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____________________________________________________________________________
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*****NUMBERS 196 TO 200***********BY DANIEL BOWEN (tcwf@gnu.ai.mit.edu)*****
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"Tied-up Toxic Custard"
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-------------------------
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| WELCOME TO TASMANIA |
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| "The Apple Isle" |
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| Poofters Prohibited |
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-------------------------
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* * * ***** * **** ** t o x i c c u s t a r d
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* * * * * * * * * * * * * w o r k s h o p f i l e s
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***** * * *** * * ****** * * * * * *
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* * * * * * * * * * * * * * 25/4/94 by Daniel Bowen
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* **** ***** ***** ** **** dbowen@gnu.ai.mit.edu
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Congratulations on the purchase of your new Mitsanyasonic 333-FX Gold
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Model III.
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To make using your new appliance much more pleasurable, this
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manual has been divided into three sections. To determine which
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section you should read, please answer the following question:
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Do you know how to program your VCR for timer recording?
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- Yes - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > Section A
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- Yes, with a little help from the manual - -> Section B
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- What's a VCR? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > Section C
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|SECTION A |SECTION B |SECTION C |
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|---------------------|---------------------|---------------------|
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|Experts/enthusiasts/ |Average users |Old farts who can |
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|Nerds/magazine | |barely turn the telly|
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|reviewers | |on to watch Midday |
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|---------------------|---------------------|---------------------|
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|SETTING UP-----------|GETTING IT WORKING---|MAKING IT GO---------|
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|Unpack, ensure all |Unpack, and ensure |Find some scissors to|
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|pieces enclosed. Plug|everything on the |open the box. You |
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|flagellator into |packing list is |know, the BOX. The |
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|sprocket shift, set |included. Check the |thing that it came |
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|romulus converter on.|diagram included to |in. What do you mean |
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|Run diagnostics. Then|find which pieces |you left it on the |
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|go for it! |plug in where. All |bus? You stupid old..|
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| |the cables are |ah, found it now have|
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| |numbered to match the|you? Okay. Open the |
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| |diagram. |box. Not strong |
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| | After everything is|enough?! It's only |
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| |plugged it, press the|corrugated cardboard!|
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| |Power switch to on, |<in small font so |
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| |and then press the |they can't read it> |
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| |Test button on the |Stupid old people. |
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| |back. This will do a |They shouldn't let |
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| |test to make sure the|geriatrics buy these |
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| |unit is working. Then|things... |
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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THE TIE PROBLEM
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The tie must be one of the most useless inventions in history.
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Not only useless, but irritating. Ties appear to have minds of their
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own. No matter how carefully you measure how long it's going to be,
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the tie says "no, bugger that", and somehow ends up either being
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almost down to your knees, or with the thin end longer than the
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other, looking like a very badly dressed schoolboy.
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(The solution in the latter of cases, at least for the
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undignified slobs among us, is to stuff the thin end into our shirts,
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where it can spend the day getting sweat and chest-hair all over it.
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Yeuch.)
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A strategy has been formulated by men over the last few centuries
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to deal with the length problem, but this involves lining each end up
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with various button-holes, and tends to merely make the result even
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worse. But the most annoying thing about the tie length problem is
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that it is statistically fifty-seven times more likely to occur when
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you're running out the door to catch your train.
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That's the funny thing about peak hour. The image is all
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important. It's gotta be the neatly done up tie of just the right
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length... the pager or mobile phone attached nonchalantly to the belt
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(portraying just the right combination of status and cool)... the
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sunnies, if the weather's right... briefcase packed with organiser
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(estimated likelihood: 67%), documents vital to the lasting existence
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of the company, the nation and, hell, the universe (estimated
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likelihood: 0%), and lunch (estimated likelihood: 98%).
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Perhaps there are cool points being racked up for the afterlife,
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with bonus marks for getting around the schoolkids' bags (the ones
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either all over the floor, or being held over their shoulders even
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though they're not alighting for ten stops).
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Yes, it's all about image. Forget about fare evasion - last week,
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I committed the cardinal sin by getting on the train without having
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buttoned down the buttons on my button-down collar shirt. I'm quite
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lucky the inspectors didn't catch me, I suppose.
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"Excuse me sir.. oh dear. Oh dear oh dear. Is that a brown tie
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you're wearing there?"
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"Oh dear. I'm sure you'll be aware that brown ties aren't
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VALID in this area, sir."
