Archive for the ‘Laughing Matters’ Category

How White Supremacists Help Advance the Cause of Marriage Equality

So, District Court Judge Friedman recently struck down Michigan's ban on marriage equality as unconstitutional. Michigan AG Bill Schuette vowed to appeal, wasting taxpayer money (oops! my editorial comment). Now, a white supremacist group has filed a brief in support of his case, basically using the same arguments that he and similar marriage-equality foes have […]

Posted on April 1, 2014 at 19.13 by jns · Permalink · Leave a comment
In: All, Current Events, Faaabulosity, Laughing Matters

The Gettysburg Address turns 150

Earlier today I read somewhere that some teabagger (yes, I know which one but I prefer this more dismissive reference) was upset because (if I'm following the details correctly) in the short film Ken Burns made about "The Gettysburg Address" for the occasion, today, of its 150th anniversary, President Obama was filmed reading The Address […]

Posted on November 19, 2013 at 14.02 by jns · Permalink · One Comment
In: All, Briefly Noted, Laughing Matters

Snippets of Cruise Conversation

Between Christmas and New Year's Eve, we went on a pleasant Caribbean cruise, taking the Carnival Elation from the Port of New Orleans, to Cozumel, to Progresso, (both on the Yucatan Peninsula), then back to NO. Pleasantly, this gave us the chance to visit for awhile with our friend Loretta, who lives in Baton Rouge […]

Posted on January 5, 2012 at 23.19 by jns · Permalink · 3 Comments
In: All, Laughing Matters, Personal Notebook

Protecting "Traditional Spaghetti"

My purpose in quoting this news excerpt is not to recapitulate the dreary and clichéd patter of anti-gay politicians, as you will see below. BOSTON — For anyone paying attention to the Governor's Council recently, the questions were predictable, the exchanges inevitable. Charles O. Cipollini repeatedly pressed [Massachusetts'] Gov. Deval Patrick's latest state Supreme Judicial […]

Posted on April 28, 2011 at 17.14 by jns · Permalink · 2 Comments
In: All, Faaabulosity, Laughing Matters

Free Depending on Payment

This morning, at Starbucks, I went up to the counter to get a coffee refill. As I handed the barista my cup, I removed the lid as that is often their request. She takes my cup and promptly throws it away. She then gets a new cup and "refills" my coffee, though I'm not technically […]

Posted on May 11, 2010 at 17.48 by jns · Permalink · One Comment
In: All, Laughing Matters

The Answer Is: All of the Above

It probably won't surprise you to learn that I found this animated "quiz show" about contradictions in the bible rather amusing (not to mention how the winner was determined and what his prize was). Actually, I laughed audibly. I also quite liked the voice of the quiz-show host; is it someone I should recognize? [YouTube […]

Posted on April 30, 2010 at 18.37 by jns · Permalink · One Comment
In: All, Feeling Peevish, Laughing Matters

To Be A Single Lady

Who could possibly be so cold-hearted that they would not feel an outpouring of sympathy for the plight of this young person, searching only for happiness but subjected to the whims of his gender-imperialist father? Bad father. [YouTube link for those who don't see the embedded player.] (H/T Joe.M.God)

Posted on April 1, 2010 at 16.39 by jns · Permalink · One Comment
In: All, Faaabulosity, Laughing Matters

Friday Soirée X: Stephen Fry is QI

I'm told that the internet is a morass, a quagmire of links into which, after just a few innocent clicks, one can disappear and never bee seen again. I'm usually much more focused in my clicking and manage to stay out of the quicksand and keep my head above water–except that tonight I succumbed. I […]

Posted on March 6, 2010 at 12.31 by jns · Permalink · 4 Comments
In: All, Friday Soirée, Laughing Matters

Fear of the Gay Penis

I think my favorite pull-quote from this brief video ("Ac**kalypse Now", from That's Gay), which makes mock of gay panic in the US military and fear of the gay penis, is: "Why go to a gay bar or log on to manhunt.com when you could fly to Afghanistan and risk your life just to sneak […]

Posted on February 12, 2010 at 20.09 by jns · Permalink · 3 Comments
In: All, Faaabulosity, Laughing Matters

Shopping Attire

Just this week I was having lunch and a man came into the shop wearing unusual flannel trousers, green flannel that was printed with little figures of some sort that I couldn't quite make out but that might have been teddy bears. Well! I thought, that's unusual. I hadn't seen flannel trousers quite like these […]

Posted on January 30, 2010 at 23.13 by jns · Permalink · 3 Comments
In: All, Laughing Matters, Personal Notebook

Professional Verbs

I was interested to discover that a number of things I have done professionally have no verbs. How did we ever get anything done? (Although, I also find it interesting that I've worked at times as an "engineer", whose professional noun is exactly the same as the verb of the professional activity, "to engineer".) It […]

Posted on January 15, 2010 at 18.15 by jns · Permalink · 3 Comments
In: All, Laughing Matters, Such Language!

