Sideswipe

A wrist watch with computer developed by Seiko in 1984. (Source: Aving.net)

Russian prosecutors have charged journalist Vladimir Rakhmankov with insulting a representative of the state after he called President Vladimir Putin "the nation's phallic symbol." Rakhmankov, who made the remark in a satirical article on Putin's call for Russian women to have more children, faces up to a year of hard labour if convicted. (Source: Reason.com)

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Rae McGregor of Kohimarama writes of how she saved their family friend Carlos from being roughed up at the World Cup: "Carlos was born in Argentina, his mother is Spanish and his father is Italian, and Carlos was at the Football World Cup with several Spanish and Italian friends. The group was being bothered by some English supporters and some of it got quite nasty. But they never bothered Carlos and several times clapped him on the back and said 'Good on ya mate!' The reason: He was wearing the Team New Zealand T-shirt we had sent him."

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Pam Oliver of Waiheke Island can no longer book flights online with Air NZ. "When I contacted them by phone, I was told they have reconfigured their website which is now not compatible with AppleMac - and that there are not enough Mac users to make a difference. I will now have to pay an extra $15 per flight to book fares by phone. They weren't willing to waive the telephone booking fee, even though they have deliberately chosen to exclude compatibility for Mac users. I'm really cross!" Hard to believe? Sideswipe rang Air NZ phone bookings, complaining of a similar problem. We were told the problem could be using a Mac - and were advised to find a PC.

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An ice cream has been created that is so hot customers must sign a waiver before tasting it. Cold Sweat was formulated to appeal to Hispanic customers. A shop owner started by experimenting, unsuccessfully, with jalapenos in vanilla ice cream - and finally ended up with Cold Sweat. The ice cream is made with three types of peppers and two kinds of hot sauce at the shop in North Carolina. Customer Rod McCallum said: "I thought it was a cool idea, but I didn't think he'd make it that hot. It tasted like fire - with a side of fire." (Source: Ananova.com)