Missed-point dept.

Jonathan Lighter wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM
Sun Jun 19 19:59:37 UTC 2011


Actual dialogue between deeply-middle-aged academic and twelve-year-old
granddaughter:

G: Why do they call coffee "Joe"?

A: I dunno. Maybe it originally referred to "Old Black Joe."

G: Who's that?

A: It's the title of an old-time song.

G [with great contempt]: That's racist!

A: Why is it racist?

G [triumphantly]: Why isn't it "Old *White* Joe"?

A. You mean it's racist to be black?

G. No. But it's racist to say somebody else is.

BONUS BALONUS:

Said granddaughter belongs to a little girls' softball team.  When they
plays softball, they "have" or "go to" "league."  The phrase "play softball"
is infrequently used.

The little girls wear numbered jerseys with their personal nicknames on the
back. They have names like Big Foot, Time X [sic], and Boarina. In the
dugout, they chant, "Ya gotta *want* it/ To *win* it,/ And we *want it
all*!!!"

They keep up the chant till all nonparental onlookers go crazy or the half
inning ends. Then the other team picks it up. There are similarly themed
variants.

JL

--
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

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