Three quare stories

Quare (yes there is such a word because a Kentucky farmer once used it with me in a conversation) stuff happens over a long hot summer.

Consider the following three news bulletins--all of which came to my attention in recent weeks:

1. A 50-year-old man in the Wampee community of Horry County, S.C., was caught on video surveillance in late July having sex with a 21-year-old horse named Sugar, authorities say.

The horse's owner, Barbara Kenley (that's her in the photo accompanying this blog post), is beside herself with grief, saying that Sugar's stable, the place where the man/horse sex act supposedly occurred, was her favorite haven or refuge for stress relief.

Not anymore. Seems that stable, in Kenley's mind, has been desecrated:

``That stable was my getaway, my stress relief,'' said Kenley, who has owned the stable for 20 years. ``Everybody has a place they like to go to get away. Now it is totally destroyed. It is the only thing I have in life.''

"In 20 years I've never had a problem like this,'' Kenley said. ``I never knew people did such a thing.''

The man, who has a history of mental problems, was charged with buggery.

2. John Henson, the longtime former High Sheriff (yes, that's what they call the sheriff in Carter County, Tennessee) was charged this summer in nearby Washington County, Tenn., with getting too close to a woman in a laundromat--as in hugging her when she says she didn't want to be hugged.

Now you must remember, the High Sheriff is a key player in the mountains of east Tennesee--much admired, much respected, much feared, much hated (you get the point by now.) Even former High Sheriffs remain key players up in the high country.

Be that as it may, Henson faced a judge in early June who found him guilty of simple assault when he encountered that woman in April in the laudromat and pulled her too close to him (Henson).

Such an act was offensive and uncalled for, the judge ruled, and the former High Sheriff should have left the woman alone--to do her washing or drying or folding whatever...

Henson had to pay a $50 fine and was placed on six months of unsupervised probation; plus he can have no contact whatsoever with laudromat woman.

Stay away from her, Big John!

But then, what to make of this comment--posted online by "Michelle": "I saw this incident happen. It happened in front of me. She was a willing participant in the hugging. She even told him that she was glad for all of the help he had given her while she was incarcerated. I think that the video at the store should be viewed. I have no interest invested in this case. I feel she may be out to get a quick buck if she chooses to sue him."

3. Lastly, and also very "quare" is this blurb from Kingsport, Tenn., about a Wal-Mart employee bitten a couple of weeks ago by a shoplifter. Here's the scoop, as reported by the Associated Press:

KINGSPORT, Tenn. (AP) — Police said a Wal-Mart employee was bitten while confronting a customer about shoplifting. Officers said a 44-year-old woman bit the employee on the arm while trying to leave the store’s garden center Tuesday afternoon without paying for items in her purse.

The woman was arrested on charges of theft and assault.

According to the Kingsport Times-News, items recovered from her purse were valued at about $32.

Information from: Kingsport Times-News, http://www.timesnews.net

So much for working at Wal-Mart, ladies and gentlemen. Those underpaid employees with the smiley-face shirts have enough to do without having to fend off biting thieves.