Musical Sunday

This past Friday we marked the date in 1886 on which an Atlanta pharmacist named John Pemberton placed his first advertisement for the new drink he dubbed “Coca-Cola.” Some years later  (in 1942, to be exact), the Andrews Sisters came out with a song that celebrated Coca Cola with its classic mixer, rum ...

Here are the lyrics, if you're interested:

If you ever go down Trinidad
They make you feel so very glad
Calypso sing and make up rhyme
Guarantee you one real good fine time

Drinkin' rum and Coca-Cola
Go down Point Koomahnah
Both mother and daughter
Workin' for the Yankee dollar
Oh, beat it man, beat it

If a Yankee come to Trinidad
They got the young girls all goin' mad
Young girls say they treat 'em nice
Make Trinidad like paradise

Drinkin' rum and Coca-Cola
Go down Point Koomahnah
Both mother and daughter
Workin' for the Yankee dollar
Oh, you vex me, you vex me

From Chicachicaree to Mona's Isle
Native girls all dance and smile
Help soldier celebrate his leave
Makes every day like New Year's Eve

Drinkin' rum and Coca-Cola
Go down Point Koomahnah
Both mother and daughter
Workin' for the Yankee dollar
It's a fact, man, it's a fact

In old Trinidad, I also fear
The situation is mighty queer
Like the Yankee girls, the native swoon
When she hear Der Bingle croon

Drinkin' rum and Coca-Cola
Go down Point Koomahnah
Both mother and daughter
Workin' for the Yankee dollar

Out on Manzanella Beach
G.I. romance with native peach
All night long, make tropic love
The next day, sit in hot sun and cool off

Drinkin' rum and Coca-Cola
Go down Point Koomahnah
Both mother and daughter
Workin' for the Yankee dollar
It's a fact, man, it's a fact

Rum and Coca-Cola
Rum and Coca-Cola
Workin' for the Yankee dollar

Have a good day and enjoy the rest of your weekend. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Cartoon Saturday

It's been quite a week. Again.

A Minneapolis police officer who was filmed kneeling on the neck of a handcuffed black man who died in his custody was taken into custody and charged with murder after protests across the nation turned violent; the first manned space launch from US soil was called off on Wednesday after weather at the launch site was deemed to make the launch too dangerous; also on Wednesday, the United States passed the grim milestone of 100,000 deaths from Covid-19; furious at being fact-checked on Twitter, his favorite venting platform, Der Furor issued an Executive Order attempting to circumvent the Constitutional protection of free (if objectionable) speech on the Internet; and police in Altoona, Pennsylvania, arrested two members of a family after the 41-year-old mother brawled with her 20-year-old son and his girlfriend, because the mother had disconnected their WiFi service and the son, in retaliation, cut power to the entire house.

This week, in honor of the esteemed members of the House and Senate, a collection of cartoons about clowns ...

Yes, clowns can get gigantic designer shoes ...

When clowns confess ...

The circus fire brigade always has the right tools for the job ...

I can't either ...

Mutual support at the circus ...

Clowns often make snap menu choices ...

Courtroom drama ...

Who, indeed? ...

Well, not in Minnesota ...

You'd think a clown would have better health coverage ...

And that was the last Cartoon Saturday for the month of May, 2020 ... I hope it gave you a bit of a respite from the unrelenting misery of Covid-19, Der Furor, and people who think wearing a mask to protect the health of their neighbors violates their Constitutional right to act like complete anal orifices.

Have a good day and a great weekend, and come back tomorrow to sip a cold drink with the Andrews Sisters. More thoughts then.

Bilbo

Great Moments in Editing and Signage

Last collection for May ... get 'em while they're hot!

Somehow, this strikes me as really digging for advertising material ...

I know where I'm staying when we can travel again!

If stupid names work for Elon Musk, they'll work for anyone ...

One wonders if women are more choosy ...

When you buy the most affordable medical insurance ...

If he'd have garaged it, would it be an Innie Quarto? ... And if you bought the minivan version, would it be an Innie Gallono?

It worked for a lot of us ...

They must have scored the toilet paper without problems ...

But you knew that ...

I've heard it reported ...

