924 lines
33 KiB
Plaintext
924 lines
33 KiB
Plaintext
============================================================================
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********* *** *** ******
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********* *** *** *** *
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*** *** *** *** **
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*** ********* *******
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*** *** *** *** **
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*** *** *** *** **
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*** he *** *** umus *** ** eport
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THE Electronic Fun Zone dedicated to fertilizing Mother Earth
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in the finest possible tradition. Serving Mother since the 1950s.
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Issue 011, Vol III #01
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January 1990
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copyright (c) 1990
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caren park
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chief bottle washer, owner, publisher, editor, other stuff
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all rights reserved, and all that legal rigamarole
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============================================================================
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A very few words:::
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Again, sorry that I've been away from writing for so long (last
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issue was april 89), but spending a lot of time away from home can
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sometimes do that to a person... There are literally megabytes of input
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saved between the last issue and this, giving us many more months of
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masterful mirth once I get around to putting it into a format that is
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functional and etc...
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This means "The Humus Report" is still alive and in no apparent
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danger of going down permanently unless I die or the world turns humourless
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for months on end... While General Bush and his trusty sidekick, "Pancho"
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Quayle deal marked cards to the world at large, I'll be out there reporting
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on it all, the bizarre, the unusual, the words straight from the horse's
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(pick an end, any end)... Who knows? Some of it might even be true... :)
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We can thank "The Words for Today, Boys and Girls" (listen for Jack
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Nicholson doing his Mr Rogers imitation in the background), Murphy, Durham
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(North Carolina), a cast of tens, legislators everywhere, and Burger King
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for making it exceptionally easy to find good fertilizings...
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So, without further adieu, on with the show...
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============================================================================
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"Abandon hope, all ye who enter here..."
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============================================================================
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No matter how often you trade dinner or other invitations with in-
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laws, you will lose a small fortune in the exchange
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Corollary:
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Don't try it; you cannot drink enough of your in-laws' booze to get
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even before the liver fails
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- Jackson Clark -
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-----
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The words George Carlin made famous are words that virtually
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everyone has heard, words virtually every one of us has *used* from time to
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time, some of us more often than others. They are not "politic" words,
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though, and that sometimes bothers me. Why should such useful words find
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such hypocrisy over their use?
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For those of you nestled in places where "such words" are deemed
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inappropriate, I will play the hypocrite and allow you the use of the
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following list when those words become truly necessary...
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-----
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Management wishes to bring to the attention of all personnel, that
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some individuals have been using abusive language in the exchange of normal
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verbal communications with relation to the performance of routine
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activities.
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This code list is provided to permit individual freedom and
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originality of our fellow employees to alleviate frustration and provide a
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clearer, precise, and effective means of communicatoin to one another and
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not offend those individuals with sensitive ears that may be within hearing
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distance.
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To preclude mistaking the communication codes with department
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numbers and telephone extensions, management has assigned 800 and 900
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numbers to be utilized for your convenience and clarity.
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801: You've got to be shitting me
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802: Get off my fucking back
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803: Beats the shit out of me
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804: What the fuck
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805: It's so fucking bad, I can't believe it
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806: I hate this fucking place
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807: This place sucks
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808: Fuck you very much
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809: Lovely. Simply, fucking lovely
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810: That damn Club
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811: Beautiful, just fucking beautiful
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812: Fuck, shit, piss
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813: Hair pie, fur burgers
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814: I just got fucked
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815: Big fucking deal
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816: Hang it in your fucking ear
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817: Get bent
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819: I don't give a shit
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820: Merry fucking Christmas
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821: Fuck it, just fuck it
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822: Hot shit
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823: Bitching
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824: Tell someone who gives a shit
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825: Don't get fucking wise
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826: I don't give a fuck
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827: Pardon me, sir, you obviously mistook me for someone who
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gives a shit
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828: I didn't design the fucking thing, I just bought the Mother-
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fucker
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829: Your ass sucks wind
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830: It won't fucking work
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831: Go pound sand in your ass
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832: Fuck off
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833: Who called this fucking meeting?
