"Nature's way of telling you" (1917) (etc.)

[Jonathan Lighter]

Your sense of humor must be as prescribed by us liberal white guys. Well, duh!

JL

Wilson Gray <wilson.gray at RCN.COM> wrote:
---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
Sender: American Dialect Society
Poster: Wilson Gray
Subject: Re: "Nature's way of telling you" (1917) (etc.)
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I can top that one. This is from a men's-room wall at Washington
University in Saint Louis:

Please join us in the struggle to stamp out racism!
Take a nigger home with you for dinner.

(Yes, I'm black. But does that mean that I can't have a sense of humor?)

-Wilson Gray

On Jan 28, 2005, at 12:59 PM, Ed Keer wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender: American Dialect Society
> Poster: Ed Keer
> Subject: Re: "Nature's way of telling you" (1917) (etc.)
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------
> --------
>
> My fave, from the men's room of Dirty Frank's at 13th
> & Pine in Philly ca. 1987:
>
> Free Soviet jews!
> And get valuable coupons too!
>
> Ed
>
>
> --- Jonathan Lighter wrote:
>
>> So it was just a joke? That's a relief.
>>
>> I saw it in the singular because it was written at
>> exactly eye-level on the reverse of a stall door in
>> an university men's room.
>>
>> Similarly: in 1970, I think, Venice suffered a
>> devastating flood. (Yeah, I know; get over it.) The
>> museum was badly affected, a number of priceless
>> paintings were ruined or seriously damaged, and an
>> urgent effort was being made try to restore what
>> paintings could be saved.
>>
>> Meanwhile, in the New World, graffiti was building
>> up inside a completely different university's
>> lavatories. It was the usual stupid, goofy,
>> unpleasant collection of misspelled curses, alleged
>> phone numbers, contextless words, assignation notes,
>> and crude sexual drawings. Then, one night, while
>> Venice was still prominent on the evening news, a
>> janitorial crew showed up and repainted all the
>> men's rooms.
>>
>> Within 24 hours, again at eye level, I read the tiny
>> words - the only ones on a now pristine surface -
>> "Restore NYU's Graffiti Treasures!"
>>
>> And I've never forgotten.
>>
>> JL
>>
>> JL
>>
>>
>> "Mark A. Mandel" wrote:
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail
>> header -----------------------
>> Sender: American Dialect Society
>> Poster: "Mark A. Mandel"
>> Subject: Re: "Nature's way of telling you" (1917)
>> (etc.)
>>
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------
> --------
>>
>> Jonathan Lighter sez:
>>>>>
>> A personal favorite from ca1975: "We Are Laughing At
>> You, Earthman."
>> <<<
>>
>> I remember it in the plural, "Earthmen", which makes
>> more sense to me as a
>> graffito. A h.s. buddy of mine used to use it a
>> lot... though I can't be
>> sure he was using it in h.s. (we were class of '65
>> but stayed close for many
>> years after).
>>
>> -- Mark M.
>>
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