On laughing at myself

I do not trust anyone who cannot laugh at his/her self. In reading the biographies of some well-known historical villains, being “self serious” seems to be a common trait. If you take yourself so seriously that you cannot bear to have a laugh at your own expense, then you are a dangerous person in my estimation. Bad guys always seem to be above humorous self-deprecation. Everyone (I hope) has moments of singular silliness. I think it is healthy to enjoy these little episodes of low comedy. I revel in my personal moments of everyday slapstick. Here is a list of some of my recent “silly little moments”.

I had taken the empty trashcans out to the curb and left the full ones sitting in the garage.

I sealed an envelope without putting the letter inside, but I did enclose the stamp.

I stepped out of the shower and then discovered that my head was still covered with shampoo bubbles.

I walked around for hours with my shirt on inside out and backwards. I kept wondering why it didn’t seem to fit right and I couldn’t find the front pocket.

I poked myself in the eye while trying to put my glasses on.

I spent all day waiting for something to come in the mail and then realized it was a Sunday.

I tried to pour milk into an upside down glass.

I unload and put away all the dishes from a dishwasher that hadn’t been run yet.

I put a CD in upside down and then unplugged all the cables trying to figure out what was wrong with the stereo.

I tried to make the wrong remote work on the wrong device twice in one day and after having changed the batteries three times.

I wondered why my tea was taking so long to brew and then realized that I had not heated the water in the kettle before I had poured it into the cup.

I start the washing machine without loading it first, but after having put in the soap.

I startled myself while walking by a full-length mirror. This caused me to do a full arms outstretched, cartoon style crash into the doorframe.



Each of these dumb things gave me, at least, a little chuckle. Some were full-bore laugh-out-louders. It would be nice to blame these on age, but they have always been a part of my life. I may be a lifelong goofball, but I am probably safe from any war crimes trials.