Fiore's "Learn to Speak Tea Bag"

Well, gosh, word is (via Joe.My.God) that Mark Fiore's cartoon, "Learn to Speak Tea Bag", has caused some upset among conservative political extremists. Imagine! Is there, then, any better reason than that to do some viral spreading with this metaphorical blog sneeze? [YouTube link for those who don't see the embedded player.]

Posted on January 13, 2010 at 16.42 by jns · Permalink · One Comment
In: All, Laughing Matters, Splenetics

Death Metal Rooster

When 30 seconds of video makes me laugh this much, naturally I want to share the joy with all y'all who might not otherwise have this much fun today. Besides, it's my blog. [YouTube link for those who don't see the embedded player.] p.s. The music is original for this video. That is so cool. […]

Posted on January 12, 2010 at 13.16 by jns · Permalink · Leave a comment
In: All, Laughing Matters, Wanderings

"Perversion for Profit"

From about 1965, here is an hysterical "public-service" film which, today, seems reasonably amusing: "Perversion for Profit (Part I)". In it you will find out the "truth" about the perverting effects of pornography, particularly gay pornography with which, apparently, one glance turns the glancer into a twisted communist of some sort. It's worth keeping in […]

Posted on January 7, 2010 at 20.09 by jns · Permalink · 2 Comments
In: All, Faaabulosity, Laughing Matters

D'you Remember Joseph?

What happens when biblical literalism become biblical forgetfulness? Odd things certainly. Herewith a brief, heart-rending excerpt from an opinion piece by Chuck Norris (via Tinyfrog because I hate to link to the original): What would have happened if Mother Mary had been covered by Obamacare? What if that young, poor and uninsured teenage woman had […]

Posted on December 19, 2009 at 14.06 by jns · Permalink · One Comment
In: All, Laughing Matters, Raised Eyebrows Dept.

"Going Vogue"

I have to admit that I have never seen "RuPaul's Drag Race" on LOGO TV — for one thing, we don't have cable — but I'm thinking it must be lots of fun, largely on the strength of the promotional image below, which, we have to admit, is much, much, much more faaabulous than the […]

Posted on December 17, 2009 at 22.42 by jns · Permalink · Leave a comment
In: All, Faaabulosity, Laughing Matters

Things We're Not

I just got a call asking if I was the Humane Society. — James Howard I once had a phone conversation that went like this: Lady: Hello, I'm calling for Purple Heart. Me: I think you have the wrong number. Lady: What makes you think that? Me: Because I'm not Purple Heart. Lady: No, no, […]

Posted on December 17, 2009 at 18.06 by jns · Permalink · One Comment
In: All, Laughing Matters

Christmas Oddities

Isaac was obsessed today with finding another 15 feet of the silver garland he was using on the blue tree this year. We finally found some, I'm happy to say, so he's bearable to be around tonight. Anyway, our travels took us to Lowe's hardware store where two items in the seasonal shop caught my […]

Posted on December 6, 2009 at 17.42 by jns · Permalink · One Comment
In: All, Laughing Matters, Raised Eyebrows Dept.

Reading Louise Penny

My current bedtime mystery reading is A Rule Against Murder, by Louise Penny. Let's make that Canadian Louse Penny, for all my friends needing a suggestion for their Canadian Reading Challenge. Ms. Penny's books are set mostly in the village of Three Pines, Quebec, a village populated with the expected eccentric characters, some of whom […]

Posted on November 19, 2009 at 00.01 by jns · Permalink · Leave a comment
In: All, Books, Laughing Matters

Prayer: Not Just for Straight People

Today, Jeremy at Good As You ("We're don't want to ruin your days, Linds. We also don't want you to ruin our marriages/truths/families/rights/protections") brought us the touching but inspiring story of one Lindsey Douthit, a concerned woman for America, who lives right here in the bowels of the liberal menace, Washington, DC. As the story […]

Posted on September 30, 2009 at 20.26 by jns · Permalink · 4 Comments
In: All, Faaabulosity, Laughing Matters