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834: No shit
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835: No fucking shit
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836: Go to hell
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837: Cool it, this is my wife/husband; Follow my lead
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837: I'm free this weekend
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838: Take your time, I don't want to be stuck with this ass for
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lunch
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839: Help me dump this mother
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840: Let's ball at lunch
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900: I'm free tonight
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901: Tied up with wife/husband tonight
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902: Call me at home to come back to work
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903: Call back later, my husband/wife is listening
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904: Let's take off sick together
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905: Meet you at the motel
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906: Let's snag them for tonight
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907: Can't do better for now...
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908: Let's trade balling partners
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909: Is he/she available?
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910: Muddy field, couldn't play
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911: Where the fuck are we?
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912: Too fucking cold
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913: Tough shit
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914: Tough shit, people in hell want ice water
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915: You're fucking fired
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916: Maintain a low profile
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917: Blow it out your ass
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918: If you don't like my face, piss on it
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919: Fucked beyond all repair
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920: Un-fucking-believable
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921: Adios, Mother-fucker!
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922: Fuck you
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923: Fuuuuuuck!!!!
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924: What the fuck?
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925: Fuck me running in the morning
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927: If you don't like my face, fuck it
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928: Well, you know what Grandma says...
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929: Grandma says, "Fuck ya if you can't take a joke"
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930: Look at the fucking head on that one
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931: Not only no, but HELL NO!
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Total cooperation of all personnel in this project will be greatly
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appreciated, for without it 915, 834!
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Remember: 830 without TEAMWORK!!!
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Sincerely,
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The Fucking Management
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-----
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Editor's Note: Of course, there is also the following, for those that may
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not have understood any of the previous... :)
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-----
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Will You Just Fuckin' Read This, Please?
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Perhaps one of the most interesting and colorful words in the
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English language today is the word "fuck." It is one magical word which,
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JUST BY ITS SOUND, can describe pain, pleasure, hate, and love. "Fuck"
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comes from the German word "Frigon," meaning "whoopee."
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In language, "fuck" falls into many grammatical categories. It can
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be used as a verb, transitive ("John fucked Mary") and intransitive ("Mary
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was fucked"), as a noun ("Mary is a fine fuck"), and as an adjective ("Mary
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is fucking rad").
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From this, you can see that there are not many words with the
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versatility of "fuck." Besides its sexual connotation, this lovely word can
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be used to describe many situations, such as:
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Aggression Fuck you!
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Confusion What the fuck?
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Curiosity What the fuck IS it?
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Desire I'd love to fuck HER!
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Despair Fucked again.
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Difficulty Fuck it, Shit!
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Dismay Oh, fuck it!
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Displeasure What the fuck is going on?
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Fraud I got fucked!
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Incompetence He's all fucked up!
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Laziness He's a fuck off!
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Over-partying I'm WAY too fucked up!
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Passivity Fuck me!
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Partying Let's get fucked up!
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Philosophical Who gives a fuck?
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Pleasure That's fuckin' great!
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Rebellion I don't give a fuck!
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Sexuality What a great fuck!
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Size/Surprise Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!!!
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Trouble I guess I'm fucked now!
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It can be used:
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to describe ANATOMY: He's really a fucking asshole!
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to tell TIME: It's five-fucking-thirty!
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in BUSINESS: How did I get this fucking job?
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MATERNALLY: He's a fucking asshole!
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NAUTICALLY: Fuck the Admiral!
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POLITICALLY: Fuck Reagan!
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to start FRIENDSHIPS: Let's fuck, bitch!
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in FINANCE: Here's your five fucking bucks!
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in PSYCHOLOGY: He's fucking crazy!
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The mind boggles at the many more creative forms of this multi-
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functional word. How can anyone be offended when you say "fuck?"
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So today, tell someone... FUCK YOU!
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-----
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When I grow up, my bad checks are gonna have higher numbers
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- Paul Carpentier, 07 March 1989 05:11 -
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============================================================================
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Looking at my watch, I noticed that it was "Sick Joke Time!" If any
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of you have contributions you can make to "Sick Joke Time," please send them
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along... See the end of the newsletter for more details...
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-----
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A nun walks into a liquor store, walks up to the counter and says to
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the cashier, "I want a bottle of your strongest Vodka, please"
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The man seems somewhat shocked and replies with, "But sister, isn't
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that kind of strong drink for someone of your order?"
