Topic awaiting preservation: Adult joke explained

I heard this joke from a street performer, in Quincy Market, and I didn't get it.
Can someone explain it to me?

The performer is atop a 6-foot high unicycle, while, at the same time, juggling with an apple, a thing that I don't know the name but resembles that "bottle" used in bowling, and a big knife.
And he says that in a previous show, he approached a guy from the audience and the guy said:
- Hi!
And the performer replied:
- Yes I am!
And then the performer started to get away from the guy and the guy shouted:
- Bye!
And the performer replied:
- No, but I am open-minded...

That's the joke.

And then the performer says to the current audience:
- You can laugh, you're kids don't get it. And if they get, it's hardly my fault.

I felt like a kid because I didn't get it.
I can understand the first part, when he plays with the word "Hi" as meaning both a compliment and "high".
But I don't get the "bye" part. Is he playing with "bye" and "buy"?
If so, where's the fun?

Thanks for the English class.

quote:

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The performer is atop a 6-foot high unicycle, while, at the same time, juggling with an apple, a thing that I don't know the name but resembles that "bottle" used in bowling,

That would be a bowling pin.

and a big knife.
And he says that in a previous show, he approached a guy from the audience and the guy said:
- Hi!
And the performer replied:
- Yes I am!

As in, are you "high." Like from drugs.

And then the performer started to get away from the guy and the guy shouted:
- Bye!
And the performer replied:
- No, but I am open-minded...

As in, are you bi-sexual. Bi-sexual is commonly shortened to just "bi."

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[This message has been edited by counterfeitbacon (edited 08-13-2003).]

I think the "hi" is actually relating to the performer's elevation, as he is on a 6 foot unicycle as opposed to his being high on drugs... So a more detailed answer would be "Yes, I am high off the ground..."

Funny indeed.
Thanks a lot.
I wouldn't have guessed that even if I lived here for the next decade or more.

quote:

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That would be a bowling pin.

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"That 'bottle' used in bowling" would be bowling pin, yes, but the thing he was juggling was probably a juggling club.

I didn't even know the name of that thing in my own language...
Now I have to find out. It's weird to know something in English and not in Portuguese.

It's not that weird... I know lots of stuff in English but not Portuguese


[edit: but I don't know 'Portuguese' in English...

[This message has been edited by Lord_Fukutoku (edited 08-14-2003).]

Easy: "português".
We do not capitalize language names, even if it represents a person.