MFM, you must keep your family laughing! (thanks, pacalo!!!)

[MiddleFingerMom]

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The family members who I loved and wanted to hang out with have
all died -- the last one MiddleFingerMomMom the day after 9/11.
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I think about her a lot around Christmas time. I would always
visit my parents here in Tucson during the holiday season.
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She was 81 and had Alzheimer's, along with other 81-year-old
medical conditions. Shortly before she slipped away from her
tenuous grasp on her present and reverted to the childhood
phase of Alzheimer's, she swore me to secrecy and told me,
"You were always my most difficult child (:evilgrin: )... and by far
my favorite one."
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Then she asked me if I had ever wondered why she would call
me for no particular reason -- just out of the blue to say hello.
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I had never wondered. I liked her calls.
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She said that when she had low days and couldn't shake her
blues (MiddleFingerMomDad was emotionally abusive and
controlling), she would call me because she KNEW that by
the end of the call, I would have her in tears laughing --
and her day would be better.
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She never burdened me with these blues... never let on that
she was down. She just allowed me to lift them from her.
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All sorts of reasons that I enjoy whatever it is that I do.
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That's one of the big ones.
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Thanks again. pacalo... for helping me remember that.
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[Curmudgeoness]

1. That is a beautiful memory. It is wonderful that you were able to

help your mother without the stress of trying. And that she had the opportunity to tell you what you meant to her. A little teary here. Too many people we miss.

[pacalo]

2. But you are a joy to others. Your hilarious corny humor is the main reason

I became fascinated by the Lounge. :) Your humor may be corny, but there's a lot of intelligence behind it.

I'm not surprised that your mom chose you to cheer her up. And I had a dad who loved to drink too much & was emotionally distant, so I know the pain that goes with that. Humor is a good device in coping.

Thank you, MFM!

:hi:

[rurallib]

7. I wouldn't say MFM is corny. I'd say he is about

10 degrees off plumb which is just about the best tilt.
Thanks for the nice memory MFM.
And thank you so much for your posts. I always look for your posts for a lift.

[MiddleFingerMom]

14. Thank you for saying that...

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...and I find your plumb imagery to be, um... veery descriptive.
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Sorry. Was that just off-plumb or corny?
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Please say both. Please say both.
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[applegrove]

3. You raise the spirit of the lounge every single day.

[MiddleFingerMom]

15. Thank you... I look for YOUR posts when I come here. n/t

[MiddleFingerMom]

4. Thank you for your kind words.

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And as far as corny humor goes...
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...guilty, guilty, guilty!!!
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Of my three favorite jokes, two are really short and really corny (and learned
just recently -- at least ONE of them here in The Lounge):
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Q: What's my Grandpa got that's old and pink and really, really wrinkly?
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A: Grandma.
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Q: What's brown and all sticky?
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A: A stick.
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[pacalo]

9. Corny is great -- it can be charming.

A guy I dated in my early 20's who was so cleverly-funny he seriously could have been famous always came into the house & charmed the heck out of my mom with corny jokes.

And there was another guy I dated who liked to order in restaurants with a fake redneck accent.

And my husband's opening line during his first phone call to me hooked me right away: No "hello, this is pacalo's future husband", but "I just wanted to see if you gave me your real number."

Funny is DAMN GOOD.

:hi:

[MiddleFingerMom]

16. One time, when asked by the father of a new love interest, "How's it going?"...

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...I answered with, "My parole officer says I'm doing pretty well, thanks."
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My new SO actually did a spit take at the diner table we were sitting at.
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(Although I've BEEN P.O.'d, I've never HAD a P.O.)
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Despite that beginning (maybe BECAUSE of it), he liked me a lot.
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YOUR humor helps lift ME in here.
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[monmouth]

5. One of the main reasons I come to the Lounge is to read what MFM is up to.

Very funny stuff and uplifting...Thank you for the joy..

[kimi]

6. Yep, I go along with this too

On any given day when I'm down for whatever reason I can read a post or see a cartoon or a joke by MFM and things get better.

That's a really sweet memory, MFM. Your mom was a wise lady. :)

[MiddleFingerMom]

17. Thank you, kimi... she WAS a wise lady, and she just kept...

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...getting wiser and more aware the older she got (unlike the opposite
of that for sadly too many). As with many of us, she was a completely
clueless idiot when I was a teenager... and I was amazed at how much
she had "learned" once I matured and stopped projecting my own
"complete idiot" status onto her.
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Recently, my boss told me that of all the people she's worked with, I'm
the most professionally and naturally "polite" person she's known.
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Immediate answer?
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"Yeah... I blame my Mom for that."
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[GoCubsGo]

8. Me, too.

MiddleFingerMomMom wasn't alone in relying on MFM for a good laugh. Hell, just the avatar cracks me up every time I see it!

[MiddleFingerMom]

19. Avatar? Oh, you mean the photo... it IS a flattering image, n'est-ce pas?

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<------- actual rare photo of MFM taken Aug 23, 2009
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[pacalo]

10. MFM's posts are the first ones I look for. :)

And we need to "keep them kicked so that others can enjoy them, too"!

[MiddleFingerMom]

12. Thank you for that...

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There IS a method behind my madness... and it's always nice to know if one is doing some good.
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[one_voice]

11. Such a nice memory to have...

Thanks for sharing. I enjoy your lounge posts a lot, they make me laugh. You lift many people's spirits with your humor. Please don't stop.

[MiddleFingerMom]

13. Thank you -- it IS a nice memory to have.

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For whatever reasons, I've been missing her more this season than most...
and it was good for me to share that.
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I'll keep doing whatever it is that I do for as long as I can.
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[woo me with science]

18. I have to admit that when I first started reading your posts,

I was annoyed at having to scroll and sometimes grumped at you a little bit under my breath.

But now your posts are consistently among my favorites here in the Lounge.

I can see why MomMom liked you. :)

[MiddleFingerMom]

20. Thank you...

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I never said she was completely rational.
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And I'm GLAD you (and others) have grown accustomed to the scrolling. I find
it extremely helpful in expressing what I'm saying.
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Sometimes, it's completely unnecessary and just a habit... and sometimes I
proofread and delete many of the dots.
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And there are some times when I have to restrain myself from VASTLY increasing
the tension and suspense by dropping WAY WAY WAY down for a punchline.
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[HERVEPA]

21. Just adding my agreement that your posts are the greatest! Thank You.

[MiddleFingerMom]

22. Thanks. Needless to say, I have a lot of FUN doing this...

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...although... sometimes when I'm mining for material...
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...I see things that I wish I never hadn't oughta.
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"If that gravy balloon pops, we're ALL in trouble."
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AIYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!! MY EYES!!!! THEY BURN!!!!!!! THEY BURN!!!!!!!
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And then I have to go read "Goodnight Moon" or somethin'.
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