Penguin falls for zookeeper's black-and-white boots, and more

Penguin falls for zookeeper's black-and-white boots

The penguin keeper at a zoo in Germany had to stop wearing his favorite black-and-white rubber boots after a male penguin fell in love with them. The penguin, known as Bonaparte, has been obsessed with keeper Dennis Kübler’s boots since the start of mating season, evidently mistaking them for a female, and would nuzzle them passionately. Kübler, currently wearing blue boots, says he’ll switch back only when Bonaparte finds a flesh-and-blood mate. “Penguins are monogamous,” he notes.

A tell-all tattoo

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A Los Angeles gang member has been convicted of murder because he had the crime vividly illustrated in a tattoo on his chest. After John Juarez, 23, was shot outside a liquor store in 2004, the police investigation hit a dead end. But a cop who was recently flipping through mug shots recognized the liquor store in an elaborate tattoo on the chest of Anthony Garcia that depicts the shooting. Garcia was then convicted of Juarez’s murder. “Think about it,” said one cop. “He tattooed his confession on his chest.”

Agoraphobic singer becomes a YouTube star

A British woman has become a pop star in China, despite being confined to her home by agoraphobia. Jemma Pixie Hixon, 20, has not set foot outside her parents’ house since 2009. But her home-recorded songs have earned more than 2 million views on YouTube, mostly in the Far East. “It is weird to think that there are people in China and Japan with my poster on their walls,” said Hixon. “One day I will have the courage to leave the house and perform on stage.”