A ZEST FOR JEST!

Or, the joy of jocularity

By Susan Snitterby, a creative loafing consultant with an incredibly large kit bag and caboodle not to mention far too many aces and jacks up her sleeve to count

I am reminded today of an amusing answer to life's little challenges and exactly what to do while you're waiting for the Tooth Fairy, the Great Pumpkin or the Man From Glad to solve them:

“Poetry and Hums aren’t things which you get, they’re things which get you. And all you can do is to go where they find you.”[1]

Speaking of where to go to find the good times, maybe all we have to do is enjoy the power of puck and play wherever we are. After all, human beings are the only crazy creatures who truly appreciate the value of a tee hee or perhaps oodles of hums to relieve a mess of stress.

Want to find a ho-ho or a hum? All you need to do is wash your worries away and hang them out to dry. If that doesn't work, then consider becoming a “Master of Mirth” or “Mistress of Merriment”.

First things first! Follow these steps to reach a state of serenity and serendipity:

1. Toss your To-Do list for the day.
2. Lose your laptop.
3. Shut off your cell phone.
4. Bury your Blackberry or pitch your Palm Pilot!
5. Unplug your user-friendly diversionary devices: i-Pod, videogame, radio, or TV.

Second, shift gears …into a lower one if you please, (at least for the next 24 hours):

1. Send all your “shoulds” packing.
2. Quit the need to compete or to control anyone or anything.
3. Vamoose all signs of vanity or victimhood.
4. Banish the blame game.
5. Give your attitude some latitude!

And, last but not least, tune in to your "inner child" …you know, the one who’s never allowed to come out and play! It’s time to welcome your “inner imp” back into your life! Time to discover, explore or tickle your funnybone before it’s too late! So, whatever you do:

• Eat your favorite funky food or comfort comestible …peanut butter and jam sandwiches, 12 flavors of ice-cream, or whatever whets your appetite!
• Visit the video store and rent a funny flick or two.
• Check out a belly-laughing book from the library – don’t forget to take a peek at the kid’s section!
• Create a new name for yourself – a mirthful moniker, a haw-haw handle, or a titillating title because you deserve it!
• Rummage through your wardrobe closet – time to get dressed-up in something really outrageous – mismatched socks or shoes, gaudy tie, and vintage sack dress or Hawaiian t-shirt!
• Find a pencil and paper because now you’re going to do that self-portrait, stick-person, or just color outside the lines!
• Sing your favorite nursery rhymes in the shower, bang a few kitchen pots, or hum a tune on a comb…good golly -- it's Miss Molly and Mr. Beau Jangles!
• Grab the scissors, glue pot, and old magazines or newspapers – yup it’s crazy collage time again!
• Get some glee in your whee …find a pack of playing cards somewhere and build a house of cards - then blow it down; flip pennies; play hop-scotch; or just wiggle your ears or raise your eyebrows!
• If you meet anyone, and feel the need for a chortle or a chinwag – trying practicing your Pig-Latin, or if you prefer…just invent your own loopy language!

Enjoy yourself … and may the farce be with you for now and ever more!

__________


[1] The House at Pooh Corner, A.A. Milne, 1928.