USO Canteen FReeper Style ~ Pancakes on Wednesday ~ 10 December 2003

Canteen FRiends

[Radix]

For the freedom you enjoyed yesterday...
Thank the Veterans who served in
The United States Armed Forces.

Looking forward to tomorrow's freedom?
Support The United States Armed Forces Today!

Pancakes on Wednesdays

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Welcome to Pancakes on Wednesdays.

Wednesday, December 10, 2003

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Here is an amalgamation of trivial facts and seemingly useless data.

Do not forget to hit the hyperlinks.

We have links, lots of them.

COULROPHOBIA

An irrational fear of clowns.

What, fear those delightful purveyors of slapstick comedy? One may as well go in terror of Santa Claus (but then a few people do that too, sad cases of Santa Claustrophobia). But clown humour has always embraced cruelty in its teasing and insulting of other clowns and members of the audience. Clowns represent anarchy, the personifications of unreason, and a force of nature out of control. Who knows what really lies behind their unchanging painted faces and outlandish costumes? These are all good enough reasons for even the strongest and most adult of us to feel unease in the presence of a clown. Some children are terrified by them and a surprisingly large proportion of adults confess to finding them creepy and disturbing, so much so that this word for their condition has had to be invented. It’s not old—perhaps from the 1980s—and has been taken from Greek kolon, a limb, which seems strange until you find the related kolobathristes was a stilt-walker. This seems to have been the nearest its coiner could get to a suitable classical allusion, since ancient Greek didn’t have a word for a clown in our modern sense.

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Happy Birthday

Arthur Fiedler 1896

Conductor; born in Boston, Mass. Trained as a violinist in Boston and Berlin, he joined the Boston Symphony (1915--30), first playing violin, then viola. Determined to conduct, he founded his own chamber orchestra, the Boston Sinfonietta, in 1924. In 1929 he launched the Esplanade summer series, free concerts by the Boston Symphony, along the Charles River. In 1930 he took over the Boston Pops Orchestra and for almost a half century he was the most beloved conductor of light-classical music in the U.S.A. Active in promoting music through various mediums, he was also made an honorary fire chief because of his practice of chasing every major fire, day or night, and became a familiar figure to Bostonians at the scene of the fires.

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Todays Wednesday field trip takes us to Riverside California.

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Happy Birthday

William Safire 1929

William Safire's Rules for Writers:

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Two confirmed bachelors sat talking, their conversation drifed from politics to cooking.

"I got a cookbook once," said one, "but I could never do anything with it."

"Too much fancy work in it, eh?" asked the other.

"You said it. Every one of the recipes began the same way -
'Take a clean dish'".  

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Happy Birthday

Bob Guccione 1930

Who let the dogs out?

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On this day:

1969 - TV history was made when Tiny Tim and Miss Vicki Budinger were married on "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson.

Tiptoe to the window, by the window that is where I'll be
Come tiptoe through the tulips with me!
Tiptoe from your pillow, to the shadow of a willow tree
And tiptoe through the tulips with me!
Knee deep in flowers will stray, we'll keep the showers away.
And if I kiss you in the garden, in the moonlight, will you pardon me?
Come tiptoe through the tulips with me!

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On this day:

1777 - France recognized American independence.

 

 

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On this day:

1791 - A traffic regulation in New York City established the first street to go "One Way."

I am an excellent driver.

We are counting cards!

Home of Laminates.

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On this day:

1843 - "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens was published.

 

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New Atomic Discovery...

The heaviest element known to science was recently discovered by GM Research physisists. The element, tentatively named Administratium, has no protons or electrons and thus has an atomic number of zero. However, it does have 1 neutron, 125 asistant neutrons, 75 vice neutrons, and 111 assistant vice neutrons. This gives it an atomic number of 312. These 312 particles are held together by a force that involves the continuous exchange of meson-like particles called morons.

Since it has no electrons, Administratium is inert. However, it can be detected chemically as it impedes every reaction that it comes in contact with. According to the discoverers, a minute amount of Adimnistratium caused one reaction to take over four days to complete when it would have normally occuered in less than one second. Administratium has a normal half-life of approximately three years, at which time it does not actually decay but instead undergoes a reorganization in which assistant neutrons, vice neutrons, and assistant vice neutrons exchange places. Some studies have shown that the atomic mass actually increases after each reorganization.

