Episode summary introduction:

This episode revolves around the indispensable role of humor in enhancing our lives and well-being.  Simply put, don’t forget to laugh!!

We contend that no individual should navigate the complexities of existence in solitude, as laughter serves as a vital companion through both tribulations and triumphs. 

Humour has so many dynamics that fosters connections, alleviates stress, and even contributes positively to health outcomes. 

Join us for a few laughs as we view the landscape of laughter, we aim to uncover the mechanisms through which humor can be cultivated and embraced, promoting a more joyous existence. 

Let us enlighten your funny bone as we explore the profound significance of humor in our daily lives and its ability to inspire resilience amidst life's challenges.

Topics discussed in this episode:

Humour allows us to embark on a profound journey into the realm of humor, positing that laughter is not merely a reaction but a vital component of a well-lived life. 

We look at humour from a number of angles that always rests on the ability to laugh.  It serves as a coping mechanism, particularly in the face of adversity. 

Our discussion moves on to bring to life through personal narratives, illustrating how laughter has provided relief during tumultuous periods, including battles with illness. 

Additionally, we scrutinize the interplay between humor and societal expectations, examining how cultural contexts shape our understanding and appreciation of comedic expression. 

We end with a reflective examination of dark humor as a coping strategy, revealing its complexities and the necessity of understanding one's audience. 

We invite our listeners to consider the implications of humor in their lives, urging them to embrace laughter not only as a source of joy but also as a means of fostering resilience and connection in an increasingly complex world.

The world is your oyster but the pearl is found in your ability to appreciate life through humor.

Walkabout takeaways:

• Laughter is often considered the best medicine, influencing our overall health positively.
• Incorporating humor into daily interactions can significantly improve one's relationships and work environment.
• Understanding the timing and audience for humor is crucial for effective communication and engagement.
• Despite the serious nature of many topics, maintaining a sense of humor can provide essential relief and perspective.

More about E-Walkabout:

To learn more about Electronic Walkabout visit us at   www.ewalkabout.ca.

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“St. Mike's Fortunes”

A special thanks to Steven Kelly, our technical advisor, who keeps trying to teach these old dogs new tricks when it comes to sounds and recording!!

“Remember to take advantage of the moment before the moment takes advantage of you!”

Electronic Walkabout. No one should have to walk through life alone. We share the good times, the bad times, and the best times.

Everyone needs a little direction now and again. And TC and Maddog are here to show you the way. A podcast where we talk about the important things in life. Come journey with us.

The Electronic Walkabout. Maddog, welcome back into the studio. Are you ready for some light conversation today?

I think think so. That sounded a little leading.

It is a little leading. And I. And I thought it was time to see if we could hit a few funny bones. Maddog, when was the last time you had a really, really, really good belly?

Well, TikTok helps me with these things. I go down these spirals of people getting scared and funny animal things. I just. I personally like to laugh.

It's just always have, you know, and my brother and I, in our younger days when we drank, we just became more jovial. Like, it just. I just feel. Oh, yes, yes, jovial. Uh, you know, just. I prefer to be on the happy side of life.

I wonder if that's why they called it giggle juice.

Oh, good one.

We often hear that laughter is the best medicine, but sometimes we fall short of the recommended dose for some people. A lot of the time, yes.

Some people are avoiding their medication.

Their medication, it touches upon nearly every facet of life. 90% of men and 81% of women report that a sense of humor is the most important quality in a partner who have thunk it.

Yeah, yeah.

It's a crucial quality for leaders, and it's even been shown to improve cancer treatments. Now, I'm not sure how that works.

But I guess removing the stress.

Removing the stress. And it's funny.

Not that my brother had to go through the cancer, but it was his sense of humor while he was going through the cancer that I'm sure helped his battle against cancer.

Absolutely.

So join us as we explore how important laughter can be in our lives and the best way to get a chuckle or two on a daily basis.

I'm good for this one.

You're good for this one. But first is always a thought for the day. If only the fish knew you were teaching someone to fish for life, school would always be out for summer.

I like that one.

Maddog, how many times you laugh in a day?

A lot. A lot. Honestly, I just. Our whole family's like that. We're just goofy by nature, and we all just kind of prefer it.

Okay, what about at work?

Same thing.

Well, not all the time, but I've really found over the years that when you're, you know, dealing with customers and some people take work way too seriously. And I always enjoy making the person across from me chuckle at least once if we're in business, because it's a bit of an icebreaker.

