Friday Feb 9, 2018

"Joke Olympics"

Andy Symons

Attorney Inslee Best

Introduced by: Kit Bowerman

The 2018 Winter Olympics start Friday, February 9 and thus having the “Joke Olympics” is great timing! This is an event where all attending members to our BBRC meeting Friday have a chance to participate, so polish up your best jokes and bring them!

 The original idea for this originated after watching the figure skating competition at the Winter Olympics several years ago.  It was interesting to see how judges would hold up the scores after each skater finished, each judge giving his or her assessment of the performance.  These are of course wholly subjective, and the viewer had little basis to know how the score was reached.  So, the thought is, why not use this same system to score jokes.  This is something where the audience does have a basis to do its own evaluation.  We all have a pretty good idea what is funny and what is not, far more so that how to assess a “Double Salchow” (however it is spelled) or a “Triple Flip,” a “Double Lutz,” or a “Triple Bypass,” or whatever. 

Humor is everywhere.  Judges, bankers, doctors, teachers, and most of the rest of us are regularly given stories in the form of excuses, explanations, “alternative facts,” and rationalizations that require us to put our funny bones in “airplane mode” lest we break out laughing when given these.  There are starving comedians paying good money to writers for lines not half as hilarious as things people say with a straight face.

Here is a chance for everyone to participate!

About the Speaker

Andy Symons is a past member of Bellevue Overlake Rotary Club. Andy originally founded the concept of "Joke Olympics" there a few years ago. In his day job, Andy is an attorney and Partner with Inslee Best of Bellevue, where as a business attorney his practice focuses on commercial real estate transactions. His clientele include owners and developers of shopping centers, apartment complexes, office buildings, hotels and casinos. Andy received his JD from Drake University and his BS from Illinois College.

A few ground rules for this event:

1. Political jokes are OK, but not encouraged since in making these, you will be competing with true professionals.
2. Jokes about Huskies and Cougars are also OK, but generally a sign that you don’t have a “real joke”.
3. Jokes about Oregon are no longer funny now that the Ducks are back to mediocrity where they belong.
4. If you have to read the joke, points off. That is basically lame, and if you can’t remember it, how can you expect the rest of us to do so.
5. Points off for jokes in bad taste. Jokes in questionable taste are OK, even encouraged. Respect the audience!