LAFOLOT

I was also going to title this blog entry: THEY REMEMBERED!

When I was first starting my LAFOLOT business back in May of 2008, I hit the ground running with marketing and advertising. I made use of keychains from A.C. Moore Craft store that allow you to unsnap the circle shape, place your own printed design inside and snap it closed/sealed.

When I was entering an Olive Garden Restaurant near me, and a crowd was outside, one particular man stood out. He was Laughing Out Loud, surrounded by several other people. I whipped out one of my: I Love to LAFOLOT keychains, walked up to him and said: ‘HERE, YOU NEED THIS!’ When he read it, he Laughed Out Loud! His family got a chuckle out of it.

Well! Zoom forward to June 30, 2010 -
I’m walking out of Olive Garden Restaurant -
I see an older couple and a younger girl standing around my car, looking at the HA-HAHA license plate;
Live Life! Laugh Often! Bumper Display; and
magnetic side panel advertising: LAFOLOT – Laughter Clubs and Talks; Motivational Speaking…

I was REALLY tempted to use my cars ‘help you find you car in a crowded parking lot’ feature and press the button to set all the lights flashing. The young girl was at the back of the car looking at the license plate.

But, when I’ve done silly stuff like that in the past, it has backfired on me. I thought, watch me do this and it won’t stop! HA HA

So, I crossed the parking lot, they saw me coming (AND THEY DIDN’T RUN! THAT WAS A GOOD SIGN! HA HA).
They had big SMILES on their faces.
I told them what I had planned to do with the car alarm system, they laughed.

The older woman told me: ‘DO YOU REMEMBER US? YOU GAVE MY HUSBAND A KEY CHAIN YEARS BACK!’ ‘YOU SAID, -HERE, YOU NEED THIS!’ when we were standing outside the restaurant talking with our sons!

I laughed, I HAD REMEMBERED! I said: ‘It’s only been since May 2008!’ The lady laughed and said, ‘That’s YEARS ago to ME!’ I guess they were telling their granddaughter about me, the keychain, and she was getting a kick out of my car advertising.

I told them, ‘Well, you made my day!’ You not only remembered me, but gave me the gift of letting me know you remembered!’ I told them how I teach ‘Good Hearted Living’ by Steve Wilson as well as Laughter Therapy/Wellness. I said: I tell people all the time how it doesn’t cost anything to share a compliment or kindness. I asked them if I had given them a bookmark back then and did they each want one? They did! So I gave them each a SMILEY face, bright yellow LAFOLOT bookmark.

So –

THEY REMEMBERED!
They had a PHOTOGRAPHIC memory of the event and it brought them laughter and smiles!
The young girl was PHOTOGRAPHING my license plate! (HA HA)

So I had to: SMILE! It was a PICTURE PERFECT moment!

Share those SMILES BY THE MILES, share your wonderful thoughts, moments and memories and make people’s days. Remind yourself and others how special they have made your life!

Live Life! Laugh Often!
Ha Ha Helen Szollosy of LAFOLOT
www.lafolot.com

[this blog can also be seen at VIBRANT NATION under blogger name: Helenoflafolot

A mini HA HA Helen of LAFOLOT moment …

Just came in from doing the mini-yard work around my new Modular home.

If you want to have fun and get healthy while doing yard work; as well as put a healthy smile on your face as well as your heart and soul – try the HA HA Helen of LAFOLOT method of yard work.

Weed Whack WA HA HA HA HA …. swing to the left
Weed Whack WA HA HA HA HA … swing to the right
remove finger from power switch –

Bend and Stretch -

Lift and remove power cord out of the way (I whacked through 2 power cords in my younger years! I’m wiser, now HA HA!)

Re-engage power switch -

Weed Whack WA HA HA HA HA … swing to the left…

you get the idea!

WHAT A WHACKY WA HA HA HA PHYSICAL, EMOTIONAL, STRESS RELIEVING HEALTHY WORKOUT!

I’m sweating bullets! bang bang bang (where did we get that saying anyhow?)

