Well, two people in the last 24 hours have sent me this story:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-world/2011/10/20/gigantic-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxl-slipper-delivered-to-man-who-ordered-a-size-14-5-but-got-a-size-1-450-115875-23500817/Since that link will surely die in months, here's the text of the story. Actually, this version I was shown is rife with foot puns:
Quote:
Gigantic XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXL slipper delivered to man who ordered a size 14.5 but got a size 1,450Attachment:
File comment: I smell hoax!
giant-slipper.jpg [ 93.75 KiB | Viewed 3613 times ]
NOW that’s what you call putting your foot in it...
Tom Boddingham ordered a special slipper to fit his oversized foot but was sent a size 1,450 – after manufacturers failed to spot a decimal point in his order.
The 27-year-old takes a size 13 right shoe size while his left is slightly bigger and measures 14-and-a-half.
But when he ordered his custom-fit slipper, manufacturers in China misread size 14.5 and accidently made one that’s a whopping 7ft long – size 1,450, or XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXL.
It is almost as big as a Smart car and is more than large enough to act as a sleeping bag for two.
Now Tom, who has always worn custom-made shoes, plans to sell the furry monster’s slipper on eBay.
He said: “It was sent directly from Hong Kong and measures 210 x 130 x 65cms – the same length as a grizzly bear or a family car. I reckon I must be the owner of the biggest slipper in the world.
“I’m going to sell it online and if I can make a few quid out of it then all the better.”
A company spokesman for Monster Slippers said sorry to Tom, from Ilford, East London, and explained the mistake occurred because of a “translation error”.
They said: “We have given our apologies to Mr Boddingham and we are now making him a replacement slipper using the correct dimensions.”
A spokesman for the Hong Kong factory said the unusual order did not give the workers paws for thought – because they just assumed that the slipper was a giant prop for a shop window display.
Despite their, er, toe-rrible mistake, we’re sure they put their heart and sole into making it…
Now, I'm all for giant slippers...the bigger the better! But the smart weesaur in me smells there's something not right about this slipper.
Why?
Because if you order something online, you
pay before you're shipped your item. Did this guy think that the probably-hundreds-of-dollars-bill for one pair of slippers was
normal? Sorry, I don't buy it. Sure, I can buy the story where the factory thought it was for a store display, and they would've even given him a fairly good deal on it, since it's marketing for them, but from all the people in retail I hear from (I myself only spent 2 weeks there, funny story), stores pay for those displays, they're not free.
So yes, it's cool that it's a giant slipper you can sleep in. Not building-sized, as would be my minimum desire, but still...wouldn't say no to it. And, of course, I'd get the dino-claw version, not the bear paw one. On an online Chinese manufacturer's site I've seen, they actually make quite a sexy purple dino foot with black toeclaws. Was thinking of getting it, but it's a manufacturer site, so you have to order like a hundred of them.
Everyone, line up!
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