Copyright (c) 2009 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. http://news.yahoo.com/i/1516 odd Offbeat - AFP en-us Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:11:56 GMT 5 142 18 http://news.yahoo.com/i/1516 http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/nws/th/main_142b.gif http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091121/lf_afp/lifestylefashionoffbeat_20091121161447 afp/20091121/lifestylefashionoffbeat AFP topstories Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:11:56 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091121/lf_afp/lifestylefashionoffbeat_20091121161447"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091121/capt.photo_1258798774300-1-0.jpg?x=86&y=130&q=85&sig=2j7W1rMcYt1oS5np5_3WYA--" align="left" height="130" width="86" alt="A woman takes part in a stiletto race in Paris. Dozens of shoe addicts took part in the National Stiletto Championship on an indoor track in the old stock exchange building in central Paris. The only rule is to be perched on heels at least eight centimetres (three inches) high -- the prize is boxes and boxes of shoes.(AFP/Miguel Medina)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Dozens of shoe addicts have taken part in the National Stiletto Championship on an indoor track in the old stock exchange building in central Paris.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091121/lf_afp/lifestylefashionoffbeat_20091121161447"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091121/capt.photo_1258798774300-1-0.jpg?x=86&y=130&q=85&sig=2j7W1rMcYt1oS5np5_3WYA--" align="left" height="130" width="86" alt="photo" title="A woman takes part in a stiletto race in Paris. Dozens of shoe addicts took part in the National Stiletto Championship on an indoor track in the old stock exchange building in central Paris. The only rule is to be perched on heels at least eight centimetres (three inches) high -- the prize is boxes and boxes of shoes.(AFP/Miguel Medina)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/od_afp/nepalroyalsoffbeat_20091120171749 afp/20091120/nepalroyalsoffbeat AFP odd Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:07:56 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/od_afp/nepalroyalsoffbeat_20091120171749"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091120/capt.photo_1258731062421-1-0.jpg?x=96&y=130&q=85&sig=UzxlN4pYZ8MSJ2.cm6U6Gw--" align="left" height="130" width="96" alt="Nepal's former king Gyanendra Shah, pictured in 2008, has been given his first passport aged 63, a year-and-a-half after stepping down from the throne, the government said Friday.(AFP/File/Prakash Mathema)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Nepal's former king has been given his first passport aged 63, a year-and-a-half after stepping down from the throne, the government said Friday.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/od_afp/nepalroyalsoffbeat_20091120171749"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091120/capt.photo_1258731062421-1-0.jpg?x=96&y=130&q=85&sig=UzxlN4pYZ8MSJ2.cm6U6Gw--" align="left" height="130" width="96" alt="photo" title="Nepal's former king Gyanendra Shah, pictured in 2008, has been given his first passport aged 63, a year-and-a-half after stepping down from the throne, the government said Friday.(AFP/File/Prakash Mathema)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/od_afp/mexicosciencesocietyoffbeat_20091120171747 afp/20091120/mexicosciencesocietyoffbeat AFP odd Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:11:14 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/od_afp/mexicosciencesocietyoffbeat_20091120171747"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091120/capt.photo_1258730061695-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=98&q=85&sig=s4eKYNTeWQq5FWVHrJhdCw--" align="left" height="98" width="130" alt="This undated illustration shows the DNA double helix. Suspect your significant other might be cheating on you? In Mexico, numerous laboratories are now offering a way to find out for sure -- DNA tests.(AFP/HO/File)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Suspect your significant other might be cheating on you? In Mexico, numerous laboratories are now offering a way to find out for sure -- DNA tests.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/od_afp/mexicosciencesocietyoffbeat_20091120171747"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091120/capt.photo_1258730061695-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=98&q=85&sig=s4eKYNTeWQq5FWVHrJhdCw--" align="left" height="98" width="130" alt="photo" title="This undated illustration shows the DNA double helix. Suspect your significant other might be cheating on you? In Mexico, numerous laboratories are now offering a way to find out for sure -- DNA tests.(AFP/HO/File)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/lf_afp/lifestyleartfashionauctionfrance_20091120173125 afp/20091120/lifestyleartfashionauctionfrance AFP topstories Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:29:06 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/lf_afp/lifestyleartfashionauctionfrance_20091120173125"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091120/capt.photo_1258738042643-1-0.jpg?x=95&y=130&q=85&sig=kYhPIxlw099shxp5tXhabw--" align="left" height="130" width="95" alt="A view of the Marigny theater in Paris on the first of four auction days led by Christie's of Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Berge collection, which profit will fund campaigns against HIV-AIDS. A humble if eye-pleasing umbrella stand once owned by YSL fetched an amazing 134,000 dollars Friday at the close of a sale of the last belongings of the late couturier and his partner Pierre Berge.