THE ACCIDENTAL HUMORIST: I've noticed that people seem to think I'm joking these days when I'm not. I wore my snazzy new NASCAR t-shirt to an indie-rock street fair not too long ago, and several different people smiled at me and said, "That's great," as if I was wearing it tongue-in-cheek. And then a little while back a neighbor garbage-picked a giant statue of Hotei, also known as the Laughing Buddha, and placed it front of our house in our little Asian-styled garden area. Again, neighbors are nudging me at the park saying "love your Buddha." "I know," I say. "I love it too!" They smile even bigger, as if I'm just too much.