Beer-Drinking Camel Is the Ultimate Party Animal

Gus the good-time camel was the life of the Christmas party at one Irish riding school, sneaking out of his pen to indulge himself in Ireland's favorite drink.

The 11-year-old camel and star of the school's Santa's Magical Animal Kingdom Show guzzled six cans of Guinness all by himself after cracking the beers open with his teeth, Reuters reported.

Besides the beer, the crazy camel managed to inhale 200 mince pies intended for the party. Gus got his hooves on the goods while the cast was getting changed.

"Gus found his way out of his pen and helped himself," Robert Fagan, owner of the Mullingar Equestrian Center in central Ireland, told Reuters.

He seemed to be doing well after his holiday binge, Fagan said, adding, "We were all looking forward to it, but you couldn't blame him. He's really a very gentle, docile sort of camel."

No Milk for You

SAN FRANCISCO, California (AP) -- A marketing campaign to promote milk by outfitting city bus shelters with cookie-scented cardboard strips has crumbled.

City officials ordered CBS Outdoor, the company that holds the advertising contract for its bus shelters, to remove the adhesive strips Tuesday, just one day after they were put up as part of a "Got Milk?" campaign.

The Municipal Transportation Agency canceled the plan after some residents raised objections. "We got complaints," said MTA spokeswoman Maggie Lynch. "It is controversial."

Some critics expressed concern over potential allergic reactions. Others complained the ads could be offensive to the poor and homeless who can't afford to buy sweet treats.

Scented oils were sandwiched between cardboard cards emblazoned with "Got Milk?" and affixed to shelter walls, in hopes that the smell of just-out-of-the-oven chocolate chip cookies would spark cravings for milk. The promotion was launched at five San Francisco bus shelters at a cost of about $30 per shelter.

Bad Santa

OREM, Utah (AP) -- It's described as she-said, Santa-said. No matter who's right, the Santa at University Mall has been replaced.

A woman accused the mall's Santa Claus of making an inappropriate comment to her teenage daughter last week.

Mall officials "found that the claims of the mother ... differed considerably from those of Santa and the witnesses there," general manager Rob Callas said.

But to avoid any problems, the mall sent Santa packing and called in a replacement.

Santa is always in the company of two other people when he greets children, Callas said.

Parking Lot Turned Patio Dinette

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) -- Charleston will not prosecute a group that recently fed a parking meter in the historic district, set up a table in the space and then ate pizza and drank nonalcoholic beer.

The organizer of the party, Vince Graham, was ticketed for obstructing public ways, and had hoped a subsequent "trial of the century" could lead to more outdoor dining in the city.

He had a court date last week but was told the city would not pursue the charge.

Graham and others plan to meet with Mayor Joseph P. Riley Jr. next month to talk about ways of making the city more friendly for pedestrians.

The party was inspired by similar recent events on the West Coast in which people took over parking spaces and turned them into temporary parks.

"I think it would be great for city life if we had more outdoor dining experiences," Graham said, suggesting the city could close some streets to vehicles one night a week.

Was It Running on an Energizer Battery?

MILWAUKEE (AP) -- As a traveling salesman, Peter Gilbert has put a few miles on his car -- 1,001,385 miles, to be precise.

It took the Glendale man 17 years to cross the million mile mark with his 1989 Saab 900 SPG. He recently donated the durable vehicle to the Wisconsin Automotive Museum after Saab verified the mileage.

The transmission was rebuilt at 200,000 miles and the hood and a few other parts replaced after eight deer collisions, but otherwise it has original equipment.

Gilbert bought the Saab for $29,000. It was his treat after a divorce, and he took meticulous care of it. He used premium, synthetic oil in oil changes, changed the tires every 45,000 miles and strictly followed the maintenance schedule.

He drove the car seven days a week, racking up the miles as his work took him through rural Wisconsin.

"When I hit 600,000 miles, the car still wasn't burning oil," Gilbert said. "That's when I thought it could go a million miles."

But Wisconsin's harsh winters took a toll on the car. Its sporty exterior still looks good, but road salt has rusted its frame. Gilbert realized it might no longer be safe if he hit another deer or had a serious accident.

"There was no point in driving the car any longer," he said. "Even though it might have gone another million miles."

He had it detailed and parked it at the Hartford museum, which houses a number of rare vehicles.

Then Gilbert bought another Saab with fewer miles.

Compiled by FOXNews.com's Hannah Sentenac.

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