The “excretion of pet” photo is my favourite. Not only has the dog got a gleeful, malevolent smile leering out after breaking the rule which he obviously didn’t read, but he has somehow managed to style his droppings into a perfect soft serve, worthy of a McDonald’s sundae machine. Also he has a curiously symmetrically perfect “x” forming what I imagine is his rectum (or is it his belly button?). I mean, I’ve heard of a crusty star, but this is ridiculous.
The shot of “electrocuting or poisoning” of fish is actually OK in terms of English. The issue here is actually the need to post a sign like this at all. In a country like Taiwan where nearly every single small law is flaunted and broken at every opportunity, it’s a little frightening that there is a need for this sign. I imagine that people are probably quite regularly throwing plugged in toasters into waterways then scooping out the electrocuted fish corpses, or alternatively pouring battery acid into the streams to knock out a few hundred of our piscine friends. Seriously, some fishermen we’ve seen here seem more than capable of these types of stunts to bring home some fish and chips for tea!
The sign without any writing seems odd on a number of levels. The international “cross out” sign obviously means “don’t” do something, but I’m wondering why some of these activities need a sign. The first one seems to depict a man riding a floorless homemade train. Is the problem the homemade aspect, the lack of a floor (with possibility of leg amputation), the use of a train of any description, or all three? What about the second one: Come on there can’t be any problem wearing a conical hat and planting what appears to be marihuana seedlings can there? Is the problem with the plant, the hat or both? The other two are fine: I can well imagine the need to warn one armed golfers or ice hockey players not to play, and of course you cannot build robust fires with just three sticks, everyone knows that!
Often we see products being sold with the classic Taiwanese plea of “buy one, free one”. We’re both quite keen to do our bit environmentally, saving the planet etc. but I don’t really know why a can of baked beans qualifies for this offer. Are there shelves of baked bean cans imprisoned somewhere, perhaps mistreated dreadfully, kept beyond their use-by dates, stripped of their paper labels and tortured, beaten, possibly dented and even punctured?! Just in case, we’re always keen to stock up on these items when we see them. Who knows, that one act of kindness might just be enough to save one can out there. Funnily enough, our bill always seems a little less on these humanitarian buying spree days as well…must be just a coincidence.
Can you honestly say your life is fulfilled without buying the latest product, “Love Pu Pu Cheek (pink)”? A new vending machine at the movies (of all places) was selling this. I’m not sure what you think it is, I don’t know what it is either and I’ll just leave it to our imaginations I think.
Now, that’s just about my best ever in terms of talking about absolutely nothing. Apart from looking at signs, we ate out at the Spice Shop, went to the movies to see the surprisingly good “The Mechanic”, wandered around, rode the motor scooter, did some other stuff! Books: Cass has moved to the third Stieg, “The Girl who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest” and I’ve succumbed and am reading my last precious and saved up Peter Corris, Torn Apart.
