For the first time, anyone can get a message printed on a piece of the multicolored confetti dropped during New Year's Eve in Times Square. One can use the internet to type the message on a "Wishing Wall Online. "

A couple was united on Christmas day by a minister dressed in a Santa outfit. The nuptials were that of Dave Hauck Jr. and Cathy Spencer, who met during a company Christmas party, and got engaged while visiting Santa at the local mall. The couple was dressed in red, and the ceremonies were held at the second-floor art studio/chapel located at the home of the minister Gary Michael, who that day was dressed as Santa while uniting the couple.

Germany's brewing industry suffered its eighth decline in the last nine years. Beer consumption plummeted to a record low of 29. 7 gallons (112. 5 liters) per person for 2007. In the 1980s, Germans guzzled down 41. 2 gallons (156 liters) of beer. However, Brewery Association managing director Peter Hahn attributed the decline in beer consumption to changing demographics and a poor summer.

A mother was arrested for supplying nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, to her 13-year-old son and his friends. Maria Antonia Mendez, 28, allegedly gave the gas to the teenagers, who used it to get high. The teens were discovered after skipping school in Lake Elsinore, said Sgt. Evan Petersen of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.

Bedroom activities are beyond the reach of legislation, at least for now in Germany. The German Parliament learned that lesson after heavy criticism led it to shelf a bill criminalizing ordinary sexual activities between teenagers. The bill proposes lowering the age to 14 from the current 18 which will make a German youth legally liable for a sexual crime. Current national laws on sexual abuse of minors requires the perpetrator to be over 18 and the victim under 16. A new European Union guideline increases the victim's age limit to up to 17, while the German bill makes the perpetrator liable even if he is below 18.