Archive for the 'Humor' Category

Casual Friday - With Jokes Quotes and Anecdotes “June Weddings”

Friday, June 16th, 2006

“Sexiness wears thin after a while and beauty fades, but to be married to a man who makes you laugh every day, ah, now that’s a real treat.” - Joanne Woodward


“For I’ve been born and I’ve been wed. All of man’s peril comes of bed.” - C.H. Webb, Dum Vivimus Vigilemus

“I love being married. It’s so great to find one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.” - Rita Rudner “Grief can take care of itself, but to get the full value of joy, you must have somebody to divide it with.” - Mark Twain“No man is truly married until he understands every word his wife is NOT saying.” - unknown quote“I should like to see any kind of a man, distinguishable from a gorilla, that some good and even pretty woman could not shape a husband out of.” - Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.“Marriage is one of the few institutions that allow a man to do as his wife pleases.” - Milton Berle “I think men who have a pierced ear are better prepared for marriage. They’ve experienced pain and bought jewelry.” - Rita Rudner“Marriage has many pains, but celibacy has no pleasures.” - Samuel Johnson “Do not marry a man to reform him. That is what reform schools are for.” - Mae West“A happy home is one in which each spouse grants the possibility that the other may be right, though neither believes it.” - Don Fraser “Marriage is a fine institution - but I’m not ready for an institution.” - Mae West“Never go to bed mad — stay up and fight.” - Phyllis Diller

I feel like Zsa Zsa Gabor’s eighth husband on her wedding night: I know what I’m supposed to do…I just have to figure out a way to make it interesting.” - many attributions

“A wedding is a funeral where you smell your own flowers.” – Kid Millions, 1934
 
“I was the best man at the wedding. If I’m the best man, why is she marrying him?” - Jerry Seinfeld


“Marriage is a three ring circus: engagement ring, wedding ring, and suffering.” – George Gilbert

 “When a woman steals your husband, there is no better revenge than to let her keep him.” – Anonymous


 
“The secret of a happy marriage remains a secret.”  - Henry Youngman
 “One good husband is worth two good wives; for the scarcer things are, the more they are valued.” - Benjamin Franklin

Humor For the Middle of the Week

Wednesday, June 14th, 2006

DEEP OBSERVATIONS ON LIFE  subbmitted by Erica Welsing 1) When I die, I want to die like my grandfather-who died peacefully in his sleep.  Not screaming like all the passengers in his car.”  –Author Unknown   2) Advice for the day: If you have a lot of tension and you get a headache, do what it says on the aspirin bottle: “Take two aspirin” and Keep away from children.” –Author Unknown 

   3) “Oh, you hate your job?  Why didn’t you say so? There’s a support group for that.  It’s called EVERYBODY, and they meet at the bar.”–Drew Carey 

  4) “The problem with the designated driver program, it’s not a desirable job, but if you ever get sucked into doing it, have fun with it.  At the end of the night, drop them off at the wrong house.” –Jeff Foxworthy  5) “If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant’s life, she will choose to save the infant’s life without even considering if there is a man on base.” –Dave Barry  6) “Relationships are hard.  It’s like a full time job, and we should treat it like one.  If your boyfriend or girlfriend wants to leave you, they should give you two weeks’ notice.  There should be severance pay, the day before they leave you, they should have to find you a temp.”–Bob Ettinger  

7) “My Mom said she learned how to swim when someone took her out in the lake and threw her off the boat.  I said, ‘Mom, they weren’t trying to teach you how to swim.’” –Paula Poundstone  8) “A study in the Washington Post says that women have better verbal skills than men.  I just want to say to the authors of that study:  “Duh.” –Conan O’Brien   9) “Why does Sea World have a seafood restaurant??  I’m halfway through my fish burger and I realize, Oh my God…. I could be eating a slow learner.” –Lynda Montgomery  10) “I think that’s how Chicago got started.  Bunch of people in New York said, ‘Gee, I’m enjoying the crime and the poverty, but it just isn’t cold enough.  Let’s go west.’” –Richard Jeni 

    11) “If life were fair, Elvis would be alive and all the impersonators would be dead.” –Johnny Carson   12) “Sometimes I think war is God’s way of teaching us geography.” –Paul Rodriguez 

