TGIF - 01 May 2026

  

Greetings from your infrequent Friday jokes guy. I can’t take all the blame. I only have about 5 people contributing to my TGIF joke bag and that means it takes some time to gather enough material to be able to use in a Friday message. Do you get the hint?

 

I am drafting this on Thursday night, April 30th, and as Burma Shave reminds us, “Thirty Days Hath September, April, June and the Speed Offender.”

 

So that means that tomorrow, Friday, is the First of May. It’s an international holiday, recognizing workers. But, not so much here in the USA. Here, we just used to dance around the May Pole on this day. So, some of you international friends “may” even have the day off.

 

It’s also the day that I start taking drugs to fend off springtime allergies.

 

There is a reason that I have fostered the energy this week to try and put together enough material to issue a TGIF message as I have some fantastic family news to share with you. My daughter, Joya, delivered a 5 pound 5 ounce baby girl on early Wednesday morning. Her name is Ava Sue Helen Hurt. Joya, Chris and Ava are all doing well. We’ve had a few FaceTime chats with them, and we are all over the moon. She now has dark blue eyes (likely will change) and she is so cute. We see both Joya and Chris in her face. It’s hard being so far away from them now, but we are so happy for them. I will likely go there in October, maybe with my oldest son, Jonathan. Then, Joya, Chris and Ava will be coming home to the US at the end of December for a while. Joya will then be promoting her book that will be published in January.

 

It’s hard to top this news!

 

On the local front, we’ve had a relatively dry Spring (we are experiencing drought conditions) and so not much of a mud season. In fact, our golf course opened on April 18th and I played that day and twice since then. The course is in great shape, and I’ve been playing pretty well – that is – playing “bogey golf”. A few pars, a lot of bogeys, a few double bogeys, and even an occasional birdie! Plus, it’s good exercise and taking in good fresh air!

 

I request that if you have any personal messages to me, as a result of the above news, (not the golf news!), I request that you send me a separate email, not just respond to this TGIF message.

 

Let’s see what we have today. I still get a lot of stuff that I cannot easily share, unless I type out the material myself, and, to be honest, even though I’m retired, I DO NOT GET PAID enough to do that!

 

Here are some good short ones to get us started:

 

Don’t worry about getting older! You’ll still dumb stuff, just more slowly!

 

Husband to Wife: “For the last 28 years, all you’ve done is find mistakes is what I say”.

Wife to Husband: “29 years!”

 

The leading cause of injury in old men is them still thinking that they’re young.

 

John to his friend Joe: “I just got some new hearing aids for $7,000.”

Joe: “What kind is it?”

John: “12:30.”

 

I must say that I had an audiology test done a few months ago. Dianne encouraged me to do that as she thought I was getting hard of hearing. I tried to convince her that the problem might not be a hearing one, but a listening one. She wasn’t convinced so I had the test done. Sure enough, I do have hearing loss and so I have purchased hearing aids. They are so hi-tech now that I can play music on them. Unfortunately, Dianne can’t tell if I am listening to the radio or music on them, so I don’t often hear HER very well in that case. So, I’m not sure that she is satisfied with the outcome. We’ve agreed that I will wear a hat if I’m listening to music or the radio.

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

Must Be True Love

 

A couple of drunk customers at the Lone Bucket Bar started talking about their spouses. This talk, being held by drunk men, quickly devolved into a competition of whose wife loves him the most. 

 

At a certain point, a regular named Dave pulled up a stool and announced, “My wife must love me more than any woman has ever loved any man!” 

 

“What makes you say that?” inquired the bartender. 

 

Dave beamed with pride, “Last week, I had to take a couple of sick days from work...She was so thrilled to have me around, that every time a mail or delivery person came by, she’d run down the driveway waving her arms hollering, ‘My husband’s home! My husband’s home!’”

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

Fire!

 

Three professors (a physicist, a chemist, and a statistician) are called in to see their dean. Just as they arrive the dean is called out of his office, leaving the three professors there. 

 

The professors see with alarm that there is a fire in the wastebasket. The physicist says, "I know what to do! We must cool down the materials until their temperature is lower than the ignition temperature and then the fire will go out.” 

 

The chemist says, "No! No! I know what to do! We must cut off the supply of oxygen so that the fire will go out due to lack of one of the reactants.” 

 

While the physicist and chemist debate what course to take, they both are alarmed to see the statistician running around the room starting other fires. 

 

They both scream, "What are you doing?!?” 

 

"Trying to get an adequate sample size!"