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"Unless you've got a Fashion Concession card, that is... No? Oh
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dear. No Fashion Concession, no brown tie."
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"Tied a bit short, too! You're only making it worse for
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yourself, you know that."
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"Right, stop the train. 53 to Control. We got a brown tie."
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"Wait a minute Joe, there goes a guy with belt and
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braces(*)! Get 'im!"
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(*) Suspenders, for you people in countries that don't say 'braces'.
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Oooh errr, sounds a bit pervvy to me.
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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THING PART 4
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====================
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(Jeff goes into someone's garden, dragging Ron with him. Jeff grabs
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Ron by the hair and knock his head into the door. The door opens.)
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RON: Ow.. Ow..
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MAN: Yes?
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JEFF: Good afternoon sir. Allow us to introduce ourselves. We are
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from the combined Holy Church Insurance Vacuum-Cleaner Sales Premium
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Bond Corporation. And we would like to offer you safety from eternal
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damnation, a new Electrolux, and the best premium on your house this
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side of the equator.
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MAN: Oh yeah?
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JEFF: Yes sir. I am in a position to offer these three items for the
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bargain price of... ummm... (to Ron) What's a slab of lager worth
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these days?
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RON: About twenty bucks.
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JEFF: (to man) About twenty bucks. Cash please.
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MAN: Yeah? That sounds like a great deal.
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(He gets twenty dollars out of his wallet and gives it to Jeff.)
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JEFF: Thank you sir. I'll just get your policy, and your new
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vacuum-cleaner from the van. It has magnificent suction.
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(Ron and Jeff walk out of the garden, and run off down the street.)
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Back-issues. Back-issues. Available.
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Available. Right now. Right here. Well,
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no, not right here, but by ftp. Including
|
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a compilation of the entire Toxic
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Custarpedia (so far)! For details, just
|
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send email to tcwf@gnu.ai.mit.edu
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Copyright (c) 1994 Daniel Bowen. May be freely distributed without
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profit provided no modifications are made.
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--
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Daniel Bowen, Melbourne, Australia--| Telecom Australia are not
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Work: dbowen@vcomtelc.telecom.com.au| responsible for my random
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Play: dbowen@gnu.ai.mit.edu---------| lunatic rantings what
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TCWF: tcwf@gnu.ai.mit.edu-----------| I have writ above.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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"Toxic Custard: Cruising the Information SuperCliche"
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Welcome to the week. Hope you had a better weekend than Ayrton Senna.
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Yes, all this week in Toxic Custard - Ayrton Senna jokes.
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||||| ||| | | |||| ||| |||||||| |||||||| TOXIC.........CUSTARD
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| | | | | ||| ||| ||| ||| WORKSHOP........FILES
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| | | | | ||| ||| |||||||| ||| 197 - 2nd May '94
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| | | | | | ||| ||| ||| by Daniel Bowen
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..|....|||.|||||.|.....|||.....|||......|||.....dbowen@gnu.ai.mit.edu
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So Richard Nixon has departed this world, leaving the legacy of
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Watergate behind him. Which means whenever journalists want big
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headlines about a scandal, all they have to do is add "GATE" on the
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end of it... SCANDALGATE ROCKS GOVT!
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And Ayrton Senna... bet he's lost his rating one. "The sporting world
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was shocked today..." Gimme a break! He who lives speeding round a
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track at 300mph in a chunk of metal dodging concrete walls can quite
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reasonably expect to die speeding round a track at 300mph in a chunk
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of metal hitting one of those concrete walls.
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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The 200th edition of Toxic Custard is coming up in a few weeks,
|
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and already preparations are gearing up for the 200th Bicentcustardy
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Celebrations. Festivities will include a street party in someone's
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backyard, with an estimated 3 attendees, free Mars Bars, and live CD
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music all night until 9pm. The planned fireworks have been cancelled
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after it was claimed it would frighten the cat.
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The cat was condemned by party organisers as a no-fun party-
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pooping conservative boring cat. The cat countered this by washing
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itself.
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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"Watch out for the wall!"
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"What wall?"
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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DANIEL'S GUIDE TO WALKING DOWN THE STREET
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There are some things that you have to be very careful of walking
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down the street. For instance, low flying bricks. An uncommon
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occurrence, I know, but believe me, even one low flying brick hitting
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you is too many.