   13) “My parents didn’t want to move to Florida, but they turned sixty 

and that’s the law.” –Jerry Seinfeld  14) “Remember in elementary school, you were told that in case of fire you have to line up quietly in a single file line from smallest to tallest.  What is the logic in that?  What, do tall people burn slower?”–Warren Hutcherson   5) “Bigamy is having one wife/husband too many. Monogamy is the same.”–Oscar Wilde   16) “Suppose you were an idiot … And suppose you were a member of Congress… But I repeat myself.”  –Mark Twain 

   17) “Our bombs are smarter than the average high school student.  At least they can find Afghanistan.” –A. Whitney Brown 

 18) “You can say any foolish thing to a dog, and the dog will give you a look that says, ‘My God, you’re right! I never would’ve thought of that!’”  –Dave Barry 

 19) Do you know why they call it “PMS”?  Because “Mad Cow Disease” was taken. –Unknown, presumed deceased

Don’t Overdue Humor When You Are On Stage

Tuesday, June 13th, 2006

I just watched a very funny video clip of Steve Martin on the Tonight Show. His routine was entitled “The Great Flydini.” He spoofed traditional magicians by making objects appear out of his pants; scarf’s, eggs, a lit cigarette, glass of wine, and even a telephone. The routine was funny because it was original, but also because Steve Martin didn’t overact the part of the magician. I like the humor of Steve Martin but he often goes too far and overacts when he is doing stand-up comedy.

His characters that he portrays on stage tend to be too ridiculous for me sometimes. I never could get into his “wild and crazy guy” routine, but “The Great Flydini” was brilliant because it was underplayed. He didn’t say one word during the four plus minutes he was on stage. He didn’t make any ridiculous facial expressions to kill the humor. He just acted like any bad magician performing.

When performing humor especially mocking a group of people it is important to get the mannerisms down. Usually if you nail the mannerisms you don’t have to try to be too funny. It will be. My parents made a very good living spoofing acrobats. They didn’t put acrobats down by overacting. They played their parts serious, and let their actions get the laughs. Had they overacted, the act wouldn’t have been believable and they would have only received a few laughs rather than the thunderous laughter that they received every night. They would have been recognized as a second class act and wouldn’t have played the top notch theatres of their time, like the London Palladium.

Many acrobats would complain that my parents didn’t do any tricks in their act. They would wonder why they were so popular and got top billing. The acrobats would say we do a triple axle or some impressive stunt and my parents didn’t do anything how come we have to open for them. Occasionally an act would insist on following my parents and they would always pay the price. After seeing my parents the audience wasn’t impressed with the other act.

Quite often comedians make the mistake of telegraphing the punchline. They start to overact, laugh, and do something that says to the audience I am trying to be funny. When you send that message out many times the audiences says you’re not funny by not laughing. When doing physical humor play it straight and let the situation be funny.

Casual Friday - Jokes, Quotes, and Anecdotes. Business

Friday, June 9th, 2006

“A criminal is a person with predatory instincts who has not sufficient capital to form a corporation.” - Howard Scott

“I’m spending a year dead for tax reason.” – Douglas Adams

“I always arrive late at the office, but I make up for it by leaving early.” – Charles Lamb

“Only one thing is impossible for God: to find any sense in any copyright law on the planet.” – Mark Twain

“The definition of a consultant: Someone who borrows, your watch, tells you the time and then charges you for the privilege.” - Anonymous

“In the business world an executive knows something about everything, a technician knows everything about something and the switchboard operator knows everything.” – Harold Coffin

“The first rule of business is: Do other men for they would do you.” – Charles Dickens

“He ended the job as he began it; fired with enthusiasm.” – Don O’Shaughnessy

“They usually have two tellers in my local bank, except when it’s very busy, when they have one.” – Rita Rudner

“If you think your boss is stupid remember; you wouldn’t have a job if he was smarter.” Albert Grant

Don’t let the News Depress You! Find More Humor In Your Life.

Tuesday, May 30th, 2006

“Everybody’s always drumming on about the future but I’m not letting it interfere with my laughs.” - John Lennon

You can really get depressed by watching the news. Very seldom do the headlines ever report something positive. Good news seems to be reserved for the fluff pieces, if they have time for it. You can miss two or three days of news, and with the exception of a major tragedy, the news is the same. Someone was shot during a robbery, another person was killed in a car accident, a politician is in trouble and there will always be a major drug bust. The names, addresses and dates may change, but the subjects don’t. When ever a reporter says “the index shows…..” you know the economy is going bad. Even when the economy is going good they are reporting it to go bad soon.

