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This humorous line is from Donald Harstad’s book, Eleven Days. It was written on a coffee mug belonging to Sally, a character who comes into the main protagonist Deputy Sheriff Carl Houseman’s life after a frantic 911 comes in and a grisly murder is found at the scene of the crime. Cops who had thought they seen it all must now piece together what lead to this and who did it in the small town of Maitland Iowa. 

Donald Harstad is a twenty-six-year veteran of the Clayton County Sheriff's Department in northeastern Iowa. Eleven days is part of the Cal Houseman series that includes The Known Dead, The Big Thaw, Code 61, A Long December, and November Rain.

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Stinker has various meanings in the English language, though traditionally it means someone who smells bad. In American and British slang, it also means a horrible person, a tough task, or something made poorly or is subpar.

Skunks are well known for their characteristic stink. In popular culture, skunks are often portrayed as unpopular or evil permanently smelly animals, always ready to spray. However, in reality skunks only have a limited amount of liquid spray, which takes weeks to refill.

Hot tip: If you ever have problems with skunk odor, all you need are hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and detergent to remove it!

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A “groupie”, or a person who obsessively follows a celebrity to try and get to know them, is often referred to as a “chaser” of some kind due to their habit of following specific types of celebrities. “I’m a groupie chaser” puts the groupie in the role of the person who is being followed rather than the follower. 

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In 1889, Jerome K. Jerome, an English writer, published a humorous travelogue called Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog) featuring characters based on himself and two friends. It depicted a fictional two-week boating vacation along the Thames River round-trip between Kingston and Oxford with Jerome's (fictional) dog, Montmorency. This book was so popular it inspired several theatrical and film adaptations, various retellings in print, and art. Jerome created a sequel, Three Men on a Bummel (1900), known as Three Men on Wheels, about cycling in Germany. 

Jerome wrote, “I like work: It fascinates me. I can sit and look at it for hours. I love to keep it by me: the idea of getting rid of it nearly breaks my heart.” This quote turned into an Australian catch phrase beginning in 1950. It was shortened to “I like work: I can watch it all day.” This saying was extremely popular during the 1970s and 1980s, and it became a part of British and American jargon, as well.

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Created by American cartoonist, playwright, and artist, Herb Gardner, The Nebbishes was a syndicated comic strip that was originally picked up by the Chicago Tribune and later syndicated to 60-75 major newspapers across the country. Running on Sundays from 1959-1961, the strip features characters called Nebbishes, which are small white blob-like creatures who often spoke with humorous self-deprecating mottos and sayings. Prior to the comic strip being picked up, the characters were already popular from their appearances on cards, napkins, and wall decorations. Gardner has mentioned in interviews that he used the name Nebbishes because in Yiddish, "nebbish" means an insignificant, pitiful person.

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In 1938, the Topps company was born in Brooklyn, NY by Morris Shorin and his four sons. The family used Topps to distribute gum as a way to supplement their struggling tobacco business. The company quickly grew and in 1949, they entered the baseball card industry for which they are most known for. The company also manufactures other collectibles such as pinback buttons. Like other manufacturing companies, not every collectible will make it to full-scale production. Some of them will only run as test issues, making them rarer than the average collectible, and thus more desirable among collectors. 

Illustration of a grey donkey wearing a red ribbon around its neck and a yellow hat with a red, white and blue stripe and a blue flower with blue text on top on a white background

Created in support of Democratic Women, this style of illustration was typical during the 1960s and 70s.  The image of a donkey became associated with the Democratic party during the early 19th century. During this period of time, it was fashionable for women to wear hats to social functions.

In 1971, the National Federation of Democratic Women was formed. The organization's purpose is to unite Democratic women and encourage more political participation at every government level. From 1972-1977, the Federation was recognized by the Democratic National Committee as the official women's organization. The National Federation of Democratic Women received a seat on the DNC Executive Committee and three seats on the DNC.

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Bullshit is a curse word used to express disbelief in an event or piece of information presented as true when it is false. The first attested use of the term bullshit appears in a piece written by T.S. Eliot entitled, "The Triumph of Bullshit." It is a comic ballad in which Eliot preemptively criticizes himself and his works before his critics could. The term bullshit only appears in the title.