It kind of lets people's guards down because everybody likes to laugh. I haven't met anybody that doesn't actually like to laugh or gets mad when they do.

But there's, there's a tact to making somebody, you know, drop their guard a little bit, enjoy some humor and then kind of get back to work. So I, yeah, I, I, I enjoy laughing. I enjoy having fun.

Well, and I'm totally on the same page. And some people accuse me of having a dry sense of humor, which I'm totally okay with.

I'm listening, I'm a listener, and I'm looking for that opportunity maybe to throw a few words in there that's going to cause a couple of laughs just to kind of keep things going on. Right, but where did you develop your, your ability to laugh or your sense of humor?

I think, yes. Family thing. My dad was always a jokester, and brother and I were like that.

And then I started having kids, and I tend to be a little bit young at heart sometimes. So you.

With little, probably a few immature things that make your kids laugh or whatever, but you can't take life too seriously because it will bite you in the ass. So laughter is a good balance to serious things that happen in life.

I, I totally agree with you. And you talked about, let's say, your dad. Right. And we, we all know about dad jokes.

Yes.

And I'd say 90% of dad jokes aren't really funny. But you still laugh at them.

Correct.

But that, that's a good place. Because my dad had plenty of dad jokes.

That's, you know, sometimes you laugh because it's your dad and you have to. But you. I regurgitate some of his old sayings too, because they are funny. If they're funny 20 years ago.

Well, sometimes they're funny now, but maybe not fix then. But yeah, yeah.

I mean, I mean, it's all timing, too. And we'll talk about that timing, because you kind of mentioned it. There's a time to. And you have to know your audience. Of course. Sure.

But are, are there any, let's say, comedians that, that come to mind when you're thinking about that might lead you to a belly laugh or a little chuckle or.

I've been watching this gentleman. I can't remember his name. He was on America Got Talent, but he's got cerebral palsy.

Okay, but good Lord, this guy makes me laugh because he, he, he, he really plays light at his condition, so, you know, he'll poke some fun at himself. And to me, it, I think it's, you know, partially educational.

But, you know, when you see somebody not taking themselves too seriously or, you know, maybe making fun of the obvious, it kind of allows you to laugh. So kick out of that. But I, I, my absolute, what I love laughing at is scares when people get jump scared.

I don't know, I just, it's, it's a problem that I have. My wife's always like, what is wrong with you? And that's all the videos I watch.

Because I, I love that, you know, the genuine scaredness of people because that's, that's truly how they react when they get scared. But I could jump scare like that.

Yes.

You see, some guys will lash out and start punching and some people will faint. But for me, for some reason, that just hits my funny. But like nothing else.

I, I'm not gonna lie to you. Like when I was younger, I used to sneak up on my mom and just scare the heck out of her. And then I stopped.

And the reason why I stopped, she looked at me and she was all serious. You know, one of these days you're gonna do that to me and I'm gonna have a heart attack.

Okay, well, that's different. Yes. And you know, you love your mom, so. Okay, I got a top.

But it was still funny.

It was for sure funny at the time.

So for myself, I, I, I, I think about Steve Martin, I think about John Belushi, I think about Dan Aykroyd, the Blues Brothers. Right, Those kinds of things. And of course, snl, it's been around forever.

And I recall just being up late at night and watching those skits and just this laughing.

Yeah, and before snl, it was sctv. Sctv, yeah, it was slapsticky type comedy that you were sure to laugh at.

John Candy.

Oh, yeah. Rick Moranis, Bob and Doug McKenzie, all those characters. And yeah, it's, yeah, if you like to laugh, those shows are for you.

And let's, let's not, let's not forget Monty Python.

Yes, that is a, I don't want to say it's an acquired taste, but some of their stuff was pretty darn funny. And then, you know, English humor is definitely unique sometimes, especially from like the 70s. But, but something popped into my head.

You know, I was, People talk about work and jobs and interjecting humor. Did that ever work in your line of work? Like.

Well, it's funny you should say that because there's this, this thing called dark youth.

Okay, fair.

Okay.

And what it does and, and, and just to take two steps back and I don't care what the situation is, and, and it's not hard for me to figure it out, but there's always a laugh or two to be had, whether you share them or not. We've already kind of talked about that. But in that world, you go to something that's. That's horrible, it's terrible, it's sad, it's whatever it is.

