Cultural Humor

Whether you are from the South, the Northeast, the Southwest, the Northwest or the Midwest, you have your own flavor of humor. Whether you are male or female you have a particular take on humor. If you are a construction worker, truck driver or window washer, what your group finds funny will differ from what dentists, counselors or doctors find funny in their group. 

Every group, organization, and profession has their own culture when it comes to humor. When we find we are the minority, the odd ball, or stranger in that group, it’s likely we might not get the joke. Instead, we might feel out of place, awkward or ill at ease. But let’s not take it personally.

My husband works construction and many times I’ve gone onto his job site to see the transformation taking place as a new home is being built.

Along with the carpenters, there are plumbers, electricians, and masons on site as well. His jobs are often a buzz of busyness. 

Stepping into that territory I am the minority; the only female and a non-trade’s man.  On his job site I’m a foreigner who does not understand the lingo or the punch line.  

Only after I am alone with my husband will I ask, “What did it mean when so and so said such and such?”

My husband, being the kind of man he is, will smile and explain the joke or phrase without making me feel inferior. This then gives me insight into that foreign world of those men who are not so foreign to my husband. 

As an exercise and yoga instructor, my fellow exercise and yoga instructors and I have our common ground when it comes to our lingo and what we find to be funny. My husband would be the odd man out if he ever came onto my “job site.”

And I have my doubts he’d ask, “What did so and so mean when she said such and such?” He’s just not as curious about cultural humor as I am. And I don’t take that personally. 

Why Bother?

Why bother being aware of cultural humor? Every pocket of people on this planet has their own language and lingo when it comes to humor. Let’s appreciate each other’s distinctness and be curious. But, let’s not be offended.