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Wacky pet laws that will make you laugh

<p>There are laws to protect people from harm, animals from cruelty and to keep the animal-human relationship harmonious. But then there are those wacky laws that will make you scratch your head and wonder how they became laws in the first place.</p> <p>1. In some areas of Oklahoma dogs must have a permit signed by the mayor in order to congregate in groups of three or more on private property.</p> <p>2. In Chicago, you cannot bring your French poodle to the opera.</p> <p>3. In Berea, Ohio, any pet that goes out after dark must wear a tail light.</p> <p>4. In Creskill, New York, all outside cats must wear three bells to warn birds of their approach.</p> <p>5. In Madison, Wisconsin dogs are forbidden from harassing squirrels in the public park next to the capital.</p> <p>6. In Denver Colorado an animal control officer must notify dogs of any impending impounds three days before it’s due to happen. They do this by posting notices on trees in the public parks and along the road running next to the park.</p> <p>7. In Memphis, Tennessee, if a frog's croaking keeps you awake at night, you can have that frog arrested.</p> <p>8. In Turin, Italy owners can be fined up to $650 for not walking their dog at least three times a day.</p> <p>9. In Reed City, Michigan, you cannot own a pet cat and bird simultaneously. </p> <p>10. In French Lick Springs, Indiana, all black cats must wear bells on Friday the 13th.</p> <p>11. In certain areas of Oklahoma it is against the law to make “ugly” or “mean” faces at a dog.</p> <p>12. In Honolulu, Hawaii, it’s unlawful to annoy birds at any public park. </p> <p><em>Image credit: Shutterstock</em></p>

Legal

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Queen Letizia laughs off hilarious fashion blunder

<p>Queen Letizia of Spain has laughed off an awkward fashion moment when she was met by a woman in the exact same outfit at an event. </p> <p>While the moment could be cringe-worthy for some, Queen Letizia took the moment in her stride. </p> <p>She was the guest of honour at the Queen Letizia 2021 Awards, being held at the The Assembly of Extremadura in Merida.</p> <p>The event was for the Royal Board of Trustees on Disability, which this year celebrates its 30th anniversary, and of which Letizia is chair and honorary president.</p> <p>The organisation aims to promote the rights of people with disabilities, social inclusion, equal opportunities , rehabilitation and prevention of disabilities.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CdJOgQptf45/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CdJOgQptf45/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Oggi (@oggisettimanale)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>One of the award recipients was Inmaculada Vivas Tesón, who was being honoured for her work in helping with the legal rights of those with a disability.</p> <p>But when it came for her time on stage, her choice of dress was identical to the Spanish Queen's.</p> <p>Both women wore the same black and white belted dress from Spanish designer Mango for a bargain $70. </p> <p>Queen Letizia laughed and embraced Tesón, who also saw the funny side of the situation, before the pair posed for photos together. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

Beauty & Style

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Court warned to stop laughing during Johnny Depp’s testimony

