"Freaky face in Mt Cook," says Daryl.
Famous pranksters
"Thomas Edison was just 19 when he worked for Western Union, which may explain why he loved pranking his co-workers so much. He once wired a water bucket to a battery so it would shock anyone who took a sip. And as a young man at Choate High School in 1931, JFK pulled one of those pranks you think happens only in 1980s movies: he threw firecrackers in a toilet and blew the lid off. Headmasters later denounced the vandalistic act, saying it was perpetrated by "muckers". Pleased with the reaction, Kennedy went on to found the "Muckers Club", a social circle that included 12 of his closest friends." (Source: Mental Floss)
Slothful and slovenly
What is the laziest thing you've ever done?
1. "I have a dog and a cat, and I HATE sleeping with the door open. Sometimes dog wants to sleep in the bedroom, sometimes dog wants to sleep outside the bedroom. But he never decides until I'm comfy in bed. Solution? Keep a laser pointer on my nightstand. Once dog decides where he's sleeping, I'll shine the laser pointer on the door so that my cat paws it closed. It has now become so routine that my cat will wait by the door for the laser before lying down."
2. "I was lying in bed with the light on and wanted to go to sleep with it off. I called my house from my cellphone and asked for myself in a disguised voice. When my mom brought me the phone I asked her to turn the light out when she left. Hung up both phones and went to sleep."
3. "I ran out of clean bowls for cereal. So I lined the bowls with foil, over the old food, and made a bowl of cereal. After that I threw away the foil and did it again the next day." (Via AskReddit)
King is the Sultan
"Am I the only one who didn't notice that [Mike King] had started a new gig as the Sultan of Brunei?" tweets Craig McCulloch.
Make the brat eat - readers help
Hardline Sideswipe readers advise mother how to improve son's table manners: "You could serve him only dog food on his plate," suggests one reader, gleefully. "In his special corner of the room. Have a good dinner ready to serve at the table ... Hunger will definitely be the most powerful card to play. If he still eats the dog food you first serve up to him ... well the problem goes much deeper."
Another reader piles in and suggests a prison-style solution: "Give him those meal substitutes that are liquid, like the old Complan, so he won't starve."
Spotted in Thames
Newsy: Fox News wonders how you can tell if someone is a 'bad guy' if you can't see their skin colour...
Local: Oamaru, the steam-punk capital of NZ...
Good read: Psychologist Arthur Aron set up an experiment in which two strangers, a man and a woman, met at the laboratory. They were instructed to discuss the answers to a set of 36 increasingly intimate questions, and then stare into each others eyes for four minutes. What happened? Six months later, they were married, and even invited the psychology lab staff to the wedding. Twenty years later the same premise was put to the test and here's what happened...
Video: Police officer realises he's walked into shot of news camera...
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Got a Sideswipe? Send your pictures, links and anecdotes to Ana at ana.samways@nzherald.co.nz