Sideswipe

Sideswipe gift recommendation 2: The Phobile (see above) ... All the convenience of mobile phonage with all the clunkiness of a land line. Attaching an old-school handset to a modern mobile ... how post-modern. (Source: firebox.com)

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Following yesterday's Sideswipe about a real estate agent who visited an elderly woman in hospital, a reader named Rosie overheard this conversation between a group of well-dressed businessmen in Newmarket's 277. "You must give her a really good incentive to move," one business man said. "If she says she has nowhere to move, you arrange for her to get a place; always overcome every obstacle that they throw up." Another in the group added: "And if all else fails a couple of guys in balaclavas can call ... I know of a guy who got a great waterfront property in Wellington that way."

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Christmas spirit: Last Sunday an unidentified local resident spent several hours at Grey Lynn Park relaying turf (ready-lawn) that had been ripped up by vandals. If she hadn't done this it would have died. Thank you whoever you are, from Auckland City Council.

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Until the policy was changed in October, cafeterias in the 18 schools of the North Penn School District (northwest of Philadelphia) had supplied as eating utensils plastic cutlery that was washed after each meal and reused, even though students had long expressed disgust at spoons and knives riddled with bite marks and had taken to eating foods like yoghurt and apple sauce with their hands. (The district admitted that this saved only $15,000 a year.) (Source: News of the Weird)

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Hip Hop star Nelly (It's Getting Hot in Here) splashed out US$10,000 on toys for underprivileged children - after reportedly feeling guilty for spending the same amount on strippers and booze during a wild night out. According to the New York Post, the day after their strip club binge, toys and games were delivered personally to needy kids at an unknown location. Nelly revealed his extraordinary act of generosity to fans at the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network Awards benefit concert in New York.