January 2009
61 posts
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Identity Confusion
As you may have noticed, we have decided today that it would be amusing for WYWG to start referring to itself in the third person, and for us, the author of WYWG, to refer to ourselves in the first person plural, in a manner ripped off from (but not invented by) the sadly defunct YAYsports!.
Let us know how much this amuses and irritates you!
WYWG is not sure how long this experiment will...
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Telephone Numbers for Drama Purposes →
In order to avoid random people being inundated with calls for Peggy in the Queen Vic, Ofcom (the body in charge of the phone numbering system in the UK) has reserved various ranges of numbers for use in TV shows, plays, and the like. This is the complete list, organised into various different geographic areas and a few other categories, such as freephone or premium rate numbers.
If you have any...
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IDF adds antelope to its arsenal in fight against... →
squashed:
From lowlife, who once again brings us the latest in military technology. The article explains:
“The antelope have been stationed in the zone between the security fence and the international border to clear problematic foliage that distorts views of the Lebanese side and within which Hezbollah guerillas could hide.”
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“I’ll try and explain how this felt. Imagine being a twelve year old boy Richard....”
– Greatest ever letter of complaint
WYWG featured this a couple of days ago (via kryz), but WYWG has decided to post it again today (via aja), because goddamn if it isn’t hilarious and if you missed it the first time you really need to read it this time or you will really be missing out.
...
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kryz:
Someone had a bad trip on Virgin Atlantic, then wrote to Richard Branson to complain. Popbitch has the letter: http://is.gd/gQkY
…and it is hilarious.
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syntactic ambiguity
ragbag is my hero:
a political adversary once called former governor kirk of florida a “fat ladies’ man.” to which the governor retorted, “I like thin ladies too.”
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Thanks and Have Fun Running the Country: Kids'... →
I particularly loved 13-year-old Sheenie Shannon Yip from Seattle’s message:
I really hope you put America back together. No pressure, though.
Also, I think Amy Ramirez, age 8, San Francisco, has been listening to too much Wesley Willis:
Dear President Obama,
When you are president, don’t eat junk food. Junk food makes you fat. Your family shouldn’t eat junk food,...
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“I think various people on this blog are hallucinating that Nescafe is coffee.”
– jms1917, commenting on Ben Goldacre’s post on his Bad Science blog about how the widely reported coffee-makes-you-hallucinate research is, as it were, Bad Science.
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World Clock →
When I posted the Now dashboard back in November ’08, I mentioned that I’d seen something similar before.
Poodwaddle’s World Clock v2 is that something. It’s a rather less playful take on the same basic concept, but also contains a lot more information. Click on the categories to the left to see different stats.
(tip of the hat to Rhys for the reminder)
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“First African American president - it better be good.”
– Malia Obama on Barack Obama’s upcoming inauguration address. No pressure, Dad. (via squashed)
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“Number of members of the rock band Anthrax who said they hoarded Cipro so as to...”
– Harper’s Magazine, in its amusing, enlightening, and depressing Harper’s Index: A retrospective of the Bush era.
It would appear that Harper’s Magazine is not a fan of the Bush administration.
(via Daring Fireball)
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“Johnson still fighting shy, followed round the ring by Halton, who got his...”
– 1829 P. Egan - Boxiana New Ser. II. 703
Via the OED’s Daily Word, said word being maniple, in this case used in sense 3b:
colloq. A hand, fist. *Obs.
My best guess is that a dexter ogle is a right eye.
Also… Obnubilated!
Large of No Mas still writes about boxing in this...
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“That’s why 3D photos amaze us: they remind us about this incredible superpower...”
– Photojojo, in an article about making your own 3D photos
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Tag Cloud
These are all the subjects about which While You Were Gone has something pertinent to say:
(Be patient… It might take a while to load.)
(tag cloud generation courtesy of Heather)
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“There is something immoral and sick about using all of that power to not end...”
– Rev. Al Sharpton
(via sexartandpolitics, asprettyasasong, sisterpearl, marco)
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Ishkur's Guide to Electronic Music →
fascinated:
Very unique presentation and a request by Ishkur: “…make sure your head is completely pulled out of your ass before proceeding.” (via Paul Lamere)
I second the recommendation. I’ve been using this as my definitive reference for (electronic) genres since I first saw it (sometime between four and nine years ago).
Also, it’s funny.
The page fascinated linked to...
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a short correspondence
ragbag:
in 1862, victor hugo wrote his publisher to enquire if his novel, les misérables was selling well. as he was on vacation, he was short on words—scrawling only, “?”. the reply from his publisher soon came—a letter with no words save, “!”. touché!
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WatchThe Way Things Go / Der Lauf der Dinge
This is the full half-hour film which controversially inspired Honda’s Cog ad a few years back. I’ve not had a chance to watch it all, yet, but the bits I’ve seen previously are ingenious and remarkable.
(via kryz)
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his name is joseph palmer
In 1830, at the age of forty-two, a quiet unobtrusive, God-fearing man named Joseph Palmer moved to Fitchburg, Massachusetts. Normally, such an event would have caused no great stir in the community, the newcomer would have settled down and been accepted, and life would have gone on as before. Only one thing prevented matters working out that way—Joseph Palmer wore a beard. And in 1830 beards...
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Joe the Plumber heading to Gaza to become war... →
squashed:
via robot-heart-politics:frothyparadise:fuddmain:dloosely
Once in a while I’ll come across a link from the Onion and briefly mistake it for real news. Before you follow that link, decide whether you think it’s a real news story or a hoax.
Particularly topical for me, because I had only 5 minutes before read the article Porn Industry Seeks Federal Bailout. (via aja)
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my 57 year old father
ragbag:
thinks having multiple email addresses is a status symbol on par with having multiple yachts. when he found out that gmail, hotmail, and yahoo email addresses were free, he snagged over 40 separate user accounts. he lists 10 of them in his alumni directory and thinks that he is the mac daddy.
I am somewhat inclined to agree?
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“…what you don’t know about france could fill a book called the big book of...”
– overheard at logan airport, terminal e
(I already told you ragbag was awesome, right?)
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