Sideswipe: Jan 4: Chairman Key

Sideswipe - ana.samways@nzherald.co.nz·NZ Herald·

3 Jan, 2016 04:00 PM3 mins to read

"This image is from a Chinese website that explains to Chinese nationals all the benefits they get when they move to NZ," writes Tom Clarke.

Opinion by Ana SamwaysLearn more

Kaukapakapa hawk no bird brain

"We have all seen a hawk eating the remains of a squashed creature on the road and quickly fluttering away when a car approaches," writes Keith Willis. "A clever hawk near Kaukapakapa has learned to drag his meal on to the white centre line of SH16 where he feeds, ignoring the cars and trucks roaring past on both sides. Hopefully his confidence in drivers abiding by the road code instruction to keep to the left is justified."

Rabbit's revenge

"Our friends live on a farm and have a fox terrier named Floyd," writes Andrew. "Floyd has been regularly stealing Maurice the rabbit's lunch over the past two years. A few weeks ago, as Floyd was munching Maurice's lunch, Maurice finally snapped and sank his teeth into Floyd's back leg, going all the way through the leg. Floyd was rushed to the vet for stitches and now gives both Maurice and his lunch a wide berth!"

Prophetic predictions

In 1966 Margaret Thorne, a member of the Junior Historian Club of Woodrow Wilson High School in Beckley, West Virginia, published some predictions for the year 2016 in her local paper. Here's what she envisioned for the year we've now arrived at:

The growth of suburbia: "The only land untouched by suburbia will be the national and state parks and forests, that our ancestors were foresighted enough to conserve and a few farms of enormous size in the midwest."

Work: "The vast majority of the people will be seated in front of man's ingenious invention, the computer."

Food: "People will take a pill for breakfast that will supply them with needed nourishment. Algae, a very simple plant, which can be grown in great vats and will multiply rapidly, can be made into very appetising morsels."

Fuel: "More sources of fuels must be found and methods for bringing the natural resources to the surface. Someone must find ways to captivate the sun's radiation and make it work for us. The sun will need to be our major fuel in the years to come."

Water: "Our water supply will need to be taken from the seas as our lands get drier and drier."

This signboard spotted in Matakana must be from the olden days when women didn't have their own jobs/money and needed their spouses permission to buy something! Hilarious.

Picture this: A collection of some of the most bizarre photo opportunities North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un since he's been at the helm since 2011.

Picture this: A colouring book for adults who like to swear...