HOT CHICK Wednesday, July 9

In a bizarre animal beauty contest, in June, the tiny serama chicken pageant was celebrated on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Seramas (which are thought by natives to have aphrodisiac powers) have richly colored plumage and a bearing — …

SAGITTARIUS: May 7-May 13 Tuesday, May 6

Kangaroo rats are at home in the desert, having evolved over millennia to thrive in arid conditions. They're so well-adapted, they can go a very long time without drinking water. It's admirable to …

DEMOCRACY IN ACTION! Wednesday, July 9

Jordan Haskins, 24, is Michigan Republicans' best hope for the open state House seat in Saginaw in November, but he's burdened by a teenage past of being "young and stupid," he told the Saginaw News in June. Haskins has been in prisons in two states …

CAPRICORN: May 7-May 13 Tuesday, May 6

"Those who control their passions do so because their passions are weak enough to be controlled," said writer William Blake. Challenge this theory in the weeks ahead. Your passions will surely not be …

YOU MISSED A SPOT Wednesday, July 9

The leader of Romania's Orthodox church was shown in June on the church's website performing a traditional blessing of a newly inaugurated facility, in this case the church-owned Trinitas Radio and Television studios. The rooms are big and the walls …

AQUARIUS: May 7-May 13 Tuesday, May 6

Spend quality time having non-goal-oriented fun. Lounge around in fantasyland as you empty your beautiful head of compulsions to prove yourself and meet others' expectations. Take off the mask stuck …

ZOMBIE OKIES Wednesday, July 9

Congressional candidate Tim Murray handily lost June's primary election (82 percent to 5 percent) in Oklahoma's 3rd District to incumbent U.S. Rep. Frank Lucas, but he didn't give up. In a rambling letter to KFOR-TV in Oklahoma City, Murray accused …

PISCES: May 7-May 13 Tuesday, May 6

Your evil twins asked me to speak on their behalf. They apologize for misunderstandings that may have arisen from their innocent desire to show you what you were missing. Their intent wasn't hostile …

READY? OK! Wednesday, July 9

The county Association of Governments in Phoenix notified Diane "DD" Barker recently that she could continue to address association meetings as a community activist, but was to cease introducing her remarks by performing cartwheels, as she …

LEAST COMPETENT BISHOP Wednesday, July 9

In a May deposition on a priest-child sex abuse lawsuit against the Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, then-auxiliary bishop Robert Carlson said he was "not sure" in 1984 if he "knew it was a crime or not" for an adult to engage in …