One too many showings of The Shawshank Redemption in Las Cruces

When it comes time to figure out a blog post topic, I have a few favorite sources for stories. CNN.com is usually the first stop as it offers a wide array of news and entertainment pieces that happily features an imbalance of intelligence. Because all things stop on holidays, news gathering organizations often post fluff features prepared months ago so that no one really needs to do any work at all. Yet, occasionally a news story does pop to forefront, and if you are wondering what the lead story was yesterday afternoon on a reputable news site such as CNN. Look no further!

Baby powder, cocoa butter part of prisoner's recipe for escape

Las Cruces, New Mexico, famous for the Whole Enchilada Festival, was the site of this 4th of July caper.

Anita Rachel Thomas, 20, was able to wriggle out of leg irons because she was wearing six pairs of socks, authorities said. She used cocoa butter as a lubricant to slide the leg irons and handcuffs from around her ankles and wrists, officials said.

Six pairs of socks. That's a lot of foot protection, especially where the high is supposed to be 90 degrees today. Stinky feet. I also underestimated the ability of prisoners to acquire cocoa butter while incarerated.

Thomas, freed from restraints in a jail transport van outside court on Tuesday, threw baby powder at an officer, pushed him out of the way and tried to run past him, Dona Ana County sheriff's officers said.

The getaway is reminiscent of the old Batman TV series. A gigantic "POOF!"would have covered the TV screen as Thomas attempted her get away with a magic "now you see me and now you still see me" cloud. Also, we can add baby powder to the five extra pairs of socks and cocoa butter that this prisoner had on her this fine day. But wait, it gets better.

She made it about two feet past the officer when he grabbed her, they said.

Wow, all that getaway planning resulted in two steps of freedom. The baby powder was not quite as debilitating as Thomas would have liked. I have to believe that if you quietly wandered the other direction, she could have gotten two feet past the officer.

There you have it. The lead news story at noon eastern time in the grand old U.S. of A.

Photo from Our Dynamic Planet