Why So Serious?

Today is sort of a difficult day for me. It’s the birthday of a fraternity brother of mine who passed away last October. Drew left a lasting impression on far too many people for me to even attempt to list. In his memory, I would like to write an entry using the same title he used for his editorial column in our college newspaper.

Alright, enough of the sappy… on to the funny!

Why so serious?

I’ve always maintained that the ability to laugh at yourself is one of the most important parts of enjoying life. How many of us wish we could go back to being kids, selling lemonade or bracelets we made with colored thread by day, playing hide and seek (or, kick the can! Anyone else? Anyone?) by night, and pretty much enjoying life to the fullest? What’s the difference between then and now?

Stop.

First off, all complaining by itself annoys me. Even when warranted, all that complaining does is display that you're not happy with your current situation. I can get bored real fast if all I'm hearing is "my life sucks" and "why am I always the one who has to go through stuff like this?" In the immortal words of Elvis, a little less conversation, a little more action.

Extreme? Yes. Effective? You betcha.

The main point here is that you're only as boring as you let yourself get. Unfortunately, most of us don't live in those nice little neighborhoods anymore, where Sally would go door-to-door every Saturday morning to recruit kids for a game of street kickball. We're adults now... we have to do shit for ourselves! Here's an example in musical form! (Thank you Broadway for musicals like Avenue Q!) Go make friends with your coworkers/neighbors! Sign up for an adult sports league! Post up at a bar and stare at every attractive individual that walks in!

... hmm, on second thought, don't do that last one, unless you're over 50 and single and out by yourself. People will probably think you're creepy anyway.

Do you know what the sign of a good day is? Being able to think back at the end of the day and listing off at least one thing that made you smile. So, get off the internets, call up a friend, and make your smile-worthy memory for the day! TJL will judge you if you don't.*

*- TJL will probably be judging you anyway, but you can reduce the number of "bad judging" moments by following my advice.