Are you a complainer?

A while ago while pouring myself a bowl of Uncle Tobys cereal, I found something that I wasn't expecting sitting on top of the nicely toasted flakes. A nicely toasted earwig.

Now, I'm not usually one to make a fuss about things, mainly because I'm a fairly reasonable person (partly because I'm just lazy). Sure I've complained to friends and family before, but I've never gone as far as the company. This time however, I felt I had to do something. If I didn't tell them they had creepy crawlies in their cereal, who knows how many people would end up eating them? Plus, I could be in for a payout.

I called up Nestle (the owners of Uncle Tobys) and told them of my discovery. While they seemed to show some concern and assured me they had control systems in place to make sure these things didn't happen, their only offering of compensation was a cheque for the sum of ten whole dollars. $10!?! I could sue them! I could take it to the media! I could make it my passion to make sure they pay for making me almost eat an earwig! Oh well, the laziness kicked in again. I took the cheque, and haven't bought the cereal since.

However, shortly after I noticed a story about a man who had found a cockroach neatly concealed in a Butter Menthol.

Oddly enough, Nestle are also the makers of Butter Menthols. It was reported that the man was offered a 'modest' amount as compensation. Hmm... seems like they're used to dealing with situations like this.

Maybe I should have taken it to the media like this guy did. I know I'll never be buying Uncle Tobys again, nor will I be buying Butter Menthols.

But what would you have done if you found an earwig with your cereal?

$39,000 for a backpack... worth it?

Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen have come out with a new alligator skin backpack under their fashion label The Row. It seems like a fairly standard bag until you see the price tag... $39,000.

Now, I understand status symbols. I understand why a few people (with too much money) would buy a product like this. But what's amazing is that they're selling out. They had pre-orders before they were even on sale, all stock has sold off the shelves and now they're struggling to meet demand. Whether it's because the Olsen Twins are behind it, or whether it's because its a very exclusive fashion item, being able to price a backpack at a level close to the average yearly salary just goes to show the power of branding.

But what about you? If you had a spare $39,000 sitting in the bank, would you contemplate spending it on a backpack?