A Dose of Life with my Morning Cuppa Joe - Pass it On ...

You know, most mornings I power up the laptop and dive into the day without a serious thought. Some days it’s just business – others are a rambling of the mind, wherever it may take me.

My early routine involves quick meditation, lots of coffee, and a hop on the well-traveled global highway.

I make an early pit stop at Words With Friends, to ensure my Pennsylvania friend, JohnHarnish, is up-and-at-‘em today, as usual. It’s our way, at 65+, to make sure the Universe hasn’t done something stupid with us, overnight.

I play the Facebook version of WWF on the laptop. Ugh. I much prefer the tablet edition. Hate Facebook and all the social networking required for business – and some pleasure.

Of course, I enjoy the interaction with friends and sometimes, mere acquaintances. But often, I “hide” many of the posts that are inane and/or inflammatory – that’s my choice – and consider the policing of my feed a time-wasting chore. It does though, shorten the distance between us.

Once in a while, a real nugget crosses my FB path and stops me in my tracks. Today, one comes from PeterShankman’s obviously heartfelt and poignant post flowing from his perch above us. Yes, he is a member of New York’s elite business crowd, but this personal prose emanated from the seat of a plane.

Why “39 & Holding”? Because “40 isn’t funny …”

My good friend, John F. Harnish, recently reminded me that Jack Benny was the consummate 39-year-old. Mr. Benny was a popular radio, TV, and movie comic actor from the 1930s through most of the 1960s. He perfected a droll, penny-pinching persona who refused to age past his 39^th birthday.

Mr. Benny reportedly began his running gag to celebrate his 39^th year—again … and again—because “40 isn’t funny.” And Jack Benny was all about being funny. He demanded it—and he got it.

 

For those of us who remember his television shticks (I do, barely, of course—being just a kid myself—heehee), The Jack Benny Program was a highlight of our evening entertainment on the tiny boob tube. Mr. Benny and his cast of kookie characters and high-profile celebrities kept us laughing throughout the show.

The venerable comic was 39 years old 41 times before he passed into Comedian Heaven (in 1974, at 80 years old), and gave more character and emphasis to “Well,” than anyone I have ever heard utter the word.