Yuck, I’m reminded that Father’s Day is coming up soon, and you are all obligated to find something cheesy to give to Dad (except me, I don’t have one anymore, so I’m exempt). Here’s a collection of manly suggestions, most of which don’t appeal at all to me, but hey, maybe your dad is different. Anyway, the only one that was mildly cool was the squidbrain tie (you can order here), which has a mere two flaws. 1) I don’t wear ties, and 2) why a vertebrate brain? What would be really nifty is a tie with a chain of ganglia down its length (it would even be in the right location, along the ventral body wall!) with the sub- and supra-esophageal ganglia at the knot and around the band, just like the real thing.
In other words, that tie is insufficiently nerdy for me.
I have standards.
Actually, if my kids are wondering what to get me, I’m settling for nothing less than The Chair.
Russell says
What? You haven’t taught Skatje that a bottle of good scotch suits the occasion? ;=)
Nerull says
There is the slight problem that Skatje can’t buy a good scotch. (Or any scotch, for that matter).
Poseidon says
Imagine a tie with a precise depiction of Cthulhu on it. You could open your blazer, and your interlocutor(s) would go insane.
John Danley says
How about a Behe Minivan?
http://thestubborncurmudgeon.blogspot.com
Bethany Shorb says
Thanks for posting this – and I like your suggestion! (I’m actually the maker of said cephalopod cravat.) But to answer your question, this squid is a zombie, and he is out to eat *your* brains…or maybe that of your co-workers and friends. Nevertheless, our eight-legged friend is hungry, and he likes his matter gray.
Ribozyme says
I love the cufflinks! I think cufflinks are the only rather ellaborate jewelry a man can wear and not look pimpy. And you can wear them without the tie. In occasions in which you have to wear a blazer/sports coat (I’ve seen your pictures, PZ) with an unbuttonned shirt collar, cufflinks look great. The level cufflinks made me say “Wow!”. On the other hand, the instant hammock would be great for the lab and those long experiments… Too bad I don’t have children!
Ric says
That tie depicts a Mind Flayer! It all comes back to D&D with you, doesn’t it, PZ?
Nerull says
The Illithid are humanoid, that can’t be a mind flayer.
Ribozyme says
Regarding the correction of the brain/octopus tie, I found two nice diagrams on the web:
http://www.tolweb.org/tree/ToLimages/vampBrainLat.jpg
http://cas.bellarmine.edu/tietjen/Laboratories/ceph013.gif
I like the second one best (aesthetically, that is, not for accuracy). But you have the final word there.
Ric says
“The Illithid are humanoid, that can’t be a mind flayer.”
Hehe… sorry, I should have specified a decapitated Mind Flayer.
Supreme_Martian_Overlord says
I think the mammalian brain works well.. it symbolises the obsessive nature of cephalopodmania.. it’s literally cephalopod-on-the-brain…
MuHahahaaaa
Jaycubed says
Ties are an incredibly stupid article of clothing and most likely the invention of a creationist.
I had a job once where I had to wear a tie. I was a corrections officer (PunkAssPoliceMuthafucka was the informal job title), a job I could not continue & still consider myself a good citizen.
For 6 months of the year (winter more or less) the tie was “a required part of the uniform”. This was an incredibly stupid idea, as a standard tie can be used as a garrote and a clip on tie has a mass of metal & thick fabric atop one’s windpipe. Long term officers often had special “standard” ties made with a velcro attachment on the back, at least eliminating the metal.
Having read the manual carefully, I wore a clip on tie on my shirt pocket when senior officers who cared about such things were around. If they complained I would show them the manual and point out that my tie was part of my uniform and nowhere was it specified that the tie had to be placed around the neck.
They left me alone.
.
Jimbo says
How ’bout a squid hunters suit?
http://www.todayslocalnews.com/?sect=tln&p=3222