News of the Weird: Bus driver retires after 70 years behind the wheel

Ulysses Whitfield, 85, retired last week from driving a school bus for Suffolk (Virginia) Public Schools, WAVY-TV reported. Over his 70-year career — yes, you read that right — he took only two half-days off. Beginning in 1954 (when students could drive the buses), he delivered students through changes in technology and racial upheaval. “But it was smooth with me, though. I didn’t have any problems with the kids at all,” he said. Respect the kids, and you will receive respect from them.” Whitfield plans to come back part-time in the fall to train his replacement “to make sure the run is done nice and smooth, like I was doing it. I have good kids. I’m going to miss them.”

When summoned to a May 15 hearing on driving with a suspended license, Corey Harris attended over Zoom — while driving — the New York Times reported. Harris, 44, checked into the meeting with the Washtenaw County District Court in Michigan and told the judge he needed time to find a parking spot. “So maybe I don’t understand something,” Judge J. Cedric Simpson said. “This is a driver with a license suspended?” Harris’ attorney, Natalie Pate, confirmed the charge. “And he was just driving?” Simpson asked. Seconds of silence went by, with Harris appearing to realize his mistake. “That is correct, your honor,” Pate said. “I don’t know why he would do that,” the judge said, right before he revoked Harris’ bond and ordered him to turn himself in.

Snettisham, Norfolk, in the U.K., is being overrun by feral chickens. The flock of about 100 chickens dig up gardens and are so loud that residents have to use earplugs at night, United Press International reported. The Snettisham Parish Council said it is “seeking specialist advice from various sources,” but some residents object to the idea of removing the chickens. “They are part of the fabric of the village,” said Rebecca Chilvers. The council has invited residents to a meeting to air their opinions.

Tara Berry of Topeka, Kan., has secured a Guinness World Record for the most tattoos of the same musician, United Press International reported on May 23. Berry, who sports 18 tattoos of Madonna, got the first one in 2016. Berry estimated she’s spent nearly $10,000 on them.

The Smoking Gun reported on May 24 that the world’s most-arrested man, Henry Earl, 74, had passed away. Earl was arrested more than 1,500 times and spent 6,000 nights in jail. Since 2017, he had lived in a nursing home in Owenton, Ky., near where his first arrest took place in July 1970 (for carrying a concealed weapon). Most of his offenses were fueled by alcohol and didn’t include violent crimes.

On May 18 in New Orleans, a fisher using a magnet pulled some mysterious objects from Bayou St. John, according to NOLA.com: a handgun, gun barrel and “fully decomposed human skull” that was padlocked to a 15-pound dumbbell. The police dive team and cadaver dogs searched the area for the rest of the body but without success. The coroner said identifying the skull could take months.