Tuesday 18 September 2007

The Wee Mannie


It's funny what you buy on holiday. Experience Oban in the rain, and one becomes a sucker for any divertissement. We coveted quaiches, tacky with embossed thistles. We fingered 'Jimmy' hats with ginger fringes. We sampled thimbles of whisky liqueur and developed an unhealthy interest in plastic kitchenware in Aldi. We even ate stuffed pancakes in a stuffed pancake place.

So that's my excuse. This is Peking Peeing Man, bought from a quirky shop on the Corran Esplanade. The kind that sells tartan pan pipes and heather-scented bath bombs.

The instructions the proprietor gave were not quite right, so we had to fall back on school physics and Boyle's Law. Put the wee mannie in warm water and the air inside expands, and he blows bubbles from unusual places. Immerse him in cold water, the air cools, and he becomes a little vacuum nozzle. Then pour hot water over him and stand back. Delight and amaze your friends. Be the envy of the neighbourhood. A great conversation piece and icebreaker.

Can't think how we got by without him.

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