Target Practice

I realize my posts have been somewhat serious lately; lacking a bit of my troublesome charm, to say the least. So I want to lighten things up a bit and talk about “that guy” and “that girl.” You all know who I am talking about. (You may even find after reading this post, that you are that person).

I want to preface this discussion by saying that I would not consider myself a mean-spirited person. I am 100% completely capable of being a jerk, but I don’t go around looking to put people down. I am just usually willing to say what the rest of you are thinking, and I’d love it if you didn’t fault me for that.

With that being said, some people are just asking for it.

Everyone knows that one person in their group of friends that just makes themselves an easy target. As a bit of jokester myself, I usually appreciate a challenge. However, if someone is just going to hand-feed me material by simply showing up, well hey- I will never pass up a chance to make a wise-crack. Now, it’s not necessarily that they aren’t liked or accepted in the group; it’s that you can basically rely on them to be at the butt of a joke… every time. And I appreciate them for it because they provide me with SO much fun and entertainment!

Now if you haven’t noticed yet, I love putting my observations into groups or classifications. (I like that they make people easier to spot). I’ll narrow this down for time’s sake, but there are two types of people I like to use for target practice. There are your stereotypes and your sitting duck.

The stereotype is just an easy one really. It’s easy because, whether people like them or not, there is truth to them. It’s because of these people that the stereotype even exists. You have your token black guy, meathead, prepster, slut, frat-bro; the list goes on and on. While I realize that everyone can be put into a category of some kind, these people just meet the definition to a tee. It really is almost as though the stereotype was created after them. These guys are usually proud of whatever it is they’re representing so most of the time they won’t even realize you’re making fun of them (which I think adds some to the fun sometimes).

Then you have the Sitting Duck; the name itself offers really all you need to know. They are an easy target simply because they never fight back. They just sit there and take it. Now you actually need ammo for this type of person in order to crack a joke. They won’t always just give it to you- you may have to wait for them to open their mouth or something, but once you've found their weakness, it’s like taking candy from a baby. This type of person is a different kind of fun because they can usually laugh with you- they just lack the quick humor it takes to shoot back.

Joking around is really a competitive sport for me so I enjoy shooting it back and forth with people more than I like just going after “that guy.” I like to work for my fun a bit more, and I don't like joking around when it is just plain mean- it really is about the funny-factor for me. However, I am going to give a shout-out and dedicate this post to all “those people” we know that provide us with easy amusement time and time again. Thanks guys!