I Will Never Laugh Again!

This, of course, is coming from our son who until recently was the nicest, laughing-est kid around.  His laugh is infectious and goofy and you can't help but smile back at him.

Until recently. 

I've mentioned this before, but it bears mentioning again:  10-year olds can be moody little so-and-so's.  This morning's incident was because he couldn't find 'the most important game in the world' for his Nintendo DS, so he was stuck playing something "boring and worthless" when he was 'powned' in my office for a couple hours while his sister was at the dentist with Dad.

Of course, I'm like, "Dude!  Read...you have the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy there...one of the funniest books around."

And of course, he's like, "I haven't laughed yet and I won't...not even inside."

And of course, I'm like, "Whaaaaaa!  What do you mean you haven't laughed....hello?  42?  Doesn't that get a giggle?  What about the whole conversation between Arthur and Ford about the monkey's doing Hamlet?"

He just stared at me. Reminded me of the time we took him to Chinatown for "chickenfeet and squid"...there was a joke that really backfired on us.

So, instead of torturing him some more, I set about jotting down the books that make me laugh, outloud and at length.  A few of these books I've mentioned before, but they're worth repeating. 

So, in no particular order:

Hotel New Hampshire by John Irving:  My friend Christy Gardner and I read and re-read this in the halls of Butte Falls High School, sitting and laughing hysterically.

The Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy O'Toole.  All I can say is, 'the hot dog scene'.

One for the Money (and the rest) by Janet Evanovich.  Stephanie and her pals crack me up! 

Lamb.  The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal.  by Christopher Moore.  I laugh because I can go to Confession and make it all good again.

The Wrong Venus by Charles Williams.  Best noir about Americans in France, bodice-ripper genre and kidnappers.  Don't ask, just get it, read and laugh your ass off.

P.S. Your Cat is Dead.  by James Kirkwood.  I don't know how this got into my parents bookshelf, but it did and I would read it in secret...hard to do when everybody can hear you laugh.

Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins.  There are three lines that get me every damn time.  First, "They're no threat to me.  I have a black belt in Haiku.  And a black vest at the cleaners."  Second, "Sharks are the criminals of the sea.  Dolphins are the outlaws." And last but not least (and I'll mis-remember this one)..."She lunched on Papaya Poo Poo or Mango Mu Mu or some other fruity thing with overripe tropican vowels."  Classic!

Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris.  Duh!

A Porcine History of Philosophy and Religion by James Taylor.  This was at a friends house when I was growing up.  I had no clue who Kierkegaard was at age 12, but there was something about these drawings of pigs that made me giggle.

I could go on and on...from Rivethead to Catch-22.  And Bill Bryson to Nick Hornby.  But these books above are the ones that I remember laughing with and can look forward to laughing with again someday. Hopefully my son will be there with me on some of them...once he decides to allow laughter back into his life of course.