Research at other laboratories indicates that Administratium occurs naturally in the atmosphere. It tends to concentrate at certain points such as government agencies, large corporations and universities and can usually be found in the newest, best appointed and best maintained buildings.

Scientists point out that Administratium is known to be toxic at any detectable level of concentration and can easily destroy any productive reaction where it is allowed to accumulate. Attempts are being made to determine how Administratium can be controlled to prevent irreversible damage, but results to date are not promising.

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Would you like some more Lynx with your pancakes?

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On this day:

1903 - The first successful gasoline-powered airplane flight took place near Kitty Hawk, N.C.

 Orville and Wilbur Wright made the flight.

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1969 - The U.S. Air Force closed its Project "Blue Book" by concluding that there was no evidence of extraterrestrial spaceships behind thousands of UFO sightings.

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1978 - OPEC decided to raise oil prices by 14.5% by the end of 1979.

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Real Doughboys....

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2000 - Terrell Owens (San Francisco 49ers) caught an NFL-record 20 passes for 283 yards and a touchdown against the Chicago Bears. The previous record was held by Tom Fears (Los Angeles Rams) with 18 catches on December 3, 1950, against the Green Bay Packers. Owens also broke Jerry Rice's franchise record of 16 receptions set in 1994 against the Los Angeles Rams.

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Would you like an abacus with your pancakes?

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We are counting cards.

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Pancakes Wednesdays

Definitely

 

[Soaring Feather]

Post 268

Fantastic work Fawnn!

[Fawnn]

Thanks for the inspiring posts!

[StarCMC]

You know MoJo, I cheered when I heard this on the radio today. And I'll I could think of when I was listening to the newsperson tell about that giant whining sound we were hearing from the libs was the story of the little red hen. You don't work, you don't eat. You don't do the hard stuff, you don't get the $$$! It's biblical, too. I'm paraphrasing here, but I know SOMEWHERE in the Bible (one of Paul's books I think) it is said that man who doesn't work should not eat. And to the whiners, I can says is

Bite Me!

[Fawnn]

Thank you!

...

Now, I have a question for the computer gurus in the thread:

Is there a significant loss of speed when printing is done using a parallel cable rather than a USB?

(If anyone orders a Canon i860 printer, be forewarned! It doesn't come with a d*** cable! grrrrrrrrrrrrr ... amazon listing failed to mention that. I got one because my mom has one and it does a fantastic job on photos -- and the ink costs so much less than it does for my current printer. ... My SIL ran errands for me today and I included "USB 2.0 cable" on my list; she brought me a parallel cable. Chances are I already still have one of those floating around here somewhere. If it doesn't make much difference, I'll just go that route rather than order a USB. ... It's always something, isn't it?) ;)

[TexasCowboy]

Thanks, Star.

I have that printed out and framed on my wall.

[tomkow6]

Try putting a large quantity of fried spagetti & peanut butter on the parallel cable..........

[TexasCowboy]

"Bite Me!"

Awwww, c'mon, Star!
Tell us how you really feel!

[StarCMC]

HI TC!!! Long time no see!! Miss ya! How's your daughter doing these days? I say a prayer fro her whenever the Lord brings her to mind!

[tomkow6]

I've got this printed out & will put it up on my locker tommorrow in my cubicle at work. It will remain there until I return to work on Jan 2, 2004.

[TexasCowboy]

Hi, Star!

Faith has good days and bad days, but none so bad as the ones last month.
Thank you for your continuing prayers, dear one.
God listens.

[TexasCowboy]

It's on my wall here at the rig, too, tom.

I'll be here over Christmas so it will give a lot of people the chance to read it.

[tomkow6]

FYI: Tomorrow is my LAST day at work for the year!

[StarCMC]

Whenever you mention your cubicle, I get such a mental picture!

[Severa]

Good evening from VA Beach!

