letters to god almighty from our youth

I came across these letters to God written by children and laughed at a lot of them. A child's psyche is damn interesting, even if their poignant and insightful questions are the product of naivety. But seriously, God better be American. I ain't rootin' for no bloody Brit. FULL POST

the moma store shows me again why japan is cool

As part of MOMAs Destination Japan line of products, these plates by Ikuko Nakazawa (interesting tidbit, my dad was pushing for my name to be Ikuko, or if I was a girl, Elizabeth) make your food say a lot. You know, that you're fun, interesting, or perhaps a romantic at heart just chasing a dream. While you're over at the MOMA store maybe you check out the Slice Plate. FULL POST

interview with flight of the conchords wanna-be groupie: kristen schaal

You know her, love her, and laugh at her on HBO's Flight of the Conchords, but do any of us really know the show's Mel, or in real life, Kristen Schaal? Heeb magazine (which is itself a great magazine) has a great article on the comedian/actor. It gives a lot of evidence of how talented she is, and shows her connection to the late Andy Kaufman's family. It’s definitely a good read.

p.s. for ya, the Flight of the Conchords self-titled debut cd comes out April 22. Soon after that they start a small U.S. tour. I normally don’t dig the novelty music albums, but I can’t help but love their songs. Those foreigners are so clever.

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apathy party '08

It gets overwhelming closer to election time to see all the political satire in every corner and crevice; you begin to wonder how much of it even drives the receiver to the desired result. It probably just ends up causing more apathy. I suppose that's the reason behind Apathy Party.

Taking a look at their "Nonifesto," their message became evident:

"We are the Apathy Party. You may not have heard of us, but we're the largest political party in the country. As a matter of fact, 63% of Americans voted in the last election. Everyone else chose Apathy."

Although the message is tried (and, I suppose, often true), the Apathy Party is well thought out and is pretty humorous in its satire. It may sway some non-voters into taking action, but I do wonder how worthwhile these "campaigns" are. I'd rather worry about the ones who are dead-set on voting without any kind of decent knowledge on the issues.

(Found via NOTCOT.) FULL POST

The Compact Humor of Someecards.com

I've never sent an e-card. That's probably because I don't buy real cards. There's something about the expectedness of a card that makes it a little too trivial for me. Someecards may have changed that.

Someecards was founded by former Onion writer Brook Lundy and Duncan Mitchell. That probably explains the type of humor that these little guys possess. They often contain satire and irony, making oh-so-smug observations about society at large. My kind of humor. The object of the company is to create e-cards that span all different types of categories that you can send to anyone you'd like.
If you're like me and not really a card sender, both in the physical and the virtual world, you can still scour through the 1900+ cards and laugh quite a bit.

(Found via TechCrunch) FULL POST

'30s and '40s condom wrappers make for a good time

Im not really sure what catagory this fits in to, I guess design, but it’s too good not to share. This collection of 1930’s and ’40s condom wrappers is a find that makes me feel like I just got lucky. You know, lucky to have found that site.

While some of them do show remarkable design (numbers 11 and 13 are great) or have crazy paper packaging, the greatest thing about these are the names. My personal favorite has got to be Pousse L’Amour, which is french for “love grows.” Ouu la la, so clever. FULL POST

Garfield Minus Garfield: Subtraction Equals Addition

I don't read many comic strips, save the Acme Novelty Library book I just purchased. I don't subscribe to the newspaper, and web-comics are something I usually only stumble upon. However, I at least know that Garfield is mediocre in most ways.

Who knew, though, that the ever-popular Garfield comic had undertones of "schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and the empty desperation of modern life"? Well, these are probably not intended, but when you delete the very reason the comic exists, it becomes about these things and, in many ways, funny.

Garfield Minus Garfield is a blog that simply takes out Garfield from the comic. What results is "an even better comic" that explores the isolation of a deeply troubled human mind. Although the description sounds oh so dark and brooding, do not fear: it's funny.




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Dali on "What's My Line"

While I can often be found laughing to a finger being bitten by Charlie, or a monkey smelling his finger, there is so much more to see on youtube. In a wonderful document showing more than just his work, Salvador Dali can be seen as a playful, albeit surreal (too clichéd?), character he was. He appeared on the game show “What’s My Line” on January 27, 1957 and did a great job confusing the panel and entertaining everyone else.

I suppose I’m getting into a mid century phase, but so much of what was being produced looked great. Even the effects of the superimposed text of “Artist” and “Salvador Dali”, even if out of necessity, create a composition that accomplishes everything it sets out to, and nothing more. Watch it. Take notes. Reflect. Repeat.

The key moment that sums up the humor of the clip is at 3:44 when the host, John Daly, shakes his head “no” while Dali nods “yes” as if there is no way he isn’t an athlete.

Other great quotes:
"I would have to agree that we must consider that our guest is a writer."

"Yes, I think it is properly yes and no."

"Is there something quite unusual about our guest?"

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Yeah, funny things happen in the world: Born For Hard Luck

I don't know if there is anything better than a good story teller. It's great when are stories true, it's great when they're exaggerated, and it's best when you can't tell which the story is. That's definitely the case with Peg Leg Sam. Real name Arthur Jackson, he was born in 1911 and grew up in rural, like, rural rural, South Carolina. If you have seen the movie Amelie, the clip of the old man with one leg dancing is from this documentary Born for Hard Luck. (video links are on the left of the page.)

It's hard to say what he was. He was a blues harmonica player who could play two harps simultaneously, one with his mouth and one with his nose. But generally, he was a cool old man who spent his life traveling on freight trains and doing whatever he could. At one point he worked in medicine shows, following in the long rural tradition of selling snake oil.

The life he lived and the stories he tells seem like they would be impossible. I never hear stories like his today. Peg Leg was never a rich man, but he seemed genuinely happy with how everything turned out. And everyone around him seems like they wouldn't want to be anywhere else. I can't even imagine doing half of what he has done, but I also can't imagine watching anything cooler than this short documentary.

Quotes I'm partial to:

"To show you that I IS in hard luck, if I go up the street walking fast, I run over something. I'm in such hard luck, if I go up there walking slow, something run ofer me. I'm in such hard luck, if I'm sitting down I'm in everybody's way. I'm in such hard luck, if it's raining down soup at this very minute, everybody'd be standing there with a spoon--why, I'd have a fork."

"I said uh oh lady, I forgot bout my fingernails"

"Somebody carry me. Get a car quick!"

"But that was a funny thing. three years I done saved up. Two days after I quit work, broke as a he-haint in Georgia Yeah!" FULL POST

Issues grow more pertinent as presidential election nears

With McCain now the official Republican candidate, and the race between Clinton and Obama coming closer to its dramatic finish, we can soon start to really concentrate on the issues at hand that will determine the next president.

However, 95total is not about pushing political agendas, even though we're plugging Obama t-shirts (hey, we like baseball). What we do promote is awareness and knowledge, and perhaps one of the best ways do to that (at least for us) is through satire (hint:see video below).

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