I ask because of an itemby Bruce Murphy of Milwaukee Magazine, which purports to illustrate that Milwaukee Ald. Bob Donovan is a really funny guy. Says Murphy:


But it turns out that this fiery South Side alderman is also quite a cut-up.


Donovan is upset that a proposed redistricting of aldermanic districts would remove the Jackson Park neighborhood from his district and increase his district to 63 percent Latino (it is currently 57 percent). So he sent out a letter on City Hall stationery asking Jackson Park residents to call City Hall and protest the change in his district.



 


That’s doing politicking using government stationery, charged Patrick Curley, chief of staff to Mayor Tom Barrett. "If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck…it's a political duck," Curley told JS columnist Dan Bice.


 


Donovan’s response to Curley:


 


“Dear Dan,” Donovan wrote, in a letter he shared with colleagues. “Regarding Curley’s comment, the only duck here is the one busting out of the egg he just laid. Attached is a letter from the City Clerk addressing this issue and pointing out the obvious. [City Clerk Ronald Leonhardtwrote Donovan to say the alderman’s letter represented “legitimate city business.”]


 


“How dare I try to inform my constituents about what’s going on at City Hall – what is impacting their community  - and actually believe it’s part of my job,” Donovan went on. “As for stepping on toes, Curley may want to invest in a pair of steel-toed shoes.”


 


I’m not sure which bon mot I prefer, the droll duck egg rejoinder or the steel-toed shoe slam. We can only await the next eruption of wit from Mt. Donovan, while leaving Curley to worry whether an attempt to step on his toes is imminent.


The "droll duck egg rejoinder?"  Really?


As our kids used to say, "That was so funny I forgot to laugh."


Granted, Curley didn't exactly break any new ground with his "quacks like a duck line," which has been around since pre-history.


But the duck egg and steel toed shoes together didn't even add up to a smile for me, let alone what is called a lol (laugh out loud) on the Internet.


Was Murphy being ironic, and I missed it?  Is it possible my sense of humor is intact by my sense of irony has been crippled?  Or am I just having a bad day?


Duck egg indeed.