12 votes

Offbeat Fridays – The thread where offbeat headlines become front page news

Posted by mycketforvirrad
Tags: ask.discussion, recurring.weekly, offbeat fridays, offbeat

Tildes is a very serious site, where we discuss very serious matters like business, comics.newspaper and hacktivism. Tags culled from the highest voted topics from the last seven days, if anyone was curious.

But one of my favourite tags happens to be offbeat! Taking its original inspiration from Sir Nils Olav III, this thread is looking for any far-fetched offbeat stories lurking in the newspapers. It may not deserve its own post, but it deserves a wider audience!

17 comments

  1. [9]
    Raspcoffee
    Link
    Queensland woman wakes up to find carpet python on top of her Don't mind this. Just Australia being Australia.

    Queensland woman wakes up to find carpet python on top of her

    Don't mind this. Just Australia being Australia.

    7 votes
    1. [3]
      DefinitelyNotAFae
      Link Parent
      A python seems like the best case situation and was probably just snuggling for warmth. I also would be more worried about my dogs and glad it wasn't a toad. Toads are probably venomous. It is...

      A python seems like the best case situation and was probably just snuggling for warmth. I also would be more worried about my dogs and glad it wasn't a toad. Toads are probably venomous. It is Australia after all.

      7 votes
      1. [2]
        chocobean
        Link Parent
        Or came in from the summer heat for human air conditioning, I guess, for AUS. Toads I've never thought about but yeah you're right it would be worse! Venomous and probably stickier?

        Or came in from the summer heat for human air conditioning, I guess, for AUS.

        Toads I've never thought about but yeah you're right it would be worse! Venomous and probably stickier?

        1 vote
        1. DefinitelyNotAFae
          Link Parent
          I figured at night it'd be looking for human heat, maybe especially if it got inside and then was too cold from the AC. Snakes don't usually need to cool off (but it's AU so maybe)

          I figured at night it'd be looking for human heat, maybe especially if it got inside and then was too cold from the AC. Snakes don't usually need to cool off (but it's AU so maybe)

          2 votes
    2. [3]
      chocobean
      Link Parent
      ಠ_ಠ Oh, and RIP the second, mum snake from the article. Poor mum, just trying to protect her cute katamari of eggs.

      When Brisbane resident Rachel Bloor woke up to discover a carpet python curled up on top of her, she was rattled.

      ಠ_ಠ

      Oh, and RIP the second, mum snake from the article. Poor mum, just trying to protect her cute katamari of eggs.

      4 votes
      1. [2]
        jredd23
        Link Parent
        That's one item, this quote caught my eyes. Priorities my friends, priorities! I swear, AUS has or is the Florida man OG. Wow!

        "I was worried about the dogs," Ms Bloor said.

        That's one item, this quote caught my eyes. Priorities my friends, priorities! I swear, AUS has or is the Florida man OG. Wow!

        4 votes
        1. DefinitelyNotAFae
          Link Parent
          The dogs were definitely more at risk from being hurt by a python! It's actually super reasonable :D

          The dogs were definitely more at risk from being hurt by a python! It's actually super reasonable :D

          3 votes
    3. [2]
      tanglisha
      Link Parent
      Anybody know why they’re called carpet pythons? Sounds like they might often be found indoors.

      Anybody know why they’re called carpet pythons? Sounds like they might often be found indoors.

      2 votes
  2. [5]
    mycketforvirrad
    Link
    German church’s televised ‘slime Jesus’ provokes fury on right The Guardian – Deborah Cole – 13th January 2026

    German church’s televised ‘slime Jesus’ provokes fury on right

    A Roman Catholic diocese in Germany has expressed regret over a televised Christmas Eve mass featuring a portrayal of the newborn Christ by an adult woman covered in sticky rice paper that was described by some critics as “slime Jesus”.

    Rightwing media outlets, which have for years campaigned against Germany’s public broadcasters and the licence fees that finance them, went on the attack, calling the scene disrespectful to the faithful.

    The Guardian – Deborah Cole – 13th January 2026

    5 votes
    1. chocobean
      Link Parent
      I'm not sure that this is so much disrespectful for the faithful as just..... bewildering on an artistic level. First of all, nobody is going to place their cold shivering naked newborn on a bunch...

      I'm not sure that this is so much disrespectful for the faithful as just..... bewildering on an artistic level. First of all, nobody is going to place their cold shivering naked newborn on a bunch a pokey straw. Whoever the artistic director was hasn't seen puppy videos let alone human ones.

      5 votes
    2. [2]
      Tukajo
      Link Parent
      I don't know why but I needed to read this. This is so incredibly funny to me, it reads like an onion article.

      I don't know why but I needed to read this. This is so incredibly funny to me, it reads like an onion article.

      4 votes
      1. jredd23
        Link Parent
        That's what I thought.

        That's what I thought.

        2 votes
    3. unkz
      Link Parent
      It was the church’s idea though, yeah? Like, being angry at the broadcaster seems misplaced. They’re platforming what the right wing religious leaders want to share.

      It was the church’s idea though, yeah? Like, being angry at the broadcaster seems misplaced. They’re platforming what the right wing religious leaders want to share.

      1 vote