I met Lina Karlsen while I was stuck waiting for my suitcase Gertrude to catch up with me in Tromsø, Norway. Turns out a delayed bag led to one of the best conversations of my trip so far. Lina is a social worker who grew up steeped in Sami culture, and her approach to laughter can teaches all the lessons of the value of humour in hard places. Her stories of will make you think, laugh, wince, and maybe call your grandmother.

In This Episode

• Meet Lina Karlsen, a Sami social worker with a gift for perfectly timed dark humour
• Hear why northern Norway's gallows humour does not always land in the south of the country
• Get the real story behind a snowboard joke that made a grieving friend laugh harder, not less
• See how one family uses gentle teasing to keep a grandmother with Alzheimer's part of the fun
• Find out what happens when a joke about inheritance money completely bombs
• Compare notes on humour across Norway and Canada, including a bus story starring Marla's husband Michel
• Play along with the Laughter Revolution Lightning Round as you hear Lina's fast, funny answers

Timestamps

• [00:10] — Marla kicks off the "on the road" series from Copenhagen and introduces Lina - where the heck IS Guovdageaidnu?
• [02:43] — What role does laughter plays in Lina's life?
• [03:48] — Lina explains northern Norway's dark humour and why it does not always land in the south
• [06:46] — Lina talks about humour in her Sami community
• [07:22] — The snowboard story: a tale of dark humour going right
• [09:45] — Marla's own dark humour story - the dead mother card
• [10:12] — How Lina's family uses laughter to keep her grandmother with Alzheimer's in on the fun
• [12:15] — The grandmother's affair scare, and how humour worked when nothing else did
• [14:22] — Why does laughter work as a intentional tool?
• [15:00] — Humour gone wrong - how do you fix it?
• [17:06] — Recipe for humour - finding laughter in a new language
• [20:19] — How to find that uncontrollable laughter - trust is the "golden ticket"
• [27:26] — Marla introduces Laughter Intelligence™ and tells a tale of laughter in Turkey
• [28:44] — Lessons on laughter for managers - from The Office?
• [30:30] — The Laughter Revolution Lightning Round begins

Links and Resources Mentioned

Laughter IntelligenceTM Self-Assessment

If this one made you think differently about dark humour, laugh, wince, or immediately call your grandmother, hit subscribe on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you listen so you never miss an episode.

And if you want more from this trip, including the stories and photos that did not make the cut, join the Laughter Revolution Digest at marlasimlett.com. Gertrude and I would love to have you along for the ride!