Thursday, March 29, 2012

The Joke That Slipped Away



Your material can be great, your timing can be spot on, but if you don't have the audience,
ya got nothin'.


Ten years ago...

It was afternoon rush hour in early fall.  I was crossing New York City's 5th Avenue at 42nd Street.  In the middle of 5th Avenue, I swear to you, I slipped and skidded, almost landing flat on my rump.  I jerked up, looked back and what did I see?


A banana peel.









I actually slipped on a banana peel.  I lived the perfect joke!  Who gets these kinds of moments?

Problem was, everyone around me was too busy to acknowledge it.

I held my arms out, imploring to the rushing masses.

"Come on, really?  No one saw that?" I turned around, trying to find a pair of eyes to meet mine. "NO ONE is gonna laugh at that?"

No one would even look at me, let alone crack a smile. The intersection of 42nd and 5th had never seemed so quiet.

What's a girl to do?

I stood alone in the middle of the street, threw my head back and laughed.  I laughed like a hard summer storm. Life gave me a banana peel and by God, I was going to appreciate it.

It sure would have been nice to share the moment, but my audience of one sufficed. Sometimes there are moments that you must embrace for yourself, by yourself.  The material was great, the timing was spot on, and I was all I needed.

I laughed heartily... but quickly. Let's remember, the traffic lights aren't timed for comedy, and those cabs, they'll smack a girl.



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