<p dir="ltr">Johnny Depp has concluded his testimony in the defamation trial he has launched against his ex-wife Amber Heard after being on the stand for four days, as reported by <em><a href="https://7news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity/johnny-depp-trial-judge-warns-fans-to-stop-laughing-during-courtroom-testimony-c-6585879" target="_blank" rel="noopener">7News</a></em>.</p> <p dir="ltr">Depp is suing Heard for $50 million for defamation over a 2018 op-ed she wrote for <em>The Washington Post</em> in which she describes herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse”.</p> <p dir="ltr">Although Depp wasn’t named, he claims the article cost him lucrative acting work.</p> <p dir="ltr">Both he and Heard have also accused each other of acts of violence during their relationship, which lasted from 2015 to August 2016, when they settled their divorce.</p> <p dir="ltr">The final day of his testimony saw Depp come under cross-examination by Heard’s attorney, Ben Rottenborn.</p> <p dir="ltr">When asked about audio recordings of arguments between him and Heard and whether she was the only one who had a problem with his drinking, Depp answered: “Sir, if anyone had a problem with my drinking, at any time in my life, it was me.”</p> <p dir="ltr">“The only person I’ve abused in my life is myself.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Remaining on the stand for redirect examination from his attorney, Jessica Meyers, Depp explained some of the text messages introduced as evidence by Heard’s attorney were meant to be “irreverent” or references to <em>Monty Python</em> movies and that he often handles “difficult” situations with humour.</p> <p dir="ltr">Some of his fans had to be warned by Judge Penney Azcarate to contain their laughter in the courtroom when Depp admitted he had trouble remembering some of the movies he starred in.</p> <p dir="ltr">He was asked to name films he appeared in besides the <em>Pirates of the Caribbean</em> franchise and faltered after quickly naming <em>Alice in Wonderland</em>.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I’m so pathetic when it comes to knowing what movies I’ve done,” Depp said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I’m sorry. I just, I don’t watch them. I feel better not watching them. What was the question again?”</p> <p dir="ltr">When his response prompted laughter in the courtroom, Judge Azcarate issued a warning.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Order in the court or I will have you removed. Understood? Thank you,” she said.</p> <p dir="ltr">Before the trial commenced, Judge Azcarate ordered that Depp and Heard were not allowed to pose for photos or sign autographs outside the Virginia courtroom, as reported by <em>People</em>.</p> <p dir="ltr">She also ordered that fans weren’t allowed to camp overnight outside and that spectators in the courtroom must “dress in a manner consistent with the decorum of a judicial proceeding”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Audible comments of any kind during the court proceedings or provocative or uncivil behaviour within the courtroom or courthouse will not be tolerated,” a court document read.</p> <p dir="ltr">“There shall be no gestures, facial expressions, or the like, suggesting approval or disapproval during the proceedings.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Anyone violating this Order will be expelled immediately from the courtroom and will not be able to return during the pendency of the trial.”</p> <p dir="ltr">When Meyers played a 2016 recording of a conversation between Heard and Depp where Heard expressed concern about her reputation after reports of abuse in their relationship emerged, Meyers asked how Depp responded.</p> <p dir="ltr">“What did you say in response when Ms Heard said, ‘Tell the world, Johnny. Tell them, Johnny Depp, I, Johnny Depp, a man, I’m a victim too, of domestic violence’?” Meyers asked.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I said, ‘Yes, I am’,” he responded.</p> <p dir="ltr">The trial, which has been live streamed on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLoW1SIeAWaWb1IDY_WuLKvZygiJudUBSd" target="_blank" rel="noopener">YouTube</a>, began on April 11 and is expected to last for six weeks, with Heard yet to testify.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-98bc178d-7fff-f01a-668a-44689357504f"></span></p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Getty Images</em></p>

Legal

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New footage shows Jada laughing after Oscars slap

<p>As the public <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/health/mind/opinion-why-we-need-to-change-how-we-re-talking-about-the-oscars-slap" target="_blank" rel="noopener">discourse</a> around the drama on Oscars night continues, a new angle captured on camera shows a surprising reaction. </p> <p>Jada Pinkett Smith, Will Smith's wife, can be seen laughing as her husband returns to his seat after <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/news/news/the-slap-heard-around-the-world" target="_blank" rel="noopener">slapping presenter Chris Rock</a> in the face over a joke he made about Jada's bald head. </p> <p>In the previously unseen footage taken from behind the couple at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Smith could be seen returning to his seat after slapping Rock, who then tells the audience, "Will Smith just smacked the s**t out of me." </p> <p>Pinkett Smith appears to be laughing at this line, and she also seemed to chuckle when the comedian said,  "That was the ... greatest night in the history of television."</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CbvthnNquBP/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CbvthnNquBP/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Michael Rapaport (@michaelrapaport)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>The Academy has since announced that following the incident, Smith was asked to leave the auditorium but he "refused" and later went on to win Best Lead Actor for his performance in <em>King Richard</em>. </p> <p>The Academy announced they would be investigating the incident, saying things unfolded in "a way we could not have anticipated".</p> <p>"While we would like to clarify that Mr. Smith was asked to leave the ceremony and refused, we also recognise we could have handled the situation differently," the Academy said in a statement released on Thursday.</p> <p>Will Smith issued an apology to Chris Rock in a statement on Instagram the day after the Oscars, with the <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/news/news/chris-rock-addresses-the-slap" target="_blank" rel="noopener">comedian</a> saying he is "still processing" what happened. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

News

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The Last Laugh keep will keep everyone smiling