Have a good day, and remember to send ol' Bilbo copies of any editorial or signage gems you run across. He's always looking.

See you here tomorrow for Cartoon Saturday. More thoughts then.

Bilbo

Poetry Sunday

Last Sunday we celebrated Mothers' Day with my traditional, updated post honoring the mothers in my family, and mothers everywhere. This week, another take on remembering mother ...

After Fifty Years

by Gil Broxon

I walked among the Grave Markers,
Near my old home town,
And I saw a number of
Old friends.
John: Killed in world war two,
Buckey, Tooter,
And Teenie.
All were childhood pals.
There was Ann's mother, And
Verna Karhryn's Mother and
father. Uncle Levi, Aunt Sally,
And Mr. Smith. I saw Uncle
Charlie—And so many others
That brought fleeting Memories
of other days.
Then I came to the plot,
That Mama had bought for herself.
Suddenly the world was still,
Except for a bird
That was singing.
Once again I heard
Mama say to me,
"Son, when I die.
Take me home!"
I think that they were glad,
That I came and walked among
Their headstones,
And remembered
Each of them,
As they used to be.
I think that they were glad,
That I came all alone,
And did not disturb
The bird
That was singing.

Have a good day and enjoy the rest of your weekend. Wash your hands, wear a mask, and be responsible.

More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Cartoon Saturday

Did you wash your hands yet? Okay, you can read on ...

Der Furor continued getting rid of inconveniently aggressive Inspectors General, firing the State Department IG for, apparently, investigating the Saudi arms and nuclear technology deal blocked by Congress but implemented anyhow by the administration; two dams in Michigan breached during heavy rainfall, causing historic flooding and threatening a vast Superfund toxic-cleanup site; a Pakistani airliner carrying 91 passengers and eight crew, crashed on approach to the airport in Karachi, killing at least 11 people; the man who filmed the murder of Georgia jogger Ahmaud Arbery has been arrested on charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment; and the mayor of Tantará, Peru, Jaime Rolando Urbina Torres, was arrested after hiding in a coffin and pretending to be a coronavirus victim to avoid arrest after breaking curfew rules to go drinking with his friends.

This week, in honor of all the poor, sad folks who have been going crazy in quarantine because they can't get haircuts, I thought a collection of cartoons about the lady with the worst hair ever might be appropriate ...

Sometimes, looking at the wrong place can be the right thing ...

The problem of dining with Medusa ...

Going casual isn't for everyone ...

It's a problem for lots of people ...

And what was your first clue, ma'am? ...

Genetics can be a bummer ...

The reference is actually to the Hydra, rather than Medusa, but it's too good to pass up ...

The secret revealed! ...

If ever there were a mismatched couple ...

Whatever works ...

Have a good day, a great weekend, and love your hair no matter how it looks ... I, for one, would rather have bad hair than be dead.

More thoughts tomorrow, when Poetry Sunday returns.

Bilbo

P.S. - wash your hands, wear a mask, and ignore Der Furor.

B.

The Left-Cheek Ass Clown for May, 2020

I must freely admit to you, Dear Readers, that I am in a state of profound despair.

I find myself living in a country I do not recognize, among people who do not reflect the traditional American values I was taught to honor and cherish. I am surrounded by people who believe the most insane conspiracy theories, who reject fact-based medical and scientific advice while following the lead of unqualified idiots, who insist on the supreme importance of their personal freedoms while rejecting any sense of responsibility for the well-being of the community as a whole.

In this atmosphere, and in my current state of dejection, it's all but impossible to select a single Ass Clown to serve as the biweekly representative of the thundering herd of drooling fools that have made America the laughingstock of the world. And yet I have to do something, and so I shall heave a mighty sigh of resignation and announce my selection for

The Left-Cheek Ass Clown for May, 2020

And the award goes - for the fourth time* - to 

Secretary of State

Mike Pompeo

After being named by Der Furor to replace the fired-by-tweet Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo set out to single-mindedly implement what passes for foreign policy in the current administration. As noted in previous awards, he consistently failed to defend the honor and integrity of State Department personnel against slurs and insults from Der Furor, most notably shamelessly throwing Ambassador Marie Yovanovich under the bus in order to protect Der Furor during his impeachment and not reacting to his boss's reference to the "Deep State" Department. Mr Pompeo has been the front man for a foreign policy of incredible ineptitude, failing to push back against Der Furor's reckless squandering of America's image as a reliable political, economic, and military ally. 

