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LJ Idol: Topic of Week 1: Jayus
Mar. 17th, 2014 07:24 amTelling jokes is an art. You might have acquired a repertoire for different occasions over the years to throw them at the right audience with a performance that would even make an indifferent Egyptian mummy burst into tears of laughter.
This is simple because your audience speaks your language. Let me tell you, finding a translatable joke is hard. Spontaneously finding a translatable joke, then generate the translation on the fly and presenting it as if you had done so more than a million times is a challenge.
We were sitting in the living room on one of those Canary Island evenings when the air is not too humid to leave the window open all night. One of the Spanish guys told a joke and we laughed although it was far from funny. I jumped up from my seat with the glass in my hand and declared: “I am going to tell a joke!“. All faces turned to me with expecting expressions on them.
I took a deep breath.
[The jokes are translated to English to guarantee understanding of what was NOT funny.]
„There were two men, Shutup and Brain. They were robbing a bank. Then Shutup got arrested.“ I started enthusiastically when I suddenly got aware that the rest of the joke would not work in another language. And this joke was not working anyway in any language at any place.
„That is it?“ One other Spanish guys asked me when I stopped in the middle of that unbearable joke. „This does not work in Spanish.“ I complained, then thought for another while and brightened up.
„Another one“, I smiled, and the slight relief on the faces of my audience had vanished.
„One drunk man is on his way home when they are approached by two policemen. One of them asks: 'What is your name?' 'Miller' says the man. 'Where do you live?' 'Park Street 12'. The policeman looks up to the house next to him. 'That is here'. The policeman takes the drunk man up the stairs, opens a door, puts the man behind the door to close it afterwards.
My audience looks something near amused. I feel so warm I'd love to dive into a barrel of iced water.
At the end of the joke, I prepare for the final punchline and … there it is:
“I just do not understand why you continue to throw me down that elevator shaft.“
One girl snorts, the rest remains unimpressed. Still convinced of the fact that this is because I have never told any joke in another language, let alone Spanish, I shape up for the final shot of this night.
„Two fridges sit on a tree. A hairdryer flies by. One of the fridges says: „Are you kidding me?“
A guy almost has his beer running through his nose.
“Do you know any funny jokes at all?“
He gasps for breath, everyone else is smiling, seeing that I have definitely given up for now. Until next time.
This is simple because your audience speaks your language. Let me tell you, finding a translatable joke is hard. Spontaneously finding a translatable joke, then generate the translation on the fly and presenting it as if you had done so more than a million times is a challenge.
We were sitting in the living room on one of those Canary Island evenings when the air is not too humid to leave the window open all night. One of the Spanish guys told a joke and we laughed although it was far from funny. I jumped up from my seat with the glass in my hand and declared: “I am going to tell a joke!“. All faces turned to me with expecting expressions on them.
I took a deep breath.
[The jokes are translated to English to guarantee understanding of what was NOT funny.]
„There were two men, Shutup and Brain. They were robbing a bank. Then Shutup got arrested.“ I started enthusiastically when I suddenly got aware that the rest of the joke would not work in another language. And this joke was not working anyway in any language at any place.
„That is it?“ One other Spanish guys asked me when I stopped in the middle of that unbearable joke. „This does not work in Spanish.“ I complained, then thought for another while and brightened up.
„Another one“, I smiled, and the slight relief on the faces of my audience had vanished.
„One drunk man is on his way home when they are approached by two policemen. One of them asks: 'What is your name?' 'Miller' says the man. 'Where do you live?' 'Park Street 12'. The policeman looks up to the house next to him. 'That is here'. The policeman takes the drunk man up the stairs, opens a door, puts the man behind the door to close it afterwards.
My audience looks something near amused. I feel so warm I'd love to dive into a barrel of iced water.
At the end of the joke, I prepare for the final punchline and … there it is:
“I just do not understand why you continue to throw me down that elevator shaft.“
One girl snorts, the rest remains unimpressed. Still convinced of the fact that this is because I have never told any joke in another language, let alone Spanish, I shape up for the final shot of this night.
„Two fridges sit on a tree. A hairdryer flies by. One of the fridges says: „Are you kidding me?“
A guy almost has his beer running through his nose.
“Do you know any funny jokes at all?“
He gasps for breath, everyone else is smiling, seeing that I have definitely given up for now. Until next time.