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The nun replies with, "Oh no. It's not for me! It's for the poor
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dear Mother Superior. It's to clear her constipation."
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The man is relieved, and wraps the bottle up for the nun and wishes
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her a good day. A few hours later, he closes up the shop, and starts on his
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way home. He walks a few blocks, when he happens to stumble upon the nun,
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laying next to a building, with the bottle of vodka in her hand. He runs up
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to her an exclaims, "Dear sister, I thought you said that the bottle of
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booze was for your poor Mother Superior's constipation?"
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"It is," the nun manages to slur.
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"So why are you drinking it," asks the obviously confused man.
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"Are you stupid? Do you realize what she is going to do when she
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SEES me like this?"
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============================================================================
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No man can possibly improve in any company for which he has not
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respect enough to be under some degree of restraint
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- Chesterfield -
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-----
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Problem: The question arose while poring over the following cash
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register receipt from Burger King, "Why is the word 'WHOPPER' misspelled?":
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,-------------------------,
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| BR KING 1909 |
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| 16 F E B 13:18 |
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| 1 WHOPER 1.40 |
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| *** ONL Y |
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| K O |
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| 1 CHICKEN 1.79 |
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| 1 EAT IN .00 |
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| 1 FRIES .52 |
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| 1 PEPS L .70 |
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| 1 DIET L .70 |
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| TX .31 |
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| 32 TOTAL 5 5.42 |
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| CASH 6.00 |
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| RET URN .58 |
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'-------------------------'
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Hypotheses:
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.1. Fields are a maximum of 6 characters long.
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Rejected: 'CHICKEN' extends into column 7.
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.2. Whoever programmed the system can't spell properly.
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Rejected: Burger King management would damn well make sure
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that the names of their products were spelled correctly. Also, other
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anomalies exist, i.e., the blanks in the words "ONLY" and "RETURN," and the
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left margin is ragged.
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.3. Burger King cash registers can only print certain characters in
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certain columns, forcing the odd spelling and odd format. This hypothesis
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seems to have the most merit. The original receipt shows that the printing
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mechanism prints characters from fully-formed images, not in a dot-matrix
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form. Thus we can visualize the print mechanism as consisting of a rotating
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wheel for each column. Since to fit all 36 alphamers on each wheel would
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probably give them too great a diameter to be practical, only a selected
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subset of the letters are put on each wheel, and the spelling and
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positioning of the item names has to be adjusted to fit this scheme.
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It would appear that Burger King even chooses the names for new
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products with the design of their cash registers in mind. For example,
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their fish sandwich is called the "Whaler," which is easily printed using
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the W, H, E, and R from 'WHOPER', the A from 'EAT IN' and the 'L' from 'ONL
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Y'. However, it could just have easily been called 'FISH' by taking the F
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in 'FRIES', the I in 'DIET', and the S and H from 'CASH', so it appears that
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even this hypothesis is a little weak.
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Any other hypotheses and further research by readers would be
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welcomed...
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Received: by MAINE id 1110; Fri, 01 Mar 85 05:59:35 EST
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Subject: The reason why WHOPPER is spelled WHOPER
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To: Brent Britton <BRENT@MAINE>
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From: Barry D. Gates <CS23124@MAINE>
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Date: Fri, 1 Mar 1985 04:53 EST
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It has come to my attention that a great furor has been aroused in
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the field of computer academia over the spelling of the word WHOPPER on
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receipts from Burger King. First of all, it should be pointed out that I do
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not, as a normal matter of habit, frequent such substandard eateries as this
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when a choice does exist, but at one occasion I did happen to stop into one
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of fast food establishments with several of my academic colleagues during
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this past summer and we happened to notice these strange encryptic
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printouts.
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After staring at these strange writings for a few minutes we noticed
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the similarity between our cash receipts and xediting a file that had been
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sent from a Vax (small mainframe computer, usually dedicated to tasks such
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as graphics which deserve to be done on such machines) using the
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SEND/FILE/BINARY command. The Vax, as most of you should know, communicates
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with an extended version of the ASCII character set, whereas the IBM uses
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the EBCDIC character set. This translation from one set to another allows
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some characters to be translated the into gibberish, others into different
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characters, and still others to remain unchanged.
