Stories about Humor from January, 2009
Japan: Saint Young Men, Jesus and Buddha on Earth
What if one day Jesus and Buddha descended to Earth to spend their holidays? And what if they lived together in a cheap apartment in Tachikawa, in western Tokyo? This is what Hikaru Nakamura, a young Japanese manga author, was thinking of when he came up with Saint Oniisan, a manga published in the monthly magazine Morning 2 in 2007 that become a hit in the last few months after the publication of the first two episodes as single volumes last year.
Japan: My darling wife, I love you!
Blogger at Prism Cafe [ja] comments on news about an event organized by Japan Aisaika Organization (日本愛妻家協会 lit. Japan Organization of Beloved Wives) yesterday, the 29th of January, when in the middle of Hibiya Park, in central Tokyo, hundreds of husbands took the microphone to shout their love to their...
Moldova: A “Stable” Economy
Moldova's economy has been declared “well-protected […] from the slowdown” by London-based magazine The Banker. Eternal Remont comments: “This one gets filed under, ‘I've been down so long it looks like up to me’.”
Europe: The “Two Cows” Jokes
Inspired by the “two cows” joke that's “been around for years in one form or another,” 20 east comes up with a few ones of his own.
Czech Republic: European Artists Strike Back (at Entropa)
CzechFolks.com writes about a few European artists who have reacted to Entropa by creating “caricatures of the Czech Republic through their eyes.”
Paraguay: English Words in Advertising
José Ángel Lopez Barrios is not too pleased with the emergence of so many English words in advertising that are being adopted by Paraguayan stores [es]. He gives the example of the word “Sale”, which in Spanish means “get out.”
Brazil: Obama present in Rio Carnival
“Drunken, sweaty Obamas will be running wild all over the city come February. Though I think this particular mask is kind of creepy, it's a Carnival tradition to wear masks of famous people and to dress up in costumes, just like Americans do on Halloween”, Rachel reports from Rio de...
Japan: Illustrator Junko Kawashima's blog
Check out the manga blog [ja] of the artist Junko Kawashima.
Hong Kong: Fortune Stick Reading
ESWN summarized local newspapers reports on fortune stick reading in Lunar new year. The unfavorable outcome stirred up a hot discussion about: who is the traitors inside home?
Ukraine: “Gas Humor”
Ukrainiana shares some “gas humor” from Ukraine.
Slovenia: A View on Entropa
Sleeping With Pengovsky writes that Entropa “takes apart [Slovenia's] totally unfounded conviction that it is the centre of the world and that all great things somehow started here. Even tourism, for crying out loud!”
Serbia: Belgrade Tips, Photos; Fan Fight in Melbourne; Entropa
Belgraded posts more Belgrade tips; translates a joke about unsuspecting “terrorists/tourists” in Belgrade; links to Belgrade and Serbia photos – here, here, and here; writes about yet another fight between tennis fans in Melbourne; wonders how Serbia would be represented on Entropa if it were part of the EU.
Nigeria: Catch That Goat
A goat has been arrested as a suspect for theft in Nigeria. It is believed that the thief shape-shifted from human-being to goat to avoid capture!
Thailand: Kissing in public
Kissing in Public is an ongoing project in Thailand which invites residents in Thailand to perform the act of, well, kissing in public. According to organizers, this is an exercise in socio-cultural politics. “At the time where all the eyes in Thailand and the media focus on national politics, we’d...
Tajikistan: Earthquake rumor
Vadim reports that the recent rumor about the possible powerful earthquake in Tajikistan made thousands of people throughout the country to leave their homes and spend the freezing night in the street.
Russia, Hungary: Tractors, Trolleybuses, Buses
“Crazy” Moscow tractor – at Moscow Blog; St. Pete trolleybuses – at Russian History Blog; Budapest buses – at Budapest Guide.
Europe: More on Entropa
Corina Murafa writes some more on the Entropa controversy.
Russia: Putin's Painting
Eternal Remont writes about Vladimir Putin's painting: “Hitler would be jealous.” LJ user olegpanfilov2 posts two samples of Photoshopped spinoffs inspired by Putin's painting – one of them features Mikhail Khodorkovsky behind bars (there are many more in the comments section to this post by LJ user tema).
Europe: Entropa
Belatedly, links to some posts on Entropa: Margarete of The Foreigner's Guide to Living in Slovakia believes “it should be taken down”; Kosmopolito thinks that “the debate around the project is also part of the installation”; BBC's Mark Mardell writes that “the fact that it is a hoax does not...
Russia, Ukraine: Gas and Soccer
LJ user dobrokhotov wrote this (RUS) on Jan. 18 about the Russian-Ukrainian gas deal: “What nonsense, it's been, like, two days already since they agreed on the price of gas, but they haven't yet announced officially what the price is. This is unprecedented nonsense, almost like if the Ukrainian and...
Trinidad & Tobago, U.S.A.: Mr. President-Elect
From Trinidad and Tobago, This Beach Called Life publishes a one-of-a-kind, unofficial blog interview with President-Elect Obama.
