I'm not sure if the following corollary is coincidence or homage, but xkcd #993 appears to reference a scene from White Noise by Don DeLillo.
Here's the comic:
And here's the scene from White Noise:
We ran into Murray Jay Siskind at the supermarket. His basket held generic food and drink, nonbrand items in plain white packages with simple labeling. There was a white can labeled CANNED PEACHES. There was a white package of bacon without a plastic window for viewing a representative slice. A jar of roasted nuts had a white wrapper bearing the words IRREGULAR PEANUTS. Murray kept nodding to Babette as I introduced them.
"This is the new austerity," he said. "Flavorless packaging. It appeals to me. I feel I'm not only saving money but contributing to some kind of spiritual consensus. Its like World War III. Everything is white. They'll take our bright colors away and use them in the war effort."
If it's an homage, I like the subtlety. If it's a coincidence, I like the serendipity.
