Exotic Trousers - Funny

Kurt Vonnegut Motivational Posters

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 09:48:15 +0000

A amusing collection of motivational posters inspired by the late, great Kurt Vonnegut.

Hitler Reacts to Torchwood Finale

nospam@example.com (Sim) — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 17:41:59 +0100

What has he ever done to deserve such misfortune?

Doctor and Master

nospam@example.com (Sim) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 14:10:14 +0100

To celebrate the return of Doctor Who this Saturday (5 April 6:20pm BBC1) here's something that everyone should see and hear...

On an unrelated note, fulfilling an ambition I wasn't aware I had, I was contacted by a real life superhero last week. The Geist, a superhero who walks the mean streets of Minnesota emailled me to complain about Rob's earlier article (Rob's, not mine. I must assume supervision and detective skills aren't part of the Geist's crimefighting arsenal).

I am tempted to become his enemy in a Jonah Jameson kind of way but he (the Geist) does good work with the homeless so I won't. I will however go into greater detail about this later in the week.

Dilbert imitates life

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 21:55:45 +0000

One of the great things about the Dilbert comic strip is that you can read it, have a laugh, and yet think, "This is what happens in these large organisations!" Like many great comedians, Scott Adams has the knack of taking reality and presenting it in a way that makes you think twice about some of the ludicrous situations which occur in life.

Now, Adams has taken inspiration from the real story of a casino employee named Dave Steward who was fired by his bosses for posting a Dilbert cartoon on the office bulletin board. The strip in question was one where Dilbert likened his bosses to "drunken lemurs".

Adams acknowledged in an interview that Steward's firing was the impetus for this week's series of comics.

"I know good comic fodder when I see it," he said, "and any chance to mock the humorless is worth the effort."

At the time of writing, there are two strips in the Dilbert "drunken lemurs" series, posted on Wednesday 20/2 and Thursday 21/2. I'll be interested to see the remaining strips.

Steve Morley, the human resources manager* at the casino that sacked Steward, declined to comment on the new "Dilbert" comics.

(* What a curious job title.)

Real Life Superheroes

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 18:05:58 +0000

Ah, yes they exist. An estimated 150 and 200 real-life superheroes (or "Reals" as some call themselves) are believed to, er, fight crime in the United States. About 50 are believed to "work" internationally.

Of course in the real world, things don't always quite work out as they do in the comics, or the movies.

Soon Geist faces his first obstacle: parking on the left side of a one-way street. "Usually one of my superpowers is parallel parking," he chuckles as he eases his car into the spot, emerging victorious with a foot and a half between curb and tire.

In addition, there's the costumes to contend with:

On the street, he encounters businesspeople on lunch break—some stare openly; others don't even notice his garish attire. "It's easier in winter," Geist says with a laugh. "Winter in Minnesota, everybody's dressed weird."

If you don't want to make the suit yourself, there's a guy who'll do it for you online at Hero-Gear.net.

There are some interesting anecdotes:

One evening when Master Legend was on patrol, he heard a woman scream and ran to investigate. But when he located the damsel in distress, she thought he was attacking her and called the cops. "They wanted to know if I was some kind of insane man, a 41-year-old man running around in a costume," he recounts. "Apparently, they had never heard of me."

If you read the full article, don't forget to have a have a look at the Details box, which has links to an excellent slideshow of "Reals", video and other links, plus a Real Life Superhero Map (via Google maps).

The UK's contributions to the ranks of "Reals" are the "Black Arrow" whose work includes instructing people on how to care for their pets and the environment, and a hero I have heard of before, and for whom I have much admiration, Angle-Grinder Man. It seems that there are many others in the UK whose good work goes unnoticed and unrecorded.

Great stuff. And it's real. No pun intended!

WoW ads using Mr T and Shatner

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 16:56:36 +0000

World of Warcraft (which I don't play) has a couple of new ads out, employing the services of Mr T and the Shat. These are funny. They don't particularly make me want to play World of Warcraft, though.

We The Robots

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 14:05:11 +0000

We The Robots is a promising new cartoon strip. I like it.

Smack!

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 14:00:22 +0100

Good cartoon from Butternutsquash.

Nightclubs are hell

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 19:39:43 +0100

Charlie Brooker has written an excellent piece for the Guardian Unlimited website called Nightclubs are hell. It seems to strike several chords ... or is that just the introvert in me?

Clubs are despicable. Cramped, overpriced furnaces with sticky walls and the latest idiot theme tunes thumping through the humid air so loud you can't hold a conversation, just bellow inanities at megaphone-level. And since the smoking ban, the masking aroma of cigarette smoke has been replaced by the overbearing stench of crotch sweat and hair wax.

For a good time ...

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 23:00:24 +0100

I like this cartoon.

Innovative cursor

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Sat, 26 May 2007 14:03:39 +0100

A very clever website whose only real feature is a cursor. When you move over the central coloured circle, the cursor gets magnified, so you can see how it moves. Make sure you have your speakers switched on.

Contains egg

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Tue, 22 May 2007 15:24:44 +0100

I noticed an allergy advice warning this weekend.

Calvin & Hobbes animation

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Thu, 17 May 2007 12:22:52 +0100

Apparently, these are original drawings by Bill Watterson, which have been animated into a cartoon. It's really well done. Italian with English subtitles.

Obi Wan Kenobi buys a used car

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Wed, 16 May 2007 23:55:20 +0100

"We need passage to Aldershot."

How to fake a smile

nospam@example.com (Rob) — Fri, 11 May 2007 15:10:55 +0100

Do you suffer from a fake-looking smile? Here is an excellent (comic) tutorial on how to fake a smile. I'm quite good at faking a smile, a skill which has arisen from smiling approvingly at Sim's cartoon scripts.