When I was growing up in Poland, my mother -- whose "funny bone" was at
least as sharp as mine -- used to tell me a lot of Jewish jokes. She
always said they "lost something" in translatiaon, but they were funny
even in Polish. One of the favourites went like this:
=============
"A young man and a middle aged one find themselves in the same
compartment on a train. They talk a little, and discover that their
destination is the same small town in central Poland.
At one point, the younger man asks: "what time is it?" The older man
does not respond, and remains silent and uncommunicative for the rest
of their trip. But, as they near their destination and start reaching
for their luggage, he explains his silence:
You see... If I'd told you what time it was, we would continue our
conversation, perhaps even get friendly. Since both of us are getting
off at the same station, it would have been natural for me to invite
you to come and visit my home for lunch or dinner one day. If you came,
you'd have seen my daughter. It is inevitable that you'd have fallen in
love with her; she's both beautiful and wise. You are handsome and
intelligent yourself, so it's likely she'd have fallen in love with you
too. She'd nag and nag me to let her marry you, and I would, because
she's my only child and I can refuse her nothing.
But, her happiness is my first concern... I'm a rich man, and she's
never known want so far... I do not think I want her to marry a man who
can't even afford a watch."
=================
The following joke comes, appropriately, from Israel :) It came to me
in Polish, so, I suppose, it will have "lost something" in translation
*twice*....
From: L.T.
I'm travelling on a bus, which is somewhat crowded, but not too much --
I do have a seat. I need to get my ticket clipped, so the best thing to
do is pass it on, then have it passed back.
A man is standing next to me. How should I address him? In plural, or
singular "you"? Or something more formal? (T's comment: Anglosaxons
really miss on that one... <g>) I review the situation:
It's an "express" bus; if the man had not left it at the previous stop,
it means he's going to the last stop -- the same as mine... He's
travelling with a bouquet of flowers -- obviously, he's visiting a
woman.... The flowers are beautiful -- obviously, the woman he's
visiting must be beautiful also... In that part of the city, there are
only two beautiful women: my wife, and my lover -- obviously, he's not
visiting my lover, since that's where *I* am going, by
pre-arrangement...
That means he's going to visit my wife... My wife has two lovers --
Waldemar X and Peter Y... Waldemar is out of the country, on a business
trip...
I say: "Mr Peter, would you help me get the ticket clipped?"
--
Tamara P Duvall http://t-n-lace.net/
Lexington, Virginia, USA (Formerly of Warsaw, Poland)
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