I’m not sure if “Compucards” qualifies as a children’s game; it bills itself as “Playing Cards with Binary Numbers, for the Computer Generation.” It dates from 1983, and was apparently a promotional item for Certacom, a “Telecommunications Equipment Distributor” in the UK.  The standard four suits are used, but the numbers are 1, 2, 4, […]

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It’s time for the Ullage Group’s tenth mini-seminar!  In “Unacceptable Flying Objects,” we turn to one of our society’s most pervasive and stigmatized topics, UFOs.  We’re interested in it particularly as a cultural phenomenon, and in the social and religious impact of those pesky mandalas.  We’ll move beyond the dull ping-pong between believer and debunker, […]

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The “United States Map Playing Cards,” from UniversalMAP, gives you a great deal of information about the states.  There are 50 states, and 52 cards in a deck — so you also get maps of Washington D.C. and of the world.  And the Jokers are maps of the U.S., with the suit and number of […]

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re-usable lottery tickets a heron eating herring the electric spoon, heated so soup won’t cool from bowl to mouth In time, you’ll find it none too wise To base your acts on other guys. a newscaster’s slip: “black market” for “Blackwater” a spork with a knife for a handle: it requires a special mitt so […]

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I found this deck with no box or instructions.  It seems to have a Western theme.  All of the other people depicted are also in jail: they include Dirty Dan, Shifty Sam, Fingers, Big Hawk, Little Lou, Black Bart, and Baby Face. (Posted by Doug Skinner.)

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From the audience, Angela Alverson captured a snippet of the recital at the Jalopy Theatre.  My beginning uke class made its first public appearance with this blues chorus.  From left to right: Katherine, Rachel, teacher, Carrie, Ana, and Ashley.  They’re on their way! Another of my uke students, Robin Hoffman, keeps a blog of her […]

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“Le Jeu des Provinces de France,” from Editions Dusserre, portrayed citizens of different provinces.  In Auvergne, one goes around with a large hat, wooden shoes, and a hurdy-gurdy. (Posted by Doug Skinner.)

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On April 1, 1897, the remarkable French humorist Alphonse Allais published his Album primo-avrilesque.  It was a slim volume, containing seven monochromatic paintings (such as “Apoplectic cardinals picking tomatoes by the Red Sea”) and a silent funeral march (because the greatest sorrows are mute).  The march was the first silent piece, preceding similar works by […]

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