I’m not a huge fan of texting. I’d much rather call someone. It’s quicker and actually hearing another person’s voice eliminates speculation over what a text may imply. But I think I’m in the minority over my preference to hear someone as opposed to read something, and then try to interpret what that person is actually trying to say. I had thought for a while that the text preference was strictly an age thing. That belief is sort of true, because there is a preference for texting among the younger mobile addicted. But the elderly have also adopted texting with only a few holdouts dispensing with the option altogether. i think I might know three or maybe four people that won’t text at all.
I could understand the preference if calling someone meant having to dial a rotary phone. But those days are long gone and the actual effort to communicate orally with a smart phone is less than texting. All you have to do is find a contact and hit one button to dial. Texting takes longer, is less communicative and causes traffic accidents.
Anyway.
LOL is probably in the top three of texting acronyms. I have no idea what the other two may be, but I’m going to stick with my assumption that LOL is popular. I’m not convinced that the person who types the laughing letters is actually laughing out loud though. It’s more likely that LOL is simply a method to indicate amusement. Real laughter apparently requires the typist to add a few letters to create LMAO or ROFL.
But I like the distinction made by the acronym. I like the idea that there are varying degree’s of laughter. Quiet laughter and supressed laughter, followed by laughing out loud. But the more that I thought about people laughing I eventually came to the conclusion that some of the most memorable moments from observing other people in moments of mirth, was watching people try not to laugh.
Laugh suppression itself suggests that something funny has occurred or been verbalized, but it’s considered rude to actually LOL. This ability to restrain ones amusement exists in varying degree’s. It depends on the person and the situation. Some people have no restraint mechanism at all, and it could be argued that those people are well adjusted. Or as the word argument suggests, there’s another perspective and they could be the least sophisticated among us.
An example is in order.
Let’s say that you’re present at some sort of formal ceremony. A wedding or a funeral or a royal coronation, and during a moment of relative silence someone rips an impressive fart. Given the situation, most people will cover their mouths and hold a laugh in. Other people will lol. Some of the LOL people belong to the less cultured group, and some of the LOL’s are overcome by the absurdity of a fart at a funeral, and subconsciously make an involuntary decision that an audible response is appropriate.
I have to say though that the more formal the situation the harder it is to remain composed when someone farts in a crowded room. Consider the coronation I just mentioned. One can assume that if you’re on the royal invitation list, that you’re, shall we say, of a certain social status. But regardless of your social standing, everyone poops, everyone farts and most of the world thinks farts are funny.
Except my wife. To be accurate, she may smile to herself in the bathroom, but for some reason she strongly believes that farts shouldn’t be shared.
But my wife aside, I’m guessing that even Camilla chuckle’s a little after privately ripping a blast after an evening of too many cucumber sandwiches and gin tonics.
Another example.
I was late getting to a meeting to review contractor change orders. Those meetings sucked because of a few reasons. About half the changes had already been made. Approved by field leads from my side of the arrangement. So I couldn’t argue validity, but I needed to understand cost because I had to explain at a later date to the design engineers that a change was necessary.
That kind of sucked. It was much better to see the proposed change order before any modification to scope or configuration was done. But the good news was our field coordinators weren’t morons. They understood that certain changes required engineering sign off.
Anyway, I was late.
I walked in and as I was finding a seat, one of the cost guys handed me the sheets of change orders the contractor was presenting. As I scanned the data I was baffled. The spelling errors were incredible and numerous. It looked like a ten year old had tried to sound out words with phonetic spelling. As I was looking at the assault on the English language I not quietly enough said out loud, Jesus, who typed this, Helen Keller?
The two cost guys sitting beside me immediately raised their papers to cover their faces, and did the try not to laugh routine. Their boss, also trying not to laugh called me by name and gently swatted my arm.
I didn’t know what I’d done. Turns out the contractor cost lead was new. He was also very Chinese and up to that point everyone else had been polite and sounded out the words as the meeting proceeded. Except for the people trying not to laugh, the rest of the room went uncomfortably silent and I think that silence is a key part of what’s funny about the situation.
It’s like a fart in Westminster Abbey is funny all by itself, but the reactions of the fart witnesses are what makes comedy gold. Some people are appalled and offended, and that just adds to the hilarity for people that think a coronation fart is fucking priceless.
I’m more of an LOL kind of guy. I do however have some sensibility. I think that farting at a funeral is inappropriate and laughing at a funeral is not in the best of taste. And although I would make every effort to not be the flatulence guy, I have to admit that it would be a struggle to not find amusement if someone else failed to exercise the same gaseous containment.
With associated noise of course. The noise is necessary for the humor to be widely appreciated, whereas any odor only provides proximity humor.
Or horror I guess. It depends on the toxcicity.