EFFIE (taking a bath): Riddle me this: how is it that a hotel with gourmet coffee and 400-thread-count sheets can’t provide a bar of soap that doesn’t make you feel like you’ve rolled around in a basket of fleas for an hour? Isn’t humanity past that point in soap technology?
HAL (watching her do so): Well, you never use up a full bar of soap during your stay, do you?

EFFIE: Of course not. I don’t think that’s even possible.
HAL: No one does. But they’re not going to just throw those partial bars away. They melt ’em down to make new bars. Sometimes hundreds of times. It’s inevitable that contaminants will occasionally enter the process.

[[In the soap processing plant, the contaminants become clear: molten soap is being poured through a gleeful man’s crack on its way to becoming new bars]]

#388; In which Soap fails transcribed by in

EFFIE (taking a bath): Riddle me this: how is it that a hotel with gourmet coffee and 400-thread-count sheets can't provide a bar of soap that doesn't make you feel like you've rolled around in a basket of fleas for an hour? Isn't humanity past that point in soap technology?
HAL (watching her do so): Well, you never use up a full bar of soap during your stay, do you?

EFFIE: Of course not. I don't think that's even possible.
HAL: No one does. But they're not going to just throw those partial bars away. They melt 'em down to make new bars. Sometimes hundreds of times. It's inevitable that contaminants will occasionally enter the process.

[[In the soap processing plant, the contaminants become clear: molten soap is being poured through a gleeful man's crack on its way to becoming new bars]]

now we can claim it has 'organic ingredients'

#388; In which Soap fails

— March 7th, 2008

[ Tags: commerce, hygiene, poop, technology ] Permalink: https://wondermark.com/c/388/

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Applications open for Genius Northwest – an IRL gaming competition

May 8, 2026 by David Malki !

Last year, I participated in Genius Northwest, a gaming competition inspired by the Korean gameshow The Genius and its ilk.

It’s a reality show without the cameras — a 3-day, all-inclusive weekend retreat structured around a series of challenges and puzzles, in which personalities and dealmaking matter as much as playing games.

It’s truly a remarkable thing. I came in dead last in the competition, but I still had a great time participating.

The event is held annually in the Pacific Northwest (hence the name) and applications are now open to participate in the 2026 competition!

Learn more — and apply — at GeniusNW.com.

Comic Transcripts

#388; In which Soap fails

— March 7th, 2008

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