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No Laughing Matter? Humour in tough times
Mar. 19th, 2020 01:32 pmOK, so I admit it. Quite often, my "funny bone" gets ticklish at the most inappropriate times. For example: When I was giving birth to my daughter, I was given an epidural anesthetic to get me through labour. My partner asked the nurse if I would have a headache afterwards and she said no. I didn't say anything at the time, being rather occupied with more pressing matters, but I remember thinking something like "Are you kidding? I plan to have a headache every night for at least the next few decades!"
Then in 1999, just before my dad's funeral, that same partner leaned over and quietly said to me "Your dad was cool." Again I was somewhat amused - I whispered back "Yes, but he's even cooler now." Somehow I think Dad would have been OK with that observation.
A lot of humour is quite dark, but sometimes it's during the darkest times that we are most in need of a little comic relief. Consider, for example, the "Crack up the Capital" festival where stand-up comics strut their stuff at YukYuks to raise money for mental health. When it comes to COVID-19, however, I've noticed people seem curiously reluctant to say or do anything that might suggest they are treating this pandemic with anything less than the degree of gravitas it warrants. Even the venerable Weird Al has said that there would be no "My Corona" sung to the tune of the Knack's My Sharona. In other words, he's not going to touch it with a 10-foot pole, or even a Korean, Italian, American or Canadian (sorry). Maybe a "Wash Your Hands" song to the tune of "Clap Your Hands"? Or has that already been done? Personally I keep hoping that I'll wake up April 1 and someone will say "April Fool! There's no pandemic after all!!" But I'm not holding my breath. And if I find myself SHORT of breath... well, let's not go there.
Anyway, although I haven't been particularly amused at the jokes about Corona beer, there HAVE been a few things out there I've found funny. The political cartoon in today's paper, for instance, showed a spaceship (complete with little green men or at least creatures of some sort) arriving at planet Earth, only to find it bound with yellow police tape indicating "Closed due to COVID-19". The alien is saying "Darn - we came all this way for nothing!" Again in today's paper, there was an article about what constitutes an "essential" product or service during a coronavirus lockdown. As you might expect, there are some interesting cultural variations from one country to another. The French can still shop for wine and tobacco. The Germans can still rent or buy bicycles. The Belgians can still buy fries at sidewalk stands. The Italians, interestingly enough, can still drop by their newsstands for a printed newspaper. And the Dutch? Well, they did close down Amsterdam's red-light district but apparently coffee shops are still selling cannabis products, on a take-out basis only.
Finally, Tuesday was Saint Patrick's Day, so I thought I'd provide a link to a little Irish humour (not particularly related to the virus) below:
https://2020.ifla.org/20-things-irish-people-say/
Then in 1999, just before my dad's funeral, that same partner leaned over and quietly said to me "Your dad was cool." Again I was somewhat amused - I whispered back "Yes, but he's even cooler now." Somehow I think Dad would have been OK with that observation.
A lot of humour is quite dark, but sometimes it's during the darkest times that we are most in need of a little comic relief. Consider, for example, the "Crack up the Capital" festival where stand-up comics strut their stuff at YukYuks to raise money for mental health. When it comes to COVID-19, however, I've noticed people seem curiously reluctant to say or do anything that might suggest they are treating this pandemic with anything less than the degree of gravitas it warrants. Even the venerable Weird Al has said that there would be no "My Corona" sung to the tune of the Knack's My Sharona. In other words, he's not going to touch it with a 10-foot pole, or even a Korean, Italian, American or Canadian (sorry). Maybe a "Wash Your Hands" song to the tune of "Clap Your Hands"? Or has that already been done? Personally I keep hoping that I'll wake up April 1 and someone will say "April Fool! There's no pandemic after all!!" But I'm not holding my breath. And if I find myself SHORT of breath... well, let's not go there.
Anyway, although I haven't been particularly amused at the jokes about Corona beer, there HAVE been a few things out there I've found funny. The political cartoon in today's paper, for instance, showed a spaceship (complete with little green men or at least creatures of some sort) arriving at planet Earth, only to find it bound with yellow police tape indicating "Closed due to COVID-19". The alien is saying "Darn - we came all this way for nothing!" Again in today's paper, there was an article about what constitutes an "essential" product or service during a coronavirus lockdown. As you might expect, there are some interesting cultural variations from one country to another. The French can still shop for wine and tobacco. The Germans can still rent or buy bicycles. The Belgians can still buy fries at sidewalk stands. The Italians, interestingly enough, can still drop by their newsstands for a printed newspaper. And the Dutch? Well, they did close down Amsterdam's red-light district but apparently coffee shops are still selling cannabis products, on a take-out basis only.
Finally, Tuesday was Saint Patrick's Day, so I thought I'd provide a link to a little Irish humour (not particularly related to the virus) below:
https://2020.ifla.org/20-things-irish-people-say/
