CHICAGO – A busy section of highway was closed for seven hours Sunday after a truck tipped over and spilled pig ears, pig feet and grease.

The greasy pig parts created slippery conditions and forced the closure of northbound lanes of the Edens Expressway. The lanes were reopened Sunday afternoon.

A sudden shift in the truck’s load caused it to tip onto its side near an entrance ramp in Skokie, according to Illinois Department of Transportation spokesman Mike Claffey. The Edens Expressway connects downtown Chicago to its northern suburbs.

No injuries were reported.Hassan Ware, 39, of the Chicago suburb of Bolingbrook, was cited for driving too fast for conditions and spilling his load on a highway, according to state police.Transportation department workers used sand to absorb the grease, Claffey said. They also sprayed a foam usually used in hazardous materials situations and spread rock salt to provide more traction.

“This is obviously something that’s really hard to clean up,” Claffey said.

Ex-Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss devises brothel for women in Nevada

LAS VEGAS – Former Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss is diversifying, airing her Dirty Laundry in Nevada as she makes plans for a legal brothel for women.

Dirty Laundry is a 24-hour, coin-operated laundry – 13 washers and 14 dryers – the one-time leader of a high-priced ring of call girls to the stars is opening at a shopping center in Pahrump, west of Las Vegas.

Fleiss, who has become an avid collector of parrots and macaws since moving to Pahrump, said she decided to open the laundromat after the death of one of her pets, a macaw named Dalton.

“I had to force myself to do something,” she told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “Nothing in my 41 years – nothing – ever affected me like this.”

Fleiss moved to Nye County in late 2005, after serving a jail term for running the prostitution ring, and announced plans to open “Heidi’s Stud Farm” in the town of Crystal, about 20 miles north of Pahrump.

The 20-man operation would be Nevada’s first legal bordello catering exclusively to female customers. It still needs approval from the Nye County Liquor and Licensing Board, and Fleiss said she plans to submit an application within three months.

“I have at least 400 women who are ready to buy a membership,” and men applying for jobs, she said.

Microbrewery launches Git-R-Done beer, in honor of Larry the Cable Guy

PAWNEE CITY, Neb. – A local microbrewery has launched a beer for one of America’s most recognizable rednecks: Larry the Cable Guy.

Git-R-Done beer, named for the comedian’s famous catchphrase, was launched Saturday by SchillingBridge Winery & MicroBrewery, from the small town where the 44-year-old actor-comedian grew up.

The owners of the small family winery say the light beer is made from high-quality ingredients with more “flavor and body” than popular corporate beers.

Mike Schilling, who runs the winery with his wife, Sharon, is confident Git-R-Done beer will appeal to the comedian’s fan base.

“Rednecks love quality, too,” he said.

Larry the Cable Guy has become popular through films, cable television and a standup tour. His latest movie, “Delta Farce,” was released in May.

The Schillings proposed the new beer to the comedian, whose real name is Dan Whitney.

Sharon Schilling said Whitney visited the winery in July 2005 to accept the offer wearing a pair of shorts and a sleeveless camouflage shirt.

Whitney said he was dressed up because it was his wedding day, which was confirmed by his bride, Sharon Schilling said.

“He said, ‘Let’s git-r-done,'” she said. “He made it sound so simple.”

Thai police intercept black market shipment of dried endangered species bound for France

BANGKOK, Thailand – A France-bound parcel filled with hundreds of dried beetles and spiders – including endangered species – was confiscated Monday at Thailand’s main international airport, police said.

The box, destined for a collector, contained 1,500 beetles including 17 dried Long-arm Chafer beetles and 15 Ground Beetles, which are protected species under Thai law, Police Lt. Col. Thanayot Kengkasikit said. Some 240 spiders, including Tarantulas, were included in the shipment, Thanayot said.

Thanayot said he believes police have exposed an insect smuggling ring operating between the two countries. “If this continues, it will be a great danger for the endangered insects,” he said.

The bust is part of a stepped-up campaign by regional authorities to crack down on the trafficking of endangered wildlife, plants and insects.

The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations agreed in 2005 to form the Wildlife Enforcement Network to combat a black-market trade that generates $10 billion in revenue each year – third behind illicit dealings in weapons and drugs.

Thailand has since made a number of seizures, confiscating everything from 2,500 dried sea horses to 800 endangered birds. Most of the illegal wildlife is either sold to pet markets in Japan, Europe and the United States or traditional medicine markets in China and other parts of Asia.

Conscientious Philippine taxi driver returns $17,000 left by passenger

MANILA, Philippines – He needed the money for his sick wife and overdue rent, but honesty prevented a motorcycle taxi driver from keeping $17,000 left behind by a passenger.

Iluminado Boc returned the money to police in Tagbilaran city on central Bohol island last week, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported Monday. The woman who lost the bag of cash had just reported it to police when Boc showed up at the precinct.

“It was not mine,” Boc was quoted as saying.

Boc, 45, said he was struggling financially because his wife was taken to a hospital the same day he found the money, and they had unpaid rent.

The owner rewarded him with $32 – about seven times what a motorcycle taxi driver makes a day.

From Associated Press reports