(AFP/File/Jacques Demarthon)" border="0" /></a>AFP - A humble if eye-pleasing umbrella stand once owned by Yves Saint Laurent fetched an amazing 90,000 euros (134,000 dollars) Friday at the close of a sale of the last belongings of the late couturier and his partner Pierre Berge.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/lf_afp/lifestyleartfashionauctionfrance_20091120173125"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091120/capt.photo_1258738042643-1-0.jpg?x=95&y=130&q=85&sig=kYhPIxlw099shxp5tXhabw--" align="left" height="130" width="95" alt="photo" title="A view of the Marigny theater in Paris on the first of four auction days led by Christie's of Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Berge collection, which profit will fund campaigns against HIV-AIDS. A humble if eye-pleasing umbrella stand once owned by YSL fetched an amazing 134,000 dollars Friday at the close of a sale of the last belongings of the late couturier and his partner Pierre Berge.(AFP/File/Jacques Demarthon)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/od_afp/healthflumoldovamilitaryoffbeat_20091120014318 afp/20091120/healthflumoldovamilitaryoffbeat AFP odd Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:42:54 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/od_afp/healthflumoldovamilitaryoffbeat_20091120014318"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091120/capt.photo_1258646545460-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=87&q=85&sig=dWqGqq.RZl9tcR0MARO0pA--" align="left" height="87" width="130" alt="A basket of garlic at a market. Moldovan soldiers has been issued with an extra ration of onions and garlic to ward off swine flu, the defence ministry's chief doctor said Thursday.(AFP/File/Saul Loeb)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Moldovan soldiers have been issued with an extra ration of onions and garlic to ward off swine flu, according to the defence ministry's chief doctor.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/od_afp/healthflumoldovamilitaryoffbeat_20091120014318"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091120/capt.photo_1258646545460-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=87&q=85&sig=dWqGqq.RZl9tcR0MARO0pA--" align="left" height="87" width="130" alt="photo" title="A basket of garlic at a market. Moldovan soldiers has been issued with an extra ration of onions and garlic to ward off swine flu, the defence ministry's chief doctor said Thursday.(AFP/File/Saul Loeb)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/od_afp/lifestylejapanfrancewinespa_20091119172110 afp/20091119/lifestylejapanfrancewinespa AFP odd Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:12:09 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/od_afp/lifestylejapanfrancewinespa_20091119172110"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091119/capt.photo_1258631929265-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=94&q=85&sig=uuQR8MGNrG4mTbrQ6ZKoLg--" align="left" height="94" width="130" alt="Sommelier Masahiko Mori (left) serves the new 2009 Beaujolais Nouveau wine to visitors in the wine spa at the Hakone Yunessun spa resort facilities in Hakone town, Kanagawa prefecture, some 100 kilometres west of Tokyo, November 19. Japan's craze for Beaujolais nouveau has beaten the global recession, with tourists taking a dip Thursday in a hot mountain spring coloured red with the fruity wine.(AFP/Toshifumi Kitamura)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Japan's craze for Beaujolais nouveau has beaten the global recession, with tourists taking a dip Thursday in a hot mountain spring coloured red with the fruity wine.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/od_afp/lifestylejapanfrancewinespa_20091119172110"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091119/capt.photo_1258631929265-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=94&q=85&sig=uuQR8MGNrG4mTbrQ6ZKoLg--" align="left" height="94" width="130" alt="photo" title="Sommelier Masahiko Mori (left) serves the new 2009 Beaujolais Nouveau wine to visitors in the wine spa at the Hakone Yunessun spa resort facilities in Hakone town, Kanagawa prefecture, some 100 kilometres west of Tokyo, November 19. Japan's craze for Beaujolais nouveau has beaten the global recession, with tourists taking a dip Thursday in a hot mountain spring coloured red with the fruity wine.(AFP/Toshifumi Kitamura)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/wl_asia_afp/lifestylenkoreagrooming_20091119081825 afp/20091119/lifestylenkoreagrooming AFP world Thu, 19 Nov 2009 08:14:54 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/wl_asia_afp/lifestylenkoreagrooming_20091119081825"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091119/capt.photo_1258618440921-1-0.jpg?x=79&y=130&q=85&sig=hSr1SecSdwCwvaZoELC89A--" align="left" height="130" width="79" alt=""To keep your hair tidy and simple... is a very important matter for setting the ethos of a sound lifestyle in the country," Rodong Sinmun, the ruling-party newspaper, reportedly said in its Saturday edition(AFP/File/Mark Ralston)" border="0" /></a>AFP - State media in communist North Korea, which is grappling with severe food shortages and a crumbling economy, has taken time out to urge its people to keep their hair tidy.