Most recently, Mr Pompeo asked Der Furor to fire the State Department's Inspector General, while refusing to specify the grounds for the dismissal. One suspects that the reasons included the IG's investigations into nuclear and weapons deals with Saudi Arabia that had been opposed by Congress, but pushed through by Pompeo and Der Furor, and into private, elite dinners (which he calls "Madison Dinners") Pompeo has held at taxpayer expense in State Department ceremonial rooms ... events which do not appear to have been part of the State Department foreign policy mission, but rather were intended to cultivate Pompeo’s political career.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Readers, when you vote in November and think about "draining the swamp," think hard about who the people are who are deepening and broadening the swamp rather than cleaning it out.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is the Left-Cheek Ass Clown for May, 2020.

Have a good day, and come back tomorrow for Cartoon Saturday. You know you need the laughs.

Bilbo

* His three previous awards were presented on December 7, 2018, November 22, 2019, and January 20, 2020. At this rate, he and Moscow Mitch McConnell will soon join Der Furor as winners of Lifetime "Achievement" Awards. 

Musical Sunday

Monty Python explains it all ...

Yes, intelligent life may be found out there, as long as "out there" doesn't include the current administration.

Have a good day and enjoy the rest of your weekend at a social distance. More thoughts later.

Bilbo

Cartoon Saturday

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the ... life ...

In the latest move to undermine government accountability, Der Furor on Friday night fired the State Department Inspector General, who was preparing to investigate Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for possible misuse of a State Department political appointee to perform personal tasks for Pompeo and his wife; in Great Britain, as in the United States, psychiatrists fear a 'tsunami' of mental illness after  lockdown restrictions are ended, although the way things are going, it'll be difficult to tell; as deaths from the Covid-19 pandemic in the United States topped 88,000, Der Furor continued to assign the blame for the crisis to the Obama administration, which has been out of office for more than three years; Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, using discretion written into the coronavirus stabilization law, is funneling millions of dollars to private and religious schools, pursuing a long-sought conservative policy goal Congress has repeatedly blocked; and the first named tropical storm of the year - Arthur - is expected to form in the Atlantic over the weekend, news greeted with excitement by Der Furor, who claimed it will ameliorate the Covid-19 pandemic by blowing the coronavirus harmlessly out to sea.

This week, since people seem to be starved for outdoor sports, I thought a collection of cartoons about ... um ... indoor sports might be appropriate ...

Sometimes you don't get the answer you hoped for ...

There are probably a lot of these talks going on lately ...

It seemed like a good idea at the time ...

So did the rest of the nation ...

It's all in how you look at it ...

The perils of being married to an avid reader ...

Check your in-box often ...

I saw a different version of this cartoon years ago, in which the caption was, "Are you sure she's got a friend?" ...

Busted! ...

I think there's probably a lot of this going around at the moment ...

And there you are ... the NSFW edition of Cartoon Saturday. Be sure to wash your hands and wear your full-body condom before trying any of this at home.

Have a good day and a great weekend. More thoughts tomorrow, when Musical Sunday returns.

Bilbo

Great Moments in Editing and Signage

Great Caesar's Ghost! I totally lost track of what day it is, and so now I'm scrambling to get this post up! Hmmm ... do I blame quarantine fatigue or old age?

I expect this is a service a lot of quarantined husbands and wives are contemplating ...

It's probably also low-caffeine ...

I'll bet he got an "A" ...

Why am I reminded of Der Furor's frantic push to open up the economy as fast as possible? ...

Such a deal! ...

I think Jared Kushner organized it ...

Except for Faux News, which is "more offen than not" ...

I think Der Furor has found the people to subcontract his Coronavirus planning to ...

It's part of the GOP plan to reopen the economy ...

How can you pass up a guarantee like that? ...

Okay, there you have it ... slightly delayed, but still here! Now I need to get started on Cartoon Saturday.

Have a good day, stay at home, and wash your hands. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo