Boudreaux:)
Alice Chauvin Bradshaw
Boudreaux and Marie took a little weekend getaway trip recently, and on
checking out of the motel, Boudreaux was presented a bill for $400.00
for just two nights. Well being the frugal individual Boudreaux is, he
proceeded to cut loose on the desk clerk. "For why my bill is so high ?
We wuz jus'here for two nights !" The clerk advises him, "Well,sir, the
motel has a health spa, exercise equipment, running track, and an
olympic size swimming pool." Boudreaux tells him, "But I didn't use none
of dat stuff." The clerk replies, "Maybe not, but it was availabile."
Well Boudreaux really has his mad up now, and tells the guy, "Well if I
got to pay dat, here's a bill for you for $350.00 for you sleeping wid
my wife while we was here !" The clerk tells Boudreaux that he didn't
sleep with his wife. Boudreaux screams back at him, "Well, maybe not,
but she was available !" --------------------
a_dumb_coon-ass_like_boudreaux
would be: cajuns are too ignorant to know how much a hotel room costs
("For why my bill is so high?", Brilliant); cajuns do not speak proper
English (see above); cajuns sell their wives as prostitutes. Amazing.
Thanks for sharing this.
Terry Thibodeaux
story. Thanks, Alice.
--
Terry M. Thibodeaux
Lofiwoman
of this humorous exchange.
The Cajun is not ignorant of what a hotel room costs, he is frugal and savvy
and knows that $200 per night should have bought him more than exercise
equipment and a pool. The actual value ot the said room on a weekend within a
close drive of Acadiana would be closer to $85 per night plus tax - probably a
total of $100.
The Cajun banters with the clerk hoping to negotiate a lower rate, but the
clerk does not understand the folkways of the Cajun and instead rebuffs him and
tries to make him feel stupid. He probably could have offered to take something
off of the price, but was unwilling to play on the Cajun's terms. This is
typical of the injustice and lack of understanding the English have of Cajun
ways.
The Cajun is not required to speak "proper English" when his native tongue, a
tongue that the clerk was able to understand, is a Cajun Frenglish variation.
It is part of his cultural identity and it is the choice of the Cajun to use
this idiom. While some Cajuns do not choose to use this in all circumstances,
the traditional archetype character Boudreaux, like his contemporary
Thibodeaux, is a folk character and would naturally favor a stereotypical
vernacular. The humor would be lost if Boudreaux/Thibodeaux were to step out of
character.
Lastly, Mssr. Boudreaux by no means is selling his wife as a prostitute nor
does he have any intention of doing so. He is simply using an analogy to
illustrate his dissatisfaction with the cost of the room and subsequent
insignificant value ratio.
The important thing to note is that Boudreaux is still negotiating with the
clerk. If the clerk is savvy, he will counter that perhaps they could settle
for a fair price for the whole contest, a cost I estimate between $200 and $300
for the two nights. And the clerk will emerge wiser from his encounter with the
clever Boudreaux.
The other point lost by "A Dumb Coon-Ass Like Boudreaux" is humor. Perhaps he
should take this to the ACLU for examination.
Martha
>Hey, this is pretty funny. So, the relevance to alt.culture.cajun
>would be: cajuns are too ignorant to know how much a hotel room costs
>("For why my bill is so high?", Brilliant); cajuns do not speak proper
>English (see above); cajuns sell their wives as prostitutes. Amazing.
>Thanks for sharing this.
>
>On Mon, 20 Sep 1999 18:29:16 -0500 (CDT), A-mae-...@webtv.net
>(Alice Chauvin Bradshaw) wrote:
>
>> Boudreaux Pays hotel bill
>>Boudreaux and Marie took a little weekend getaway trip recently, and on
>>checking out of the motel . . .
a_dumb_coon-ass_like_boudreaux
>The Cajun is not ignorant of what a hotel room costs, he is frugal and savvy
>
Most savvy people know to negotiate the price of things *before* they
buy.
>The actual value ot the said room on a weekend within a
>close drive of Acadiana would be closer to $85 per night plus tax
>
Actually, don't most motel rooms near Acadiana rent by the hour?
>This is typical of the injustice and lack of understanding the English
>have of Cajun ways.
>
Trying to pay less than the previously agreed upon price is typically
Cajun, hey?
>The Cajun is not required to speak "proper English" when his native tongue, a
>tongue that the clerk was able to understand, is a Cajun Frenglish variation.
>
I just wish more people spoke Eubonfrenglish, don't you?
>It is part of his cultural identity and it is the choice of the Cajun to use
>this idiom. While some Cajuns do not choose to use this in all circumstances,
>
Some choose to never do it. Good for them.
