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ATTENTION: To join David Granirer's FREE Ezine mailing list, please go to: www.psychocomic.com/subscribe.htm Thank you. GET MORE LAUGHTER IN YOUR LIFE! Please help us grow by forwarding this e-zine on to others! IN THIS ISSUE PRIVACY STATEMENT: WE WILL NOT DISTRIBUTE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS TO ANYONE. PERIOD. 1. WELCOME FROM THE PUBLISHER Joy Knudson of Everett, Washington sent in this idea on using humor and props: My brilliant idea -I've been doing some studying on laughter and the mind/body, and was really interested in how laughter (or, to prevent being ousted in the middle of a test, at least wide grinning) sends more oxygen to the brain and actually enables students to do better on tests. So, I've been telling students to take a one-minute break mid-test, and sit there grinning like fools and enjoy a 60-second oxygen shower. Now, the giggle balls...if teachers would spend three minutes prior to a test being temporarily silly and getting students to laugh, their brains would be better equipped to do well scholastically. ****Come Have A Laugh!***** My stand-up comedy shows start again on January 12 at Cafe Madeleine, 3763 West 10th Ave., Vancouver. Clean, intelligent comedy in a smoke-free environment, Fridays at 8:00 p.m. Reservations recommended (604) 224-5558. Bring in this newsletter and buy one entree, get second for 50% off. Opening the show are students from my Langara College Stand-Up Comedy Clinic Course. ****Comedy Course**** If you1ve ever had a dream to do comedy, my 8-week Stand-Up Comedy Clinic Course at Langara College starts on the evenings of Feb 13 and 14 (I'm running 2 sections this term). To register call Langara at 323-5322, course #104101. To see testimonials from people who have taken the course go to www.psychocomic.com/ComedyCourse.htm Apology: I've been in the process of changing servers, so I apologize to anyone who1s tried to access my web site and hasn't been able to. Everything is now up and running. 2. A LAUGH A DAY DOES KEEP THE DOCTOR AWAY According to a study done by the University of Maryland Medical Center, people with a well-developed sense of humor are less prone to cardiac problems. The study found that patients with heart disease were 40 percent less likely to laugh in a variety of situations, less likely to recognize the humor in a situation, and generally laughed less even in positive situations. Dr. Michael Miller director of the Center for Preventative Cardiology at Maryland said that people might consider setting aside time each day to have a good laugh. But how many of us actually do that? And why don't we? Many of us set aside time to exercise, catch up on paperwork, do chores, etc. But when it comes to setting aside time to laugh, our work ethic kicks in. We figure that exercise, paperwork and chores require effort and pain, and we1ve been programmed with the saying "No pain, no gain," so we think that something fun can1t be of much benefit. The rational mind, which is based on cause and effect, also has a hard time seeing the benefits of laughter. When we exercise or do chores we see quantifiable benefits like increased muscle mass or a tidy house. But the benefits of regular laughter aren1t as easy to see or quantify. However, as the University of Maryland study indicates, our lack of humor could be killing us. So perhaps we need to embrace a new paradigm that says not everything that1s good for us has to hurt, and that happy experiences are just as valuable as painful ones. And maybe if we keep this in mind when we sit down to plan our week it'll give us the motivation we need to schedule in some laughter breaks. If you have any favorite things that you do for laughter breaks email them to me at david@psychocomic.com. If I use your idea I'll send you a free copy of my audio tape "I'm OK But YOU Need Professional Help!" For other free articles about laughter go to www.psychocomic.com/Articles.htm For free back issues of this ezine go to www.psychocomic.com/Newsletter.htm *****GET MORE LAUGHTER IN YOUR LIFE!***** 3. WHAT'S GOOD STORIES It's so easy to see all the bad things around us, that sometimes we forget about all the great things that go on. And we need to hear about good things because that gives us hope and inspires us to go out and do more good things. In this section, I want to hear from you. What's happened in your life that's good? What things have people done that inspire you to be kind to others? What funny things have happened? Email your short stories to me at david@psychocomic.com, and if I publish yours, you get a free copy of my tape "I'm OK But YOU Need Professional Help!" This month we have two stories. The first is from Maggie Hanna Life Mission Coach, Teacher and Speaker from Calgary, Alberta: My four year old boy, Scott (alias "The Agent of Chaos") is a particularly articulate and energetic young man. People often marvel at how well he speaks, and at the depth and breadth of his vocabulary. His favorite activity is war of all kinds and degrees, and he owns a host of warrior types including army guys, knights, and pirates. As Halloween approached, I asked him what he would like to dress up as for the night's antics. And after 5 seconds of wrinkled brow concentration announced, "Mom, I want to be a vampirate!" Jane Stennett of Westech Information Services submitted the second story: Monday was voting day. Without thinking about the time of day or the fact that my polling place was L'Ecole Bilingual, I headed out to vote at about 12:30. The children were at lunch, and as it was a nice day they were all out in the schoolyard. As I approached the polling station, I could see a number of children gathered near the door. At first I thought they were probably curious about what went on in their gym that drew so many unknown people. As I got closer they scurried into "formation," creating a little passageway for voters to walk through. As I walked between them they welcomed me to their school, and told me to enjoy my stay and have fun, all with great sweeping hand gestures. The girl closest to the door opened it for me to walk through. When I left they were still there, and again opened the door for me, thanked me for coming, said good-bye and wished me a nice day. As someone who loves children I had to stop and thank them for being such a great greeting committee. Their already bright shiny eyes and eager faces became more so, they were just beaming. I think so many times people see this kind of thing and think it's cute, but I wonder how many stop to tell the children they are appreciated. I know these little ones certainly appreciated it as much as I appreciated them. AN OPPORTUNITY TO HELP The Vancouver Crisis Center needs volunteers. If you want to help people while learning crisis intervention and listening skills call them at (604) 872-1811 or go to www.crisiscentre.bc.ca. They're a fabulous organization with great people and lots of support for the volunteers. Of course I'm biased since I worked there for about 14 years and am co-facilitating their January training group. If anyone has a good cause they'd like to promote please email me at david@psychocomic.com 4. CLASSIFIED ADS Speakers: Learn how to incorporate stand-up comedy into your presentations. Check out David's stand-up comedy skills coaching for presenters at: www.psychocomic.com/ComedyCourse.htm 5. CONTACT INFORMATION David Granirer gives laughter in the workplace presentations helping hundreds of organizations throughout North America reduce stress, increase wellness, and cope with change. For more information on his presentations, stand-up comedy, products, and articles call (604) 205-9242 or go to www.psychocomic.com Special thanks to www.e-zinez.com If you would like to join David Granirer's FREE Ezine mailing list, please go to: www.psychocomic.com/subscribe.htm If you would like to be removed from the mailing list then
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