THE WEEK Oct 26: Happy Halloween

Redneck pumpkin carving

Next week is Halloween, and in many places children will be going from house to house dressed in costumes in search of candy. Another Halloween activity is pumpkin carving. In the US, where it is legal to own guns, some crazy guy has found a new way to carve pumpkins. Now, I think using guns for daily household purposes is a bit extreme. I think we found a more appropriate way to use a gun around the house.

Granny the cage fighter

Khandace Cossitt is a 56-year old grandma who is aspiring to be a cage fighter. She's worked as a security guard, a bouncer, a stripper and a horse trainer. After taking some time to get in shape, Cossitt is calling agents and fight organizers to help her find a fight. She's got a crazy attitude, saying just walking to the end of her driveway pisses her off enough to slug someone. Yikes. Do all adventurous grannies have to be scary?

Big Tex makes big fire

The citizens of Texas had their annual state fair last weekend. The trademark attendee in each year is a 52 foot (16 meter) tall cowboy named Big Tex. He's been a staple at the fair for 60 years. But during this year’s fair, Big Tex caught on fire and burned away. Have no fear! The mayor of Dallas vowed to bring Big Tex back in a bigger and better way. Just goes to show you how tough those cowboys really are.

This wacky world!

A gentlemen's club in Wisconsin is offering a free lap dance to anyone who registers to vote in their bar. There's a joke to be made about getting a "seat in the house".

A new pole shows that the United States ranks third in liking the United States. Two other countries – Kenya and Japan - like the US more than Americans do. China ranked number 17.

A British television network admitted Thursday to being fooled by an actor claiming to be the CEO of a celebrity sperm bank. It turns out the company doesn't really have a collection of male celebrities' sperm. Shocking.

The best viral video of the week comes from underground, where a guy seems to have been inspired by George Michael Bluth from "Arrested Development".

（中国日报网英语点津 Helen）