And you're going to use dark humor just to take the edge off.

I guess it is a bit of a coping mechanism.

That's exactly what it is. But it doesn't do anything more than take the edge off. You still have to deal with whatever is that trauma that you've kind of witnessed.

But at the end of the day, the dark humor is kind of a nice segue to doing that, and it kind of takes the edge off. I remember when I was young doing that job, and I had no appreciation of, let's say, going to those traumatic events or for that matter, dark humor.

But you can develop a good sense of humor. Sad to say, you can develop a good dark sense of humor for survival.

Right, Right. And you kind of need to know your audience, especially. That's.

Especially when the dark humor is kind of in the air.

I'll just do it this way. And I haven't had too much exposure to dark humor.

I had one instance, I was 18, I was a security guard at a hospital in Calgary, and somebody had passed away, and it was a very large dude. And the two orderlies. I had to go and open up the morg. So these guys bring this Wheel, this guy down, and they had to shift them to another gurney.

And as the, the one guy was picking him up, he slipped out of his hand and the guy bonked on the table. They both looked at each other and like, man, he's going to feel that in the morning. And I was mortified. Like, I could not believe at that time.

Right.

But then, you know, to your point, now, it does make sense that, you know, when you're in those certain types of jobs that have some very unfortunate things that happen, there's got to be a way to deal with it.

So the whole humor laugh thing, of course, when you're the newbie, you're the, you're the target of the, the practical jokes. They, they Tried one on me, but it didn't work because I was already wise to what they were trying to do.

They wanted me to go to, let's say, an oil rig and seize the tool point, thinking it's a piece of equipment, but it's a person. It's a role. It's long plays. And I said, I'm not doing that. But a buddy of mine, early in his career, we talk about a morgue situation.

Sad to say that at times at that job, you have to actually get fingerprints from people who pass, who have criminal records to show. In fact, yes, they have passed. So they had this all rigged up. The only thing is that the person was far from dead.

Right.

The person was alive on the gurney with the blanket over them.

Okay.

Yeah. So the buddy goes in, of course, they lock the door behind.

Oh, wow.

And they are filming this whole thing. They're filming the whole thing. And what happens is, is that while he's doing his job, Buddy sits up.

That's fantastic.

And he runs for the door.

Yeah. As most normal enemies would.

And I didn't realize who it was until years later, because we're sitting in the office one day, and I always call this guy Father Troy, because he's one of the nicest guys, one of the most honest guys I've. He wears his heart on the sleeve kind of thing. Right. I said, troy, that was you. Did he just. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that was me.

That's fantastic. Yeah. And I guess, yeah, when you go through stuff like that, think aside from the dark humor, they just.

Overall, humor is appreciated by all as that kind of bit of relief.

I. I think the starting point, and I've said it before, when we talked about honesty, you have to learn to be honest with yourself when it comes to laughter and good medicine. You have to be able to laugh at yourself as well. For sure.

And that's the hardest thing, I think, to do, because if people are so wound tight, they don't have that ability.

No, no. Because I would probably break them if people were laughing at them. Right. That's just another thing. So.

Yeah. And of course, that comes with. With. I don't know what the words. Practice with just. I'll call it experience.

Like when you're the center of attention in that context, you don't want to be disturbed.

You know, you learn.

Yeah. And the other thing, too, is that for some reason, we kind of talk about it before, but if. If. If.

Let's say, someone happens to slip and fall in front of you, what's the first Thing that you go to, especially if it's a friend of yours. Laugh, laugh, laugh.

For sure. Absolutely. Laugh first, care second.

Because it's. Knowing your audience.

Yes.

It's going to be you next time.

You realize, yes, I failed miserably. My wife and I went skiing to Sunshine Mountain, and we were going down this run, and I hit this jump, and I was not a skier. I didn't see it. No.

I almost wiped out, but my wife was like, you know, probably 50ft behind me. She didn't see me hit that. So I'm like, oh, this is going to be it. So I parked myself farther down. She hit that jump. I mean, skis went everywhere.

The pole, she tumbled. I started killing myself, killing myself laughing. And then some other guy comes up quick, and he comes up to. He's like, are you okay?

I was like, oh, crap. I mean, yeah, are you okay, babe?

Like.

But yeah, laugh first. Deal with the emotions that.

