Kidnapped NJ owl is home for the holidays

Feeling overwhelmed by the demise of North Korea's "Dear Leader?"

Here's a story guaranteed to brighten your day.

Simon, the blind owl who was kidnapped last week, is back home in New Jersey.

Plucked from his perch by a person or persons unknown, the petite and popular Eastern screech owl was returned to the Raptor Trust in Long Hill Township, Morris County, Friday by an anonymous Good Samaritan.

"We are really overwhelmed with joy," education director Lauren Butcher told The Daily Record newspaper.

The nonprofit Trust has been caring for injured wild birds for 43 years; the taking of Simon was the first such incident at the facility.

Simon, a favorite among schoolkids who visit the Trust, was left partly blind and flightless after he was hit by a car six years ago. He has lived at the Trust ever since.