A teenager from South Africa has developed an unusual yet strong bond with a 10-foot long Burmese long python, a bond that has been sustained for two years. The teenager, 11th-grader Simone Naidoo, got the python named Theo after falling in love with snakes at 10 years old. She saw the slithery creatures displayed at a window during a grade school fair.

A sculptor in England has been so humiliated after his latest opus intended to depict Saddam Hussein's wife had been mistaken for trash. Graham Hudson contemporary sculpture, a collage of oil drum, cable wheels, cardboard boxes, paint and adhesive tape is fast becoming a subject of ridicule among passers-by in Holland Park who have mistaken the work of art for rubbish.

A recent poll done by ABC News disclosed some interesting wishes that adults had for Santa Claus this Christmas season. The results showed wishes that would be considered expected and usual, as well as humanitarian wishes such as love and peace. And there were some that were more than a bit unusual, such as teeth. The survey revealed that ten percent of Americans wished for a new car - a notable 6 percent decrease from the numbers gathered during the 2005 holiday season. Six percent wanted cash, reported the UPI. It ranged from "10 million dollars," "$300,000 wrapped in ribbon," to "financial security" as suggested by a Minneapolis woman who said, "I'd like to have my bills paid off. "

acau casino mogul and billionaire Stanley Ho bid a staggering $330,000 for a giant white truffle at auction Saturday, beating the offers of U. K. -based artist Damien Hirst and Sheik Mansoor Bin Zayed al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi. The truffle, weighing 1. 5 kilograms, is now considered the world's biggest besting the 1. 29-kg truffle found in Croatia in 1999, which holds the Guinness World Record.

A 21-year-old Thai was named the most beautiful transsexual in the world in an extravagant pageant held at the famed tourist destination southeast of Bangkok. Tanyarat Jirapatpakon went home with the Miss International Queen 2007 crown, beating 23 other stunning hopefuls.