Is an anecdote a genre? Undoubtedly! And what? Stage recitation? That's the least common stage thing. Because when he gets to all sorts of entertainers, satirists and other professional readers, as a rule, the offensive label “with a beard” is already attached to him. But the fact that this is a recitation is undeniable. Although the surroundings are important here - the interest of the audience, the atmosphere “to relax”... And most importantly - a skillful storyteller and a plot with an unexpected ending. There are no forbidden topics in jokes! And the sea itself!.. From reality to fantasy, from extremely stupid everyday life to the Zen heights of knowledge and - from insanity to global philosophy... Meanwhile, the modern joke has its closest ancestor - the historical joke. Having such a narrow “field” that the word “historical” was not added to it - after all, there were others did not have! The characters were familiar to everyone, and the plots that described very real events were well known. Therefore, the ability to tell a story came to the fore here - what’s the point of listening to a mediocre retelling of the same thing over and over again? And good storytellers so skillfully “colored” the familiar plot that, in general, they didn’t get tired of it - they added details, little things right up to the point of gags, threw out minor characters who only scattered attention, changed the plot a little... And often in that joke, hundreds Once it was retold “from mouth to mouth”, the original source was no longer recognizable. And when the main characters turned into impersonal “men” and “women”, that’s when the joke in its modern sense was born. Having, in the end, received the right to invention from beginning to end end. But the “root” from which the joke “grew” - a funny true story - also gave another “escape” - a story! Strictly speaking, the story doesn’t inspire much confidence either, but it’s always told like it was. And it doesn’t matter that one of the listeners will definitely say that “we had a similar case” - that means it’s a good story. People know most of the tales from hunting, fishing and naval ones. Because of this, considering hunters, fishermen and sailors to be desperate liars! But the most honest people... Moreover, there is a clear indicator of the veracity of the story - the direct participants never tell it. And if it is told in their presence, they fight to the last to prevent this from happening. But if this does happen, they never laugh and their face turns gloomy. Those involved do not fight, do not become gloomy, but They don't laugh either. Apparently, they show corporate sympathy by putting themselves in the position of those who participated. Others die laughing. They simply die! The bike offered to your attention under the roof of the “novel” is the pure truth, having all the signs of a classic bike. Firstly, its plot is well known to all Baltic people of the 80s. Secondly, all the characters, with the exception of the “protagonist,” are depersonalized by the dry names of the positions they held at that time. Thirdly, the “hero” is a real person, the legend of the Baltic and the Commander of the Baltic Fleet Aviation, Lieutenant General Pavlovsky. Fourthly, the “person involved”, who replaced the “main character” in the above position, Lieutenant General Sokerin, having obtained this “short story” somewhere on the Internet, according to well-verified rumors, willingly shares links to it with everyone, but he himself perceives the text with the facial expressions of an Indian and never comments on it. And finally, fifthly, the plot, if embellished, is even less than a little. Because its narrator is an active participant in the elimination of the very mess that the glorious naval aviation created. But the story that concludes this collection is a completely different story. He is talking about bullshit. Although it may not be bullshit, it is not a pleasant thing for auditory perception. Told, however, with enviable regularity. Because the narrator is the boss, and the listeners are his subordinates. That's how it sometimes ends, that's the story...