I gotta go – I hear hissing and spitting – my cats are at it again!
MEOW

BA HA HA HA BYE!
HA HA Helen Szollosy of Lafolot
signing out…
swing whacka whacka whacka … swing whacka whacka whacka whacka… HA HA HA HA SMILE!
THE YARD LOOKS BEAUTIFUL AND I JUST BURNED A BUNCH OF CALORIES!
Live Life! Laugh Often!

This post can also been seen at VIBRANT NATION under blogger name: Helenoflafolot

Whenever I present a ‘Laughter? Let’s Get Serious!’ talk, I also present ‘Good Hearted Living Principles’ based on a book by Steve Wilson, CSP. I talk about how you don’t need money to give a gift!

1) Give the Gift of Laughter!
2) Give the Gift of a Smile!
3) Good Hearted Living deals with giving the Gift of: Compliments, Flexibility, Gratitude, Kindness and Forgiveness.

None of the above require the exchange of paper money or the economy to be boosted in order to BOOST SOMEONE’S SPIRITS!

Instead of business cards, I give out Business BOOKMARKS! My bookmarks are bright yellow (yellow agitates the brain and inspires learning!). I included a silly, smiley face on all my bookmarks as well as ways to create a happier, more positive life through my list of suggestions on the back of the bookmark.

Whenever I am out and about, I LOVE sharing my SMILES (part of my SMILE CAMPAIGN) as well as my Bright, Yellow, Silly, Uplifting Bookmarks to brighten people’s days!

I always ask permission from a nearby parent; but when a child is crying, fussing or having a bad day – or bad time communicating their needs; I walk, run, or waddle over – put a silly smile and big eyed look on my face and ask: WOULD YOU LIKE SOME HELP GETTING YOUR SMILE BACK?

Usually, the child gets quiet (probably out of the shear fear of encountering a strange adult! HA HA HA), the parent askes if they would like the bookmark, they nod or reach out and I ask: Has this helped you find you smile again? Can you show me you smile? Sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t and THAT’S OKAY!

So COMICALLY, ECONOMICALLY it doesn’t cost even a PENNY for me to make these colorful business bookmarks that – in a PINCH (if you are PINCHING PENNIES) – BOOST THE SPIRIT, MOOD, DAY of the recipient.

So, one silly, smiley, yellow business bookmark at a time – I’m doing my part to comically boost the Emotional Economy of the public.

It’s a SILLY JOB, BUT SOMEONE’S GOTTA DO IT! Who ‘da THUNK a little piece of yellow cardboard could have so much comical-economical power!

Have a silly, smiley, laughter filled, comically-economically boosted kinda day –
HEY! Why Not? It’s HEALTHY!

Ha Ha Helen Szollosy of LAFOLOT
Live Life! Laugh Often!
Spread those SMILES BY THE MILES and make the inner light SHINE of everyone you meet!
www.lafolot.com
[this blog can also be seen at VIBRANT NATION under blogger name: Helenoflafolot]

Finally settling into my new modular home after letting go of my condo and putting it on the market –
this has been a day full of surprises!

I tend to have premonitions. I thought this morning, ‘I need to move some of my LAFOLOT Live Life! Laugh Often!’ inventory’. As I was getting ready to leave my favorite Thai restaurant, Thai Palace – the owner/chef peeked out of the kitchen: ‘Do you have any more of those T-Shirts he asked?’ His cute daughter, Elizabeth was there also. YES! I said! Then, I realized he was talking about the new, ‘ME!’ t-shirt I had created and was wearing.

What size? I asked. XL – Yes – I had one in my stash in the car! So I sold him a ME! (LAFOLOT) t-shirt as well as an “I Love to LAFOLOT and GIGGLE, too!” shirt for his daughter, in exchange for a free lunch, tomorrow! I love bartering t-shirts for Thai food!

Then, I headed up the road to complete a few more errands. On the way home, I stopped at a Burger King drive-thru for a soda. My throat was feeling crappy from the hot/humid/allergin-ridden air. It was really hot, even with the A/C, waiting behind one other car. Seemed like it was taking awhile for their ‘fast food’ order. I got my money ready, pulled up to the window and the girl announced: ‘HERE! IT’S FREE! SINCE YOU HAD TO WAIT SO LONG!’
WOW! What a nice surprise!

