Sideswipe: October 5: No kidding?

No kidding? Spotted in Manakau City. Photo / Supplied

Baked into a corner

A reader writes: "Many years ago I used to run an assertiveness course. One of the group members told us that when he first met his wife (to be) she cooked him a shepherd's pie.

Keen to impress, he told her that it was his favourite meal. It wasn't. Twenty five years later she was still cooking it for him once a week. He asked the group if we thought he should come clean and tell his wife that he didn't like shepherd's pie. Normally I wouldn't have given advice as such (letting the participants come to their own decisions) but on this occasion we all gave him a resounding 'no'."

Shades of culture

Salmon sushi was brought to Japan by a Norwegian businessman in the 1980s who was hired by Norway's government to offload excess salmon. He made a deal with a Japanese company to sell the fish in its grocery stores, leading to its popularity today.

Also in Japan blue, not green, means go! A very blue shade of green is used in their traffic lights, one that is green enough to satisfy international regulations. This is because historically the Japanese language only had words for black, white, red, and blue, and that green is considered a shade of blue. (Source: Today I Learned on Reddit)

Dram of Thrones

The final season of Game of Thrones will screen next year and while fans wait there will be a Game of Thrones-inspired scotch to nurse. A special edition "White Walker" Johnnie Walker scotch joins the existing themed beers and wine. Best served ice cold from the freezer, the bottle design includes temperature-sensitive ink that reveals the message "Winter is Here" on the label when freezing cold.

Bowling and crocheting

"Another example of signwriting for the Auckland City Council. The croquet players are having to swap their mallets for crochet hooks," writes Pauline Ereckson.

Grocery unacceptable

Police are working with Championship club Aston Villa to find the fan who threw a cabbage at manager Steve Bruce. Although Bruce was not struck by the vegetable he said glumly: "Unfortunately, it sums up the society we are in at the moment.

There's no respect for anyone." So some football fan came along to a match with a cabbage in his pocket, for the express purpose of finding an opportune moment to hurl it at the team manager? Now that's follow through. Unfortunately for Bruce, Aston Villa has only managed one win out of 10 for the season and he was sacked a few days later, which arguably was more disrespectful.

Video Pick

In the deer tonight…

Got a Sideswipe? Send your pictures, links and anecdotes to Ana at ana.samways@nzherald.co.nz