>The humor would be lost if Boudreaux/Thibodeaux were to step out of
>character.
>
No, the "humor" would not be lost at all. You could make Boudreaux
Polish or black or whatever other ethnicity you want to demean and the
"humor" would not change one iota. There is nothing inherently
"Cajun" in this "joke."
>If the clerk is savvy, he will counter that perhaps they could settle
>for a fair price
>
If the clerk is really savvy he'll call the police and have the bum
arrested.
>The other point lost by "A Dumb Coon-Ass Like Boudreaux" is humor.
>
If you really find this humorous, then the joke is on you.
Darrel Toepfer
"Thank god" is it really you? Long time no type... Noticed you upgraded to
the new release of Agent, any complaints about it? Several have mentioned
that it is a bigger resource hog than before, has quite a few undocumented
new features though... TTFN...
Phillip B. Tassin Jr.
Choupique
choupique
Terry Thibodeaux <scm...@shsu.edu> wrote in message
news:37E79B94...@shsu.edu...
Pgeille
<tas...@bellsouth.net> a écrit :
>The words anal retentive come to mind.
Tu parles de donner de la confiture aux cochons! Il y en a un seul dans ce
groupe pour couper avec une hache à deux taillants comme ça, et c'est un
cou-rouge plus Cadien que les Cadiens qui a toujours un pet coincé.
T'as deviné qui c'est, vous-autres? Non? Il écrit à la fois sous son vrai nom
et sous un nom de plume...Toujours rien?
Tom Coleman
nicest features of being Cajun is the ability to laugh at oneself. Without
this trait we would have been gone long ago.
a_dumb_coon-ass_like_boudreaux
wrote:
>I believe your handle belies your ability to grasp basic humor.
>
Alice's little "joke" is certainly base, but I fail to see the humor.
>One of the nicest features of being Cajun is the ability to laugh
>at oneself.
>
Bullshit. I know plenty of Cajuns who don't have the ability to laugh
at themselves. And I know plenty of "English" with that ability.
It's a "human" trait, not a "Cajun" trait.
>Without this trait we would have been gone long ago.
>
Somehow I don't think the Boudreaux and Thibodeaux brand of "humor"
has been a significant factor in the survival of cajun culture.
Tom Coleman
TSHACK
Tom Coleman <col...@hotmail.com*> wrote in message
news:colemat-2309...@170.149.211.78...
> I think I just got suckered into a pissing match with an unarmed man.
If you wanted to avoid mixing your metaphors, you could have just called him
d*ckless.
Duh
CSH_JXB
PLEASE TRANSLATE YOUR COMMENTS BELOW FOR ME.
I AM CURRENTLY AUDITING A FRENCH CLASS, IT HAS BEEN 33
YEARS SINCE I HAVE STUDIED FRENCH. I UNDERSTAND SOME OF
YOUR REMARKS BUT NOT ALL.
THANKING YOU IN ADVANCE.
JUDY BOUDREAUX
Phillip B. Tassin Jr.
It seems as though someone has a redneck, and a wedged fart. I haven't figured
out who that person is. Pgeille certainly can't be talking about me. The last
time I had a red neck was when I went fishing at Grand Isle, which has been a
couple of weeks, and my neck has since turned a golden bronze.
P. B. Tassin Jr.
Phillip B. Tassin Jr.
TSHACK wrote:
So what happened to his duck, Dwight? No man should be duckless.....
Choupique
http://babelfish.altavista.digital.com/cgi-bin/translate
Choupique
fruit has enuff on his hands as it is ....
choupique
Phillip B. Tassin Jr. <tas...@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:37EB51A0...@bellsouth.net...
Lofiwoman
>fruit has enuff on his hands as it is ....
>
>choupique
>
C'mon guys - email me and tell me who ADCALB is! And how come yall are so sure
it's a man? <VBG>
Let's keep picking on him though. He's really asking for it. I think Tom
Coleman was starting to hit on what I suspect - I don't thing ADCALB is a real
Cajun because if he was he would be in on the joke - literally!
Martha
A jovial 9th great-granddaughter of Michel Boudrot (the original Boudreaux) and
7th great-granddaughter of Pierre Thibodeau (the original Thibodeau)
adcalb_-_not
>C'mon guys - email me and tell me who ADCALB is!
>
They don't know.
>I don't thing ADCALB is a real Cajun
>
"Real Cajun" as in Boudreaux and Thibodeaux? No, thanks.
What is a "Real Cajun" anyway? Is it by blood only? Do you have to
speak Cajun French? Know how to make a roux? Who decides who is a
"Real Cajun"?
