Laugh Angeles

2009-12-26T18:15:00.001-08:00

Laughter Yoga Blog: Play Gazillions of Improv Games, Just For Fun: Laughter Yoga builds in m.. http://bit.ly/5XJEoN

2009-12-21T23:53:00.001-08:00

Leading Psychiatrist Endorses Laughter Yoga:
We are slowly getting official recognition throughout the w.. http://bit.ly/8jZe8f

2009-12-11T14:34:00.001-08:00

10 minutes of inspiration:

http://bit.ly/6Ny7I8

2009-12-11T12:38:00.001-08:00

Wisdom of Dr. Hans Selye: aim for altruistic egoism:
The following is an excerpt from http://www.icnr.co.. http://bit.ly/63qVFE

2009-12-10T13:35:00.001-08:00

Too much laughter = excess heart chi?:
Read in www.healingtaousa.com/pdf/innersmile_ch01.pdf:
…Smi.. http://bit.ly/7Zxk9A

2009-12-10T11:35:00.001-08:00

One Ingredient. Many Flavors. Humans are like that.: Just like there are many different forms of humor, there a.. http://bit.ly/8XzOvx

2009-12-10T09:33:00.001-08:00

Playfulness Is Crucial: Just a thought: you can’t be serious about laughter because that very seriousness.. http://bit.ly/4AenaG

2009-11-28T08:31:00.001-08:00

Laughter is the warrior’s rallying call?: I was recently made aware of the 1960s Japanese TV serie “.. http://bit.ly/8Eja14

2009-11-27T16:29:00.001-08:00

Neurodex helps prevent uncontrollable laughter. Good or bad?: I was recently made aware of a new drug “Ne.. http://bit.ly/6jZ3pY

2009-11-22T01:30:00.001-08:00

Laughter Clubs in the National Geographic: …this is a trace of where it all began:

“No joke is ne.. http://bit.ly/5j7CAn

2009-11-20T23:29:00.001-08:00

Machine helps humans learn to give more sincere smiles:
The press release read “Japanese Railway &.. http://bit.ly/4RH9ik

2009-11-18T12:58:00.001-08:00

Norman Cousin’s Prescription For Health:

Realize that each human being has a built-in capacity fo.. http://bit.ly/VBlxR

2009-11-10T23:09:00.001-08:00

Visit your local Laughter Club. You deserve it.:

See http://ping.fm/ioMCK for a li.. http://bit.ly/sJv6I

2009-11-10T21:10:00.001-08:00

Laughter Yoga is a spiritual practice that has the power to give me everything that I want:
Here is my l.. http://bit.ly/ePGge

2009-11-03T23:12:00.001-08:00

Wisdom of the Wombat:
No explanations required. This is utterly simple, and not negotiable: we are all o.. http://bit.ly/1QFT7S

2009-10-31T22:11:00.001-07:00

South African Fesearch Finds Laughter Is Good Medicine:
Laughter encourages and empowers people to acti.. http://bit.ly/hHKYv

2009-10-31T21:10:00.001-07:00

www.laughangeles.com provides Laughter Yoga education in 157 countries & Territories!:
Exactly how wides.. http://bit.ly/LSCXA

Everything that doesn't kill you makes you stronger

2008-04-15T10:17:00.000-07:00

Life is beautiful and spring is now in full bloom. Things couldn't be more perfect and yet the dance of death, pain and overall turmoil for human beings never takes a break.

I've heard many disturbing news over the past few weeks, and met too many people in pain or facing severe financial or personal hardships to not become aware of something deeper at work. Some of my close friends almost died (literally) or found out the hard way that their days were counted; others saw their parents either die or be crippled by strokes or other debilitating health issues; others still were faced with major financial challenges - leading for some of them to a lost home and total bankruptcy. And more.

Ha ha ha?

Life is not funny, and yet what is there that we can't laugh about?

I've also been inspired beyond words in that same timeframe by watching how these same people faced their fears and addressed their challenges head on rather than give in to despair and depression. All without exception chose to smile and laugh, move on, do their best.

Somehow tuned in I discovered and shed tears of gratitude reading the poetry of Tomihiro Hoshino and watching the last lecture of Andy Pausch. One became quadriplegic at age 24 and went on to reinvent his life by painting with his mouth. The other is dying from pancreatic cancer and shared a unique message of hope with the world.

What you heard was correct. You will bleed and it will hurt. And it's never that bad. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

Happiness Isnowhere

2007-08-23T10:06:00.000-07:00

"There is no way to happiness / happiness is the way"
That's what the picture said / I got it straightaway
It was there on the wall / I had seen it before
Guess I wasn’t ready / for the message it bore
But now things were different / I was ready to grow
To learn, love and accept / simply go with the flow

And so that very day / I did something silly
Illogical, insane: / I chose to be merry
Regardless of what life / would keep for me in store
Painful or challenging / I would fight it no more
Henceforth I’d be smiling / instead of resisting
And as for the result / it is just amazing.

