Sideswipe: March 30: Shaggy parking

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

29 Mar, 2015 04:00 PM3 mins to read

There's a certain amount of ...er, swagger required to park like that (and have that number plate).

Baby before bedtime

Unsentimental American frontier diary entry, circa 1800s: "Wed 16. Rose about 5 o'clock, had breakfast, got my housework done about 9. Baked six more loaves of bread. Made a kettle of mush and have now some [suet] pudding and some beef boiling. My girl has ironed and I have made out to put my clothes away and set my house in order. May the mercy of the Merciful be with me through the expected scene. Nine o'clock PM was delivered of a son."

Bacon addiction goes too far

A woman in Grand Rapids, Michigan, ordered a bacon burger at McDonald's but got a burger without bacon. She "vigorously demonstrated her dissatisfaction" and received a free bacon burger as compensation. Her hunger not yet satisfied, she returned a few hours later for another bacon burger, but again received a burger without bacon. At which point she pulled out a handgun and fired a shot into the building. It hit no one, but she's now on trial for felonious use of a firearm. Her lawyer has not said what her defence will be. (Source: Weird Universe)

Good stuff in dark yolks

Which egg is the best egg? A thick yolk with dark orange colouring is actually the most desirable. "Richer-coloured egg yolks are more likely to come from free-range hens," says Dr. Hilary Shallo Thesmar, director of food safety programmes for the Egg Nutrition Centre (ENC): "Free-range hens have the opportunity to eat more pigmented foods, and the pigment is then transferred to the yolk." While protein and fat remain the same regardless of yolk colour, darker coloured yolks indicate the presence of healthy extras found in dark leafy greens, flaxseed and sea kelp.

Invisible water problems

"So with a summer of little rain, Auckland hasn't been proactive in putting water restrictions in place. Why not?" asks Angela. "It's all coming from the Waikato. This photo was taken last weekend at the Mangatangi Dam. I'm guessing the overflow hasn't been used in quite some time. All the other dams in the area are at levels I've never seen before too. It's amazing how a water problem can disappear if we don't know about it!" (For the record, Watercare's website shows the dam is just over 55 per cent full.)