Fun

Category: Fun

The Toes Is the Toes

In 1991, John Phillips (presumably not THE John Phillips who, a hundred thousand years ago, along with his wife Michelle teamed up with Cass Elliot and Denny Doherty) suggested in The New England Journal of Medicine that the toes be named. In his letter (1991, vol. 324, no. 7, p. 497) he proposed that the pedal digits be called

  • porcellus fori
  • porcellus domi
  • porcellus carnivorus
  • porcellus non voratus
  • porcellus plorans domum

Anyone who had Sister Monica for Latin in high school will immediately recognize the root porcus or pig, and should be able to translate:

  • little pig at market
  • little pig at home
  • little meat-eating pig
  • little pig having not eaten
  • little pig crying homeward

    • Welcome Ye New Deck-Swabbers!

    If it’s between 1 and 4 bells on Friday, September 19, all hands had better be in the Aye-brary, for it’s the Aye-brary Open House. Any snaggle-toothed son of a sea dog missin’ this event will be meetin’ up with Davy Jones forthrightly. And avail yerselves of the Aye-brary’s “New Swabbie” page if ye know what’s good fer ya.

    Arrr!

    Someone’s Taking This “Mudd” Thing Too Literally

    Mudd rainThere is a new entry in the continuing saga of The Mudd’s battle with the elements. Like Joe Btfsplk, we literally have a cloud hanging over our heads. In an ironic twist, the roof guys were making great progress in trying to eliminate our seasonal interior downpours when it, what?, downpoured. As luck would have it, the roof had been replace with a tarp just hours before deluge began. Return with us now to those soggy, squishy days of yesterday.

    And You Thought Paul Was Old

    Ringo peace signToday Ringo Starr is 68. Yes, 68. Those of you mature enough to know his real name will be feeling extremely ancient and those who have never heard of him will be asking, “Whose grandpappy is that?”

    In a dastardly bit of birthday irony, it was reported yesterday that his birthplace is certain to be demolished after English Heritage decided not to list it on its register. But Pete Best’s home will be preserved only because it was the location of the original Cavern Club, and…, oh, just read the article.

    Do what Richard requests today: “…everyone, everywhere, wherever they are, at noon on July 7 make the peace sign and say ‘Peace & Love.'” And listen to some tunes.

    Wiki-tannica

    Wiki editor

    If ever the Apocalypse was in sight, it’s now. That most scholarly of encyclopedias, The Encyclopedia Britannica, is going wiki. But the editors have taken a lot of the fun and adventure out of the wiki experience by only allowing readers to suggest revisions, not make them themselves. So you merry pranksters may not change Winston Churchill’s middle name to Bassingbourne or make Inigo Jones the love-child of Elizabeth I and the Sir Walter Raleigh.

    If you’re in the Mudd you can search the Encyclopedia Britannica and even suggest changes.

    Listen to the report on NPR.

    When I’m 66

    MccartneyOnce again it’s Sir Paul McCartney’s birthday. He’s been in this music business for over 50 years, and he’s still touring. His latest stop was in Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine where he gave a concert sponsored by Victor Pinchuk, Ukrainian businessman and philanthropist. Pinchuk said, “One could not imagine this 30 years ago. Nobody could even dare to hope for this 20 years ago. One could only dream about it 10 years ago. 5 years ago we could only envy our neighbors for whom this became a reality. And finally the day has come. For the first time we have the opportunity to hear the songs that changed the world and created a new culture.” We couldn’t agree more.

    Sure, we have the Beatles recordings and even one McCartney solo disc. But the library’s McCartney collection includes Lennon-McCartney tunes interpreted by vocalists Kiri Te Kanawa, Cathy Berberian and Cristina Zavalloni, double bassists, and a brass quintet. Very versatile.

    May Was Full of Promises

    carsJune IS busting out all over. You may think June is noteworthy only because it is the month of Paul McCartney’s birthday (June 18,) but it’s also Lane Courtesy Month. Will you be compelled to purchase large women’s clothing? Be polite to Superman’s girlfriend? Continuously sing “Mule Train?” No, no, it’s the month to yield the left lane to faster drivers. This applies to motorists only. And for those for whom “courtesy” is an alien concept, this site also has links to Fight Your Ticket and Find an Attorney.

    Get yourself lane-ready with the Wisconsin Motorists’ Handbook and Study Guide.

    Farewell Connie!

    ConnieToday the Mudd and physical plant staff said a fond farewell to Connie Bruner, the Mudd’s 1st and 2nd floor custodian for the last several years. We wish her well on the next part of her adventure. Happy travels Connie!

    SHTOINK!

    sizafitzToday would have been Don Martin’s 77th birthday. And he was not a lounge singer, half of a comedy duo, or a manufacturer of British luxury cars. No, children, Don Martin was a brilliant cartoonist, best known for his work in Mad magazine back when it was funny. His comic strips, according to Wikipedia, “featured outrageous events and sometimes outright violations of the laws of space-time.” Who else would picture a man who, after inserting a dollar bill into a change machine, was changed into a woman?

    One cannot think of Don Martin without remembering his great use of onomatopoeia. In his honor, and in the hopes that our gentle readers will make appropriate use of it, we give you The Don Martin Dictionary, an alphabetical archive of all his sound effects.