Naked At the Walmart of Europe

Sometimes, knowing another language startles you. Recently, I was at Ikea in Costa Mesa with the GF and her kids. While walking around the store, we saw a display of Näckten Towels. I knew that the Dutch word "Naakt," for naked was similar, and that's probably what it meant. A little googling, and I found that "Nackten," is the plural in German. With the accent, it means nothing, and a search yields towel displays.

The whole thing seemed strange for Orange County, California's premier mindless region. It produced Richard Nixon. Politicians from there are jowly know-it-alls who have been giving the same speech since at least 1890. It's the kind of place where people would be offended, if they could get something out of it. Luckily for Ikea, those in Orange County who can read the signs aren't likely to be offended. Those who would get offended can't read them and aren't interested in learning. They can usually read English but try to avoid it.

All that being said, Näckten Towels are some of the worst I have ever seen. They would usually be sold as shop towels. I think someone on the board saw them and said, "Hey! Let's give them a racy name and dye them hot pink and orange!"