I’ve always been one to have fun and still get my work done. This principle of mine goes back to the earliest years. Class clown wasn’t to my liking, as other boys generally took on that uncelebrated role. Those students often got in trouble for their antics, especially if a teacher didn’t have the slightest sense of humor.
I always chose behind-the-scenes pranks or comedic acts, such as secretly placing Greenie Stik-M-Caps on the bottom of desk chair legs. Those green paper dots were designed to make toy guns go “Pop” whenever the trigger was pulled. The caps contained red phosphorous, potassium chlorate, and sometimes sulfur.
Greenie Stik-M-Caps stuck on the leg of a chair after a student plopped down made the cap explode, never failing to have the whole class laughing, except for maybe one oddball classmate. Those caps were absolutely harmless other than leaving tiny black marks on linoleum tile floors.
Eventually, snitched on by a typical Judy Hensler, I spent an hour after school—working under the close supervision of our school custodian—scrubbing those marks off. The amount of “elbow grease” used was well worth it. My selfless act turned a normally boring day into just the opposite.
For those wondering what a typical Judy Hensler is, Judy was a fictitious character on the popular television show, “Leave it to Beaver.” A classmate of Beaver, the ponytailed girl constantly ratted him out to the teacher, Mrs. Landers. The stereotypical name of Judy has since been replaced with Karen as being problematic females.
After 40 successful years of working for a living, using the same school guidelines to make things fun, my tasks were always completed with no lapse in time or quality. For the most part, supervisors were okay with things unless safety protocol was breached.
I was smart enough to know when not to cross the line, as were “most” others. On occasion, someone would do something stupid, but I was never part of their blunders. My pranks were always well planned out so that no inherent danger or harm to coworkers was involved.
The list of pranks is way too long to list, yet one innocent joke was to place a dollop of shaving cream on the receiver of our office secretary’s telephone before she came to work.
That harmless prank worked to perfection, and to this day, Susan still doesn’t know who punked her. For those wondering what happened afterward, the woman couldn’t hear with shaving cream in her ear. The thick cream made for a temporary earplug.
The main culprit in this prank wasn’t me. This act was mostly performed by my supervisor at the time, Keith Steiner. My job was to simply call the woman after she arrived that morning. I was told that she took the ruse in good spirit.
Smart people and athletes are known to be pranksters, with Abraham Lincoln, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Leonardo Da Vinci, Ben Franklin, Samuel Clemens, Virginia Woolf, Willie Harper, John F. Kennedy, Eli Manning, Marie Curie, and even Thomas Edison — all known for their wicked sense of humor.
While in elementary school, Steve Jobs collaborated with a friend, printing off flyer sheets proclaiming that the following Friday was “Bring a Pet to Class Day.” These sheets were then passed out to students at the end of school.
On that day, teachers had to deal with dogs chasing cats, with many students participating in the unscheduled event. This prank was planned to perfection, especially on having the notices given out as students left for the afternoon. There was no chance at that point for any Karen’s or Judys to step in and ruin things.
Years ago, on a commercial building lot my wife and I owned in the London Bridge Shopping Center, I had a sizable professional banner made that read – “Coming Soon – Oliver Garden.” The sign was highly visible from Highway 95 and the parking lot road alongside it. The word Oliver was intentionally used in place of Olive to avoid any possible lawsuits.
That message had people talking, as pretty much everyone in town wanted an Olive Garden, and some now believed they were going to get one. After several weeks, I took that banner down and put up another that read “Buy Loco!” Folks were more confused than ever, not knowing what to think here.
After a year passed, I borrowed another saying from the Lake Havasu Tourism Bureau – “Play Like You Mean It!” This sign came down numerous times, either by the wind or protestors, yet never by me. Some folks took a dislike to the phrase back then, taking out their frustration on my banner.
I’m proud to be associated with those famous pranksters mentioned earlier, if only by having a keen sense of humor like theirs. There was a time when I wanted to be like someone else, yet that thought no longer enters my mind.
I thoroughly enjoy being me because that’s what God intends. Everyone should be happy with who they are, although spiritual growth inside of us is always good. Psalm 139:14
On a parting note, if laughter truly is the best medicine, shouldn’t those folks making people laugh have Dr. in front of their names?
I like to write junk... 