The weekly weird

Published August 26, 2017

World’s tallest gas pump

An Oklahoma museum dedicated to the heyday of Route 66 said it is nearing completion of its latest feature: The world’s tallest gas pump.

The Heart of Route 66 Auto Museum in Sapulpa posted a video to Facebook showing a globe with the museum’s name and logo being lifted by a crane to the top of the 66-foot-tall gas pump.

The museum said the project will be completed in a few more weekends, as volunteer workers still need to attach the pump handle and hose and then paint the massive sculpture.

“It’s probably the weirdest project that I’ve ever seen and been involved with,” Nyckey Heath of Bennett Steel told.

Museum officials said they plan to submit the finished project to Guinness World Records as the world’s tallest gas pump.


Squirrel behind cheese factory fire

Nearly 20,000 gallons of milk were spoiled after a squirrel caused a fire at a cheese factory in Canada.

Emergency crews responded to a fire at Scardillo Cheese in Burnaby, Bri­tish Columbia, after a squirrel che­wed through a piece of equipment.

The flames damaged a main power line, causing power breakdown in the factory and the surrounding area.

“There was a power-line that ran down along the exterior of the pole into the ground and then into the cheese factory only about 30 or 40 feet away,” assistant fire Chief Laine Zimmermann told.

Five fire trucks and 15 fire fighters responded to the fire, but were unable to deal with the blaze directly because the power line was still active.

It took about 12 hours to restore power to the factory and 20,000 gallons of milk were left to spoil and warm.


Bell-ringing cats play keyboard

A pair of cats in Japan that gained viral fame by ringing bells have expanded their musical range to include the keyboard.

Japanese Twitter user shared video of the “cat pianist” concert, as the two musically inclined felines carefully took turns pressing the keys of an electric keyboard.

The free concert featured the two cats teaming up to perform a duet of “creative and rhythmic songs.”

In one clip, the gray tabby cat begins the concert by pressing a sequence of keys in the middle of the piano, before executing a slide and settling on one key on the left side of the keyboard. The black and white cat then caps off the performance with a pair of notes spaced out by a dramatic pause.

Much like their previous musical endeavours, the cats were rewarded with treats each time they successfully struck a key.


World’s first ever colouring-in car to entertain bored kids

Long car journeys can drive even the most patient of families around the bend. Cries of ‘Are we there yet?’ from kids in the back can push any driver to the limit.

So with that in mind, a car rental firm set themselves the task of creating the ideal interior for keeping ‘too young’ passengers entertained. The result: a motor with seats, doors and roof completely upholstered in colouring book print.

Designers at Hertz used popular colouring-in book pages — featuring houses, animals and flowers — to create the unique look.

The prototype is said to be the first of its kind — but rental firm is considering a wider roll-out depending on the public’s reaction.

Published in Dawn, Young World August 26th, 2017

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