I Just Want to Have Fun

Having a good time used to be so simple. Whatever happened to that? There’s all this stuff we can’t talk about with each other any more; jokes we can’t tell, words we can’t say, sensitivities we must have. Above all, there’s a fear of offending someone, anyone. We’re all walking around on eggshells, forever conscious of saying anything to which someone else might take exception. What ever happened to having a sense of humor?! To being able to laugh at ourselves? To understanding that most of the time people are just talking, trying to connect, looking to strike up a conversation and, God forbid, have a bit of fun?

By now, most of you know I’m a senior citizen. I’ve developed all those attributes your grandparents had – I think everything is too expensive, kids don’t know sh*t and, by the way, didn’t anyone teach them any of this stuff?! WTH! I’m crotchety and short-tempered, my joints either creak or have been replaced, my hair is thin and my muscles aren’t worth much. Getting up in the morning is literally a pain. My back resists letting me stand up straighter than a chimpanzee, my left shoulder shoots a pain across my back and up my neck, and my hands are still asleep from having rolled onto my right side while still snoozing. Is there something good about all this? I get up wondering how much harder this is going to get. In short, I have a reason to be grumpy and sometimes, I take it.

I know you’re asking, “How the heck can a grumpy, crotchety relatively old man be at all qualified to write about having fun? Did this guy ever have any fun in his whole life?”

Really? You seriously don’t know?

I’ll tell you – I got like this by having too much fun. Where have you been! Don’t you know people hurt themselves and abuse themselves by jumping off stuff that’s too high, by playing sports long after they should have stopped (playing games at all, for that matter), by trying to impress girls or by taking stupid friends up on their double dare ya’s? Jumping off bulkheads, playing silly games like football, basketball and baseball, snow skiing off cliffs, doing goofy water ski tricks, impressing girls (again, at least that’s the theory) while playing volleyball, or high diving (a craziness all its own). In and amongst all this, of course, alcohol is often involved during or needed after.

So don’t ask me if I know anything about having fun! I can tailgate, obfuscate, shoot the bull and sling the horse pucky as well as anyone. I laugh too loud, interrupt too often, interject when no one’s listening, take too many jello shots, and give my opinion when it’s not wanted. That’s the definition of a partier!

Now that we’ve (or I have) established I used to know how to have fun, let’s move on.

There’s a thing called a fun meter. Everyone has one. If you don’t know this already you’re in big trouble. Anyway, to remain sane and easy(er) to get along with, you have to learn to play with your fun meter (and, no, I’m not talking about sex toys or the junk those things are for). It takes some practice to learn how your fun meter works and how it gives you feedback. The best indicator is laughter. If you laugh a lot, chances are you’re having fun. It might be at someone else’s expense, but that can be fun, too, as long as you’re not the only one laughing. I hope most of you know how to do this. I’m often left wondering these days if very many people do. I see way too many frowns, serious looks of disapproval and admonishing finger wagging.

The thing about fun is it has nothing to do with what seems to be our society’s favorite past-time – telling other’s what to do, and not do. We should try something new, like minding our own business. That business, by the way, should be about having fun! Wait, I did it. I told everyone what they should be doing. OK, forget I said that.

Back to the fun meter. I love this thing. It’s a blast to get it moving and it can be anything. Something silly, something new, something exciting, something watched or something to do. Excite yourself! Smile at others! It’s free and it’s amazing how it can brighten your day. You may even find you can start pegging your fun meter without hurting yourself. I figured that one out, and if I can, you can.

So remember – live is not meant to be lived at 100, or even 80, on the serious meter. You gotta have a fun meter and you gotta know how to make it work. We can take vacations, have no fun whatsoever, and come back thinking we’ve missed something. That’s not how to make a fun meter go. Take a rest, do absolutely nothing, read a book that’s not trying to change the world (or you). Go on an adventure, do something or go somewhere you’ve never gone before, meet or travel with new people, try a project that will be interesting, engaging AND relaxing.

More fun, less serious. It won’t hurt the world. In fact, it will probably go a long ways towards helping it.