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/wl_asia_afp/lifestylenkoreagrooming_20091119081825"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091119/capt.photo_1258618440921-1-0.jpg?x=79&y=130&q=85&sig=hSr1SecSdwCwvaZoELC89A--" align="left" height="130" width="79" alt="photo" title=""To keep your hair tidy and simple... is a very important matter for setting the ethos of a sound lifestyle in the country," Rodong Sinmun, the ruling-party newspaper, reportedly said in its Saturday edition(AFP/File/Mark Ralston)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/od_afp/safricafoodgoldtheftoffbeat_20091119090006 afp/20091119/safricafoodgoldtheftoffbeat AFP odd Thu, 19 Nov 2009 08:59:47 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/od_afp/safricafoodgoldtheftoffbeat_20091119090006"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091119/capt.photo_1258621156076-1-0.jpg?x=101&y=130&q=85&sig=oX1ROLHJoqhzqQPFr3IXZA--" align="left" height="130" width="101" alt="Gold necklaces are seen at a jewellery shop. A worker at a South African jewellery retailer was arrested this week for trying to smuggle gold from his workplace by stuffing it into a cooked chicken, according to local media.(AFP/File/Roslan Rahman)" border="0" /></a>AFP - A worker at a South African jewellery retailer was arrested this week for trying to smuggle gold from his workplace by stuffing it into a cooked chicken, according to local media.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/od_afp/safricafoodgoldtheftoffbeat_20091119090006"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091119/capt.photo_1258621156076-1-0.jpg?x=101&y=130&q=85&sig=oX1ROLHJoqhzqQPFr3IXZA--" align="left" height="130" width="101" alt="photo" title="Gold necklaces are seen at a jewellery shop. A worker at a South African jewellery retailer was arrested this week for trying to smuggle gold from his workplace by stuffing it into a cooked chicken, according to local media.(AFP/File/Roslan Rahman)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091118/od_afp/australiadrivingsenioroffbeat_20091118171324 afp/20091118/australiadrivingsenioroffbeat AFP odd Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:09:32 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091118/od_afp/australiadrivingsenioroffbeat_20091118171324"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091118/capt.photo_1258556448010-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=89&q=85&sig=v058oqzVa5Hmc6lmyxGRKA--" align="left" height="89" width="130" alt="A view of the Melbourne skyline with the Westgate Bridge in the foreground. An 81-year-old Australian man became lost on an early morning drive from a town near Sydney to the shops and ended up almost 600 kilometres (370 miles) away to end up in Melbourne. He told police he failed to stop because he "liked to drive".(AFP/File/Mark Smith)" border="0" /></a>AFP - An 81-year-old Australian man who became lost on an early morning drive to the shops and ended up almost 600 kilometres (370 miles) away told police he failed to stop because he "liked to drive".</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091118/od_afp/australiadrivingsenioroffbeat_20091118171324"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091118/capt.photo_1258556448010-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=89&q=85&sig=v058oqzVa5Hmc6lmyxGRKA--" align="left" height="89" width="130" alt="photo" title="A view of the Melbourne skyline with the Westgate Bridge in the foreground. An 81-year-old Australian man became lost on an early morning drive from a town near Sydney to the shops and ended up almost 600 kilometres (370 miles) away to end up in Melbourne. He told police he failed to stop because he "liked to drive".(AFP/File/Mark Smith)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091118/od_afp/germanycrimesenioroffbeat_20091118180528 afp/20091118/germanycrimesenioroffbeat AFP odd Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:53:21 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091118/od_afp/germanycrimesenioroffbeat_20091118180528"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091118/capt.photo_1258566744741-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=93&q=85&sig=h1uW1tinNSYdKRkuK74K2w--" align="left" height="93" width="130" alt="A German police van. After a life of crime stretching back 53 years, a 70-year-old German woman was finally behind bars on Wednesday after pickpocketing a woman 10 years her senior at the bus stop, police said.(AFP/DDP/File/Clemens Bilan)" border="0" /></a>AFP - After a life of crime stretching back 53 years, a 70-year-old German woman was finally behind bars on Wednesday after pickpocketing a woman 10 years her senior at the bus stop, police said.