IAC, my ggg-grandfather was a "Real Cajun" named Trahan from
Abbeville. My name is not Trahan, but I'm the 9th great-grandchild of
Guillaume Trahan (the original Trahan, in Acadia anyway). Michael
Boudrot is my tenth-great grandfather (hi cousin Martha) and Pierre
Thibodeau is my ninth-great grandfather. There's lots more, including
Leblancs and Aucoins and Pitres and Bourgeois.
I was not raised in the Cajun tradition, did not even know I had any
Cajun ancestors until a few years ago when I started delving in to my
family history. I've since learned a lot about Cajun history, things
I never learned in school. So, though I make no claim to being a
"Real Cajun" I do know something about Cajun culture.
> because if he was he would be in on the joke - literally!
>
I don't want to be in on the joke. I find the joke(s) reprehensible
and find it inconceivable that "Real Cajuns" find these jokes funny.
To me it would be like a black telling a little Sambo joke and
thinking it is funny.
But, hey, I'm not a "Real Cajun" so what do I know?
Alice Chauvin Bradshaw
TSHACK
Lofiwoman <lofi...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:19990924163515...@ng-ch1.aol.com...
> >now , now , lets not get do_white on another one of his sex tangents....
the
> >fruit has enuff on his hands as it is ....
> >
> >choupique
> >
I love my killfile.
TSHACK
Welcome to the family son. Our tree don't branch.
duhwite
Phillip B. Tassin Jr. <tas...@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:37EB4FE0...@bellsouth.net...
> I'll tell you what I got out of it.
>
> It seems as though someone has a redneck, and a wedged fart. I haven't
figured
> out who that person is. Pgeille certainly can't be talking about me. The
last
> time I had a red neck was when I went fishing at Grand Isle, which has
been a
> couple of weeks, and my neck has since turned a golden bronze.
>
> P. B. Tassin Jr.
>
>
>
> CSH_JXB wrote:
>
> > Pgeille,
> > PLEASE TRANSLATE YOUR COMMENTS BELOW FOR ME.
> > I AM CURRENTLY AUDITING A FRENCH CLASS, IT HAS BEEN 33
> > YEARS SINCE I HAVE STUDIED FRENCH. I UNDERSTAND SOME OF
> > YOUR REMARKS BUT NOT ALL.
> > THANKING YOU IN ADVANCE.
> > JUDY BOUDREAUX
> >
> > Pgeille wrote:
> >
> > > Dans l'article <37E82B97...@bellsouth.net>, "Phillip B. Tassin
Jr."
TSHACK
>
>
> TSHACK wrote:
>
> > Tom Coleman <col...@hotmail.com*> wrote in message
> > news:colemat-2309...@170.149.211.78...
> > > I think I just got suckered into a pissing match with an unarmed man.
> >
> > If you wanted to avoid mixing your metaphors, you could have just called
him
> > d*ckless.
>
> So what happened to his duck, Dwight? No man should be duckless.....
>
>
>
Just dogris to disagree.
Of course, if your dockless, its harder to get to dem ducks.
Lofiwoman
mean-spirited adolescent taunting that emerged. Maybe I should try to make my
points without insulting anyone.
ADCALB-not - I guess the first red flag that went up on your post for me is the
fact that you have an anonymous-type email - I'm not sure what the techie
definition is - and you attack here without identifying yourself. Nearly
everyone who posts (I can only speak for the English alt.culture.cajun posts)
here has a full name and a hometown that is available to other posters. Even
Choupique <VBG>.
The other thing that made me suspicious is your usage of Coon-ass in
identifying yourself. That has been a hotly debated topic here in the past and
some equate it with the "N" word. For you to attack a relatively benign
Boudreaux joke but identify yourself as a Coon-ass seemed a little incongruous.
I have something else in common with you in that I didn't know I was Cajun till
I was grown. However, that was denial on my family's part. They did maintain
many traditional things especially cooking. And I was born and raised in Dayton
OH but my mother is a native of and lives in Baton Rouge.
>I don't want to be in on the joke. I find the joke(s) reprehensible
>and find it inconceivable that "Real Cajuns" find these jokes funny.
>To me it would be like a black telling a little Sambo joke and
>thinking it is funny.
But conversely, black people use the "N" word in speaking with each other but
are offended if a white uses it.
You say you have read up on your Cajun history. Have you read much on Cajun
folklore and tradition - like William Faulkner Rushton's "The Cajuns - From
Acadia to Louisiana," C. Paige Guitteriez' (not sure if the spelling is right -
sorry) "Cajun Foodways" or anything with Barry Jean Ancelet's name on it?
The Boudreaux and Thibodeaux jokes are even featured regularly in Smiley
Anders' column in the Baton Rouge Advocate. Probably Shane Bernard could
explain the cultural significance of the jokes.
