A popular joke about a certain street sign is:

“I saw a sign that said ‘Watch for children’ and I thought, ‘That sounds like a fair trade.’”

“‘Watch for Children’ (not a fair trade, IMO)” was cited in the newsgroup misc.writing in 2002. New York City-born comedian Demetri Martin has popularized the joke since 2006.

“I got a bottle of scotch for my wife…” is a similar joke.


Wikipedia: Demetri Martin
Demetri Evan Martin (born May 25, 1973) is an American comedian, actor, artist, musician, writer, and humorist. He is best known for his work as a stand-up comedian, being a contributor on The Daily Show, and his Comedy Central show Important Things with Demetri Martin.

Google Groups: misc.writing
Domestic Violence Coordinator
Wendy Chatley Green
12/17/02
(...)
“Watch for Children” (not a fair trade, IMO)

LaughSpin
Demetri Martin: These Are Jokes
By Dylan P. Gadino | September 19, 2006 at 9:31 am
It’s clear, if not from the name of his album alone then from the amazingly economical language in his bits, that Demetri Martin is a simple, unassuming man concerned with one thing: telling jokes.
(...)
“I saw a sign that said, ‘Watch for children.’ I was like, ‘That sounds like a fair trade — especially if they’re crappy kids.’”

Twitter
jackson58
‏@jackson58
I saw a sign that said watch for children thought that was a pretty good trade?
3:05 PM - 19 Aug 2008

Twitter
Jeremy Cruz
‏@jermchoco
I saw a sign that said “watch for children”...i thought...that sounds like a fair trade.
9:52 PM - 12 Feb 2009

Twitter
pmilkman
‏@PMilkman
@coordt Reminds me of a Demetri Martin bit: ‘I saw a sign in a park that said ‘Watch for children’, and I thought that was a fair trade.’
9:33 PM - 16 Mar 2009

reddit
I saw a sign that said “Watch for Children”
submitted January 18, 2015 by wohdude
and thought to myself, “Sounds like a fair trade.”

reddit
I saw a sign that said “watch for children” and I thought, “That sounds like a fair trade.”
submitted December 6, 2015 by mack3r