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

Don’t Judge a Book By It’s Cover

 

A Catholic priest was riding on a train. An obviously drunk man stumbled in carrying a newspaper and reeking of cheap perfume and cigar smoke. He sat near the priest and read his newspaper. After a few minutes the drunk looked up and said “Father! Can you tell me what causes arthritis?”

The priest snapped “It’s from too much drinking, smoking, and cavorting with loose women!”

The drunk looked stunned. “Well, I’ll be damned.”

After a few minutes, the priest felt bad and said “Forgive me my son. I didn’t mean to make light of your condition.”

“Ain’t me, Father,” said the drunk. “I just read that the Pope has it.

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

A Close Shave

 

Donald Trump and Barack Obama ended up at the same barber shop. As they sat there, each was being worked on by a different barber, not a word was spoken.  The barbers were both afraid to start a conversation, for fear that it would turn nasty.  As the barbers finished their shaves in silence, the one who had Trump in his chair reached for the aftershave.  But Donald was quick to stop him, jokingly saying, “No, thanks.  My wife, Melania, will smell that and think I’ve been in a brothel.”

 

The second barber turned to Barack and said, “How about you, Mr. Obama?”

 

Barack replied, “Go right ahead.  My wife, Michelle, doesn’t know what the inside of a brother smells like."

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

A Crazy Idea!

 

Two men are in an insane asylum and one night, they decide they don’t like living in an asylum any more. They decide they’re going to escape! They get up onto the roof, and there, just across this narrow gap, they see the rooftops of the town, stretching away in the moonlight to freedom. 

 

The first man jumps right across with no problem. But his friend didn’t dare make the leap, afraid of falling. So then, the first man has an idea… He says, 'Hey! I have my flashlight with me! I’ll shine it across the gap between the buildings. You can walk along the beam and join me!’ 

 

The second man immediately spots the problem with this and shakes his head. "What do you think I am? Crazy? You’d turn it off when I was halfway across!"

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

Traffic Stop

 

A lady is trotting down the road in her horse and buggy when she is pulled over by the sheriff. 

 

"Ma'am, I have to warn you, you have a broken stake on your wheel," says the sheriff. 

 

"Oh dear. I'll let my husband, Jacob, know as soon as I get home," she replies. 

 

"That's fine," he continues. "Another thing, ma'am... I don't like the way that one rein loops across the horse's back and around one of his testicles. I consider that terrible cruelty to the animal. Have your husband take care of that right away.” 

 

The woman thanks him and drives home. Later that day, the lady is home telling her husband about her encounter with the sheriff. 

 

"Well, dear, what exactly did he say?" asked the husband. 

 

"He said a stake is broken," replied the lady. "I can fix that in a heartbeat,” said the husband. 

 

"What else?" The wife replied: "I'm not sure, Jacob - something to do with the emergency brakes."

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

Alligators

 

While sports fishing off the Florida coast in Key West, a tourist capsized his boat. He could swim, but his fear of alligators kept him clinging to the overturned craft. Spotting an old beachcomber walking on the shore, the tourist shouted, “There wouldn’t by chance be any alligators in these waters?!” he asks in panic. 

 

“No,” the old man hollered back, “haven’t been any for years!” 

 

Feeling relieved, the tourist started swimming leisurely toward the shore. About halfway toward shore he asked the old man, “Say, how’d you get rid of the gators, anyway?” 

 

“We didn’t do anything,” the old man said. “The sharks got ’em.”

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

Taters – A Love Story

 

A girl potato and a boy potato had eyes for each other and got married. They had a little sweet potato whom they named " Yam ". They loved her, and when the time was right, they told her about the facts of life.

They warned her about going out and getting half-baked so she wouldn't get mashed and get a bad name for herself like "Hot Potato" and end up having a bunch of un-planned tator tots, but not sit at home and become a couch potato either, get plenty of exercise and not be a shoestring.

When she went to Europe, they told her to watch out for the hard boiled guys from Ireland and the greasy ones from France.

When she went out west, they warned her about the Indians so she wouldn't get scalloped.

She agreed to stay on the straight and narrow and not associate with those high class Yukon Golds, or the bad girls known as Frito Lays.

Mr. and Mrs.Potato sent Yam to Idaho P.U. (Potato University) with high hopes, but in spite of all they did for her she came home and announced she was marrying Tom Brokaw.

Mr. and Mrs. Potato were very upset and told Yam she couldn't possibly marry Tom Brokaw,

because he was just a ..................COMMON-TATOR!!

