Q: You should think about who the joke teller is and why he may be telling a certain joke. A father may tell a joke about fathers to a group of people, for example, that may only make sense to other fathers. This may be because he wants to appeal to the other fathers in the group, and you may not get the joke because you are not a father. This can be applied to other professions and groups, as you may need to try to identify with the joke teller’s perspective to fully understand the joke. It can be useful to consider the joke as representative of the humor of the joke teller as well. A person who has a goofy sense of humor may tell a different joke than a person who is more dry and witty. Aligning yourself with the joke teller can allow you to take the joke as it is meant to be taken, which is often not seriously. If you can’t quite determine the intent behind the joke, you can look to the others around you to determine how you should react to the joke. Often, laughter can be infectious and you can end up laughing with everyone else just by paying attention to their reactions. Gauging the reactions of others can also allow you to take the joke less seriously, especially if the others around you are enjoying the joke. According to studies, we do not choose to laugh. Often, laughter is an automatic response that we do unconsciously. This is why it’s difficult to laugh on command or fake a laugh. Paying attention to how others are responding around may cause you to inadvertently laugh at a joke, rather than remain serious and standoffish. To break through your serious approach, you may want to challenge yourself to respond to the joke with a witty comeback or one liner. You can do this by picking up on a theme or idea in the joke and countering with a line you think is funnier or more interesting. For example, a coworker may tell a joke about his toddler always being sad when he leaves the house. You may then respond with a one liner about how your dog is always sad when you leave for the day. This is a funny response because it builds off of the original joke and presents a funny counter-image: your dog, sad at the door, as you head off to work. This will show you are not taking your coworker’s joke seriously and can be part of the fun. Self-deprecation is when you make fun of yourself as a way to elicit laughs. It can be useful when you are not sure how to respond to a joke or you realize you responded too seriously to a joke. Self-deprecating humor can be a good way to brush off an awkward moment and show you can poke fun at yourself. Use self-deprecating humor whenever you feel awkward, on the spot, or unsure of what to say. For example, your friend may make a joke about how awful he is at a certain sport or game. You may respond with self-deprecation, like how awful you are at most things in general. This will likely cause your friend to laugh and allow you to respond to the original joke in a funny way.
A: Put yourself in the shoes of the joke teller. Notice how other people around you react to the joke. Respond with a witty one liner. Brush off the joke by being self-deprecating.

Q: The yellow skin on quince is tough and waxy, like a tougher apple. Using a standard vegetable peeler will help easily remove the skin. When using the peeler, always pull away from the body to stop the peeler from jumping and cutting your skin. Use a sharp knife as you cut through the core since it will be the toughest and most woody part of the fruit. Make sure the cutting board is secure on your counter or table so it will not slip as you cut the quince.  Halve the quinces first and then cut the pieces into quarters from there. Quinces may be difficult to cut due to their spongy and woody quality, so always have a firm grip on the knife handle. Fill a large saucepan with 4 cups (950 ml) of water, 1/2 cup (100 g) of sugar, and 1/4 cup (85 g) of honey. Simmer the mixture and stir until the sugar has dissolved.Add additional flavors like anise or vanilla to enhance the flavors further! When adding the quince, let the poaching liquid boil before turning the heat down to a low simmer. Trap any of the liquid that may evaporate by covering the pot with a lid. As the quince cooks, it will change from a yellowish color to pink. After this time, the quince should be tender and the liquid will have become more syrupy. Strain the quince from the poaching liquid and serve warm. The tartness of the fruit will have now combined with the sweetness of the liquid.  To serve later, the quince can be refrigerated with the liquid for up to 1 week. Pair with mild cheese or put the quince in a salad with almonds to further enhance the flavor!
A: Peel the quinces with a vegetable peeler. Cut the quinces into quarters with a chef’s knife. Prepare a poaching liquid of water, sugar, and honey. Add the quince to the pot and bring it to a boil. Let the quinces simmer for 50 minutes until they are pink. Serve the quince alone when finished.

Q: Take a step back and look at your sprite up to this point. Determine if anything looks off, and then go into correct those inconsistencies or errors. After you've finished coloring and shading, you can add details such as writing, eyes, additional features, and anything else that could take your sprite to the next level. The attention to detail at the end is what separates amateur from professional pixel artists. If you've followed the steps above, you'll have a single static sprite. This is fine as a piece of art, but if you want to make sprites for games they'll likely need to be animated. This means that each frame of animation will have to have its own sprite, with slight changes from the previous frame. The collection of all the sprites used in an animation is called a "sprite sheet".  See this guide for detail on animating a sprite sheet in GIMP. Creating unique and attractive animations for sprites is one way that master pixel artists separate themselves from amateurs. A good animation can breathe a ton of life into a sprite. If you want to take your pixel art skills into the video game development world, you'll want to have a solid portfolio to show off to prospective employers. Include several of your best sprites, as well as some animations if you have them. Include a variety of subjects, including characters, scenery, props, and more.
A:
Give the sprite a good look over. Add details. Animate your sprite. Create a portfolio.