Sideswipe Extra: Oct 24: Dum Mast

Read it fast. Photo / Supplied

Hana found this in the letterbox yesterday. "Dum Mast" refers to an ecstatic, trance-like state but she wonders if the owner read the name aloud in a Kiwi accent before calling the sign writer.

Over-cautious or just chicken?

A reader was at the Milford Mall on Sunday with his 14-month twin daughters. "One needed an urgent nappy change, so I wandered off to find the parents' room. In the room was a guy who looked like a security guard - a man wearing some sort of dark uniform with a walkie talkie on his belt. I thought this was odd, but there had been reports of attempted child abduction over the previous few days, so I wondered whether the mall was being overly careful/paranoid. He watched dispassionately as I struggled getting my daughter's nappy changed. As I was finishing I heard a 'ding'. I turned around the see said man go over to the microwave, pull out an entire pre-cooked chicken on a plate, and then walk away. Clearly he wasn't guarding anything, just making use of the microwave in the parents' room to heat up his lunch. Truly odd."

Aussies steal prime-time spotlight

Carl noticed that prime-time TV in New Zealand on a Monday night consists of ...

TV One - Border Patrol/The Force Australia

TV2 - The Amazing Race Australia

TV3 - The Block Australia

TV Four - Beauty and the Geek Australia ...

"Really? Maybe we already are the new state."

Poking about for a bargain

Peter from Sydney writes: "I once threw out a fireside set for inorganic collection, the sort of thing you'd put next to your fireplace - a small broom, a little wee shovel, tongs etc, all attached to a circular stand. I decided to hang on to the poker because I still have a wood barbecue and thought it might come in handy. There was a knock on the door and a man standing there with the (incomplete) fireside set under his arm, wanting to know where the poker was. What could I do? I gave it to him, with an apology ..."

Who's being fleeced here?

University of Queensland PhD student Eduardo Santurtun wants to know if sheep get seasick. But he's not studying the sheep on an actual ship. Instead, he's created a contraption (a modified flight simulator) that replicates the roll, pitch, and heave of a ship. His bleating subjects spend hours a day gently see-sawing up and down, back and forth. His research is supported by the Centre for Animal Welfare and Ethics, which is concerned about seasick sheep dying as they're transported from farms in Australia to consumers around the world. (Source: Weird Universe)

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Video: Posh Grey Lynn mini-mart Farro Fresh is brassed off this guy had the gall to pinch a $250 bottle of wine on Monday. Unfortunately for him it was right in front of the security camera...

If you recognise the individual in this video please contact Farro store management on 09 360 0499 or your local police.