Etc...

Waddle this way, guys

Ever thought you could meow as convincingly as a cat? Or realistically mimic a duck? Perhaps not, but when two ducklings fell through a manhole cover in Wiesbaden, Germany, and became trapped in a drain pipe last week, that appeared to be the only resort left to police to lure them to safety. Yes, their frantic mother was there, but her calls went unheeded. Although the officers pried up the cover, they couldn't reach the little ones, so - according to a spokesman for the force - they decided "to imitate duck noises." That worked ... after which the rescuers went back to fighting crime.

In her new book, "Everybody Loves Ice Cream: the Whole Scoop on America's Favorite Treat," author Shannon Jackson Arnold lists more than 500 of the nation's best places to buy the cold, sweet stuff. Ten of her top choices, with their locations and a brief description of what sets each apart from the competition:
Max & Mina's (Queens, N.Y.) - offers odd flavors, such as potato chip fudge
Water Wheel Ice Cream (Dillard, Ga.) - freezers are powered by a water wheel
The Show Place Ice Cream Parlour (Beach Haven, N.J.) - features singing servers
Sloan's (West Palm Beach, Fla.) - inventive flavors, exceptional restrooms
Ron's Gourmet Homemade Ice Cream (Hyde Park, Mass.) - outlet includes candlepin bowling lanes
Amy's Ice Cream parlors (six locations in Texas) - scoop-tossing servers and costume-theme days
The Walrus Ice Cream Co. (Fort Collins, Colo.) - novelty flavors, such as sardine
Ella's Kosher Deli & Ice Cream (Madison, Wis.) - kinetic mobiles and diorama tables
Tango Gelato (San Francisco) - offers tango lessons on selected days
Mary Lou's (Spokane Valley, Wash.) - features huckleberry shakes and a two-story, milk bottle-shaped building