This one you've got to read - you can click on the image for a higher-res version. From an herbal cosmetics stand at Legaspi Sunday Market, three (or four?) reasons to have a buttocks massage.
The Daiso Japan Store at Cubao - convenience! discount! amusement! It is a fun store, I must admit. Why random plastic organizers and household goods at $2 apiece are fun I can't quite pin down, but they are.
At malls all over Manila, there are large center atria that on weekends are filled with special displays or events - an electronics showcase one weekend, a real estate investment expo another, maybe a concert the next... During the week, the large smooth polished floors are populated by these slow-moving giant stuffed-animal ride-ons, very popular with the 2- to- 5-year old set. But every time I see them I can't help but think of Furry Conventions. I think the malls of Manila are about as close as I want to get to a Furry Convention. Maybe too close.
Aji-no-moto - the original MSG! Here in Manila (I assume in other places all over Asia also), MSG is promoted as a healthful additive to enhance flavor. I'm still not sure about this, despite the good press the MSG flavor, "Umami" has recently gotten with its inclusion in the tasting pantheon as the fifth basic taste along with sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. I must admit, MSG tastes darn good. What would Doritos and Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup be without it? It may be a neurotoxin, but it gets the kids to eat! Go Umami Mommies! (However I'm glad that MY Umami Mommy raised me on Umami in the form of Stilton cheese, mushrooms, and other organic guises.)
The Bikram crowd will understand when I ask of this one, "how many megatons?"
I love the cartoon The Far Side. In his compendium The PreHistory of The Far Side, Gary Larson describes his first foray into cartooning, "Nature's Way," a one-panel strip not dissimilar to the masterpiece that followed it. This florist shop seems to have lifted their name and logo directly from that comic. What do they sell, venus flytraps, datura, and other creepy plants?
"Squidster - The Party Squid" just cracks me up. Normally it's easy for me to resist squid street food. Actually, it's pretty easy for me to resist it even when marketed as cutely and cleverly as this. Chalk it up to two summers of dissecting squid in high school.
Catch ya later...
Warmly,
Carol
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