Wobbly-Hippo-Head

If you have been in a taxi in Asia, you have seen the "wobbly" figurines... decorating almost every dashboard. In Thailand, the Maneki-neko, or "lucky-cat-with-waving-paw", Hello Kitty and flowers (in a pot with "dancing" leaves) are very popular. Then, there are the occasional dog and lion, but I have never seen a hippo. I know they exist because I have one! No idea how I got it, the only thing I know is that it is in my collection for a very long time. It is just a silly toy, but I can't help myself. Every time I see it, I just have to touch his head. Not everybody who sees my collection, notices him, but if they do.... his head must wobble!

P.s. I just learned from my dear friend Sheila, that these toys are actually called Bobbleheads! Thank you for letting me know. So the last sentence of my post should be: .... his head must bobble!

Eau d' Hippo

This post is not about a recently launched celebrity fragrance and it is also not about the smell of hippos, but it is about water and about hippos! Last year, I shared the story about the opening of the Hippopotamus Grill Restaurant in Bangkok (see post: Hippopotamus Grill Restaurant). Unfortunately, the chain does not sell any merchandise anymore. The only thing they have are specially labeled bottles of water. I do not know whether all branches of this chain do have this, or that it is only here in Thailand. It certainly gives the dining experience a very nice touch. Of course I was a bit disappointed I could not buy anything else, but I was happy to bring a few bottles home. Who wouldn't want to have something special at home to offer to guests... Hippo-Water anyone?

Blue Blob

Some time ago, I already shared my one and only hippo printed on silk (see post: Wood Cut on Silk Screen) by Mr. Sitthisak Natheechaichana. He is not only a talented wood carver but also a very accomplished painter. He loves to mix and match colors in his abstract work and he likes to paint animals, mainly cats. I thought it would be nice, not only to have a printed hippo but a painted one by him as well. I really love the colors and the enormous smile on this hippo's face, so I was very happy. Coming home, my husband looked at it and said: "I do not like it, it looks like a huge blue blob to me..." Appreciate artistic looking hippos much? Ha ha. Well, you can't always agree on everything. Luckily there are a few other hippo paintings that he does like. The funny thing is, the remark "blue blob", kept coming back in my head. I couldn't come up with a better name for this painting. So, ladies and gentlemen, I present to you.... The Blue Blob!

Super(hippo)model

According to Wikipedia, the term supermodel refers to a highly-paid fashion model, who usually has a worldwide reputation and often a background in haute couture and commercial modeling. All this does not apply at all to the model I love to work with as a photographer, but he is a supermodel to me! I already featured him on this blog (see post: Boris), showing a travel bag. From time to time, I am experimenting with camera settings. It is already difficult to get children or pets to sit perfectly still for a few seconds... let alone for any time longer than five minutes. Luckily, Boris never runs out of patience and does not need to be bribed ;-). I converted this photo to black and white because I did not want any distraction from colors. I just love how contrasts and textures appear... making Boris look ultra fluffy!