Humor Archive

March 3, 2010

Unready for Memnon of Troy or Noah

Memnon of Troy may be one of my relatives. Noah may be also. But who isn’t related to Noah? However, I have my doubts about these long lost relatives. I’ve mention a couple of times that Shirley is working on...

Read all of "Unready for Memnon of Troy or Noah"

Posted by Duane Smith at 1:17 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

February 11, 2010

Do It Yourself Spam

Should I really have to fill in my own name on a spam email? Recently my spam filter trapped an email that began as follows, [FIRST_NAME], listen... I'm not going to waste your time or insult your intelligence with petty...

Read all of "Do It Yourself Spam"

Posted by Duane Smith at 4:58 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

February 3, 2010

A Little Egyptian Graffiti

Quinn Dombrowski at Crescat Graffiti, Vita Excolatur discovered an Egyptian text at the University of Chicago. You might fine it abnormal if not abnormally interesting. Students at the U of C seem to be skilled at multiplexing. Via משלי אדם...

Read all of "A Little Egyptian Graffiti"

Posted by Duane Smith at 7:50 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

January 30, 2010

On My Scottish Heritage

Shirley continues to research my Scottish heritage. Archibald Livingston was my 16th great granduncle, the brother of my 16th great grandfather. One source describes him as a “natural idiot.” Shirley worries that this may run in the family....

Read all of "On My Scottish Heritage"

Posted by Duane Smith at 1:11 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

January 22, 2010

A Little Out Of Control

In his latest “Skeptic” piece in Scientific American, Michael Shermer asks us to think of a time when we felt out of control and then says, “Now take a look at the top illustration on this page. What do you...

Read all of "A Little Out Of Control"

Posted by Duane Smith at 1:20 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

January 9, 2010

Cat Summoned For Jury Duty In East Boston

Considering a few jurors with whom I have served, Sal the cat might have been more helpful. His owners tried to get him off on the basis that he can't speak English. Speaking English is apparently a requirement in Sal's...

Read all of "Cat Summoned For Jury Duty In East Boston"

Posted by Duane Smith at 10:38 AM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

January 5, 2010

Improving the Moral Climate One Footnote At A Time

Over at Ancient Hebrew Poetry, John Hobbins has begun what I think will be a series of reviews of a trilogy that I am not likely to read. The topic is not within the scope of my normal abnormal interests...

Read all of "Improving the Moral Climate One Footnote At A Time"

Posted by Duane Smith at 8:28 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (4) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

December 16, 2009

Defending Our Western Heritage

Why are Jay Crisostomo and his wife not telling their daughter about Santa? You'll need to drop by mu-pad3-da to find out....

Read all of "Defending Our Western Heritage"

Posted by Duane Smith at 8:20 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

November 29, 2009

An Easy Labor

The other day Greg Laden and his wife welcomed a baby into the world. Aside from providing the normal statistics for young Huxley, Greg makes this abnormal observation, "Labor was 8.5 hours long, a record for our midwife. In fact,...

Read all of "An Easy Labor"

Posted by Duane Smith at 4:18 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

November 24, 2009

Meeting Summary

Not being able to attend the Society of Biblical Literature or the American Schools of Oriental Research meetings this year, I eagerly await all conference reports. The Angry Professor of A Gentleman's C just filed this, The conferences were meh....

Read all of "Meeting Summary"

Posted by Duane Smith at 9:34 AM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

November 20, 2009

"Preapproved" You Say; "Hurry" You Say

When I was in business, we used to joke that a customer was qualified if he or she was breathing and had money. And that they could get a waiver on the first of these requirements. But even the second...

Read all of ""Preapproved" You Say; "Hurry" You Say"

Posted by Duane Smith at 1:20 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (4) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

Scholars Brawl

Naturally, my first thought was that this happened at the Society of Biblical Literature meeting in New Orleans, The police were informed about the brawl at the House of Scholars at about 12:30 p.m. Several police patrols were sent to...

Read all of "Scholars Brawl"

Posted by Duane Smith at 11:29 AM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

November 13, 2009

Don't Tell Our Cat

We shopped at a new grocery store today and it doesn't look good for our cat. But it's the only kind of food he will eat....

