"Sometimes I even lug them around myself," you say.
Kayla looks disappointed in you, but Janice smiles. "That's the spirit," she says. "See, Bill? Even a history professor—sorry, interdisciplinary history professor—can appreciate cross-department jokes."
"She likes to tease me about such things because I began my career as a literature professor," Bill says.
Janice isn't teasing as much as she is needling, but it won't do you any good to point that out.
"You two cover both humanities and sciences, then," Kayla says.
"Just like the two of you!" Janice says. "I wonder, will that make the two-body problem easier for you?"
Ugh, this old saw. She's referring to two partners who are both in academia. Because university jobs are few and far between, often they can't both find jobs at the same place.
What makes this topic even more fun is that you and Kayla didn't come to the party together.