--Divers are looking for the body of a man who somehow went from the Mass Pike into Sudbury River last night. [Boston Globe] --The Guardian Angels have decided to send members to Brockton. [WCVB] --A State House committee will hear testimony about whether or not people can sue for emotional distress after the death of a pet. [Boston Herald] --A helpful list of the hearings about Cape Wind that are scheduled for this week.......

The American Kennel Club released the most popular dog breeds, not just in the United States, but in the major American cities. Here's the list out of Boston: 1. Labrador Retriever 2. German Shepherd 3. Yorkshire Terrier 4. Golden Retriever 5. Boxer 6. Bulldog 7. Pug 8. Dachshund 9. Poodle 10. Pomeranian Boston is following a trend since the AKC notes that Labrador Retrievers have been the most popular dog in America for 17......

As the primaries approach and now that they've given John McCain their endorsement for Republican candidate for president, the Herald has whipped off the gloves and is going after former Massachusetts governor and Republican presidential aspirant Mitt Romney. Dave Wedge ladles a heaping helping of sarcasm when describing the latest development in the Romney vs. Huckabee Catfight Extraordinaire: In an amazing coincidence, Romney’s family tale of animal kindness [in which his kids rescued some birds]emerged......

--A new company, FlexPetz, will let you rent a dog for a few hours so you can enjoy canine companionship without getting up in the cold to walk the critter. Wouldn't it be great if you could just rent human companionship for a few hours? Oh, wait. That's illegal. Nevermind. [Boston Globe] --Wondering why there are so many kids running around today? Seventy drivers called in sick or took a personal day today, and about......

Michael Ian Black With Michael Showalter Thursday, November 29, 7:30pm Somerville Theatre 55 Davis Square, Somerville (T: Davis Square) Get tickets Listen to the Interview Here: Unless you've been living under a rock for the last 20 years, then you've seen the work of comedian/writer/actor/director Michael Ian Black. Let's rattle off just a few of his accomplishments: co-creator of "The State," "Viva Variety," and "Stella." You've seen him co-star in NBC's "Ed," as well as......

MSPCA-Angell Wine-Tasting Benefit Tuesday, November 20, 5:30-7:30 pm Harvard Club, 374 Comm Ave, Boston $25--good cause! More info The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals-Angell will get you to open your wallets for a good cause by getting you drunk. To be more specific, the MSPCA-Angell is holding a wine-tasting focusing on Portuguese wines and Portos. The event promises more than 150 varieties to whet your palate. The group has been......

This post has been reprinted courtesy ofBrock Keeling at SFist. Yes, this is Bostonist, but, if you want to send help to Southern California, this is a place to start. As of now, six people have died and more than 500,000 people are in "mass migration" over the mind-numbingly destructive wildfires happening all throughout Southern California. It is, for lack of a better word, heartbreaking. All of it. (Map of San Diego fires) But......

WGBH's Victory Garden has started its 32nd season with a new host, the beefcakey Australian Jamie Durie. When we heard about the new season and were offered a chance to chat with Durie, we were skeptical because we have neither land nor lawn upon which to garden. But we realized we were being short-sighted. All apartments, dorm rooms, and cubes could use some oxygen and a few natural processes just to freshen things up a......

Just over a week ago the Globe brought us the discouraging story that Mitt Romeny used to take the Romney family vacations with their pet strapped atop the family station wagon back in the 80's. The tales of flip-flopping positions on contentious political issues haven't grabbed the spotlight quite as well as poor treatment of the family dog. Politicians have been famous for their pets, Nixon had Checkers and Clinton had Socks and a whole......

All across the Ist-A-Verse (or at least the American parts thereof), writers and editors are in the midst of enjoying their three-day weekend. But after the week we've all had, we feel like the break is not only needed, but deserved. Just look at everything we've been doing! Gothamist headed into the Memorial Day weekend with a number of tasks accomplished. They worried about Long Islanders giving New Yorkers a bad name. They tried......

LAist is experimenting with blogging dates from J-Date, but finds the best men are found offline. Some date vicariously online and that is one reason why porn is big -- really freaking big -- so they ask if they should cover XXX since the heart of it lays in the city's San Fernando Valley. A writer grapples with her food porn photography obsession, another gets censored on Flickr, one gets scooped by the LA......

The Boston City Council wants to follow San Francisco's footsteps and ban plastic bags from the city. Robert Consalvo (Hyde Park / Roslindale / Mattapan) is pushing the measure, and nine of twelve city councilors have offered their support. We're all for protecting the environment, but the way Robert Consalvo describes those bags, you'd think we were being attacked by plastic bags: "They blow in trees, they're floating in Boston Harbor . . . They're......

If you hear a howling on the wind, it probably isn't coming from the nearby fraternity house. It's breeding season for coyotes, and they're hungry, which means that Fido and Mittens and all your little furry friends have something else to worry about besides tainted pet food. Coyotes have killed a terrier and injured a Lab in Newton. If you find yourself and your pet surrounded by coyotes, a representative from Fisheries and Wildlife says,......

--A little while back, an angry dad entered the fray when his kid got in a fight with a 10-year-old after a hockey match. Not only is that embarrassing for the guy's own son, but it's really embarrassing when a 46-year-old man sees fit to wail on a little kid. Now the Hopedale dad has been charged for his actions. Let this be a lesson to any potential parents out there: When your kid gets......