Read all of "Don't Tell Our Cat"

Posted by Duane Smith at 2:13 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (5) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

October 21, 2009

What Do They Have Against Sewers?

Google News has an article on the discovery of the Athenaeum at Caltech in La Jolla at Claremont McKenna College in Rome. While this is not central to my normal abnormal interests, I did find something all too normal in...

Read all of "What Do They Have Against Sewers?"

Posted by Duane Smith at 8:11 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

September 7, 2009

Happy Labor Day To Me

In the very early morning of September 7, 1942, also Labor Day that year, my mother was herself in labor. I was born later that same morning....

Read all of "Happy Labor Day To Me"

Posted by Duane Smith at 9:01 AM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (6) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

August 31, 2009

On The Wrong Mailing List Again

I just received the following email under the subject "Duane - We offer Church Loans for Refinance, Purchase, Renovations, Construction and Operating Costs." To protect the guilty, I've made a couple of modifications. Duane Smith: Please take a moment to...

Read all of "On The Wrong Mailing List Again"

Posted by Duane Smith at 2:07 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (5) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

August 28, 2009

What Now? Corrupting of Youth?

Shirley and I are enjoying a series of lectures on Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle delivered by Robert Bartlett of Emory University. They are on CD from the Teaching Company. Most evenings Socrates joins us. This one: Not this one: Socrates...

Read all of "What Now? Corrupting of Youth?"

Posted by Duane Smith at 7:59 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

August 16, 2009

Mermaid Reward

Some may remember that I am a wicked amermaidist; I believe in amermaidism. It seems that folks from Kiryat Yam in Israel are testing my faith. I am applauded that they would offer a reward, $1 million no less, to...

Read all of "Mermaid Reward"

Posted by Duane Smith at 9:03 AM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

August 15, 2009

Closing The Arts Library at UCLA

Robert Cargill reports on his Official Blog plans to close the Arts Library at UCLA and relocate its collection to other on campus libraries. I believe that this is a damnable plot to ruin the health of those of us...

Read all of "Closing The Arts Library at UCLA"

Posted by Duane Smith at 2:26 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

July 31, 2009

Blog Headline Of The Day Weak Week

When the data is weak, there's always the internet poll to prop it up....

Read all of "Blog Headline Of The Day Weak Week"

Posted by Duane Smith at 1:36 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

July 12, 2009

No News Here

Bad language could be good for you, a new study shows. For the first time, psychologists have found that swearing may serve an important function in relieving pain. [snip] Although cursing is notoriously decried in the public debate, researchers are...

Read all of "No News Here"

Posted by Duane Smith at 3:37 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

July 8, 2009

Motivational Reading

My wife is a voracious reader. She reads three or four books a week, mostly fiction but recently she has taken up ancient Greek history and culture. She also belongs to a book club sponsored by our local public library....

Read all of "Motivational Reading"

Posted by Duane Smith at 12:21 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

June 3, 2009

King of Saudi Arabia Becomes Pope!

I never dreamed Obama's mission to bring people together would go this far. Picture copped and cropped from Huffington Post....

Read all of "King of Saudi Arabia Becomes Pope!"

Posted by Duane Smith at 1:23 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

May 17, 2009

Amazing

James Henry Breasted, 1929, It is now exactly a century since the first man able to read Egyptian hieroglyphs began the effort to record the inscriptions still in situ in Egypt by means of modern hand copies. Breasted was referring...

Read all of "Amazing"

Posted by Duane Smith at 9:35 AM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (3) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

May 11, 2009

Careful: Chinese Women's Writing Is Just A Click From Ancient Mesopotamia

For reasons uninteresting, I was browsing the Wikipedia article on Mesopotamia when I found something abnormally interesting. Nusku, a god the currently holds my attention, was perhaps listed among several other ancient Mesopotamian gods. So I took the link to...

Read all of "Careful: Chinese Women's Writing Is Just A Click From Ancient Mesopotamia"

Posted by Duane Smith at 11:36 AM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

April 26, 2009

Flying Too Low?

I couldn't help but laugh at this from a CNN article on the release of the federal database of collisions between aircraft and various animals. As you will see, more than birds were involved. While bird strikes account for the...

Read all of "Flying Too Low?"

Posted by Duane Smith at 8:30 AM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

April 14, 2009

How Can I Go On Without A Reference?