I guess I wish I could explain why these jokes are not considered offensive by
most Cajuns in my experience.
Martha Guthrie
Who has been called a Coonass and a Yankee in the same breath by her cousins in
Louisiana
Brian Gabriel Comeaux
there is none. Boudreaux and Thibodeaux jokes are not necessarily
offensive (although many are), but rather that they are rarely original
and have little to do with authentic Cajun humor.
Most of the Boudreaux and Thibodeaux jokes are simply reworkings with
new names from some stale Aggie joke book, Polish joke book or
whatever. And most of them weren't any funnier when the butt of the
joke was named Kolkowski or Bubba.
If there is cultural significance to Boudreaux and Thibodeaux jokes, it
is that they are a sign of the gradual degradation and death of the
culture. They are crowding out authentic and genuine Cajun humor. My
late uncle, Wilty Broussard, who may never have left his corner of rural
Lafayette Parish in his life and who spoke only French, was a very funny
man, but he never uttered nor I imagine, ever even heard, a Boudreaux
and Thibodeaux joke in his life.
Authentic Cajun/Acadian humor (and in this regard, there is very little
difference between Acadians from Canada and those from Louisiana) must
have been influenced by the British occupations, because its most
remarkable characteristic is its dryness. The best representation of
this in English that I know of is in the movie, BELIZAIRE, THE CAJUN.
Take a look. There is also a strong humorous storytelling tradition in
Cajun culture that is lost by the proliferation of copycat Boudreaux and
Thibodeaux jokes. Most of the good storytellers either work or did work
in French. I'm thinking of Marion Marcotte, Allen Simon, Thelma Daigle,
etc. Professor Barry Ancelet has done work documenting the storytellers
and has a book of stories on the market. I believe the name is Cajun
and Creole Folktales. Marcotte and Simon are also excellent recorded
representations of the richness of Cajun French well spoken.
BGC
Alice Chauvin Bradshaw
Acadians and the hope on their faces... Oh Please, see why Humor, Love
and Laughter and Devotion to Mary and their Church sustained them!!!
And know that this is what made it possible for ALL of US to be here
now. I do so much wish you'd been to the CMA99 Reunion. Alice, A Happy
Cajun, and NOBODY can take that away from me, NOT EVER!! Prejean Poem
http://members.xoom.com/Gatiendebois/DeportationToFrance.html
adcalb_-_not
>The other thing that made me suspicious is your usage of Coon-ass in
>identifying yourself. That has been a hotly debated topic here in the past and
>some equate it with the "N" word.
>
Exactly. And to me the B/T "jokes" are just as demeaning as the "N"
word. My use of the term Coon-ass was intended to point out that the
B/T jokes are in the same class as using the term Coon-ass.
> For you to attack a relatively benign Boudreaux joke but identify yourself
>as a Coon-ass seemed a little incongruous.
>
For you to identify yourself as a Cajun and laugh at B/T jokes is, to
me, a lot incongruous.
>But conversely, black people use the "N" word in speaking with each other but
>are offended if a white uses it.
>
You can not seriously believe that all black people use the word
"nigger" when speaking to each other. Any you can not seriously
believe that there are black people offended by the word "nigger" no
matter who is using it. The use of the word "nigger" is offensive,
period. I think the B/T jokes are also offensive, period.
>I guess I wish I could explain why these jokes are not considered offensive by
>most Cajuns in my experience.
>
Me too.
adcalb_-_not
<bcom...@earthlink.net> wrote:
>If there is cultural significance to Boudreaux and Thibodeaux jokes, it
>is that they are a sign of the gradual degradation and death of the
>culture.
>
Thank you. This is exactly the sentiment I wanted to express but did
not know how.
Tom Coleman
> >
> I don't want to be in on the joke. I find the joke(s) reprehensible
> and find it inconceivable that "Real Cajuns" find these jokes funny.
> To me it would be like a black telling a little Sambo joke and
> thinking it is funny.
Some of the raunchiest and meanest ethnic jokes were told by black women
who let me in on a hen session a few years ago. I'm sure they got dirtier
just to watch me turn redder. Sambo jokes would have been tame.
Me, I'm Boudreaux blood, and my children are Boudreaux/Soileau/Dupre.
Ain't got a chance of being anything else. I laugh at the Boudreaux
Thibodaux jokes all the time cause I know people just like that. Sometimes
I'm one of them like that.
Best punch line:
"Mais, Boudreaux, what you got in the boat now, neg?"
"I got me some pussy willow."
"Hold on, I'll get my hat."
Alice Chauvin Bradshaw
BEFORE THAT? ME