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The actual walking is fairly simple. As a rule of thumb... no,
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wait, thumbs aren't really necessary for this one. As a rule of foot,
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to walk, this is what you need to do:
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1. Choose a foot, any foot. Well, any one of the two that you
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would normally have attached, anyway.
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2. Place it in front of the other. And a little to the side. If
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you put it exactly in front of the other one, you may have
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problems with them colliding during the next step. (ha ha!
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Step -- get it?!)
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3. Now move the other foot about an equal distance in front of
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the first one as the first one was in front of the second. It
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may help at this point to move your whole body to be above and
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between where the feet are, otherwise you are liable to fall
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over.
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4. Go back to step 2.
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It's not as easy as it would first appear. Which is probably why
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babies need to learn it. And just think -- the above instructions
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only apply to bipeds. Can you imagine what it would be like for
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centipedes? Tell you what, if I were a centipede writing this, and
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you other centipedes were all reading it, I don't think I'd have
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bothered doing those instructions. It would have taken far too long.
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Actually, I bet centipedes are fast typists.
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What a really, really, stupid thing to say.
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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I've checked. I've played back the tape several times in slow-motion.
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And I'm sure that just as the car loses the curve, you can hear
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Ayrton shouting "D'oh!"
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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THING PART 5
|
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====================
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(Ron and Jeff sit down in a golf course, drop a slab beside
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them and start drinking.)
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RON: Did I ever tell you how I once pissed on my belt?
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JEFF: Nope.
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RON: Well, I'd just got dressed, right... and I hadn't done my
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belt up.
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JEFF: Uh huh...
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RON: So I'm walking around the house, one end of my belt hanging
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loose in front... and I decide I need to relieve myself. So I
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go into the toilet... undo the fly... pull out the ol'
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whatsit, and pssssshhhhh... onto the belt.
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JEFF: So that explains that time I found you scrubbing it in the
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kitchen.
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RON: Yup.
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(They sip thoughtfully for a few moments.)
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RON: Jeeze I hate golf.
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JEFF: Why?
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RON: Luxury sport. Cruel to golf balls. Contributes to urban
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sprawl. I dunno.
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JEFF: I should have thought that strolling around a golf course
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taking potshots at a small white ball with aerodynamic little
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holes in it was a very relaxing way to spend an afternoon.
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Better golf than duck shooting.
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|
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RON: I'm surprised they haven't combined the two. "Here goes
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Norman, currently three shots ahead.. Oh yes, he's hit a
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seagull! It's come down on the green, and the caddy, foaming
|
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at the mouth, has raced off to get it. And the Great White
|
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Shark strikes again!"
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JEFF: Of course, the thing about golf is, it teaches you the finer
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points of aerodynamics. And how to grovel to the boss by
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letting him win.
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RON: But it's a class thing. I mean, you never see homeless people
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on the golf course, do you?
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JEFF: Well...
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|
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Haven't you always wanted to get your
|
|
hands on the complete collection of
|
|
Toxic Custard? You have?! Then wait no
|
|
longer - email here for details of when
|
|
and where to get EVERYTHING by ftp!
|
|
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|
|
Copyright (c) 1994 Daniel Bowen. May be freely distributed without
|
|
profit provided no modifications are made.
|
|
--
|
|
Daniel Bowen, Melbourne, Australia--| Telecom Australia is in no
|
|
Work: dbowen@vcomtelc.telecom.com.au| way responsible for the
|
|
Play: dbowen@gnu.ai.mit.edu---------| random lunatic drivel that
|
|
TCWF: tcwf@gnu.ai.mit.edu-----------| I have written above.
|
|
|
|
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
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"Photocopied Toxic Custard"
|
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----> <--> <--> <-----> <--> <--> <--> <--> <--
|
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------> <---> <------> <-----> <--> <------> <--> <--> <--> <--> <---
|
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-----> <---> <------> <-> <-> <--> <---> <--> <--> <----
|
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----> <---> <------> <-> <-> <--> <------> <-------> <--> <--> <-----
|
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---> <----> <--> <--> <------> <-------> <--> <------
|
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TOXIC CUSTARD WORKSHOP FILES #198. 9/5/94. BY DANIEL BOWEN
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APPLIANCE CORNER
|
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Photocopiers. Another example of a good idea, implemented by
|
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complete sadists. I mean honestly... does it really need to have that
|
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many buttons? And do they have to have all those little symbols all
|
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over them? Surely it would be easier if each button just actually
|
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SAID what it was for. "Do the copy now", rather than just being big,
|
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blank, and green.