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It is from this observation that I was able to determine the reason
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for the strange and somewhat cryptic spellings on Burger King receipts. As
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you all know, the EBCDIC character set is the successor to an older
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character set called BCD. This BCD character set was used by IBM in its
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computers back in the late 1950s/early 1960s in the IBM 1400-series
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computers. From a back issue of the Scientific American (December 1962 to
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be exact), I discovered a company by the name of Inter-Code Business Machine
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Company who had built an extension to the BCD character set for use in their
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computer, the SS-20. The company was declared bankrupt after selling less
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than 12 computers, and they were left with over 12,000 more of these
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machines in stock. The name of their character set was called BCDCB. One
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of the best aspects of their computer was that it was all capable of being
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housed in a box no larger than a terminal.
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At the same time that ICBM was going bankrupt, Burger King had just
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come into the fast food market and was in need of tax shelters. In a deal
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to help pay ICBM's creditors, they agreed to purchase the remaining stock of
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SS-20s from ICBM for the cost of $20 (a dollar could buy a lot more back in
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the old days). As time went on, Burger King never really did anything with
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their $20 investment, and the SS-20s remained stockpiled in one of Burger
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King's wharehouses.
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Then came the age of Computerized Cash Registers.
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Burger King was in bad economic straights back in 1973 when they
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were losing massive numbers of customers to an Irish-American hamburger
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chain (which shall also remain nameless). They also wished to get some new
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electronic cash registers for their counters. An old janitor at Burger King
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happened to stumble on the old SS-20s one day, and one of the head
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programmers at Burger King came up with a great idea. Why not take an old
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SS-20, put an aluminum box around it and put a keypad on top and use the
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device as a cash register (you will remember that ICBM was ahead of its time
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in making computers small).
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The idea worked; it worked fabulously, in fact. However, several
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years later, they decided to add a receipt printer to the whole combo. Here
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is where our trouble is. As I had mentioned before, BCD and BCDCB were not
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quite the same. Burger King, however, did not realize this until after they
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had bought the 12,000 BCD receipt printers they thought they needed. They
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also did not realize this fact until after they had mounted all 12,000
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printers onto their cash registers.
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The SS-20s had a rather odd character-out routine, which would
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switch to graphics mode whenever to identical characters were sent in
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succession. The letter 'R' also could cause problems, because that was how
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you returned from graphics mode back into text mode (the process of
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converting back to text mode is rather slow on these machines however, and
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usually takes about as much time as it takes to send another 5 characters).
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So, as you can see the word WHOPPER is actually what the SS-20 is
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printing, but the second 'P' would put the SS-20s normal display device (the
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GLCM) into graphics mode. Since a receipt printer does not have a graphics
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mode, it just ignores the strange code it gets entirely. The second problem
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I just mentioned also explains why the string 'FRENCH FRIES' appears as
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'FFRIES' on a Burger King receipt tape.
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I have, over this past break, worked out the translation code from
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BCDCB into either BCD, EBCDIC or ASCII. If anyone should happen to want
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this program, I will be glad to send the source code along. I also have
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developed the code to make a Visual 550 act as a GLCM. Together, these are
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the start of a really excellent graphics package. If you wish to know how
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to make your Visual 550 act as a GLCM, please give me a call and I will
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drive to your installation and personally give your Visual its 'test
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flight'.
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Oh, well. I have to run now. I hope this clears up any problems
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that might have developed. Later, Barry...
