The Suit You Can Wash in the Shower

Looking for a way to save some time? How about getting a suit you can wash while you shower?

The Shower Clean Suit = "dawn of a revolution in business attire"?

Konaka Co. released this one in 2008 so I guess they're actually old news by now.

Suicide prevention

I recently read a very sad article on Japan Today about Japan's suicide rate. Last year, for the 12th consecutive year, over 30,000 people in Japan took their own lives, accounting for 3% of all deaths there. Russia is the only country with a higher suicide rate (and that thought makes me sad too, for the Russians).

After reading about that I heard a radio ad for Salvation Army suicide prevention training and I thought I'd look it up, then I checked out what Lifeline has too, and I came to the realisation that suicide really is no small problem here in Australia either.

According to a very recent Lifeline article suicide is the leading cause of death for Australians under the age of 44.

I had to read that a few times before it sunk in. Suicide is the leading cause of death for Australians under the age of 44.

Deaths from suicide are almost double road related deaths for men and women in Australia between the ages of 15 and 44. So every time you read in the newspaper about a young person killed on the road, there's almost two young people you don't read about who've taken their own lives.

Everyone has a role to play in suicide prevention. What's yours?

- You can do something about suicide prevention (women)

- You can do something about suicide prevention (men)

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call Lifeline on 13 11 14. There is HOPE.

Purikura in Brisbane, yeah!

Purikura is the abbreviation of "purinto kurabu" (print club) used to describe those crazy Japanese photo sticker booths and the little photo stickers they spit out. They're good fun, but I guess the machines are expensive to import because I can't find anywhere that has them cheap here in Brisbane.

I saw one a few months ago at the Logan Hyperdome but it was $15 and looked a bit faded.

Today I went and peeked in at Area 58 in Elizabeth Street arcade in the city (photo above). They have more than one machine, but again, they're either $12 or $15. There was a Japanese lady working there when I went in. I know she was Japanese because I asked her a question and she answered in Japanese, even though I asked in English. I don't think she even realised she did it.

I saw a sign near there for another place called Sense-Q over in Adelaide Street (see map below) and they allegedly even have English instructions, but I have yet to check it out.

I also heard that there's a place at Sunnybank (Market Square), and discovered that they have a website, but I don't know if they're any cheaper than the others. I got a bit excited when I saw the "Machine Hire & Sales" tab on the website, but sadly they don't offer day hire because it takes a day just to set a machine up. No purikura parties just yet I guess.