<p>A lot of us grew up with Chevy Chase and Richard Dreyfuss on our movie screens and so it’s nice to see these two American actors have made a film together about one of them staging a comeback at the age of eighty.</p> <p>Called <em>The Last Laugh</em>, this is a movie made by Netflix and it’s streaming on Netflix in Australia and New Zealand. It’s all about Buddy Green (played by Dreyfuss) who started out as a great stand-up comic and his agent (played by Chase) booked him for a spot on <em>The Ed Sullivan Show </em>back in the 1960s.</p> <p>But at the time for his own reasons, Buddy just up and quit. It’s now fifty years later and his agent, Al Hart, hasn’t seen or heard from him for half a century.</p> <p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/he3DPldzW8I" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p>So, you can bet Al is surprised when Buddy turns out to be his tour guide in the elderly assistance home he’s moving into. Even more surprising, Buddy is still getting laughs and is pretty much the life of the party.</p> <p>As they chat and get to know each other again, both men - who are in their 80s – say they’re bored and why not try show biz again. Al finds his old Rolodex and starts calling his contacts.</p> <p>And so begins a tough but revealing road trip from Los Angeles to New York, with Buddy performing at stops along the way.</p> <p>Chase and Dreyfuss play off each other like the pros they are. Yes, Chase must hold back his own humorous side to make way for Dreyfuss’ comic <em>tour de force. </em>But this casting works. <em>The Last Laugh </em>is sure to give you lots of laughs along the way.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.31634819532906px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7844402/last-laugh-2-um.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/4ff1879e7fad4a0ab8976edd8106f7cf" /></p> <p>Fortunately, all the cast members deliver the goods here. Standouts include: Andie MacDowell as an adventurous hippy follower; Lewis Black as a fellow comic with an important decision to make; Chris Parnell as Buddy’s worried son; and Kate Micucci as Al’s concerned granddaughter.</p> <p>Although not a completely perfect movie, <em>The Last Laugh </em>reminds us how important it is to follow your dream at any age.</p> <p><img style="width: 0px; height: 0px;" src="/nothing.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/4ff1879e7fad4a0ab8976edd8106f7cf" /><em>Images: The Last Laugh</em></p>

Movies

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If you laugh at these dark jokes, you’re probably a genius

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Body:</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">A man walks into a rooftop bar and takes a seat next to another guy. “What are you drinking?” he asks the guy.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Magic beer,” he says.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Oh, yeah? What’s so magical about it?”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Then he shows him: He swigs some beer, dives off the roof, flies around the building, then finally returns to his seat with a triumphant smile.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Amazing!” the man says. “Lemme try some of that!” The man grabs the beer. He downs it, leaps off the roof – and plummets 15 storeys to the ground.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The bartender shakes his head. “You know, you’re a real jerk when you’re drunk, Superman.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">—</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Let’s ignore for a moment whether or not that poor rube survived his fall (if it makes you feel better, let’s say Trampoline Man was waiting for him on the ground). The real question is: did you find this joke funny? Sick? Maybe a little of both?</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">According to a </span><a href="http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10339-016-0789-y"><span style="font-weight: 400;">study</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> published in the journal </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Cognitive Processing</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">, your reaction could indicate your intelligence. In the paper, a team of psychologists concludes that people who appreciate dark humour – defined as “humour that treats sinister subjects like death, disease, deformity, handicap or warfare with bitter amusement and presents such tragic, distressing or morbid topics in humorous terms” – may have higher IQs, show lower aggression and resist negative feelings more effectively than people who turn up their noses at it.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">To test this correlation between sense of humour and intellect, researchers had 156 male and female participants read 12 bleak cartoons from </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Black Book </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">by German </span><a href="http://www.ulistein.de/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">cartoonist</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Uli Stein. (</span><a href="http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10339-016-0789-y"><span style="font-weight: 400;">One</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> of them, which paraphrases a classic joke, shows a mortician reaching deep into a cadaver as a nurse muses, “The autopsy is finished; he is only looking for his wrist watch.”) Participants indicated whether they understood each joke and whether they found it funny, then took some basic IQ tests and answered questionnaires about their mood, aggressive tendencies and educational background.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The results were remarkably consistent: Participants who both comprehended and enjoyed the dark jokes showed higher IQs and reported less aggressive tendencies than those who did not. Incidentally, the participants who least liked the humour showed the highest levels of aggression and the worst moods of the bunch. The latter point makes sense when you consider the widely-studied health benefits of laughter and smiling; if you aren’t able to greet negativity with playful optimism, of course you will feel worse.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But what about the link to intelligence? According to the </span><a href="http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2017/01/a-twisted-sense-of-humor-just-means-youre-a-chill-genius.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">researchers</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, processing a dark joke takes a bit more mental gymnastics than, say, a knock-knock joke – it’s “a complex information-processing task” that requires parsing multiple layers of meaning, while creating a bit of emotional distance from the content so that it registers as benign instead of hostile. That emotional manoeuvering is what sets dark jokes apart from, say, puns, which literally pit your brain’s right and left hemispheres </span><a href="http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2016/12/heres-what-happens-in-your-brain-when-you-hear-a-pun.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">against each other</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> as you process a single word’s multiple meanings, but usually don’t force you out of your emotional comfort zone. Tina Fey sums up the difference pretty well: “If you want to make an audience laugh, you dress a man up like an old lady and push her down the stairs. If you want to make comedy writers laugh, you push an actual old lady down the stairs.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The takeaway: Pretty much any joke that relies on wordplay will put your brain to work – dark jokes just require a bit more emotional control to earn a laugh.</span></p>

