Zonk Prizes

On the game show Let's Make a Deal, a Zonk referred to an unwanted, worthless booby prize or gag gift, such as a donkey, a pig, farm animals, or absurd items like a wheelbarrow full of dirt. 

While contestants technically "won" the Zonk, they were typically offered a small consolation cash prize (often around $100) after the show to take home instead of the actual joke item.

Monty Hall was the host most famously associated with the Zonk.  He hosted Let's Make a Deal from its 1963 debut through the 1980s and 1990s, and it was during his long run that the Zonk tradition — live goats, cows, and other absurd gag prizes — became a signature part of the show. The term "Zonk" itself became a pop-culture staple largely because of his era. 

The current host, Wayne Brady (since 2009), continues the Zonk tradition, but the original and most iconic association belongs to Monty Hall.

A sampler of specific Zonk items over the show's history:

I'd rather have the llama! I hate that his beautiful animal is being looked at as a worthless gag gift. 

• Donkeys (the classic, including "Zonky the Donkey")

• Goats, pigs, cows, sheep, llamas, rabbits

• "A Bucket O' Chicken" — a real chicken in a bucket-shaped coop

• A "Zonkey" (a donkey painted with zebra stripes)

• Zonko the Gorilla, 

• Zurtle the Turtle, 

• Zonkaroo the Kangaroo, 

• Zippo the Hippo 

• Ridiculously large piles of cabbage, pumpkins, or bananas

• A wheelbarrow full of dirt

• A hay bale

• A giant teddy bear

• A week's supply of labeled garbage cans (sometimes hiding a fur coat inside)

• A washtub and washboard (sometimes with cash hidden in old jeans) 

• A pirate-ship car with a cannon that shoots Zonk T-shirts into the audience

• A two-seater red helicopter car (three wheels, propeller on top)

• A "car pool" — a pickup truck with a swimming-pool bed, diving board, and water slide

• A kayak bike with paddle steering

• A shopping cart bicycle

• An oil derrick (which was actually worth ~$6,000 — a production mistake) 

• Designer pumps carved out of butter

• Jewelry made of cheese

• "Sunday shoes" (a play on words)

• A half-bedroom set (half a bed, half a mattress, half a lamp, half a dresser)

• A milk-crate dining set with a hutch made from splintery produce boxes

• O DuZonk perfume

• A bacon Ferris wheel

• A giant water gun (12 ft 7.75 in — Guinness World Record)

• A baby grand piano cut in half

• Cactus swimwear

• A sausage dollhouse

• Trips to non-existent destinations

• Fake furs and fake foreign currency

• A giant "crying towel"

• A moose head

• "Your own" items (the contestant's own purse or shoes, returned as the "prize")

• A $5,000 cash Zonk (during a Julie Chen-hosted deal)

Pervert Glasses

"Pervert glasses" is a derogatory internet slang term for Meta’s Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, which are equipped with cameras, microphones, and AI capabilities. 

The nickname emerged in 2026 after widespread reports and viral social media trends showed men, particularly pickup artists and pranksters, using the devices to secretly record women and strangers in public without their consent. 

The backlash intensified due to several factors:

• Covert Recording: Unlike smartphones, the glasses look like ordinary eyewear, making it difficult for bystanders to know they are being filmed. 

• Harassment Content: Footage of unsolicited approaches and harassment was frequently posted to Instagram and TikTok, often leaving comment sections open for abuse. 
• Privacy Loopholes: Although the glasses feature an LED light to indicate recording, tutorials circulated online showing how to disable or cover the light, enabling truly stealth surveillance. 
• Data Privacy: Investigations revealed that intimate footage captured by users was being reviewed by human contractors in Kenya for AI training, raising additional privacy concerns.

In response to the stigma and privacy complaints, Meta launched camera-free audio-only versions of the glasses in late 2026 to offer AI features without the ability to record video.

Odd "Not Allowed" Signs in German Museum

This photo is from Miniatur Wunderland in Germany, the word's largest model railway system (the largest collection of small things).  The photo shows two odd "not allowed" signs next to a display window.  The top one has usually been interpreted as "don't throw bottles through the windows".  The bottom one is stranger, and these are some of the guesses posted on social media:

• No gummy worm juggling

• Don't dance in the rain of sausages

• Don't strike this pose if Cheetos are floating in the air

I suppose this might make some sense if snacks and bottled beverages are available in the Wunderland.

-Randy B

A Collection of Fashionable English words (Japan, 1887)

Two Japanese woodcuts by Kamekichi Tsunajima, from a series titled "Ryūkō eigo zukushi" (A Collection of Fashionable English Words), show images of animals, activities and objects each with their Japanese and English names. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately) some spelling mistakes have given rise to some interesting new activities such as "Refreshiug" and "Cuting Rice", and the "Gaot", "Hoise" and "Tea Po". The introduction of activities (including the very Zen-like "Looking Moon") give an interesting take on the often more object-orientated Western equivalents. Also worth noting the interesting additions of "Cross Child" rather than simply "Child", and "Blank Book" rather than "Book".

Hand-holding flames

 

Porcelain cheeseburger

 

Cat sculpture