The day is not far when you won't have to worry about leaving your favorite pet all alone at home while you plan to dine out if you are in Chicago, Illinois or St. Louis, Missouri. The Illinois governor is considering changing state health laws to allow dogs at restaurants. While in St. Louis, a proposed new law would allow restaurant goers to eat with their dogs, although some city council members in St. Louis are worried about health risks. Many of the St. Louis City Council members voiced their concern about related health risks of dining with dogs but several others simply ruled out the idea of allowing dogs in dining areas.

The second class to enter the Air Force Academy since Sept. 11, 2001 graduated Thursday morning. It wasn't a grim ceremony. Along with watching a show by the Thunderbirds after the ceremony and tossing their hats in the air, the 1,000 member graduating class was also able to view video of a boogying cadet beforehand. Along with talking about what the dangers cadets will face on the battlefield, commencement speaker Defense Secretary Robert Gates told the cadets he had seen the funny video himself.

Spring is the best season for climbing and 23 more adventurers have just scaled the top of the world's highest peak, Mount Everest in Nepal. The latest party to reach the summit consisted of 11 are Nepali Sherpas, five Americans, three Britons, two Canadians and one Turk. According to Nepal's Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, over 200 climbers have reached the summit this season. May is a particularly good time for mountain climbing in Nepal. A total of 23 expeditions are scheduled this season alone.

A teenage Japanese boy walked into a police station with a severed head and claimed he killed his sleeping mother a day before her birthday in northern Fukushima state Tuesday. The police followed the boy to his house later and recovered a headless body from his house.

Upset with her daughter's athletic performance, a 42-year-old Lincoln mom not only slapped her teenager but also left her on Interstate 80 on Saturday. Terrell Mackey now faces a charges of child abuse and neglect for leaving her 15-year-old daughter alone. It started when Mackey, who was disappointed by her daughter's game, asked her daughter to repeat sentences to help her game. However, when the girl failed to repeat the phrase flawlessly, Mackey slapped her in the head.