From: reese@vax.oxford.ac.uk
Newsgroups: talk.bizarre
Subject: Re: MadhatterDay VII
Date: 7 Oct 92 09:05:59 GMT
Followup-To: misc.misc
Organization: Oxford University VAX 6620

In article <MJD.92Oct6102900@saul.cis.upenn.edu>, mjd@saul.cis.upenn.edu ("[*] Angel of Wheaties") writes:
> 
> [ Original posting by Dick Dunn, rcd@ico.isc.com, 6 Oct 1989 ]
> 
>                           MadHatterDay
> 
> 1992: MadHatterDay VII
> 
> 1.  What Is It?
> 
>     MadHatterDay is a holiday in October.  It fills the need for a
> second crazy day in the year, almost exactly half a year from April
> Fools' Day. The real spirit of MadHatterDay is turnabout: The nonsense
> we usually have to pretend is sane can be called madness for one day in
> the year; the superficially crazy things that really make sense can be
> called sane on MadHatterDay.
> 
>     MadHatterDay is 10/6.  The date was chosen from the illustrations by
> John Tenniel in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, wherein the Mad Hatter
> is always seen wearing a hat bearing a slip of paper with the notation
> "In this style 10/6".  We take this as inspiration to behave in the
> style of the Mad Hatter on 10/6 (which is October 6 here, although in
> Britain MadHatterDay occurs on June 10...but I digress...)  Some astute
> observers have noted that the paper in the Mad Hatter's Hat was really
> an order to make a hat in the style shown, to cost ten shillings
> sixpence.  However, it is well known that Time Is Money, and therefore
> Money Is Time, and therefore 10/6 may as well be the sixth of October.
> 
> MadHatterDay began in Boulder, CO, in 1986, among some computer-folk who
> had nothing better to do.  It was immediately recognized as valuable
> because they caused less damage than if they'd been doing their jobs.
> It was announced that first year on computer networks. In 1987 it gained
> minor local recognition.  In 1988, it was first recognized as an
> official holiday by an area business, and also received its first
> national press coverage by news services (who are always desperate for
> an unlikely story).  It is almost certain that the national election
> also gave MadHatterDay a good boost in 1992.
> 
> Detailed plans for this year's MadHatterDay observance will, of course,
> be announced on October 7.  We have found that plans made after the fact
> are more accurate and much easier to have fulfilled.  Or, as the Red
> Queen said, "sentence first, then the verdict!"
> 
> 
> 2.  What Goes?
> 
> What do people do on MadHatterDay?  In general, we celebrate silliness.
> But what if your work involves something inherently silly--say
> marketing, where you put on a three-piece suit (five or six layers of
> fabric) in the summertime, tie a piece of cloth around your neck to
> restrict blood flow to the brain, and set about trying to convince
> people to buy things they don't want and can't afford because this will
> give the country a Healthy Economy?  In this case, doing something
> absolutely sane will have a more startling effect than you can possibly
> imagine.
> 
> Your world is crazier than you think:
> 
>    * We travel around by taking the juice from hundred-million-year-old
>      rotten dinosaur food and exploding it in a metal can.
> 
>    * A "sports fanatic" is not someone who participates in sports, but
>      someone who sits indoors on a beautiful day, drinking beer while
>      yelling at the picture on a little box.  (Throw the ultimate
>      football party: Forget the TV; just sit around eating and drinking
>      with friends.)
> 
>    * As much as we say we like to "get away from it all", the more
>      successful we are, the more we take it all with us when we go.
>      (Take a vacation with all the comforts of home: Just stay home!)
> 
>    * We're so well-fed that we're getting food with intentionally
>      reduced nutritional content--so we can take the trouble to eat
>      without getting the benefit of doing so.  (Enjoy the ultimate in
>      fast-diet-food: Skip lunch.)
> 
>    * We've saved so much gift-giving for the Christmas season that it
>      has entirely unbalanced the flow of cash and consumer goods through
>      the year.  So merchants decided to start the season early to have
>      something to do the rest of the year.  (There's now only one major
>      gift-giving holiday--but it lasts for five months.  Surprise
>      someone with a MadHatterDay present.)
> 
> ...and it goes.  Take a look around you, drop your assumptions about
> what must be proper and normal, and see how much of it is just silly.
> Better yet, try to find something that does make sense.
> 
> Don't hurt anyone.  Save the pranks for April 1.  This is "a Kinder,
> Gentler Fool's Day."
> 

*plonk*

Jason

> 
> --
> 
>                 And for to se, and eek for to be seye
> Mark-Jason Dominus 	  			    mjd@central.cis.upenn.edu 
Newsgroups: talk.bizarre