We have created a society of cynical, worrisome, negative thinking people. There have always been complaints that the press doesn’t report enough good news, but the truth is we feed off negativity. Ratings don’t go up when the headline reads “Corporate America did something good for the consumer.” The Nielsen ratings sky rocket when we have a corporate scandal like Enron and what is even better for the networks is when there is government corruption.

It doesn’t matter who is in the White House, Democrat or Republican, the Washington Press Corp. is going to find some sort of scandal, government corruption, or indicators show the president’s popularity is low.

So how do we get away from the negativity? Don’t focus your life around the daily news. Remember we may not be able to control what is on the news or what is happening around the world today, but we can control our own lives. Most of what we see on CNN and FOX News doesn’t really affect our daily lives unless we let it. Try missing the news once in awhile, it will still be there when ever you need to know what is going on in the world.  Find positive things to read about and ADD MORE HUMOR to your life.

Instead of spending that half hour watching your local news switch to a station that has a sitcom running during that time. You will probably digest your dinner better laughing at an episode of “Friends” or “That Seventies Show” rather than looking at death and violence on the news.

Make a point of putting more humor in your life. Watch more comedies, read the comic strip in the paper, look at the humorous forwards from friends and coworkers don’t let the new get you down. Unless you can actually go out and change what is happening on the news don’t get too caught up in it. Laugh more. Turn off the news and sit around with your family sharing humor, playing fun games, or whatever you do to put more laughter in your life.
It is amazing how the news anchor will show all this death and destruction and at the end of thirty straight minutes of it they will smile and say “Have a nice day.”

Have a nice day and don’t take the news too seriously.

Casual Friday - With Jokes Quotes and Anecdotes

Friday, May 19th, 2006

Shopping is better than sex. At least if you’re not satisfied, you can exchange it for something you really like.
– Adrienne Gusoff 

Women marry men hoping they will change.
Men marry women hoping they will not.
So each is inevitably disappointed.
– Albert Einstein 

You know it’s love when you want to keep holding hands even after you’re sweaty.
– Anonymous

The four most important words in any marriage…”I’ll do the dishes.”
– Anonymous

No man is truly married until he understands every word his wife is NOT saying.
– Anonymous 

The trouble with some women is that they get all excited about nothing — and then marry him.
– Cher 
 

I’m always looking for meaningful one night stands.
– Dudley Moore  

Marriage has no guarantees. If that’s what you’re looking for, go live with a car battery.
– Erma Bombeck

It is impossible to love and be wise.

Marriage has no guarantees. If that’s what you’re looking for, go live with a car battery.– Francis BaconMarriage marks the end of many short follies - being one long stupidity.
– Friedrich Nietzsche

Love is a mutual self-giving which ends in self-recovery.
Marriage marks the end of many short follies - being one long stupidity.– Fulton J. SheenMen are from Earth. Women are from Earth. Deal with it.
– George Carlin
Marriage marks the end of many short follies - being one long stupidity.I was married by a judge.
I should have asked for a jury.

Marriage marks the end of many short follies - being one long stupidity.Men are from Earth. Women are from Earth. Deal with it.– Groucho Marx Nobody will ever win the battle of the sexes.
There’s too much fraternizing with the enemy.

– Henry Kissinger

When we got married I told my wife “If you leave me, I’m going with you.
And she never did.
– James Fineous McBride 

It’s been so long since I made love,
I can’t even remember who gets tied up.
– Joan Rivers 
If love is the answer, could you rephrase the question.
– Lily Tomlin
The only people who make love all the time are liars.
– Louis Jordan

The only time a woman really succeeds in changing a man is when he’s a The only people who make love all the time are liars.baby.
– Natalie WoodLove is a grave mental disease.
– PlatoWhenever I date a guy, I think, is this the man that I want my Love is a grave mental disease.
children to spend their weekends with?
– Rita Rudner All marriages are happy. It’s trying to live together afterwards that causes all the problems.
– Shelley Winters

I believe that sex is one of the most beautiful, natural, wholesome things that money can buy.
– Steve Martin

 

 

Casual Friday - With Jokes Quotes and Anecdotes

Friday, May 12th, 2006

Thank you Gloria for submitting these:

For People who think too seriously! 