I was going to make fun of the last five or six words of this quotation on books: . . . welcome, assiduous companions, always ready to appear in public or go back in their box at your order, always...

Read all of "How Can I Go On Without A Reference?"

Posted by Duane Smith at 8:11 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

April 8, 2009

Ingredients Ezekiel Forgot

Fresh yeast, sea salt, soybeans and sesame seeds seem to be missing from Ezekiel's recipe. I'm not so sure that Ezekiel thought of wheat gluten and malted barley either but I'll let that slide. Ezekiel 4:9 commands the people to...

Read all of "Ingredients Ezekiel Forgot"

Posted by Duane Smith at 8:39 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (4) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

February 10, 2009

Room for Confusion

One David Moulton famously asked, "Why is American beer served cold?" and then answered, "So you can tell it from urine." Did the ancient Mesopotamians have a similar problem? Sumerogram KÁŠ = beer Sumerogram KÀŠ = urine Yes, they are...

Read all of "Room for Confusion"

Posted by Duane Smith at 8:09 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

December 18, 2008

The Finest Facilities

As a break from other things, I continue to scan my old 35mm slides. I found this gem a little while ago. I took this picture in August of 1971. We were on our way to the Mitla Pass. It...

Read all of "The Finest Facilities"

Posted by Duane Smith at 8:17 PM | Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |

Titles Only From Here On

November 11, 2008

Correcting A Possible False Impression

November 2, 2008

There's Abnormal and There's Just Plain Weird

August 29, 2008

Friday Loanword: māḫāzu

June 30, 2008

David Ker's Parody Carnival

June 18, 2008

The German Language and Involuntary Swearing

May 30, 2008

The Dirt on Geologists, Anthropologists and Archaeologists

May 12, 2008

A Well-rounded Individual

April 1, 2008

Not In My Family, Not This Time

March 25, 2008

A Fine Disassemblage

March 20, 2008

Chris Heard Is Using Strong Language

January 25, 2008

This May Light Up Your Life

January 5, 2008

My Predictions for 2008

December 31, 2007

How Did I Do On My 2007 Predictions?

December 15, 2007

Rated R for Metaphysics

December 10, 2007

A New Home for My Research

October 9, 2007

Depleting the Language

September 19, 2007

It Makes No More Sense in Pirate Talk

August 29, 2007

Getting Ready

July 15, 2007

On Learning Greek

July 6, 2007

Not in My Family

June 29, 2007

One of My Worshippers Sent Me an Ecard!

April 1, 2007

A New Inscription from Ugarit

February 5, 2007

A Teacher's Work is Never Done

January 3, 2007

What Is Really Going to Happen in 2007 and What Is Not

December 16, 2006

And Now For Something Completely Stupid

September 13, 2006

On the Fine Art of Unavailability

September 7, 2006

Every Day in Everyway, I'm Getting Better and Better

July 18, 2006

I Support the Presidents Right to Use the S Word

May 28, 2006

Just for Fun

May 17, 2006

Why I Seldom Make Predictions

May 6, 2006

My Mona Lisa

April 1, 2006

King David's Seal and Hebrew as the Ancestor of all Languages

April 1 Reading List

March 30, 2006

Angels in the Gaps

February 14, 2006

The Cat is On the Roof

January 22, 2006

Solving the World's Problems One at a Time - Freeway Traffic

January 12, 2006

New Arboreal Species Shows Intelligent Design

January 3, 2006

Nerdier Than Thou

November 17, 2005

New Government Mental Health Program for Seniors

November 10, 2005

The Punchline From Dover

October 30, 2005

I'm A Monkey

August 13, 2005

LA County Circumcised for State Fair

July 27, 2005

Get Your Viking Name While They Last

May 25, 2005

Make Sure You and Your Dogs and Cats Understand the Laws in California

May 18, 2005

I'm Luke Skywalker

April 30, 2005

Amazing - I'm a Little Bit Republican

April 13, 2005

A Short Lexicon of the Neo-con Language

April 1, 2005

April 1, A Dangerous Day to Post

March 20, 2005

Just Follow Your Nose

February 19, 2005

A Book in Hand Is Worth Two in the Bush

February 16, 2005

Gas Too High?