A Shorter History of Bodily Fluids

For reasons that are not completely clear to me I have decided that my 3quarksdaily columns for next week will be from my work-in-progress (WIP): A Shorter History of Bodily Fluids. This book is conceived as the lavatory version of a coffee-table book (is there a term for this - a commode companion?).  Fluids appeal to me, and I have a body, and it seems when you put them together you get something amusing.  The problem is that when I write about them what I produce is macabre rather than funny. So it is a WIP going in the wrong direction.

I have most of the piece for Monday sketched out; I am starting by bending the rules a little: the brain is typically solid but there are a number of conditions that produce a softening of the brain tissue; in some case the brain may be liquified. So my first bodily fluid is liquid brain. See: not all that funny.

Since the editors at 3quarks want original material I won't be able to post it here till next week.  But if you are interested please check it out on Monday.  I am trying to keep it pretty short.  Typically my columns here have been excessively long, perhaps unreadably long.

Last months on environmentalism as a form of asceticism is here.

Oh if you have a favorite bodily fluid - especially if its a hilarious one, please feel free to share below.