Sideswipe: October 16: Winter gift for beer lovers

These beer mug socks crafted by Serbian artist Vicky Djokic are for sale through her Etsy shop for $80 a pair.

Bird watching

1. "I like watching wild birds at my work. I watched a young magpie steal bread off a raven. The magpie's family then attacked the young magpie, took the bread off and gave it back to the raven. They were bird yelling at the young bird. Then called to the young magpie and kinda forced it to the front of the pack to the raven. The adult magpies gently pecked at the young magpie until it sung at the raven. Then the magpies all waddled away and went back to hunting for bugs. I feel like I watched some sort of family magpie discipline to prevent an interspecies bird war."

2. "Heard a bird war outside, so loud. Went to go see what was happening and my dog was being attacked by birds of all kinds. She was on the side of the house and I swear to God there were pigeons, finches, brown and grey birds, I mean all kinds. She was cornered by the fence. I went to grab her and saw a dead bird behind her. I've seen her grab a bird out of the sky before. She was a super high jumper and would just pluck them out of flight. Today they rebelled. The were swooping and screaming at her."

Dolls rest — but not in peace

An island off Mexico has been named the world's scariest tourist destination. The Island of the Dolls is strewn with decaying dolls, with severed limbs, decapitated heads and blacked-out eyes. A travel agent who arranges tours of the so-called Island of Dolls said: "This is not for the faint-hearted."

Kitty and friends

Kitty and friends.

That's a dog of a shot

A US woman was treated for a gunshot wound after being shot by a seven-month-old yellow labrador retriever. Tina Springer of Oklahoma was a passenger in a car alongside puppy Molly, when the dog hopped onto a loaded .22-calibre pistol, which discharged and struck Springer in the left thigh. She is expected to recover.

Max Cryer mistaken for an Aussie?

Author-entertainer Max Cryer has sympathy for Herald writer Matt Heath's difficulties in explaining New Zealand to Americans. Cryer toured America many times as an entertainer, and says that "New Zealand" was a concept to which most Americans were impervious. He recalls that his worst moment was on a major Hollywood TV show — and when he was announced and walked down the stairs — the band played Waltzing Matilda.