The new diet: Eat at McDonald's

I could stand to lose a few (OK, maybe more than a few) pounds, so maybe I should follow the diet of Chris Coleson.

The Quinton, Va., man claims to have lost nearly 80 pounds in six months by -- get this -- eating nearly every meal at McDonald's.

The 5-foot-8 Coleson weighed 278 pounds in December. Now, he weights 199 pounds and his waist size is 36, down from 50.

So how did Coleson 42, do it? Not with a diet of Big Macs and fries, but by eating McDonald's salads, wraps and apple dippers without the caramel sauce.

That might be worth a try.

Tiger the Great

I'll be the first to admit I rooted against Tiger Woods at last weekend's U.S. Open. I want to see Tiger win as much as I like to see the Mets, Yankees, Red Sox and Cowboys win -- which is, well, never.

I think it makes better drama when Tiger loses. I wanted him to miss his birdie putt on the 72nd hole Sunday which forced Monday's extra round. And I wanted him to miss his birdie putt on the 18th hole that forced a sudden-death playoff.

But I knew that Tiger, shown in an Associated Press photo at right, wouldn't miss those putts. He never does.

Woods entered the U.S. Open two months after undergoing surgery on his left knee to clean out cartilage, a surgery that took place two days after The Masters, in which he finished second. Doctors told him not to play in the U.S. Open, but Tiger played anyway -- proceeded to play 91 holes on a bum knee and what was later revealed to be a double stress fracture in his left tibia.

While watching the tournament, it appeared the only time Tiger winced in pain was when he hit a poor shot.

Tiger won't win anymore this year. On Wednesday, he said he will have reconstructive surgery on his left knee to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament, forcing him to miss the rest of the season.

But Tiger's last tournament of 2008 was one to remember. Unfortunately, it took away from an outstanding effort by runner-up Rocco Mediate, who would have won his first Major championship if not for Woods' heroics.

After Woods' win, you have to wonder: How good are the rest of the players if they are beaten by a guy essentially playing on one good leg?

Girl chases criminal who robbed her lemonade stand

Kudos to a young girl in Terre Haute, Ind., who chased down a man who had robbed her lemonade stand.

According to The Associated Press, the girl's stand was robbed of $17.50 and she chased the suspect into a nearby home and called police, who spent nearly an hour trying to coax the man into surrendering.

"The guy came up and was, like, 'Give me your money,'" said Dominique Morefield, who was running the lemonade stand with a group of friends. "I was shocked. It was just my immediate reaction to chase after him."

Dominique dashed after the man who ran into a house, and then she called police. Officers eventually persuaded Steve Tryon, 18, to come outside after 45 minutes and arrested him on a preliminary felony charge of robbery.

"I didn't think anyone would come up to a lemonade stand and steal, that's really low," 12-year-old Fred Erstine said.

The kids said they would continue to sell lemonade, but with an adult's supervision.

We can all breathe a little easier now

It took a while, but Pennsylvania finally has a statewide smoking ban.

Gov. Ed Rendell, at right in an Associated Press photo, signed the Clean Indoor Air Act into law Friday morning at a business in Ambler, Montgomery County. The law will take effect in 90 days. Pennsylvania is the 33rd state to enact such a ban.

The ban covers restaurants, office buildings, theaters, arenas and more.

Exemptions will allow smoking to continue in bars and taverns that have limited food service, casinos, private clubs, nursing homes, tobacco-related businesses and volunteer ambulance, fire and rescue squads.

"This is one of the most important steps in public health this state has made in recent years," Rendell said at the signing ceremony in Ambler, in the district of the bill's primary sponsor, Sen. Stewart Greenleaf, R-Montgomery.

Rendell has pushed for a smokefree law as a way to cut health care costs.

Now when dining, we can all breathe a little easier, and our clothes will smell a little nicer, too.

Just curious

Why is it that you can buy hot dogs in packs of 10, but the hot dog rolls come in bags of 8 and 12?