That is Priceless by Steve Melcher for May 22, 2020

“Kind of a Drag…”

What happens when your hangover hits low tide.

Sure glad that flagman’s clearing traffic for us.

Models getting in shape for the Milan catwalk season.

The job was an incredible bore,An endless back breaking chore. An exhausting example,Dragging the sample,Of the pryamid from door to door.

Mr. M. , are you coming undone ?/ You NEVER descend to a pun !/ But this painting’s a gem/(as is each one of them !)/ so your site’s still my “place in the sun” !

“Draggin’ Boat races” ! (Now that’s a lousy pun – but I have no shame …

Working for the original Pyramid Scheme.

“And by the way, if you hate to go to school, you might grow up to be a mule.”

The perspective on this painting is… off. Are the haulers giants? or is the guy in the background Jiminy Cricket?

that makes me hurt just looking at it

“Come on a cruise”, he said. “You’ll enjoy the fresh air”, he said. But he never said anything about dragging the dam* boat.

“Yo, heave ho! Yo, heave ho! Once more, once again, still once more”

Song of the Volga Boatmen

The towpath or The Riverbank: 

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Signorini,_Telemaco_-_L%27alzaia_-_1864.jpg 

(best viewed by Google Chrome, with Google Translate added to chrome://extensions, which can automatically translate most pages as necessary) has info and links that point to more info about this painting. File history has strip coloration image.

http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/signorini_telemaco.html 

https://www.wikiart.org/en/telemaco-signorini 

https://www.wga.hu/bio_m/s/signorin/biograph.html 

https://www.askart.com/artist_bio/Telemaco_Signorini/11070557/Telemaco_Signorini.aspx 

http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/telemaco-signorini/ 

https://artslife.com/history/2014/11/signorini-telemaco-1835-1901/ 

all have info, or links that point to more info, about this artist (again, Chrome can translate as necessary and askart.com can be read in full for free on Fridays), perhaps in addition to what’s pointed to by the title URL. First work by him used here.

Again, a larger strip image is shown by (⌘- or Ctrl-) clicking the image in Mr. Melcher’s MASTERPIECE #2455 (May 21, 2020) blog entry, accessible by the Check out the blog! box after the last comment.

Early drag queens!

Proof that tottin’ that barge is a lot harder than liftin’ that bale!

Like a Fellini film, we’ll never know what’s at the end of their rope or what’s the true symbolic meaning of the guy in the top hat with the midget…

Damn horses decided to join the Teamsters and went out on strike.

“On second thought, I think my house would look better over there.”

The workmen’s decision to have donkeyghetti for dinner last night was proving to have had a down side.

This little Reddit post contains links to other artist’s treatments of the dame theme: https://www.reddit.com/r/museum/comments/1cgzeu/telemaco_signorini_lalzaia_the_towpath_1864/

Before the invention of the propeller or jet engine, people hated taking the plane.

Never took the opportunity I had, when there were Pilates classes across the hall from my library, to write on the whiteboard beforehand, “Hi to Pontius, Claudia, and all the little Pilates.”

“Next year, I’m going to make the vacation plans!”

Enrico said he was in it for the long haul, not knowing the truck rental fell through.

Then got back to healthcare news updates, and saw this: “Knight said she noticed there have been reports of outbreaks at places where people typically shout or sing, like choir practices or Zumba classes, while places like Pilates classes have not been associated with outbreaks. ‘Maybe slow, gentle breathing is not a risk factor, but heavy, deep, or rapid breathing and shouting is,’ she said.”

the #600 pound life tv crew is pulling the next patient into the studio.

fedexing a big crate in the early days…

Where Amazon meets the Volga ?

The new “Pull-a-ton”

“Hey guys we’re not moving that thing. We’re just digging a ditch with our feet.”

The crew hated when the Captain said, “Let’s troll for fish.”

The tug-of-war was no longer fun after 5 hours, but team captain High Hat still would not agree to call it a draw.

What? ANOTHER day off?

Talk about being in a rut!

Should the big (river) bank owner skip a wage raise to start his little girl’s trust fund – yes Arno?

For those who live elsewhere and don’t know, the last Monday in May is a national holiday, Memorial Day, in the US (and perhaps elsewhere). This time, expect the next strip here on Tuesday.