Sideswipe: Cyclists go their own way

The burden of height

"I was doing my grocery shopping and as you know the shelves are pretty high up. I'm 6'4" so it's not an issue for me. This short girl got my attention and asked me if I could grab her something off the tall shelf. Honestly, I think if she just stood on her tippy toes or jumped a few times and knocked it down with a stick or something she could have done it herself. I just said, 'No thanks'. She looked surprised and said, 'Okay', and looked at the thing and then looked around. Some other guy in the aisle was looking at me with this 'def' look on his face and came over and got it for her. She thanked him and then walked like three feet to grab something else. The guy was like, 'Dude, don't be a jerk, she obviously couldn't reach it'. I said, 'Not my problem, I don't work here'. He was like, 'It costs nothing to be nice'. I said, 'It costs $20 to get a step-ladder, maybe she should invest in that instead of bothering people who don't work here'. I'm tired of being expected to do this kind of thing just because I'm tall."

AI a bit dumb

Can't wait to surprise my wife with a capsicum.

Bic business blunder

The Bic Pen Corporation decided to branch out into the women's underwear market in 1976 by introducing a line of disposable pantyhose. It figured that female secretaries would be keen to order pantyhose together with other office supplies. When the Bic brand applied its name to women's underwear, consisting of a line of "disposable pantyhose", it was unable to attract customers. Okay, so the disposability element was still there. But that was about it. Consumers were unable to see any link between Bic's other products and underwear because, of course, there was no link. The main problem was that the company insisted on using the Bic name. As marketing writer Al Ries has observed that using the same name in unrelated categories can create difficulties. "If you have a powerful perception for one class of product, it becomes almost impossible to extend that perception to a different class," he argues. The company apparently didn't learn much from this failed product, because in 1989 it introduced Bic Perfume, which is considered to be another classic business blunder.

Some unwritten rules of life

1. Never make fun of someone else's laugh — be it how they sound or how they look. Laughing is the most natural expression of joy and happiness, and for someone to feel self-conscious about that because of other people's comments is so brutal.

2. Do not swipe left or right if someone shows you a photo on their phone.

3. If you're borrowing it for a third time, you need one of your own.

4. Don't mess up an apology with an excuse.

5. If you have to cancel on a friend, it should be your responsibility to reschedule.

6. Don't reheat a fish dish in the office microwave.

7. If you're tall and a short person asks you to get something off a high shelf in a supermarket. Do it.