Digital Diary

It turns out it was a donor digit. The found finger in the cup of Wendy's chili was not only a hoax (as we have known for some time) but the item itself came from a friend of a friend.

For loyal readers who have missed the denouement of the "Wendy's Finger Caper," we briefly recapitulate. Last month a woman from Las Vegas (why does that somehow seem important?), Anna Ayala, was arrested for fraud, having claimed in March that she had bitten down on a human finger while sampling tasty tidbits of chili at a San Jose (why does that somehow seem important?) Wendy's. Not so, said the cops, and now they've zeroed in on the source of the central character in this morality play. San Jose police Chief Rob Davis now says:

The finger that a woman said she found in a bowl of Wendy's chili came from an associate of her husband who lost the digit in an industrial accident, police said Friday.

And more:

The man is from Nevada and lost a part of his finger in an accident last December, Davis said. His identity was traced through a tip made to Wendy's hot line, he said. He said authorities "positively confirmed that this subject was in fact the source of the fingertip."

One can only speculate on the nature of the conversations between husband and wife, and the negotiations with the item's original owner, that caused the thing to make such a long strange trip.

"Honey, I'm home.
"How was your day, baby? Same old same old?
"Pretty much. Bobby chopped a piece of his finger somehow.
"Really? Did you bring it home?
"Of course? Do you think I'd forget a thing like that?
"Sorry, hon. What should we do with this one? Use it to scare the kids again? Or is it big enough for a dog treat?
"Nahh, remember: Trixie wouldn't even eat that ear I brought home last week. Hey, I know, let's claim it's yours, and you lost it in an elevator door! Then we can get a lot of money from the building owner!
"Hey, great idea. But wait: What if somebody rats us out, and then the cops count my fingers?"
"Bummer. Waitaminit! I've got a better idea! And this one's just crazy enough to work . . .

The latest news release is [HERE].