explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

1411: Loop

2014-08-22T04:21:45Z

Cerulean556: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1411
| date = August 22, 2014
| title = Loop
| image = loop.png
| titletext = Ugh, today's kids are forgetting the old-fashioned art of absentmindedly reading the same half-page of a book over and over and then letting your attention wander and picking up another book.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at a desk, accompanied by numerous electronics - a desktop computer, a laptop, a tablet, and a smartphone.]
Text: "Stare blankly at screen -> open news site -> start reading -> get bored -> absentmindedly check smaller device

{{comic discussion}}

1411: Loop

2014-08-22T04:21:30Z

Cerulean556: /* Transcript */

1411: Loop

2014-08-22T04:20:54Z

Cerulean556:

{{comic
| number = 1411
| date = August 22, 2014
| title = Loop
| image = loop.png
| titletext = Ugh, today's kids are forgetting the old-fashioned art of absentmindedly reading the same half-page of a book over and over and then letting your attention wander and picking up another book.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at a desk, accompanied by numerous electronics - a desktop computer, a laptop, a tablet, and a smartphone.
Text: "Stare blankly at screen -> open news site -> start reading -> get bored -> absentmindedly check smaller device]:

{{comic discussion}}

361: Christmas Back Home

2014-07-09T23:22:42Z

Cerulean556: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 361
| date = December 24, 2007
| title = Christmas Back Home
| image = christmas back home.png
| titletext = Family going to bed at 10 PM is so much worse than jet lag.
}}

==Explanation==

The script begins similarly to the poem "{{w|A Visit from St. Nicholas}}":

:'''Twas the night before Christmas, when all thro' the house''
:''Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;''

The idea is that [[Cueball]] has been so used to being on the computer late at night (perhaps coding, or deep into some [[386: Duty Calls|Internet argument]]) that, when Santa Claus arrives, Cueball is still awake. Note the mouse pun.

Being forced to sleep at normal times is compared with {{w|jet lag}}: Sleeplessness due to your body being synchronized to another time zone, so named because jet aircraft made it possible for people to travel farther and faster. Here Cueball needs to turn back his internal clock over five hours to sync with his family.

==Transcript==
:[The panel depicts the interior of a house with numerous Christmas decorations. Santa stares at Cueball, who is sitting at his laptop.]
:'Twas the night before Christmas at my family's house.
:There were no sound of stirring save the click of a mouse.
:For 'twas just like a childhood Christmas except
:I'd forgotten the hours that normal folks slept.
:Santa: What are you doing out of bed so late?
:Cueball: Late? It's barely 3AM!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Christmas]]

361: Christmas Back Home

2014-07-09T23:22:06Z

Cerulean556: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 361
| date = December 24, 2007
| title = Christmas Back Home
| image = christmas back home.png
| titletext = Family going to bed at 10 PM is so much worse than jet lag.
}}

==Explanation==

The script begins similarly to the poem "{{w|A Visit from St. Nicholas}}":

:'''Twas the night before Christmas, when all thro' the house''
:''Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;''

The idea is that [[Cueball]] has been so used to being on the computer late at night (perhaps coding, or deep into some [[386: Duty Calls|Internet argument]]) that, when Santa Claus arrives, Cueball is still awake. Note the mouse pun.

Being forced to sleep at normal times is compared with {{w|jet lag}}: Sleeplessness due to your body being synchronized to another time zone, so named because jet aircraft made it possible for people to travel farther and faster. Here Cueball needs to turn back his internal clock over five hours to sync with his family.

==Transcript==
:[The panel depicts the interior of a house with numerous Christmas decorations. Santa stares at Cueball, who is busy typing on his laptop.]
:'Twas the night before Christmas at my family's house.
:There were no sound of stirring save the click of a mouse.
:For 'twas just like a childhood Christmas except
:I'd forgotten the hours that normal folks slept.
:Santa: What are you doing out of bed so late?
:Cueball: Late? It's barely 3AM!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Christmas]]

328: Eggs

2014-07-09T22:33:45Z

Cerulean556: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 328
| date = October 12, 2007
| title = Eggs
| image = eggs.png
| titletext = Oh, yeah, we get tons of them at these casual sex bars.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] seems to be using a common cheesy pick up line. So, how do you like your eggs in the morning? — implying that he will be the one cooking them, because they will still be together in the morning, after they spent the night having sex. The standard response to this pick up line for a woman seeking to brush off the potential partner — as one would expect a woman in a bar being propositioned by a stranger to do most of the time is "unfertilized", switching the meaning of "eggs" from {{w|egg (food)|chicken eggs}} to {{w|egg cell|female gametes}}. In fact, Cueball is not trying to solicit sex from [[Megan]], but instead is trying to set her up for that punchline as he is in the habit of setting up jokes. Megan's desire for actual casual sex subverts his plan for comedy.

The title text is a response to the comment about a Priest and a Rabbi. Jokes about Priests, Rabbis are fairly common, and the man appears to want to set up such a joke. However, the title text uses sarcasm to point out that such religious leaders would be unlikely to frequent a bar where people go for casual sex.

Alternatively, the title text could be implying that this is a bar where most people are looking for casual sex, and jokers are a common nuisance, in contrast with bars were most women are not looking for a hookup and men who troll for casual sex are a common nuisance.

==Transcript==
:[Megan sits at a bar; Beret Guy cleans a glass from behind the counter. Cueball approaches.]
:Cueball: So, how do you like your eggs in the morning?
:Megan: Ooh, sunny side up.
:Cueball: Oh. Huh.
:Megan: Is that a problem?
:Cueball: Well, it's just that I was trying to set you up for the "unfertilised" line.
:Megan: Ah. Bad timing; I'm actually looking for casual sex. ...interested?
:Cueball: I'd love to, but I've got like 20 more jokes to set up tonight. Hey, have you seen a priest and a rabbi?

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Sex]]
[[Category:Language]]