Laughter, the Best Medicine

After a stressful post-vacation week back at work, I had a conversation that really cheered me up. In fact, I had one today and one yesterday. In both conversations I had a good laugh: a whole series of laughs.

(Thanks, I needed that.)

So this post goes out to all of you who make people laugh. You rock!

Unfortunately, some of the best comedy comes at the expense of another. Both of my recent encounters with humor had to do with individuals who were recounting their personal series of unfortunate events. They weren't earth shattering unfortunate events, just very funny. (Sad, pathetic, funny.)

I'll give one example: a fellow teacher was sniffing a bit at lunch. Because I'm sensitive and caring, I inquire, and sure enough she has a cold, and it's getting worse, not better. Ahhhh. So sorry.

How bad is it? Her eyes were watering.

How bad is that? She couldn't focus well enough for the students to use their whiteboards to show their answers. As a result she had to get a lot of verbal answers.

But it gets worse?

Her ears were getting stuffy, so she couldn't hear too well. Ahhhh.
How bad is that? She couldn't hear the students in the back of her classroom, so the class spent the day answering in unison. (Now that's funny.)

Her head was throbbing, her ears were stuffed, her eyes were watering, and it gets worse...

She couldn't take any medication because she's pregnant. Ouch!

(Now, partially why this is so funny is because it's so pathetic. My heart went out to my co-worker, but the more we talked, the more I laughed. And it gets worse.)

She was sick, getting sicker, and she was very tired because she was working on 4 or 5 hours sleep. Why?

Because Mid-Eastern Christmas was the night before, and she and her Middle-Eastern husband had to attend an annual trip to church with his family: from 9 pm to midnight. And then a traditional family dinner at her mother-in-law's. She got home at 1:30 am. And she didn't sleep very well.

How sad is that? (And funny, to hear her tell it.)

Her only remedy was to go workout at a gym after work. (Yes, that was her solution.) Although she felt worse after the workout, she slept well and came back feeling a bit better the next day.

(I, ever the sensitive one, noticed, inquired, and complimented her on her improved health. We smiled and laughed again.)

I don't know why it is that watching or listening to the foibles of friends is just so darned entertaining, but it is.

Often enough I provide the foibles, so it's fun to see someone else outdo my mishaps. It's funny when they do, and it helps me put my problems in perspective.

Sometimes it sucks to be me, but sometimes, it sucks to be you! And that's just funny.