|
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And the thing about the photocopier is that everyone barely knows
|
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how to use it, because whoever originally took delivery of the
|
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photocopier lost the manual in a desk drawer somewhere. Without first
|
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making a copy of it.
|
|
The bigger the photocopier, the more things seem to go wrong with
|
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it. Out of toner, out of paper, paper jam, toner jam, hand jammed in
|
|
the input tray... In fact, the piece of paper you most frequently see
|
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at the photocopier is the hand-scrawled "Out of Order" sign.
|
|
Photocopiers have a lot in common with laser printers. Quite
|
|
apart from the similar technology, it's the paper jamming and demands
|
|
for more toner are dead give-aways. And the way that people always
|
|
seem to be queuing around them both.
|
|
Why is it most office appliances are a sort of greyish beige? And
|
|
stereos and all other recreational appliances are black? It's
|
|
probably so management can instantly spot which minions have brought
|
|
in personal stereos to run off the company's electricity while
|
|
pretending to work. What someone needs to do is make personal stereos
|
|
that are beige. ("Ah -- using some of the new equipment, eh Smith?
|
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What exactly is this? Oh, an audio monitoring refractor unit. Hmm,
|
|
well done, keep up the good work.")
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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LIVE FROM PARLIAMENT - THE POLITICAL CIRCUS! Featuring:
|
|
* the Economic high-wire
|
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* the fund jugglers
|
|
* those clowns in opposition
|
|
* daring "stick the head in the stock market's mouth" act
|
|
* the budget acrobats (with the Incredible Deficito)
|
|
* and introducing the military strongman
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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My husband and I of Buckingham are
|
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Driving through London in a bulletproof car
|
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Waving at peasants all clutching their flags
|
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From bratty young kids to wizened old hags
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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THING PART 6 (Collect the set)
|
|
====================
|
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|
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[Ron and Jeff try to find a
|
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little nourishment at the take-away]
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RON: (to shopkeeper) Fish 'n' chips, please.
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JEFF: (to shopkeeper) Burger with the lot, thanks.
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RON: (to Jeff) I wonder why they call it "with the lot"? Considering
|
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the vast array of food available in the world today, I would suspect
|
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that your burger will come with very little of it.
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SHOPKEEPER: Seven-eighty please.
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JEFF: Well, there are only
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SHOPKEEPER: Excuse me! Seven-eighty please.
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JEFF: Do you mind not bringing economic considerations into what was
|
|
purely a gastronomic discussion? Now, where was I? There are only a
|
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small number of the possible foodstuffs that would be pleasurable
|
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when added to a burger.
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SHOPKEEPER: Look, either you hand over seven-eighty, or you won't get
|
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your deliciously crisp fish 'n' freshly caught chips and your
|
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gastronomically delightful burger with the lot. Comprehendo?
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JEFF: Without a doubt, Maestro. Ron - give the man seven eighty.
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RON: But you said it was your shout.
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JEFF: No Ron, what I actually said was that I'd let you shout me.
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RON: That's not what I recall...
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JEFF: Look, I got the slab, now the least you can do is compensate
|
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with dinner.
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SHOPKEEPER: Will one of you care to hand over the fucking money
|
|
before you end up with burnt fish, burnt chips, and a burnt to a
|
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crisp beef patty in a completely black charcoal sesame seed bun?!
|
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|
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RON: (quietly, to shopkeeper) All right, all right. No need to
|
|
shout. (He hands over the money)
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JEFF: Gee, what a temper. Wouldn't want to meet him down a dark alley
|
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and order take-away from him.
|
|
|
|
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|
|
We are now in a position to offer you,
|
|
the Toxic Custard reader, back-issues
|
|
at little or NO(*) cost to you! This is
|
|
a no obligation bloody bargain! Just
|
|
email tcwf@gnu.ai.mit.edu for details!
|
|
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|
|
(*) At our option. $500,000 surcharge
|
|
applies to every fifth request received.
|
|
|
|
Copyright (c) 1994 Daniel Bowen. May be freely distributed without
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profit provided no modifications are made.
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--
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Daniel Bowen, Melbourne, Australia--| Telecom Australia are not
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Work: dbowen@vcomtelc.telecom.com.au| responsible for any of this.
