Choosing Laughter

“Humor is just another defense against the universe.” - Mel Brooks

Last week was crazy from beginning to end. I spent my week juggling service calls at the house for an energy audit and then a broken water heater and a series of client crises. I was seriously over-committed and continuously fighting fires. Part of the stress was in trying to get everything done before the end of the week so that I could go to Calgary tomorrow with a clean plate. That entailed long hours all week. Turned out there was no need. My Calgary trip was canceled on Friday afternoon. Whatever.

Every day of the week brought a new challenge or on several days, a new crisis. It's been a long time since I felt so happy to see the end of a week. Every day also required a choice of response - laugh or cry. I chose to laugh because we all know how ugly I look when I cry. I don't know how women do it in the movies when they cry and still look so beautiful. Nothing pretty about me when I cry - just a dripping wet nose and swollen eyes.

Friday night found Merv and I at the Princess of Wales for the production of Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein. It was absolutely brilliant - very funny and uplifting and just what the doctor ordered. We enjoyed dinner at Big Daddy's before the theatre but unfortunately it didn't sit well with me. As tasty as it was going down, I was regretting my choice of the seafood gumbo at 3:30 A.M. when it was on it's way back up. It may have made no difference what I'd eaten that night. It was a week filled with too much stress and too many problems. I suspect my body was poised to rebel regardless of my meal choice.

Yesterday was a far better day. I ran a few errands and took a nice long nap in the afternoon. Then we headed to dinner at the home of our friends Nancy and Aivers and Maurice. Not only was the dinner excellent but as always, the company was warm and comforting. For the first time all week, I felt stress free and calm by the end of the evening. And I felt lucky to have such good friends in my life.

This afternoon I attended a bridal shower in honour of my friend Kelly-Jo who will be marrying her fiance Peter this summer. Kelly-Jo will be celebrating her 49th birthday in a few weeks and has been single for the past eight years. She is positively glowing with happiness. It's wonderful to see.

As there is no longer a trip to Calgary in my calendar tomorrow, I have a date in the morning with a few strands of lovely lilac pearls and some Swarovski crystals. In the afternoon I will drive out to Port Hope to attend the wake for my friend Andrew's dad. At some point I'll be booking a massage and a pedicure too. I think I'm going to declare it "Be Nice to Jackie Week".