Can you teach humor to people? Can you teach them to have a sense of humor? Or is it something that that's. I'll call it innate or it's genetically based, or.

I think if somebody maybe didn't have as humorous of an upbringing and then, you know, over the course of time, whether it be with people they work with or, or whatnot, that they get exposed to humor, I think it could be a learned I, I skill.

I would like to think so. I would like to hope so, because going through life without a laugh or two is just, it's, it's a waste.

Yeah. It's going to be more miserable than not if you, you can't have that laugh.

Keep your mind where we started. It's. Let's call it a medicine that. That's going to help us. It really is. Yeah.

And, you know, my wife was. Was ill with cancer for quite a while, and she was always the butt of my jokes.

And, and, you know, my wife, every once in a while she's like, will you stop that? But the only. Always got a laugh like it. But it was, it was a. It was a thing of endearment.

I didn't do it to be mean, but she needed to laugh more, so I usually bugged her more. And eventually, here's an example, we went to the science center and there was the dinosaur exhibit. So we walked up and her mom was behind me.

And I asked the lady at the counter, I'm excuse me, do I get a discount? And she's like, why is that? And I said, well, I brought back one of your exhibits. So I Should be able to. Oh, man.

So the old lady killed herself laughing. My wife was mortified. But, you know, it was. It's still a story we talk about to this day that everybody laughs about.

But you have to have fun in life.

You have to. And again, that's knowing your audience. But did you get the discount?

No, I didn't.

No.

Okay. This is Mad from my wife, but that's fine.

When is a good time to exercise a good sense of humor?

Humor knows no boundaries. Or I don't. Yeah, it's.

That sounds like that question. When's a good time to invest in real estate etiquette Fair.

And I. I think it was true. Because there's nothing. Okay. Unless you're laughing at somebody because something bad happened or maybe funny and the person got hurt. That.

That's, I think, where it goes a little sideways. But I. I would like to think that more times than not, people just want to be.

I say happy, but, you know, just have that little bit of a lightened feeling that, you know, life's not that serious.

Okay, so here's something that happened yesterday, and you tell me if you and I, I. I should have followed through with it. Okay, so Janette had to go and get a halter monitor. It's portable ecg, right.

But along with the halter monitor, there's a log that comes with it where you basically log your activity. So she says, yeah, I'm supposed to log when I, like, go for a smoke or if I have sex or something like that.

I said, can you put, like, every 10 minutes? Had sex? Had sex, had sex.

So it's fantastic.

I thought. I thought. Can you imagine that?

Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. Doctors, your fit is a fiddle. They're good.

Yeah.

Yeah. You should have just written the log yourself.

Yeah. Let me help you with that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Is sarcasm the highest form of humor or the lowest?

Sarcasm can be cutting, like.

Yeah, again, with friends, it can be a little more cutting because you kind of grow a bit of a thicker skin with your friends because it's like, you almost expect it.

Right.

But sometimes sarcasm, if it's somebody that you don't know quite that well, could be taken the complete opposite way that it was intended.

And I will tell you from experience, depending on language, doesn't actually translate well in other languages.

No. Yeah. So, yeah, in your brain, you might think. But, yeah, especially because I mean it.

Like, if you literally take the words that you're speaking in a sarcastic manner, the sarcasm is going to be lost in another language.

Yeah, No, I Don't think that sarcasm per se is the same thing as, you know, humor, like pure humor or true humor.

Okay, so how hard is it for you? And it doesn't matter what that situation, good, bad or indifferent to find.

I'll call them little nuggets that, that offer that I'll say motivation to laugh.

Honestly, for me, it's not hard just because I usually joke about almost everything. So even if it's somebody that I don't know and it's, it's almost like a challenge. Right. It's like, okay, got this crusty old guy.

I'm going to see if I can make this guy chuckle. Right. So I usually say, hey, T.C. and no see. But yeah, it's just personally, I'm not saying that I'm an expert humorist. I just, that's who I am.

So, so I, I, I would say that I would never have a lot of regrets in life, but this is one and it's funny. Wilkie, who, God rest his soul and rest in peace, was a host on the podcast as well. One of the things that, and he, he actually tried it.

Standup comedy.

No way. Good for him.

Yeah. And actually he tells me he did a really good job with it. Yeah. Or he told me, I thought myself, wouldn't that be nice to go ahead.

And you gotta be brave to do.

You gotta be brave to do that, number one.

