Saturday, August 8, 2026
Old Timey 1911 Ad Teaches You How To Kiss A Girl
In 1911, a stick of gum made by the Common Sense Gum Company came with this handy guide to kissing a girl.
[via The Presurfer and vintag.es]
Friday, August 7, 2026
The Evolution of Tap Dance
Scott Bradlee and his Postmodern Jukebox take us through the history of tap dancing since 1899, with dancer and choreographer Sarah Reich shuffling and tapping her way through various songs, from 1899's "Maple Leaf Rag" to 2014's "Uptown Funk."
[via The Presurfer]
World's Best Flag?
It's that of Greenland.
Designed by Greenland politician Thue Christiansen, it was officially adopted in 1985 and features the Danish colors.
The white is symbolic of the ice and snow that covers most of the island, and the red is symbolic of the sun.
Thursday, August 6, 2026
FOUND: Artifact from the Future Past
By Laura Moorhead, this appeared on the last page of the August 2006 issue of Wired Magazine.
Chess Teacher Chess Set
From websites:
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Chess Teacher
At last — chess pieces with the rules for how they move printed right on them!
Now everyone can play.
You get a complete set of plastic chess pieces with print-on rules for moving, a chess board, and an instruction booklet — which you won't need because the pieces are so clearly marked!
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Wednesday, August 5, 2026
Mr. Mxyztplk v Joe Btfsplk — Vowel-Deprived Throwdown: Who came first?
From my longtime Crack bookofjoe Mississippi Correspondent©®™ Shawn Lea comes a characteristically deep diving investigation into the little-known origins of two great vowel-deprived comic characters of the 20th century, Mr. Mxyztptlk (above) and Joe Btfsplk (below).
Her report follows — and you can bet your bottom dollar that not one word has been.
- Mr. Mxyztplk vs. Joe Btfsplk
Who came first... Mr. Mxyztplk vs. Joe Btfsplk?
Joe Btfsplk preceded Mr. Mxyztplk. Joe Btfsplk's first appearance was June 11, 1942. Mxyztptlk ((roughly pronounced Mix-yez-pit-lick, also nicknamed Mxy) first appeared in September of 1944. Joe's creator, Al Capp, pronounced Btfsplk with a "raspberries" sound, also known as a "Bronx cheer."
Mxyztplk appeared originally as a small bald man in a purple suit, green bow tie and purple derby hat. This was changed to a futuristic looking orange outfit with purple trim in the mid-1950s, although the hat remained. At around this time the spelling of Mxyztplk's name changed (by mistake) to "Mxyz pt lk".
From Wikipedia:
After the establishment of DC Comics' multiverse in the 1960s, it was later explained that the purple-suited Mxyzptlk lived in the fifth dimension connected to Earth-Two and the orange-costumed Mxyzptlk in the fifth dimension connected to Earth-One. The Earth-One version was also retconned into Superboy stories as Master Mxyzptlk.
From www.supermanhomepage.com:
The imp known as Mr. Mxyztplk first appeared in our dimension in Superman #30 (1st series, 1944) in a story by Jerry Siegel with art by John Sikela. For those who haven't seen the original story, you can find it in "The Greatest Superman Stories Ever Told" trade paperback. The bald little fellow in the purple suit and green bowtie creates all kind of havoc -- including animating a naked statue he calls McGurk. Mxyztplk describes himself as a "court-jester" from another dimension. The not very bright imp laughingly tells Superman that there is no way he can be tricked into saying the magic word "Klptzyxm" that will return him to his own dimension. Oops. Saying the word, Mr. Mxyztplk vanishes.
A note at the end of the tale says, "If you enjoyed the antics of Mr. Mxyztplk and would like to read of his further encounters with Superman, let us know on a penny postcard." Obviously, Mr. Mxyztplk was a big hit and returned many times.
The imp's name was later changed to Mxyzptlk (for the consonant-challenged among you, the letters "t" and "p" are reversed). He had a long history of antagonizing Superman, supposedly every 90 days, until Superman inevitably tricked him into saying his name backwards. This restored everything back to normal and banished Mxyztplk back to the Fifth Dimension for another 90 days. Until the Crisis On Infinite Earths series rewrote DC history.
Darth Tater — Just the thing for the 'Star Wars' fan who thinks they have everything
From the website:
.................
Create your own unique Darth Tater character with interchangeable parts.
Includes a variety of accessories to customize your potato figure.
Perfect for imaginative play and creativity.
Suitable for children and collectors alike.
A fun twist on the classic Mr. Potato Head toy.
For ages 2+ so all my readers can have great fun with it.
Tuesday, August 4, 2026
'The Wizard of the Kremlin'
I've had this 2025 film directed by Oliver Assayas on my watchlist for months and finally took a flutter last night.
It's excellent!
I had no idea the cast included my favorite actor in the world, Jeffrey Wright (whose portrayal of a conflicted high-level CIA executive in "The Agency" [Season 2] was sensational), and Alicia Vikander as a punk goddess in the fragmenting post-Gorbachev Russia.
Lagniappe: you don't have to subscribe to a streaming service to see it — rent it on YouTube.
40,000-Year-Old Bird Figurines Carved From Mammoth Ivory Found in German Cave
Spectacular.
Archaeologists in southwestern Germany have unearthed two miniature bird figurines carved from mammoth ivory, among the smallest and most delicate examples of Ice Age art ever found.
The two ancient figurines, each about 0.8 inches long and weighing about 1 gram apiece, were discovered in 2025 in the Aurignacian layers of Hohle Fels Cave.
The site is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Cluster in the Swabian Jura known for yielding some of the earliest figurative art in human history.
Dated to be about 40,000 years old, the artifacts were found about 5 feet apart in the same layer, suggesting they may be roughly contemporaneous and possibly even the work of the same hand.
One figurine appears to show a bird crouched low, perhaps brooding over eggs; the other, incomplete, shows outstretched wings that could depict a bird taking flight, landing, or displaying in courtship.
"The figurines demonstrate that the earliest artists were skilled ivory-carvers, who could depict delicate motifs in miniature form," said Professor Nicholas Conard, director of excavations and an archaeologist at the University of Tübingen.
"Additionally, it seems that specific depictions are associated with specific sites."
The objects' naturalistic detail points to a ptarmigan as the likely model for the brooding bird, with the second figure possibly a ptarmigan, grouse, or bird of prey.
"The carvings are not highly stylized but instead include many specific and unique features," Professor Conard said.
"Here the artist has recorded detailed observations that allow us to consider which kind of bird is represented and what the bird could be doing."
The finds show that humans working in the region roughly 40,000 years ago, near the time modern humans first arrived in the Upper Danube region, were already accomplished ivory carvers capable of rendering fine detail at a tiny scale.
"The figurines in their present state weigh only 1.3 and 0.7 grams and are the smallest and finest depictions from this period 40,000-years-ago, but despite their size, they raise many new questions," Professor Conard said.
"Even 40,000-years-ago birds were here. Their song filled the air and some species came to the region in the course of annual migrations."
"Their calls signaled warnings, and the residents of the region often used their hollow bones and even mammoth ivory to make flutes that produced magical sounds."
[via SciNews]
Monday, August 3, 2026
Potholes Are Inverted Speed Bumps
The epiphany cited in the headline above came to me sometime in the past few months.
I was chatting with my neighbor from across the street while we were out walking her dog, and I told her that when I was out running through our hood one day and saw a pretty big pothole [above], it occurred to me that after driving over it at high speed once, you wouldn't do it again.
Every few years our homeowners association spends a few thousand dollars accrued from annual dues to repair our two streets, each about a half mile long, which are considered private roads for maintenance purposes yet are fully open to the public.
The potholes, some good sized, are the result of heavy equipment that's brought into the neighborhood for various home renovations/construction/etc. that proceeds to tear up our roads.
Apart from the fact I believe people who hire such machines should be responsible for road damage they cause — which will never fly — I like the concept of potholes as inverted speed bumps which will result in the same sort of driver reaction, i.e. GO SLOW!
The next time the topic of pothole repair is raised by our homeowners association, I am going to pay my share BUT I am also going to send a letter to each resident of our neighborhood urging them to take a fresh look at potholes.
