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Fatwa Arbuckle: Misanthropologist

Happy Tuesday, Wheelizens!

Looks like SoCal is gonna get some rain over the next ten days; whew, lads!

Today’s thread pic reminds me of a similar prank my freshman year of college. My dorm room was on the truncated top floor of the building and there was a fair amount of camaraderie; mostly first- and second-year students.

The sole tiny “single” room was occupied by an obnoxious junior from Baltimore (I still recall his name). One weekend when he was away, we filled his room to a depth of at least 4′ with balloons. Which made it challenging for him to open his door when he returned Sunday evening. 👿

Given the somewhat lax enforcement of state liquor laws locally, much beer, wine and shitty Mexican pot was consumed by the loosely-knit “_________ Hall Fourth Floor Derelicts Club”. Quite a few of us spent Saturday night getting loaded and blowing-up balloons with several corrugated cardboard balloon blowers.

Of course “nobody had seen nothin'”, which really annoyed the room’s resident.

(It was a fairly trivial matter to get into someone’s room; the doors were fairly easy to open with a strip of flexible plastic or even thick cardboard.)

BBL.

Fatwa Arbuckle: Misanthropologist

How many of you remember these?

balloon pump.jpg
Just Sven
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dv8
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dv8
4 years ago

I do not… and yet… it seems familiar, somehow….

How did they work?

Just Sven
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4 years ago

Good morning, GN! Does look like rain over the next week plus, Fatwa. Here’s hoping it generates lots of bags of $ for you and Jim.

Fatwa Arbuckle: Misanthropologist

Hi, Sven and dv8!

Sven --

Cheers for the feelthy lucre wishes.

dv8 --

Those things were made outta two nested cardboard tubes with metal caps, a little fitting for the balloon stem and a one-way valve. Not great, but a lot easier than blowing up multiple balloons using only lung power.

They worked much like a bike tire pump. Hole at the end of the outer tube into which one inserted the flange on the balloon neck, pump the inner tube until desired inflation is reached. Remove and tie balloon neck; done.

Addendum(b): Tried several searches for a video / GIF; no luck.

dv8
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dv8
4 years ago

still…. that’s making them seem a bit more familiar. Did the bottom part of the tube act as the handle for the pump? If so, I may have seen one back in the day.

Fatwa Arbuckle: Misanthropologist
Reply to  dv8

Yep.

They took a bit of muscle (had a hard time when I was ~four-y.o.) since the leverage wasn’t terrific, but it beat blowing the balloons up.

Whatever occasion that was, Dad also showed me how you could rub the balloon on your hair and generate enough of a charge to stick it to the wall. I thought that was way cool.

Paddy O'Furnijur
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4 years ago

Happy Tuesday, Gerbil Nation!
Good morning, Fatwa, Sven, and dv8!

I have to run out to TJ’s for some last minute victuals. It always happens around Thanksgiving and Christmas -- I try to get the shopping done early, then someone either forgets to buy something or forgets that we need something and I end up making a last-minute trip.

Fatwa Arbuckle: Misanthropologist

Drive-by:

Hi, Paddy!

There’s clearly a weird law of the universe which causes some item for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners to not get purchased before the last minute…despite careful planning, list-making and diligent shopping.

OTOH, better today than tomorrow. 👿

=======================

As a 50% Son of Romania, I approve this license plate / frame combination:

vlad the impala.jpg
dv8
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dv8
4 years ago

Now, at least, I know how to properly pronounce the word “impala.” All hail Vlad the Impale-uh!!

Fatwa Arbuckle: Misanthropologist
Reply to  dv8

Heh.

dv8
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dv8
4 years ago

I thought this was interesting re the supreme court.

https://tinyurl.com/uqmvtko

This is why I’ve been saying for decades that the supreme court is the most important reason to vote for conservatives no matter how dubious they may be. They tend to appoint originalist and pro individual judges who protect everyone’s freedom--even the freedom of leftists who seem hell bent on throwing their freedom away.

Just Sven
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4 years ago
Reply to  dv8

Well, John Roberts seemed to fit that bill, and yet he seems to lean left on a regular basis. E.G. Obamacare being a tax or a fee.

dv8
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dv8
4 years ago
Reply to  Mac

It seems like some of them have a lack of will to go against precedent. As it was once explained to me, sometimes it’s the scope of the case that is at issue. But I’m a scotus layman so I really don’t know the intricacies.

dv8
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dv8
4 years ago
Reply to  Mac

yes, and I’m not sure why no one sees the Klan’s taint all over the democrats. They WERE the clan, they supported slavery, they supported segregation. And they’re supporting this New Left Bigotry as well. It’s so obvious who they are. It’s hard to understand why they can get the traction they do on anything.

dv8
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dv8
4 years ago
Reply to  Just Sven

Hey, I didn’t say that “tendency” was perfect. But it is a tendency.