“Was THAT on your 2020 Bingo Card?”
A *lot* has happened this year, and 2020 still has four loooong months to go. There’s a worldwide pandemic, social upheaval around the world—and also cocaine boars, bubonic squirrels, land hurricanes, California’s on fire again, and remember murder hornets? Plus all of the other insane/terrible things that have happened in 2020, which unfortunately didn’t include dolphins in the Venice canals—sorry.
How does one get through each day when the prior 238 days (and probably the next 127) have been a total disaster? A lot of people use laughter as a coping strategy*, and there’s legitimate science behind the adage “laughter is the best medicine“. While it may feel inappropriate to laugh about genuine human tragedies, there’s another adage that “comedy is tragedy plus time”…and the pandemic is definitely a tragedy that has left folks with too much time on their hands…(that’s what they meant, right?)
Laughter is definitely one of my coping strategies, and I am especially fond of satire, parody, and absurdist humor. Below are some of the funniest pandemic/2020-themed things I’ve read this year. Are there any others you would recommend?
*Please seek out professional help, if you need it. 2020 has been enormously difficult for millions of people; you don’t need to get through it alone.
Funny Writings to Help You Cope
Humor From McSweeney’s
- The Plastics From Mean Girls Revise Their Dress Code for Quarantine (Amanda Lehr)
- Job Posting: Middle School Language Arts Teacher/Cheerleading Coach/Custodian/Nurse/COVID-19 and Anti-Racism Specialist Wanted (Samuel Jaye Tanner and Ben Stasney)
- Dad Jokes Ruined by the Global Pandemic (Vidya Rajan)
- Living With a Pandemic or a Newborn? (Lauri Watkins)
- We Shouldn’t Presume That the Velociraptor Experts Know the Best Way to Deal With Velociraptor Attacks (Carlos Greaves)
- Sure, the Velociraptors Are Still on the Loose, But That’s No Reason Not to Reopen Jurassic Park (Carlos Greaves)
- Frog and Toad Tentatively Go Outside After Months in Self-Quarantine (Jennie Egerdie)
- Neighborhood Casting Call for Quarantine’s End: A Play in 856 Acts (Kara Baskin)
- Short Existentialist Plays Starring You, Your Coworkers, and Your Family During Quarantine (Mike Jungman)
- I’m a Suburban Mom Housewife—Here’s How To Get My Vote (Wendi Aarons and Devorah Blachor)
- Just Because They’ve Turned Against Humanity Doesn’t Mean We Should Defund the Terminator Program (Carlos Greaves)
- We’d Love to Join Your Learning Pod (Faith Salie)
Humor From The Onion
- Man Not Sure Why He Thought Most Psychologically Taxing Situation Of His Life Would Be The Thing To Make Him Productive
- Researchers Warn Coronavirus May Use Propeller Hat To Stay Airborne
- ‘Light ’Em Up, Boys!’ Shouts Gun-Toting CDC Grunt After Hundreds Of Baby Coronaviruses Burst Out Of Pulsating Nest
- ‘Damn You’ Shouts Contact Tracer Losing Track Of Coronavirus After It Catches Hold Of Helicopter’s Ladder
- Desperate CDC Now Just Claiming Wearing A Mask Will Make You Rich And Famous Beyond Wildest Dreams
- ‘Run! Dear God, Run!’ Screams Woman Who Forgot About Sourdough Starter As Doughy Tendril Wraps Around Throat
Humor From Elsewhere
- Quarantine Tips From My Cat (Nikki Palumbo, The New Yorker)
- New Evidence Indicates Intelligence Not Contagious (Andy Borowitz, The New Yorker)
- The Graduation Speech I Wrote Before All This Still Works Fine (Alexandra Petri, The Washington Post)
- New Study Confirms Cats Can’t Spread COVID-19, But Would If Given Option (The Needling)
- ‘Be Our Guest,’ Revised for Disney’s Pandemic Reopening (Alexandra Petri, The Washington Post)
- Betsy Devos Promises to Protect Children from Education (Andy Borowitz, The New Yorker)
- Aliens Issue Statement Asserting That Sex With Them Does Not Spread the Coronavirus (Andy Borowitz, The New Yorker)
- Know The Signs: How to Tell if Your Grandparent Has Become an ANTIFA Agent (Alexandra Petri, The Washington Post)
- So Shakespeare wrote King Lear During a Plague. Well, Good for Him, Say All the Writers. (Literary Hub)
- 18 Posts About Social Distancing That Are Just The Comic Relief You Need Right Now (BuzzFeed)