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Play: dbowen@gnu.ai.mit.edu---------| I, on the other hand, don't
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TCWF: tcwf@gnu.ai.mit.edu-----------| have that excuse.
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I guess now they've got democracy in South Africa, they'll be getting
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rid of all those license plates that say "Transvaal - State of
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Emergency".
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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"Pirate Toxic Custard"
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.--+--. ,--- ,---- -. ,---. ,---. Toxic Custard
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| / \\ // |__ | |___| |___| Workshop Files
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| \ \\//\\// | | | | #199, 16th May 1994
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.|. `--- \/ \/ -' - `---' `---' by Daniel Bowen
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The whole thing about pirates seems to be a bit doubtful to me.
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Who would go for a career as a pirate? Imagine you're in the Job
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Centre and they say "well, with your skills, you'd do best to chop
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off one leg, find a cooperative parrot, and strut about on sailing
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ships telling people to walk to the plank and saying 'Arr Jim Lad'".
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I wouldn't fall for it. Especially not on a training wage. "Well,
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here's the deal, as a trainee pirate, you'll get all the potatoes you
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can eat, along with a weekly 100 silver pieces. Less parrot food,
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less scurvy fee."
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So you find yourself out on the oceans. With one leg missing,
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presumed green, and a bird that keeps impersonating you on your
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shoulder. And for what? A few measly silver pieces to spend at the
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ship's casino? Doesn't sound all that great to me. Not even much
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chance of promotion. Even if you do rise to the top, and get to be
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Captain, you'll probably find yourself the subject of a mutiny. Not a
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great deal of fun. Okay, after a few laughs over shouting "Yo ho ho!"
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in the silly voice, and a few bottles of rum down the hatch, you
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might think that staggering around on one knee cleaning the decks is
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fun, but I doubt it.
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That's why pirate ships fly the skull and crossbones. It means
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"for God's sake don't get stuck in a dead-end job like this one."
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And all this on a ship that needs fifty people to keep the sails
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in the right place to stop the whole thing falling over and sinking.
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I've seen sail boats on the telly. Hopeless. They can't even get from
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Sydney to Hobart without getting lost. And all that bloody winding
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ropes up and leaning off the side to stop the wind blowing it over.
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No wonder people gave up and invented aeroplanes instead.
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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It always seems to be drunks who think they have accumulated all
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the knowledge of the world. Whenever you hear the words "let me give
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you a bit of advice", you can tell that whoever says them is pissed.
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And that they are about to impart upon you some immortal words of
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wisdom that you should take care to memorise and keep as guides to
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follow for the rest of your life. "Listen mate. Collingwood sucks.
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They couldn't kick a goal to save wassname. That coach of theirs,
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wassisname... should piss off... but Ablett... he's a God!"
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Words to remember. Words to live by. Words to pass on to your
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children when they have reached the right age. That age when they are
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ready to go into the world and earn their own living. "Johnny. You're
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going into Uni this year. You've got your own job. It's time for you
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to have a bit of advice. Someone told me this many years ago, and...
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these words have stood by me... Johnny... Collingwood sucks..."
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There will always be hope in the world, as long as people
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continue to impart and pass on the good advice spoken by the drunk on
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the 6:47 to Broadmeadows.
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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Since it's Norwegian Constitution Day on Tuesday, let's have this bit
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of trivia: The Vikings had an early long distance communications
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technique involving dots and dashes.. called Norse Code.
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Actually, wouldn't it be a bit of a bummer if you were busy money
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laundering, and you went all the way to Europe to open your Swiss
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bank account, with the police hot on your trail... and it turned out
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to be a bank holiday.
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There's a new international chain of shops opening up. Their service
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is preparing and sending animals all over the world. Their name:
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Interfauna.
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I caught the tram down to the beach. Guest conductor was Iyoshi
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Hitachi from the Japan Symphony Orchestra.
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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THING PART 7
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====================
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(Ron and Jeff are looking for a taxi)
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RON: There's one!
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JEFF: Where?
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RON: There! Look. Coming towards us.
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JEFF: Ron, that's a truck.
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RON: But it says taxi.
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JEFF: Trucks. "Taxi Trucks". It then goes on to elaborate about how
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cheap and reliable Al's Taxi Trucks are to hire.
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RON: Shall I hail him anyway?
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JEFF: I don't think so. We just need to get home, we don't need to
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take a load of furniture with us. At least, not on this
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occasion. Ah look, here's one. No, damn, it's hired.
