Police in Wisconsin have told 85 year-old Benjamin Steinbach that he’s welcome to run errands around town - provided he starts leaving his riding lawnmower at home.

Steinbach has been using the mower to run short errands for almost two years, driving to the grocery and hardware stores and even paying bills at City Hall. No big deal until you consider the fact that Steinbach drives on the sidewalk - and that he started using the mower for transportation after losing his driver’s license. (And I don’t mean he left it at the Denny’s.)

According to the police, Wisconsin law does permit the operation of certain types of motorized devices on sidewalks. The list, which includes wheelchairs, scooters and Segways, unfortunately does not include lawnmowers. (Even the riding kind.)

A disappointed Steinbach has agreed to obey the law, even though he considers the prohibition “ridiculous.” (or should that be…ride-iculous.)

The story offers no explanation as to why it took the police two years to catch up with Steinbach and his riding mower. (I can only assume the wheels of Wisconsin Justice move…more slowly than a Deere).

Cross-Posted from The Random Yak.

I’m currently debuting a new feature over on my side of the mountain - and since I’m throwing wild parties guestblogging at Pet’s this week, I figured I’d offer up another version over here. Maybe Pet will even continue the tradition when she gets back, and we’ll start a thing. You know, like all the other “what on earth did I decide to do that for” memes and games we play. You know, the ones we bloggers live for. (The ones that make normal people smile and back away slowly…)

Well, Thing 1 is posted over at my place, and here is Thing 2. You’ll waste so much time with Thing 1 and Thing 2 the work day will be over and your job will too! (kidding. KIDDING. Don’t get yourself fired. Especially not over this one. Trust me, it’s not THAT entertaining).

Still - in the grand enduring brand-new tradition of Time-Waster Wednesday, we proudly present:

The Reflex Tester Game.

How good are your reflexes? I’m willing to bet they’re better than mine. (The game keeps asking if I’ve fallen asleep. That can’t be good.)

Dateline: Great Britain.

The British government agency responsible for monitoring television content has banned smoking scenes from Tom and Jerry cartoons played on British television. Prompted by “an anonymous complaint,” the ban covers all scenes “deemed to glamorise or condone smoking.”

Depite the stylized nature of smoking appearing in the cartoons (e.g., the big cigar-smoking bulldog who frequently appears just in time to save mouse Jerry from large, bat-wielding tomcat Tom) the British government has decided the works lack the “editorial justification” required to demonstrate smoking on television.

Crushing your enemy with an anvil, blowing him up with dynamite, squishing him under a large book, placing him a frying pan over “high” with a couple of fried eggs and beating him to a pulp with a baseball bat, however, are still permitted. (And justifiably so…after all, dynamite is dangerous, but smoking can kill you…)