My dearest, serious TVF members

I come in front of you with one aim.

To help you.

I feel sad and depressed, listening to your moans and groans in every funny or light hearted post I make or other posters make.

And as I don’t like been sad or depressed ever, I will try to give you some facts about laughing and in the second part I will try to give you some instructions as how to laugh.

Here are 10 simple health-enhancing reasons to have a daily laugh.

1. Laughter helps boost your immune system by increasing T cell activity; those “killer cells” that help our bodies fight viruses and tumours.

2. Laughter helps lower blood pressure and cortisol levels, decreases pain and can also help stabilize blood sugar.

3. Laugher stimulates chemical changes in the brain that help buffer our bodies against the cumulative effects of stress.

4. Laughter burns a few extra calories: according to a recent university study, just 10 -15 minutes’ worth of chuckles throughout the day can burn up to 40 calories.

5. Laughter stimulates the release of endorphins, the mood-elevating brain chemicals behind the “runner’s high.”

6. Laughter helps reduce inflammation throughout the body – good news for your heart, brain and circulatory health.

7. Laughter “massages” internal organs – which is why it’s sometimes referred to as “internal jogging” – with effects similar to exercise.

8. Laughter provides a light workout for the heart, lungs, diaphragm and even the abdominal muscles.

9. Laughter releases tension in the muscles of the face, neck, shoulders and abdomen – all common areas where we tent to hold lots of tension

10. Laughter is physically and mentally therapeutic – an involuntary response that positively alters mood instantly – what could be better?

And now 5 instructions as to how you can laugh.

1. Surround yourself with people who make you laugh.

You don't have to dump unfunny friends, but make a point of seeking out new friends who make you laugh and who are ready to laugh. When you're around them, you'll be ready to laugh too.

2. Watch funny movies and TV programs

It doesn't matter how old you are: Tom & Jerry is funny. Pour a bowl of sugary cereal and recreate the Saturday mornings of childhood.

3. Switch off the news.

If you're a newspaper addict, start with the funnies and the human interest stories before you get too deep into the depressing stuff. Switch back and forth to keep your mood light. Don't overdose on darkness.

4. Laugh at yourself.

Laughing at yourself helps to distinguish between "who you are" and "what you do." Everyone mucks up at some point, and it doesn't have to define you as a person. Laughing at yourself communicates to both you and the people around you that it's no big deal.

5. Force a few chuckles

Start with three short "ha" sounds and do several sets of forced laughs to get started with. You'll be surprised at how quickly forced laughs can turn into legitimate ones.

I hope all the above will be of some help to you and I would be eager to hear you laughing through your posts.

Bloody hell, this is a long post, I wouldn’t be surprized if nobody reads it.

To be honest I don't think I have met anyone in LOS that laughs, but still racking my ol' gray cells to find one. Seems being miserable is the norm with farang folk.

Ahhh, my ex Thai boxing champ chum, laughs..... ........

windy out today

no one on TV will hear me laugh, even if I turned up the mike...

You're avin a larf ain't you?

Here's one for you Costas !!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=YpMEl7wAQ6k

Got another one here for all to view too..

All "Greek" to me yassas

I got some erbs that can help wiff dat

All "Greek" to me yassas

Your English no good eh?

Don't worry took me years to learn how to say Good Morning.

Not everything in life is misery most of us come here for the weather,tranquility,friendliness of the thai people & i hasten to add the other ex pats who live amongst us.

Some not all posts are trivial and therefore people make light of them without meaning to offend,others go out of their way to ridicule others it's the old chip on the shoulder attitude,i will even go as far as to say that some of us are famous in small circles where the conversation is about TVF.

Get over it costas and sleep well at night it's not a life threatening forum.

Oh and BTW you and others do a gr8 job with info that some people fret about,so don't stop or get depressed we all love ya really.

Bloody 'ell, Costas, you got that just about right! There was a medical doctor, somewhere in the States, some years ago, who was diagnosed with terminal laughter. He went out and bought all the Marx Brothers movies, Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and laughed himself silly for a couple of months. It's only anecdotal, not a scientific study, but he reckoned the laughter put him into remission!

I enjoy a good laugh to the point of tears. A lot of movies, even serious ones, have their lighter side. And I love the dry British humour. The old Monty Python group...brilliant.

Hahaha great video, s....