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-----
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Most essential qualification for a politician: The ability to
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foretell what will happen tomorrow, next month, and next year --- and to
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explain afterward why it did not happen
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- Winston Churchill -
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-----
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Ex-presidents ought to be taken out on a five-acre lot and shot
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- Grover Cleveland, 22nd/24th President USA -
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============================================================================
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My brother is an only child
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- Bennett Cerf -
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-----
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My, the things you can learn by reading The Humus Report... Boggles
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the mind, don't it? :)... Why, did you know that:
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Wakefield, Rhode Island:
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Citizens are not allowed to enter an airplane within four hours of
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eating garlic
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Okanogan, Washington:
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Citizens cannot carry a slingshot on an airplane without special
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permission
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Peewee, West Virginia:
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Don't let your horse fall asleep in the airport
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Hackberry, Arizona:
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Gargling is prohibited while flying
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Columbia, Pennsylvania:
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It is against the law for a pilot to tickle a female flying student
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under her chin with a feather duster in order to get her attention
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Bicknell, Indiana:
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It is against the law to eat ice cream in the local airport with a
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fork
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Lynch Heights, Delaware:
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It is against the law to sneeze in an airplane
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Pocataligo, Georgia:
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It is a violation for a woman over 200 pounds and attired in shorts
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to pilot or ride in an airplane
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Lowes Crossroads, Delaware:
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It is a violation of local law for any pilot or passenger to carry
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an ice cream cone in their pocket while either flying or waiting to
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board a plane
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Wellsboro, Pennsylvania:
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Juggling in front of an airplane is illegal
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Kidderville, New Hampshire:
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Lingerie can't be hung on a clothesline at the airport unless the
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undies are carefully hidden from prying eyes by a "suitable screen"
|
||
|
||
Halstead, Kansas:
|
||
|
||
Loud burping while walking around the airport is prohibited
|
||
|
||
Kentucky:
|
||
|
||
No female shall appear in a bathing suit at any airport in this
|
||
state unless she is escorted by two officers or unless she is armed
|
||
with a club. The provisions of this statute shall not apply to
|
||
females weighing less than 90 pounds nor exceeding 200 pounds, nor
|
||
shall it apply to female horses
|
||
|
||
Headland, Alabama:
|
||
|
||
No female wearing a nightgown can be taken for a flight on a private
|
||
plane
|
||
|
||
Guyman, Oklahoma:
|
||
|
||
No flyer may wear a pair of pants with hip pockets while flying
|
||
|
||
Rock Springs, Wyoming:
|
||
|
||
No flying instructor "can place his arm around a woman without a
|
||
good and lawful reason" while flying
|
||
|
||
Burdoville, Vermont:
|
||
|
||
No married man can go flying on Sunday
|
||
|
||
West Union, Ohio:
|
||
|
||
No married man can go flying without his spouse along at any time,
|
||
unless he has been married for more than 12 months
|
||
|
||
White Horse, New Mexico:
|
||
|
||
No one can play cards on the airport grounds with a woman, a child,
|
||
or an indian
|
||
|
||
Fairplay, Colorado:
|
||
|
||
No one --- man, woman, or child --- can be seen flying while
|
||
barefoot
|
||
|
||
Upperville, Virginia:
|
||
|
||
No person is allowed to read the Sunday paper while sitting in a
|
||
chair at the airport while church services are going on
|
||
|
||
Leadwood, Missouri:
|
||
|
||
No pilot can eat unshelled roasted peanuts or watermelon while
|
||
flying
|
||
|
||
Bourbon, Mississippi:
|
||
|
||
No turtle races shall be held at the airport
|
||
|
||
Clearbrook, Minnesota:
|
||
|
||
People cannot play checkers at the airport, "lest they acquire a
|
||
taste for gambling"
|
||
|
||
Bluff, Utah:
|
||
|
||
Pilots and passengers are prohibited from eating onions between the
|
||
hours of 7am and 7pm
|
||
|
||
Stugis, Michigan:
|
||
|
||
Roosters may crow, but only if it is done at least 300 feet from the
|
||
airport
|
||
|
||
Crawford, Nebraska:
|
||
|
||
Women who are single, widowed, or divorced are banned from
|
||
parachuting on Sunday
|
||
|
||
-----
|
||
|
||
My precept to all who build is that the owner should be an ornament
|
||
to the house, and not the house an ornament to the owner
|
||
|
||
- Cicero -
|
||
|
||
============================================================================
|
||
|
||
Ah, yes, the news... All the news that fits, we print...
|
||
|
||
-----
|
||
|
||
Signs of the Times
|
||
|
||
On 13 October 1944, the Durham (North Carolina) Sun reported that a
|
||
Durhamite had been brought before a Judge Wison in traffic court for having
|
||
parked his car on a restricted street right in front of a sign that read "No
|
||
Stoping."