Mind

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Is it okay to laugh during a pandemic?

<p>According to an <a href="https://quoteinvestigator.com/2013/06/25/comedy-plus/">old adage </a>, “comedy is tragedy plus time”. This has been true for many terrible events, when after periods of shock and sadness, humour and laughter are eventually restored.</p> <p>But the current pandemic seems different. People haven’t stopped joking about it. Memes and funny videos are all over social media, even while an increasing number of people across the world get sick and die. So why is this happening? Why is there no gap between the disaster and the humour created around it?</p> <p>One thing that makes the current situation unique is that it is not a single event in a specific place and time. It is a rolling and continuous crisis, spreading endlessly across continents with no end in sight. The shock factor is therefore reduced compared to a single terror attack, for example. This enables people to adjust more easily to what is happening – and humour may be one of the best ways to do just that.</p> <p>Of course, many people will feel uncomfortable laughing in these dire times, especially if they know someone who has been directly affected. But for others, it is not only acceptable to use humour in the face of the pandemic – it may even be a necessity.</p> <p>Obviously, we do not laugh at the tragedy itself, the victims of the virus or the people who are suffering from it. But we can take aim at the seemingly absurd situation we are all in.</p> <p>This is because from a psychological point of view, humour is a great defence mechanism which helps us deal with emotionally challenging situations, especially ones which are <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0020964314564830?casa_token=f1NhglxlWxcAAAAA%3AICfnkrKcklAFQpkro4GQzHB_5kqinA0Hks00fQZWvn-u8LbWWzZn2Tm1wUvTALth-bngLhVYdRc">overwhelming and unpredictable</a>. Many cancer patients and their doctors, for example, routinely <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10410236.2016.1172291">tell jokes and laugh</a> about the disease, in an attempt to cope and distract themselves from the serious situation.</p> <p><strong>Coping strategy</strong></p> <p>On top of this, the unique circumstances surrounding the pandemic may make humour more prevalent, not less.</p> <p>First, many people now have an unusual amount of time on our hands. Being stuck at home with not much to do forces people to find ways to be more creative. And while the situation is serious, in our daily activities we are mostly preoccupied with more mundane tasks, such as what to do all day, how to entertain children, how not to eat too much, and how to stay sane in general.</p> <p>Second, being a bit scared, tense, and in a state of alert is actually a good thing for humour to develop. These states of <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1968-08268-001">physiological and emotional arousal</a> serve as driving forces in creating and enjoying humour.</p> <p>Usually, intermediate levels of arousal are best. With too little, you are bored, and with too much, you are too excited to enjoy humour. Right in the middle is perfect. The laughter after hearing a good joke serves as a release of all the physiological and emotional energy that was built up, and that’s what makes us feel good.</p> <p>Another important element of humour that is prominent during the pandemic is what humour researchers call “<a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/humor/#IncThe">incongruity</a>”. For something to be funny, there needs to be something odd or surprising in the situation. The current situation reveals plenty of such oddities.</p> <p>Here is a joke that illustrates the point: “All this time I thought that the tumble dryer was shrinking my clothes. Turns out it was actually the refrigerator.”</p> <p>The joke is built on the unusual circumstances we live in, of being stuck at home. The setup is the common knowledge that the heat of a tumble dryer can shrink clothes, but then there is a surprise. It’s not the dryer at fault, but the refrigerator, where we store our food. We resolve this incongruity by realising that we are getting fatter from eating too much when we are at home. This resolution gives as the “Aha!” moment that makes the joke funny. (And yes, analysing a joke does ruin it.)</p> <p>So, while humour may not get us out of this awful crisis, it can help us deal with it. We cannot change the reality of the disease or the economic impact, but we can try and change how we feel about it.</p> <p>By creating and sharing humour we can cope better, and ease some of the tension due to the pandemic. That way, we can have at least some control of the situation. And what better way to do that than by having a good laugh?<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/136755/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gil-greengross-392594">Gil Greengross</a>, Lecturer in Psychology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/aberystwyth-university-999">Aberystwyth University</a></em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-it-okay-to-laugh-during-a-pandemic-136755">original article</a>.</em></p>

