From time to time we’ll pass along observations from others that might provide some comfort, some encouragement, or even some black humor that can lift us a little bit. Today we’re going to focus on humor.
These are serious times, indeed, but the Seventeenth Chapter of the Old Testament book of Proverbs reminds us (verse 22): “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine; but a broken spirit drieth the bones.”
First, this observation: This virus deserves a theme song. We have reached back many decades for a famous Peggy Lee song that we have re-titled:
An Anthem for Social Distancing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqNggIve40E
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Former Missourinet reporter Drew Vogel, who now is a nursing home administrator in Ohio, passed along a comment by one of his in-laws before barber and beauty shops were allowed to open in many places: With all the beauty shops closed for the duration, in a month or so we’ll start seeing the REAL color of people’s hair.
It’s not too late for a lot of folks.
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A protestor recently had a sign saying, “Every disaster movie starts with government ignoring a scientist.”
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We saw a tweet the other day from someone called, “Sir Michael:”
Quarantine Diary:
Day 1—I have stocked up on enough non-perishable supplies to last me for months, maybe years, so that I can remain in isolation as long as it takes to see out this pandemic.
Day 1+45 minutes—I am in the supermarket because I want a Twix.
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Another tweet, this one from “JR:”
Day 2 without sports:
Found a lady sitting on my couch yesterday. Apparently she’s my wife. She seems nice.
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Atlantic Magazine recently had an article about why it’s okay to laugh at coronavirus jokes. You can find it at https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2020/04/humor-laughter-coronavirus-covid19/609184/
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Our dogs think we quit our jobs to spend more time with them. Our cats think we got fired for being the loser they always thought we were.
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The website Fatherly has “28 Coronavirus jokes to retrain your face how to smile.”
We’ll share three. If you think they are sufficiently funny, you can find the rest at https://www.fatherly.com/play/best-coronavirus-jokes/
- If there’s a baby boom nine months from now, what will happen in 2033? There will be a whole bunch of quaranteens.
- What’sthe difference between COVID-19 and Romeo and Juliet? One’s the coronavirus and the other is a Verona crisis.
- I’lltell you a coronavirus joke now, but you’ll have to wait two weeks to see if you got it.
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Email: 2020 is so weird that the Pentagon just confirmed UFOs exist and it’s barely news.
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A sign of the times: A high school classmate emailed me the other day, “Thirty years ago I was arrested for smoking weed while hanging out with friends. Yesterday I was arrested for hanging out with friends while smoking weed.”
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This is a bad time for introverts. They can’t wait for people to leave the house so they can be alone again.
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Another tweet: Pigeons probably think humans are extinct.
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Somebody told me the other day that newspapers can carry the virus. So I wash my newspaper each day in the kitchen sink while I sing two verses of “Happy Birthday.” Last Saturday’s paper should be dry enough tomorrow to read. If I can get the pages apart.
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Another tweet: This quarantine is really affecting the work force, especially the men. We’re losing $1 for every 79 cents that women are losing.
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I hope my barber shop reopens soon. I haven’t had a haircut since February. Hope the barber doesn’t charge by the pound.
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Some people post humorous comments, signs, or videos on the FACEBOOK pages or other social media pages. The Christian Science Monitor recently reported on a man who has a white board in his yard and he posts messages such as, “I ordered a chicken and an egg from Amazon. I’ll let you know.”
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And then there’s editorial cartoonist Gary Varvel of Creators.com, whose defiant cartoon surely will turn into a real product that a lot of us could wear.
In a few months, perhaps a new t-shirt will add “’20 CORONAVIRUS.”
And finally, for this entry, a comment from Max, another friend at the Y, who hopes the pandemic fades before warm weather brings out the ticks that carry Lyme Disease. If it doesn’t, he says, we’ll have Corona and Lyme. Those of you more familiar with adult drinks than your obedient servant will appreciate the humor, I trust.
I used to say when something happened that would be memorable, if not historic, “That’s something to tell the grandchildren about.” Can’t do that now. The grandchildren are living it. So I’m changing the statement; “That’s something my grandchildren can tell their grandchildren.”
I wear a 2x, by the way.