laughing all the way

Are you finding lots to laugh about lately?  I hope so, and so do your brain, your cortisol levels, and your immune power!

Women laugh less as they age, a phenomenon men do not experience.  Well, that needs changing, since, as William James supposedly said, “We do not laugh because we're happy.  We're happy because we laugh.”  And that was before brain scans could back him up.

Researchers have all sorts of theories as to why women reduce their laughter quotient over time, but why mindlessly blame estrogen, or kids leaving, or, or, or?  Why not proactively seek things to laugh about?  Daily!

There are always funny videos.  Authors like David Sedaris, Bill Bryson, and Liane Morarty never fail to make me chuckle.  And my own children are great sources of hilarity for me.  What are your best laugh inducers?

(I found this zebra adorable--I mean, that prefrontal fountain of a hairdo!  But he's not actually laughing: only primates “laugh.”  And while rats don't even smile, they do giggle in a dog-whistle pitch when tickled!)