










Not really an LOL quality joke, but an opportunity for a comment. Should the trope of “doctors have bad handwriting” be retired? (Doctors whose bad handwriting was relevant are likely all retired as well.) Nearly all prescriptions are either sent directly to the pharmacy, or printed out from the computerized medical record. That medical record itself isn’t handwritten notes anymore, but notes entered on a computer in medical English — not entirely readable, but for a different reason.
It’s like jokes involving pay phones.


This week I got birthday greetings from my four siblings — two days before my actual birthday. This happens every year. I used to correct them, but it never made any difference. Now I just go with the flow. Perhaps they really know, but it’s a minor practical joke on their part.




Jack Applin sends this in: “Baldo, Estella, and Cruz (orange cap) encounter “Man o’ the Cave” (in Flintstone garb) at a carnival. The caveman tries to walk out with Baldo & friends, and is stopped by the guard. WHY? Is he a prisoner? Does carnival security keep track of groups entering, and insist that they leave in eactly the same groups?”
The next day’s Baldo clarifies the intended joke, but does the old guy really look like Cruz’s double?

billr sends this in: “A whole sheaf of comics starring Death, of course, this time of year. But what is the question he’s talking about?”

Here’s a bonus OY from this week:





My daughter gives kids a choice: 2 pieces of candy, or 1 piece and a potato. Many kids take the potato.


Maybe we need a “Yeah, right!” tag.

Other nominees: big hats, bustles and anything else from the Gone With The Wind era.


Mitch4 sends this in: “Finally! An answer to centuries of studying the question of theodicy!”
I’m probably not the only one who had to look this term up:


As I write this, the Jets are 0-6.


Mitch4 provides a translation: “The bit of dialogue would mean ‘I was an IBM 700 in a past life’.”
Dirk the Daring sends in this one, appropriate for CIDU:




Again, Again!

JMcAndrew notes: “He’s pretending to be having a medical emergency? A seizure? Allergic Reaction? As a way to entertain his grandchild on video chat? Why?”

Parisi is 64, about the age to have young grandchildren. I’ve done this with my grandchildren, who are always amused, and usually want me to do it again.

JMcAndrew sends this in: “I have to agree with Ditto. It’s ridiculous that they only have 3 birthday candles and her plan was to just hope her 6-year-old wasn’t perceptive enough to notice. Is the family in such financial hardship that they can’t afford some new birthday candles? This is sad more than funny but I like how mad Lois looks here as she cuts the candles in half.”


In honor of the past week’s heat dome:

I got this on second or third read, but I don’t think it gets points for execution:

Mitch asked, “What is the soccer ball doing in there?” but once I got the overall point (such as it was), I see why it’s there.
Am I being overly critical here?
This cartoon by John Jonik was first published in the New Yorker exactly 41 years ago today, but I discovered it too late to add it to the Thanksgiving collection for 2023.

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The headline above is modeled after a quote by Sepp Herberger, coach of the German national football soccer team: “After the game is always before the [next] game.” Of course, discussing football (of either variety) can sometimes be even more explosive than discussing politics.
Mark H. submitted this XKCD (#2858) last year; although it did get embedded in comments (such as in the No-Politics Zone), it’s still worth a repeat in a post:

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P.S. The “mouseover” or “title” text reads: “An occasional source of mild Thanksgiving tension in my family is that my mother is a die-hard fan of The Core (2003), and various family members sometimes have differing levels of enthusiasm for her annual tradition of watching it.“
P.P.S. The link to the HuffPost article in the second panel still works (I already typed it in, so that you don’t have to).


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In Germany, it’s called “Erntedankfest” (literally: “harvest thanks festival”), and is celebrated on the first Sunday in October, but it is primarily an event for the liturgical calendar (both Catholic and Protestant), and is not (generally) celebrated by families at home.



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Several decades ago, my grandmother just happened to include a leftover bowl of (homemade) mac&cheese on the Thanksgiving dinner table, which resulted in some amused needling from my dad and uncle. However, both my sister and my aunt vigorously defended it, so that for many years thereafter, (fresh) mac&cheese became a standard component of my grandmother’s Thanksgiving menu.

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The final panel reminded me of the last scene in the song “Christmas Wrapping” by the Waitresses.
No cranberries? Frank and Ernest have suggestions:
