Archive for November, 2008

19 items.

Hard to Swallow

by Seraphine Khorana on November 30th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
Hard to Swallow

De gustibus non est disputandum is Latin for There is no arguing about taste or, as thoughtful people might observe, To each her own. I’m a great believer in free choice. But what we order from the menu isn’t always what we get to eat. And we all have to eat.

Things People Swallow (Hollywood Flakes)
Cattle suffer from ‘pica’ or eating the unpalatable (Hindu.com)

Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us.
Quotation from Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

Pride in a man is confused with dignity; in a woman, with self-love.
Quotation from José Bergamín

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Loaded for Bear

by Seraphine Khorana on November 28th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
Loaded for Bear

Encore Seraphine has been down for a few days. In a nutshell, somebody exploited a software vulnerability. My webhost rightly suspended the website until the problem was fixed.
My heart goes out to the victims of the terrible violence in Mumbai, India.

If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
Quotation from Mother Teresa
In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love.
Another quotation from Mother Teresa
An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind.
Quotation from Mohandas Gandhi

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Drinking the Water of Lab Rats

by Seraphine Khorana on November 25th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
Drinking the Water of Lab Rats

I wonder if astronauts can wish upon a star? Maybe they have special rules about wishing like “You can’t make a wish on Uranus because that belongs to the Russians” or “No wishing for a parallel universe.” In space, you have to be careful what you wish for. If you get that pony you’ve been wanting, where are you going to put it? And everytime it pees, do you have to drink it? Um, no thank you. I’ll have a diet coke please.

Lab animals on the [International Space Station] breath and urinate, too, and we plan to reclaim their waste products along with the crew’s.
Quotation from Layne Carter, Marshall Space Flight Center

Water on the Space Station (science.nasa.gov) Rationing and recycling will be an essential part of life on the International Space Station.

When Paris has to pee, Paris has to pee!
Quotation from Paris Hilton

The only rule is don’t be boring and dress cute wherever you go. Life is too short to blend in.
Another quotation from Paris Hilton

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This Tastes Like Hot Chocolate

by Seraphine Khorana on November 24th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
This Tastes Like Hot Chocolate

Citigroup insisted Friday that it is financially sound. A week after announcing 52,000 employee layoffs, Citigroup accepted a $306 BILLION dollar government rescue yesterday. They also cut the dividend and agreed to restrictions on executive pay. Sorry Citigroup, but nobody believes that was really hot chocolate you’ve been serving your customers, employees and shareholders.

If life gives you a bowl of lemons, go find an annoying guy with paper cuts.
Quotation from ThinkExist.com

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World Toilet Day

by Seraphine Khorana on November 22nd, 2008
Posted In: Comics
World Toilet Day

If 2.5 billion people don’t have toilets, it isn’t surprising that dancing is a favorite pastime. Dancing from one foot to the other (degage, it is called) was popular eons before the introduction of the Texas Two-Step. Can you imagine 2.5 billion people dancing? It’s either dancing, or following each other around picking up poop with hand-held plastic bags or pooper scoopers. Personally, I’d rather shimmy.

World Toilet Day, November 19th 2008 (World Toilet Organization)
Don’t laugh, a successful ‘big job’ is a big deal (The Straights Times)

May I also request you demand for clean toilets because that is another reason you could be holding back your urge and that is so unfair to your colon.
Quotation from Jack Sim, Founder, Restroom Association of Singapore

The authentic! I said
rising from the toilet seat.
The radiator in rhythmic knockings
spoke of the rising steam.
The authentic, I said
breaking the handle of my hairbrush as I
brushed my hair in
rhythmic strokes: That’s it,
that’s joy, it’s always
a recognition, the known
appearing fully itself, and
more itself than one knew.
Poem by Denise Levertov, Matins

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Kick a Ginger Day

by Seraphine Khorana on November 21st, 2008
Posted In: Comics
Kick a Ginger Day

Today is “National Kick a Ginger Day” in Canada. Ginger is, of course, a slang expression for people with red hair. Redheads account for only four percent of the world’s population. It’s thought that within 100 years, redheads will become an endangered species along with polar bears, manatees and certain species of armadillos.

‘Kick a Ginger’ day has redheads running scared (CTV News BC)
Redhead facts & myths (Restless Cynicism Blog)

To many people holidays are not voyages of discovery, but a ritual of reassurance.
Quotation from Philip Andrew Adams

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The Problem with Virtual Reality

by Seraphine Khorana on November 20th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
The Problem with Virtual Reality

I spend too much time online. I’m not complaining, mind you. I’m stating a fact. If you are reading this, you are probably spending too much time online too. If you Twitter when you laugh or say LOL in ordinary conversation, you’re addicted and need help. (My addiction score is 66: “You are experiencing occasional or frequent problems because of the Internet. You should consider their full impact on your life)

I do not fear computers. I fear the lack of them.
Quotation from Issac Asimov

To err is human, but to really foul things up you need a computer.
Quotation from Paul Ehrlich

17 Comments

Incompatibility

by Seraphine Khorana on November 19th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
Incompatibility

I bought a nice new computer. But Adobe’s Creative Suite CS2 isn’t compatible with Window’s Vista operating system. I’ve only had this extremely expensive software for two years and it’s already “obsolete.” It costs $600 to upgrade. Yeah, I think that sucks.