Happiness is now here / happiness is nowhere
Either way you’re correct / everything comes in pair
On Earth one thing is true / there is no absolute
Good and bad coexist / choose the dance that’s for you
See the joy, see the pain / the choice is yours to make
They’re both there together / and it is no mistake

Why is the world this way? / who am I to tell you
Ignorance is my bliss / we all live in a zoo
And it’s very lively / Maybe that is the point
To keep God entertained / we’re all held at gunpoint
(You may laugh. I do too / for what isn’t funny?
On the great stage of life / that’s my epiphany.)

As a close I urge you / Do not wait a second
Plant a seed in your eyes / You’ll experience first hand
That seeds of love and joy / reach deeply for your soul
And transform your vision / simply help you recall:
When you have a hammer / all you can see is nails.
Change your tools! See the good / Your happiness won’t fail.

Laughter Alone Is The Solution. No Joke.

2006-08-10T02:18:00.000-07:00

Can one be happy and stay positive in such a stressful and challenging world? My friends and I regularly answer to the top of our lungs with an affirmative “yes!” at the end of every laughter session we have together, often times daily. We laugh for no particular reason except that of feeling happier and healthier. No joke.

Most of the people we know are stressed out to varying degrees. Many are depressed. Others prefer to be angry and vindictive. Considering the current state of the world we live in it is easy to understand where they are coming from. Very few things can make people laugh while hundreds can make them frown, howl and cry.

The lives of my friends cannot be described as easy. Some experience major financial struggles, others go through difficult times in their relationships or have some rather heavy duty physical challenges. All still prefer to laugh and we take it very seriously. Laughter is a necessary component of human happiness, and its absence is a pathology that results in maladaptive and other dysfunctional behaviors (e.g. guilt, depression, worry.) Why leave such an important function to chance?

An Indian family physician Dr. Madan Kataria discovered 12 years ago that anybody could laugh for no particular reason for 20 minutes or more at a time, anytime, anywhere. Despite pressure from his family and friends he refused to patent or trademark anything and insisted on giving what he knew to the world. He dispelled forever the myths that one much be happy or have a sense of humor to laugh. This selfless one man idea started a bush fire in the hearts & minds of many around the world and directly inspired the creation of well over 5000 Laughter Clubs in 55 countries. Most of them are free and public.

Life has no meaning. We give meaning to life.

Many reasons can explain the Laughter Yoga social phenomenon. Just consider this one: anybody can laugh anytime, anywhere, alone or in a group. Success comes from the heart, not the mind, and everybody wins while affirming in a non-verbal way the value of their own existence. This activity is free, part of everybody's own toolkit and carries with it the potential for tremendous physical, mental, emotional and even spiritual benefits. Many consider it their gift back to humanity.

Scientific research has shown time and time again over the past 20 years that laughter has both preventive and therapeutic values. Laughter helps us keep healthy by enriching the blood with ample supplies of oxygen, the lifeline of our system. It helps to remove the negative effects of stress, acts as a pain killer and boosts the immune system. Native and traditional healers have long believed that without an uplifted spirit there is not enough energy or vital force for a person to completely experience healing. They all claim that laughter takes you halfway home to healing and is a most powerful form of complementary medicine.

There is more.

Laughter puts us intensely in the moment. The ability to fully live and experience the “now” is of utmost importance because it is the only moment where we can experience happiness.

Also consider that feelings and emotions do not live in thin air. They need a chemical base that can only exist with specific physical behaviors (tighten all the muscles of your body, frown, make a mean face and try to feel love for your sweetheart if you need to consciously experiment with this). Anger and happiness are mutually exclusive. Acting happy is the easiest way (over time and with practice) to becoming happy, regardless of what may be going on in your life. Motions create emotions.

People who laugh don't worry as much as people who don't laugh, and as such enjoy life more. Laughter makes their circumstances seem less serious and therefore tolerable. A playful approach to everyday things is a key factor in keeping healthy. Daily chores are less burdensome when we laugh while doing them. We aren't always having fun, but we do have a lot more fun with laughter than without.

Day One

2006-07-21T00:31:00.000-07:00

Hello world:

I am not Graham Bell and this is not going to revolutionize humanity. And yet I am proud, very proud.

This is Laughangeles Blog day one and a great achievement in the book of my personal success.

Exactly 12 months ago I had no knowledge of website design, didn't know what a cascading style sheet was and had never heard of php (pretty happy person?). Since then I have created www.laughteryoga.org and www.laughteryoga.us; worked with, managed and often times corrected professional website designers and programmers; and established myself as an expert internet consultant.

My modesty and ego may conflict as much as they want: I know my stuff, from working with Hypertext Pre-processor (php), javascripting, xhtml, downright to correctly code a webpage for successful search engine optimization.

It took hours - countless of them - and what an amazing subject!

I love to laugh, and I love the intellectual challenge and opportunity for creative expression that website design gives.

Gee weez. Life is fun.