KEY POINTS:
Snapped outside Foodtown Greenlane: Why take up just one disabled parking spot when there are two available?
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Meatlifting? Slate.com reports that according to the Food Marketing Institute of America, meat was the item stolen most in 2005. It beat the popular swipeables such as analgesics, razor blades and baby formula. Meat's dubious triumph is due in part to a law enforcement crackdown on methamphetamine use. Meat used to be the shoplifting runner-up to health and beauty-care items, a category that includes cough medicines containing pseudoephedrine, a key ingredient in home-cooked meth. But states began passing laws that require stores to move medicines containing pseudoephedrine behind secure counters.
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A reader writes: A friend and I were sitting outside having a coffee at a cafe in Ponsonby. Out of the corner of my eye I saw something huge fall towards the table beside us, followed by a loud smack. Looking over, I saw that a flounder had fallen from a seagull's mouth. We felt lucky to have missed the drop off.
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While visiting New York over Christmas, Kyla Scott from Manurewa sent this list of cultural observations to her parents.
* Yellows cabs actually are everywhere.
* They smell like vomit.
* Everything is BIG. Servings of food, especially cups of drink.
* The cheese is orange and gross.
* Taco Bell is gross (burrito was mushy and had potato).
* The accents are more Jewish in NY than American.
* NY actually feels really safe, the door is left unlocked and bags are trusted to remain untouched if left for a moment. More than that, though, and the SWAT team is called.
* Everyone thinks I'm Australian. How rude!
* Broadway is exciting and packed with stars.
* The men are overly affectionate with their women. This is to the point where the non-involved would be like, "Ew, get a room"
* Actually heard a girl say she had eaten a pear and was totally over her carb limit.
* A NZ size 12 varies from a size 9 to an XL!
* You need a map for Bloomingdales alone.
* Waitressing is a profession here.
* You can turn right on a red light unless there is a sign that says otherwise.
