Spin Cycle: Dylan's toilet, drug dog and foxy robots

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Mar 23, 2009 | by Joan Morris

Fluffing and folding the news

Bad smell

Bob Dylan's neighbors are complaining that a porta-toilet at his Malibu Beach house reeks of waste treatment chemicals and other unsavory smells that drift toward their property when the winds of change blow.

The outhouse is set up for Dylan's security guards to use all along the watchtower, but neighbors say they should be able to sit in their backyards without catching a whiff of chemical poo.

Dylan has not responded to complaints. His answer, it appears, is blowin' in the wind.

Doggone it

We admit to being addicted to the television show "Cops." We love to hear the excuses for such outrages as driving a stolen car ("I didn't know it was stolen"), being intoxicated ("I only had two beers") and being caught in possession of illegal drugs ("They're not mine").

We thought we'd heard them all until we saw a story about a Massachusetts state trooper who pulled a speeder over and found 20 grams of crack cocaine hidden inside a bag of dog food. We can hear the excuses now.

"On my grandmother's life, your honor, the dope belongs to the dog."

Hot gears

Japan's Next Top Model may have a thing or two over America's version. For one, Japan's runs on batteries, weighs 95 pounds and doesn't have "issues."

The humanoid robot makes its fashion debut today, strutting down the catwalk at a Tokyo fashion show.

The robot not only can move under its own power, it also has motors that allow for facial expressions and supermodel poses.

We just hope the $2 million robot, named HRP-4C, remembers Tyra Banks' admonition to smile with her eyes.

-- Joan Morris

Spin Cycle is a random column that takes a quirky view of the daily news. Reach Joan Morris at jmorris@bayareanewsgroup.com.