The following is a slightly zhuzhed up version of a blog post from 2020, back when we were living in the Denver metro and before we moved back to Wisconsin. It was an entry into my “A to Z” blogging challenge I did that year (hence the title).

Back when we lived in Wisconsin the first time, I attended a church sponsored women’s retreat. I recall being outside among the pine trees and cool spring air with a couple of other women. We were chatting away and for whatever reason the subject of humor came up. One of the women, a beautiful brunette with big brown eyes, stated “I’m not really a laugher”.

What a surprising thing to hear someone say, right? This was a person who was essentially admitting she didn’t possess a sense of humor. I never could get my head around that.

Around the same time, I participated in a couple of “Laughter Yoga” classes at our church with several other women (not the brunette). The theory behind “Laughter Yoga” is that laughing, even if it’s completely fake, is beneficial both physically and mentally. We would do some breath work and stretches, then we’d be invited to randomly call out something happening in our lives and then heartily laugh about it as a collective. I remember thinking that if anyone walked into that room they would think we had all lost our minds. Here we are, yelling out things like “my daughter is in love with a loser” or “my dog is sick” then laughing our heads off.

I wonder if this is still a thing?

Anyway, my point is that laughter is important. Especially in these upside-down times. It releases endorphins and relaxes our bodies. It is essential to our well-being. It’s what gets us through, don’t you think?

Since I’m not aware of any “Laughter Yoga” groups in these parts, I must rely on other methods to evoke laughter in my day to day life.

A few things and people that will forever crack me up:

I binge-watched “Schitt’s Creek” during the Covid-19 pandemic, and thought it was such a perfect show, as it blended humor with heart in equal measure. Catherine O-Hara’s “Moira” is on the top of my list of best comedic characters ever on t.v. I also recently watched her in “Best in Show” which had me howling from the first scene she had with Eugene Levy.

RIP hilarious Catherine.

The non-profit organization that I worked at when I originally published this blog post also ran a thrift store. I came across this interesting piece of nostalgia that I found hysterical. It reminded me of the big productions produced for corporate America’s employees, as featured in one of my favorite documentaries “Bathtubs Over Broadway” (which is pure joy and available on Netflix).

***Image courtesy of EBay***

If we ever put a wet bar in our basement rec room, I guarantee I’d find a copy of this to put in a frame behind the bar. This is another reason why I love thrift store treasure hunting: the crazy hilarious things you come across.

Do you agree that laughter is key to getting us through this life? If so, what types of things or people make you laugh?

I’ll leave you with a bit of music from a show I watched on Peacock a few years ago that I found super original as well as hysterical: Girls 5eva (because 4-eva’s too short!)