Hello Kitty becomes Japanese tourism ambassador 凱蒂貓成為日本觀光大使

Cult cartoon character Hello Kitty has been named a goodwill tourism ambassador for Japan.

It is the first time a cartoon character has taken on the normally human role.

The feline character has become a global phenomenon, with more than 50,000 different products on sale in 60 countries.

The cat is one of mascot-obsessed Japan's biggest hits as a toy character - is often seen on lunch boxes, jewellery and many other accessories.

She will be used to promote Japan in China and Hong Kong.

Japan's national tourism ministry made the announcement at a press conference today.

The ministry, which has so far appointed 11 people as goodwill tourism ambassadors, said the global icon was "qualified" for the job due to its popularity among Chinese people.

Shintaro Tsuji, president of Sanrio Co, the company which created the toy cat, called Hello Kitty's new appointment "an honour" and pledged the feline would "work hard to attract many visitors."

The new role for Hello Kitty is part of the Japanese government's Visit Japan Campaign, which aims to attract 10 million tourists a year.

A Hello Kitty blog will start around late June on the Chinese language page of the campaign website to introduce tourist attractions in Japan, including historic and popular sites, Kyodo said.

In March, the foreign ministry appointed another cartoon cat, robo-cat Doraemon, as a charm ambassador in a bid to promote the nation's culture and win the hearts of future world leaders. (AP/Metro.co.uk)

Butt bra 臀罩

A US psychologist has patented a bra for the bum which she claims restores pertness to sagging buttocks.

Featuring straps worn around the waist and under the buttocks, the garment claims to instantly shape and add tone to the behind.

Creator Karin Hart came up with the buttock-clenching idea after noticing her own bottom wasn't as pert as it used to be.

"The Biniki buttocks support idea came to me at a moment of personal need," she says. "One look in the mirror after some rapid weight loss showed me the unhappy truth, my bottom was sagging."

Dr Hart set about developing designs for a wearable item that would do the same job as a surgical bottom lift.

"Trying to find a design led me to buy some self-adhesive tape," Dr Hart explains. "Then working with a mirror and adjusting the tape into several configurations I found one that resulted in just the right support in the right places."

She patented her invention and now sells what she has dubbed the "butt bra" through her US-based company for about £15.

There's also a £20 version for men, the Maniki, and a Throng, a £15 thong which claims the same uplifting effect. (roundup)

Cow 1, Car 0 牛與車對撞 車毀牛無傷

A cow was left unhurt in Switzerland after a head-on collision with a car which left the vehicle destroyed.

The animal rolled on to the bonnet of the car and was catapulted over the roof but then immediately got to its feet.

Felix Reimann said the car had been completely destroyed and he was left with cuts and bruises after the accident on a country road in Unterschlatt.

But a vet called out after the accident that examined the cow said it was completely unharmed, and took it back to its owner.

Reimann said: "The cow went onto the bonnet, bounced off it and over the roof back onto the road.

"I couldn't believe it when I saw it just standing there and looking at me afterwards. I thought it should have been dead. Instead it just mooed at me." (Ananova.com)

Bride sits exam in wedding dress 新娘穿婚紗參加考試

A Chinese bride wore her wedding dress to sit an exam after it was scheduled for her big day.

Luo Yingchao, a teacher, had to sit the compulsory test organised by the city education bureau, reports the Yangcheng Evening Post.

But she and her fiance Chu Moayang had long since booked their wedding for the same day - and all of their guests had been invited.

They decided to go ahead with the wedding - but switched the venue to her school in Zhengzhou city and the time to just after the test finished.

"It was unexpected for the city education bureau to organise a compulsory test for picking out elite teachers on the same day," Yingchao said.

After the two-hour test, Luo and her fiancé held a brief ceremony in the school. They received good wishes from those sitting the test, as well as their guests. (Yangcheng Evening Post)

Woman pregnant with 18th child 美婦女懷第18個小孩

In this Aug. 2, 2007 file photo, Michelle Duggar, left, is surrounded by her children and husband Jim Bob, third from right after the birth of her 17th child in Rogers, Ark. The Duggars announced on Friday, May 9, 2008 that they are expecting their 18th child.
It's a happy Mother's Day for an Arkansas woman — she's pregnant with her 18th child. Michelle Duggar, 41, is due on New Year's Day, and the latest addition will join seven sisters and 10 brothers. There are two sets of twins.

"We've had three in January, three in December. Those two months are a busy time for us," she said, laughing.

The Duggars' oldest child, Josh, is 20, and the youngest, Jennifer, is nine months old.

The fast-growing family lives in Tontitown in northwest Arkansas in a 7,000-square-foot home. All the children — whose names start with the letter J — are home-schooled.

Duggar has been been pregnant for more than 11 years of her life, and the family is in the process of filming another series for Discovery Health.

The new show looks at life inside the Duggar home, where chores — or "jurisdictions" — are assigned to each child. One episode of the new show involves a "jurisdiction swap," where the boys do chores traditionally assigned to the girls, and vice versa, Duggar said.

"The girls swapped jurisdictions, changing tires, working in the garages, mowing the grass," she said. "The boys got to cook supper from start to finish, clean the bathrooms," among other chores.

