Real-life superheroes
clad in skintight spandex costumes are running amok in the streets of US cities,
according to this article in the Times.
The World Superhero Registry lists more
than 200 of them, who patrol the urban streets dressed up in outfits of spandex
(the generic term, invented by DuPont in 1959, of which the most well-known
brand is Invista's Lycra, and of which a key ingredient is MEG - mono-ethylene glycol.)
A cursory
visit to the Lycra website has convinced the Blog that this is by far the
sauciest chemicals company website in the normally staid petrochemicals space. Not
wanting to kick a company when it's down, but if you look beyond the raunchy
pictures, there is also some excruciating brand poetry:
"If black is sexy, there's nothing sexier than my
bra. My after-hours secret. Nothing comfier. Nothing blacker.
My
swimsuit. It moves and stretches. It speeds and glides, in lakes, in oceans, or
the local pool.
Clothes that help me unwind. No matter what position I'm in. Or trying to get in."
And that's before you get into the "Hosiery and Socks" section.
Elbowing aside the photos of firm bodies clad in "Intimate Apparel", the Blog's own favourite Lycra photo has to be this one of the K9 Topcoat Lycra Bodysuit.
Ever hear of Shadowhare? He is a real life urban superhero. He and his group, the Allegiance of Heroes, patrol the streets of Cincinnati fighting crime and helping people in trouble, replete with masks and costumes. It does take courage, especially since they have purported to be willing to perform a citizen's arrest on anyone they find up to no good, and they are armed with handcuffs and pepper spray.