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RON: Now why is that?
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JEFF: Because I think you'll find that there are several thousand
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taxis in this city... but they don't all cruise around
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looking for just us. They don't pull up to some couple on the
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curb and say "sorry mate, can't take you. We're all looking
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out for Ron and Jeff".
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RON: There's one!
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JEFF: Ah, well done. Hail him. C'mon, stick your hand up. He can't
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see you. Over here!! Quick Ron, jump in front of him.
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(Ron does so. The taxi screeches to a halt. Ron ends
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up on the bonnet. Ron and Jeff get in.)
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JEFF: Puke Road please. Corner of Scum Street.
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DRIVER: Okay. You'll forgive me if I don't get into a conversation
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about the traffic with you -- I haven't gone on my traffic
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jam whingeing course yet.
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JEFF: But surely you must have some views on life that you're just
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dying to talk to us about?
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RON: Yeah, some kind of token discussion before we all stop
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talking and feel uncomfortable for the rest of the trip.
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DRIVER: Well, I'll tell you what, I'll go on about youth. Ahem. I
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don't know about the youth of today. I see them in the
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streets and I really don't know what there is for them. There
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must be some kind of goal for them to work for...
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RON: Yeah.
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JEFF: Erm, excuse me, but there may be a misunderstanding here.
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When I said you must have something to talk to us about... I
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didn't mean I wanted you to.
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DRIVER: Oh?
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JEFF: No. So please just shut up and drive the cab while we make
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conspiratorial noises in the back.
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DRIVER: Right you are, guv.
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JEFF: And don't call me "guv". This isn't a London black cab, this
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is a Silver-Top Falcon. And you're not some cockney git of a
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taxi driver wot's learned The Knowledge, you're just some
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Aussie git who probably barely knows his way around a
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Melways. So just shut up and drive.
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Be watching next week for the Toxic Custard
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Celebrity Bicentennial Bash. Featuring an all
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star line-up, including Adam Cohen! Mr Popsicle!
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Calendiar! Inspector Unnecessary-Violence! Yes,
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all your favourite TCWF characters, and a whole
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bunch of the ones you don't like, too!
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Copyright (c) 1994 Daniel Bowen. May be freely distributed without
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profit provided no modifications are made.
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--
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Daniel Bowen, Melbourne, Australia--| Yes, I work at Telecom
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Work: dbowen@vcomtelc.telecom.com.au| Australia. But that doesn't
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Play: dbowen@gnu.ai.mit.edu---------| mean that they are in any way
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TCWF: tcwf@gnu.ai.mit.edu-----------| responsible for this posting.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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"Bicentennial Nostalgic Toxic Custard"
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***** *** * * *****
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* * * * *
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* ####### * ######## * * * ######## ***
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*#### #### * #### #### * * * * #### #### *
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* #### ***#### ####* *#### ####*
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#### #### #### #### #### 24/5/94
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#### #### ####W #### ####
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T ####### #### ####o #### ####Number 200
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o ###### #### ####r s#### ####
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x #### Custard #### #### k h #### Files####
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i ############# #### #### o #### ####
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c ############# ######## p ######## by Daniel Bowen
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Wow. The two-hundredth Toxic Custard. It's spreading across the world
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like some horrible disease or something. DOC WEDGE commented on it:
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Yes, the Toxic Custard Virus, or TCV, ve have been tracking for
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many years now. It originated in Africa, or Australia, or vone of
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zose out of ze vay places. Amongst itz effects, it makes your
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woice grow ever more accented. Almost five hundred victims have
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contracted ze full blown "subscribed" TCV, with countless
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thousands of others exposed to it in ze Newsgroups.
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While we were at it, we caught up with some of the others involved in
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the fight against the virus. Where are they now? And all that usual
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nostalgia stuff.
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INSPECTOR UNNECESSARY-VIOLENCE has been training the Victorian Police
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for raids, with, he says, much success:
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Fuck yeah, these fuckers are getting really good at smashing the
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fucking door in, fuckin' storming through the house firing, and
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then fuckin' saying 'Police, get ya fucking hands up'!
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IRENE BUSYBODY also spoke out on the recent police shootings:
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I think it's good to know that we live in such a safe city here
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in Melbourne that you're most likely to get shot by the Police.
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Mind you, you'd have to wonder what's gone through the minds of
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the last few people they've shot. Apart from the bullets, I mean.
