A Great Punkin of a Pun

Invoking one of my all time favorites, Charlie Brown and the gang by the great Charles Shultz, today's post involves none other than a Great Pumpkin. A man in Alaska has made it his main purpose in life to grow gargantuan pumpkins, and I don't use the word the word "gargantuan" lightly, if you'll pardon the pun, which I'm sure you will given the nature of this blog. The Pumpkin in question weighs over 1400 pounds.

Anyway, assuming the article still exists, read all about it here:

Great Pumpkin Article

August 27, 2013 In describing her brother-in-law's disappointment that his gigantic pumpkin would not be eligible for this year's weigh-off, she said: "It's just killing him," said Pam Elkins, Megchelsen's sister-in-law. "He eats, sleeps and dreams pumpkins. All he does is pumpkins."

I realize that this isn't one of the funnier or more knock'em dead puns that we've had here on the Unintended Pun blog. But the subject matter is so vivid and the man is so serious in his quest that I thought it deserved recognition. And the sister-in-law's quote certainly qualifies as a pun. Then throw in the fact that if Mr. Megchelsen really did eat his pumpkins, it would take him a very long time, and he would probably gain a lot of weight--it's a fairly humorous image.

And of course--it lets me talk about Charlie Brown and Snoopy--the best combination of a boy and his dog in history. Here's to you, Charles Shultz.

Please leave your comments, especially if have come across any Unintended Puns in your daily life.

Obvious But They Really Oughta Know Better

Okay, this post shows a little more about what I do at work. Last time, I described a conversation about satellites, hinting that I work on communication systems, which happens to be the case. This time, I'll again reveal a little more, describing part of an article I read at work. This shows that as part of my job I need to understand some fairly esoteric issues with regard to technology.

In an article on the SSWUG website, Ben Taylor wrote about virtual machines. Click here for the article. In this technology context, "virtual" means "acts like something else." For example, in the movie The Matrix , the characters had to make the choice to stay or leave the "virtual" world that had been created by the bad guys. But Mr. Taylor used the same word in its more common meaning in the same sentence as its technology meaning, when another word could have been used, which would have been much clearer.

August 17, 2011
Here is the sentence: “With the ability to use a virtually free host operating system such as Linux, the licensing costs for virtual machines has fallen.”

Mr. Taylor could have used "essentially" or "almost" or one of several other words to get his meaning across. Linux can be downloaded for exactly free for those who know what they are doing. There are other costs, such as maintenance, etc., which I think is what he means be "virtually." But of all people, in all contexts, you would think he would have chosen just about any word besides "virtually." I mean, the title of the article is "Are You Virtual?" But perhaps this is either an intended pun, in which case I've just wasted my time on this post, or this is futher proof that the human brain cannot be stopped when it comes to the activation web.

What do you think?

How Do You React to Unintended Puns?

A work colleague and I were discussing a company he used to work for in the nineties. Part of the company was sold.

August 12, 2011
He described it this way: “[Company name omitted to prevent slander charges] bought the satellite business and drove it into the ground.”

As usual, I didn't laugh even though I thought it was pretty funny, because my colleague didn't notice that he had made a pun. I wanted to say something like "Did they drive the business into the ground because they kept driving satellites into the ground?" but I was afraid he wouldn't get my comment, or he would get my comment, and think I was making fun of him. You know, the usual reactions when you try to expand on the enjoyment of an Unintended Pun.

Have you come up with any non-offensive ways to further the enjoyment when you make or hear an Unintended Pun? Let us know here at Baring My Sole.

Multi-Sensory Unintended Puns

This Unintended Pun combines the visual and taste senses, along with the word usage itself.

My daughter, a regular contributor to, and encourager of, this blog, and definitely a verbally fluent person, was struggling to screw the cap onto a bottle of S. Pellegrino sparkling water. A few inches away from the S. Pellegrino bottle, there was a bottle of Refreshe Raspberry-Acai flavored sparkling water on the table because Claire likes to have some of both waters with dinner.

You'll need to have an image of the dining room table in your mind as you contemplate the following words.

July 21, 2011
As the cap spun uselessly in her hand, she said: “It's fruitless.”

This seems a little different from the multi-modal puns we discussed a few months ago, since it includes different senses. What do you think?

Last Heat-related Pun (maybe)

Amazingly, the temperature here dropped to the high 70s on Sunday evening (compared to about 105 the past several days). I mentioned two posts ago that my son had found a job working outside. He and I had talked about the need to work whenever the weather gave him a chance--not so much in Phoenix, but in many parts of the country, landscapers work 12 hour days when the weather permits, because they don't make money when they can't work, and they can't work when the weather doesn't let them. Here, you need to take advantage when it's a little cooler, I said.

This morning at 8:45, as I walked past his closed bedroom door, I thought about our conversation.

July 4, 2011
I said to myself: “You better strike while the iron's hot.”

He doesn't use iron tools, but he does use metal tools. And he will be working in a very hot environment if he doesn't get going soon.

Another Phoenix Heat-Related Pun

To celebrate Saturday's 118 degree scorcher here in Phoenix, I thought I'd pass this one along.

