Tuesday tidbits

Several of you have emailed me to ask where the hell I have been. Well, I'm still here, sort of. For the past nine months I've been working in a new field, and one that has very long and odd hours. For instance, I worked from 9:00 am til 6 pm today, and I am working again tonight at midnight until 9:00 am tomorrow. I'm on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and I never know exactly what I am going to be doing from one day to the next. So what is it that I do now?

I'm a licensed private investigator. We do everything-- criminal investigations, insurance fraud, husband and wife cases, missing persons, bug sweeping, surveillance and undercover work. Is it a fun job? Yes. Probably the most fun I've ever had. I never know what's in store for me from day to day. Oh, and no, it's not like it appears on television. No flashy cars and no shoot-outs.

Unfortunately, my bizarre schedule has kept me from posting columns on a regular basis, which sucks. I try, I really do try to post one whenever I can. But more often than not I am in my van driving around spying on someone. I will continue to try to post as often as I can, but I'll admit it is difficult to get the time to sit down and type. So, please bear with me. And if you need a PI for anything, lemme know.

I owe a huge thanks to Richie for doing his regular columns. He also works crazy hours so he's going above and beyond the call of duty every day.

Okay, lets see what's going on...

Out on the left coast, a KCBS traffic reporter became part of the traffic report when the small plane he was in made an emergency landing on an East Bay freeway -- causing a traffic slowdown. No one was injured in the incident, which happened when the Cessna 172 apparently ran out of gas.

A distant relative of Adolf Hitler could sue the state of Bavaria for royalties from the Nazi dictator's book "Mein Kampf" but the retired Austrian engineer said he wants no part of it. (Noble gesture.)

How odd: Michael Jackson reportedly has a collection of baby bottles and enjoys sucking them.

A bunch of students have set a new form of world roller coaster record - stark naked. Around 100 students from 15 universities dropped all inhibitions and rode the 360-degree Nemesis Inferno roller coaster in England.

Oops. A ship carrying 4,000 cars sank after colliding with an oil tanker south of Singapore.

In New York, a lawyer who barked like a dog at a witness during a deposition has been fined $8,500 for misconduct and harassment of opponents.

Here's an interesting game. Participate in a Wet T-shirt contest.

As the nation grapples with pumped-up gas prices, some car owners are turning to their favorite restaurants for a solution: recycled vegetable oil. Environmentalists have been using the fuel alternative for years as a way to cut back on sooty emissions, but as gas prices soar above $2 a gallon, they say their "veggie cars" are also a great way to save some cash.

Finally, check this out: It's an illustrated story of a hole this guy dug in his back yard.