C'mon, You Gusties

If there’s anything I value in others, it’s their power to make me laugh.  If you can crack me up or make me smile, frequently laugh yourself, and have a great sense of humor, chances are nigh perfect that we’d get along great.  In fact, most of the people that I regard as my best friends or closest acquaintances have the innate ability cheer me up.  And why shouldn’t they?  They’re my friends!  I was pondering the impact of laughter in my life recently, though, and I happened to be reading The Wild Duck by Henrik Ibsen.  Exciting, I know.  ANYWAY: the character Gregers is bickering with his father who says: “Laughter doesn’t come so easily to a lonely man, Gregers.”  And I suddenly thought, My goodness!  How terribly sad!  Laughter makes the world go round, fills us with joy, and creates cultures of creativity and positive thinking.  How terrible it must be to be lonely!

But then another thought: if laughter always comes easily, are you ever lonely? 

I’ve been a psychology major for long enough to know that just because A is not B, it does not necessarily follow that B is not A.  Okay, fair, you don’t need to be a psychology major to know this is true.  Really, you just need some common sense, a good head on your shoulders.  And really it doesn’t even need to be good.  It could be filled with bad thoughts and icky images and terrible jokes and you could still grasp the above concept.  It’s a logical fallacy or something along those lines?  Anyone know?  Whatever.  Getting tangential.

What I am getting at here is that maybe laughter is sort of shot of anti-loneliness.  Isn’t that nice?  Next time you’re sitting alone in your room, listening to Florence + The Machine, weeping quietly because the PBR you’re drinking is now warm, and dreading the meeting for the night because it’s the one thing standing between you and a double Tanqueray Tonic, just remember to LAUGH!  Even amidst the terrible preceding situation—that I’ve completely imagined—there’s just something so relieving about a giggle, guffaw, or scoff.  Oh, you can also feel free to snicker, chortle, chuckle, hoot, or titter.  Just promise that you will never gurgle.  Ish.  That word is not the same as laugh, thesaurus.

So these thoughts on laughter and the like were totally derived from this situation I found myself in last night in the Courtyard Café.  My friend and roommate, Kirsten Engel—ginger, funny, nice, bitey—approached me mid-homework and we discussed the dilemma of the following day’s shower.  If she showered in the morning, she’d have to go to Aerobics and just get sweaty; if she showered after, she might not have time to dry her hair before class; if she showered that evening, we’d be in the same boat as the first scenario and it would be a waste of water and personal energy.  QUITE the situation, my friends. We discussed her options (loudly) while two girls from across the tabletops listened in while trying to complete their work.  We never reached a decision, but Kirsten still sauntered off, joyful and in an odd mood.  As she wandered over to the coffee desk, I noticed the girls ahead of me—the ones at the table—snickering in their Gustie Gear and Uggs.

I was bothered.  And not even because they were vocalizing their annoyance with our conversation (perhaps too loud, too inappropriate), but because it struck me in that moment that Gustavus Students were being mean to other Gustavus Students.  Granted: I’ve had the realization before; I am not so naïve that I believe everyone is smiles and friendly gestures.  It was just the wave of “Holy Shit.  We’re too mean to each other.” 

Listen, I get that I’m no perfect being of congeniality and contentment, but I would be willing to put myself up there with some of the nicest people you’ve met.  Jesus…conceited much? Haha!

For real though: LAME SAUCE, ladies!  Life’s to freaking short to spend time belittling or mocking.  Let’s all take some initiative to put some smiles on some faces, rather than rip said faces to shreds.

You know what the nicest thing about having this blog is? 

I get to learn some lessons along the way too.