"As their heads sway, you feel better, and your feelings relax. It
hypnotizes. Nohohons are for stress relief!”
Nohohon-Zoku, or the "Nonchalant Family" is a mildly amusing
line of toys produced by Japanese toy giant Tomy, which makes the aforementioned
claims
on its website.
These amusements come in two main flavours: Hidamari
no Tami (The Sunny People) and Hanauta no Tami (The Humming People).
Measuring in at slightly over 4 inches tall, they sit on your desktop, bobbing
and swaying their oversized heads to a silent rhythm. The main difference
between the two
is
that the Hidamari no Tami run on solar power, and do nothing more
than nod at you all day long (as long as the lights are on), whereas the Hanauta
no Tami are slightly more vocal. Powered by batteries, they sing cute
little songs to you while bobbing their heads. In a show of true Japanese
ingenuity, the things are designed so that they sing different parts of the
same song
when
connected by a cable.
Recently, numerous imitation toys have surfaced on the market, all claiming
to be the real thing, though their comparatively low prices and quality set
them apart from the original.
I've owned an original for a good part of a year now, and I must say its charming
and sedative effects are still as potent on me as the day I first got it.
Or maybe I'm just easily amused. =)
For more pictures and information, check out the following sites:
http://www.tomy.com
http://tinkerville.cutthatout.com/hidamari/
http://www.gizmo-guru.com/coolstuff/hidamari_no_tami.htm