"Squeezable" Japanese Toy

We went to the supermarket yesterday and found this interesting toy. As the advertising says, it's squeezable. We didn't buy one. I don't know if I'd really want one of these suddenly appearing at the wrong moment. Perhaps you can relate? That's my oldest daughter in the first picture and her cousin demonstrating the squeezability in the second picture.

Japanese people have a funny relationship with the human body. You could say they're much more open and natural with their bodies and less modest than many other cultures about nudity. For example, people bathe nude in Onsens (hot springs) and public bath houses. Most onsens and public baths are divided male and female, but there are still a very few "co-ed" public baths in some isolated areas. Many praise the Japanese for their "openness" in such matters. But don't rush to cheer. On the other hand, there is an obsession with pornography and the outright degradation of women (and girls) here that sometimes rivals the imagination.

I don't want to spoil the humor of this innocent moment above with such things, but sometime later I'll spend more time of this subject.

Posted by jw at May 4, 2004 11:33 PM