This is a cool optical illusion image. As you can see, the text seems to be moving fluidly. A little bit of warning though, don’t stare on it too much, it may cause you a headache.
The image is a static JPG, and not an animated GIF.
This came as a forwarded message from the group at Yahoo! to which I’m subscribed to. I think it has been passed around via email. This article is credited to the one who originally wrote it.
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FILIPINO SIGNS OF WIT
Nury Vittachi - THE FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW
This week, we shall take a “reading tour” of one of the most spirited communities in Asia . The Philippines is full of word play. The local accent among many Filipinos, in which English words with “F” are spelled and pronounced with the sound of “P” and V is pronounced as “B” (because the Philippine alphabet has no letters F or V), is often used very cleverly, such as, the sign in a flower shop in Diliman called Petal Attraction.
Much of the word play in the Philippines is deliberate with retailers and various businesses favouring a play on names of Western establishments and celebrities (Americans, in particular– -movie stars and entertainment personalities, especially). For example, there is a bread shop in Manila called Anita Bakery, a 24-hour restaurant called Doris Day and Night, a garment shop called Elizabeth Tailoring, and a barber shop called Felix The Cut.
Reader Robert Harland also spotted a bakery named Bread Pitt, and a Makati fast-food place selling “maruya” (banana fritters) called Maruya Carey. Then, there are Christopher Plumbing, and a boutique called The Way We Wear ; a video rental shop called Leon King Video Rental; a restaurant in the Cainta district of Rizal called Caintacky Fried Chicken, a local burger restaurant called Mang Donald’s, a doughnut shop called MacDonuts, a shop selling “lumpia” (egg roll) in Makati called Wrap and Roll, and two butcher shops called Meating Place and Meatropolis.
Smart travellers can decipher what may look like baffling signs to unaccustomed foreigners by simply sounding out the “Taglish” (the Philippine version of English words spelled and pronounced with a heavy Filipino accent), such as, at a restaurant menu in Cebu : “We hab sopdrink in can an in batol” [translation: We have soft drinks in can and in bottle]. Then, there is a sewing accessories shop called Bids And Pises [translation: Beads and Pieces –or– Bits and Pieces].
There are also many signs with either badly chosen or misspelled words, but they are usually so entertaining that it would be a mistake to “correct” them. A reader named Antonio “Tonyboy” Ramon T. Ongsiako, (now there’s a truly Filipino name), contributed the following interesting Philippine signs and advertisements:
In a restaurant in Baguio City (the “summer capital” of the Philippines ): “Wanted: Boy Waitress”; on a highway in Pampanga: “We Make Modern Antique Furniture;” on the window of a photography shop in Cabanatuan : “We Shoot You While You Wait;” and on the glass front of a cafe in Panay Avenue in Manila : “Wanted: Waiter, Cashier, Washier.”
Some of the notices can even give a wrong impression, such as, a shoe store in Pangasinan which has a sign saying: “We Sell Imported Robber Shoes” (these could be the “sneakiest” sneakers); and a rental property sign in Jaro, Iloilo reads: “House For Rent, Fully Furnaced” (it must really be hot inside)!
Occasionally, one could come across signs that are truly unique–if not altogether odd. Reader Gunilla Edlund submitted a sign that she saw at the ticket booth in the ferry pier in Davao City in southern Philippines , which said: “Adults: 1 peso; Child: 50 centavos; Cadavers: fare subject to negotiation. ”
European tourists may also be intrigued to discover two competing shops selling hopia (a Chinese pastry) called Holland Hopia and Poland Hopia, which are owned and operated by two local Chinese entrepreneurs, Mr. Ho and Mr. Po respectively- -(believe it or not)!
According to Manila businessman, Tonyboy Ongsiako, there is so much wit in the Philippines because “. . .we are a country where a good sense of humour is needed to survive. We have a 24-hour comedy show here called the government and a huge reserve of comedians made up mostly of politicians and retiring actors.
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If your father is a poor man, it is your fate but,
if your father-in-law is a poor man, it’s your stupidity.
I was born intelligent - education ruined me.
A bus station is where a bus stops.
A train station is where train stops.
On my desk, I have a work station….
what more can I say……….
Practice makes perfect…..
But nobody’s perfect……
so why practice?
If it’s true that we are here to help others,
then, what exactly are the others here for?
Since light travels faster than sound, people appear
bright until you hear them speak.
How come “abbreviated” is such a long word ?
Money is not everything.
There’s Mastercard & Visa.
One should love animals.
They are so tasty.
Save water.
Shower with your girl friend.
Love thy neighbor.
But don’t get caught.
Behind every successful man, there is a woman.
And behind every unsuccessful man, there are two.
Every man should marry.
After all, happiness is not the only
thing in life.
The wise never marry.
and when they marry they become otherwise.
Success is a relative term.
It brings so many relatives.
Never put off the work till tomorrow
what you can put off today.
Love is photogenic
It needs darkness to develop
Children in backseats cause accidents
Accidents in backseats cause children
“Your future depends on your dreams”
So go to sleep
There should be a better way to start a
day than waking up every morning
“Hard work never killed anybody”
But why take the risk !
“Work fascinates me”
I can look at it for hours !
God made relatives;
Thank God we can choose our friends.
When two’s company,
three’s the result !
A dress is like a barbed fence
It protects the premises without
restricting the view
The more you learn, the more you know,
The more you know, the more you forget
The more you forget, the less you know
So.. why learn.
This would give you guides on how to control your emotions towards your better-half, friends, officemates and all the people around you, especially your “boss”. The rules of practicing “ugaling langit, ugaling kaaya-aya” :
