>>She is right. I just offered an alternative interpretation :).
>
>You're a funny man. You like literature and politics and I like. I would like talk with you but unfortunately my english is not as good as like my turkish... So I can't feel what you want to tell usually... :(

That's more local to my city, specially my high school (where Srđan also went, but we never met until 2010). This custom says it's not polite to laugh first when you tell/make a joke, you wait for your listeners to do so. Two results: 1) if they don't laugh, you don't either - missed a chance to be the only one laughing at your joke, 2) you tell/make your jokes seriously (it IS a serious thing - always at least 50% truth, far better rate than TV), as making funny faces or inserting smilies in your text would be as if you laughed before anybody else. Result 2.b - often people can't see whether you were serious or seriously joking. And it's not a matter of language - I've had people from nearby cities confused with this.

I've generally gone rusty in the routine, but just two weeks ago I had a class reunion, so I guess it's well oiled now.