TUESDAY THOUGHTS: LAUGHTER

I was watching The Cosby Show one morning. 

It was the episode featuring Howard "Sandman"  Simms. 

He challenged Dr. Huxtable's skills at tap dancing. 

It was hilarious. 

I caught myself laughing out loud.

 

It’s funny how you catch yourself when you're alone, and laughing. It's not like you're going to disturb anyone, but you look around and wonder if you’re doing too much, or if your neighbors are thinking you've lost your mind.

Watching Dr. Huxtable going through those spasms,  reminded me of an episode of “Sanford and Son”, where Lamont avoided getting his butt kicked, by pretending he knew karate. 

His opponent forgot all about the threats he’d made, thought Lamont was just a crazy man, and left him alone. The episode ends with Grady, mimicking Lamont’s uncoordinated moves, and laughing to himself.

That, subsequently, reminded me of the episode of “I Love Lucy”, where Ethel was trying to distract Ricky, while Lucy was hanging from Cornel Wilde's hotel balcony... or the time Lucy thought Ricky was trying to kill her, so she put pots and pans under her robe, called it a bullet proof vest, and was ducking, bobbing, and weaving in her kitchen like a deranged prizefighter. 

“The Andy Griffith Show”resident nut, Ernest T. Bass serenading Charlene Darling, and tuning up his voice by banging on a can...or anything Ernest T. Bass did, left me in tears, as did the episode “Barney and the Choir”. 

Carol Burnett as Scarlett O'Hara, dramatically descending a flight of stairs, with a huge curtain rod across her shoulders, makes me laugh as much today, as it did when it originally aired.

I love classic TV, but then, watching the security alarm episode of “Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends”, Katt Williams as Bobby Shaw, or the episode of “My Wife and Kids”, where the Kyle family sings "Mustang Sally" at a funeral, or anything Cozmo Kramer did on Seinfeld,  cracks me up, too.

 

I was watching "Keeping Up Appearances"--again.

God Bless Patricia Routledge and Clive Swift...and the casts of "Are You Being Served", and "Fawlty Towers" 

(If you haven't seen John Cleese as Basil Fawlty, in spite of all the marvelous comedic work he's done since, rent or purchase "Fawlty Towers"). "Waiting for God" is a hoot, too.

Britcoms are a whole 'nother subject altogether. 

They take funny to a completely different place. 

I was on a flight, watching "Mr. Bean". 

He'd entered his stuffed teddy bear into an obedience contest---and his bear won.

Thankfully, other people were watching and laughing, too.

 

Laughter is healing. I thank God for those who are gifted to make others laugh.

I couldn't wait for "First Sunday" to be available on DVD, so I could actually hear all of what Katt Williams was saying. 

His face on the screen alone, caused hysteria in the theater.

Since I can't manage to do, see, or hear ANYTHING without the Lord interjecting something, I decided to seek out funny stuff in the Bible. Amongst the family fare, drama, horror, romance, adventure, suspense, history, poetry, and action, is a lot of comedy. 

The children of Israel complained about the manna, so the Lord dumped heaven-loads of quail. "Oh. You don't like the manna? Fine. Choke on this".

Sceva's seven sons, the exorcists of old, bragging about their power and getting jumped by a demon, is classic.

Balaam and his trusted donkey were hilarious. The donkey sees the angel, Balaam doesn't. The donkey high tails it into a field. Balaam hits him. Then the donkey gets cornered, slams himself up against a wall, and crushed Balaam's foot. Balaam whacks him again. Finally the donkey finds himself in a tighter space, gives up, collapses, and they both end up on the ground. Maybe the poor animal just fainted. Balaam slaps the crap out of him again. He must have really hit him hard that time, because the Lord gives it a voice, and the donkey starts defending himself. “Hey! What are you hitting ME for? I'm trying to keep you from getting your head chopped off! I'm usually dumb, but are you BLIND? Don't you see that big ol' angel? Don't you see his big ol' sword? You need to quit hitting me, and let's get the heck out of here!" 

Then without so much as a scream, look of astonishment, fainting spell, or blink, Balaam answers him. 

THAT was the funny part. 

Then, the Lord lets Balaam see the angel. That's the REALLY funny part. 

I could hear Eddie Murphy doing the voice of the donkey. "I was trying to help you, but noooooo. You got to get all violent. I've been your donkey since day one, carrying your stuff AND you, and THIS is how you treat me? Fine. I'm just gonna lay here. Get offa me. Go see what that angel wants. He wants YOU, not me......" 

 So I asked the Lord, "Were animals just busting out talking all willy nilly back then? I mean, was it so regular that the Bible didn't say, "And Balaam with his eyes bugged out, said, "Donkey, did...did you SAY something???" 

Balaam and his donkey. The Laurel and Hardy, and Ancient Shrek of the Bible.

 

God. What a sense of humor.

#laughteristhebestmedicine