Jersey City on Christmas Day

My daily walk to the train looks a little different on Christmas morning.

Good Television

I've become so cynical about television that I consider "good television" to be as likely as penguins that are grown and packed in Exeter, California.

But good television still exists, or at least it did: I've commented how much I like Arrested Development, but it was my memory of a surprise ending on one episode of Major Dad, an otherwise mediocre show with an occasional hint of emotional relevance, that keeps my cynicism at bay. I was happy to discover it again on the wonder that is Hulu.

It Wouldn't Be Christmas Without a Dick Joke

The guy who sent me this card also turned me onto Arrested Development, a show so funny I gave it to people on DVD for Christmas.

Abandoning Disbelief, or Why We're Here.

There's few things we at Skyrocket Penguin find more entertaining than utter ridiculousness presented with an unqualified expectation on the part of the presenter that we, the audience, take it seriously (see High Five, below, for a perfect example).

Our fondness for all things quixotic is what borne the blog: Penguins might skyrocket when our backs are turned, just as windmills might be giants. If you just ignore your disbelief (if you're only suspending it, try a little harder) either is possible.

This enthusiasm of ours may have been planted in our minds by this music video for You Can Call Me Al when we were the most impressionable of youths. The guy on the left is Paul Simon, the song's writer and singer. I don't know the guy on the right, but I think he once took a European vacation.




It's the nuances that make us laugh hardest: Keep your eye on the glass of water, then the piccolo.

Memo to Mary Kay

MEMORANDUM

To: Mary Kay, Mary Kay Incorporated

From: Sent Jointly by The Employees of the Cadillac Brand, General Motors; The Cadillac Owners Club of America; Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson; Tim Gunn, Liz Claiborne Inc.; The American Civil Liberties Union; The American Family Association; The Beach Boys; The United States Coalition of Gas Station Franchise Owners; Wayne Newton; The United States Conference of Mayors; Mary E. Peters, Secretary, the U.S. Department of Transportation; The United States House of Representatives; The United States Senate; The Office of the President of the United States of America

Re: Hurting America

Mary Kay:

With few exceptions, pink Cadillacs ceased being appropriate forms of transportation in 1959, and as your salespeople are neither Elvis Presley nor Wayne Newton, we strongly encourage you to revise your company car policy.

Cadillacs are available in a variety of colors that will both avoid defiling the highways, byways, and thoroughfares of our great nation and allow your salespeople to do their jobs with their dignity intact.

It is both in your best interest and ours to discontinue polluting our culture. We ask that you please take action in this matter so we do not have to.

Signed,
The Employees of the Cadillac Brand, General Motors; et al

Boss Lady

Spotted Friday outside my office:



Without a V8? I don't think so.

For crap's sake, this is the base model. At least spring for the bigger V6.

Get Thee to JC: Another Man's Treasure

We have been saying how much we like Jersey City (JC) for a while now, so we figure it's time to get a little more specific.

We at Skyrocket Penguin are not adventurous dressers. Tim Gunn would admire our restraint (no midriff) but disapprove of our Rumsfeld-in-retirement attire.


So we occasionally visit Another Man's Treasure. You ever find a Fort Knox Softball League T-shirt at a Salvation Army store that you now can't stop wearing? Ever go to a flea market and find a coat that fit like nothing made today because it was made 40 years ago? Another Man's Treasure collects all those and sells them in one place. Specifically, one block away from the Grove Street PATH stop.

We bought an "I ♥ JC" shirt that doesn't even resemble something that would fit us. We're saving it for the next generation.