They were famous for fighting constantly, and generally disliking each other.
On their 26th wedding anniversary the husband had a heart attack and died. A few days later his widowed wife walked into the local newspaper's office and asked to post an obituary.
The Ad editor informed her, "We can do 4 lines with a maximum of 80 words for $100."
"Nah." she said, "That's a a lot of money and he didn't do much. What else you got?"
"OK," said the editor awkwardly, "We can do 3 lines and a maximum of 25 words for $35."
"Nope, still too expensive…" she grimaced, "What else you got?"
Flustered, the editor wanted to get her out the door quickly so he told her, "We have the economy option – 2 lines, 5 words max, $5."
She agreed to that, so he filled out the order and asked, "OK madam, what do you want it to say?"
She thought for a moment, then responded: "Husband dead. Car for sale."
Joke Poo: The Programmer’s Lament
Two rival AI programming teams had been locked in a bitter competition for years, constantly sabotaging each other’s code and leaving passive-aggressive comments in shared repositories.
On the anniversary of their team’s five-year rivalry, the lead programmer of Team A accidentally deleted all of Team B’s core libraries. Devastated, the lead programmer of Team B walked into the server room’s admin office and asked to post an error message.
The admin informed him, "We can do 4 lines with a maximum of 80 characters for $100."
"Nah," he said, "That’s a lot of money, and it’s not that important. What else you got?"
"OK," said the admin awkwardly, "We can do 3 lines and a maximum of 25 characters for $35."
"Nope, still too expensive…" he grimaced, "What else you got?"
Flustered, the admin, wanting to get back to his game, told him, "We have the economy option – 2 lines, 5 characters max, $5."
He agreed to that, so the admin filled out the order and asked, "OK sir, what do you want it to say?"
He thought for a moment, then responded: "rm -rf. Oops."
Alright, let’s dissect this joke.
Key Elements:
- The Dysfunctional Marriage: Established from the outset, the couple is known for constant fighting and dislike. This sets the expectation for a non-traditional reaction to the husband’s death.
- Obituary Cost Negotiation: The wife’s aggressive frugality and unwillingness to spend money on an obituary for her dead husband, especially after 25 years, is the primary source of humor. It highlights the depth of her resentment or lack of affection.
- The Punchline: The concise obituary ("Husband dead. Car for sale.") is the ultimate comedic payoff. It perfectly encapsulates her priorities: grief is secondary; selling the car (presumably a shared asset now entirely hers) is paramount. The juxtaposition of death and commerce is darkly humorous.
- The Editor’s Frustration: The flustered editor adds a layer of humor. His eagerness to be rid of the woman amplifies the absurdity of the situation.
Humorous Enrichment:
Let’s focus on the intersection of death, obituaries, and sales, and add a dash of economics.
Did you know?
The "death positive" movement is advocating for more open and honest conversations about death, dying, and grief. Some forward-thinking entrepreneurs have even started offering "death doulas" (similar to birth doulas) who help people plan for their end-of-life care and even write their own obituaries, often with a touch of humor. Which raises the question: what would an obituary for a death doula look like? Perhaps: "Doula de-ceased. No longer assisting transitions. Excellent life coach. Gently used yoga mat for sale."
New Joke/Witty Observation:
Why did the frugal widow use Comic Sans in her husband’s obituary?
Because it’s the cheapest font available! …And apparently, their relationship was worth about as much.
Explanation of the New Joke:
- It builds on the "frugal widow" character trait.
- It incorporates the ‘obituary’ element.
- Comic Sans is a notoriously disliked font, known for being cheap-looking. The joke thus adds another layer of insult in the woman’s send off.