sense of humor (or lack thereof)

I often joke about my lack of a sense of humor.

Wait! That doesn’t sound right…

I enjoy certain kinds of humor – irony, satire, political, word play, parody – but don’t like humor that is cruel, crude, or aimed at personal or group identity. For example, when I was young in my tiny, tiny town, other kids would often tell Polish or Italian or “dumb blonde” jokes. I didn’t find them funny then and still do not.

I can’t really tell jokes. Maybe it is a matter of timing.

I am sometimes inadvertently funny. Occasionally, I’ll fall into a double entendre without meaning to. Once in a great while, I won’t catch a joke and say something that the other people in the room find hilarious.

What bothers me is when people find something funny that I mean to be serious. This usually happens when I have written something. When it happens here at Top of JC’s Mind, it’s no harm, no foul. (I almost typed “no harm, no fowl,” which would be a humorous mistake.)

When it happens while workshopping a poem, however, I get discouraged. Sometimes, I can choose different words to clarify, but, other times, it seems that I am too earnest/unsophisticated/serious to even find the humor to address it.

Sigh. It’s really not funny.
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Join us for Linda’s Just Jot It January! Today’s prompt is “humor” but you can post about anything you like. I often do my own thing. Find out all about it here:  https://lindaghill.com/2020/01/20/daily-prompt-jusjojan-the-20th-2020/

One-Liner Wednesday: bagels

“Protect your bagels – put lox on them”
– sign at the Vestal NY Best Bagels in Town.

Join us for Linda’s One-Liner Wednesdays!  http://lindaghill.com/2015/02/04/one-liner-wednesday-angry-rose/

SoCS – funny

My heart sank when I saw Linda’s prompt for SoCS this week: funny. I have missed the last couple of weeks due to illness and wanted to participate this week, but here is the thing – the last word which anyone would use to describe me is funny. Not haha funny and not even peculiar/funny.

I’m much more likely to be described as serious or thoughtful. I don’t joke. I do have a sense of humor, but it is in reacting to others, not any real ability to be amusing myself.

Sorry, Linda, but I fail at funny. I’m sure, though, that lots of other SoCS participants will succeed splendidly at being funny and end your week with levity. Cheers to you and to them!

JC

This post is part of Linda’s Stream of Consciousness Saturdays. Join us! Read all about it here: http://lindaghill.wordpress.com/2014/09/12/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-september-1314/

badge by Dooobster @Mindful Digressions