Manus-able Content

Just to keep the momentum going as I await additional back-issues to be sent to me, here's a piece culled from Dave Whelan that would definitely be considered Manus-worthy.

Ladies, it's simple.

You're in a shoe shop, second in the queue for the till. Behind the shop assistant is a pair of shoes, which you have seen and you must have.

The female shopper in front of you has seen them also and is eyeing them with desire. Both of you have forgotten your purses. It would be rude to push in front of the first woman if you had no money to pay for the shoes.

Your friend is trying on another pair of shoes at the back of the shop and sees your dilemma. She prepares to throw her purse to you.

If she does so, you can catch the purse, then walk round the other shopper and buy the shoes! At a pinch she could throw the purse ahead of the other shopper and "whilst it is in flight" you could nip around the other shopper, catch the purse and buy the shoes!

BUT, you must always remember that until the purse has "actually been thrown", it would be plain wrong for you to be in front of the other shopper.

And now you understand OFFSIDE!

Site Restructuro

'Manus II', the complete second edition, has now been published. With that, the standalone pages that featured some individual articles from that edition have now been verifiably decommissioned. I hope you find the new 'Manus Index / Table of Contents' page with clickable links directly to each individual piece of content a good way to quickly find your own personal favourites.

Life in EI I.T. - An Illustrated History

Many thanks to Paul Donlon for this collection of gems. A bit rough and ready at the moment, but worth putting out there now for all to enjoy as much as I did.

Why did Manus go off the air?

This is is probably the simplest explanation for those wondering why Manus Sinistra took a hiatus. The original editorial staff collectively followed a Shakespearan stage direction ('Exeunt') while this SVN was one of several that appeared in 1988 looking for fresh meat. And for some professionals to work with such meat, although those vacancies may have been unrelated.

The HR person who wrote the SVN likely flourished in the property boom describing hovels with ridiculous asking prices if the expression "attractive salary progression" is anything to go by. In fairness, I did progress from bread-line to subsistence by the end of probation, so I can't complain.

Thanks to Paul Donlon for this and some other treasures that will be appearing shortly.

Manus Sinistra I (XI - MCMXCIII) - The Complete First Edition

Right, added the final few elements to Manus I - it's now complete. Notable addition is the Organ Donor Card with what appears to be a hand drawn logo. Not sure if Brian did this or it was around from the original series.

Favourite Links

Okay, okay, the "Favourite Links" are very self-indulgent. But then I couldn't think of anybody else I'd rather indulge. Ecco homo, ergo elk.

I.T. Times & GRAMANAS

The Manus Sinistra Archive, while not quite the Library of Congress (let's call it a Library of the Incongruous) just keeps on giving. In what appeared to be a flagrant mooning of the flaccid rag mentioned in an apology in the same edition, and an apparent breach of copyright that could ruffle Big Bird's feathers, Manus Sinistra II (published II - MCMXCIV) lead with a daring backpage title and theme that could easily have been mistaken. Of course, upon closer inspection, even authoritarians with an overstated sense of personal power soon knew they would have to bide their time and wait for a better opportunity to bring these subversives to their knees.

It also featured the much loved GRAMANAS, anagrams of the names of actual people working in I.T. at the time or shortly before. Productivity was inversely proportional to the craic that was had developing these. I found myself chuckling like the addled old fool I will shortly become (two out of three ain't bad for now) as I rewrote my favourite, the brilliantly simple: "I RISK EATING".

Enjoy!