Terminology

They used to be called Used Cars. Now they are called Pre-Owned Cars.

Instead of using the search engine on your computer to obtain information on the World Wide Web you just Google it!

I’m awfully thankful that I never heard my daughter say, “Mom, I think I must have poison ivy because I have an uneasy irritating sensation in the upper surface of my skin that must be the result of a mild stimulation of my pain receptors.” By the time she’d have said all that, I could have already pulled the anti-itch cream out of our medicine cabinet.

Many merchants have instructed employees not to say “Merry Christmas!” In order not to offend any shoppers, they must say, “Happy Holidays.”

Because some folks want to be politically correct, our schools don’t have Christmas Break anymore…it’s called Winter Break. Give me a break!

Why can’t they just call something what it is?

It used to be called Constipation. Then it was called Irregularity. Just this morning, I heard a new one for constipation: Slow Intestinal Transit. Eating breakfast at that moment, I almost spit out my mouthful of oatmeal (long-cooking, of course, for Intense Fiber Therapy) when I heard that one!!!

But I totally understand why Hemorrhoids are not called Piles anymore. That’s just disgusting!




Always remember that if you have a pulse, you have a purpose…so make your life count!

Laughter makes my face hurt!

With all the trips I’ve made the last several months one thing has remained constant…laughter. I’ve been with people that made me laugh, laughed with me and even had a few times when people laughed AT me!

Have you ever been with a friend and you start a story, the friend adds to it and pretty soon both of you are laughing uncontrollably? You can't even finish the story because you’re both crumbling into laughter with every breath! That happened to me several times this summer. It happened to me today when a friend and I had lunch and stayed at the table waaaay too long, laughing and talking and laughing some more! Thank you, Angie…I needed that!

While in Ohio I spent a night at my friend Linda’s house. Linda Daft is this sweet, precious, gullible friend and I just couldn’t help myself. I cannot share with you what we giggled about because I’d have to kill you, but I can promise you that I laughed so hard my water broke and I’m not even pregnant!!!

On a trip to Delaware I took a side road and spent one night with friends from my radio days in Chattanooga. Ed and I worked together at a couple of stations. (I’ve mentioned him in a previous blog…the guy that was smart enough to know I wasn’t a reporter.) I hadn’t seen them in a while…in fact hadn’t seen her since I sang in their wedding 26 years ago. Ed and his wife Tricia live in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Driving there was a pure joy because the countryside was so beautiful! I enjoyed a delicious meal in their home. And FABULOUS dessert…Oatmeal Pie! (check out Tricia’s blog “Saving Room for Dessert” at www.savingdessert.com) After dinner, we sat in their den and visited for a long time. The dogs kept us entertained. Abby, the Jack Russell Terrier, is one funny little gal! There is a drawer where she hides her treats and will sit there staring at it till someone opens it for her! She also loves to chase laser lights and sunlight with shadows. Funny little girl! So is Mocha, but she wasn’t quite as goofy as her ‘sister.’ Between laughing at the dogs and telling stories from ‘the old days’ I think I laughed more than I had in a long time. In fact, when I went to bed that night, turned out the light and got very still…I realized that my face hurt! It actually hurt! Ached! And my cheeks were still sore the next morning! It’s good to laugh like that every once in a while…

I continued my drive the next day to spend the weekend in Delaware, where I had the opportunity to reconnect with another friend from radio whom I hadn’t seen in 20 years. Kathy and I have stayed in touch over the years even though we haven’t been face to face, and again, laughter permeated the conversation. We shed a few tears, too. Kathy and I have tons in common! She has this great sense of humor and we have always had fun together…this visit was no exception. The only problem was that it didn’t last nearly long enough!! (by the way, she is the lovely lady I'm hugging in the above picture...taken at RX-107 where we worked together in 1990 and 91)

Then there was the visit with our host at his condo in Delaware. I say ‘our’ because my sister and I spent time with this friend from Ohio...a friend that I’ve loved since I was 9 years old. Vangie flew in…I drove…and we had a great time at the beach even though it rained the whole time we were there. Ron lives in Baltimore and invited my sister and me to visit him at his condo at Rehoboth Beach. The three of us spent plenty of our time laughing. Time may have passed but we were all able to pick right up where we left off…

The best person I can laugh with is my husband! Joe is one of the funniest people I have ever known! I heard his laugh before I ever laid eyes on him! No kidding! I turned around to see who had that WONDERFUL, full laugh and there he was. Maybe I could say it was ‘love at first laugh’ because I truly was attracted to that laugh. And it sure didn’t hurt that he was a hunk! Still is!

There have been nights when we’d lay in bed and talk about our day…pretty soon laughing uncontrollably…then adding something else to it, causing more raucous laughter! I remember when our daughter was little, she would yell from the other end of the hall: “I wish you two would be quiet! There are SOME people who have to go to school tomorrow!!!”

It’s better that she heard laughter instead of arguments.

Proverbs 17:22 in the New Living Translation reads: “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.” So, obviously, friends…to quote James Brown: “I feel good….doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo…just like I knew that I would now…!” (for the rest of the day that song will be stuck in your head)

There are times when I don’t think I have anything to laugh about, or even smile about. But then something happens and I laugh so hard that I have tears running down my leg.

If this blog posting made you laugh, then I’ve done what I set out to do!



Always remember that if you have a pulse, you have a purpose…so make your life count!