Words About Things

A railway station in Hyogo prefecture, Japan has appointed two new Station Masters in an effort to revive its struggling finances. It is hoped that the new Station Managers will attract more customers to the Hojo-cho station which has seen less travelers in recent years. So who have they employed (as if the post title hasn’t given it away) a celebrity? Girls dressed in short skirts? Nope, monkeys!

The monkeys are called Nehime and Rakan and belong to a local resident who put them forward for the job. Apparently the local population have welcomed the addition of simian railway staff:

The monkeys, aged seven months and three months, were dressed in blue uniforms made from traditional local fabrics complete with mini hats before being formally appointed station masters and “special city residents” by the local mayor.

The Hojo-cho railway line is the first in Japan to run a biodiesel fuel train. It may well be the location of a few more firsts if the new monkey overlords get their way. Unconfirmed reports have stated that staff will now be paid in bananas and will be required to undergo compulsory flea checks each morning. When asked how he felt about his new position of Station Manager Rakan replied “OO-OO-OOO-AAA-AAA-AAA” and picked his nose.

The stereotypical beauty queen is nice but dim and often particularly fond of the idea of ‘world peace’. They might however be harbouring controversial views or have other shortcomings such as a lack of understanding of simple geography. In Japan however they demand a little more of their potential Miss Universe entrants.

At the recent Miss Universe Japan competition the entrants took part in a gruelling ‘boot camp’ designed to expand their horizons and prove that a beauty queen can be strong and adventurous as well as pretty. The contestants tried rock-climbing, some Base Jumping and Jujitsu classes. Miss Universe Japan’s creator Ines Ligron says that this years event saw the girls go beyond traditional ideas of what makes a beauty queen:

“Traditional beauty contests are tacky. They don’t belong to this millennium. They are from my grandmother’s time. It’s degrading to women to be judged on having perfect boobs and legs. I’m trying to prove you can win with your personality and intelligence. I want to create ‘Bond’ girls. A Bond girl is sexy, strong. She is sensual, intrepid. She can do anything.”

This seems to be an attempt to bring the Miss World contest into the modern age. I’m not sure it fits however, while we still judge people on how attractive they are the whole idea seems outdated and a little crass. This years winner was Emily Miyasaka who I can’t seem to find any information about online. Lets just assume she is very good at Base Jumping and Jujitsu as well as being not too shabby in the looks department.