1. Save The Whales. Collect The Whole Set.
2. A Day Without Sunshine Is Like, Night.
3. On The Other Hand, You Have Different Fingers.
4. I Just Got Lost In Thought. It Was Unfamiliar Territory.
5. 42.7 Percent Of All Statistics Are Made Up On The Spot.
6. 99 Percent Of Lawyers Give The Rest A Bad Name.
7. I Feel Like I’m Diagonally Parked In A Parallel Universe.
8. Honk If You Love Peace And Quiet.
9. Remember, Half The People You Know Are Below Average.
10. He Who Laughs Last Thinks Slowest.
11. Depression Is Merely Anger Without Enthusiasm.
12. The Early Bird May Get The Worm, But The Second Mouse Gets The Cheese.
13. I Drive Way Too Fast To Worry About Cholesterol.
14. Support Bacteria. They’re The Only Culture Some People Have.
15. Monday Is An Awful Way To Spend 1/7 Of Your Week.
16. A Clear Conscience Is Usually The Sign Of A Bad Memory.
17. Change Is Inevitable, Except From Vending Machines.
18. Get A New Car For Your Spouse. It’ll Be A Great Trade!
19. Plan To Be Spontaneous Tomorrow.
20. Always Try To Be Modest, And Be Proud Of It!
21 If You Think Nobody Cares, Try Missing A Couple Of Car Payments.
22. How Many Of You Believe In Psycho-kinesis? Raise My Hand.
23 . Ok, So What’s The Speed Of Dark?
24. How Do You Tell When You’re Out Of Invisible Ink?
25. If Everything Seems To Be Going Well, You Have Obviously Overlooked
Something.
26. When Everything Is Coming Your Way, You’re In The Wrong Lane.
27. Hard Work Pays Off In The Future. Laziness Pays Off Now.
28. Everyone Has A Photographic Memory. Some Just Do Not Have Film.
29. If Barbie Is So Popular, Why Do You Have To Buy Her Friends?
30. How Much Deeper Would The Ocean Be Without Sponges?
31. Eagles May Soar, But Weasels Do Not Get Sucked Into Jet Engines.
32. What Happens If You Get Scared Half To Death Twice?
33. I Used To Have An Open Mind But My Brains Kept Falling Out.
34. I Couldn’t Repair Your Brakes, So I Made Your Horn Louder.
35. Why Do Psychics Have To Ask You For Your Name?
36 Inside Every Older Person Is A Younger Person Wondering ‘what
Happened?’
37. Just Remember - If The World Did Not Suck, We Would All Fall Off.
38. Light Travels Faster Than Sound, Which Is Why Some People Appear
Bright Until You Hear Them Speak.

Humor and Leadership

Monday, May 8th, 2006

“A sense of humor is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done.” Dwight D. Eisenhower

Do you have to have a sense of humor to be a leader? No. Hitler probably didn’t have much of a sense of humor. I doubt Saddam Hussein, Osama Bin Laden, or General Manuel Noriega ever said, “did you hear the one about…” and if they did tell a joke how would you like to be the person that didn’t laugh. What would happen to you? Dictators and terrorist don’t need to use humor to be a leader, they lead by fear. History shows that they may be successful for a short time, but they usually end up deposed or worse.

Most Democratic countries and successful businesses have leaders that not only have a sense of humor, but know how to capitalize on it. At President Ronald Reagans funeral President George H. W. Bush said, “Perhaps as important as anything. I learned a lot about humor, a lot about laughter.” We can all learn about humor in leadership from former President Reagan. Even his detractors acknowledged the effectiveness of his humor. When Reagan was shot, he helped put the whole country at ease when he joked with the surgeon prior to his surgery. “Please assure me that you are all Republicans?” and the surgeon replied, “Mr. President, today the entire country is Republican.” Reagan also joked with Nancy saying, “Honey, I forgot to duck.”

Abraham Lincoln said, “I have always believed that a good laugh was good for both the mental and physical digestion.” And John F. Kennedy was quoted with saying, “There are three things which are real: God, human folly, and laughter. The first two are beyond our comprehension. So we must do what we can about the third.”

So how can having a sense of humor help make one a better leader?

By not taking yourself too seriously people will take you more seriously. Employees tend to not take a manager or boss who is full of him or herself too seriously. If you act too self-important you are going to end up the butt of the joke losing credibility. Others will feel comfortable around you if you display a sense of humor.  Sometimes we become so serious on the job that others don’t want to work with us. Sometimes when we get a title in front of our name or a few letters after our name we become so self important that we create a negative environment. Does this mean you shouldn’t take your job and your responsibilities seriously? NO! Do the best job you can possibly do. But it does mean that you can still have fun while living up to your job and its responsibilities.

