October 28, 2011: National Sarcastic Awareness Month

1. Today will be sunny with a high near 45, according to reports from the National Weather Service.

2. You can head down to the  for its  class at 8:45 a.m. It's $26 for members and $35 for non-members.

3. During October, we celebrate another relatively unknown observance in the United States –National Sarcastic Awareness Month. Although sarcasm has often times been called "the lowest form of humor," according to the Sarcasm Society, it actually requires a quick wit, and the ability to extract the minutest points of weakness in a conversation. The elements of humor in its mockery have launched the careers of countless comedians, as well, including Groucho. For some great one-liners by Marx, be sure to visit the Sarcastic Quotes tab of the Sarcasm Society site. There, you'll read some great classics, such as, "I have had a perfectly wonderful evening, but this wasn't it."

4. There is no universally understood way to express sarcasm with written English. The irony mark, a backwards question mark also known as a percontation point, has been proposed as a direct indication that the words, phrase or sentence that precede it should be read as sarcasm. The interrobang, a combined question mark and exclamation point, has also been proposed as a way to mark sarcasm or a statement expressed in disbelief. To find out more, check out this irony punctuation page on Wikipedia.

5. For an evening of great melodramatic imitations, spontaneity and comedy that points out the absurdity of our era, be sure to catch mega-famous Pablo Francisco at the Hartford Funny Bone in Manchester from Nov. 3 to Nov. 6.