Some major weight loss organizations tend to 'shame' their members by making them wear T-shirts with their actual weight printed on the front...

Fortunately, 'Bor-Bor Bear' is neither a member of one of these groups, nor is he ashamed of how much he weighs. However, he has figured out a way to display his weight on a T-shirt, by simply displaying this symbol # over and over again.

As some of you know, # is a symbol with three different meanings: 1. Number (as in the one used in the above title, #14), 2. Pound (the symbol on the lower right button of a telephone keypad), and 3. Hashtag (a more recent usage on social network sites, like Twitter). Of course, when I was very young (during the 1950s and 1960s), the first thing I'd thought of when I saw the # symbol was the game "Tic-Tac-Toe"; but that's besides the point...

I'd decided to incorporate all three meanings of # in a sort of rebus message on the back of the burly bruin's T-shirt - as part of my latest "Front & Back: Fat Furry Edition" gag. Translated, the message reads, "This is one way to let you know how many pounds I weigh, without using any numbers!" This is followed by the hashtag #PoundsAndNumbers. I even gave his usual gut rumbling a hashtag #morgaworga.

The point is, counting the number of # symbols on his T-shirt - just to find out how many pounds he weighs - is about as pointless as his going to a weight loss organization!

"Front & Back" concept and artwork, and 'Bor-Bor Bear' © RobCat

FOOTNOTE: According to an article about symbols (from the March, 2015 issue of Reader's Digest), the # symbol was originally named an octothorpe by an engineer at Bell Labs. The octo portion of the word refers to the eight points said symbol features; and the thorpe portion supposedly means 'village', as the eight points surround the central square... You learn something new every day!