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091118/od_afp/germanycrimesenioroffbeat_20091118180528"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091118/capt.photo_1258566744741-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=93&q=85&sig=h1uW1tinNSYdKRkuK74K2w--" align="left" height="93" width="130" alt="photo" title="A German police van. After a life of crime stretching back 53 years, a 70-year-old German woman was finally behind bars on Wednesday after pickpocketing a woman 10 years her senior at the bus stop, police said.(AFP/DDP/File/Clemens Bilan)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/entertainmentgermanymusicsexoffbeat_20091117181349 afp/20091117/entertainmentgermanymusicsexoffbeat AFP odd Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:07:48 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/entertainmentgermanymusicsexoffbeat_20091117181349"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258481203320-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=87&q=85&sig=e8lHV84pyrh2A0oXDcKvtw--" align="left" height="87" width="130" alt="A prostitute in a German brothel. A German orchestra announced plans on Tuesday to play a concert in a brothel in a novel effort to bring classical music "out of the concert hall and to where people are."(AFP/DDP/File/Axel Schmidt)" border="0" /></a>AFP - A German orchestra announced plans on Tuesday to play a concert in a brothel in a novel effort to bring classical music "out of the concert hall and to where people are."</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/entertainmentgermanymusicsexoffbeat_20091117181349"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258481203320-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=87&q=85&sig=e8lHV84pyrh2A0oXDcKvtw--" align="left" height="87" width="130" alt="photo" title="A prostitute in a German brothel. A German orchestra announced plans on Tuesday to play a concert in a brothel in a novel effort to bring classical music "out of the concert hall and to where people are."(AFP/DDP/File/Axel Schmidt)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/unfoodsummitlibyapeople_20091117172137 afp/20091117/unfoodsummitlibyapeople AFP odd Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:19:05 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/unfoodsummitlibyapeople_20091117172137"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258471184983-1-0.jpg?x=89&y=130&q=85&sig=54ANPWP0hi_8FrL8T3cHWQ--" align="left" height="130" width="89" alt="Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, seen here in Rome on November 16, has hired 200 young Italian women for another evening of political and religious discussion on the margins of the UN food summit, reports said Tuesday.(AFP/POOL/File/Alessandro Di Meo)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Flamboyant Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi has hired 200 young Italian women for another evening of political and religious discussion on the margins of the UN food summit, reports said Tuesday.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/unfoodsummitlibyapeople_20091117172137"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258471184983-1-0.jpg?x=89&y=130&q=85&sig=54ANPWP0hi_8FrL8T3cHWQ--" align="left" height="130" width="89" alt="photo" title="Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, seen here in Rome on November 16, has hired 200 young Italian women for another evening of political and religious discussion on the margins of the UN food summit, reports said Tuesday.(AFP/POOL/File/Alessandro Di Meo)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/bs_wl_afp/hongkongconstructionbamboooffbeat_20091117173047 afp/20091117/hongkongconstructionbamboooffbeat AFP business Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:24:11 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/bs_wl_afp/hongkongconstructionbamboooffbeat_20091117173047"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258471418688-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=74&q=85&sig=5O7D1PXGCgNX6Pl.Lf5TlA--" align="left" height="74" width="130" alt="Bamboo scaffolding students developing their skills at the Construction Industry Council (CIC) training academy in Hong Kong. Nicknamed "spiders" for their gravity-defying skills in web-like constructions, Hong Kong's bamboo scaffolders have risen above predictions that their trade would disappear.(AFP/Ed Jones)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Nicknamed "spiders" for their gravity-defying skills in web-like constructions, Hong Kong's bamboo scaffolders have risen above predictions that their trade would disappear.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/bs_wl_afp/hongkongconstructionbamboooffbeat_20091117173047"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258471418688-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=74&q=85&sig=5O7D1PXGCgNX6Pl.Lf5TlA--" align="left" height="74" width="130" alt="photo" title="Bamboo scaffolding students developing their skills at the Construction Industry Council (CIC) training academy in Hong Kong. Nicknamed "spiders" for their gravity-defying skills in web-like constructions, Hong Kong's bamboo scaffolders have risen above predictions that their trade would disappear.