A mysterious box appeared in a parking at Erie Community College campus in Amherst, New York, Friday afternoon. The state police bomb squad responded and took an x-ray of the sealed box, which showed a cat inside! Police turned the cat over to the local SPCA. Gina Browning of the Tonawanda SPCA says the cat is okay.
“The cat was not malnourished, not dehydrated, didn’t need any kind of veterinary care. So, it had a happy ending. What concerns me is the people capable of doing this might be capable of doing something worse,” Browning said.
Just who would put a cat in a taped up box and leave it in a parking lot remains a mystery at this point.
Capt. Camilleri said, “Right now it doesn’t appear there’s really much to follow up on. It didn’t have any identification on the box or anything like that.”
The upside to this is that the cat, named “Truffle,” is fine, healthy and back with her owner. Tracking down the person responsible is unlikely, if not impossible.
If found, the persons responsible could be charged with animal cruelty. Even Erwin Schrödinger never wanted to try his famous thought experiment on a real cat. Link -via Arbroath

Random Crap Tin Cigar Box – $14.95
Are you feeling overwhelmed by all the random crap you would never dream of parting with, but have no idea why you have? No, don’t get rid of it! Organize it with the Random Crap Tin Cigar Box from the NeatoShop. This little box will provide the perfect home for all that extra special stuff.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more fun and funny Money Banks & Storage items!

Halloween Mini Microbe Box – $24.95

Forget ghouls and goblins! Nothing screams happy Halloween like a Jack o’ Lantern shaped box filled with scary microbes from the NeatoShop. The Halloween Mini Microbe Box contains 5 fabulously costumed mini microbe plush toys:
Limited supply available. Get your Halloween Mini Microbe Box today.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more Giant Microbe or Halloween fun!
One cat traps another in a box. Then a lion walks up. -via reddit
Domo Tin Lunch Box – $11.95
Do you love Domo? Now with the Domo Tin Lunch Box from the NeatoShop you can take Domo on the go. Fill up this great little box with a snack or just some of your favorite things. You can even fill it with several small apples, but we don’t think Domo would like that very much.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more fantastic Lunch Boxes.
I read about a study that found people are less likely to steal things if they feel they are being watched -even if it’s just a photograph of someone looking at them. If that’s the case, no one would dare open a box that sports an eye stalk! Artist Angela Rose made this box and many more with an eye in each, which will discourage anyone from pilfering the contents. See the entire selection at Necropolis Studios. Link -Thanks, Stuart!
Nick McBride of Juniata College sent in pictures of some fun his department had with leftover Macintosh computer boxes. They made furniture out of them!
The couch that we put together can hold 2 or 3 people, has built in
cup holders, and would retail for $12,000 (if you purchased the Macs
to make it). We kept all the internal foam pieces to further reinforce
the sitting areas.The easy chair was built the same way.
-Thanks, Nick!
Mummy Jewelry Box – $10.95
This is not your Mummy’s Jewelry Box. No, wait! It is your Mummy Jewelry Box.
With this amazing trinket box from the NeatoShop you can keep your prized possessions under wraps.
Be sure to check out all the fantastic Money Banks & Storage items available at the NeatoShop.
Russian Nesting Doll (Matryoshka) Trinket Box – $6.95
Are you crazy about Matryoshkas? Behold the fantastic Russian Nesting Doll (Matryoshka) Trinket Box from the NeatoShop. It’s so cute in an angry, scary, and bitter kind of way. It’s the perfect gift for anyone who dreams of being cloned.
Be sure to check out all the fabulous Home & Garden items available at the NeatoShop!
This cat may not have opposable thumbs, but he knows someone who does! As one commenter said, you know who wears the pants in this relationship. -via reddit
We know Maru has a thing for boxes. Is there any box too small to capture his interest? Let’s find out. -via Buzzfeed
Every cat that has ever been introduced to a box does this, without fail. Simon’s cat is simply here to demonstrate.
Our weekly collaboration with the What is it? Blog brings us this mysterious object – can you guess what it is for?
Place your guess in the comment section. No prize this week, so you’re playing for fame and glory only. Please don’t post any URL – let others play.
For more clues, check out the What is it? Blog.
Update 1/9/09 – the answer: An Honor Box or English Tavern Tobacco Box from the mid 1800′s, it could have been found in a bar where a patron would insert a coin and push the button to open the lid and, on his honor, take out just enough tobacco to fill his pipe.
Congrats to Shrike who guessed right!
Tuttuki Bako (or Tuttuki Box) is a toy unlike any other.
Made by Bandai Japan (who else but the Japanese would make such a wonderfully silly thing?), the box is a clock … until you insert your index finger into the hole on its side. Then, it’s game on: you’ll see a digital replica of your finger and you can explore a virtual world like tickling a Panda, or playing with a squishy slime ball.
Link – via sleepinginmyhead | Here’s the video clip of the Tuttuki Bako in action

