The Penalty Box

After each of my roommates got sick twice and some sort of flu-like cold got passed around the office (most recently the guy that sits beside me got sick over Easter weekend), I woke up today coughing.  My throat feels like crap and suddenly 20 degrees C is a bit chilly in long sleeves and pants.  Looks like my immune system finally caved under the pressure and let the virus in.

To my roommates and every one of my co-workers (yes I’m blaming the lot of you), thanks a lot you bastards.  I’ll be sure to breathe on you and give it right back.

Because my sense of humour derives from some kind of combination of sarcasm, geek interests and my job as a programmer, I often find myself laughing at the geekiest things ever while others look at me funny.  Not that there aren’t other aspects about me that make other people look at me funny, but given the number of geek friends I know, at least I’m not alone.  Case in point, this is one of the funniest jokes I’ve heard in a long time.

I kinda want this on a t-shirt now.  If you haven’t seen this comic before, it’s called XKCD.  In a similar geek vein, any of you who are geeks in any way (or are some kind of science nerd) should watch The Big Bang Theory.  It’s geek humour and doesn’t apologize for it.  Plus, the theme song is by the Barenaked Ladies.

On another note, another one of my co-workers came up with an awesome quote the other day: “Bacon is like the superhero of meats.” That it is, that it is.

The Internet is a source of many a thing. Today I learned about what passes as “food” in this part of the world.  No, I’m not talking about a cultural misunderstanding, like what the crazy Swedes eat or that old Chinese restaurant story. I’m talking about the weird ass crap only our neighbours to the south of us would even think about eating.  Examples include Jimmy Dean’s Pancake and Sausage on a Stick and Cheeseburger in a Can (okay this one is German, but it’s sold in the States).  Little did I know that this barely scratches the surface of the horror that is the packaged food industry.  Behold this little gem I came across today:

Kinda makes you wonder what milk gravy is, though I don’t know if I really am THAT curious.  Certainly not curious enough to try eating it.  Also, the number circled in red is not a typo.  It really does say 1170% of your daily recommended intake of cholesterol.  Given that it’s brains, it’s not too surprising since brains are pretty much fat and grey matter.  The fact that this stuff used to get sold (it’s not listed on their product page anymore) means someone thought it was a good idea.

It’s strange what people think is a good idea to eat.  Sort of like that stage for a toddler where everything goes straight into the mouth.  Except in this case, the toddler is suffering from fetal alcohol syndrome or had its taste buds seared off in some wacky cult ritual.  I can find no other suitable explanation (other than perhaps to torture a tapeworm) for one to consume any of the aforementioned products.  And to think I thought the Hungry Man meals my co-worker consumes every day were disgusting.