'How's the weather?' vs 'What's the weather like?'

[BobK]

I don't understand Barb_D reply in this context.

It's an old joke - swapping the words 'here' and 'beautiful' in a typical post-card message..

b

 

[david11]

It's an old joke - swapping the words 'here' and 'beautiful' in a typical post-card message..

b

Please tell us more about it.

 

[englishhobby]

The Weather Is Here, Wish You Were Beautiful Lyrics - Jimmy Buffett

 

[Barb_D]

Please tell us more about it.

Was this not clear enough?

Old postcards from people vacationing in nice places, when you didn't just get on the phone and answer questions about the weather, used to say "The weather is beautiful. I wish you were here."

This song was a play on that.

 

[david11]

Old postcards from people vacationing in nice places, when you didn't just get on the phone and answer questions about the weather, used to say "The weather is beautiful. I wish you were here."

This song was a play on that.

.

It's an old joke - swapping the words 'here' and 'beautiful' in a typical post-card message..

b

Was this not clear enough?

Your explanation just gives the usage of the sentences "The weather is beautiful. I wish you were here." But in your earlier post you said The weather is here,. I wish you were beautiful ." Later BobK told that it is a joke.I just want to know about what you mean by joke there

 

[Barb_D]

The common expression was "The weather is beautiful. I wish you were here." The joke is switching those words. "The weather is here. I wish you were beautiful."

How would a girlfriend feel if she got a postcard saying "I wish you were beautiful"? It's just a play on words.

I regret introducing the phrase. I'm tempted to delete that post and every one dealing with it.

 

[david11]

I regret introducing the phrase. I'm tempted to delete that post and every one dealing with it.

If you delete the post then the replies related to it would become confusing for the people who read the thread later.

 

[TheParser]

.





I just want to know about what you mean by joke there

***** NOT A TEACHER *****


(1) Let's say that Tom is visiting Paris. He might send a postcard of the Eiffel Tower to

his girlfriend in New York City. Usually, Tom would write on the card:

The weather is beautiful. I wish that you were here.

(2) But let's say that Tom wants to be funny. He might change the position of the

words. So he would write:

The weather is here. I wish that you were beautiful. [He is telling his girlfriend that

she is not beautiful!]

(3) When his girlfriend in the Big Apple (New York City) gets the postcard, she will

laugh and laugh and laugh. Some (many?) native speakers think that changing the

position of those words is really funny!:lol:

*****

Until I read Barb's post, I had never heard of that joke. (I like only pop music of the 1960's.)

 

[david11]

***** NOT A TEACHER *****



(3) When his girlfriend in the Big Apple (New York City) gets the postcard, she will

laugh and laugh and laugh. Some (many?) native speakers think that changing the

position of those words is really funny!:lol:

1960's.)

It will be a joke unless the girl take it seriously. :lol:

 

[5jj]

I regret introducing the phrase. I'm tempted to delete that post and every one dealing with it.

That's the way I feel when one of my 'witty' lines receives a blank response.

It's also the way I feel about my "You lost me there" post. How could I not have seen the point?

 

[Barb_D]

If you delete the post then the replies related to it would become confusing for the people who read the thread later.

David, "and every one dealing with it" would delete all of those posts too.

What a debacle.

Do you at least understand the joke now?

 

[5jj]

What a debacle.

Still, there must be some satisfaction in knowing that this thread has now had more posts submitted this year than 1,674 others.

 

[~Mav~]

How about spicing up this old joke with some deliberate misspelling:

The wether is here. I wish that you were beautiful.
(Significant other to herself: Jeez! Now you're doing the wether, or what?! :shock: :mrgreen: )

:lol:

And to stretch it further, now I'm wondering whether the wether can weather this weather. :lol:

 

[Barb_D]

Well, I learned a new word.

 

[Olympian]

How about spicing up this old joke with some deliberate misspelling:

The wether is here. I wish that you were beautiful.
(Significant other to herself: Jeez! Now you're doing the wether, or what?! :shock: :mrgreen: )

:lol:

And to stretch it further, now I'm wondering whether the wether can weather this weather. :lol:

@Mav, I also learned a new word. Thanks. You are funny. :lol: :up:

 

[Olympian]

Please tell us more about it.

Things become funny when word positions are intentionally swapped. Another one I had seen was - I have things to see and people to do. (Originally - things to do and people to see)
However, it is not so funny if it is explained. Our language sense should just 'get it', so that we can enjoy the joke.

 

[Olympian]

The common expression was "The weather is beautiful. I wish you were here." The joke is switching those words. "The weather is here. I wish you were beautiful."

How would a girlfriend feel if she got a postcard saying "I wish you were beautiful"? It's just a play on words.

I regret introducing the phrase. I'm tempted to delete that post and every one dealing with it.

@Barb_D, I got the joke, but for a moment I suspected you were dissing me. (no, *that* is a joke! ) ;-)

Then I noticed that the people who said they did not understand it are not US-based, so I guessed it may be AmE. By the time I googled it and found that it is a song, Mav had beaten me to posting it! :-(

 

[5jj]

I suppose this type of humour is a version of Spoonerism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[BobSmith]

And to stretch it further, now I'm wondering whether the wether can weather this weather. :lol:

Wether weather weather, buffalo buffalo buffalo.

 

[david11]

David, "and every one dealing with it" would delete all of those posts too.

Are you saying that people who have posted can delete their own post?.Is that possible?

Do you at least understand the joke now?

Of course I do.:lol: