It's Not All That Funny, Really

I feel as though I should explain this joke I made a few days ago. The problem with it was I'm the only one who gets the joke and that's not very funny, is it?

My maternal grandparents would have been married 60 years had it not been for the leukemia and the lying. There was a big blow out party at their lake home for their 50th, about 20 years ago. The entire community chipped in and all the family was on deck for the execution of the gala event. My mother has one brother and he and his wife have two children, a boy and a girl. At the time of the party I was a college sophomore attending a conservatory program for acting and directing in a "private university in the public service." My younger cousin was in high school and quite active in his prep school's drama club.

The time for toasts came and certain people were invited up to the cake table to speak. My grandfather proudly introduced "the actor in the family" for a toast. And my cousin gave a fine toast indeed.

As a result, I often retell that line as a self-deprecating joke. I know that it's not so much funny as it is bitter but it gives me a little giggle nonetheless. It is never meant as bad mouthing the other person in question. I'm told my young cousin was a fine actor and, more recently, I'm told that he's making his living with carpentry and woodworking at which he is also quite accomplished. I know that Mike (of the waterboarding) is a great writer and clearly a marvelous on camera personality, too. It's more about my grandfather. I realize it's a long time to hold a grudge but I promise I'm holding it just lightly, as a reminder that it's not about how other people perceive me, it's about what I'm actually doing with my life. (Why yes I am sitting on the couch watching Burn Notice. Shut it.)

Got any inside jokes you keep telling even though you're the only one who gets it?