Synthetic people, synthetic parts

TaiyoToy Company also manufactures the novelty "lap pillow". The polyurethane lap pillow is molded on a real woman and provides, as the company advertises, "close-to-real warm and smooth lap feeling". For a party attraction and lonesome hearts, it is available at 8,980 yen (US$86) with a choice of red or black skirt.


The synthetic flight attendant comes only in a lime green uniform.

Tokyo demonstration

While strolling through downtown Tokyo, I came across an anti-Bush demonstration. About 150 protesters held up signs in front of Parliament, demanding the withdrawal of Japan Self-Defense Forces from Iraq. The man on the left wearing the rainbow wig was not part of the demonstration. He was distributing posters for the Summer Sonic festival and got caught up in the demonstration.


I just had to zoom in on this crown-of-barbed wire vampire Bush poster.

Here's the GothGirl series so far

Collect them all!

While in Tokyo

While in Tokyo, I had an opportunity to meet with Mr. Hiro Nakamura, president of TaiyoToy Company, who will be manufacturing and distributing my line of GothGirl bobble head dolls. GothGirl started out as a Halloween card, then developed into an on-going series of illustrations applicable to other holidays, news events, etc. Soon, the GothGirl bobbleheads will be available in the U.S. from cafepress.com

Head like a hole, with teeth

After the MTV Japan awards show, I was walking around Tokyo, doing some sightseeing, and who did I run into? None other than Trent Reznor, Mr. Nine Inch Nails himself! He was in Tokyo for the SummerSonic Festival in a couple of days. Unfortunately, I was scheduled to continue on to my next location, so I had to miss that show. But we hung out for a while, had some sushi, talked technology. Managed to snap his picture. Thanks, Trent!

I love technology. And sushi.

Combining two of the things that the Japanese love best: technology and food (they’ve got their priorities straight over there) these USB memory keys from Solid Alliance have got plastic sushi stuck to them. Never again will you have to choose between having sushi or having a USB memory drive — thanks to the USB sushi drive. These USB drives are hand-made-in-Tokyo sushi replicas. The convincing USB sushi drive comes in several flavors.



So that gave me the idea to print these t-shirts, borrowing the I Love Technology line from Napoleon Dynamite.

Moster award

For a change of pace, I am going to post some photos from my Asia Tripping Summer '06 tour.

I happened to be in Tokyo during the MTV Japan Awards and I got tickets for the show, where I managed to get this shot of Godzilla accepting a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Godzilla remains an enduring character beloved by fans worldwide, and is among the few creatures granted this award by MTV Japan, becoming the second fictional character, and the first to be completely non-human in nature, to receive it.