I instantly thought of the ‘Good Hearted Living Principles’ by Steve Wilson, CSP (my Certified Laughter Leader teacher). I thought, Thursdays may be for Kindness; but we need a day for SURPRISES! Then, I realized, the SURPRISE is the RESULT of the KINDNESS for the recipient!

As I got to a major intersection traffic light, traffic in front of me was doing the usual STOP, Look and make a RIGHT turn on RED – which is allowed in my neck of the woods. So, I did the same. Well, BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!
I automatically screamed and my hands almost flew off the steering wheel! A car was directly on my bumper! From WHERE had it come?

That was my LAST SURPRISE! All I have to say is, it’s best not to do a strong, loud, BEEP when something like that happens. I certainly didn’t pull out in front of anyone on purpose. It looked like I had the ‘all clear.’ Plus, traffic was at a stand still due to another red light up the road and traffic having to merge. No one was going anywhere fast.
So, I don’t really know why the vehicle that beep, did so loudly and aggressively, since we both had to slowly merge into the congested traffic.

So SURPRISE, SURPRISE, SURPRISE as Gomer Pyle used to say! Some from a psychic premonition, some from a treat for being nice and waiting patiently and some from aggressive, angry drivers –

either way – my blood is pumping and my heart is functioning fine! Thank you very much!

Have a happily, surprising day!
HA HA Helen Szollosy of LAFOLOT
www.lafolot.com
LIVE LIFE! LAUGH OFTEN!

[this blog can also be seen at VIBRANT NATION under blogger name: Helenoflafolot]

Did you ever hear the warning about using a dead bolt to lock your house, because a basic lock can be broken into using a credit card?
Well, from experience (eh hem), I can tell you it’s true!

Just having bought a modular home that still needed to be inspected; I was given a master key for the ‘basic’ door handle lock so I could move some small items into the home.

Being used to dead bolt locks, I accidentally turned the inside lock on the handle, shut the door behind me and locked my car and house keys in the new home! Problem is, it was 6:30am on on a Friday. I ‘did’ have an extra set of car keys with me, thank goodness!

The BIG PROBLEM WAS – I am a menopausal woman over 50 who takes a blood pressure pill with a water pill in it – enough said? If no, let me tell you, a bathroom trip is required every 5 minutes, when it is first taken!

In my defense, I was exhausted from moving. I had slept on the floor the night before, so I could be ready for the movers with my bed disassembled. I THOUGHT I was thinking clearing and had made every effort to make sure I had everything before I left the modular home. I wanted to go over to my old condo to do some final cleaning early in the morning. I was really PISSED OFF – I guess I should use a different word – HA HA – because I was now stuck.

It was 6:30am and I didn’t want to wake anyone.
It was the day after a heavy rain, so there was a steady DRIP DRIP coming down from the roof rain gutter onto my head as I tried to work on the door.
I had heard you could use a credit card to open a basic door know lock.

I didn’t use my credit card, but I had some club cards I wasn’t using that were expendable.
Everytime I tried to insert the plastic card, I would get HIT with a wet SPLAT on my head.
After 5 minutes of no luck, I was soaked on one side of the head! HA HA

I had MANAGED to get the door to BUDGE a bit, but I realized later, I was just too timid.
I had to RUSH to my car and drive to the nearest McDONALDS to use their bathroom. It was a TRUE EMERGENCY!
I then sat in one of the booths in the back to gather my thoughts.
I tried calling a younger sister to see if she had a spare key to my old condo, so I could meet her at work and pick it up – but no, she didn’t.
While I was waiting, one man was having a breakfast meeting with another man and giving him spiritual advice on job loss, his marital relationship, etc. I figured, what the heck, I just listened.

I got the thought to MAKE ANOTHER EFFORT at the door. He was being given the advice ‘Faith without works, is dead.’ At least that’s what I heard.

I went back to THE SCENE OF THE CRIME and met a couple neighbors who gave me contact numbers for other possible people with the master key. I couldn’t get ahold of anyone.

I went back to my new home door –
I got out my OLLIE – GOOD STUFF CHEAP CLUB CARD and tried again.

I guess I was NOW CONFIDENT and DETERMINED!

