Wow! And here I thought I was special! I had the exact same crap happen to me. I eventually published the article myself, and made a buck and some change off it the very next day. I was a bit peeved too, because I unwisely submitted a timely story, and it sat tied up with them for over a week. It made me wonder how the story would have done if I published it right away when the story broke in the news. Oh well, live and learn :-(