Sideswipe: All the flavour of being a girl

A reader has found himself buying Yoplait smackers yoghurt despite knowing the strapline on the packet: "I happen to be quite fond of strawberries and not once while eating a strawberry has it reminded me of a girl or being a girl. I have been with a girl who reminded me of pineapples, but I think this may have had something to do with the six Bacardi and pineapple's she had consumed. Maybe Yoplait need some help with market research, to find out that boys like strawberry yoghurt, too. The sales will increase 50 per cent instead of giving boys (and grown men) a complex every time they buy a pack."

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Christmas TV fail: Feel-good prison flick The Shawshank Redemption, starring Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins, is playing again this Christmas. For crying out loud, it's 15 years old. Hasn't everyone in New Zealand seen it by now? Sources suggest that it has played three out of the last five years at Christmas. At least they've finally stopped playing The Sound of Music.

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Harassed by hand cream hawkers at the malls? Steph has had enough. She writes: "A trip to a shopping mall also includes having to run the gauntlet of people chasing you to try their hand creams. I usually walk out of my way at Manukau shopping centre to avoid them, but discovered on Saturday that my escape route now includes people selling face cream. How do they suppose somebody carrying shopping bags in each hand is able to try these things? "No thank you" means that, not please chase me through the mall telling me that "it will only take a minute". Is anybody else driven to despair by this or am I just in need of a holiday?"

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Copenhagen's City Hall Square Christmas tree is more eco-conscious this year with cyclists powering the lights. Fifteen bicycles are connected to the 700 bulbs hanging on the Christmas tree that is 17m high. Each bicycle is connected to a section of the tree. If at any time a bicycle is not pedalled the section connected to that bike will not light up. Any passer-by can volunteer to ride the bike and pedal for as long as they like. (Source: Treehugger.com)

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In reply to Michael, who called searching obituary listings and cold calling the homes of the recently deceased, "intelligent marketing", Paul writes: "I think cold calling on someone who has just lost a family member, in full knowledge of that loss, without sensitivity is not intelligent. It's just offensive and confirms all stereotypes about real estate agents as being thick and self-centred. There would be an appropriate way to do this. Lawyers, councils, banks, share brokers, government departments, creditors presumably all write to recently bereaved family members without creating offence. To ignore any moral sensitivity shows how unprofessional (thick) the agents and/or industry is."

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See today's Herald cartoon