This fool’s not falling for anything on April 1st
Don’t try to fool me this April Fool’s Day, because I’m not
believing anything anyone says. Not even for a second.
As The Who so poetically put it,
”
Won’t get fooled again.
”
I had the misfortune of being entirely too gullible during my
younger years and now everyone thinks I’m a target on the most
foolish day of the year.
This fool’s not falling for anything on April 1st
Don’t try to fool me this April Fool’s Day, because I’m not believing anything anyone says. Not even for a second.
As The Who so poetically put it, “Won’t get fooled again.”
I had the misfortune of being entirely too gullible during my younger years and now everyone thinks I’m a target on the most foolish day of the year.
Once, years ago, someone told me the German word for underwear was “understrappen,” and I believed him. For years. That was embarrassing.
I’ve had some other people tell me things that I can’t repeat in a family newspaper, and I believed. But that was a long time ago.
I’ve had my own darling son tell me he was getting married when he didn’t have any intention of doing so. I believed him … for a minute. Then I realized what day of the year it was and let him know that the jig was up.
Whew, that was a close one.
I also had a friend who loved to leave prank messages for other reporters on April 1; one memorable one was when Harry Lyons was calling from the Denver Zoo. April Fool!
At least it’s more original than asking people to let Prince Albert out of the can.
Why do we want to fool other people? Of course, it’s socially acceptable (sort of) on April 1, but some people love to pull the wool over their friends’ eyes at any time of year. But on April Fool’s Day, many more pranksters get into the act.
Wikipedia reports that Chaucer referred to April 1 and pranks in “The Canterbury Tales,” circa 1392, in his story of a vain rooster who is tricked by a fox. That’s the earliest known reference to April Fool’s Day. However, there is a Feast of Fools that was celebrated in medieval times, although it was in September and not April.
Various stories over the years enhanced the idea of an April Fools’ Day, and it’s become a tradition throughout the United States, Europe, New Zealand, South Africa and Australia. In France, you’re known as a poisson d’avril (literally “April fish”), making the connection between fools and fish being easily hooked.
Sometimes the pranks are small; sometimes they’re huge. The most famous April Fool’s hoaxes include the 1957 BBC program about where spaghetti comes from (they showed the Swiss “harvesting” it from trees); Taco Bell in 1996 taking out an ad saying it was buying the Liberty Bell to “reduce the country’s debt” and renaming it the “Taco Liberty Bell;” and Burger King in 1998 announcing its restaurants would start selling a Whopper for left-handed people. (Apparently customers really fell for this one; some came in requesting right-handed Whoppers, too.)
One of my favorite big April Fool’s pranks took place in 1983, when an Australian millionaire claimed to have towed an iceberg from Antarctica to Sydney Harbor. He went so far as to create the illusion of an iceberg, using a barge covered with white plastic and fire extinguisher foam to convince witnesses.
I can appreciate April Fool’s pranks, especially the really well-done ones; I myself don’t pull them on anyone. It’s just not something I think I can pull off. I wouldn’t be convincing enough – I know I would blow it by giggling, sweating or looking guilty.
No, I guess I’ll just be content to be preyed upon. But I’m not going to fall for any of it. Really I’m not.
April Fool!
