I'd Celebrate That!!! March 1-3: National Anthem Day March 3

MARCH 1

NATIONAL PEANUT BUTTER LOVERS DAY-- **   What would Homer say?  Peanut butter on anything.  Give a dog some and sit back and enjoy.

NATIONAL PIG DAY--  **  And, they're so good... to eat.

SHARE A SMILE DAY-- **   Never hurts.

REFIRED NOT RETIRED DAY-- **   I guess this is about being retired.  I wish I had more time to enjoy it.  Time goes by so fast now.


MARCH 2

DRESS IN BLUE DAY--  **  To raise money for cancer.  Problem for me is that blue was the color of Union uniforms during the war.

EMPLOYEE APPRECIATION DAY--  **  Nothing gets done without them.

NATIONAL BANANA CREAM PIE DAY--  **  I love most any kind of pie.

NATIONAL DOODLE DAY--  **  I've been known to do this.

OLD STUFF DAY--  **  Walk into my house and you know why I support this one.  Some say I support it too much.

NATIONAL READ ACROSS AMERICA DAY--  **  Also known as Dr. Seuss Day.  Reading is good.


MARCH 3

33 FLAVORS DAY--  **  As in ICE CREAM!!!!    Anniversary of the opening of the first Baskin-Robbins.

NATIONAL ANTHEM DAY--  **  When you-know-what officially became the National Anthem on March 3, 1931.  Reckon I'll be putting the flags out regardless of the major cold here on Sunday.

NATIONAL DAY OF UNPLUGGING--  **  Get unplugged from those 'putes and "idge" phones.

Ice Cream.  We All Scream for Ice Cream!!  --RoadDog

COME SAIL AWAY:  The second part of which novel begins aboard the Tsimtsum, a Japanese freighter transporting zoo animals?


"Life of Pi"

Them "Idge Phones"-- Speed Bump

From the April 8, 2017, Speed Bump comic strip.

A safari tour bus has stopped by two zebras and four tourists are off it and standing near the zebras, and have their cell phones out, but are not taking pictures as you'd expect.  they are all staring blankly at the screens.

One zebra says to the other:  "For some reason, whenever they're around me, they get out their phones."

The other zebra has the regular stripes that you would expect a zebra to have, but the one speaking has different stripes.

Must be something with those stripes that make "Idge" phone owners stare at their screens.

I didn't quite understand this one.

--RoadDog

Them "Idge" Phones: Has It Come To This?

From the March 21, 2017, Speed Bump comic strip.

In a long-enduring scene, where a father is teaching his daughter how to ride a bicycle for the first time and running along beside her yelling instructions, we see that happening today.  The daughter has a helmet on, of course, in this day of safety nets.    She is succeeding in her attempt.

The father, running behind her yells:  "You got it!  One hand on the handle!  Look up from time to time!  Good job!"

The daughter is staring down at her "idge" phone.  Even more surprising, the father isn't staring at his own "idge" phone or filming his daughter, which I could forgive him for.  In case you're wondering, "idge" phone is short for "idiot" phone.

I was at the theater he other day and saw that just about every single person, or groups of people entering had their eyes glued down at their "idge" phones.

Has Civilization Come to This?  So Sad.  So Sad.  --RoadDog

YOU'RE DRINKING TOO MUCH COFFEE WHEN:  You think being called a "drip" is a compliment.

Living In Today's World: Nobody Important On THAT Phone

From the January 6, 2017 Family Circus comic strip.

The father has called his son saying he has a phone call.  The little son is walking into the room where his dad is holding the receiver of a landline telephone out to him.  Son:  ""It can't be anybody important if it's on that phone."

Laughed So Hard I Cried.  --RoadDog

In Case You're Wondering What An "Idge" Phone Is

An "Idge" phone is my name for the smart phones.  They are probably one of the greatest things ever invented, but not with the way some, well, many people are almost constantly hooked up to the things.

Just look around you.

--RoadDog

I Know the Feeling

From the February 9, 2017, Zits comic strip.

1.  Mom is thumbing her idge phone on the sofa.  Her son Jeremy is looking over her shoulder from behind and says:  "Mom, you need to update your phone software."  His mom replies:  "I don't want to."

