Monday, May 12, 2014

Good morning crew,

I was glancing through a trivia book the other day when I saw a story that I first heard years ago in a college German class. It is probably my favorite story (mostly because it is absolutely true) and still makes me laugh out loud every time I read it.

In 1963 John Kennedy electrified the whole of Germany when, in his historic speech at the Berlin wall, he proclaimed, "Ich bin ein Berliner."

He was showing solidarity with the German people who were divided, in the very heart of Berlin, by the wall built by the Communists.

What JFK meant to say is, "I am a Berliner." Or, in other words, a citizen of Berlin.

What the actual translation of this line, that he delivered in front of tens of thousands of Germans, is, "I am a jelly donut."

The huge crowd, after a second of shock, instinctively knew what he meant and gave him a deafening cheer anyway.

Those goofy Americans. Don't have the first clue, but they seem to mean well.

Laugh it up,

Joe

joe@gophercentral.com

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"Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbor to compromise whenever you can. As a peace-maker, the lawyer has a superior opportunity of being a good man. There will still be business enough." --Abraham Lincoln

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"Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn't have to do it himself." --A.H. Weiler

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"Inside every older person is a younger person -- wondering what the hell happened." --Cora Harvey Armstrong

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The Ten Commandments display was recently removed from the Alabama Supreme Court building. There was a good reason for the move. You can't post

Thou Shalt Not Steal,
Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery,
and Thou Shall Not Lie

in a building full of lawyers and politicians without creating a hostile work environment.


*-------------- Guaranteed to Roll Your Eyes --------------*
During my freshman year at East Texas State University in Commerce, I worked nights as a waiter. The following year, wanting my evenings free, I applied for a dormitory maintenance job and was asked, "How are you on punctuality?"

"Oh, I'm good at that," I blurted out without thinking. "I'm an English major."