British Humor

Before I left for Canterbury, a friend of mine back home asked me to see if I could find any Brits with a sense of humor. Most, he found, weren't very funny. Most, I find, neither make eye contact nor smile at strangers, but sit down and have a pint, or ask for help, and they are more than patient and hospitable. As far as jokes, one I've heard from a few people:

An American is admiring a Brit's lawn. "How do you get it to look so good?" asks the American. The Brit says, "Well, it's quite easy. You till the soil, plant the seed, watch the rain fall on it, and then wait 300 years!" So maybe not that funny, but it's an encouraging start.

The other bit they find funny is my response when asked what I studied at university. To say, simply English seems a bit ambitious here, so I say, American Literature, to which they respond: "A short course, i'n't, mate?"

One final note about language. The students seem to be very similar to our students. I overheard a conversation between two women who discovered that a boy had lied to them. "He's well dodgy that one," which I think roughly translates to "He's very sketch" in American English, or simply "He's a liar" if you remember when velcro was a crazy new addition to the original Skechers.