(AFP/Ed Jones)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/od_afp/lifestylefashionoffbeat_20091121102513 afp/20091119/lifestylefashionoffbeat AFP odd Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:02:52 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/od_afp/lifestylefashionoffbeat_20091121102513"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091121/capt.photo_1258798774300-2-0.jpg?x=86&y=130&q=85&sig=a3W7lxgCSRdcPiFcFOaQYw--" align="left" height="130" width="86" alt="A woman takes part in a stiletto race in Paris. Dozens of shoe addicts took part in the National Stiletto Championship on an indoor track in the old stock exchange building in central Paris. The only rule is to be perched on heels at least eight centimetres (three inches) high -- the prize is boxes and boxes of shoes.(AFP/Miguel Medina)" border="0" /></a>AFP - The only rule is to be perched on heels at least eight centimetres (three inches) high -- the prize is boxes and boxes of shoes.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091119/od_afp/lifestylefashionoffbeat_20091121102513"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091121/capt.photo_1258798774300-2-0.jpg?x=86&y=130&q=85&sig=a3W7lxgCSRdcPiFcFOaQYw--" align="left" height="130" width="86" alt="photo" title="A woman takes part in a stiletto race in Paris. Dozens of shoe addicts took part in the National Stiletto Championship on an indoor track in the old stock exchange building in central Paris. The only rule is to be perched on heels at least eight centimetres (three inches) high -- the prize is boxes and boxes of shoes.(AFP/Miguel Medina)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/finlandsantahealthfluoffbeat_20091117172133 afp/20091117/finlandsantahealthfluoffbeat AFP odd Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:16:05 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/finlandsantahealthfluoffbeat_20091117172133"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258472826376-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=84&q=85&sig=T3B038jfQwFImo.oFmj5mQ--" align="left" height="84" width="130" alt="Santa Claus riding his Reindeer and sled in Rovaniemi, Finland, in 2008. Santa promised children on Tuesday he would travel around the world to bring them Christmas presents despite the global swine flu pandemic.(AFP/File/Olivier Morin)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Santa promised children on Tuesday he would travel around the world to bring them Christmas presents despite the global swine flu pandemic.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/finlandsantahealthfluoffbeat_20091117172133"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258472826376-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=84&q=85&sig=T3B038jfQwFImo.oFmj5mQ--" align="left" height="84" width="130" alt="photo" title="Santa Claus riding his Reindeer and sled in Rovaniemi, Finland, in 2008. Santa promised children on Tuesday he would travel around the world to bring them Christmas presents despite the global swine flu pandemic.(AFP/File/Olivier Morin)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/indiamarriagedivorceoffbeat_20091117155521 afp/20091117/indiamarriagedivorceoffbeat AFP odd Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:50:54 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/indiamarriagedivorceoffbeat_20091117155521"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258473004805-1-0.jpg?x=84&y=130&q=85&sig=90O0INzp0os8cEhkplwl4w--" align="left" height="130" width="84" alt="Indian children watch a Hindi film on television in New Delhi. An Indian woman has successfully divorced her husband after he refused to allow her to watch television soap operas, a report says.(AFP/File/Manpreet Romana)" border="0" /></a>AFP - An Indian woman successfully divorced her husband after he refused to allow her to watch television soap operas, a report said Tuesday.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/indiamarriagedivorceoffbeat_20091117155521"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258473004805-1-0.jpg?x=84&y=130&q=85&sig=90O0INzp0os8cEhkplwl4w--" align="left" height="130" width="84" alt="photo" title="Indian children watch a Hindi film on television in New Delhi. An Indian woman has successfully divorced her husband after he refused to allow her to watch television soap operas, a report says.(AFP/File/Manpreet Romana)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/hongkongconstructionbamboooffbeat_20091117154426 afp/20091117/hongkongconstructionbamboooffbeat AFP odd Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:43:59 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/hongkongconstructionbamboooffbeat_20091117154426"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258472079211-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=64&q=85&sig=7FOckSp1Lr48Rtw2gAmAmw--" align="left" height="64" width="130" alt="Bamboo scaffolding students develop their skills at the Construction Industry Council (CIC) training academy in Hong Kong. Nicknamed "spiders" for their gravity-defying skills in web-like constructions, Hong Kong's bamboo scaffolders have risen above predictions that their trade would disappear.(AFP/File/Ed Jones)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Nicknamed "spiders" for their gravity-defying skills in web-like constructions, Hong Kong's bamboo scaffolders have risen above predictions that their trade would disappear.