It’s a Hello Kitty world…

… we just live in it!

I love Japan and their whole appreciation for anything and everything “kawaii” (cuute).  It all started in the late ’70s when I was around 5 years old, and someone gave me some stationery (this was before e-mail) featuring a cat with her name spelled in fat letters – Hello Kitty.  Clean lines, no facial expressions or cartoon bubble talk, Kitty was just a cute little cat in overalls sporting a red ribbon.  Then along the way, something happened and Kitty exploded and became a multi-million dollar global phenomenon.  People like Paris Hilton took the humble cat from Japan and went insane with her.  Here are just a few of many great examples of where Kitty’s at today (many are from kittyhell.com) :

 

Ok, so I do think Hello Kitty fruit is super cute —

I would so buy these! Kawaii bananas at a Japanese supermarket

 

And I would totally buy this yogurt maker if I could find it —

Healthy, calcium-rich and Kitty-cute: what more could a girl ask for?

 

But I don’t think I’d want to be friends with the girl who decides to get married in this get-up–

Scarlett O'Hara meets Cinderella in Hello Kitty Hell

 

Nor would I like to see this in my bathroom…

I think my husband would leave me if I ever installed this

 

Though I may consider delivering  a baby here at the kawaii-cute Hello Kitty hospital in Taiwan–

How could you not love working here? Unless you were a man... who hated Hello Kitty

awwww

 

Then there are the more interesting Kitty items such as —

The Hello Kitty Rosary (for cute Catholics)

 

Conversely, there is the Hello Kitty burqa (for cute Muslims)

 

The Hello Kitty AK-47 …

This model proved unpopular with communist rebels...

 

The Hello Kitty-Louis Vuitton bong for cute, brand-conscious potheads…

 

We get to see Kitty’s super-cute internal organs through the Kitty meets Dr. Romanelli doll…

If only my heart and spleen were that adorable

 

And from the “I didn’t know there was a market for that” department…

Beck’s Hello Kitty Beer

Not a good thing to bring to a tailgate party

 

The equivalent of a huge “Kick Me” sign for any man…

It's the kitted-out Hello Kitty Ferrari

 

You know the universe is coming to an end when Darth Vader becomes a Kitty fan–

Scary Schoolgirl and Hello Darth make for a great disturbance in the Force

Mmmm… Bacon

Not this Bacon...

THIS bacon... Mmmm!

 

When you ask a Vegetarian which food item they were hard-pressed to give up, the anwer is usually… Bacon.  There are a few things in this world that can affect humans as much as the smell of sizzling… Bacon.  Maybe Calvin Klein should create ‘CK Bacon’ and unleash the feral side of any meat-eating woman on the unsuspecting cologne-wearer.  Anyway, I’m apparently not the only person who has a weakness for these strips of pork belly.  There are hundreds of Bacon tribute sites and fan pages online.  Predictably, a lot of strange bacon-related items have been cropping up.  So here’s how I picture a day in the life of a bacon-obsessed person…

 

Have a morning shower with a nice juicy bar of Bacon Soap

 

 

Sit down to breakfast with a morning-brightening Bacon Placemat

 

 

Mmm, is that coffee or bacon?  Brew a sizzling cup of Maple Bacon Morning coffee

 

 

Slap on that snazzy Bacon Suit that drives women (and hungry dogs) wild

 

 

If it’s cold, make like a bacon-wrapped weenie dog with the cozy Bacon Scarf

 

 

Don’t forget your Bacon Briefcase!

 

 

… And your Bacon Lunchbox!

 

 … And your Bacon Wallet!

 

 

Make sure all your files are in your trusty Bacon USB Flash Drive

 

 Get into your delicious-smelling car care of your Bacon Air Freshener

 

 

At the end of the day, kick back with a bottle of Squeez Bacon…

>yikes<

 

 

Wash it all down with your favorite diet soda…

 

 

And don’t forget to floss for that extra clean feeling 

 

 

Unwind and ponder the day with a Bacon Martini

 

Then sit back and welcome the heart attack.

Fun with Lederhosen

Whee!

 

I had a great time watching “The Sound of Music” the other night with my 3-year old.  I’ve always wanted to go to Austria as a result of having grown up with this classic film.  The lovely views of the green hillsides, the beautiful architecture, and then I saw Kurt and Friedrich sing “D0, Re, Mi” in their lederhosen…

There’s just something about the Bavarian traditional costume…  Lederhosen is directly translated as “leather pants” and was worn by highland German and Austrian men.  It’s rather cute on little boys and I guess on some grown-ups too.

 

Cute!

 

Adorable!

 

Not so cute

 

I'm on the fence with this one

 

SCARY. Bad bondage lederhosen... (check slickitup.com if you're brave)

 

Authentic photo of George Bush on his Bavaria tour

 

Boris Becker: Looking good in lederhosen

 

 

There’s apparently been such a resurgence of interest in lederhosen, that these best-selling toys had to be made:

 

The perfect pocket toy – a wind-up, hopping pair of lederhosen

The little man on the packaging is in his briefs, chasing his pants : (

 

 

Gamma Deathbot Leder

He does your dirty work for you... while dressed as an Alp dweller toting a beer stein!

 

 

Who wouldn’t want an electronic yodeling pickle? 

Press the big button, hold the pickle to your ear and instantly feel like you're in the Alps

 

 

It took great minds to come up with the remote-controlled, hopping and yodeling pair of lederhosen

The remote control is a knockwurst sausage. Ingenious.

 

 

So auf wiedersehen, lederhosen!  We shall meet again, I’m sure. 

Cool! Lederhosen as it was meant to be worn

vs.

Vassever!