in an Olympia Dairy Queen.

.Starbucks, the biggest coffee chain in the world was founded in Seattle.

The world's first gas station opened in 1907 at Western Ave. and Holgate St.

The oldest operating gas station in the United States is in Zillah.

Northgate shopping mall, built in 1950, became the world's first fully enclosed shopping mall

Seattle built the first revolving restaurant in 1961.

The first general strike in the nation was in Seattle in 1919 - it lasted five days, February 6-11, as 60,000 shipyard workers walked off their jobs.

The Pike Place Market in Seattle is said to host a bevy of ghosts and just might be the most haunted place in the state of Washington .

Seattle sells more sunglasses per capita than any other major city in the nation.

.Seattle has the country's highest percentage rate of residents with a college degree.

Seattle was the first city in the world to pump Muzak into stores and offices.

Washington is the birthplace of Jimi Hendrix in Seattle and Bing Crosby in Tacoma.

.The Farmer's Market at Pike Place Market, since 1907, is the longest continuously operating farmer's market in the US.

Seattle's houseboat population is the largest east of the Orient.

The world's first expresso cart was established below the Seattle Monorail terminal at Westlake Center in 1980.

The small village of Bickelton is filled with bluebird houses seen on the posts of every house.