Maintaining a sense of humor can also help reduce stress around the office or in an important meeting. Humor and laughter can reduce stress, break the ice and help maintain a sense of calm in order to accomplish what must be done. There are always going to be stressful situations that is part of business, that is part of life, but the ability to find a little humor can help overcome the stress so that you and others can get down to what is really important. Stress can prevent people from being as productive and creative as they need to be in order to reach their goals. Comedian John Cleese said, “If you want creative workers, give them enough time to play.”

Casual Friday - Jokes, Quotes, and Anecdotes.

Friday, April 28th, 2006

“I told my psychiatrist that everyone hates me. He said I was being ridiculous – everyone hasn’t met me yet.” – Rodney Dangerfield
 

“Have you ever noticed? Anybody going slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac.” - George Carlin
 

“First you forget names, then you forget faces. Next you forget to pull your zipper up and finally, you forget to pull it down.” – George Burns
 

“The pen is mightier than the sword, and considerably easier to write with.”  -Marty Feldman
 

“If your parents never had children, chances are you won’t either.” - Dick Cavett
 

“Tragedy is when I cut my finger. Comedy is when you fall into an open sewer and die.” - Mel Brooks
 

“I played a lot of tough clubs in my time. Once a guy in one of those clubs wanted to bet me $10 that I was dead. I was afraid to bet.” - Henny Youngman
 

“You’re about as useful as a one-legged man at an arse kicking contest.” - Rowan Atkinson
 

“I’d much rather be a woman than a man. Women can cry, they can wear cute clothes, and they are the first to be rescued off of sinking ships.”
- Gilda Radner
 

“Bigamy is having one wife too many. Monogamy is the same.”
- Oscar Wilde
 

“He’s too nervous to kill himself. He wears his seat belt in a drive-in movie.”
- Neil Simon
 

“You’re not drunk if you can lie on the floor without holding on.”
- Dean Martin

How to tell a humorous Story

Thursday, April 27th, 2006

The most effective form of humor to use in a speech is the HUMOROUS STORY or ANECDOTE. These forms of humor are easiest to perform because you don’t have to be a comedian to tell a story. You don’t have to tell a joke. You are relating a story that happened to you to make a point, and if it gets a laugh that is an extra benefit.

It is important to remember that the story you are relating to your audience has to pertain to the subject you are speaking about. There is nothing worse than a speaker telling a story that has no connection to the speech. The audience doesn’t want to sit there and hear about the time you …made a fool out of yourself, or what ever it was that you did unless there is a moral to the story. You will lose your audience if you get off the subject.

We all have had humorous experiences that we can use in a presentation. The trick to relaying it to your audience is to sit down and compose the experience just as you would the rest of your speech. Just because you lived the story doesn’t mean you are ready to deliver it. Write it and re-write it so that it has a beginning, middle, and an end and makes a point. You might even compose a punch line for your story to add to the humor. You can even take a little creative license to it as long as the facts are correct in order to make it entertaining. Composing your story helps you focus on how to tell it. I have seen speakers get up and stumble because they couldn’t remember important details that the audience needed to know in order for the story to make any sense. This also helps to get rid of audible pauses such as: Ah’s, you know, right. These words can detract from your overall presentation.

When telling a humorous story don’t ruin it by laughing at your own story. Some speakers remember what is coming and they start laughing in the middle of the story. The audience wasn’t there when the story occurred and they don’t know why you broke out in laughter and they start to lose interest and you start to lose credibility as a speaker.

The best part of telling your own story is that you don’t have to worry about another speaker telling the same story. You lived it. You own the story. Many speakers tell stories that have made the rounds. I have heard many speakers tell the “Starfish Story.”(The starfish story is about a child walking the beech at low tide throwing stranded starfish back in to the water. A man walks up to the child and says, “There are so many star fish you can’t possibly make a difference.” The child picks up another starfish and throws it back in the ocean. The child says, “I made a difference to that one.”) Meeting planners and speakers bureaus don’t want to hire speakers telling the same stories. What would happen if the speaker on the podium before you told the same story? Would you be able to tell a different story?

When funny things happen to you make a point of writing them down. Note all the facts and why it was funny. Sometimes when something funny happens we don’t take note of it right away and then we can’t remember why it was funny. Start thinking about how you can tell the story immediately so that you develop your humor writing skills. This will also help you develop your observational humor skills so that you can start to think funny. The minute you say “Someday we’re going to laugh at this.” Is the minute you should be trying to figure out how to relay it to an audience.

The world is full of funny stories. It is your job as a speaker to recognize the humor and value of the story as it occurs.

For more information on how to use humor in speaking check out Humorspeak.com and its blog Humor Speaking Tips