|
||
|
||
Rather than pleading guilty, the defendant argued that the missing
|
||
letter in the sign meant that he had not violated the letter of the law.
|
||
Brandishing a Webster's dictionary, he noted that stoping means:
|
||
|
||
"extracting ore from a stope or, loosely, underground"
|
||
|
||
"Your Honor," said the man, "I am a law-abiding citizen and I didn't
|
||
extract any ore from the area of the sign. I move that the case be
|
||
dismissed."
|
||
|
||
Acknowledging that the defendant hadn't done any illegal mining, the
|
||
judge declared the man not guilty and commented, "since this is Friday, the
|
||
13th, anything can happen, so I'll turn you loose."
|
||
|
||
"No Stoping" is a blunderful example of the suspect signs and
|
||
botched billboards that dot the American landscape. Here are some other
|
||
signs that need to be re-signed:
|
||
|
||
At restaurant-gas stations throughout the nation:
|
||
"Eat here and get gas"
|
||
|
||
At a Sante Fe gas station:
|
||
"We will sell gasoline to anyone in a glass container"
|
||
|
||
In a New Hampshire jewelry store:
|
||
"Ears pierced while you wait"
|
||
|
||
In an New York restaurant:
|
||
"Customers who consider our waitresses uncivil ought to see the
|
||
manager"
|
||
|
||
In a Michigan restaurant:
|
||
"The early bird gets the worm!"
|
||
"Special shoppers' luncheon before 11:00 AM"
|
||
|
||
On a delicatessen wall:
|
||
"Our best is none too good"
|
||
|
||
On the wall of a Baltimore estate:
|
||
"Trespassers will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law --
|
||
Sisters of Mercy"
|
||
|
||
On a long-established New Mexico dry cleaning store:
|
||
"Thirty-eight years on the same spot"
|
||
|
||
In a Los Angeles dance hall:
|
||
"Good clean dancing every night but Sunday"
|
||
|
||
On a movie theater:
|
||
"Children's matinee today. Adults not admitted unless with child"
|
||
|
||
In a Florida maternity ward:
|
||
"No children allowed!"
|
||
|
||
In a New York drugstore:
|
||
"We dispense with accuracy"
|
||
|
||
On a New York loft building:
|
||
"Wanted: Woman to sew buttons on the fourth floor"
|
||
|
||
In a New Hampshire medical building:
|
||
"Martin Diabetes Professional Ass"
|
||
|
||
In the office of a loan company:
|
||
"Ask about our plans for owning your home"
|
||
|
||
In a New York medical building:
|
||
"Mental health prevention center"
|
||
|
||
In a toy department:
|
||
"Five Santa Clauses -- no waiting"
|
||
|
||
On a New York convalescent home:
|
||
"For the sick and tired of the Episcopal Church"
|
||
|
||
On a Maine shop:
|
||
"Our motto is to give our customers the lowest possible prices and
|
||
workmanship"
|
||
|
||
At a number of military bases:
|
||
"Restricted to unauthorized personnel"
|
||
|
||
In a number of parking areas:
|
||
"Violators will be enforced and Trespassers will be violated"
|
||
|
||
On a display of "I Love You Only" Valentine cards:
|
||
"Now available in multi-packs"
|
||
|
||
In the window of a Kentucky appliance store:
|
||
"Don't kill your wife. Let our washing machines do the dirty work"
|
||
|
||
In a funeral parlor:
|
||
"Ask about our layaway plan"
|
||
|
||
On a window of a New Hampshire hamburger restaurant:
|
||
"Yes, we are open. Sorry for the inconvenience"
|
||
|
||
In a clothing store:
|
||
"Wonderful bargains for men with 16 and 17 necks"
|
||
|
||
In a Tacoma, Washington men's clothing store:
|
||
"15 men's wool suits - $10.00 - They won't last an hour!"
