It’s a sausage. It mysteriously arrived in a letterbox in December wrapped in Christmas paper.
We live in unusual times. It all gets a bit much some days. So each weekday we’re bringing you a much-needed dose of positivity to remind you that there’s inspiration, kindness and quirkiness out there too.
The sausage prank mystery
The first sausage arrived in the summer of 2022, and for the past year, Waiheke Island residents have been finding single sausages, wrapped in bread, left in their letterboxes.
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Wrapped in white buttered bread and coated in tomato sauce, it was cold by the time Jacob Coetzee found it in his letterbox, though it looked to have once been barbecued, he told Stuff’s Virginia Fallon.
Then it happened again. And again. Same sort of sausage, same sauce, same location. Coetzee soon realised they had a serial sausager on the pretty Auckland island.
“You never know when the strike will happen but when it does, everyone gets struck” he says.
James Belfield/Stuff
Jacob Coetzee is a victim the Surfdale Sausager, a mysterious character who bewilderingly leaves sausages (sometimes cooked, sometimes raw, usually served on white bread with red sauce) in letterboxes around the island.
Weeks or even months would pass without incident until suddenly, a sausage.
Who is The Surfdale Sausager? And what’s their motive? You can read more about Fallon’s meaty investigation here.
From memes to dreams
Popeyes
Dieunerst Collin has signed a sponsorship deal with US fast-food chain Popeyes.
A decade ago a clip of a US boy holding a cup while glaring at a videographer at a Popeyes fast food restaurant in the US went viral. Dieunerst Collin was just 9 years old, and his classmates made him the butt of their jokes.
Now the football-playing teen has used the confused side-eye meme’s popularity to sign a sponsorship deal with the US chicken chain that will attach his name, image and likeness to its ads.
“From memes to dreams, Dieunerst and Popeyes will grace social media feeds once again,” the Popeys spokeswoman said.
‘Enormous’ seal explores holiday hotspot
A large, slippery Aussie named Henry is making a splash at a seaside spot on the coast in the state of Victoria.
He is popular with tourists and locals alike, 9News reports. They’re also a bit scared of Henry, the “enormous” southern elephant seal.
9News
Henry is a whopper and he’s probably going to get even bigger.
Adult males of the species are huge – at least six times larger than polar bears and nearly twice the size of the next largest seal (which is the northern elephant seal).
“Incredible, I can’t believe we are so close to it and how big it is,” one Aussie beachgoer said.
People should stay at least 30 metres away from wild animals like Henry. The elephant seal has just made the huge journey to Australia from Antarctica.
New kidney brings happy ending
Chris McKeen/Stuff
Asher Bagadam donated his kidney to his sister Ashritha after she was bumped from the transplant list and suffered heart complications.
Family has saved the day for 25-year-old Aucklander Ashritha Bagadam.
Her brother Asher Bagadam donated his kidney to her early last month. She described it as a “surreal” moment, but said everything went perfectly during the surgery.
Unfortunately it was a tough path to a happy ending for Ashritha Bagadam.
“The day of the surgery was the greatest day of my life, I would say,” she told Stuff.
Chris McKeen/Stuff
Ashritha Bagadam is the recipient of her brother Asher’s kidney.
It was an easy decision to donate the kidney, and the option had always been on the table, Asher Bagadam said.
Sneakers transformed into plants
French artist Christophe Guinet loves plants. He has even cultivated a new persona to match his passion: Monsieur Plant (“Well, I am a mister who likes plants”), he told the Guardian.
One recurring theme is the trainer or sneaker, which is a symbol of our times, the self-described urban gardener said.
“The eloquence of the plants combats the excesses of consumerism. I think nature will always triumph over man.”