When I finally got it slipped into the door and felt the door budge – I THREW THE FULL WEIGHT OF MY OVERWEIGHT, MENOPAUSAL, WATER PILL – GOTTA GOOOOOOOO Body into the door and it opened!

*PFEW! I flew to the bathroom! (first things first!) Then I was able to go about my day.

So, I am here to testify:

YES, I broke into my own home, using a plastic bonus club card.

Here’s the lesson – NEVER MESS WITH A MENOPAUSAL WOMAN ON A BLOOD PRESSURE WITH WATER PILL COMBINATION!

Also – always lock your deadbolt and don’t rely on the door handle lock.

Ha Ha Helen Szollosy of LAFOLOT
Living Life! and Laughing Often!
Thank God I’m smart enough NOT to take this as a lesson to pursue a life of crime!
Amen.

After 4 days of constant activity from moving from a condo to a modular home, I couldn’t ‘honestly’ be responsible for my actions, now could I?

I participated in a local Methodist Church Flea Market in order to let go of some unecessary items as well as advertise my LAFOLOT business. So, let me make my excuses BEFORE I tell you what happened! HA HA!

1) I had spent at least 4 days with non-stop physical, mental and emotional activity due to planning and participating in my move.
2) My new, modular home located in a beautiful trailer park, does NOT YET have air conditioning.
3) I barely finished moving all my stuff by Friday evening.
4) I hadn’t slept in 3 nights due to the heat and humidity.
5) I barely had time Friday evening, to prepare my ‘stuff’ for the Flea Market this past Saturday!

Have I made enough excuses? HA HA

If I had been sleeping, I had prepared to awaken at 4:30am for a healthy breakfast and time to get to the church by 6:00 AM for setup. Problem is, I hadn’t slept. But! I DID get there with some stuff to sell and to promote my business! *HOORAY!

INTERESTINGLY! I had ‘thought and wished’ that I would somehow end up next to the nice folks I had been placed next to last year. I had also ‘though/wished’ that they would have a Carricaturist there, again this year. I have wanted one done for my LAFOLOT Live Life! Laugh Often! Business Products.

WELL! I got my wish! How strange was this! I was directly next to the lovely/helpful folks I had met last year. ALSO – how strange is THIS! At the last minute, they had scheduled a wonderul young woman/CARICATURIST and she was on the LEFT side of my space! Spooky, Huh? The other strange thing is, she could only stay 3 hours and I ended up being her only customer!

So, being TOTALLY exhausted, I just could not get comfortable. My knees and hips were aching! I tried my low beach chair in a bag, that hurt worse! I ended up giving it to someone.

I tried sitting in my open Hatchback to my Subaru Outback, that didn’t work.
I tried sitting on a couple plastic cases I had my t-shirts in, nope!
I tried sitting on the grass, no way – didn’t work either.
I even tried pulling my car into the space next to mine, vacated by the carricaturist, so I could sit in my car.

So, as a last resort, I had not yet sold a ‘used only once’ air mattress in a bag. It was bulky, sat about 3 to 4 inches off the ground in its bag. I felt it would help my back and allow me to stretch my legs out in front of me. So, JUST AS a Mom, Dad and two kids were approaching my tented space -

I GRACEFULLY lowered myself to the packaged, rolled, deflated air mattress. HA HA

As I put all my weight on it – (evidently ALL the air wasn’t out!)

I ROLLED completed backward, SLOWLY (not hurting myself, due to it being so close to the ground)

My FEET AND LEGS COMPLETELY UP IN THE AIR!

MY BUTT IN FULL VIEW – MOON – at the family coming towards me

I had become a HOLY ROLLER – presenting a Full View HOLY MOON to the family!

I rolled over to my side, got myself up and said: ‘I REALLY didn’t do that on purpose to entertain you!’

They didn’t even blink an eye! I guess seeing my LAFOLOT It’s Healthy! signs stuck into the grass made them think nothing of it!

I’m surprised the Pastor didn’t come over and kick me off the lawn for doing a Holy Roller Full Moon!
*grin

LIVE LIFE! LAUGH OFTEN!
Gives a whole new meaning to STOP, DROP AND ROLL!
Ha Ha Helen Szollosy – Living Life in the Moment