|
||
|
||
On an Indiana shopping mall marquee:
|
||
"Archery tournament. Ears pierced"
|
||
|
||
In the bathroom of a large apartment building:
|
||
"When taking showers, please leave the bathroom door a jar. This
|
||
will prevent the plaster from peeling"
|
||
|
||
Outside a country shop:
|
||
"We buy junk and sell antiques"
|
||
|
||
On a North Carolina highway:
|
||
"EAT"
|
||
"300 FEET"
|
||
|
||
On an Ohio highway:
|
||
"Drive slower When Wet"
|
||
|
||
On a New Hampshire highway:
|
||
"You are speeding when flashing"
|
||
|
||
On a Pennsylvania highway:
|
||
"Drive carefully: Auto accidents kill most people from 15 to 19"
|
||
|
||
In downtown Boston:
|
||
"Calahan Tunnel/No. End"
|
||
|
||
In the window of an Oregon general store:
|
||
"Why go elsewhere to be cheated, when you can come here?"
|
||
|
||
In a Massachusetts parking area reserved for birdwatchers:
|
||
"Parking for birds only"
|
||
|
||
In a New Jersey restaurant:
|
||
"Open 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM Midnight"
|
||
|
||
In front of a New Hampshire restaurant:
|
||
"Now serving live lobsters"
|
||
|
||
In front of a New Hampshire store:
|
||
"Endurable floors"
|
||
|
||
On a radiator repair garage:
|
||
"Best place to take a leak"
|
||
|
||
On a movie marquee:
|
||
Now Playing:
|
||
Adam and Eve
|
||
with a cast of thousands!
|
||
|
||
In the vestry of a New England church:
|
||
"Will the last person to leave please see that the perpetual light
|
||
is extinguished"
|
||
|
||
In a Pennsylvania cemetery:
|
||
"Persons are prohibited from picking flowers from any but their own
|
||
graves"
|
||
|
||
On a roller coaster:
|
||
"Watch your head"
|
||
|
||
On the grounds of a private school:
|
||
"No trespassing without permission"
|
||
|
||
In a library:
|
||
"Blotter paper will no longer be available until the public stops
|
||
taking it away"
|
||
|
||
On a Tennessee highway:
|
||
"Take Notice: When this sign is under water, the road is
|
||
impassable"
|
||
|
||
Similarily in a New Hampshire car wash:
|
||
"If you can't read this, it's time you wash your car"
|
||
|
||
- 13 October 1944 Durham (North Carolina) Sun -
|
||
|
||
-----
|
||
|
||
The city is looking out for its frogs, which leap in mean streets
|
||
teeming with sewer holes and enemy automobiles. There is a new sign in
|
||
these parts to protect the creatures. It reads: "Frog Crossing."
|
||
|
||
In recent weeks, many frogs were dying unnecessarily in city sewers
|
||
after leaping into the streets from the Schmeekle Reserve on the campus of
|
||
the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Once in the street, the frogs
|
||
could not leap over the curbs, so they would continue down the street where
|
||
many eventually fell to their deaths through sewer grates.
|
||
|
||
At the request of reserve officials, the city took steps to increase
|
||
the longevity of the frogs. City crews working on curb and street repair in
|
||
the area inserted "curb cuts," or little ramps in the curbs near the grates
|
||
for the frogs to walk up and head for nearby woods and ponds.
|
||
|
||
The city also erected the "Frog Crossing" signs to alert motorists
|
||
to slow down for the creatures.
|
||
|
||
"The signs are tongue-in-cheek," Stevens Point Mayor Scott Schultz
|
||
said, "but the city doesn't want to lose sight of relations between urban
|
||
and wildlife areas"
|
||
|
||
- 08 July 1987 Stevens Point Wisconsin UPI -
|
||
|
||
-----
|
||
|
||
Transportation officials of the Sunshine State have been embarrassed
|
||
by a huge blue sign welcoming visitors to "Floirda."
|
||
"I think somebody
|
||
goofed," said Jo Hein, who lives just a short distance from the large sign
|
||
on US 90 in the community of Beulah, west of Pensacola. "They don't know
|
||
how to spell."
|
||
|
||
The sign, which greets visitors entering the state from Alabama,
|
||
says, "Welcome to Floirda. The Sunshine State." It is like 20 other
|
||
welcome signs between Jacksonville and Pensacola, save for the misspelling.
|
||
|
||
"It sure don't give Florida much of a good advertisement," said
|
||
Hein's husband, Sylvester. He said a businessman pointed out the error to
|
||
him. "It don't speak good for us at all."