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/hongkongconstructionbamboooffbeat_20091117154426"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258472079211-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=64&q=85&sig=7FOckSp1Lr48Rtw2gAmAmw--" align="left" height="64" width="130" alt="photo" title="Bamboo scaffolding students develop their skills at the Construction Industry Council (CIC) training academy in Hong Kong. Nicknamed "spiders" for their gravity-defying skills in web-like constructions, Hong Kong's bamboo scaffolders have risen above predictions that their trade would disappear.(AFP/File/Ed Jones)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/finlandsantahealthfluoffbeat_20091117153246 afp/20091117/finlandsantahealthfluoffbeat AFP odd Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:31:40 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/finlandsantahealthfluoffbeat_20091117153246"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258471827948-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=88&q=85&sig=doQCnzwYG14GVqtSbSzESA--" align="left" height="88" width="130" alt="Santa Claus with his Reindeer and sledge in Rovaniemi's Christmas theme park in Finnish Lapland. Santa has promised children he would travel around the world to bring them Christmas presents despite the global swine flu pandemic.(AFP/File/Olivier Morin)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Santa promised children on Tuesday he would travel around the world to bring them Christmas presents despite the global swine flu pandemic.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091117/od_afp/finlandsantahealthfluoffbeat_20091117153246"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091117/capt.photo_1258471827948-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=88&q=85&sig=doQCnzwYG14GVqtSbSzESA--" align="left" height="88" width="130" alt="photo" title="Santa Claus with his Reindeer and sledge in Rovaniemi's Christmas theme park in Finnish Lapland. Santa has promised children he would travel around the world to bring them Christmas presents despite the global swine flu pandemic.(AFP/File/Olivier Morin)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091116/od_afp/australiacrimejusticeoffbeat_20091116170623 afp/20091116/australiacrimejusticeoffbeat AFP odd Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:02:50 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091116/od_afp/australiacrimejusticeoffbeat_20091116170623"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091116/capt.photo_1258386410964-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=78&q=85&sig=8djX_rx0lmtCoz.vQ8zWVg--" align="left" height="78" width="130" alt="A judge's gavel rests on top of a desk in a courtroom. A 12-year-old Aboriginal boy appeared in a Western Australian court on Monday charged with receiving a stolen chocolate frog worth about 70 cents (65 US cents), reports said.(AFP/Getty Images/File)" border="0" /></a>AFP - A 12-year-old Aboriginal boy appeared in a Western Australian court on Monday charged with receiving a stolen chocolate frog worth about 70 cents (65 US cents), reports said.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091116/od_afp/australiacrimejusticeoffbeat_20091116170623"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091116/capt.photo_1258386410964-1-0.jpg?x=130&y=78&q=85&sig=8djX_rx0lmtCoz.vQ8zWVg--" align="left" height="78" width="130" alt="photo" title="A judge's gavel rests on top of a desk in a courtroom. A 12-year-old Aboriginal boy appeared in a Western Australian court on Monday charged with receiving a stolen chocolate frog worth about 70 cents (65 US cents), reports said.(AFP/Getty Images/File)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091116/od_afp/unfoodsummitlibyapeople_20091116150314 afp/20091116/unfoodsummitlibyapeople AFP odd Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:58:16 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091116/od_afp/unfoodsummitlibyapeople_20091116150314"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091116/capt.photo_1258383429629-1-0.jpg?x=86&y=130&q=85&sig=I12s467sMxOFZE3tY1.kvA--" align="left" height="130" width="86" alt="Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi addresses the World Summit on Food Security in Rome. Kadhafi gave a speech to 100 young Italian women recruited by a model agency and urged them to convert to Islam, according to the Corriere della Sera.(AFP/File/Filippo Monteforte)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi gave a speech to 100 young Italian women recruited by a model agency and urged them to convert to Islam, newspapers reported on Monday.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddafp/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091116/od_afp/unfoodsummitlibyapeople_20091116150314"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/afp/20091116/capt.photo_1258383429629-1-0.jpg?x=86&y=130&q=85&sig=I12s467sMxOFZE3tY1.kvA--" align="left" height="130" width="86" alt="photo" title="Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi addresses the World Summit on Food Security in Rome. Kadhafi gave a speech to 100 young Italian women recruited by a model agency and urged them to convert to Islam, according to the Corriere della Sera.(AFP/File/Filippo Monteforte)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AFP)