My uncle was the joker in the family, and he had 2 favourite jokes.
One was about a dog in the Wild West searching for the man who shot his paw.
The other was to pretend outrage whenever he saw an ad for “DC Exhausts.”
There were a surprising number of these ads in Dublin, usually on the backs of buses.
My uncle’s initials were DC, so he enjoyed pretending it was a public service announcement warning that he, DC – my uncle – made people tired.
Rather than it being an ad for car parts.
He lived in the US for a few years, and I’m convinced he returned to Ireland because he missed his joke.
In the States, the ad would be for “DC Tailpipes”, which isn’t the same.
I never understood Dublin’s fascination with exhausts.
I’ve moved around a lot, and have never seen another city advertise them so intensely.
And out of respect for my uncle’s joke, I’ve never looked into it either.
The truth couldn’t live up to my uncle’s mock indignation which served as the punchline for that beloved, ridiculous joke.
Even now, the back of a bus reminds me of DC Exhausts and my uncle.
We’re like that, aren’t we?
We connect a place, or phrase – or automobile part – with someone, and it always reminds us of them.
That’s certainly the case in my new video.
In this week’s flash fiction video, it’s a particular smell.
Come find out why a pleasant hint of bleach hangs over everything in “Little Ducklings” on YouTube now!
(FYI, this one’s a bit darker.)
Chat soon,
Morgan
Read more - and get two free ebooks - here: morgandelaney.info/newsletter.