|
||
|
||
Julian McCrary, a maintenance engineer for the Department of
|
||
Transportation, said the sign was erected Thursday by a worker who has put
|
||
up similar signs in the past.
|
||
|
||
"You expect it to be right," the engineer said Tuesday. "It's quite
|
||
embarrassing. It's just an unfortunate mistake"
|
||
|
||
- 08 July 1987 Pensacola Florida UPI -
|
||
|
||
-----
|
||
|
||
Never underestimate the nature and quality of the enemy
|
||
|
||
- Clausewitz -
|
||
|
||
You can't depend on your judgment when your imagination is out of
|
||
focus
|
||
|
||
- Samuel Langhorne Clemens -
|
||
|
||
============================================================================
|
||
|
||
And, last but not least, a few words of wisdom. It's true that
|
||
mankind does not live by bread alone, and we've pretty much proved that
|
||
axiom with these unusual masterpieces. To quote someone much smarter than
|
||
myself (hi, kalen!): "I am non-denominational --- I accept all forms of
|
||
currency. So, open your hearts and empty your pockets!"
|
||
|
||
A wonderful sentiment, don't you think?
|
||
|
||
If you should find it in your hearts to like what we are doing here,
|
||
and would like to help us stay in business AND solvent, please send your
|
||
non-tax-deductible donations in whatever amount pleases you to:
|
||
|
||
caren park
|
||
2557 Fourteenth Avenue West
|
||
Suite 501
|
||
Seattle, Washington 98119
|
||
|
||
(01 January 1992)
|
||
|
||
We will acknowledge, in print, those with the warmest thoughts for
|
||
our survival...
|
||
|
||
If those among you would kindly send in junk that you have no other
|
||
use for, stuff that you read and find humorous, filth that no one else will
|
||
take, stories absurd or preposterous, news that isn't fit to line
|
||
litterboxes anywhere, if you would send those gems to us here at The Humus
|
||
Report, we'd appreciate it. We will cull from the post office box all death
|
||
threats and denunciations, and print what we can of whatever is left. The
|
||
rest is up to you...
|
||
|
||
We would appreciate it if: (1) the sending of copyrighted material
|
||
for publication was sent ONLY if you also send along a legal release for us
|
||
to use that material; (2) if you should see non-attributed copyrighted
|
||
material in our stuff, please let us know ASAP so we can take appropriate
|
||
actions; (3) if you like what we do here, please donate whatever you feel
|
||
appropriate, so that we can continue to bring you this stuff month after
|
||
month...
|
||
|
||
I also have a program contained within CKP-MSG.ZIP (a Fortune-like program)
|
||
from which everything you will see here can be found, and then some. For a
|
||
nominal cost per year, I will provide the latest copy of the ibm/compat
|
||
program AND the latest updates of the datafile to you... Address inquiries
|
||
about this<69>program and/or the datafile to the address above...
|
||
|
||
We leave you now with a few thoughts...
|
||
|
||
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
A doctor, an engineer and a software developer were sitting up late
|
||
one night, drinking beer and conducting philosophical conversations. They
|
||
deliberated for some time as to what, according to the Bible, would be
|
||
considered the oldest profession.
|
||
|
||
"In Genesis," stated the doctor, "it says that when God created man,
|
||
he took the rib of Adam, and from it created Eve. I would maintain that this
|
||
is a maneuver of surgical expertise, and therefore medicine would have to be
|
||
considered the oldest profession." His two colleagues pondered this for
|
||
some time, and concluded that the doctor's logic was sound and they could
|
||
find no fault with it.
|
||
|
||
"I would concur with your evidence," said the engineer, "but it also
|
||
says that on the first day God created order from the chaos. I assert that
|
||
this is an engineering feat, and that, therefore, engineering is the oldest
|
||
profession."
|
||
|
||
They considered this point for a while, and eventually agreed that
|
||
the engineer was correct in this statement. "However, gentlemen," the
|
||
software developer interjected, "I'll have to take issue with both
|
||
arguments; after all, from where do you think the chaos came in the first
|
||
place?"
|
||
|
||
|
||
...until next month...
|