# Things that make you go lol **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 3, 2019, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959 "2019-11-03T18:03:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/1 "2019-11-03T18:03:07Z")
I’m taking a stand-up class at Second City Chicago. Turns out it’s mostly about writing. One exercise was coming up with topics we thought had potential to be humorous. Not jokes, just topics. I’d love to get some ideas from people of some such topics. Note: this is not a homework assignment. I’m just looking for writing prompts that may be outside of my own thinking. And of course if I do use any of them in a set I will acknowledge this. I might do a whole set about things that other people think are funny. Any thoughts? ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/2 "2019-11-03T21:25:29Z")
Um, got a lot of ideas. Not going to share. This is really helping someone do their homework. Something as an ex-prof I am not a fan of. If you can’t come up with your own ideas, you need to rethink things here. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/3 "2019-11-03T21:29:36Z")
Every topic has the _potential_ to be funny. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/4 "2019-11-03T21:46:32Z")
Isn’t the entire premise of “Seinfeld” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm” based on the idea of finding something funny & absurd in the common and mundane events? ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/5 "2019-11-03T21:47:24Z")
Bad person to ask; I still love basic slapstick. But I would say almost anything newsworthy from sports to politics is potential material. Look how a bus falling in a sinkhole here in Pittsburgh went viral with comedians across the country. ---
**Author:** ![Personal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Personal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Personal)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/6 "2019-11-03T22:02:30Z")
Go to a list of threads, especially those under the new posts tab. You’ll find a dozen right off. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/7 "2019-11-03T22:02:43Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Um, got a lot of ideas. Not going to share. This is really helping someone do their homework. Something as an ex-prof I am not a fan of. > > If you can’t come up with your own ideas, you need to rethink things here. As I said in the OP, this is not a homework assignment. Sent from my LG-M150 using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Gay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@Enola\_Gay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Gay)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/8 "2019-11-03T23:13:55Z")
Operation Varsity Blues House guests Men in skinny jeans Celebrities and sex tapes Online Dating The Democratic Party The Republican Party The Royal Family The Religious Right PETA Anthony Weiner ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/9 "2019-11-03T23:24:36Z")
> [@Enola\_Gay](#): > > Operation Varsity Blues > > House guests > > Men in skinny jeans > > Celebrities and sex tapes > > Online Dating > > The Democratic Party > > The Republican Party > > The Royal Family > > The Religious Right > > PETA > > Anthony Weiner Exactly the kind of prompts I was looking for! ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/10 "2019-11-03T23:27:59Z")
Things with ironic names. The oldest bridge in Paris is called the _Pont-Neuf_ (“new bridge”). The largest sized flash media format is the Compact Flash card. The slowest tool material for machining metal is called High Speed Steel. There’s got to be lots more. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2019, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/11 "2019-11-03T23:33:10Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > Things with ironic names. The oldest bridge in Paris is called the _Pont-Neuf_ (“new bridge”). The largest sized flash media format is the Compact Flash card. The slowest tool material for machining metal is called High Speed Steel. There’s got to be lots more. Lol–Starbucks size designations. But isn’t Neuf French for 9? Nouvelle is new I think. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Gay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@Enola\_Gay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Gay)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2019, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/12 "2019-11-04T00:30:22Z")
Flat Earthers and GPS Auto-correct Job interviews Fad Diets Getting Old Uncomfortable silences ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2019, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/13 "2019-11-04T00:57:22Z")
Posting on message boards. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2019, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/14 "2019-11-04T02:11:57Z")
Translating “You do you” as a slightly less direct way of saying “Go fuck yourself” while watching people talk. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2019, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/15 "2019-11-04T02:25:43Z")
Awesome stuff guys Sent from my LG-M150 using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2019, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/16 "2019-11-04T02:40:12Z")
Don’t forget the old Mel brooks quote: “If I got a paper cut, that’s a tragedy. If you fell down an open manhole and died, that’s comedy.” ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2019, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/17 "2019-11-04T05:55:49Z")
George Carlin had a bit which started with him saying: “anything that we all do, but don’t talk about, is funny”. (He then went on to describe pissing.) I think you could use the concept for anything else which we all do. Break it down to a million tiny steps and describe each one and how you decided to do it. off the top of my head: –Taking a shower( which part of the body, in which order. Oops–you left the shampoo on the sink, now you have to decide is it worth opening the shower curtain and stepping out to get the shampoo,(spraying water all over the floor) or do you turn the water off, dry off and then start all over. –laying in bed half awake 10 minutes before the alarm rings,and debating with yourself is it worth getting up now, or should you wait for 600 seconds. What will I gain with all those extra seconds?Will the dog just shut up and stop yapping already? Will I get to work early and my boss give me a raise? Will I enjoy extra time to take a good dump? Properly delivered, there could be some humor there. Poorly delivered, it will be boring as hell. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2019, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/18 "2019-11-04T07:32:00Z")
> [@lissener](#): > > But isn’t Neuf French for 9? Nouvelle is new I think. “Neuf” is French for “nine” **and** for “new”. “Nouvelle” is the feminine form of “nouveau” which also means “new”. The name “Pont-Neuf” means “new bridge”. [Difference between _nouveau_ and _neuf_](https://www.thoughtco.com/nouveau-neuf-french-words-for-new-1369482) ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2019, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/19 "2019-11-04T12:12:27Z")
> [@lissener](#): > > As I said in the OP, this is not a homework assignment. > > Sent from my LG-M150 using Tapatalk It really, really is. You are asked to do something as part of a learning experience. Instead of doing the work yourself as asked, you want others to do your assignment for you, thereby bypassing the whole point of the assignment. You are just trying to wiggle out of doing your own work. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2019, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959/20 "2019-11-04T12:44:01Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Every topic has the _potential_ to be funny. Funeral Home Mishaps. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-make-you-go-lol/842959.md?page=2)