On Poor Jokes and Forced Laughs....

While reading Thomas Paine's "Common Sense" in history class, I strike out with my joke-telling and, ironically, get "told" myself.

Me: (giggling to myself as I read my notes in the margin of my history book from last year) "Hey guys--see where it says 'Paine's pamphlet sold more than 150,000 copies'? It was like the Harry Potter of its time!"

(silence)

Maddy: "We're not laughing because that wasn't funny."

Me: (sad face) "Whaa?"

Kyle: "Oh BURN. You want some aloe with that, Ms. Sefcik?"

Tim: "Hey, I have a joke: Sally has 20 candy bars and she eats 19 of them. What does she still have?  Diabetes!"

John: (turning to me) "See, that was a joke."

Kyle: "Oh BURN. I think you need some more aloe."

Holly: "What?"

Leslie: "That doesn't make sense."

Jake: (sung to "Don't Stop Believing" by that beautiful band, Journey) "Do-o-o-on't Stop. Belie-ee-e-ving...or I will sink the te-e-ea in the har-bo-or."

Me: "That was beautiful, Jake. Let's roll with that and get back to Common Sense--in more ways than one. hehehe."

John: "Did she think that was a joke, too?"

Me: "Man. I just can't do anything right today, can I?"

(pause)

(students laugh)

Me: "Oh, COME ON. That's what you think is funny?"



Side note: Jake spent the rest of the class period finishing the lyrics to his made up song about the Boston Tea Party and the Boston Massacre (which seem to be mixed together, though I explicitly stated that they were years apart). I've listed them below.

Don't stop believing
Or we will sink all of the tea
In the harbor
The ships come
British shoot
Bang Bang Ban-n-n-n-n-g

Don't stop
the British
Or we will lose
all the tea again-n-n-n-n
No No Don't
We will stop-p-p-p
for some more Chai tea

Yeah Yeah Yeahhh
Yeah Yeah Yeahhhhhhhh