2.  Mom:  "Everytime I do one of those updates my phone gets all weird."  Jeremy says:  "I'll walk you through it."

3.  You see the installing thing.

4.  Mom is now holding a frog instead of her idge phone.  The frog says, "Ribbit."  Mom says, "See?"  Jeremy says:  "They're probably working on a fix for that."

Boy, Do I Know This.  --RoadDog

Those "Idge" Phones: The Problem With Texting

From the February 4, 2017, Dustin.

1.  Mom and Dad are in the kitchen.  Dad is sitting down at the table with his bare feet in a small tub of hot water.  Says to wife:  "Oh, that hot water feels good.  My feet are killing me."

2.  Cut to daughter, also sitting at the table with her thumbs in a small bowl of hot water and looks at her parents and says:  "Try texting for six hours straight."

The Flying Thumbs Strike Again.  --RoadDog

Living In Today's World: About Those "Idge" Phones

From the Nov. 16, 2016, Speed Bump comic strip.

A man and a woman are looking at a man jiggling five "Idge" phones and the woman says to the man:  "The amazing thing is, he's still texting on all of them."

From the September 24, 2016, Dogs of C-Kennel comic strip.

The pitbull and Kenny the husky are looking over a brick fence as several adult humans walk by engrossed with their "Idge" phones.  The pitbull says to Kenny:  "Call me nostalgic, but I would actually love to be whacked by a newspaper."

"Idge" Me baby, Eight to the Bar.  --RoadDog

Living in Today's World: "Idge" Phones

From the September 11, 2016, Family Circus comic strip.

1.  One of their kids is holding a leash and says, "Mommy!  I think Barfy (their dog) could use a little exercise.  How 'bout I volunteer to take him for a walk around the park."

2.  He is walking out the door with Barfy on the leash.  the kid has his "Idge" phone out and says:  "Okay!  Let's go find 'em."  You see him thinking about the Pokeyman Go things.

--RoadDog

Living In Today's World: Dilbert-- The Problem With "Idge" Phones

For some reason, comic strip writers seem to have a good handle on the problems with "Idge" Phones.

July 16, 2016, Dilbert comic strip.

Dilbert is at his office with a female co-worker who is staring at her "Idge" Phone.

Panel 1:  Dilbert to coworker:  "The weather will be good this weekend."  Woman:  "Stop right there."

Panel 2:  Woman:  "Your proposed topic of conversation is far below the level of entertainment I can get from my phone.."  She is still looking at her phone.

Panel 3:  Dilbert to the office dog, who is also on his "Idge" phone.  "I don't know how conversations work."  Dog:  "You're interrupting my phone time."

What a World.  --RoadDog

OH HELL!1  ... LET'S OFFEND EVERYBODY!:  What did the Chinese couple name their tan, curly-haired baby?  Answer:  Sum Ting Wong.

A Case of the "Idge" Phones in Rhymes With Orange

From the July 16, 2016, Rhymes With Orange comic strip.

The New Era.

An older couple are walking down the street, holding hands and see two young girls facing each other and holding up their "Idge" (smart) phones.  They are staring at each others' "Idge" phones.

The man remarks to his wife, "Is this what socializing looks like now?"

Does to Me.  --RoadDog

Cases of Teen "Idge-Itis" (Text Neck) on the Rise

It seems that those folks who make the comic strips have already figured out there is something mighty wrong with "Idge" phones.  Others call them "Smart" phones, but perhaps they are more likely "Idiot" phones (or "Idge" for short) for the people using them becoming so addicted to them you rarely see them off it.

Quick, tell me the last time you did not see a teen girl walking around without one in their hand.  They can't even put them away in a pocket or purse as they need to see what their BFF just texted.

Now, I see an article in the August 3, 2016, Chicago Tribune" "Therapists says teens hunched over cellphones get 'text neck' by Vikki Ortiz Healy.  They say teens are experiencing the same neck and back pain usually attributed to people 30 years older.

They are spending too much time staring down at their "Idge" phones.

Is There Something Wrong Here?  --RoadDog

MORE SUTHEN-ISMS:  If the neighbor's trouble is a real crisis, they also know to add a large banana puddin'!

Blondie and the "Idge" Phones

From the July 26, 2016, Blondie comic strip.

Blondie, Dagwood and their son and daughter are sitting in the living room.  The son and daughter, of course are holding their cell phones in their hands.  You rarely see a teenager or sub-teenager these days when they aren't holding a cell phone.

