Sideswipe: October 18: Interesting use of space

It always seems a shame to leave your guests on their own while you go to the toilet. (Source: Terriblerealestateagentphotos.com)

Rice is done ... and so is the neighbour

In Kawazoe, Saga Prefecture, Japan, a 48-year-old homeowner received a shock when he found a rice cooker plugged into an exterior outlet on his house. He immediately called the police and reported a meal was being prepared in his yard without his consent. Just as police arrived, the victim's 63-year-old neighbour turned up to check on his rice. Officers then arrested the man for theft, with only a few more minutes until the rice was finished. Police later learned that the suspect's electricity had been shut off after he failed to pay his utility bills, and he had begun using other homes' power outlets to do his cooking. (Rocketnews24.com)

Guess who was wearing the trousers in the 80s

"I was sent home from a large multinational computer company in the mid-1980s for wearing trousers," writes a female reader. "Short skirts were okay, though, and smoking 20 a day at your desk was fine. We wore a suit jacket always and had a special cupboard to hang it, and every man wore a tie. We were also advised in the company manual to not wear vivid eye shadow or jangly jewellery and rotund men were advised not to wear double-breasted suits. Times change. Same company and you can wear shorts, T-shirts and thongs on dress-down Fridays, and I have seen people wearing Ugg boots to work with leggings. Kind of makes me long for the old days, without the smoking."

It would be sweet if they didn't assume

"I often have coffee with my (male) flatmate," writes a reader. "He orders a mocha with sugar while I (a woman) drink espresso or cappuccino with no sugar. Invariably the sweet coffee is assumed to be for me ... It would be interesting to know if women really are more likely to drink sweeter/lighter drinks than men or if, as you suggest, this is a reflection of an ingrained attitude. I've always found it interesting that sugary RTDs are usually marketed at women, but most of the people I know who drink them are men!"

Hammering home the point

A reader writes: "I am a female who works in a hardware store. I am able to give anyone who comes in information they require about our products. Mostly they are quite happy with me giving them advice, but as soon as one of the male staff members comes on to the scene, they address all comments to him. This happens time and again. Not every customer is like this, but there are still a large majority who obviously think women are not capable of knowing anything about hardware."

Picture this #1: "Health and Safety being taken VERY seriously by one of Auckland's leading engineering consultancies '" says Harry.

Picture this #2: Steve Jobs action figure...

Picture this #3: Some great historical pictures of everyday life in New Zealand...

Gender bender: Having a scantily clad woman draped over a motorbike is a common photo shoot cliché, one Portland-based Ducati dealer MotoCorsa trotted out and sent to publications. Not a fan of such tackiness one editor said no to running the pictures ...but MotoCorsa came back with a new set of photos of the blokes from around the shop recreating every shot of the 'girl on bike' shoot...

Video: Girl fight...

* Got a Sideswipe? Send your pictures, links and anecdotes to Ana here.