Made my sat... Cheers guys

After reading the OP I don't conceder my self as a serious TVF member any longer...

My daughter in Germany has been diagnosed with MS, my wife here has been diagnosed with Tuberculosis, the UK has made a mess of my Passport application, everybody at my bank in Germany is either ill or on holiday and i can't seem to get anybody to send me a new EC card which means i will soon not be able to withdraw money from an ATM and you want me to laugh ???

nice work Mr Costas-a rare post that is both positive and helpful. Good on you!

Bloody 'ell, Costas, you got that just about right! There was a medical doctor, somewhere in the States, some years ago, who was diagnosed with terminal laughter. He went out and bought all the Marx Brothers movies, Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and laughed himself silly for a couple of months. It's only anecdotal, not a scientific study, but he reckoned the laughter put him into remission!

I enjoy a good laugh to the point of tears. A lot of movies, even serious ones, have their lighter side. And I love the dry British humour. The old Monty Python group...brilliant.

I think you intended to say "diagnosed with terminal cancer."

plagiarism makes me laugh

All "Greek" to me yassas

Your English no good eh?

Don't worry took me years to learn how to say Good Morning.

that made me exercise my abdomen!

too bad you didnt spend so much effort on an actual funny post

I laugh every single day no matter what kind of mood I am in, it is therapeutic to laugh, not sure why I don't see more people laugh, usually just grumpy old dudes in bad moods at the Bar Beers.

Hope y'all find some humor somewhere.

Bloody 'ell, Costas, you got that just about right! There was a medical doctor, somewhere in the States, some years ago, who was diagnosed with terminal laughter. He went out and bought all the Marx Brothers movies, Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and laughed himself silly for a couple of months. It's only anecdotal, not a scientific study, but he reckoned the laughter put him into remission!

I enjoy a good laugh to the point of tears. A lot of movies, even serious ones, have their lighter side. And I love the dry British humour. The old Monty Python group...brilliant.

I think you intended to say "diagnosed with terminal cancer."

Quite right! Well, that little blunder gave me a good chance to laugh at myself...thanks for pointing it out ?

I read your whole post and could not agree with you more! It is important to laugh and to do so to yourself seems to be the only way to feel better about your day most of the time no matter where you are living on this Planet Earth.

But this brings me to another question that has been on my mind recently; why is it that we Farangs never seem to acknowledge each other when we pass each other in the street? For though I try to say "Hi" or just give a nod, never have I seen anyone else do it. It is as if we actually think that we are in New York City or London or Paris and it is better to keep to yourself. I ride a motorcycle and back home we always give a wave when passing another rider. But here... nope. I know that it is not a Thai thing to do so I do not expect it, but with a Farang I sort of do. The other thing is that no one even smiles and always looks as if they are off to their own funeral. All the traveling is supposed to be fun... no? Our lives cannot be that horrible seeing as we are here in LOS by our own choice, so why does everyone look so upset or maybe just bored?

It does not take much to say, "Hi". It does not take much to be personable to one's fellow travelers. It also does not take much effort either. But maybe it is my cologne.

Costas:

Most days I just don't have the energy to laugh.

I'm simply exhausted from all the smiling you're expected to do around here.

I laugh when I read, listen to, or watch something that is funny, at least to my eyes (or ears).

Sometimes, your posts are, IMHO, funny, sometimes not so, but I know that you try to make us laugh more often than not, Costas2008.

I often try too, with my somewhat limited English language skills, but I accept it when I fail. I would say that, again IMHO, it's better not to abuse of the repetition trick, because it gets really boring sooner or later (often sooner actually). And also, don't try to add humoristic remarks in almost every post of yours and don't reply so promptly to most new topics: take more time to elaborate better constructed jokes and you surely will have more laughers appreciating your posts.

After 7 years here...I'm leaving in 2 weeks. I'm laughing.

1. Surround yourself with people who make you laugh.

That's why I'm an avid reader of Thai Visa. The disproportionately high representation of (largely unintentional) clowns & buffoons makes it comedy-central as far as I'm concerned.

The farang population as seen through the eyes of a typical Immigrations officer each day.

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All "Greek" to me yassas alt=thumbsup.gif>

Your English no good eh?

Don't worry took me years to learn how to say Good Morning.

Well I have another twist - I'm quite old and I now get morning and afternoon confused. I think.