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ALBANY, Oregon (AP) — These guys were not exactly Snap, Crackle and Pop.

What began as a faint popping in a 9-year-old boy’s ear — “like Rice Krispies” — ended up as an earache, and the doctor’s diagnosis was that a pair of spiders made a home in the ear.

“They were walking on my eardrums,” Jesse Courtney said.

One of the spiders was still alive after the doctor flushed the fourth-grader’s left ear canal. His mother, Diane Courtney, said her son insisted he kept hearing a faint popping in his ear — “like Rice Krispies.”

Dr. David Irvine said it looked like the boy had something in his ear when he examined him.

When he irrigated the ear, the first spider came out, dead. The other spider took a second dousing before it emerged, still alive. Both were about the size of a pencil eraser.

Jesse was given the spiders — now both dead — as a souvenir. He has taken them to school and his mother has taken them to work.

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MAGNOLIA, Ohio (AP) — A sixth-grader who was denied permission to use the restroom while taking a state achievement test this week had an accident in class, and a school administrator blamed an overzealous teacher.

The shame brought to the student, who had to urinate, was an unfortunate outcome of efforts to prevent cheating, said Sandy Valley Local Schools Superintendent David Janofa.

“There are no words we could say. We feel horrible about this happening,” he said.

Bathroom breaks are permitted during the tests, which help determine school rankings and the state’s annual report cards, said J.C. Benton, spokesman for the Ohio Department of Education.

The state recommends having an adult supervisor — but not the teacher administering the test — escort students to and from the bathroom to make sure they aren’t looking at books or notes.

“We want to maintain the integrity and security of all tests, but not at the expense of a student having an accident in a classroom,” Benton said. “Educators need to use common sense.”

School officials in California recently cleared a science teacher who was accused of forcing a 14-year-old boy to urinate into a bottle during class, saying the eighth-grader acted on his own.

The district cited rules that instruct teachers not to let students out of class during the first and last 10 minutes of a period.

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Sometimes life is kind of rough. Why wait for some kind soul to give you the praise you deserve? Just have our yellow plastic Affirmation Ball handy next time you’re feeling blue. Turn him upside down, peer into the viewing window (just like a Magic 8 Ball), and a cheery thought or compliment will rise to the top. You don’t even have to ask a question (don’t you work hard enough already?). The happy face on the back will be smiling at you as you turn the ball for the next encouraging remark, such as “Your breath is so minty”, “You look marvelous”, or “Have you lost weight?” The perfect gift for encouraging the insecure or delighting the narcissistic! In a happy illustrated box.

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Residents of the Indian city of Mumbai (Bombay) are wondering how long it will take to remove a disused Boeing 737 that has been abandoned in a busy road.

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