Sideswipe: Not quite the same

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Candles snuffed out

"For as long as I can remember, Carols by Candlelight was a traditional event, but today I saw an ad for Carols by Glowstick. Huh? It just doesn't seem the same to me," writes Kevin. What next? Carols by cellphone light?

Pepper off the scale

When a woman on the Channel Island of Jersey realised she had been charged £1.95 ($4) for a single green pepper, she asked for it to be weighed again and it came to 74p. When she asked for all her fruit and vegetables to be re-weighed, she found she had been overcharged by £5. A supervisor told her the problem was the assistant's breasts, which were resting on the scales. Jim Hopley, the supermarket's chief executive, confirmed the incident and added: "This was quite a sensitive issue but what had happened was that the assistant's seat was far too low and when she leaned across the checkout on occasion, it appeared that her appendages were touching the scales." They found her a higher seat.

Bank keeps money flowing

"Is anyone else as bitter as I am about ASB Bank's online banking charges?" asks Matt. "They charge $2 for the privilege of adding someone to your banking address book. More insulting - yesterday I was charged a $2 'alteration fee' for changing a minor spelling detail! How can they justify such a rip-off? Would love to hear a response from them."

Marketing wake-up call

A number of readers emailed to slag Andrew off for complaining about a 10am call on a Sunday. The fact it was a marketing call seemed to pass them by, or do people really not mind a little phone spam? But a reader who used to work in telemarketing says Contact should take a squiz at the telemarketing code of practice from the Marketing Association, which isn't fond of Sunday mornings either.

Thanks for a kind thought

Thanks: To the kind and thoughtful person who picked up my parking ticket in the Newmarket 277 car park yesterday afternoon and tucked it under my windscreen wiper, saving me both dollars and frustration at the exit booth. After a frantic search through my wallet, handbag and pockets, I was relieved and delighted to spy it on the windscreen.