A sampling of odd and wacky news items from around the world

Man tries to sell advertising space on his leg

It seems that a silly gimmick is something that few people can resist, whether they’re producing it or reporting it. According to Britain’s The Guardian, New Zealander James Stewart is selling tattoos as advertising space on his leg in a bid to raise NZ$1m. Sponsors can choose any artwork from the art community website ArtKlick.co.nz. he’s even committed to wearing shorts as often as possible to make sure the tattoos stay visible (“Man in £380k bid to sell ad space on leg”).

Getting your point across without concealment

Reuters reports that a disgraced Colombian former lawmaker, Yidis Medina, convicted of taking favors from government officials to allow a dubious re-election process, posed naked on the cover of monthly men’s magazine SoHo. She claims to have given up politics. Medina spoke out about her experience of taking part in corruption, she says, after the government failed to produce the favors they promised her. What her new career is to be isn’t stated.

French ingenuity helps spread wine drinking

A French couple claim to have invented the perfect way to relax while still staying close to your computer: the USB Wine Tap. The tap plugs into your computer’s USB port and is PC and Mac compatible. You choose your wine from a web site that offers a vast virtual cellar, pay by credit card and the wine is delivered directly through the tap into your glass or bottle.

The British swear by it too

Faced by a thief waving a knife, a Japanese woman saved herself and her six-month-old baby by calming him down with a cup of tea and a chat. Both were unhurt. The robber pushed into her apartment and demanded money, but after she made him a cup of tea, he put his knife away and spent about 20 minutes telling her his problems. Eventually, she gave him a small amount of money and he ran away before the police arrived (“Woman overpowers thief with tea and sympathy”).

The ultimate in convenient purchasing of late gifts

Guests invited to wedding at a wedding hall in Israel can put a credit card into a machine like a bank ATM at the entrance and make a gift. The machine prints out a slip showing the amount given and provides an envelope and blank note of congratulations. Guest fill in the note and drop the envelope into a slot in the machine. Later, the happy couple can retrieve the envelope and bank the money. This isn’t quite as odd as it sounds, since the custom in Israel is to give wedding gifts of money that they leave in a special safe at the door of the wedding hall (”Do you take this credit card?“).

When productivity goes to your head

TheGrowingLife blog offers pictures and descriptions of what it calls five winners from “the productivity loony bin” (”Five Ways Productivity Can Turn You Into a Real Nutjob“). You can choose between making yourself into a part-human, part-robot cyborg, have someone make you a video resumé, become a “Law of Attraction Megalomaniac,” parade the number of geekish ‘life hacks’ you have, or get into “that Asian spirituality stuff” and add the word ‘Zen’ to everything you do.