A man was sentenced to prison. Shortly after he arrived, he was in the rec room with all the other convicts. There was a small dais on one end of the room. Upon the dais was a man yelling out numbers. Each time he said a different number, everyone would laugh.
He asiked one of the guys there: “What’s going on?” He was told: “Well, we’ve all been ‘around the block’ so many times, we’ve heard all the jokes there are. To save time, we have numbered them. When someone gets up and says a number, everyone is reminded of the original joke and we all get a good laugh.”
The new guy made it his mission to memorize all the numbers so he could join in the fun.
About a week later, when he was in the rec room, he took the dais and had his turn. He yelled out: “228.” No response. Then he yelled: “73.” Still nothing. He tried once more: “56.” Dead silence.
Embarrassed and mortified, he slunk from the dais and lost himself in the crowd.
Another guy took the dais and yelled out: “228.” Everyone laughed. Then he said: “73.” Everyone cracked up once again. Then he tried: “56.” The convicts were rolling on the floor with laughter and guffaws.
The new guy turned to another convict and complained: “Hey, he’s saying all the numbers I just said. I got absolutely no response yet he is getting nothing but laughs. What’s up with that?!!”
He was told: “Well, some guys can tell a joke and some can’t.”