I was stretched out on my porch chair reading the latest issue of “The New Yorker”. Spring weather has returned. I looked up and saw the jet contrail emerging from the budding tree. My first thought: This is how pandemics happen.
The news now includes “Pandemic”. Level 5. There’s only one more level to go. What next? Frogs dropping from the skies?
In that defiant mood, I submit to you a YouTube video of an Australian satirist and writer, John Clarke, impersonating the Australian Prime Minister being interviewed following a huge oil spill off of Queensland in March, 2009. It’s called, “The Front Fell Off” and I now am going to spend the evening trying to see all of his videos.
Sometimes my need for humor overrides any need to deal with Apocalypse Now.
©Pat Coakley 2009
PHOTOGRAPHS CANNOT BE USED WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION
Australia is in many many ways very similar to the US in that we like to claim foreign things or people as our own. Unfortunately, I’m afraid we can’t claim the very talented and sublimely funny Mr Clark as one of our native sons. Alas he was born in NZ which is a country that punches way above it’s weight and possibly has more talent and capability per capita than anywhere else in the world.
Oh! By the way, fortunately on the other hand, Russell Crow was born in NZ as well and there are many of us here in Oz who wish he wasn’t thought of as an Australian. We as a nation, we Aussies aren’t too keen on people who take themselves so seriously.
Is it just me or does anyone else see a profile of a man with a pointy chin in the clouds?
I’ve been making stupid jokes about the pandemic all day. It’s been awful.
This afternoon I demonstrated my version of the “Mexican Swine Flu Dance”.
It wasn’t pretty.
Humor is often the best antidote to anxiety, if not to the flu. My advice on the swine flu, which I have offered elsewhere, is to avoid consorting with pigs, even if they are family members.
If the fatality rate for this “pandemic” were to rise significantly, I would support a much higher level of anxiety and action to prevent it’s spread and to alleviate its symptoms — and certainly would not joke about it. However, as it is I think the recent media hype represents primarily our cultural addiction to crisis, and the use of crisis to sell more widgets.
I think that is me flying over. This week I spent a significant amount of time at New York JFK, LAX, and SFO international. I forgot to wash my hands before eating. I hope I don’t die.
Airline pilots always have mordant senses of humor, DAve!!
Don’s point is a good one. How quickly we’ve forgotten about those other hard to beat epidemics that never happened: ebola, hanta virus, not to diminish anthrax one of the bigger luminaries of the 21st century.
Guess we needed a diversion from TARP, mortage backed securities, Pakistan, Cuba, Pontiac following the Edsel to the graveyard and fist bumps.
A good plague oughta do it.
( gotta go now- off to buy more Purell )
I have never bought Purell, Bonnie. But, yesterday, I took a look at the shelves in the CVS!
Very cool photo.
S.Le: Remember when “very cool” was a phrase used all the time? Maybe you are too young. What would the phrase be for today? I’ve heard some I hate, like “that is sick”. I HATE that phrase. HAAAAAAAAAAATe it.