Been a hell of a week here. First JJ was running a fever and was out of school Mon and Tues, and then Robbie got sick just as JJ was getting better. I had been sick off and on since the beginning of the month when the flu decided to rear its ugly head on me this week. Went to the branch medical clinic today...I had a fever of 102.3, Robbie had a fever of 101. So now I'm on Tamiflu and this wicked strong decongestant along with Tylenol, Robbie's on Tylenol and prescrip strength Robitussin.

On a happier note, I just heard from the hubby. He had taken 4 days of leave and was able to sightsee through London, had a great time. We're nearing the halfway mark of the deployment, and he's re-enlisted. Just waiting for that fat bonus now *L* and trying to figure out which sonar school he'll be going to (either in GA, CT, or WA)

That's all for now, have a great evening everyone!

[StarCMC]

Never forget.

Here's to our heroes!

We owe you a debt of gratitude that we can never repay! Hope you're all back at your favorite fishin' holes ASAP! God bless you!

[StarCMC]

Gotta run - take care, all!

[Kathy in Alaska]

Your e-mail here: Giant lasers projected on the gushing plume of the famed Geneva Water Fountain herald Helloworld, a global interaction project created by Swiss artist Johannes Gees. Helloworld is taking place during the World Summit on the Information Society in Geneva. Internet users are invited to send messages for display by going to www.helloworldproject.com

[minor49er]

Good Evening troops!! Good Evening everyone!! Here is today's humor attempt!

Twenty ways to confuse Santa Claus
1. Instead of milk and cookies, leave him a salad, and a note explaining that you think he could stand to lose a few pounds.

2. While he's in the house, go find his sleigh and write him a speeding ticket.

3. Leave him a note, explaining that you've gone away for the holidays. Ask if he would mind watering your plants.

4. While he's in the house, replace all his reindeer with exact replicas. Then wait and see what happens when he tries to get them to fly.

5. Keep an angry bull in your living room. If you think a bull goes crazy when he sees a little red cape, wait until he sees that big, red Santa suit!

6. Build an army of mean-looking snowmen on the roof, holding signs that say "We hate Christmas," and "Go away Santa."

7. Leave a note by the telephone, telling Santa that Mrs. Claus called and wanted to remind him to pick up some milk and a loaf of bread on his way home.

8. Throw a surprise party for Santa when he comes down the chimney. Refuse to let him leave until the strippers arrive.

9. While he's in the house, find the sleigh and sit in it. As soon as he comes back and sees you, tell him that he shouldn't have missed that last payment, and take off.

10. Leave a plate filled with cookies and a glass of milk out, with a note that says, "For The Tooth Fairy. :)" Leave another plate out with half a stale cookie and a few drops of skim milk in a dirty glass with a note that says, "For Santa. :("

11. Take everything out of your house as if it's just been robbed. When Santa arrives, show up dressed like a policeman and say, "Well, well. They always return to the scene of the crime."

12. Leave out a copy of your Christmas list with last-minute changes and corrections.

13. While he's in the house, cover the top of the chimney with barbed wire.

14. Leave lots of hunting trophies and guns out where Santa's sure to see them. Go outside, yell, "Ooh! Look! A deer! And he's got a red nose!" and fire a gun.

15. Leave Santa a note, explaining that you've moved. Include a map with unclear and hard-to-read directions to your new house.

16. Set a bear trap at the bottom of the chimney. Wait for Santa to get caught in it, and then explain that you're sorry, but from a distance, he looked like a bear.

17. Leave out a Santa suit, with an attached dry-cleaning bill.

18. Paint "hoof-prints" all over your face and clothes. While he's in the house, go out on the roof. When he comes back up, act like you've been "trampled." Threaten to sue for personal injury.

19. Instead of ornaments, decorate your tree with Easter eggs.

20. Dress up like the Easter Bunny. Wait for Santa to come and then say, "This neighborhood ain't big enough for the both of us.




I also have a favor to ask. I recently noticed that a favorite site of mine was gone. It was titled "213 Skippy is no longer allowed to do in the army"
I was wondering if anyone happened to have another link to it or have it written down anywhere. If you do, please freepmail me because if you post back there is an enormous chance I'll never read it.
Thanks
Minor

[minor49er]

What?

[minor49er]

what?