humor

Imran Khan, Pakistan's former prime minister, during an interview in Lahore, Pakistan, on June 2.

World News

When Pakistan's politics get tough, Pakistanis respond with memes and humor

9:46am June 16, 2023

by Betsy Joles

Political humor in Pakistan has evolved over the years to evade censorship and other restrictions. After ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan's arrest in May, the internet exploded with memes and jokes.

Culture

NC author offers advice on using humor for a more engaged life

6:00am October 17, 2022

by Neal Charnoff

How much fun do you have at work? Mike Cundall thinks there is plenty of room for humor in the workplace.

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TK Clockwise from left: Kim Worsham; Bradley Phillips; Michelle Hiebert; Maria Khan

Health & Safety

It's World Toilet Day! Time for quirky signs (thanks, readers) ... and serious talk

2:47pm November 19, 2021

by Marc Silver

Let's take time off from pondering the pandemic to enjoy some toilet humor courtesy of signage sent in by our audience — and also to think about how lucky we are if we have a safe toilet.

Health & Safety

Counseling Tips On Navigating Today's Many Challenges

3:13pm September 23, 2020

by David Ford

2020 has been full of events that could take a toll on a person's mental health.

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"If we can erase some of the stigma around [depression and suicide]," says podcast host John Moe, "that person can have at least a better shot at treatment and avoiding this kind of fate."

Humorist Lightens Depression's Darkness By Talking (And Laughing) About It

3:53pm May 05, 2020

by Terry Gross

Though John Moe's podcast, 'The Hilarious World of Depression' centers on mental illness, the conversations are funny. Humor "can bust me out" of a dark place, he says, the way platitudes never would.

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Oh my, this sea otter in Seward, Alaska, didn't see you standing there!

Arts

PHOTOS: Comedy Wildlife Finalists Offer Ode To Silly Serendipity

7:03pm September 12, 2019

by Colin Dwyer

The 2019 finalists for the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards demonstrate the joys of the happy accident — from a deadpan Japanese macaque to a squirrel wishing on a dandelion.

Illustration of a woman laughing while reading a book.

Books
Arts

We Did It For The LOLs: 100 Favorite Funny Books

10:19am August 20, 2019

by Petra Mayer

We thought you might need a laugh right about now, so this year's summer reader poll celebrates all the books (and one short story, and a few uncategorizable gems) that make you laugh out loud.

Need another cup of coffee? An owl yawns as another looks toward the camera in Alaska.

Arts

Can't Bear More News? Take A Break With Funny Wildlife Furtography

4:48pm September 14, 2018

by Camila Domonoske

Take a gander at these photos — they're pretty amoosing. Yes, it's time for the Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards, and this year you can vote in the "people's choice" category.

"We put on perfumes, we cover up our holes with anything that excretes or is moist we don't want anything to do with."

'Gross Anatomy' Turns Humor On Taboos About The Female Body

5:46pm August 30, 2018

Author Mara Altman got tired of hiding her hairy, sweaty self from the world, and set out to reframe the shame in her latest book of essays — part memoir, part scientific exploration, part manifesto.

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Where are we? In the sinuses, with some dancing green mucus.

For Children, A Good Booger Joke Helps The Medicine Go Down

11:00am December 25, 2017

by Lauren Kafka

Dr. Howard Bennett knows that humor can help his young patients be less worried when they're at the doctor's office. In his latest book, he uses gross-out jokes to explain how kids' bodies work.