Despair is perfectly compatible with a good dinner, I promise you.
Quotation from William Makepeace Thackeray, Lovel the Widower

For wisdom is the property of the dead,
A something incompatible with life; and power,
Like everything that has the stain of blood,
A property of the living; but no stain
Can come upon the visage of the moon
When it has looked in glory from a cloud.
Poem by William Butler Yeats, Blood and the Moon

16 Comments

The Dark Tunnel of Obsession

by Seraphine Khorana on November 16th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
The Dark Tunnel of Obsession

Normal Mailer said “Obsession is the single most wasteful human activity, because with an obsession you keep coming back and back and back to the same question and never get an answer.” I think with a good obsession, you don’t expect an answer.
What’s your obsession?

This woman sent Nigerian scam artists $400,000 -a fool or a victim? (Times Online)
Light shed on the Meath UFOs X-File Footage of ‘flying saucers’ that caused a buzz around the world is revealed to be Chinese lanterns from a wedding (Times Online)
Second Life affair leads to real-life divorce for David Pollard, aka Dave Barmy
(Times Online)
Lindsay Lohan, Fur Hag: PETA Flour attack (The Inquisitr)

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Taming the Mischievious Spirit

by Seraphine Khorana on November 14th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
Taming the Mischievious Spirit

The White Cockatoo in northern Queensland is hosting a month-long “Almost Anything Goes” party to help people cope with the world’s greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression. “Tough economic times call for stiff measures,” declares clothing-optional resort owner Tony Fox. “No, we’re not the Sheraton” the resort warns, but the drinks are included in the price. And think of the additional airline fees you’ll save by travelling to Australia without troublesome luggage (look Mom, no clothes!).

I am nude as a chicken neck, does nobody love me?
Yes, here is the secretary of bees with her white shop smock,
Buttoning the cuffs at my wrists and the slit from my neck to my knees.
Now I am milkweed silk, the bees will not notice.
They will not smell my fear, my fear, my fear.
Poem by Sylvia Plath, The Bee Meeting

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What is the Medical Billing Code for “It was caused by a toilet seat?”

by Seraphine Khorana on November 12th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
What is the Medical Billing Code for “It was caused by a toilet seat?”

Medical care is going to get more complicated. A new medical coding system is soon going to be released. Consisting of over 155,000 codes, ICD-10 will be used to define various ailments and treatments provided by doctors, labs and hospitals. The new system will have, for example, 45 different ways to describe a sprained ankle.
Insurance companies love complexity because every little coding error gives them a reason to deny or delay paying medical claims. Initial estimates predict coding errors will rise by as much as 25%.

Why Do We Need 1,170 Codes for Angioplasty? (The Wall Street Journal Online)
Injured By a Spacecraft? There’s a Diagnostic Code for That. (The Wall Street Journal Health Blog)

A woman went to a plastic surgeon and asked him to make her like Bo Derek.
He gave her a labotomy.
Quotation from Joan Rivers

She has had no rigors or shaking chills, but
her husband states she was very hot in bed last night.
Quotation from Actual Medical Records (Medi-Smart.com)

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Karmic Benevolence

by Seraphine Khorana on November 11th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
Karmic Benevolence

What goes around comes around. But be careful, because you don’t want to be caught looking the wrong way when it happens.

If stupidity got us into this mess, then why can’t it get us out?
Quotation from Will Rogers

In anticipating the unexpected, there are at least four political events in the Middle East that could make Obama’s hair turn prematurely white, quite apart from a terrorist attack. These include:
1. The collapse of the Palestinian Authority.
2. A Hizballah takeover of Lebanon, either through next year’s parliamentary elections or via extra-legal means.
3. A succession crisis in Egypt, a vitally important country with an octogenarian president and no open, transparent, and accountable system for the transfer of political power.
4. News of unexpected nuclear “success” by Iran.
Quotation from In Transition: The Obama Administration (The Washington Institute for Near East Policy)

It is against the law in San Francisco to wipe one’s car with used underwear, or to walk down any street if you are “ugly”.
Taken from Dumb Laws in California (DumbLaws.com)

Just think how stupid the average person is, and then realize that half of them are even stupider!
Quotation from George Carlin

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The New Mrs. O

by Seraphine Khorana on November 10th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
The New Mrs. O

I never have been a fan of combat pants. Sure, sometimes someone catches my attention wearing them, but it is never the pants themselves that attract me.

They tell me that it all was too rapid. That’s not true between Nicolas and me. It didn’t happen rapidly. It was immediate… I know you don’t get married in an instant and that even more, we were in the spotlight. But lovers, you know, have their own sense of time… I wished to marry him right away. I felt that with him nothing bad could happen, Nicolas isn’t addicted to power and that’s what makes him courageous. I love being with him more than anything.
Quotation from Carla Bruni, on marrying French President Nicolas Sarkozy

Behind the Scenes on Election Night. (Following the Fashion of Mrs. Obama on Mrs-O.org)

Love lasts a long time, but burning desire, two to three weeks.
Another quotation from Carla Bruni, France’s First Lady

The French President’s Lover (The New York Times) “People always secretly hate the rich and beautiful,” said Long Nguyen, the editor of Flaunt magazine.

