It Wasn't Always that Way...

Way back, I was told that one of the reasons I was hired for my teaching position teaching English at PAHS (Plymouth AREA High School) was because I was... well, different (I am).

I came from a different place (The Flatlands outside of Boston) than many of the other teachers, I went to different schools (again Emerson College in Boston), I had a host of different experiences, and I had a strong sense of character and morals. It wasn't always that way.

True confession time. One of the first paperbacks I ever bought was called "The Best of Sick Jokes" (and they certainly were - absolutely inappropriate today). The book first came out in 1958, but I am guessing I was probably 14 or 15 when I got my copy a few years later, and the sicker the joke the better (at least so we thought then [it's a boy thing]). I would tell adults a shocking joke or two, and they would glare disapprovingly, but I could see them stifling a smile. Yeah, I was naughty! 

I maintained that penchant and became known for my offbeat sense of humor, but as my high school years unfolded and college neared, I discovered romantic comedies at the movies. Because growing young people are constantly trying on different faces to find one that fits, the new male image I began to emulate was that of a wise-cracking, suave, sophisticated gentleman (Cary Grant and Rock Hudson in particular with a sprinkling of James Garner, Jack Lemmon, James Coburn, and even Frank Sinatra mixed in). Audrey Hepburn and Doris Day [and a host of others] were often their quarry. Both personas carried me through my college years.

Everything changed when I began my teaching career. I learned quickly that almost any straying off the conservative path had consequences. For over thirty years, I had to watch what I said. Probably once or twice a year, I'd mutter something in jest only to realize as soon I said, whatever it was, I had messed up. I prayed for no phone calls from home or summons to the principal's office. Overall, I lucked out.

Today, even though I have been out of the classroom for over a decade, I still watch what I say. I come across as a prig (prig - look it up). My few close friends know the real me, but for the most part to most people, I seem pretty boring. When I meet someone shopping, it's "Hey, how are you doing? What are you up to?, etc, and then we move on with me often wondering, "Who was that?"

Anyhow, I found out  suffer from Witzelsucht , which consists of excessive facetiousness and inappropriate or pointless humor - someone who jokes at inappropriate times and places. I have controlled it so few people have seen it (apologies to those who have). I will hear a 'trigger word,' and a joke emerges. My poor wife and daughter have heard the same jokes too many times. It's kind of like when Moe Howard or Lou Costello hears the words, "Niagara Falls."

Forewarned is forearmed. Make sure you offer no trigger words.