Sideswipe: Rebel rouser

Some rules were made to be broken. Photo / Supplied

A bit of Westie culture

Westie TV show Outrageous Fortune is heading to the Auckland Museum for an exhibition opening in mid-December. Outrageous Fortune: Journey to the Wests will include a chance to hang out in the West family's living room and go behind the scenes to see how the show is made, and will encourage visitors to ask questions about how a "fictional" version of Auckland's identity can help us understand the wider New Zealand culture. So what about all the swearing, drugs, fights and rooting? According to the press release, "the museum will ensure that all care will be taken when developing the exhibition, recognising the wide age range of its visitors".

Poor signs of times

Andrew has a point about the new "how-long-will-it take" road signs: "One of those new electronic motorway signs told me yesterday it would take 11 minutes from Te Atatu to Nelson St. Without speeding, I did it in under seven minutes. It proved inaccurate by 40 per cent. I was wondering how this information could possibly be useful to anyone at that point in their journey (ie, when they can see the state of traffic with their own eyes). My friends and family also see these signs as unnecessary and redundant, which is ironic because I'm sure we paid for them."

TV2's own goal

Karen from Kohimarama is uber-annoyed at TV2. "While watching the semifinal show of American Idol on Saturday night, the channel aired a promotion for the final show on Thursday, clearly showing the two contestants to make it to the final - 10 minutes before the semifinal show revealed who was going home. Way to spoil it, TV2."

Post code crackdown

A reader writes: "Has anyone else noticed that mail was being "returned to sender" if there was no post code included in the address? I have just discovered that a letter my brother from Canada tried to send me was returned to him. The address was correct, but no post code was included. Another relative (in NZ) had tried to send my aunt (also in NZ) a letter, only to have it returned to her. She telephoned me, fearing my elderly aunt had either moved or died. She had looked up the address in the White Pages but postcodes aren't listed in there."

Game, set and match

Feeling humiliated at being called the "world's worst tennis pro" by the Daily Telegraph (and other news outfits), Robert Dee sued the newspaper for libel last year. News of the Weird reports: "The judge tossed out the lawsuit, persuaded by Dee's having lost 54 consecutive international tour matches (all in straight sets). Fearful of an opposite result, 30 other news organisations had apologised to Dee for disparaging him, and some even paid him money. The Telegraph stood its ground and, humble in victory, headlined its story on the outcome, 'World's Worst Tennis Player Loses Again'."