Odd

Nov 19 2004 10 Comments

Greatest glutton ever

After 4 straight wins in New York’s hot dog eating contest, Takeru Kobayashi has recently added another title to his already impressive list. Romping home by a large margin in Chattanooga’s hamburger eating competition.

His pulsating performance of 69 hamburgers in 8 minutes, was so stunning that it prompted David Baer of the International Federation of Competitive Eating to trumpet, “Kobayashi is, without a doubt, the greatest eater ever to live upon planet Earth.”

Er, right David, we get the message.

And that’s him, the earth’s greatest ever eater. A proud and teary-eyed David on the left perhaps?

Nov 15 2004 11 Comments

Loving lap

The Boyfriend’s Arm Pillow might have seemed a little odd, but compared to Trane Corporation’s Lap Pillow, it pales into insignificance.

Yes, as the picture clearly shows, if nothing else this unique item is appropriately named. And for anyone interested, it is made from urethane foam and supposedly has a skin-like texture. The decidedly short and tight skirt on the other hand is made of boring old polyester.

Not surprisingly the product was designed for men, although its creator, Mr. Ikarashi, says it was made with young males in their late teens and early twenties in mind. But initial reaction from men in their 50’s and 60’s has also been positive.

As well as claiming to be shocked by this interest from older men, Ikarashi-san also argues that the pillow is in no way dodgy. In fact as far as he is concerned (or willing to admit), it is a product primarily for healing.

However it could be argued that the photograph below paints a slightly different picture.

And this is a very different one altogether!

Perhaps Ikarashi’s final words on the pillow are the most enlightening. According to surveys, he claims that the image associated with the pillow is relief and not excitement.

Hmm…

[Pictures and story courtesy of TechJapan]

Nov 11 2004 Leave a Comment

Perverted police

From the number of reports that make the news concerning policemen and unlawful sexual activities, it would almost appear that deviancy is a requirement for entrance. Whether it be sex with under-age girls, groping, or unconventional photography, the police force appears to have more than its fair share of perpetrators.

But judging by recent events, this deviant disease seems to have spread to those merely associated with the police. As a 48-year-old accountant who worked for the Kyoto prefectural police has been caught taking photos up the skirt of a 36-year-old woman in Osaka. The man had hidden a digital camera in a shopping bag, and then proceeded to follow his victim around the streets and then into a bookstore. Presumably all the time partaking in his special brand of photography.

Despite their own poor record on such matters, the police force said they were outraged by such activities. With a spokesman saying, “Using hidden cameras to take photos of people is unacceptable behaviour for anybody, let alone an employee of the police force. We’ll do what we can to make sure something like this doesn’t happen again.”

Whilst not fired for his actions, the accountant handed in his resignation after being issued a severe reprimand. And although not reported, it was presumably accepted. Perhaps after he’d explained to similar minded officerï½“ his camera-in-a-shopping-bag technique and more importantly the mistakes he made getting caught.

Nov 10 2004 2 Comments

Seaman shame

A Maritime Self-Defence Force (MSDF) member has been arrested for the bizarre crime of abusing a lower-ranking colleague who refused to have his hair permed.

The unnamed 34-year-old at the centre of the scandal allegedly told a younger member to “get a short perm.” But being both rebellious and presumably fashion conscious, the 20-year-old refused, and instead opted for a more up-to-date and manageable short haircut.

This decidedly uncurly crop sent the perm loving and rather appropriately ranked petty officer into a rage, and he forced his short-haired colleague on to his knees whilst pointing an airgun at him.

Not surprisingly a complaint was registered, with an MSDF official commenting that, “After we confirmed the details, we decided to arrest him because we believe what he committed was vicious.”

Whether this was in reference to gun pointing or perm ordering wasn’t disclosed.

Some seamen yesterday

Oct 28 2004 1 Comment

Feline fanatic

This year sees Hello Kitty celebrate its 30th anniversary. And perhaps because of the cat’s incredible longevity, it’s arguably not all that surprising to find that many of the feline’s most ardent admirers are in their 30’s and 40’s.

One such fan (or more accurately obsessive) is 31-year-old receptionist Asako Kanda. As a young child she bought a few kitty-chan items, such as pens, books, etc. And by the time she reached 10 or 11 her interest had become more pronounced, with a Hello Kitty mug made in pottery class, and a similarly patterned apron in home-economics. Yet for many girls this would not be a particularly unusual story, but in the case of Kanda-san the obsession didn’t gradually fade with age. Rather it got stronger. Much stronger in fact.

In her Kitty-goods packed (and sickeningly pink) apartment, the feline fan said that, “Kitty has always been with me, almost subconsciously.” And with the recent earthquakes in Niigata, she worries about what will happen to her kids should there be a major tremor. These kids being the huge number of Kitty soft toys she has amassed over the years.

However with Sanrio (the company behind Hello Kitty) making the most of such fans, Kanda-san doesn’t have to worry about Kitty-chan only being with her subconsciously. With Kitty toasters, TV’s, pens, and pans, she can be with her favourite character almost all her waking hours. In fact on the rare occasions she isn’t surrounded by Kitty paraphernalia, Kanda confesses to feeling stressed.

But the cat crazy receptionist says the relationship is not completely one-sided. When her father became ill and underwent an operation a few years ago, she claims that, “looking at my Hello Kitty handkerchief, I felt as if she were calling out to me, ‘don’t worry, everything will be fine’.” Similarly, a Kitty pillow (shaped like the face of the character) gave Kanda-san hope and support when one of her bosses was sexually harassing her.

As extreme (and disturbing) as some of this is, I guess you can say it’s relatively harmless. And if it has helped the woman out in a few bad situations, then fair enough. But Kanda-san’s dream of a Kitty-shaped house with two ears sticking out of the roof is a little disconcerting. Although perhaps more so is her wish for a Kitty-style funeral complete with a Hello Kitty tombstone.

Hmm…

Oct 28 2004 Leave a Comment

Love hurts

In a somewhat unconventional way of attempting to get permission to date the girl of his dreams, an unemployed former gangster cut off his little finger and posted it to the girl’s father. Along with the severed pinkie was a note saying, “Please let us go out in exchange for this finger. I will send it again and again until you accept my request.”

Now perhaps it was because the ex-Yakuza member is 38 and his daughter only 15, or maybe it had something to do with receiving a finger in the post, but either way the father was not impressed and promptly returned the unwanted mail.

Yet as deranged as the lovelorn lunatic may appear, he can’t be accused of not being true to his word. As after being rejected once, he wasted no time in resending the grisly parcel.

However after being unswayed by the presumably festering finger a second time, the father finally informed the police. Resulting in the ex-gangster’s arrest.

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