Joke 3: Elementary Combinatorics

The senior prom was tonight and Sally was at a salon thinking about all of the different colors and styles of bows she owned for her hair and the many choices of haircuts she could have today. You might say she was thinking about how many PERMutations of hairstyles she could have. Hahahaha.

Sally acknowledged the humor in the pun but the pain of rejection brought her back into the present. No date to her senior prom. She knew she was a walking cliche but like all generalizations, the glossing over of her story neglected the depth of her emotions. "Fuck it," she thought as she chose a hairstyle at random from a reasonable catalog.

The hairstylist was not an idiot but because she was unable to be an advocate for herself she invested too much in others. She knew why Sally was upset the moment Sally stumbled in the door, and in an attempt to elicit a smile (Sally did not care why either of them were bothering), she told Sally a joke. "Why do mathematicians like national parks?" "I don't know." "Because of the natural logs."

Sally smiled and for a moment it wasn't a lie.