“How is a sewer like a woman?”

– They both have “manholes”

My informant first heard this joke when at the age of seventeen (circa 1972) he was hanging out with his friend Ernie Murphy and he told my informant the joke.  The joke was told when both were living in New York City, a few years before they went their separate ways.  The informant learned the joke at the house of Ernie Murphy.  The two were playing some video games and my informant told Murphy a joke, so Murphy told my informant the joke.

This joke is a sexual one that is meant to compare a sewer to a woman’s private area.  This joke is not really told until someone reaches the age of 16 or 17 when he or she knows about sex and all that it encompasses.  The joke is told between two men for the sole reason that it would be extremely rude and awkward to make the above comparison.

The reason why this joke is important in my informant’s life is because of one reason: my informant is a CPA and gets really stressed, so a simple joke helps get rid of a little stress that my informant has.  This is why my informant is so jovial.  He has an extremely tough job so in order to live a life without anger, he decides to get rid of stress by telling jokes and laughing at them.  One little joke can go a long way in helping one’s health.

When asked his reaction to the joke, my informant states that he thinks the joke “has gotten old, but I keep telling it because young ‘whipper snappers’ like you have never heard it.”  It is very interesting to note the situation in which the joke was told.  My informant and I were on the couch, so he was relaxed which truly shows that jokes help my informant ease some stress.

My first reaction to this joke was laughing because I believe the joke is really funny.  Being 19 years old, I am old enough to understand the sexual jokes and I know that this isn’t the way you talk about a woman; however, this doesn’t take away from the fact that the joke is very funny.

“A Chinese guy, a white guy, and an Italian guy all get a job in a coal mine. The boss comes out and says,” I am going to be leaving for a few hours.  Before I get back, I need some lanterns, shovels, and supplies.  Chinese man, I want you to take care of the supplies.  White man, I want you to take care of the lanterns, and Italian man, I want you to take care of the shovels.”  Two hours later, the boss returns and awaiting him are two men: The American and the Italian. The boss asks where the Chinese man is and the two have no idea.  After 10 minutes of searching for the Chinese man, a man jumps out from behind the cave and yells “Supplies!”

My informant first heard this joke from a fraternity brother when in college at the University of Southern California.  The fraternity brother, Jimmy Houseberg, told my informant the joke one night at the Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity house.  This is a joke that Jimmy heard from his friend Sam.  Therefore, this is a joke that has been passed down from a few generations.

This joke is a racist one that is meant to make of the way Asians talk.  There is a tendency of Asians who come to America to confuse their L’s and R’s.  Therefore, this joke makes sense because supplies really means surprise.  This joke is not really told until someone reaches the age of 15 when he or she knows about racism and how the joke is something that is done in jest.  The joke is told between two Americans for the sole reason that it would be extremely racist to say the joke to an Asian.

The reason why this joke is important in my informant’s life is because of one reason: my informant is a CPA and gets really stressed, so a simple joke helps get rid of a little stress that my informant has.  This is why my informant is so jovial.  He has an extremely tough job so in order to live a life without anger, he decides to get rid of stress by telling jokes and laughing at them.  One little joke can go a long way in helping one’s health.

When asked his reaction to the joke, my informant states that he thinks the joke “is hysterical and after 25 years, I still laugh at it.”  It is very interesting to note the situation in which the joke was told.  My informant and I were on the couch, so he was relaxed which truly shows that jokes help my informant ease some stress.  One final note to make is that my informant tells this joke over four times a year, and every time he tells it, he starts laughing hysterically for over three minutes.

In conclusion, this is a joke that I find absolutely hysterical.  My father told it to me approximately five years ago, and he tells it every single year when he is in the mood to tell the joke.  Even though I have heard the joke so many times, I still find the joke really funny.  I do know it is racist, but then again, it is one of the funniest jokes I have ever heard.

Annotation:  This “Supplies Joke” was found at

http://www.nearlygood.com/joke/chinesesupplies.html

“With a couple celebrating their 50th anniversary at the synagogues marriage marathon, the Rabbi asked Moshe to take a few minutes and share some insight into how he managed to live with the same woman all these years.   Moshe replied to the congregation, “Well, I treated her with respect, spent money on her, but mostly I took her traveling on special occasions.”  The Rabbi inquired…… trips to where? “For our 25th anniversary, I took her to Beijing, China.”
The Rabbi then said, “What a terrific example you are to all husbands Moshe. Please tell the audience what you’re going to do for your wife on your 50th anniversary? “Moshe replies: “I’m going to go back and get her.”

My informant first heard this joke from a close friend, Fred Litzky, on Valentine’s Day.  Fred sent the joke to my informant as a Happy Valentine’s Day joke.  The interesting thing about this joke is that it was sent to my informant on Valentine’s Day, and the joke’s topic is love between a couple.  Ironically, there isn’t much love between the couple in this joke.  A side note to add is that Fred always sends my informant jokes, usually about three a week.

This joke is making fun of how hard a happy marriage is to find in today’s world.  The only happy marriage consists of a husband and wife being separated from each other for 25 years, according to this joke.  My view on this joke is that it is very funny, because as a man I have found that a good woman is so hard to find and this joke properly portrays the difficult of maintaining a strong relationship.

The reason why this joke is important in my informant’s life is because of one reason: my informant is a CPA and gets really stressed, so a simple joke helps get rid of a little stress that my informant has.  This is why my informant is so jovial.  He has an extremely tough job so in order to live a life without anger, he decides to get rid of stress by telling jokes and laughing at them.  One little joke can go a long way in helping one’s health.

When asked his reaction to the joke, my informant states that he thinks the joke “is really funny because as a married man for 26 years I know how hard it is to maintain a strong relationship.  This joke is perfect for Valentine’s Day.”

When I first heard this joke I didn’t really understand it because I was eating dinner and wasn’t really paying attention to my informant.  After telling the joke again, I finally understood it and laughed because it is funny to make fun of how hard it is to obtain a long marriage.