Sideswipe: February 14: A protest worth having

Disinformation sticks

A school principal in Carroll, Iowa sent a letter to students and parents to quash rumours that district "schools have litter boxes in the restrooms to accommodate individuals who are self-identifying as animals". Apparently, the same rumour has been spread in other school districts around the country. The Iowa State Education Association says the rumour is a right-wing attempt to mock LGBTQ restroom equality.

The eyes have it

Two visitors at Russia's Yeltsin Centre noticed something odd while strolling around the gallery. As they stared at Anna Leporskaya's Three Figures — a painting created in the early 1930s that depicts three abstract faceless heads — the guests noticed that two of the heads were no longer completely faceless: Someone had scribbled eyes on them. The culprit? A bored security guard armed with a ballpoint pen. The cost to restore the art, which had been insured for $1 million, is expected to be about $3300.

See how it runs

A reader writes: "I have bought this for decades but never really looked at the picture. A bit weird, isn't it?!"

Road rage

"Shout out to everyone but especially the woman on the pedestrian crossing on my way to work who didn't like that someone honked at her to hurry so stopped and did a couple jumping jacks."

"I was at an intersection once where the car in front of me honked at a poshly dressed lady in the crosswalk, so she turned around and gave him a double bird. Turned out to be a guy from her church trying to say hello. Most hilarious back pedal ever!"

"My brother-in-law, whenever he got beeped at by the driver in the car behind the instant the light turned green, used to turn off his car and put the blinkers on, get out and open the hood, and stand there with his hands on his hips shaking his head."