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

The Confessional

 

A man goes to the Confessional. "Forgive me father, for I have sinned." "What is your sin, my child?" The priest asks back. "Well," the man starts, "I used some horrible language this week and feel absolutely terrible." "When did you do use this awful language?" said the priest. "I was golfing and hit an incredible drive that looked like it was going to go over 250 yards, but it struck a phone line that was hanging over the fairway and fell straight down to the ground after going only about 100 yards." "Is that when you swore?" "No, Father." Said the man. "After that, a squirrel ran out of the bushes and grabbed my ball in his mouth and began to run away." Is THAT when you swore?" asked the Father again. "Well, no." said the man, "You see, as the squirrel was running, an eagle came down out of the sky, grabbed the squirrel in his talons and began to fly away!" "Is THAT when you swore?" asked the amazed Priest. "No, not yet." The man replied. "As the eagle carried the squirrel away in his claws, it flew towards the green. And as it passed over a bit of forest near the green, the squirrel dropped my ball." "Did you swear THEN?" asked the now impatient Priest. "No, because as the ball fell it struck a tree, bounced through some bushes, careened off a big rock, and rolled through a sand trap onto the green and stopped within six inches of the hole." "You missed the f**king putt, didn't you?" sighed the Priest.

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

The New Baby

 

With all the new technology regarding fertility recently, a 65-year-old friend of mine was able to give birth. When she was discharged from the hospital and went home, I went to visit. 

 

May I see the new baby?' I asked. 

 

'Not yet,' she said. 'I'll make coffee and we can talk for a while first.’ 

 

Thirty minutes had passed, and I asked, 'May I see the new baby now?’ 

 

'No, not yet,' she said. 

 

After another few minutes had elapsed, I asked again, 'May I see the baby now?’ 

 

'No, not yet,' replied my friend. 

 

Growing very impatient, I asked, 'Well, when can I see the baby?’ 

 

'WHEN HE CRIES!' she told me. 

 

'When he Cries??' I demanded. 'Why do I have to wait until he CRIES?’ 

 

'BECAUSE I FORGOT WHERE I PUT HIM, OK?!'

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

I assume that, despite their relative advanced parental ages, Chris and Joya will know at all times where Ava is! 

 

It’s time to wrap this up and wish you all a Happy May Day, Fantastic Friday and a Wonderful Weekend!

 

Yours truly,

 

TGI-Jeff

 

TGIF - 20 March 2026

  

Greetings from your Friday guy – for the first time in 2 months! Sometime life gets in the way! You know: attending doctor’s appointments, having all kinds of medical tests done, playing bridge and ping pong and skiing. There has also been shoveling snow, bringing in wood for our fireplace, attending high school boys and girls basketball games, as well as Dianne’s granddaughters’ basketball games. Also, taking our recycling to the transfer station. Going out to dinner with friends. Cooking delicious dinners with Dianne and dancing in the kitchen with her. So, a lot of seemingly boring stuff. But now, I finally have something to write about that was not of this routine nature. Two weeks ago, I had a physical exam with my PCP. Prior to that, they drew some blood and ran several tests. During the physical, my doc said that most of my tests looked good. My cholesterol is down, my blood pressure is good, and everything else looked pretty good, although one thing indicated that I had some sort of inflammation. We talked about many things. I mentioned that recently I had experienced some shortness of breath when exercising. I just thought it was an ageing issue. She said that anytime one has that symptom, it needs to be investigated. So, she ordered an echocardiogram at the hospital. I had that done last Tuesday, March 10th. That night at about 9 pm, my PCP called me and told me to get up to the ER at the hospital. So, I did. They were waiting for me. The echocardiogram had revealed excess fluids all around my heart. An hour later I was in an ambulance being taken up to the excellent regional hospital (Dartmouth Hitchcock). The next day surgery was performed that removed about a half a liter of fluids from around my heart. I spent the next days in the hospital and returned home on Friday night. I feel like a new man. I also feel very fortunate that I have such a good PCP who insisted I did the “echo” despite my reluctance.

 

The other news to share, especially with those who know our family, is that Joya is doing well in her pregnancy and my second grandchild will likely be born in April. 

 

At this point in late winter, (Spring officially begins today or tomorrow) we are all sick of it and the cold and the wind and are really ready for some warmer weather, even if it creates the mud of our mud season. My recent medical episode has resulted in many follow-up appointments over the next month, meaning that Dianne and I will not be able to undertake a trip south to warmer climes this year. But, at our age, I guess we’d better take care of ourselves first.

 

This weekend we are going down to see Dianne’s granddaughter Maddie play volleyball with her team from Connecticut in a tournament in Fitchburg MA. She is really developing as a very good player and it will be fun to see her and her team play, not so far from here.