Mind

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Grandad has last laugh at his own funeral

<p><span>An Irish grandfather has played a final prank on his family members and friends with a message from beyond the grave.</span></p> <p><span>Shay Bradley, who died last week at the age of 62, had a wish that his loved ones would be laughing at his funeral in Dublin.</span></p> <p><span>On Saturday, mourners gathered at a Dublin cemetery and watched as Bradley’s coffin got lowered into the ground and bagpipes played.</span></p> <p><span>After the music stopped, the defence forces veteran’s voice could be heard saying “Hello”, with the sound of knocking appearing to come from the coffin.</span></p> <p><span>“Let me out, it’s f****** dark in here,” Bradley was heard saying to laughter from mourners, before singing, “Hello again, hello. I called to say goodbye.”</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"> <p dir="ltr">Funeral in dublin yesterday he's alive <a href="https://t.co/j18uFJ5aA4">pic.twitter.com/j18uFJ5aA4</a></p> — Lfcgigiddy1122 (@lfcgigiddy1122) <a href="https://twitter.com/lfcgigiddy1122/status/1183375983145082880?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2019</a></blockquote> <p><span>Bradley’s son Jonathan said his father arranged the stunt around a year ago with him and his siblings.</span></p> <p><span>“[My father was] a larger than life character who always wanted to make people laugh,” the 41-year-old told <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-50041509" target="_blank"><em>BBC</em></a>.</span></p> <p><span>“He wanted something special and for everyone to remember him as he was, so that everyone, especially my mother, did not leave the graveside sombre.”</span></p> <p><span>The moment on the funeral was recorded in a video, which has received more than 1.7 million views on Twitter.</span></p> <p><span>“What a man. To make us all laugh when we were incredibly sad. He was some man for one man. Love you forever Poppabear,” Bradley’s daughter Andrea wrote on Twitter with the hashtag #Shayslastlaugh.</span></p> <p><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FIrishDefenceForcesVeteransNews%2Fphotos%2Fa.1924125764566291%2F2298422903803240%2F%3Ftype%3D3&amp;width=500" width="500" height="696" style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media"></iframe></p>

Family & Pets

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Family's cruise hell: "They laughed while he drowned"

