
[Found here.]

[Found here.]

Chickenado: “Trust me! I can get us out of here! This way!”
Antnado: “Army ants are one of the most efficient killing machines in the animal world.”
Buddy Hackett went out for a pizza.
Foster Brookes came in for a roast.
The walls are closing in. Pass it on.
No reason those people should have not been wearing life jackets.
From the Economic Funnies Department:
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez explains economics in 39 seconds.
Ocasio-Cortez supporters discuss socialism.
Saw this message on a church sign recently:
[Top image from here.]

[Found in here.]


Jacob Cornelisz van Oostsanen, 1526.
Okay, so here’s the short story as I understand it.
The Prophet Samuel was dead. Saul, King of Israel and Judah, was kinda nervous, and he needed a strategy to combat the assembled armies of the Philistines, but dreams, prophets (and parts of a breastplate worn by the High Priest to communicate with God) left him with no answers.
The Philistines wanted tribute, i.e, a protection payoff, and King Saul was tired of it.
Saul couldn’t think for himself, so he did what anyone in his position would do: search for a witch who could talk to the dead. Since necromancers had been thrown out of the Kingdom by Saul’s own decree, he put on a disguise and eventually found one in the remote village of Endor.
The witch contacted the soul of Samuel. Samuel was pissed at Saul for bothering him and gave him a load of crap. Then he stated that Saul’s army would be defeated the next day, and that the King would die. Saul freaked out.
Being a compassionate witch, she tried to calm him and insisted that he stay for supper. She fixed him a cheeseburger or something, and Saul left for home.
The next day King Saul’s army was defeated, and Saul committed suicide to fulfill the prophesy, circa 1012 BC.
At least that’s what I got from Wiki. BTW, apparently necromancers were also talented ventriloquists, and they didn’t work for free. Go figure.
No idea how the painting fits in to all of this, but there you go.

[Found here.]

[Found here.]

“A 65-year-old resident of a Chinese village named Huang Shiguo has been making paper according to old traditional technology for the last 36 years. According to him, for a month he produces about 3,000 sheets of such paper, earning about 9,000 yuan or 1,400 dollars.
[Huang] argues that paper made in a traditional way is much more durable, quality and soft compared to the manufactured methods. The master sells its products in the local markets of China.”
At time of posting, 9,000 yuan is equivalent to US $1,355, so each sheet of handmade paper earns him about 45 cents. Not bad, given the cost of living in rural China, but he’s not living in rural China. He’s demonstrating and preserving ancient technology, and selling his expensive product while living in a tourist mecca. Pure undiluted capitalism. Kudos.
“Huang Shiguo, 65, makes paper using ancient methods in his home in Baishui Village, Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, Southwest China’s Guizhou Province. Huang said he began learning the traditional paper-making craft at 29 and has been dedicated to the ancient craft ever since. Locals in the area have a more than 1,000-year history of paper making as the region is rich in Yangshan Bamboo, a main material needed for the craft. Huang said the typical process involves 72 steps and 55 days to produce paper.”
[Photos and 1st caption (translated from Russian via Google Translate) found here. 2nd caption from here.]
Dan Hicks and His Hot Licks had an unusual sound for a band based in San Francisco at the peak of the psychedelic music era. From an obit in the New York Times 7 February 2016:
“He came to call his music “folk swing,” but that only hinted at the range of influences he synthesized. He drew from the American folk tradition but also from the Gypsy jazz of Django Reinhardt, the Western swing of Bob Wills, the harmony vocals of the Andrews Sisters, the raucous humor of Fats Waller and numerous other sources.”
Hicks was still performing up until his demise at the age of 74.
THAT is the prettiest (and only) cover of Tom Waits‘ classic “The Piano Has Been Drinking” I’ve ever heard. The backup vocals are sultry, and note the subtle hat-tip at about 03:00.
Have a great weekend folks, and a long one if you’re taking advantage of a mid-week Independence Day.