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Now that's revenue gathering - Get a parking ticket on March 29? It could be your lucky day. Not one, not two, but three Sideswipe readers sent in their parking tickets issued by the North Shore City Council on March 29. The fines from different parking officers varied from $12 to $40, but the total fee payable for all was over $39,000. The North Shore City Council says it was an error, adding that infringers don't have to pay them.
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On Sunday Murray Hunter ran in the Whenuapai 10km event around the Air Force base with half-marathon racers and 6km runners and walkers. "Before the start I smiled as I saw 50m from the finish on the school sports field, a big red sign about one metre from where the hundreds of runners in the finishing chute would pass, saying NO RUNNING."
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You'd think supermarket staff would know that once chicken is thawed - even partially - it's not a good idea to refreeze it. But on Saturday, while doing the weekly shop at a big-name supermarket on the North Shore a reader discovered that the whole top layer of her selected frozen chicken product was totally defrosted, blood and all. She complained and a senior staff member responded by returning the half-frozen chook to the freezer and stuffing it down the bottom of the pile.
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You can tighten almost any part of a sagging body these days, but the new must-have procedure is hand rejuvenation. The method involves either fat transfer from elsewhere in the body or injecting cosmetic fillers similar to those used on the face. Simon Withey from the London Plastic Surgery Associates (LPSA) said demand for the procedure had picked up by between 300 and 400 per cent over the last three years. "A lot of patients are afraid that their hands give away their age, particularly if they've had other work done."
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Bulgaria's cash-strapped health ministry is using a World Bank loan to buy a fleet of luxury Porsche Cayennes to serve as ambulances. Health Minister Radoslav Gaydarski said the 32 four-wheel-drive vehicles would be used in remote areas where normal vehicles could not travel. He confirmed the cars had been purchased with a loan from the World Bank. The ministry said they had chosen the Porsches after the company offered what he insisted was the lowest bid in a tender offer. But critics say the claim is rubbish, as each vehicle has a retail price of $220,000. (Source: Ananova.com)
