News release: "The U.S. Census Bureau has released population estimates as of July 1, 2009, for the nation, each state and the District of Columbia by age, sex, race and Hispanic origin. The new estimates are not 2010 Census population counts. Rather, they are based on 2000 Census data and updated by using administrative records to estimate components of population change — namely births, deaths, and domestic and international migration. Annual estimates for the 2000 to 2009 period are provided. These are the last state estimates to use 2000 Census results as a base. The 2011 population estimates will be the first in the estimates series to be based on the 2010 Census population counts."

A treasure trove of 75 long-lost US silent movies has been unearthed in New Zealand, including an early feature film by legendary Oscar-winning director John Ford, officials said June 8. No copies of the films - dating from as early as 1898 through to the 1920s - remain in the United States. The films will be returned to the US National Film Preservation Foundation for preservation after being unearthed in the New Zealand Film Archive, New Zealand Arts Minister Chris Finlayson said. The films will be preserved over the next three years for access through major American silent film archives and copies will be returned to New Zealand.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/lost-us-silent-film-treasures-uncovered-in-new-zealand-1998493.html

A New Zealand man carrying a backpack containing Tupperware containers has been told to stop coming to services arranged by a Wellington funeral home. Funeral directors say serial funeral-goers and fake mourners are not uncommon. They are often lonely, elderly people who attend, seeking company and a cup of tea. He attended up to four funerals a week over a period of about two months, http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/stories/2010/06/03/1248094f0d1b

Things We Call By Brand Name Rather Than What They Actually Are
1. Kleenex
2. Chapstick
3. Q-tips
4. Band-Aid
5. Tupperware
6. Rollerblades
7. Photoshopped
See other lists at: http://www.vita.mn/list_detail.php?d=all_resps&list_id=1080

Humans have long been fascinated by stories of supernatural creatures. Ancient mythologies, Shakespeare, Gothic literature, and folklore from around the globe are full of them. The vampire fad is nothing new—the female vamp novella Carmilla, first published in 1872, predates the original Dracula by twenty-five years (though its author, Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, doesn’t have quite the name recognition of Bram Stoker). Werewolves have been prowling around in some form or other since the ancient Mesopotamian poem The Epic of Gilgamesh, and they’re still hot stuff. If you’re bored with the current trends in supernatural fiction—from angels to zombies—have heart. There are plenty of lesser-known fantastical beings waiting to hit the big time. Consider the following, culled from one of my favorite reference books, the two-volume Facts on File Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend:
• Cluricane (Celtic): A solitary elf who excels at finding hidden treasure, draining wine casks, and riding sheep dogs for fun;
• Dugong (Islam): Herbivorous aquatic man whose tears are believed to be a strong love charm;
• Garboncias (Hungary): A supernatural being, born with all his teeth or extra fingers, who carries a black book and begs for milk;
• Kappa (Japan): A river demon with the body of a tortoise, the limbs of a frog, and the head of a monkey, who can be appeased by cucumbers;
• Krum-ku-dart-boneit (Australia): Evil spirits who wake men at night, take control of their bodies, and force them to hop until they die of exhaustion;
• La Llorona (Mexican/American): The ghostly weeping mother of lost children, with the face of a horse and long, shiny, metallic fingernails;
• Ludki (Serbia): Dwarfs who left Serbia when Christianity arrived because they couldn’t stand the sound of church bells;
• Mora (Slavic): A person possessing two souls, who could often be identified by his/her bushy uni-brow;
• Polong (Malay): A demon “about as big as the first joint of a little finger,” who has a cricket as a pet;
• Seng-don-ma (Tibet): A woman, often with the face of a lion, who stamps out human ignorance;
• Yama-otoko (Japan): Wild men who keep company with human-headed she-wolves; and
• Zupay (Spanish South American): A forest spirit who takes the form of a satyr or handsome young man in order to seduce women. The-Writing-Bug June 7, 2010

Q. Can we control Lake Erie's water level?
A. No. One myth has it that a dam on the Niagara River controls the level. But about 80 percent of Lake Erie's water comes through the Detroit River. So, the water level is determined primarily by rain and snow in the five states and two Canadian provinces that drain into the Upper Great Lakes, and by evaporation. Long-term changes in the lake's level occur when changes in precipitation and evaporation last at least several years. They can range from five to six feet. For example, from 1973 to 1997, normal to above-normal precipitation increased the inflow to Lake Erie, and the lake was above normal for most of this period. But last month, the Army Corps of Engineers said the five lakes' levels are down from last year, resuming a low-water trend that lasted from 1998 to 2008. Less water is bad for commercial shippers, who cannot haul full loads of cargo when levels are down. It also can affect waterfront homeowners, marina operators and others who depend on recreational boating. Normally, Lake Erie's level peaks in early summer, then declines during the summer and fall. The difference between mid-summer high and mid-winter low is typically about 1.5 feet. The Great Lakes Information Network provides up-to-date information on water levels at: www.great-lakes.net/envt/water/levels/levels_current.html. -- Ohio Department of Natural Resources, The Detroit News/AP. http://www.thecourier.com/Opinion/columns/2010/Jun/JU/ar_JU_061410.asp?d=061410,2010,Jun,14&c=c_13