This Sunday I got a dog, a 3 year old collie mix I got from a pound that I renamed Daisy. She’s super-energetic - more than the pound people I worked with thought now that I have her out. Per Cesar Millan I plan on wearing her out - assuming she doesn’t wear me out first.

I thought of announcing to my TM club that there was a new DTM living with me - Dog Toastmaster. And I imagined them smiling and laughing politely. And it would be polite of them, since DTM=Dog Toastmaster really isn’t funny. (If you’re not in TM, the “joke” here is that DTM=Distinguished Toastmaster, the highest honor TM awards to members.)

A lot of questionable material gets chuckles in TM, doesn’t it? I’m not going to blog against the mercy laughs I’ve given and received in my time in TM because I actually don’t think they’re that bad. What I’m thinking of here is Prairie Home Companion type stuff, cute but not even close to being clever. (I dislike Prairie Home Companion, for the record, since I expect pro’s to be cute and clever.) We laugh politely at marginal material so that we show support the person giving getting up and putting themselves on the line, especially when they’re bombing.

I compare this to when I was in early high school and Comedy Channel (back when it was called that) used to have standup comedians on all the time. Some of them were funny, but a bunch weren’t and I always wondered how the unfunny ones could still get laughs from a crowd. Then I found out about the two drink minimum and the power of alcohol to make things seem funny.

How much better we have it in TM, where we laugh at so-so material not because we’re drunk (hopefully not!) but out of a spirit of friendship.

OK - cynical John will emerge for a moment and just warn you that just because you can get a laugh in front of TM’s, don’t necessary think you’ll do as well in front of non-TM’s. But enough of that cynicism, especially this time of year! Know when you get laughs and you don’t deserve them that at least you have friends to help out. TM’s are almost as good as a dog.

Merry Christmas from John & Daisy!