Lights…Camera…Hangover

Being the unofficial start of summer, I’m welcoming in the Memorial Day weekend with an adult beverage….in a very tall glass that’s beginning to sweat. 

Hummm…better drink up before the ice melts!

Besides drinking, grilling, and honoring those who died in military service…a lot of people will be going to the movies this weekend.  I already did, selecting Hangover II as my box office pick of season.

If you’ve ever partied hard in Las Vegas, and if you saw Hangover I….then you know that the movie is so pee-in-your-pants funny because the whole thing is plausible.  Bachelor party weekend…gone crazy…gone wrong. 

Wake up with a wild animal in your hotel room…ya, sure, that could happen in Vegas.

Alan:  There’s a jungle cat in the bathroom! 
Phil: Holy %$!@, he’s not kidding! There’s a tiger in there!

The thing about any type of hangover is that once you’ve had one, you never want to live through another…and then you do…and do again.  So, I gave into temptation and paid the $9.00 admission. 

After getting seated and adjusting my senses to the aroma of pseudo butter topping being piped through the HVAC system, the lights dimmed.  The 16 advertisements played.  The lights dimmed darker.  The 8 previews played.  A full 24 minutes after scheduled showtime…Fandango reminded everyone that we should have bought our tickets online.  Then, after silencing our phones and locating the nearest exits…we were ready to be entertained.

I belly laughed the whole way through.  The plot was similar to the original, but that’s to be expected with sequels.  If you liked Hangover I, you’ll enjoy it.  If you hated Hangover I,  stay away.  There’s cursing, nudity, transvestites, and a drug-dealing monkey that steals your heart.

Alan: I’m going to miss you monkey. I wish monkeys could Skype.

…you get the picture. I give it a thumbs up for a young-minded crowd.  In real life, I have a goofy/silly sense of humor, and I gravitate towards that kind of humor in entertainment.  I’m also drawn to other people who share…or can appreciate…the silly side of life. 

How would you describe your own sense of humor? 

What are you up to this weekend?  I’ll be going with the flow and relaxing as part of my battle with the UNs.  No plans.  No commitments.  Spontaneity…I’m all yours.

 

Coping Through Laughter

Warning – this post contains raw emotion and raw humor around the topic of losing a loved one.  If you are sensitive to this topic, or if you don’t like the idea of using bad-taste humor to cope with tragedy, it’s okay if you don’t read on.  Check back with me next week, when I’ll likely be back to regular programming.

I am typing this sitting at my mother’s bedside.  As I was pulling into the parking lot of a restaurant last night to meet some friends for dinner, my cell phone rang.  It was my dad.  His only words were “I need you to come home right now.”  He didn’t have to say anything else. 

My mom has been battling a terrible disease for years.  I wont go into the details about its symptoms other than to say it takes away a piece of you every day, slowly, over the course of 5-7 years until there is nothing left, physically or mentally. 

I’ve come to know that there is a distinct difference between:

• learning about a death,
• dealing with a sudden death, and
• watching death happen. 

I’ve been watching the process of my mom dying in slow motion for 5 years.  It has taught me so much about life, compassion, commitment, true love, faith, and purpose.  I think that losing a loved one changes you…not just from the loss, but also from the process of the loss.

So, here I sit with my family, in these final, precious moments that I will remember for the rest of my life.  And what are we doing?  Coping.  And how are we doing that?  Some are calm and spiritual, while others are hysterical.  Some are crying, while others are remembering the good times and smiling.  In all honesty, I think everyone here is going through all of those emotions, in their own ways.  Every once in a while the immense stress is broken by laughter, like this morning when…

We were all sitting quietly.  My dad was reading the Sunday paper, Lifestyle section, when he said…

Dad:  That’s a bad picture of Mrs. Gilbert.

Sister:  Who’s Mrs. Gilbert?

Dad:  I have no idea.

Sister: Then how do you know it’s a bad picture?

Dad:  Bwahahahahahahahaaaaaaaaa!

Dad passes the paper to me.

Me: Bwahahahahahahahaaaaaaaaa!

Sister:  Come on guys, there is nothing in that paper that could possibly be that funny.

I pass the paper to my sister.

Sister:  Bwahahahahahhahaaaaaaaa!

IN CASE YOU ARE SKIMMING – THESE ARE NOT MY PARENTS.  MEET THE GILBERTS.

 

What?  It’s not close enough?  Okay, okay, let me zoom it in a little more…

Is it just me, or are her dentures falling out? 

Help us break the stress of these days.  I know you might feel compelled to write I’m sorry about your mom, or hang in there, or sending out my prayers in the comments section.  If you are thinking those things, thank you from the bottom of my heart.  Prayers are always appreciated here, if you’re the praying type.  In addition, there is something else you can do…

What we could really use at this moment, as strange as it may seem until you have actually met my family, is a little more laughter to break the stress.  Make us laugh.

How would you caption the above photos?

If you liked this post you may also like A Birthday Card for Mom and Love Part 1.

Clowning Around

If you haven’t yet entered the Beautiful You Giveaway, there’s still time.  Entries will be accepted until midnight on Thursday.  Good luck!

Let’s get today’s post going with a hardy-har-har…

• There were two clowns walking through the jungle. 
• A group of cannibals captured the clowns and cooked them for lunch. 
• While they were eating, the one cannibal said to the other,
•  “Does this taste funny to you?”

That, my friends, is the very first thing that my father said to the recovery room nurses when he woke up from surgery a few days ago.  I’m sure he was loopy from the anesthesia.  But.  Seriously.  How many people can rip out a joke immediately upon waking up from a major surgery?  Not many, I’m sure.

If you knew my dad, you wouldn’t be surprised.  He’s always telling jokes.  Some funny.  Some not.  Some appropriate.  Some definitely not.  He’s always trying to get people to raise an eyebrow, crack a grin, or get red in the face. 

• Like when he wears a plastic set of Hillbilly teeth when meeting someone new. 
• Or when he puts a whoopee cushion on grandma’s chair at Thanksgiving dinner. 
• Or when he puts a rubber rat in a real mousetrap for the housekeeper to find. 

Too often, he finds out what irritates someone and uses it to get under their skin.  A few weeks ago he covered my fridge with Democratic candidate magnets.  Very funny, Dad.  I guess you’re still not happy about me switching sides. 

There are a lot of different kinds of funny.  People tell me that I’m goofy funny.  I’m not easily embarrassed and like to crack myself up.  I mostly do things that amuse myself rather than aiming to make other people laugh.  More people may laugh at me than with me, but I don’t care.  Being able to laugh at myself has always come easy. 

Some things that people find funny, I just don’t get.  Like South Park.  Or jokes about religion and topics that are insulting, tasteless, and disrespectful. 

Whether you are funny yourself or simply find other people and situations funny, having a sense of humor is an important part of human relations.  Some studies have even shown that having a good sense of humor can make you happier and healthier.  I’ve been battling a cold for the past week, undoubtedly brought on by stress.  Could a little laughter be the best medicine?

On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your sense of humor?  Has anything comical happened in your life lately?