A pithy comic strip about life, love, lust and puthy cats.

Est. 1985

Extra, Extra!

But seriously, folks…

By Jimmy Johnson


Buy the new book, "Beaucoup Arlo & Janis!"Today's "Arlo & Janis!"
Today’s classic A&J is from August of 1994, and it first appeared mere days before the changeover to digitalization. In other words, it was one of the last daily strips actually to be shipped by Federal Express to the syndicate offices in New York. Speaking of digitalization, remember when I mentioned earlier this year that I wanted to revamp this Web site? I’ll bet you haven’t forgotten. You just assumed I had. Well, I haven’t. I have decided, though, that I need professional help. With Web-site design, I mean. I have been in contact with said professionals, and I’m hoping I might have something new to show you early in 2015. I know we go through this sort of thing a lot. Believe me, I know, but please humor me. I’m going to ask you, again, to make suggestions for the new Web site if you’d like. That way, I’ll have your input all in one place and fresh when I meet with the Web people after the Thanksgiving holiday. Any new suggestions, or restatement of old suggestions, will be appreciated. And I haven’t forgotten about the T-shirts, either.

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251 responses to “But seriously, folks…”

  1. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    Even in high school, I had classmates I couldn’t convince that the Civil War was over.

    Roberta X, a blogger I follow, just commented about reprioritizing her daily life, one of her resolutions being to spend “way less time on politics: most of the time, all the political stuff does is get you riled up with nothing to do about it”. That’s pretty much the same decision I reached a few months ago when I cut my consumption of television “news product” to near zero.

    However, I’ve recently found that consumption to be creeping upwards, and so, at the risk of becoming an actual news media hermit, it’s time to pull a few more plugs, including those connected to their online counterparts. But I’m not too worried about the hermit part…there are still a fair number of people online who can actually think and write intelligibly about their thoughts. I just need to be more selective.

  2. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    Debbie 😉 From one of my Christmas movie classics…

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3zzSjIJN8o

  3. TruckerRon Avatar

    Pop Quiz:

    It’s obvious that the local/state/federal government needs to buy product X for wonderful, noble purpose Y. At which level of government do you think the purchasing agent will find the best bargain (value for $) with the taxpayers’ money? At which level do you think product X is most likely to be inferior to what you can buy at store Z in your town and to cost several times more?

    Your answer will demonstrate your understanding of government and economics.

  4. sandcastler™ Avatar
    sandcastler™

    2.764 X – 0.38 Y = Y^6 + (1.25X)/ e^11

    The product is also on aisle 24 at Walmart, althought Carrie Walton Penner wants her father to pull the product.

    😉

  5. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    sand, didn’t you mean 2.764 * (– 0.38Y) = (Y6 + 1.25X) / 11n [where n is not equal to any multiple of Y] ?

    Jackie, check that for us, please.

  6. Jackie Monies Avatar
    Jackie Monies

    Cannot imagine that you two were some of the geeky guys who stood at the blackboard writing this stuff and trying to stump each other!

    The pre-computer equivalent of todays’ computer gamers probably?

    Love, Jackie

  7. Jackie Monies Avatar
    Jackie Monies

    Having worked for the agency that during my period of employment won the Golden Fleece award for five consecutive years (I did nothing to contribute to their achievement) I can believe anything of bureaucracy. Nothing an employee can do can change anything, much less any of their constituents.

  8. Jackie Monies Avatar
    Jackie Monies

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Fleece_Award

    I would note he made this award to some programs that proved to be of great worth ultimately and he is reputed to have harmed science. Also, claiming to have received this award from Senator Proxmire, were you with the government, was akin to claiming your college had been picked by Playboy as the ultimate party school in America.

    Love, Jackie

  9. sandcastler™ Avatar
    sandcastler™

    ^°^°^°^°^°^ trained in the dark arts. 😉

  10. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    Dang. Several years ago, I had a great idea for a research project that would occupy me when I retired, and I thought there’d be no problem obtaining a government grant to finance the study. Now I see, from the Golden Fleece link Jackie posted, that someone beat me to it: “The Federal Aviation Administration was named for spending $57,800 on a study of the physical measurements of 432 airline stewardesses, paying special attention to the ‘length of the buttocks’ and how their knees were arranged when they were seated.”

    Gee thanks, Jackie, for destroying my dream. And I’d already started compiling a list of study subjects, too.

