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AIBU?

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Original poster

to ask for your help solving this impossible riddle/joke

999 replies

killingtime9198 · 03/12/2018 10:57

My best friend's family have a family 'joke', which she originally told me about when we were about 12/13. When she originally told me she didn't get the joke either, but then later did manage to work it out. When she first met her now husband he didn't get it, but he later also worked it out. I have never managed to get it, and every now and again I will remember the saga of this joke (this has been going on for about 20 years now), try desperately for a few days to work it out and then forget all about it for months.

Anyway, I wonder if the powers of mumsnet can either locate someone who has heard this 'joke' before, or who can work it out!

The joke is:

'There once was a man called Boswell. For short they called him Bos, and he walked up the post office steps.'

The joke is definitely NOT that there is no joke, and they're all having a laugh at me for trying to work it out - I am 100% confident of this.

OP posts:
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10
Whisky2014 · 04/12/2018 04:57

Right Fucking fuck this. I just told my husband and he says "but its not a riddle, its just a statement." If it doesnt ask a question its not a riddle and i certainly dont see the joke. I think the joke is that there is no joke and as pps have said you have to have your hand on your leg or fly into space whilst guessing to get it right. Its a load of shit. I fucking hate your friend. GAH!

PhilomenaSnowflakeButterfly · 04/12/2018 05:08

GreenTeacup are you my DD 11? DH is Pete and people call him Steve. Confused

SD1978 · 04/12/2018 05:22

People seem to be pretty convinced the OP has been friend with an evil, spiteful, exclusionary pile of pricks for over 20 years. There was a joke 20 years ago. She doesn't get it. Lots of people do t. The family never bring it up. If asked, they will. OP can't let it go (fair enough) doesn't mean she has to start being a rude git to people who have been in her life for 20 years and start making sarcastic comments. If she never mentioned it again- neither would them. Hardly been a 20 year long bully and spite fest........🙄🙄🙄

curlies · 04/12/2018 05:31

This has plagued my dreams.

GreenTeacup · 04/12/2018 05:56

@PhilomenaSnowflakeButterfly

How funny. I’m not but could you imagine Grin.

I showed my DD this and she thinks we have been sucked in.

starlitsky · 04/12/2018 06:06

I really want to know!! Thursday can't come quick enough

BoswellAndNotAndAFox · 04/12/2018 06:20

My friend picked the "For short" just means "to cut a long story short" option.

CisforKite · 04/12/2018 06:34

This is my guess:

The joke/riddle relies on no prior knowledge - i.e. you don't have to know about post offices in Iceland or Postman Pat's cat's name.

The trick is simply in the parsing of the sentence. It is silly wordplay. The trick is in telling the story and having people believe you are saying:

"There once was a man called Boswell. For short they called him Bos, and he walked up the post office steps."

In actual fact, you are saying:

"There once was a man called Bos; well, for short they called him Bos, and he walked up the post office steps."

Bos could be walking into a supermarket or washing the dishes. Location and activity don't matter. We don't know Bos's full name either. It is just a simple story in the end.

Thus, the key to 'getting' it is realizing the 'well' can be used in two different ways. Probably one of those riddles that needs to be said out loud?

costacoffeecup · 04/12/2018 06:42

@curlies me too! Read at 3am and sent me back to sleep musing - in my dream the solution was dog related...it's hardly kekule with the benzene...

Saisong · 04/12/2018 06:44

Tolkien has nothing on this shit!

BumbleyBum · 04/12/2018 07:34

I dreamt that if you read the joke backwards it was funny. Just tried it, it isn’t and makes even less sense.

PurpleRobe · 04/12/2018 07:35

slinger888

Is correct I believe.

And sounds like OP's family are fans of Murder By Death

"Benson Ma'am!"

MoistCantaloupe · 04/12/2018 07:43

I actually dreamt about this last night. It’s all too much!

MoistCantaloupe · 04/12/2018 07:44

Unfortunately my dream had no solution though!

BoswellAndNotAndAFox · 04/12/2018 07:47

There was a man, whose name was Boswell Andforshort. They called him Bos And. He walked up the post office steps.

No no no no no no no. Mamma mia, let it go.

to ask for your help solving this impossible riddle/joke
3luckystars · 04/12/2018 07:48

This is bothering me too.

2 things i can offer,

  1. They probably haven't told you because it is absolutely shit and not funny. It will be a roll eyes, is that it? Feeling.
  1. I think the secret it saying it out loud. We will never get it while written down, if the joke is this old it must have been 'said'

It makes me think of this:
I pretend i am doing a crossword and say i am stuck.
I say 'the postman loses his sack?'
And the person says 'how many letters?'
And i say 'i dont know, he LOST it!'
And everyone laughs.

Try saying the sentence to someone out loud and what is their reply?

Good luck x

Sparkie07 · 04/12/2018 07:53

Is it a limerick? "There once was a man called bos/Boswell/boswelland"??? And the rest is the short version of the limerick? Have had a very quick google for Boswell limericks but not the others... don't see how that's particularly funny though...

BloodyUseless · 04/12/2018 07:53

No, all this slightly different punctuation stuff is just nonsense. Whether it's "Called him Bos, well Bos for short" or "Called him Boswell. Bos for short" doesn't reveal anything whatsoever. It's not a riddle.

And all the solutions that reveal non-existent names like Boswelland, how can you even think that's the answer to anything?

Consider "30 cows and 28 chickens" becoming "30 cows and 20 ate chickens". As shit a riddle as that is (cows are veggie after all) the new sentence has a different meaning completely and changes the maths of the puzzle.

If the solution reveals nothing new or reveals something that makes even less sense than the original it's clearly not a solution!

BoswellAndNotAndAFox · 04/12/2018 07:55

I mean I know you could still have "There once was a woman called Boswell Forshort, they called her Bos, and she walked up to the library," but ohh I hope not.

Mouse14 · 04/12/2018 07:56

'For short' FOUR (letters) short! Bos minus the swell (4 letters!!) eeeeeeeek!!! Have I got it?!?!?! Grin

Mouse14 · 04/12/2018 07:58

Ah but I haven't worked out the bit about the steps Hmm

BoswellAndNotAndAFox · 04/12/2018 07:58

If the solution reveals nothing new or reveals something that makes even less sense than the original it's clearly not a solution!

Well, it's a pulling of the rug out. Or maybe a Pullingov Therugaut.

Mouse14 · 04/12/2018 08:02

It's deffo FOUR letters short. So Bos walked up the steps to get the 'well' 'four letters' back?

SD1978 · 04/12/2018 08:04

I'm with @Mouse14- if the location doesn't matter, 4 short is Bos. Well is an extra 4. So location doesn't matter, as the name is the o key thing that matters- Bos(Well) surely that has to be all it is?! (Now also overly invested)......

BloodyUseless · 04/12/2018 08:05

The thing is if it was some child's nonsense joke where the "rug is being pulled out" and the answer is a bloke called Boswelland why wouldnt someone just say the answer if asked. Or just "Oh little Johnny told a funny story the other day!". The fact it's become some mythical family riddle that people refuse to reveal suggests it has at least some merit as a riddle.

Or it's just all just a massive troll by the friend or OP, my preferred solution.

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