 

So, let’s dive into the joke bag. This first one is something whose origin is not known, but I think it is something that my father saw once and jotted it down. I found it on a scrap of paper when I was cleaning out some old boxes of stuff.

 

Early to bed and late to rise,

Is much healthier for your eyes,

Though this may be good for your health,

It may not bring you instant wealth,

But who cares?  So, remain steadfast!

But who will feed your pets their breakfast?

 

Who’s In Charge Here???

 

All the organs of the body were meeting to decide who should be in charge. 
"I should be in charge," said the brain, "because I run all the body's systems. Without me, nothing would happen." 
"I should be in charge," said the blood, "because I circulate oxygen all over. Without me, you'd all waste away." 
"I should be in charge," said the stomach, "because I process food and give all of you energy." 
"I should be in charge," said the legs, "because I carry the body wherever it needs to go." 
"I should be in charge," said the eyes, "because I allow the body to see where it goes." 
"I should be in charge," said the rectum, "because I’m responsible for waste removal." 
All the other body parts laughed at the rectum and insulted him. In a huff, he shut down tight. 
Within a few days, the brain had a terrible headache, the stomach was bloated, the legs got wobbly, the eyes got watery, and the blood became toxic. 
They all finally decided that the rectum should be the boss. 

Moral of the story: Even though the others do all the hard work, the butt hole is usually the one in charge.

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

An Irishman’s First Drink With His Son

 

I was reading an article last night about fathers and sons, and memories came flooding back to the time I took my son out for his first drink.

.

Off we went to our local Irish bar, which is only two blocks from the house.

I got him a Guinness Stout.  He didn’t like it – so I drank it.

Then I got him an Old Style, he didn’t like it either, so I drank it.

It was the same with the Coors and the Bud.

By the time we got down to the Irish whiskey,

I could hardly push the stroller back home.

 

(Jon – I don’t advise you to do this with Logan Parker!)

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

Cure for Stress

 

A woman accompanied her husband to the doctor’s office. After his check-up, the doctor called the wife into his office alone.

 

He said, “Your husband is suffering from a very severe stress disorder. If you don’t do the following, your husband will surely die.”

“Each morning, fix him a healthy breakfast. Be pleasant at all times. For lunch make him a nutritious meal. For dinner also prepare a nice meal for him. Don’t burden him with chores. Don’t discuss your problems with him, it will only make his stress worse. No nagging and most importantly, make love to your husband several times a week. If you can do this for the next ten months to a year, I’m sure that your husband will regain his health completely.”

 

On the way home, the husband asked his wife, “What did the doctor say?”

 

“He said you’re going to die.” She replied.

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

Congress At Its Best

 

 Once upon a time the government had a vast scrap yard in the middle of a desert. Congress said, "Someone may steal from it at night." So they created a night watchman position and hired a person for the job. Then Congress said, "How does the watchman do his job without instruction?" So, they created a planning department and hired two people, one person to write the instructions, and one person to do time studies. Then Congress said, "How will we know the night watchman is doing his tasks correctly?" So they created the Quality Control Department and hired two people. One to do the studies and one to write the reports. Then Congress said, "How are these people going to get paid?" So they created a timekeeper and a payroll officer position, then hired two people for the roles. Then Congress said, "Who will be accountable for all of these people?" So, they created an administrative section and hired three people: An Administrative Officer, Assistant Administrative Officer, and a Legal Secretary. Then Congress said, "We have had this command in operation for one year and we are $18,000 over budget, we must cut back on overall cost." So, they laid off the night watchman

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

A Very Smart Dog

 

As a butcher is shooing a dog from his shop, he sees a $10 and a note in his mouth, reading: "5 lamb chops, please.” 

 

Amazed, he takes the money, puts a bag of chops in the dog's mouth, and quickly closes the shop. He follows the dog and watches him wait for a green light, look both ways, and trot across the road to a bus stop. The dog checks the timetable and sits on the bench. When a bus arrives, he walks around to the front and looks at the number, then boards the bus. 

 

The butcher follows, dumbstruck. As the bus travels out into the suburbs, the dog takes in the scenery. After a while, he stands on his back paws to push the "stop" bell, then the butcher follows him off. 

 

The dog runs up to a house and drops his bag on the step. He goes back down the path, takes a big run, and throws himself -Whap!- against the door. He does this again and again. No answer. So he jumps on a wall, walks around the garden, beats his head against a window, jumps off, and waits at the front door. 

 

A big guy opens it and starts cursing and shouting at the dog. 

 

The butcher runs up and screams at the guy: "What the hell are you doing? This dog's a genius!” 