Remember that cute Boston terrier we showed when we first wrote about the Menu Foods pet food recall? His name is Oreo, and, unfortunately, he was sickened by the tainted pet food. According to the puppy's owner, Oreo, who lives in New Jersey, "spent more than a full day in the hospital being treated for kidney failure.” He is back home and "energetic," but the experience was harrowing, to say the least. Oreo did wind......

--First it was tainted spinach. Then it was tainted peanut butter. Now it's tainted pet food. Some dogs and cats have been vomiting after eating wet pet food. About 10 pets died. Since the manufacturer, Menu Foods, is such a big player in the market, this impacts many brands. So if your pet prefers cuts and gravy, you might want to switch to the dry stuff until this gets cleared up. Fido might howl about......

With visions of sugar plum fairies dancing through their heads, the -Ists began to get into that holiday mood. Well, some did. Austinist wasn't as the NY Times dissed them and a local Tex-Mex institution sold out. Making them feel better was music, sweet music and the local theater getting name checked on "Heroes" Chicagoist tried to wrap their heads around a religious movie being banned from a Christmas themed park. To wash that......

If you’re hiking, consider charging up your iPod, as Seattlest finds out that a man lost during a hike was found by the glow of his iPod. That cleverness seems to be devoid in cops who were using police cruiser instant messaging clients - although we imagine IMs “so are you nakie” to be included in cop shows, just for realism. If only the cops were busting the Hummer-driving jerk who made a poor......

Since Labor Day the Roomba creators at iRobot in Burlington have been hard at work. They’ve released two new versions of the popular vacuuming robot in as many weeks. The first release was a vacuum specifically designed for dealing with pets. Specifically their hair. The second Roomba was released today to HSN shoppers and will be available in the iRobot store starting tomorrow. The DirtDog is a shop-vac, that isn't even really a vac. They've......

Bostonist was mildly amused as we learned details a few weeks back of the window washer arrested for killing a seagull. Truly, the story was so rich: The window washer, Christopher Guay, claimed the bird was attacking him and he acted in self-defense, but shocked (shocked!) office workers who snitched called the MSPCA said Guay was the aggressor. But just to make matters more complicated, Guay isn't a horrible cat-hoarder with a long record of......

We were wondering what would be next on the list of complaints, now that the rain has passed. Apparently it's the fact that we're not the worst drivers in the nation. The recent survey, which was covered in the Herald yesterday, put Boston in the top five cities in Road Rage. Bostonist has our own theory about why we don't rank #1 – we're used to it. We were following an SUV this past weekend......

Shanghaiist probably knows a little more about China than the Chicago Sun-Times. Giving them the benefit of the doubt on that one. The city does to have a music scene. Don't even front like they don't. They also have Dorito bananas and white guys shopping for wives. What they don't have is any more tolerance for jaywalkers. Bostonist sees Boston and Somerville each whip out their art and face off. A plagiarized novel is the......

Although Bostonist has been pretty oblivious to the 2006 Mass. gubernatorial race thus far, a story in the Globe couldn’t help but reel us in. Apparently independent candidate Christy Mihos didn’t realize that when someone said a life in politics was for the dogs, they weren’t exactly advising him to get his favorite pooch involved in his campaign. Mihos isn’t just using his best pal, Reagan, as a photo-op but actually giving him a commanding......

As a sufferer of both allergies and asthma (yes, we are a wreck), Bostonist never realized how bad it can get for us here in New England until we spoke to friends on the West Coast whose allergies disappeared when they left Massachusetts. So we were delighted to hear of the latest report from the Asthma Regional Council, who declared that New England has the highest rate of asthma in the country, with over 400,000......

Bostonist prefers the tried and true method of shaming people into doing the work they’ve promised. That was our sole intention in calling out Cameron Marlow publicly on not sharing his Weblog Survey data with us (well, us and the rest of the ‘net). It was an idea we’d picked up from Xian. We posed some questions and the seeming lack of substantive response was noted as it quickly made way to other local channels.......

It seems a bit of a coincidence, doesn't it? Senator Edward Kennedy has been all over the news this week with his focus on Judge Samuel Alito in the congressional hearings. So, while the nation sits and watches the Democrats and Republicans duke it out, Scholastic Inc. has decided to strike while the iron is hot and send out a press release about an upcoming book written by Senator Kennedy himself. Now don't get too......

Hey Bostonist: last week you told us where we could get rid of some "September 1" leftovers and help the needy. I wanted to give my extra clothes to the Katrina victims but I heard on Morning Edition that physical goods aren’t the best donations. Are Goodwill, Boomerangs, and the Salvation Army my only options for clothing donations? Relief efforts are gearing up to full swing in the Gulf Coast. Monetary gifts are the best......

File this one under random: As pets are now going to spas instead of dog runs and getting massages instead of walks, they receive better treatment than their owners these days. Pet food makers are joining in by producing natural, healthier foods for your dogs and cats...and one of their special ingredients turns out to be cranberries, the major fruit export from here in the lovely Bay State. The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth recently released......

A 13-year-old boy walking his dog watched as his pet boxer died after being electrocuted on the sidewalk. The boy was walking along Western Avenue in Allston when the dog came across some wires on an older lamppost. Electricity provider, NStar, has taken full responsibility for the incident and has spoken to the family since the event. The company admits to removing a lamppost at that spot previously but not turning off the power at......