Holly from Dunedin writes: "My flatmate lost his phone on Saturday and a couple of police officers took a selfie and posted it on Facebook so he would know it had been found. It had over 11,000 likes in less than 24 hours."
Standing problem in German loos
A judge in
Dusseldorf ruled in favour of a man suing his landlord for a full refund of his bond, which had been partially withheld because the marble floor of the tenant's bathroom had been damaged by uric acid, presumably from the errant urine of an upright person relieving himself. The dispute is part of a long-running debate in Germany over whether men should sit down when urinating. The controversy pits stehpinklers (men who stand up to pee) against sitzpinklers (men who sit down), and it has taken some bizarre twists over the years. In 2004, for example, the Telegraph reported that sitzpinkler had become a synonym for "wimp", and that a company had invented a gadget that scolded stehpinklers when they lifted the seat. One admonition, in a voice mimicking that of former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, declared, "Hey, stand-peeing is not allowed here and will be punished with fines, so if you don't want any trouble, you'd best sit down."
Names on verge of extinction
These names were given to only five babies each in 2013, the lowest number counted by the Social Security Administration.
Claudine: feminisation of the ancient Roman name Claudius. Interestingly, most other names ending in -ine and -een are now out of favour.
Nanette: peaked in 1956. But today, most parents say no, no to Nanette.
Sheba: the short form of the Biblical Bathsheba, which is no longer recorded at all.
Elmo: this short form of Guglielmo, the Italian form of William, was used until the 1950s, when it disappeared.
Icarus: Greek name known for flying too close to the sun. Not ever very popular.
Inigo: The medieval Spanish version of Ignatius, which resonated in the film The Princess Bride and was used by Cate Blanchett, yet has failed to gain any traction. (Source: nameberry.com)
Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No ... it's your mum
"I said to my wife, 'Look, your mum's come to visit,' and pointed to the sky," writes Terry Hay of Helensville. "There was a sight you don't normally see. A witch complete with black cat, flying her broomstick through the clouds. Under normal circumstances I would have just authorised my own firing squad but in this case it really was a witch flying across the sky courtesy of members and guests of the Hibiscus Coast Radio Fliers Club which held an open day for visitors to see some flying models and superb aerobatic displays."
