Ahhh Ranger! I know exactly what you're talking about! They're supposedly for things like the "behind the bed" outlet, You plug that thing in & take an end to each side of the bed for a lamp & alarm clock, etc... Except when I seem to find em in use, there's a 1500 watt space heater stuck in there also! People seem amazed when I pull the male end of the Y cord from the wall, the rubber around the prongs is mushroomed from heat!
I think I've seen everything short of actual bubblegum wrapped around a splice at one time or another... Saran wrap, scotch tape, blue masking tape, band-aids, rubber cement dipped ..... I went to a home once where the insulation was worn off the wires feeding power to the garage from the house.. The HO tore up an old tshirt & taped it over one of the wires so the wind wouldn't keep blowing em together & tripping his breaker!
-Randy