Not Your Average Inventions

There seems to be no limit to human innovation and ingenuity, but some inventions are wonderful while others are just weird. The following collection showcases some of the wackiest inventions we've found.

Larry West is a freelance writer in the Pacific Northwest.

This handy device makes it easy for a woman to smuggle her favorite beverage into movies, concerts and sporting events while enhancing your bust size enough to turn men's heads. The drink-dispensing bra has a polyurethane bladder that holds more than 25 fluid ounces of wine, soda or other liquid pleasure, and comes with a drinking tube that can also be used to keep the bra inflated when it's empty.

"A good man is hard to find," according to the famous short story by Flannery O'Connor, and women who cuddle up to the Man Pillow (also called the Boyfriend Arm Pillow) as a cure for the absence of male companionship may want to keep looking. Still, the half-torso/one-arm pillow offers an overstuffed embrace any woman could love -- and one that loves back. Best of all, there's no snoring.

Doggles are exactly what the name implies: protective eyewear (goggles) for dogs. The tinted lenses, held in place by an elastic strap, protect dogs' eyes from harmful UV rays as well as dust and other airborne debris. Doggles may look comical on some dogs, but they've done serious duty shielding military dogs' eyes from flying sand in war-torn places like Iraq.

This motorized twirling spaghetti fork is perfect for people who love pasta and are either too lazy or too uncoordinated to twirl their noodles without battery-powered assistance. It also makes a great gift for people of all ages who just like to play with their food.

Change the climate of your home or office with a carpet that communicates an urgent environmental message while making a bold design statement. The global warming rug, from Barcelona-based rug company nanimarquina and Mexican design collective NEL, features a lonely polar bear on a small ice floe in a sea of ocean-blue wool. According to nanimarquina, "the global warming rug is a proposition of hope, the potential for a better future . . ."

This specialty undergarment from the Japanese subsidiary of Triumph International, a 100-year-old lingerie company, combines fashion and farming for something truly unique. Women who wear the "Grow Your Own Rice Bra" strap a couple of potted rice patties atop their breasts and wait for a starchy snack to appear. Given that rice plants can grow as high as five feet and take 200 days to mature, however, things could get a little messy before the harvest comes in.

Part knife rack, part voodoo doll, this unusual kitchen utensil is the latest thing in efficient blade storage and cutting-edge catharsis. Perfect for amateur chefs recovering from bad relationships, the Ex knife holder comes in a variety of colors and includes five high-quality stainless steel knives, each one strategically placed for maximum emotional satisfaction.

This multi-purpose vehicle looks like a cross between a golf cart and an outhouse. The whimsical car features two full-size porcelain toilets, which serve as seats for the driver and one passenger, and includes six toilet-paper holders and a magazine rack. Dave Hersch of Colorado may be flush with success now, but he went through three prototypes and spent four years building the car, which has a 6.5 horsepower engine that can carry two adults at 30 miles per hour.

This clever invention transforms a standard window into a balcony that comfortably holds a small furniture set and two people, enjoying the view with their morning coffee or evening cocktails. It started in Sweden, where government ordinances prevented landlords from adding balconies to historic apartment buildings. A motorized leverage system lowers and retracts the steel-and-aluminum balcony, which comes in a range of colors.