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| Kiss me gooodnightt, Eddieeeeee |
How many people can
actually say they laugh enough? Hands up. I bet if you did that in any room
anywhere in the world with an adult audience you would be able to count the
number with the fingers of one or two hands.
The stories say that you
will live longer if you laugh more. George Carlin only made it to 71 (we are
living longer) but I bet he added years to many viewers or audience members that
had the pleasure of seeing him perform.
Even Ed Sullivan was affected by
laughter because he always made time for comedians in that moment when he would
call the prankster over to the side of the stage and he would urge the audience
to show extra applause for their efforts and Ed was always so serious until
that moment.
C’mon now let’s hear it
for the little mouse—Topo Geeegggiooo! (one hand raised high in the air and the
head goes into the bobble head move. I wonder if the bobble head was inspired
by someone watching Ed Sullivan).
I loved that show and
mostly for all the people that were on it that made you laugh.
The Red Skelton
show ran for years because that man would make you laugh until your sides said
STOPPPPPPP!!!! His closing approach was so genuine—Good night and god bless. I
didn't have to look any of that up on the Internet. It had a lasting impression
far beyond their time on this planet.
I can be at times a grumpy
old man but I have found that I can get out of that rut a lot easier now. That
has only been a relatively recent phenomenon since I more or less withdrew into
the safety of my own world and protected myself from further disappointment.
But it didn't work. I missed something. I wasn't laughing as much as I used to
do.
One of the reasons is a
place that I worked shut down and it was really in the hospitality business and
I worked as a sort of entertainer there. The workplace control people called it
the food business but it was a place called the Kleinburg Golf and Country Club
that did serve food and that is where most of the revenue did come form in all
honesty.
I prided myself as an
employee that was well-liked and well-received by both patrons and employees
alike and it had a lot to do with the fact the General Manager supported me in
just about everything I did because I was also good for business. We are still
good friends.
Laughter was probably the
primary reason I worked there because you didn’t make any money in that
capacity. Most of the employees are actually classified as seasonal/farm
workers so the pay is in that same bracket. I had no problem with joking with
the customers at the starting tee or while they had to wait for the foursome
ahead to clear the green.
I did find that male
lawyers seem to be able to take the most cutting lawyer jokes well but the
female ones sometimes chased you with their driver if they didn’t like your
joke. So I learned a little bit about where you are crossing a line. I found
that if you could get a patron to loosen up on the first tee that they would
have a better round or at least enjoy themselves more on that day. That is in
the spirit of the hospitality business and it gets customers coming back.
Almost all of my material
came from patrons who couldn’t wait to tell me their latest joke. Susheel (that
is not the correct spelling of his name) told me my favourite joke about blind
golfers and the punchline is delivered by one of the three players in the group
behind the blind golfers who is an Indian businessmen type. Susheel just
happens to be a successful businessman of Indian heritage (the country not the
north American Indian). I will never forget his voice as he exaggerated his
Indian accent—“Tell them to #$%^ing play at night!! I laughed extra hard that
day. And Susheel would always take the time to say hello whenever he saw me at
the course.
Recently, I have been
reconnecting with some very special people in my past. Some are those that I
have not been in touch with for over 30 years. And I know why. They all made me
laugh my guts out.
I try to be a clown now
and that is why Bozoplay is such a good handle for my persona. I find that I at
times revert to being Bran the Businessman and I hate him (even more than Helen
the Housekeeper who I would shoot if I owned a gun. Lazy does not begin to
describe her).
A vacation recharges your
batteries, loosens up all those wound up things inside and often presents you
with experiences that are brand new. Chatting with a friend (old, new or brand
new) does exactly the same thing and you can do that online as well as in the
more preferred method of face-to-face.
So I use the chat windows
in games or Facebook and make it funny if I can, email and have been expanding
my face-to-face contacts since I have but one in my new home of London,
Ontario. I actually do feel a lot better and it happens so quickly and you don’t
have to hop on a plane and fly thousands of miles to get there.
And why didn't I think of
that before because Sometimes
I’m Stupid and Sometimes I’m an Idiot
Sometimes a vacation is
staring at you in the mirror. It’s a very good idea to learn how to laugh at
yourself.
May I remind you that we are
all dead for a very, very long time.
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