On shame on you for laughing...

There is this standard line I use in my speech about the application process. I've been giving it a lot lately, given the time of year, and to groups from 20 to 900, both at my place of work and on location. It has to do with proofreading and, without giving too much away, references using the name of School A in an essay written for School B and how School B will make admission to School A happen for you because of it.

No, really, it's actually a funny joke. And I've been using it for 6 years. And I stole it, along with the rest of my colleagues, at what we'll call School A.

It's always killed. Parents and students think it's hysterical. It's the silliest little joke, but it works. So I stick with it.

It does, however, require mentioning the competition and, well, perhaps slightly implying a student's desire for the competition over us. But, again, it's silly and quick and harmless and really all it's about is getting kids to pay attention to what they submit to different schools.

Well, it's officially gotten me and my staff in trouble.

We all do some variation of quickly naming the competition in a humorous way and moving along. Our boss' boss, it was revealed to me today, has received three different complaints about our "defensiveness" about different schools and how inappropriate it is.

When I used this joke at School A, I never never never never heard a single complaint. So I've figured out the problem.

Washington, DC - you have NO sense of humor. Period.

I have to call General Counsel at least once a week to get permission to do something that I know, from taking a Legal Issues class for my master's, is completely unnecessary. Why? Because I work for a private institution and, well, we have a boatload of autonomy if precedence has anything to do with it.

Washington, DC - you host a correspondent's dinner once a year that allows you to let out the funny, but that's it. Karl Rove does an embarrassing rap while David Gregory dances in the background and it's "Thank you, DC! GOOD NIGHT!" until next year.

I now will soon have to tell my staff that we can no longer make references to other schools, period.

Basically, we can't attempt any humor in trying to humanize a process that causes a great deal of stress for the people with whom we deal.

Shame on you Washington, DC. Shame on you.