Duggar said she's six weeks along and the pregnancy is going well. She and her husband, Jim Bob Duggar, said they'll keep having children as long as God wills it.

"The success in a family is first off, a love for God, and secondly, treating each other like you want to be treated," Jim Bob Duggar said. "Our goal is for each one of our children to be best friends, and everybody working together to serve each other makes that happen."

The other Duggar children, in between Joshua and Jennifer, are Jana, 18; John-David, 18; Jill, 16; Jessa, 15; Jinger, 14; Joseph, 13; Josiah, 11; Joy-Anna, 10; Jeremiah, 9; Jedidiah, 9; Jason, 7; James, 6; Justin, 5; Jackson, 3; and Johannah, 2. (AP)

Dad's 71-day trek to see son in prison 老父走71天到監獄探視兒子

A 72-year-old Chinese man walked more than 600 miles to visit his son in prison.

The man walked for 71 days from his hometown at Taihe town, Anhui province, to the prison at Lianping town, Guangdong province.

The pensioner, whose name was not disclosed by the Southern Daily, had planned to take the train but had his savings stolen shortly after leaving home.

The father, who walks with a stick, says he begged all the way, and sometimes ate rotten food from bins during his two month journey.

"I didn't see him for two years. I am here to visit him and tell him not to worry about me and transform himself for good, while in prison," he said.

Prison wardens were so touched by his story that they even bent the rules to allow him to see his son.

"We usually need the visitor to show us his ID card, but his was stolen along with the money," said warden Liu Guanghui.

The son, Xie Fei, revealed that his father is actually his adoptive father, as his real parents died when he was ten.

"He adopted me and loves me very much, but I have nothing to repay all this," said Xie.

His father made the return journey home in much less time - after wardens clubbed together to buy him a train ticket. (Southern Daily)

Girl, 3, drove car 三歲女娃開車上街

Police in Bulgaria are investigating after a three year old girl "drove" her dad's car half a mile through a busy market.

Karolina Gjursel climbed into the driving seat of his automatic when her 27-year-old dad Gjunai got out at a street market in the town of Beli Lom in east Bulgaria and left his keys in the car.

His daughter turned on the engine, pressed her foot on the accelerator and drove off with her four and six-year-old cousins also in the car.

She went half a mile before ploughing into a river where the three kids were hauled out unhurt by passers-by who saw what had happened. No one else was hurt in the incident.

A police spokesman said: "It was completely irresponsible for a parent to leave children in a car with the keys in the ignition and it is a cause for concern that such a young child appeared to know not only how to start a car but to somehow drive it." (Ananova.com)

Illinois man designs beer can coffin 伊利諾男子設計啤酒罐棺材

Bill Bramanti's favorite beer is Pabst Blue Ribbon. He loves it.
Really loves it.

So much so that he's already had his coffin specially made, and it's designed to look like a can of the trendy brew. Bramanti isn't sick, so he doesn't plan on needing it just yet. For now he plans to use it as a cooler.

At 5-feet-9 inches tall and weighing 280 pounds, Bramanti has tried it out though.

"I actually fit, because I got in here," Bramanti, 67, of South Chicago Heights said. He threw a party Saturday for friends, featuring his coffin filled with ice and, what else, Pabst Blue Ribbon.

"Why put such a great novelty piece up on a shelf in storage when you could use it only the way Bill Bramanti would use it?" Bramanti's daughter, Cathy Bramanti, 42, said.

Bramanti ordered the casket from Panozzo Bros. Funeral Home in Chicago Heights and Scott Sign Co. of Chicago Heights designed the beer can.

The silver coffin is designed with red, white and blue, just like a Pabst can. (USA Today)

World's biggest portrait 世界最大的畫像

A Chinese company is printing what is believed to be the world's biggest photograph for Mother's Day.

The Chongqing city-based firm says the portrait of a mum's smiling face will be bigger than a football pitch at 9,000 sq metres.

The project is costing more than £70,000 - and it took three months to find the right woman to pose for the photo.

Director Mr Li, who has already lodged a bid to get into Chinese record books, said: "We wanted to find the perfect mother's smile in this city."

The Chongqing Changhong Printing Company, which says it is their biggest ever order, is working round the clock to finish the picture in time for May 11 when Mother's Day is celebrated in China.

"Usually we only stock two tonnes of inkjet paper, but this deal needs 4.4 tonnes, so we had to buy extra," company manager Mr Shen told the Chongqing Business Daily.

It is much too big to print in one piece so the picture is being printed on rolls of paper which will be put together to make up the giant portrait.

"The printer has been working around the clock for the last 20 days and we still have ten to go," added Mr Shen. (Chongqing Business Daily)

Blind drunk driver 酒後駕車的盲人

Estonian police were shocked after stopping a car in a city centre and finding the driver was not only drunk but also blind.

Traffic police in the southern Estonian city of Tartu said Kristjan Gradolf, 20, who is completely blind, was being given directions by a pal in the passenger seat.

A breath test revealed Gradolf was two and a half times over the legal drink drive limit.

Both men face a £700 fine and Gradolf is also facing a jail sentence on charges of endangering public safety.

But Gradolf said: "Despite the fact that I am blind, driving is something I enjoy, and I am in fact very good at it." (roundup)