Aug. 8, 2008, will not only mark the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics here but also the wedding day of about 9,000 Chinese couples. The number is a new record because it is twice more than the previous single-day marriage record in Beijing, according to China's state-run news agency Xinhua.

A 4-year-old boy died Saturday after being left in a vehicle for nearly three hours while his mother was getting her nails done for her wedding later that day. Reports say that the mother, Mirlande Jean-Baptiste's, 29, likely did not know the child was in her Ford Explorer, as she and her sister dropped off some children with relatives before going to their 9 a. m. appointments.

McDonalds has been a favorite whipping boy of health buffs and nutrition experts, with its French fries and Quarterpounders being blamed for obesity among Americans. A Virginia man, however, credits the fastfood outlet for his losing about 80 pounds. But Chris Coleson, who was 278 pounds in December, did not gorge on McDonald's fattening offers. Rather, he feasted on the hamburger chain's healthy menu such as salads, wraps and apple dippers, less the caramel sauce.

Familiar faces on wedding banquets involving a Canadian groom and an Indian bride were the giveaway that aroused the suspicion of Canadian immigration officials that marriage for convenience syndicates were behind the move to fast track the acquisition of resident visas by Indian nationals. After their curiosity was challenged, visa officers compared files of wedding photos submitted as proof of a legitimate wedding, which led to the conclusion syndicates were behind the rent-a-guest modus operandi.

A 92-year old man's recent marriage was quickly annulled after a judge deemed him unable to manage his responsibilities as a husband. The annulment was on the first ever marriage of Alfred Kreisler, a South Florida lawyer who married 43-year old divorcee Yvette Penichet October of last year.