  11. Jackie Monies Avatar
    Jackie Monies

    Yep, realized that when I read that particular item. You had not mentioned ever working for the FAA, Ghost, so I knew you weren’t the one getting to measure butts.

    How about the one with the measurement implements for men?
    Did size count?

    Love, Jackie

  12. sideburns Avatar

    EMB, the judge on Night Court had a special robe with coat and tie attached. Underneath, he was often wearing a T-shirt and shorts.

  13. Jackie Monies Avatar
    Jackie Monies

    Gosh, I miss that show! Some of best ensemble acting there ever was, great comedy and actors.

    Janis has changed her perfume. Arlo noticed. Sorry for the spoiler on the strip today. I am off to bed with the 10# faithful dog and four cats. Who will be meowing for some canned food with gravy, lick the gravy off the meat and leave the rest for dog.

    It is in 20’s here tonight, a four cat and a dog night.

    Love, Jackie

  14. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    And I’d have had a head start on the study, as I’ve already spent years observing “how (females’) knees were arranged when they were seated”.

    For a Gubermint Agency, in my experience, the FAA wasn’t half bad, at least not back in the day and at the GADO level.

  15. Debbe Avatar
    Debbe

    Good morning Villagers….

    GR 😉 I watched that movie last night!!! (Guess who got to the remote first?) It too is a favorite, I love the song Ray Charles (I think it’s him) sings in the song…will U Tube it.

    Mark, thanks for the links. Never studied the Civil War….I’m like Jackie on that subject…..my husband was in control of the remote that day and he is a history fanatic. He loves the History Channel, Investigative Discovery channel…..and so on.

    Ian and Andrew went shopping last night….on The Boss’s $$. They bought me a new flashlight…1,050 lumen….I’m excited, nothing will escape me now…”bring me your dead”

    My husband and BIL are babysitting Kyler today…..this should be interesting.

    Gotta go…going in early, I’ve got a water leak to find among those 50,000 plus cages, water consumption went up 600 gallons in one day…so there’s a leak. Hint…look for wet hens 🙂

    Ya’ll have a blessed day

    today’s grin: http://cheezburger.com/8252307968

  16. Debbe Avatar
    Debbe

    Trucker….that’s a trick question, right? 🙂

  17. TruckerRon Avatar

    Debbe: Of course! It reveals your attitude and faith towards government efficiency. (There’s an oxymoron in there somewhere!)

  18. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    Re: Bill Proxmire…he could be a bit of a jerk. At one time, I worked in an industry that he decided to “improve”, but with legislation rather than an “Award”. And if it had been up to him, the US would never had had a space program.

  19. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    Debbe 😉 Do wet hens really get mad?

  20. Jackie Monies Avatar
    Jackie Monies

    Actually I thought Proxmire was a jerk too, Ghost. One of reasons he was down on my agency I think was because he often stuck his nose in for compensation awards to constituents of questionable validity. I am not saying we were not inefficient or that our employees tried very hard to be more efficient but often the reason congressmen became involved was they owed favors to someone.

    As “Special” (interpretation: log jam shover) I was often the one being called by the aides. Aides being underlings, are often more obnoxious than their bosses.

    The FAA and its eyes, the air traffic controllers, do an amazing job
    actually. Burn out used to occur at an early age, some locations like Chicago and Atlanta were notorious.

    Good morning and love, Jackie

  21. Jackie Monies Avatar
    Jackie Monies

    Ghost, have you ever looked at a flock of hens out in a chicken yard in pouring rain with no where to go? They LOOK incredibly unhappy, hence the expression I think.

  22. Jerry in Fl Avatar
    Jerry in Fl

    File this under happy stories. I once had a boss who sent me to her supervisor in hopes that they would fire me. We had a nice talk after which they never bothered me again, but my boss was fired.

  23. Jerry in Fl Avatar
    Jerry in Fl

    BTW, it was a government job. The good guys can win if you cya.

  24. TruckerRon Avatar

    Jerry: I learned the hard way to “document everything.” Having full notes of who, what, when, why, etc., enables you to convincingly state your case.

  25. Jackie Monies Avatar
    Jackie Monies

    Remember a few days ago when we were talking about bayonets and how often does one get used to attack people? Well, there is a road rage article on Yahoo this morning where a driver used one in upstate NY to attack another driver!

    Never say never.