Life's Funny....if you let it

I had finished up my morning slavery to the maniacal mechanical machinery which are molding my mass into a molecular marvel (OK...I was at the gym). My buddy was telling me about some great old songs that he had heard recently. He menitioned an old Allman Brothers song...he asked me if I knew it.

I said, "of course."

This is a lifelong friend and we will regularly "call each other out" when we have questions about whether one of us really knows what we are talking about.

He asked, "how does it go then?"

"Do you want me to sing it?" I inquired.

"Yeah, go ahead."

I proceeded to bust it out as loud as I possibly could in the middle of the gym. You have to understand that, while I have worked on my singing a bit to accompany my music, I am by no means a singer. Plus, I had never tried to sing the song so, much like many of you who THINK you can't sing, I was way off key during this outburst that was clear for everyone to hear.

After his look of shock dissipated, he couldn't help but bust up.

"Anything else you want me to do, smart guy?" I couldn't help but ask.

He emphatically stated, "No! Definitely...NO!" and continued to laugh.

On I went to meet another friend at coffee. I was standing in line when he walked in the door...all the way at the other side of the coffee place. I looked at him, waved emphatically.

"Hi Traver!" I exclaimed.

"I think you have had an outburst of childom."

Indeed I had. While we meet regularly to discuss the "oh so important" topics of the life, on this day we gravitated into telling each other a couple of our oldest, favorite, "go to" jokes. You know the ones. They are the ones that you absolutely know that if you had to make someone laugh, these would be the ones. I realized that I hadn't told one of my favorites in far too long. How did I know? Even though I have told the joke many, many times, I couldn't help but crack myself up.....while I was telling the joke. I barely got to the punch line. It was like it was brand new to me. He had a funny quip for me as well that had me laughing hysterically.....hysterically....out loud. Did I say out loud? I mean OUT LOUD!! Yes, other people were looking.

This led to a discussion. People turned their heads to look at us during the outbreak. What were they thinking? Did they consider us rude? Were we invading their aural space? Should "grown men" behave that way? I often tell people not to worry about what others think about you because.....well....uh...they don't. You're really not as important to some people as you think that you are. In this case, I actually was curious what was going on in other people's minds....as opposed to being fearful about what was going on in other's minds.

It was around that point that I started wondering about how much our perception of "appropriate" or "acceptable" behavior costs us. Wonder....mirth...fun....are there that many of us that can honestly say, "no more of that....I have too much of those in my life." It seems quite the opposite. My observations show me that people attempt to buy all of the above or to participate in forums that only allow that kind of behavior. I was at a Sacramento Kings game last night. Where else can you go and suuuuuuhhhhhcccrrrreeeeaaaam at the top of your lungs and not be considered a lunatic? Not many. Yet, there were obviously a lot of people, about 17,000 of them there last night, that had that pent up desire. They didn't come to merely watch the athletic prowess. They came to be interactive.

...and what were the activities that I was engaged in this morning all about? The exact same thing. My life is not all fun and games right now (an entirely seperate topic), I can assure you. While not a goal setter myself, if I was one, I think that would be a heck of a goal.

"What are your goals in life, Mr Nutter?"

"It's to be about all fun and games," would be an excellent answer.

If you were the inquisitor in that dialogue, how would you reply?

"You have to get serious. You have to be serious. You have to take life seriously."

WHO MADE UP THAT RULE??? Yes, we all have to put the bread on the table and pay the mortgage so that means something called work. Let's change that today. "Honey, I'm off to fun," has a nice ring to it. With that outlook, is there the possibility for more fun even while you are doing something that pays your bills? I am not talking about a career change....nor am I advocating staying where you are.

"I get off fun at 5:30 over at the office and I'll go straight to play after that." It sounds like a pretty good schedule to me.

I can hear you already, "but what about that bread and that mortgage that I have to pay for that we were talking about a paragraph or two back?" My question: do you need as much bread (stuff) and as much mortgage (how much of the house is for impressing people or feeding the delusion that living in nice trappings makes you happier)? Keep on striving. Let me know what the Joneses look like when (if) you catch up with them. (Sidenote: if you are the Joneses, who do you have to keep up with?.....just wondering).

(OK....so you just can't part with the posh palaces where you place and protect your prized possessions. How would you like the secret to cut your mortgage payment in half? I have the secret....and I will disclose it in a blog to follow. )

Laugh.....out loud....with people and not at them. If it's not fun, make it fun....or funner. Did I just say "funner"?

"You can't say 'funner.' It's not a word. You need to say 'more fun.'"

OK, Mr Grammarian, here is the deal. YOU are no fun. You know what I meant when I said, "funner," and as long as you got the point, that made it a word!!! Contrary to popular belief, no one went down to the patent office and bought the trademark on creating words. (Besides, if such an item existed, you would only go to one office and it would probably be the copyright office. The patent office is for patents and is seperate from the trademark office so I created and caught my own slip up before you even realized it).

....and, one other thing, Mr Grammarian. I actually did go to Webster's. "Funner" is a word.

....so there.

........pllllllllleeb! (<---is that how you spell that sound that you make when you stick out your tongue, close your lips around it and blow? Well, yes it is because THAT is not in the dictionary which gives me even more creative license for making stuff up!)

I've gone on much too long today.....I have had all the fun that my fingers will allow me. They are tired from laughing. Yet, I think they'll be recovered enough to go out and tickle some of my fellow travellers on this orb today.

Smiles