But then watching Jerry Seinfeld, his latest special, I can't remember which, which streaming service it was on, but just to see that creative process where he's working on the jokes and rewording the joke, rewording the joke, rewording the joke. And then practice, practice, practice refining your craft. Really refining your craft.

And he's been doing it for decades, but he still goes through that process. So it's not an easy thing to do. But you have to know where those, where, let's say, I'll call it timing. When, when to let that thing go.

Yeah, the comedic time, that's a, that's a learn.

And the closest I get to be a stand up comic is when I'm in front of a class and, and there are times where I take advantage of that and I, I look as it is humor, right?

Absolutely.

Especially with the, the serious topics that we're kind of.

Yeah, yeah. And I think for people learning in that line of work, that occasional break of this is so serious is probably welcome.

Yeah, for sure, for sure. You're, when I ask you this question, you're probably going to say, tell me it isn't so. But what if we live their world without. Without laughter?

They'd be miserable, like it would. I wouldn't be happy at all, period. Just. It's. I don't know. I think that laughter and humor, I guess laughter, the.

The art of laughing provides you with a feeling. I've never met a bad feeling laugh, if that makes any sense. You know what I mean?

Like, people can fake laugh, but if you're truly something you find funnier, you feel it.

Endorphins.

Yeah, exactly.

Endorphins come to life. They do. I remember when we were. We were traveling. We were going from Ontario to Quebec. Family vacation.

They were all in the car, and we made my sister think she was deaf.

That's right.

The whole family was in on.

Wow.

Yes. So, you know, you're moving your lips and everybody's just talking, or she's gone, and all of a sudden she puts her hands over here, just. I'm death.

See, I love that. That's fantastic. At the surface, it's very funny.

Yeah. But I can get her going at any time.

Well, sure, yeah. When you know your family's triggers, that's usually the best laughter you can get.

But so safe to say that the world is full of laughter. And if the world is our oyster, what's laughter? Just more oysters or the ocean. Yeah.

Yeah.

Maybe they're the pearls.

Right.

So. So any other practical jokes that you can think of that.

Oh, I was just, you know, I lost it because I was thinking of. I'm always. I said before that I like, scare.

Yes. Yeah.

I got my wife in one. She was vacuuming, trying to get a spot out of the carpet. She did not hear me come home.

So when I got, like, probably 10ft behind her, I'm like, oh, this is a video moment. So I filmed the whole thing as I was walking up, and I kind of just got about a foot behind her. I was like, hey. She screamed so loud.

And it was the funniest thing I ever saw. She wasn't overly impressed, but I thought it was hilarious, so I laughed. So it was great. But we watched that video a couple days ago.

I still kill myself. And she still shakes her head.

Well, you know, Mad Dog, I'd love to have a few more laughs with you today. And I think. And like I said, I think we need to touch that funny bone a little bit more often.

And I know that when we talk about electronic walkabout, there's always got to be a little bit of humor, for sure. But unfortunately, that music is gonna put the kibosh on humor for today.

It's not funny.

It's not funny. From health to leadership abilities, a good sense of humor can help improve many aspects of life.

Being funny is possibly one of the best things you can do for your health. You can almost think of a sense of humor as your mind's immune system.

I like that.

It's not mine, but we'll give credit. Yes. Right. So it also improves people's overall quality of life. Laughter can also lead to greater creativity and productivity.

Does that not make sense?

Absolutely.

Yeah. You think about it, and it's a lot of work that goes into stand up comedy.

Those people have to be on top of their craft and it's not an easy thing to do. Not at all. And of course, we've talked about this. Remember to consider your audience when engaging in any form of viewers.

Yes. You should have some sensitivity still.

And I'm not talking about a mic drop moment. No. Because you don't want that for sure.

Right.

And we're just going to end this with a quote. Unless you want to share now.

I'm waiting for this quote.

Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, but the highest form of intelligence. Okay.

Why don't you go deep like that? We were having fun.

Oscar Wilde.

Oscar Wilde.

Okay.

I still left. It's fine.

Like, I was going to get into this sarcasm more because I think it's like, I think it's the easiest for sure. If.

If it's delivered properly.

If it's delivered properly. The. Yeah, Delivery is important. Right. So remember to take advantage of the moment before the moment takes advantage of you.

To learn more about E Walkabout, please.

Visit us at ewalkabout.ca Sam.