A minor league baseball fan won a prize Monday that he hopes to be able to wait before cashing in on: an all-expenses paid funeral. Euclid resident Ed Struna won a free casket, burial vault, visitation and other standard funeral features, all provided by Monreal Funeral Home.

Famous chef Julia Child and other notable Americans have been revealed as members of the Office of Strategic Services, a precursor to the CIA, which operated during World War II. Details about her spy background and nearly 24,000 other OSS employees were revealed in newly released documents, withheld from public view as classified records for decades by the CIA, according to reports from the Associated Press.

A dress code banning urban wear at the Brunswick House, a popular nightspot for University of Toronto students, is generating controversy. The decades-old establishment has signs which explicitly prohibit baggy pants, do-rags, bandanas, track-suits, jerseys, tank tops and reverse baseball caps. Most of these items are apparel associated with the black community, raising the specter that the ban may spark controversy.

This summer, adult amateur kickball leagues are being founded around Seattle at a surprising rate. Thanks to the efforts of the Underdog Sports League, kickball teams have grown from 70 teams in 2005 to 200 this year. Let's face it: the Supersonics are gone, the Mariners are horrible and the Seahawks won't be starting until the kids are back in school. At this point. . . Seattle sports fans just want to kick something.

Some AA and AAA baseball players do all right for themselves financially. Most don't. Single A rated equivalent tend to be even more one-sided - but the Bay Area Toros team has taken a step to help their players. Infielder Eric Brown has created the "pass-the-hat" promotion, which is a way for fans to personally thank their struggling players when they perform.