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It's like:
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"Drop the gun/crossbow/whatever!"
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"Gee, do I drop it? Will they shoot me if I don't? Hell,
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they've only shot seven people this year..."
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Remember a few years ago when it was the NSW Police that kept
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shooting people? My guess is they fired all the incompetents. Who
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came to Victoria and joined up here. "Welcome to the Vic Police!
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You shot who? Ahhh... don't worry about it!" The NSW Police are
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useless now... they arrested that bloke about the Belango State
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Forest murders yesterday, and they didn't even shoot him! Waste
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of time and taxpayers money!
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MR POPSICLE of the Australian Royal Security Establishment, took us a
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while to track down, but we eventually found him on surveillance in a
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garbage bin. Watching some garbos, apparently. It turned out that DOC
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WEDGE was further down in the same bin. We're not quite sure what the
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two of them were up to, though Mr Popsicle was wincing a bit. Mr
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Popsicle refused to talk to us, though he hoped that this edition of
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Toxic Custard would be made out of balsa wood, so he could burst
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through it in the traditional fashion.
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But by far the hardest to find was ADAM COHEN. The very first
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character from Toxic Custard (apart from God) was last seen turned
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into a frog and squashed flat on a road, then buried in what can only
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be described as a very thin coffin. But when we spoke to him, his
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spirits were high.
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Oh yes, I'm enjoying myself immensely in this coffin. The view's
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not terribly good... well, I've heard it's not terribly good. I
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can't actually see the view, because of the wood not being
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transparent. But at least it's comfortable. Well, about as
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comfortable as you can be in a small box six feet under the
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ground. With an itch in the middle of your back.
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CALENDIAR scanned the horizon for any signs of life. There should be
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some, he thought, he was in the middle of the suburbs. The suburbs of
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some godforsaken city. He thought he spied a distant sign, and tried
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to make out the caption. "Really bad joke coming", it said. He
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shrugged his knees, because he was too tired to shrug his shoulders.
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He had been wandering in the desert for 140 weeks. Stuck in the
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desert with no entree. Stuck in the desert with no main course. And,
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though we hate to say it, stuck in the desert with no dessert.
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MEGABOGUE are still in jail after demolishing a hotel in San
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Francisco during their "Touring the USA" tour two years ago. Rhythm
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guitarist Vimmy "The Thorn" spoke to us by phone:
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Fucking get us out of here!
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Bonk Mee, bass guitarist:
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Yeah man, Jailhouse Rock is really uncool. It doesn't have enough
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fuckin' power chords.
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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Good evening and welcome to the Inquisitors. Tonight, we profile a
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suburban heretic. He could be your neighbour or mine. Actually, he's
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mine.
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<Camera zooms in one some poor bastard's door>
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Mr Ron Smith! It's the Inquisitors, Mr Smith!
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<Door opens slightly. Inquisitor jams foot in door>
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Mr Smith, we have reason to believe you are a heretic!
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I have nothing to say! Go away.
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<Show fuzzy black and white film in corner of screen>
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We have taken secret footage of you claiming that the Pope
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is a big fat prick! Mr Smith, open the door! Why won't you talk to
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us?
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<Smith runs for it. Camera shoves through the door, runs down the
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corridor and through a back door. Smith jumps into a car and drives
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down the road, with the camera man running to catch up>
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We also have confessions from your family that you yelled Jesus
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Christ when you burnt your fingers!! Come back! You'll burn for this!
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<Fade back to host>
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Mr Smith later made a statement through his lawyer refusing to speak
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with us on camera and denying the claims. Oh yeah, sure Mr Smith.
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Well, we'll see who goes up and who goes down come the apocalypse,
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won't we Mr Smith!
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Copyright (c) 1994 Daniel Bowen. May be freely distributed without
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profit provided no modifications are made.
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--
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Daniel Bowen, Melbourne, Australia--| I just work at Telecom.
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Work: dbowen@vcomtelc.telecom.com.au| They have no control over
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Play: dbowen@gnu.ai.mit.edu---------| the crap I write in my spare
|
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TCWF: tcwf@gnu.ai.mit.edu-----------| time. Like this.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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the Toxic Custard Workshop Files by Daniel Bowen, Melbourne, Australia
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Copyright (c) 1994 Daniel Bowen. May be freely distributed
|
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without profit provided this notice remains intact.
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|
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For subscription information, contact tcwf@gnu.ai.mit.edu
|