>The Word of 2009 – Katabatic

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Talking with one of my professor mates the other day about Mainz 05’s new stadium, now being built slap bang in the middle of an area that has had strict planning laws to prevent disruption to the fresh flow of air that keeps the city fromdeath by asphyxiation.

“Oh, that’ll be a katabatic wind, then” he says as learnedly as an Australian geologist can.

Katabatic? Haven’t heard that before.

“Greek” he says “Gravity-feed airflow caused by pressure gradients”

Sounds a bit too glib and very much like a True Story, so I look it up.

Greek it is, a drainage wind it is too and it’s frequently found in…?

“Greenland. And Antarctica” he says.

Spot on.

“In Antarctica, you’ll have a beautiful day and as the sun goes down, the wind goes from zero to 50 knots in minutes”

I suppose he’d know.

He used to live there….

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>Oh my goodness

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Utterly stunning

HT BoingBoing

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>True story

>

I used to work with an true idiot.

I have absolutely no idea a) who hired him and b) why they didn’t sack him, but we were stuck with him.

One tolerates idiots for a while, but continued cretinous behaviour takes its toll on even the most good-natured and we became openly critical of the fool’s shortcomings.

After an especially acerbic comment incorporating the words “piss-up”, “brewery” and “organise”, he countered with

“You bastards think I know FUCK NOTHING!
I’ll let you into a secret.
I know FUCK ALL!”
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>Spooks

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Our Dave’s boy and my godson, Matthew, always wanted to go into the Civil Service.

He’s got an MA in History.

All of a sudden, he’s a school teacher.

I’m pretty sure he’s been recruited by MI5.

Having recently watched a couple of episodes of “Spooks“, a BBC series, I’ve become a bit of an expert on these things.

It all fits the pattern

He’s moved out of his parents’ place into a flat of his own.

This’ll be to make sure that his micro-dots don’t disappear into the Hoover when his Mum cleans the room.

And he wouldn’t be able to fool his Dad into thinking that all the wirelesses and things that spies use are a new hi-fi.

“What’s this knob for, lad?”

“I wouldn’t touch that one, Dad. It’ll self-destruct in 20 seconds and pulverise the whole street”

So we can all sleep safely in the knowledge that he’s keeping an eye on these littlies in his school class, making sure that they don’t become radicalised and start IEDing themselves in the playground.

Of course, having blown his cover, I’ll likely be intercepted on the way to the Post Office to collect the pension and rendited away to a foreign country.

So if this stops in mid-sentence, you’ll know whats happ

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>Well, yes……

>

The papers in New Zealand report that British and Australian migrants are outstripping Kiwis on their own soil with higher incomes and more in professional jobs.

When questioned about increased levels of emigration from New Zealand to Australia back in the 1960s, the Prime Minister at the time, Rob Muldoon, responded that these migrants “raised the average IQ of both countries”.

Don’t think so, Rob.
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>Brain farts

>

Vural Öger used to be a member of the European Parliament (which perhaps tells you something about his intelligence)

He proposes banning carry-on luggage on aircraft.

Which tells you even more about his intelligence.

He also operates a travel company.

Couldn’t be that he’d thus profit from exces baggage charges, could it?

Thinks:
Given an IQ lower that his shoe size (and he has very small feet), he probably wouldn’t come up with that…

caHe now operates a travel company

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>Thieving sods

>

In French supermarkets, they’ll put the really good stuff (as in “Bordeaux for €70 a bottle” good stuff…) behind glass.

Around here, an €8.99 bottle of vodka qualifies as “good stuff” and eminently trouserable.

For some people, anyway…

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>10 words you need to stop misspelling

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The inhabitants of Interweb need this link more than they know.

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>Typographic riddles

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The first one’s dead easy, although I wouldn’t be beating ABOUT the Bush.

I’d be beating heavily ON the bastard….

Second one’s a bit tricky, but I’m sure various Professors in the audience will have it in a flash.

More over here if you’re that way inclined

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>This I need…

>

The best thing since….sliced bread..?

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