STEVE CAMERON BLOG When all else fails, laugh
Still here.
And I’ve got to tell you...
I can’t keep from laughing.
Today it happens to be a story I re-read about a drunk driver who crashed his car over in Washington.
When the cops arrived to find the vehicle in a ditch and a gentleman WAY over the limit, he told the officers that it was all a misunderstanding.
He claimed he was teaching his dog to drive.
I’m sorry, but there’s no way I can repeat that with a straight face.
Yes, yes, I get it that the coronavirus has cut a deadly swath across the world, and there has been tragedy almost everywhere.
But I’m the sort of guy who has to find the funny side of everything – maybe as a defense against anything truly scary, or maybe because I just see slices of humor in any situation.
I gave the eulogy at my best friend’s funeral a few years ago, and made it...
Well, something like a Jimmy Fallon monologue.
The church was packed with people in tears, so my logic involved picking up their spirits – but also it was about staying honest, since my pal had been one of the funniest guys ever, and that’s the way he deserved to be remembered.
He was also infamous for being late, like, REALLY late. He could get so late that he’d forget an appointment entirely.
So as an opener, I looked over at the casket and said: “Has anyone checked to make sure he’s even here yet?”
Happily, the line turned a lot of tears into laughs.
Hmmm...
Was I out of place that afternoon?
Am I out of place now to laugh at coronavirus memes or toilet paper jokes?
No, I don’t think so.
For instance, I can’t help giggling that with the planet in crisis and illness all around us, every news outlet from here to Buffalo to London to Mumbai has made a massive fuss over reporting that a tiger named Nadia has contracted COVID-19 from her handler at the Bronx Zoo.
I mean, never mind the rest of us in our masks and gloves.
How is Nadia getting on?
Look, I love tigers and all other creatures. I just find it funny that Nadia is getting more attention for catching this virus than when the victim was Tom Hanks.
Maybe I’m the odd one here, but that story tickles me.
The author Tom McTague took a shot at explaining humor in dark times this way...
“We laugh to take back control and to connect — two things we have lost in our fight against the coronavirus. Not only are we unable to stop the tidal wave of infection washing over us, but we are being forced to endure this reality alone in our own home.
“Powerless and isolated, we’re finding that the joke is now our most reliable shield — and our warmest comfort blanket.”
Here’s British comedian David Baddiel’s summary about humor and the coronavirus...
“We can’t really do much about these things, but we can laugh in the face of them.”
Perhaps that’s part of my own rationale, but...
It might be more likely that I’m just a little bit nuts.
You’re welcome to join the blog. Any time, on any subject. Or with any opinion that doesn’t get us sued.
scameron@cdapress.com
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