Frame 1:  Son says. "So, if your buddy was at the mall, how did you communicate without a cell phone?"
Blondie,  "We had to use our home phones."
Dagwood,  "And in the mall you had to use the payphone.
Daughter, "A Payphone?"

Frame 2:  Son and daughter are leaving the house and text each other.
Brother texts to his sister, "I have renewed respect for Mom and Dad!"
Sister texts back, "Really?!"
Blondie and Dagwood are looking out their window at their children.
Blondie, "I didn't mean to shock them, but it's time they knew."
Dagwood, "Hey, these kids today need to know how tough we had it."

Seems That the Comic Strip Writers Have Figured Out the Problem With "Idge" Phones.  --RoadDog

Those "Idge" Phones At the Beach-- Topsail Beach, North Carolina

Again, an "Idge" phone are those cell phones that you see people blankly staring at (especially the 9 to 30 year-old crowd, but sadly, a lot of older folk,  "Idge" stands for "Idiot" phones.  My brother Bob refers to my flip phone as a "Dumb" phone.  It is only dumb because its owner has had it since 2002 and still doesn't know how to use it.  Actually, its owner is technologically challenged in today's pc speak.

I am now (Tuesday, July 26) at the condo at Topsail Beach, North Carolina.  Essentially it is and will be mine until I sell it (hopefully).

However, in case you're wondering what this has to do with "Idge" phones, I saw two REALLY sad things once I got here.  I saw three boys riding their bicycles down the side of the highway with cars whizzing by them within a few feet.  And, believe-it-or-not, these idiots were looking at their "Idge" phones.

And, when I walked across the street from the condo to the ocean, I saw three young teens walking on the beach and staring at their "Idge" phones as if in a trance.  Their phones clearly owned them.  And then, even worse, their father had his "Idge" phone out and was checking on wi-fi hot spots and calling out numbers.  I think they also might have been doing something with that Pokey Man thing.

I Done Believe  I Done Seen Elephants Fly.  --RoadDumb

Those "Idge" Phones Again

From the July 13, 2016 "Bizarro" comic strip.

1st Panel:  1915:  Boy chasing another boy, reaches out and says, "Tag, you're it."

2nd Panel"  2015:  A boy is by himself on a couch, lying down and on his "Idge" phone.  The "Idge" phone has a message on it, "#urit."

Ain't It the Toot.  --RoadDog

Those "Idge" Phones "Slave to a Machine"

From the June 19, 2016, "Dilbert" comic strip.

Dilbert is sitting in a meeting room with his pointy-haired boss and a robot.

1st:  Boss, "The robot will be sitting in for me when I'm on vacation."

2nd:  Dilbert, "You can't have a robot in charge of humans!"

3rd:  Robot, looking to the boss, "I got this."

4th:  Robot to Dilbert, "I see you own a mobile phone."  Dilbert, "So?"

5th:  Robot, "Then you are already a slave to a machine."  Dilbert, "NO, I'M NOT!!"

6th:  Dilbert's phone rings.

7th:  Robot, "You can prove you have free will by not looking at that message."

8th:  Dilbert looking at his phone,  "Gaaa!!!  You're already better than a human boss!"

Ain't It the Toot.  --RoadDog

Those "Idge" Phones Again

"Idge" for "Idiot."

From the June 15, 2016, Shoe comic strip.

The Professor is in Roz's diner/bar with a drink.

1.  Professor:  "I was at a restaurant and saw something shocking..."
Roz:  "Good Heavens! What?"

Panel 2:  Professor:  "Two people talking to each other instead of texting."
Roz:  "GASP!"


Times Are Getting Sad When You See Most on Their "Idge" Phones at Bars and Restaurants.  --RoadDog

SILLY PUNS:  PMS jokes aren't funny.  Period.

The "Idge Phones

From Speed Bump comic strip for June 12, 201,

Some people call them smart phones.  I have my doubts about that.  I think perhaps the term idiot phones "idge" my be more appropriate.

The Devil is standing with a newly arrived person in you-know-where.  He had his arm around the new soul.  Meanwhile, there are seven other people in you-know-where completely absorbed with their "Idge" phones.

The Devil says to the new guy, "Oh, this isn't their hell.  It's yours."

I Agree.  --RoadDog

AIN'T IT THE TRUTH:  Gone are the days when girls used to cook like their mothers.  Now they drink like their fathers.