David Vienna's Blog, page 234
May 21, 2015
Dad, Jokes
I am mostly pretty chill when it comes to how marketers and advertisers depict fathers. There are a lot of “Dad-Bloggers” (ugh, is that what I am?) who are borderline Men’s Rights Activists when it comes to this topic. “DON’T CALL ME MR MOM!” they shout as they clutch their camo-patterned diaper bags.
But there is one aspect that of society’s depiction of dads that really gets me all worked up. Here’s the first three lines of an email from a social media something-or-other that I just deleted.
Fathers. They’ve all embarrassed us one time or another with their “funny” jokes or their amusing sense of style, but we love them just as they are. With Father’s Day around the corner…
Society has coined a new term recently: Dad Jokes. Now originally Dad Jokes followed a specific pattern where the dad torments the child by not giving the child what he wants. Example:
Child: I’m hungry.
Dad: Hi Hungry. I’m Dad.
That’s the most classic example. The important element isn’t that the Dad made a bad joke, it’s that he made a bad joke at the expense of meeting the child’s needs. This is actually very similar to the school teacher’s “I don’t know, CAN you go to the bathroom?” Perhaps Dad Jokes are really just Teacher Jokes.
But now people are referring to ANY bad jokes as Dad Jokes. But bad jokes have always existed and are told by virtually everyone. You go to an open mic at a comedy club, and you’re going to hear a lot of bad material. But no one says, “Man, there were a lot of Dad Jokes in there tonight.”
So, bad jokes are not Dad Jokes. OK? Settled? Moving on.
On top of that, the common consensus is that “Dads aren’t funny.” But this is a ridiculous statement. The truth is PEOPLE aren’t funny. There are so many unfunny people in this world. Some of them are dads. But you know what? A lot of dads are funny.
My dad is hilarious. David Vienna of thedaddycomplex is hilarious. Charlie Capen and Andy Herald of how2beadad are hilarious. There are funny dads everywhere.
Look, you can joke around and say that I’m clueless around the house and Mom is the one really running the household and I’m really just a third kid for her to take care of and I’m just a big dummy man-child who couldn’t handle a grocery list if my life depended on it. And I’d laugh along with you and shrug it off because you’re only slightly wrong.
But don’t come around here talking about how dads embarrass their kids with their Dad Jokes. My kids get nothing but grade-A comedy in this house.
(drops mic)
(gets stern look from wife)
(picks up mic and puts it away neatly)
You’re right, improvisingfatherhood. I am hilarious.
In this new episode of Discussing News With My Kids, Obama calls...
In this new episode of Discussing News With My Kids, Obama calls climate change a national security issue, L.A. votes to raise the minimum wage, and David Letterman retires after 33 years on TV. Plus:
Smoke Detectors!Ice Cream!
Owls!
May 19, 2015
At dinner last night, Wyatt started making up words to the Star...
At dinner last night, Wyatt started making up words to the Star Wars main theme.
My wife and I started cracking up and she almost corrected him by singing the Nick Winters version from SNL. But, I stopped her. It was too magical.
May 17, 2015
I was a guest on The Dad Podcast. We drank some bourbon and...
I was a guest on The Dad Podcast. We drank some bourbon and talked about everything from my book to baked turds. Despite what you think, the two topics were not related. Listen here or on iTunes.
May 16, 2015
Not sure which of my boys created this little guy and his sweet...
Not sure which of my boys created this little guy and his sweet ride.
The Funniest Tweets From Parents This Week
I’m on this list with how2beadad and a bunch of other rad parents.
It’s like a terrorist watch-list, but funnier.
May 15, 2015
I’ll be on The Dad Podcast tonight to discuss Calm The F*ck Down. And probably farts and stuff.From...
I’ll be on The Dad Podcast tonight to discuss Calm The F*ck Down. And probably farts and stuff.
From what I understand, you can listen live or download it tomorrow Sunday. (I could be wrong about the “listen live” part. I’m not sure… I don’t know what I’m doing most of the time.)
May 13, 2015
CRY IT FROM THE MOUNTAINTOPS! A NEW EPISODE!The House is about...
CRY IT FROM THE MOUNTAINTOPS! A NEW EPISODE!
The House is about to weigh in on the NSA’s phone recording policy, the SEC delivers a blow to a major for-profit college, and there may be life on one of Jupiter’s moons. Get some!
May 12, 2015
We’ve got an all-new Discussing News With My Kids coming your...
We’ve got an all-new Discussing News With My Kids coming your way (hopefully tomorrow).
In the meantime, catch the latest one to learn all the things you need to know about stuff and things.
May 11, 2015
A.M. Conversation
Me: Let's just finish breakfast and see where the day takes us.
