Cartoon Saturday ... and My Eighth (!) Blogoversary

It's been a heckuva week, but now it's finally Cartoon Saturday. It's my eighth blogoversary, too, but we'll get to that later ... I think we need the cartoons first.

Massachusetts has enacted a law making photographing or recording video under a person's clothing - known as "upskirting" - a misdemeanor; members of an Illinois family have been arrested for shoplifting nearly $7 million worth of goods, which were smuggled out of stores in the mother's flowing black dress; GOP representative Darrell Issa has apologized to fellow representative Elijah Cummings for deliberately shutting off his microphone to keep him from speaking at a House committee meeting; the mummified body of a Michigan woman who hadn't been seen by her neighbors for nearly six years was found in the back seat of her car in her garage; and Russia appears to be settling into its newly-acquired Crimean real estate, unimpressed by US threats of economic sanctions.

So much for March being an improvement on February. Good thing we have Cartoon Saturday to lighten things up.

Since I take quite a bit of grief from my friends* about my love of puns, I thought that a selection of cartoons based on puns would be appropriate ...

Horror movies for bugs? ...

Hey, if the argument works for the gun crowd, why shouldn't it work for me? ...

It's corny, but ...

Some puns are just for the birds ...

Oops ... wrong room ...

Well, he could certainly do it ...

Well, bless their hearts ...

How linguists get dates ...

Opposites do attract, or so I've been told ...

Well, what would you call it? ...

And finally for this week ... sometimes you can end up in the wrong place ...

So much for this week's puns ... how about a little shameless self-congratulation?

Today is my eighth blogoversary! Yes, Dear Readers, I wrote my first blog post on March 8th, 2006 ... you can read it here if you want, but it's not quite up to my current standards. I started writing this blog because of my friend Jake, who had invited me to join a discussion group on military matters and current affairs ... it seems I was a bit too participatory and contrary for the group, and they suggested I just write my own blog and leave them alone.

This blog has evolved a lot since my first few posts, and I've added recurring features like Cartoon Saturday, Ask Bilbo, Great Moments in Editing, and the Ass Clown of the Month. I've made a lot of friends through blogging, some of whom I've actually met in person ... Buggie, Mike, Peg, and Gilahi, among others). I've exchanged letters with Amanda, Fiona, allenwoodhaven, and Green Canary, and others, and I've become Facebook friends with many of you. You brighten my days and your comments keep me thinking and (when needed) honest and humble.

I really enjoy writing this blog. I like having the creative outlet, and meeting people from all over the country and the world, virtually, in writing, and in person. I read every comment left on every post, even if I don't respond to all of them, and always appreciate the time you took to leave them. We don't always agree on everything, but the world would be a lot less interesting if we all saw things the same way.

Bilbo's First Law says you should never let anyone else do your thinking for you ... but I'm glad you've decided to come here and think with me. Let's do the next eight years together!

Have a good day. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

* My friend Bob wrote this on my Facebook page the other day, after Andrea put up the cartoon I shared with you in this blog yesterday: "It's not just beautiful women who associate you with bad puns. It's also handsome men, unattractive women, ugly men, all children, and most members of the animal kingdom." Arizona Dave added, "... and some plants, too, probably." I seem to have an image problem.