My wife owns her own medical practice. All of these 110-degree-plus days in a row has revealed a serious flaw in her office suite's A/C system. Apparently, the mechanical engineer had recommended a certain size unit for the compressor, but a smaller size was actually installed three years ago. Thus, several of the rooms cannot be cooled sufficiently to make them comfortable for the staff or patients. This, of course, is going to lead to some tricky negotiations--who is going to pay for an upgrade to the A/C system--the landlord should pay, but since the "feeling" of air differs from person to person, how can one really prove that a bigger system is needed, or that some other remedy must be investigated and installed.

July 3, 2011
My wife explained the dilemma like this: “The feeling of air is subjective. Warmth is a matter of degrees.”

This use of words shows that a pun can be a true statement taken either way.

Daily Pun # 3

I had to get this in as soon as I saw it/them. If the second one is on purpose, it's still a beautifully subtle and nicely written pun. And if it's not intended, it is the best Unintended Pun and covers the most ground, so to speak (that itself was unintended) of any unintended pun I've ever seen. It's from an AP article in Yahoo! today. Click here for the article.

March 17, 2011
Chunk of Calif. coastal highway falls into Pacific
AP: “"There is too much going down here (pun 1) to allow an extended closure," Alan Perlmutter told the newspaper. Perlmutter is a partner in the Big Sur River Inn, one of the many inns and lodges that depend on the dollars of tourists drawn to dramatic coastal vistas, where forested mountainsides plunge into blue seas (pun 2).”

How Common Are Unintended Puns?

Here are three puns from today, and one I read the other day. The first is from a work colleague who said it with absolutely no look that he meant to be funny. The second is from a quote in a news story, again I think said with no intention to make a pun. The third is a pun from a Yahoo! article which might be intentional. You'll have to decide. The last can't be intentional, because it is too morbid and sad for somebody to try to make a pun about such a thing.

I include these very recent ones to help us see how common these Unintended Puns must be. I'm one person, reading a few web pages a day, talking to a few people a day. And yet I've collected about five this week. I'm pretty sure our brains are up to something--and the activation web has a lot do with it.

Here are the puns:

February 25, 2011
While describing his excitement about finding a new gym, a work colleague said: “Have I told you about my new gym? It's worked out great!”

 The next one is subtle--the pun involves a person living in a town called Klinger using the word "cling" to describe people's reaction to a great young basketball player. Click here for the article.

February 25, 2011
Philly teen a legitimate phenom, by Cameron Smith: “...the Klinger (Pa.) Middle School student is focused on being a middle school student...He is a nice kid, and people are going to cling to him.”

 This next one could be on purpose. It's from an article about spouses sharing household chores. Click here for the article.

February 16, 2011
Economics: the key to happy couples' division of labor, by Dory Devlin: “Once you’ve ironed out all disagreements/agreements of splitting chores between the two of you, get ready for some new battles over what chores the kids should do.”

Finally, the morbid, sad one. The headline contains the pun.  Click here for the article.

February 25, 2011
Article by the Associated Press: “Daycare Fire Raises Questions, Sparks Investigation”

So, today's question: How common are Unintended Puns? If I notice them all around me, am I just a crazed victim who can't escape the taunts and abuses of a vast conspiracy? Or does the brain generate these word combinations on a frequent basis? Please help me decide. My sanity may depend on it. Not really--this is a guilt-free blog.

Daily Pun #2

This was sent by a friend of mine--the same friend who told me the "No pun in ten did" joke when we were in Scotland together. He heard it on ESPN the other day.

        "We do not yet know the impact of all of the hard hits in the NFL."

Is this Unintended or not? You decide.

If it is Unintended, here are my assessments for the factors (see January for the blog on my suggested "Pun Factors"):

1. Fitting: It is exactly fitting--hard hits leave impacts on human bodies.
2. Humor: It's pretty funny to me, mostly due to being fitting. I realize it's a little morbid, but it gets extra points for being on national TV.
3. Subtlety: It's not very subtle--I think most people would see it as a pun--but I get puns often before the person says them, due to my warped mind.
4. Context: The sentence stands alone as a pun.
5. Depth: I think it is two deep, because it is absolutely true that we do not know the impact, both metaphorically (as in the full scope of potential rules and equipment changes, how coaches might change how they teach tackling all the way down to the smallest players, etc.) and literally (as in the impact on the players who have been hit--what damage it has done to them).

Puns to Spice Up Your Midweek

A few Unintended Puns from 1992 to spice up your midweek cider.

June 28, 1992
While praying for a friend, who worked as an usher at Baltimore Orioles baseball games, I said: “...that his knees would stand up to the work.”

about April, 1992
I don't have the exact context, but this one is a stand-alone pun: “Spending four dollars a day shouldn't eat up so much of my money.”

July 11, 1992
After a story about several killings at post offices, and how it seemed that supervisors were driving postal workers to anger, Barbara Walters, the famous broadcast journalist, said: “We'll keep you po...informed on any changes at the post office.”
Seems to me that Ms. Walters caught herself as she was about to say: “We'll keep you posted on any changes at the post office”, but realized she didn't want us to think she was making a joke about such a horrible situation. Even people who make a living from crafting words can't stop their brains from making these unintended word associations.

Next time, I'll discuss another side of the Unintended Pun Theory, which hit me so hard while I was driving I almost had an accident.

Daily Pun #1

This is the first discovered pun since the blog's inauguration-- which just goes to show that puns really are everywhere in everyday life.

This Yahoo article (click to view) on January 4, 2011 has this line: 
        "This so-called January effect for gold doesn't always pan out."

Is this Unintended or not? You decide.