Author Archives: JudyTsai

Shell Station Joke

Q: Where did the turtle go to get gas?

A: At the Shell station!

My inormant learned this joke from a joke book that she got when she was in elementary school. As a child, she loved reading joke books and remembering jokes. Because she enjoyed being humorous, she would tell her newly learned jokes to her friends to see if they thought the jokes were funny or not.
On the way to dinner one night, she and her friends passed a Shell station. Using this perfect opportunity to say her joke, my informant recited the joke. After a long pause of everyone in the car looking at her, she burst out laughing to end the awkward silence. Even though this joke isn’t very funny, she tells it when there’s nothing else to talk about or when she’s bored.
My informant does not actually think the joke is funny. She actually believes that this is the stupidest joke ever. She only thinks it’s funny because of how lame it is. It’s just one of those jokes that is easily remembered to tell in any situation.
If someone were to tell me this joke, I would laugh only because I think it is lame. This joke is definitely not one of the funnier ones that people enjoy hearing. I agree with her, this joke one of those jokes that people tell when they’re bored. It’s also a great ice breaker when there’s an awkward silence or when people just meet each other. This turtle joke shows how jokes are necessary in our society. Jokes provide people with something that they can all relate to. Jokes give people an opportunity to all agree on the humor or lack of humor of the joke. They’re great topic starters and offer people a chance to see what kinds of people they’re with.

“Don’t whistle at night.”

Ever since I can remember, my mom has been telling my entire family to never whistle at night. She claims that whistling will call the ghosts forth. Whistling allows ghosts and bad spirits to follow the whistler. Anytime she hears someone whistling in the house, she’ll immediately urge the person to stop.
When I asked my mom where and when she learned the item, she said that it’s a Chinese superstition that she learned from her parents when she was young. She spent her childhood in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. As a child, my mom read about many ghost stories and became very superstitious. There are many ghost stories in Taiwan with unexplained occurrences. My mom has become a big believer in ghosts and thinks that ghosts do exist, so the fact that whistling may bring forth ghosts worries her. She definitely believes in this superstition because of her belief in ghosts. Since she believes that ghosts do exist, whistling at night can definitely have an impact with calling ghosts.
With this superstition, I’m not quite sure if I actually do believe in it or not. Because living with my mom influences some of my beliefs, I have started to believe that ghosts exist. Real life stories that my mom has heard from other people have made me aware that there are spirits on earth. The fact that whistling at night can beckon ghosts is probable. If ghosts exist, I think maybe whistling at night can call ghosts, but I don’t see why they would respond to whistling. Also, I think that ghosts would appear and follow people associated with their unresolved problems.

The Legend of Jirayr Zorthian’s House

“Jirayr Zorthian was an artist who lived on a ranch in Altadena, California in the 1940’s until the time of his death. Apparently, he moved there to protect his kids. He built his house in a way so that no cars could get within a certain radius of his kids outside his house. One day, Zorthian backed out and ran over one of his kids. Now, his ranch has become a popular spot for teens that are looking for adventure. It’s a creepy place to go to at night because it’s deserted and there are cults. A lot of beware of kids signs are located around the property.”

My informant heard this story from his friend Taylor a couple years ago. Since he lives near Altadena, he knows teenagers who drive up to the ranch in search of encountering the supernatural. Going to the Zorthian ranch as a midnight adventure is most likely a local fascination.
He actually does not know much about it. He only knows what Taylor told him. This may explain why people believe that the ranch is haunted. The fact that the ranch is deserted and ancient-looking may be reason enough to spread that the property is haunted. He doesn’t think about what may have happened with Zorthian’s car accident because he isn’t interested in ghost stories. He thinks that the incident could be true, but he doesn’t think that it necessarily mean that the ranch is haunted.
I have been to the Zorthian ranch before because I was a teenager looking for adventure on one uneventful summer night. I had heard that the ranch was a creepy place to go to at night, but I had never heard of the story behind it. When I arrived at the ranch, I noticed many warning signs on the fences surrounding the property. I looked out the car window and saw an extremely narrow driveway, and I couldn’t tell where it led up to because of the darkness. My friends didn’t want to drive through the driveway, so we ended up leaving. Later that night, I looked up the history of the ranch online. All I could find was that Jirayr Zorthian was an artist that once lived there. There were no speculations about the ranch being haunted. I think that the rumor that the ranch was haunted was just created by a bored teenager who was scared of the deserted ranch.

SourceURL:file://localhost/Volumes/HP%20V125W/SP%2007%20FL&PC%20COLLECTS/Tsai/Zorthian%20(Joey).doc

My informant heard this story from his friend Taylor a couple years ago. Since Joey lives near Altadena, he knows teenagers who drive up to the ranch in search of encountering the supernatural. Going to the Zorthian ranch as a midnight adventure is most likely a local fascination.

Joey actually does not know much about it. He only knows what Taylor told him. This may explain why people believe that the ranch is haunted. The fact that the ranch is deserted and ancient-looking may be reason enough to spread that the property is haunted. Joey doesn’t think about what may have happened with Zorthian’s car accident because he isn’t interested in ghost stories. He thinks that the incident could be true, but he doesn’t think that it necessarily mean that the ranch is haunted.

Judy Tsai, 19

615 W. 36^th St., TRO #266

Los Angeles, CA 90007

I have been to the Zorthian ranch before because I was a teenager looking for adventure on one uneventful summer night. I had heard that the ranch was a creepy place to go to at night, but I had never heard of the story behind it. When I arrived at the ranch, I noticed many warning signs on the fences surrounding the property. I looked out the car window and saw an extremely narrow driveway, and I couldn’t tell where it led up to because of the darkness. My friends didn’t want to drive through the driveway, so we ended up leaving. Later that night, I looked up the history of the ranch online. All I could find was that Jirayr Zorthian was an artist that once lived there. There were no speculations about the ranch being haunted. I think that the rumor that the ranch was haunted was just created by a bored teenager who was scared of the deserted