All Comments on 'The Joke'

I have a friend who is black and has his own computer company doing quite well, and he's the lead technician. Go back to your racist closet asshole! Anyway using dildoes to put in various holes is considered sex, stupid bitch. Another brain dead wife with completely no sense of humour. Only a retard would think that was funny. Allforall you write very well With high regards, Luis

I guess you can't teach an old dog (or husband) new tricks.

Boyd

I liked the story but wanted more. Thanks for your time.

the irony about this story is this: it actually had a rather good little premise and it had good potential, til the very end,,,, that it COULD HAVE WORKED; the author didn't think it thoroughly enough, so the story broke apart towards the very end. but it wasn't until the very end that the story actually sunk.

when the sister said, "Okay, your story --- as well as the tape itself --- is so STUPID, I have to believe you: that it actually happened ast you said, and not as it APPEARED on tape and that you guys used foreign objects on or inside you, rather than George, Jamal, and Snoop-Dog's real dicks.

"Gosh, sister, to think you spent all that time, effort, money to set up such elaborate setting, just to get what you call a sense of humor from your husband?, a great guy who just doesn't laugh at all of your jokes? You gotta be out of your mind,,,, or you are really crazy and don't deserve him,,, but you're my sister and I know you better,,,"

the reason I said the story actually had potential were lines/thoughts like that.

but it turned out, towards the very end, that it was NANCY who neither sense of humor, nor wit, nor maturity, or intelligence.

but, really, it's not "Nancy," the character's fault; it is clearly the AUTHOR's "fault" for starting off with potentials --- of at least having the story being a potentially FUNNY STORY --- and ending up being too serious and then seriously FLAWED, by having Nancy quickly becoming impossibly and unnecessarily dumb!! lol

for example, if "Nancy" were to have said something complementary to what her to-be-ex-husband said, and said: "Sorry, honey, you're absolutely corret. The waht-ever-effort-it-took attempt to fool you, with the exaggerated and elaborate taping, making it so real it fooled everyone, including my own very eyes, though I KNOW we did not actually do it,,,, it's been a terribly bad and uncalled for attempt at lightening you up, to get some sense of humor into and out of you. I disgusted myself for having spent all that time, with those three co-workers, trying to come up with a tape so possibly unwittingly damaging to all of us involved,,,

"we're so involved in trying to fool you, we actually fooled ourselves, not realizing, for example, that the tape could hold only 20 minutes but our act went on for some 23 minutes; obviously you didn't get to see the last 3 minutes, not captured, which explained all this fiasco; but you must know, it's just a lame, no-brain attempt at humor; it LOOKED sick, yes.

"Now I know you do have humor, even if they're dry; but I also wanted you to laugh at some of the things I laught about, too, because I love you and I know you love me,,,

"I truly am sorry over the whole fiasco; we got caught up with the whole elaboration of the taping, the supposed joke, and didn't spend enough time thinking how it might affect you or any other person who might see it. Please, forgive me."

that and other funny lines would have made the short story really funny, serious, and intelligent at the same time!

Otherwise, why have the sister track him down, have him call and then tell him if he did not intend to go on and change and BECOME funny and have the kind of sense of humor she thought he ought to be having, like her co-workers, for example, that they should go ahead and divorce?

and, due to her over-the-top stunt, by NOW, she's JOBLESS, too, don't forget!

Why not just have your character, Nancy, say: "Okay, that humorless dickhead, if he doesn't believe me and rather thumbs through the bible and pray for 5 hours before falling asleep, I'm better off without him anyway,,"?, that is, if she really DID NOT LIKE, much less love, him?

Why have her being "sad" and "depressed" after the divorce, which she wanted? after all, she said she would not stay with a man who didn't have a sense of humor like she wanted him to have and who was not going to get that kind of sense of humor, right?

Point is: The AUTHOR made the husband self-aware. For example, to the "audience," he said:

"I don't have any sense of humor; the only one lacking it, at Genius Computer Inc. I was the first White person they hired." That showed SELF-AWARENESS, that showed HE HAD a keen sense of humor, even if "dry." That portrayal of the guy came across well,,,

It's the portrayal of Nancy having a sense of humor that did not pan out well,,, But the IRONY is, the story is supposed to evolved around HUMOR, however dark it is, indeed, even if it (or the lack of it) does get you in trouble!

very predictable...

Hubby is a wimp

what did the wife suffer or the co-workers? loss of job?

Big fucking deal... I would of spread the tape all around town to her friends and her family

The story was original, though the possible thoughts and actions were not fleshed out well.

What left me feeling at sea was the epilogue. In the body of the story you never mentioned that the husband was unhappy or churlish or what ever, just that he didn't find the jokes funny. Then in the epilogue you say he had changed and was sunny and had a positive attitude. How was this different from the way the man was before the "joke?"

It doesn't take a great sense of humor, or a humor akin to those around you to be sunny and cheerful.

Reading this story, it felt like like I was looking at a neat idea that made it to paper. In it's basic plot it was a lot of fun. It could have used more characterization, a more developed ending, etc. Still it struck me as interesting and different. Keep it up.

I enjoyed reading it, but what kind of lunatic does what Nancy did?

Even if the sex was faked, there's still a tape of her getting naked and simulating sex with three of her co-workers. How could any sane woman imagine that her husband would find that funny, or in any way acceptable?

So--quite hard to believe, but an entertaining tale!

ohio

ok, so it wasnt written well, but i like this story better than the other LW story(5th place).

the paced nicely, and it did ask the proper question and the wife have answered what she really thought about it.

good job.

person and it was a computer company that all of the employees were asian. I have yet to see a computer where all the employees are black, or at least one that was worth anything. Should have been puit in interracial.

The important lesson of this tale is that "practical" jokes are often very damaging to people. "Practical" jokers, in my opinion, commonly are not very kind or considerate of others. They want to do something that is funny for them, but not for the person they are playing the trick on. The same thing can be said of barbed humor: it is usually not humorous to those against whom it is directed. I suppose you'll get some negative feedback, accusing you of not having a sense of humor, but I strongly support your thesis in this tale. Thanks.