 

"Genius, my butt - It's the second time this week he's forgotten his keys!"

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

Little Alex at Church (for the first time)

 

One Sunday morning, the pastor noticed little Alex standing in the foyer of the church, staring up at a large plaque.  It was covered with names and small American flags mounted on either side of it.  

 

The six-year-old had been staring at the plaque for some time, so the pastor walked up, stood beside the little boy, and said quietly, “Good morning, Alex.”

 

“Good morning, Pastor,” he replied, still focused on the plaque.  “Pastor, what is this?”

 

The pastor replied, “Well, son, it’s a memorial to all the young men and women who died in the service.”

 

Soberly, they just stood together, staring at the large plaque.

 

Finally, little Alex’s voice, barely audible, and trembling with fear, asked, “Which service?  The 8:00 or the 10:30?"

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

Overnight Train Trip

 

On a long-distance train journey, a man and a woman accidentally ended up in the same sleeping cabin. Both were married, but they didn’t know each other. At first it was a bit awkward and uncomfortable, but since they were very tired, they soon fell asleep. The man slept on the upper berth and the woman on the lower berth. Around 1 a.m., the man woke up because it was cold. He slowly leaned down and woke the woman, saying, “Excuse me, ma’am, sorry to disturb you, but I’m feeling very cold. Could you please take out another blanket from the drawer?” The woman smiled and replied, “I have a better idea. Just for tonight, why don’t we behave like husband and wife?” The man was stunned! With sweets bursting in his mind, he happily said, “Wow! What a great idea! Sure!” The woman immediately said, “Then stop being lazy… go and get your own blanket yourself!” There was a moment of silence… and then the man let out a loud fart!

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

It’s Time for a TGIF Golden Classic

 

The Smart Undertaker

 

Margaret was very upset as her husband Albert had just passed away. She went to the undertakers to have one last look at her dearly departed husband. The instant she saw him she started crying. One of the undertakers strides up to provide comfort in this somber moment. Through her tears she explains that she is upset because her dearest Albert was wearing a black suit, and it was his dying wish to be buried in a blue suit. 

 

The undertaker apologizes and explains that traditionally, they always put the bodies in a black suit, but he'd see what he could arrange. The next day she returned to the undertakers to have one last moment with Albert before his funeral the following day. When the undertaker pulls back the curtain, she managed to smile through her tears as Albert is resplendent in a smart blue suit. 

 

She said to the undertaker "Wonderful, wonderful, but where did you get that beautiful blue suit?” 

 

"Well, yesterday afternoon after you left, a man about your husband's size was brought in & he was wearing a blue suit. His wife explained that she was very upset as he had always wanted to be buried in a black suit," the undertaker replied. 

 

The wife smiled at the man. 

 

He continued, "After that, it was simply a matter of swapping the heads."

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

AND since I haven’t issued a TGIF in a long time, here is a bonus Oldie:

 

A woman named Jill stood up at her church's Testimony Meeting one Sunday morning, took the microphone from one of the church ushers, and bared her soul to the enraptured congregation: "I want to tell you about the awful accident that my husband, Jim, has suffered this past month. He was riding his Harley, lost control, ran off the highway and hit a tree. He was rushed to the hospital, and could have died, but thank the Lord, all he suffered was a broken scrotum.” 

 

The congregation gasped in horror. The men in the congregation were obviously uneasy and writhed in their seats. 

 

"Jim has been in terrible pain all month since the accident. He has trouble breathing. He has trouble swallowing his food. He can hardly lift anything, he's in so much pain, and he has missed work because of it. He can't lift our children up to hold them and give them the personal love that they need. Worst of all, we can no longer cuddle and have intimate relations. He is in constant pain, a pain so terrible that our love life has all but slipped away into oblivion. I would like to ask you all in the congregation to pray for Jim, and pray for us, that his broken scrotum will soon heal and be as good as new. 

 

A dull murmur erupted within the congregation as the full impact of this terrible accident sank in, and the men in the congregation were visibly shaken up with the thought that, "There but for the grace of God go I.” 

 

Then, as the murmuring settled down, a lone figure stood up in midst of the congregation, worked his way up to the pulpit, obviously in pain, adjusted the microphone to his liking, then leaned over and said to the congregation: "My name is Jim, and I have only one word for my wife, Jill. That word is: sternum."

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

When informed of my recent medical episode, one of my friends said that she was happy that I survived my “recent skirmish with mortality”. I agree and feel very fortunate to still be above ground.

 

I wish all of you good health.

 

Have a fantastic Friday and a wonderful weekend! Until the next time,

 

TGI-Jeff