KEY POINTS:
Grab yourself this handy bucket for the coming winter, great for your hot ashes to sit and cool in," writes Tonigirl1 from Palmerston North in her Trade Me listing for the ash bucket above. "In pre-loved condition. Start = reserve", and most impressively, it is "from a smoke-free home".
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Italy's Court of Appeal has banned men from scratching their crotches in public. The ruling says blatant scratching or holding is "an act contrary to decorum and public decency". Superstitious Italian men often hold or touch their private parts for good luck when they see a hearse or to ward off bad luck. Italy's Court of Appeal made the judgment after listening to the appeal of a 42-year-old who had been fined €200 for gross indecency last year. The defence lawyer had argued that his client - a mechanic - had been merely adjusting himself in his overalls and nothing else. But the appeal was overturned by the judges who ruled that: "The touching of genitalia in public is a sign of ill manners and must be considered against public decency."
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Fiona Knight called into the Post Shop at Royal Oak wanting to "post a letter to my sponsor child in Honduras. On seeing the address, the lovely gentleman told me it would be 50c. I questioned this amount and asked if he knew where Honduras was. He replied, 'Near Hamilton'. After a quick geography lesson and handing over the required $2, I left shaking my head in disbelief."
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Graeme Watts would like to congratulate TV One's Close Up team for using Bulls on Parade by Rage Against the Machine as the introduction music for their Winston Peters story. "Absolute genius!" he says.
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An observer writes: "To the couple who meet in the K Rd carpark every day at 4pm, we all can see you carrying out what we think is an affair. She drives a red car, he a yellow. We all watch from our office windows at 4pm every day to see what your next move is and have a few giggles along the way. If, indeed, it is an affair, we suggest you be a little more discreet, or better still, stop it immediately! If it's not an affair, good on you, guys, you are obviously in the throes of lust up against the car and thanks for providing us with daily entertainment."