Phones have beome a main character in all crime-centered movies and shows
I noticed this last night for the umpteenth time while watching Apple TV's excellent 10-part production of "Cape Fear."
I didn't keep count but as best I can recall, phones and their information were the focus/cause/driver of around a quarter of onscreen time.
Above and below, two screenshots from the trailer.
Compare that to the superb 1991 movie of "Cape Fear" starring Robert DeNiro: zero smartphones — because they hadn't been invented.
The penny only dropped for me earlier this year on how phones have become a standard and ubiquitous feature of thrillers.
Anyone else notice?
Sunday, August 2, 2026
Anthropeum: 500,000 Artifacts — 10 Rounds a Day
"Where in the world, and when, does this human artifact belong?"
"Each day, ten objects. Guess where and when each was made. Then see how you ranked against everyone else who played today."
Fair warning.
Our Philosophy
Saturday, August 1, 2026
2-Second Tent
From websites:
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Sets up in 2 seconds flat.
Accomodates two adults.
Combines excellent ventilation and light blocking for a good night's sleep.
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$149.
Why I don't want to get big again
A long time ago on an internet far, far different than today's, bookofjoe was way more popular than it is today.
I'm talking an average of 15,000 page views/day in 2010-2012 compared to around 500/day now.
Some days there were over 100,000!
A lot of great things resulted, one being that so many readers sent me stuff of interest to feature that it was much easier to post 8 times daily than it is now to do 3 posts/day.
I got very little spam, considering: each morning I'd go through what came in while I was sleeping (spammers and advertisers figured that out) and delete the junk: it took just a couple minutes.
Cut to today when AI and prediction markets have so messed things up that major long-time websites are being destroyed.
It will only get worse.
Me, I'm gonna stay under the radar.
In the 10 months since I switched from Typepad to Blogger, I'd guess I've received maybe 5 spam comments: not bad!
Animated Knots
"Animated knot-tying for boating, climbing, fishing, scouting, search-and-rescue, and arborists."
That oughta cover it.
Remember: "Knots weaken rope."
Friday, July 31, 2026
Live Aboard Your Boat While At Home
Why go to all the trouble and expense of acquiring and maintaining a boat when you can live the life aquatic on the cheap on dry land?
Below, 21 tips on how to simulate a floating palace at home sweet home.
1. Sleep on the shelf in your closet.
2. Replace the closet door with a curtain.
3. Four hours after you go to sleep, have your wife whip open the curtain, shine a flashlight in your eyes, and mumble, "Your watch!"
4. Put a wall across the middle of your bathtub and move the shower head down to chest level.
5. When taking showers, shut off the water while soaping.
6. Put lube oil in your humidifier instead of water and set it to high.
7. If your basement floods during a sudden thaw, go down and start bailing.
8. Bring inside some type of gas motor (lawn mower, garden tiller, etc), start, and leave running while trying to listen to favorite CD or having an in-depth conversation.
9. If the wind outside is howling, race around the house to make sure all windows and doors are secure. At night, everyone takes a turn on "watch."
10. Place all none-edible garbage in small plastic bags and store in other half of tub (edible garbage to be thrown out the window).
11. Wake up at midnight and have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on stale bread. Cold canned ravioli or soup is optional.
12. Make up your family menu a week ahead of time without looking in the pantry, 'fridge or freezer.
13. Once a month pick a major appliance, take it completely apart, and put it back together.
14. Use 18 scoops of coffee per pot and allow it to sit for 5 to 6 hours before drinking.
15. Put a fluorescent light under the coffee table and lay there to read a book.
16. Every so often throw the cat in the tub (hot tub, large sink, etc.) and shout, "Man overboard!"
17. Run into the kitchen and sweep all the pots/pans/dishes off of the counter onto the floor, then yell at the wife for not having the place "stowed for sea."
• After distributing this list the first time, I received some additions from Tommy Taggart:
18. With every major windshift, have your alarm go off so you can reset your address.
19. Periodically throw some sand about the house.
20. Cut two legs shorter on each chair.
21. During a squall, wake up, go to the front porch, throw a bucket of cold water in your face, then go back to bed.
[via the Grogono family website]
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