I Only Crack Myself Up

I turned on facebook yesterday and walked away.  When I returned, there was a chat box open.  I have no idea how long it had been sitting there, but it was a friend from high school.

Although she was a year older than me, we spent a number of days sitting next to each other in band.  Wendy asked me how I knew one of our mutual friends and then asked me if I had ever done open mic comedy.  I had to laugh.  Of course not!

Now, in her grown up years, that's what Wendy does.  She's a comedienne.  Of course she is.  She was hilarious in high school.  She was my kind of person--always laughing.

She invited me to come do open mic comedy with her.  What?  Me?  No.  I couldn't.  What the heck would I say that would make anybody laugh--anybody but me, that is.  I'm not funny to other people.  I crack jokes when I'm uncomfortable.  I crack jokes to keep myself from crying.  I crack jokes to put others at ease.  Humor is a survival tactic--but I learned quite young to use the words "just kidding" to clarify for those who might not get the joke.  I've gotten that blank stare a few too many times.

I started thinking about the funny things in my life.  Things that, if I were a serious person, could not exist in my life.  Things like a husband who is fourteen inches taller than me.  Things like seven children.  Things like driving the short bus as the family car.  If I were a normal and sane person, these things just couldn't be.  I'd have to be able to laugh to have these things.  But, they are mine, and give me something to laugh about almost daily.

So, I will never do stand up comedy, but I will continue to laugh at life.  I'm flattered that she asked and that someone else in this world actually thinks I'm funny; that it's somebody I find funny too is especially flattering.  I'm so glad that someone else gets my jokes.