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Customer Service

by Seraphine Khorana on November 8th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
Customer Service

Sarah Clark, who asks “what has happened to decent customer service?” is the inspiration for today’s comic. And she’s right. But also, having worked at both sides of the register, I’ll say this: the customer is not always the most pleasant person in the world.

I’m terribly swamped, so I may miss a couple of comics this week. There will be regular updates, but maybe three or four new comics rather of the customary five or six. This is temporary. Please leave lots of comments so I don’t feel bad.

As long as the world is turning and spinning, we’re gonna be dizzy and we’re gonna make mistakes.
Quotation from Mel Brooks

When someone is impatient and says, “I haven’t got all day,” I always wonder: How can that be? How can you not have all day?
Quotation from George Carlin

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The Obama Honeymoon

by Seraphine Khorana on November 6th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
The Obama Honeymoon

I have great expectations for you, Mr. President-elect Obama. I hope I’m not being unreasonable. I believe in equal opportunity and equal rights for all people, including equal protection under the law. I don’t believe government can (or should) do everything, but I think government should be honest and balanced and measured to be inclusive of individuals rather than exclusive of them. I wish you bon voyage and a happy honeymoon.
P.S. Please invite me to the rehearsal dinner.

I do not want a honeymoon with you. I want a good marriage.
Quotation from President Gerald Ford to the U.S. Congress

Your mind now, moldering like wedding-cake,
heavy with useless experience, rich
with suspicion, rumor, fantasy,
crumbling to pieces under the knife-edge
of mere fact. In the prime of your life.
Poem by Adrienne Rich, Snapshots of a Daughter-in-Law

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Rebooting the Vote

by Seraphine Khorana on November 5th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
Rebooting the Vote

Remember the children’s game Simon Says? “Simon says touch your nose”, and you have to touch your nose. Then “Stand on one foot” but because somebody doesn’t first say “Simon Says” -you’re out.
I hated that game. It’s a favorite game of kids who grow up to be bureaucrats. No matter how hard I tried to please, I never got to be Simon.

I was a woman in a man’s world. I was a Democrat in a Republican administration. I was an intellectual in a world of bureaucrats. I talked differently. This may have made me a bit like an ink blot. People projected around me.
Quotation from Jeane Kirkpatrick, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations

I promise you, we as a people will get there… Yes we can.
Quotation from Barack Obama, America’s next President

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What You Don’t Understand, I Do.

by Seraphine Khorana on November 4th, 2008
Posted In: Comics
What You Don’t Understand, I Do.

Two things about me:
1. I want to act freely and uninhibited, but I am restrained by my need to have things on a rational, consistent and clearly-defined basis.
2. I try to escape from excessive demands on my meager reserves by adopting a defensive attitude in which I refuse to be committed, or to be involved in further unpleasantness.
Observations taken from The Psychology of Color, a test claiming that ‘Color Preferences Reveal Your Personality.’

Marriage has no guarantees. If that’s what you’re looking for, go live with a car battery.
Quotation from Erma Bombeck

A kind in glass and a cousin, a spectacle and nothing strange a single hurt color and an arrangement in a system to pointing. All this and not ordinary, not unordered in not resembling. The difference is spreading.
Poem by Gertrude Stein, Objects: A Carafe, That is a Blind Glass.

13 Comments

I Promised to take the President of France Baby Seal Hunting

by Seraphine Khorana on November 2nd, 2008
Posted In: Comics
I Promised to take the President of France Baby Seal Hunting

Those crazy Canadians pranked American Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin yesterday. If President Sarkozy telephoned me, I’d have been excited too. Anything you want, Mr. President. Perhaps we could include a duet with Carla Bruni, Heidi Klum and Seal? But… ummm… what do you call a duet with three people?

There are three roads to ruin; women, gambling and technicians. The most pleasant is with women, the quickest is with gambling, but the surest is with technicians.
Quotation from former French President Georges Pompidou

Save Baby Seals: End the Seal Hunt (International Fund for Animal Welfare)

14 Comments

Who’s That Girl

by Seraphine Khorana on November 1st, 2008
Posted In: Comics
Who’s That Girl

Do you think Love sometimes costs more than you’re willing to pay? Because it isn’t always easy, and we get distracted by other things, including selfishness. The heart eventually can’t bear the nothingness of an empty relationship. When do you stop loving someone? After they hurt you?

Gristle Lovers Bristle at Madonna-Gristle Comparison (E Online -UK)

She doesn’t have many friends here and, as she has turned 50, she has
become very philosophical and started wondering what it’s all about.
Quotation about Madonna from ‘A highly-placed source’ as quoted in The Sun

The Day of the Dead, Día de los Muertos, is remembered today (all-saints) and tomorrow (all-souls). Celebrate accordingly.

13 Comments