<p>A 19-year-old Canadian woman has broken her silence after a horror cruise, during which she says passengers laughed and staff did nothing while her father was drowning at sea.</p> <p>Venezia Hebecker was holidaying with her parents in the Bahamas onboard a Norwegian Escape cruise ship when the heart-stopping moment took place.</p> <p>Talking to <a href="http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-advice/travellers-stories/cruise-hell-they-laughed-while-he-drowned/news-story/a21b905912092f27ebb98dd2b317154b" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>News Corp</strong></span></a>, Venezia recalls sunbaking on the last day of the trip when she overheard a group of passengers joking about a man drowning during a snorkelling excursion.</p> <p>She decided to check on her 52-year-old dad, Marino, only to find a woman running in the other direction holding his snorkel.</p> <p>“I started bawling my eyes out because I totally thought he was gone,” she said. “She had reassured me that he was okay but I needed to go to medical as soon as possible because my dad ... was not breathing.”</p> <p>Despite being considered a strong swimmer, Marino had been caught in a strong current 60 metres out to sea, where his desperate cries for help were ignored.</p> <p>“He remembers waving at the lifeguard, who ignored him, then screaming for the lifeguard, who ignored him again. He was screaming for his life and everyone thought it was a joke.”</p> <p>It was only thanks to the efforts of two children who alerted a man who then dragged him out of the water.</p> <p>“Through it all, no crew member had come to the stateroom or even called to see how he was doing,” Venezia wrote on the <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/marinos-medical-fund" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">GoFundMe page</span></strong></a> set up to pay for her dad’s medical expenses. “Absolutely nothing was done for him through it all even considering this all happened on their island under their ‘lifeguards’ supervision.”</p> <p>Rushed to the hospital in a critical condition, Marino now faces a difficult path towards recovery. Shockingly, his daughter says no one from the cruise line offered any help or sympathy during or after the ordeal.</p> <p><img width="499" height="505" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7267087/26730646_1787084714649237_5563186668925509128_n_499x505.jpg" alt="26730646_1787084714649237_5563186668925509128_n" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"/></p> <p>“I definitely think that they should be ashamed of themselves. I could have lost my father if it weren’t for the help of those kids as well as the man, not the lifeguard.”</p> <p><em>Image credit: Venezia Hebecker/Facebook.</em></p>

Travel Trouble

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Why people are laughing at the title of Jane Fonda & Robert Redford’s new movie

<p>Hollywood legends Jane Fonda and Robert Redford’s new movie, a romantic drama, has just been released on Netflix to rave reviews. But there’s just one problem – the title.</p> <p><em>Our Souls at Night</em>, based on the novel of the same name by Kent Haruf, is being ridiculed online for a somewhat immature (yet admittedly hilarious) – reason. The poetic, moving title becomes the complete opposite when you say it with a proper English accent.</p> <p>Go on, say it out loud and make sure you pronounce “our” as “ar” in the correct British way.</p> <p>The cheeky slip-up has become a source of many jokes on Twitter, with UK actor Rufus Sewell one of the first to point it out.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Maybe it sounds more family friendly with an American accent. <a href="https://t.co/t4qgBXhfI8">pic.twitter.com/t4qgBXhfI8</a></p> — Rufus Sewell (@FredrikSewell) <a href="https://twitter.com/FredrikSewell/status/912466473951440896?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 25, 2017</a></blockquote> <p>One woman replied that she “can’t wait for the sequel <em>The Sun Shines Out of Our Souls</em>”, while another said they were looking forward to a Bollywood remake, “Our Souls on Fire”. One Twitter user jokingly questioned if it was “a new chat show with Piers Morgan and Nigel Farage”.</p> <p>Appearing on <em>Graham Norton</em> recently, Fonda herself couldn't stop giggling about it after the pronunciation mishap was brought to her attention.</p> <p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cn4D9InWd50" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p>After it was brought to their attention, a Netflix spokesperson addressed the issue. </p> <p>“We’re aware of how it sounds to some British ears. But the film has had this title for months," they said. “There are no plans to change the title for the UK market.”</p>

Movies

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10 restaurant signs that will make you laugh out loud

<p>The restaurant game is a notoriously competitive subset of the hospitality industry, and if you’re an owner sometimes it pays to have a good sense of humour. </p> <p><em><a href="http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Good Housekeeping</strong></span></a></em> has scoured the web and found 10 of the funniest restaurant signs from around the world. From those that are so-bad-they’re-good, to others that are genuinely witty, these signs are a great way to stand out from the crowd.</p> <p>To see them all, scroll through the gallery above.</p> <p>Which was your favourite? If you’ve seen a restaurant sign you found hilarious, leave it in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you. </p> <p><strong>Related links:</strong></p> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/news/news/2016/07/14-of-the-most-hilarious-supermarket-sign-errors/">14 of the most hilarious supermarket sign errors</a></em></span></strong></p> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/travel/international-travel/2016/06/14-of-the-most-hilarious-english-translation-errors/">14 of the most hilarious English translation errors</a></em></span></strong></p> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/finance/money-banking/2016/02/understanding-supermarket-sales-tricks/">Understanding supermarket sales tricks</a></em></span></strong></p>

News