lllHumor in Action!
Using Humor in
Developing the
Entrepreneurial Spirit
Learning in Action!
A Cross-disciplinary Problem-Based
Learning Environment for Entrepreneurship
The Longest Night Ever
Test Version 1.0
(A Work in Progress)
R. Wilburn Clouse, PhD
Vanderbilt University
The Longest Night Ever
Storyline by Ryan King
Introduction
Would life really be worth living if you never felt like you were about to die? Consider
the times in your life that have made your heart pound like it was going to come out of
your chest, many of them probably came right after you just did something that made you
think that you were dead meat; small things like going down the huge hill on a crazy
roller coaster or bungee jumping or driving entirely too fast make you think that you are
going to die as well as reminding you that you are alive. The problem with these small
moments of exhilaration is that often when looking back on them you have to slap
yourself in the forehead because you realize what a total idiot you can be.
When I was about sixteen I was at the peak of idiocy. I thought I was invincible and that
thought led to a lot of scars with a lot of stories behind them. One of my favorite stories
from that period of my life is an interesting anomaly: this story is one of those terrifying
moments that made me think I was going to die, yet it has grown into one of the funniest
experiences of my life.
I grew up in a small town with nothing much to do and nothing much to talk about. Most
Friday and Saturday nights were spent driving around town with my friend Tommy
looking for something to do to kill time. Boredom is a dangerous thing for a couple of
sixteen-year-olds because it leads to mischief. One particular evening Tommy and I
noticed a back road that we had never gone down. I had always assumed that this gravel
road led to some kind of boring refinery; and I was partially correct. My truck rolled
down this path around a corner to face some sort of mineral refinery containing giant
piles of gravel and sand. There where no gates or fences and no signs of human life or
activity; as far as we were concerned this was an abandoned playground and we owned
the deed.
Tommy and I spent a little time whipping my truck around the gravel at dangerous speeds
like we were on an off-road course before Tommy got a “better” idea. “Let’s climb up
one of the dunes,” he said with such excitement that it seemed like there was no possible
way this idea could turn out badly. Climbing almost straight up in a pile of gravel is no
easy task as each step we took caused the gravel to shift and sink which meant that we
were only moving a couple feet at a time. When we reached the top of the gravel dune it
seemed like we had just climbed Everest. We could see every single light in our boring
little town. Looking back we were probably about seven or eight stories in the air but it
felt like we were one hundred miles straight up.
I had barely slowed my breathing from the exhausting vertical hike when Tommy got his
second “brilliant” idea, “Let’s jump off”. I considered disagreeing until my hormones
reminded me that I was sixteen and, therefore, invincible so what was the worst that
could happen? We ran as fast as we could (which really is not that fast since we were
running in a pile of gravel) to the edge of the dune’s peak and leapt off with legs
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extended and butts towards the earth as if we were going down a water slide. The feeling
of fear was both overwhelmed and supported by my curiousness about exactly how bad it
was going to hurt when I landed on the gravel slope. Adding to the terror/excitement was
the fact that there was almost no visibility so as I was falling I could barely make out the
gravel a few feet in front of me; it was like jumping into a black hole. When my hindquarters finally did come into contact I was relieved to find that there was very little pain
and the trip really was somewhat like a water slide; we just did baseball slides until we
were back on solid ground. After I stood up and looked at Tommy I realized that we both
were thinking the exact same thing that almost any sixteen-year-old who had just
accomplished something so amazingly stupid and entertaining at the same time: “Let’s do
it again”.
After Tommy and I jumped off the giant dune once or twice more we realized that we
were leaving out the absolute most important element of daringly stupid acts, we didn’t
have any girls to impress with us. We went back to Tommy’s house and picked up his
truck even though did not yet have a license and he still struggled mightily at times with
the manual transmission. We did not have to drive long before we struck the jackpot at
the McDonald’s. We convinced three beauties by the names of April, Emily, and Melissa
to come with us to our new secret playground so they could watch us perform our super
brave act that would surely cause their hearts to melt for us.
This time as Tommy and I rolled our trucks down the gravel path we were no longer in
“stealth mode”. We had already explored this territory and proclaimed it in our names so
we treated the refinery as if it were our own back yard. We chose the largest gravel dune
in the yard this time which was further away from the entrance where we left our trucks
so we had to walk a ways to the gravel mountain which made the build up to our stunt all
the more intense. Tommy and I, with cocky grins, invited the girls to climb up to the top
of the dune with us and of course they declined because only heroes as brave (foolish) as
we would dare do something like what we were about to do.
This gravel dune seemed to take twice the time and effort as the previous one to climb.
When we finally reached the peak all we could see of the girls was April’s white jacket.
Tommy hollered down something arrogant and trite like “Are you ready for this?” right
before he jumped off the giant mountain. Almost at the same moment that he became
airborne I heard a booming amplified voice shout, “What are you doing here!?” only the
voice said this with more four letter words. A giant white light was pointed at Tommy
who was scrambling to get to his feet at the bottom of the gravel mountain. The way the
scene plays out in my head now it is as if we were involved in a prison break although I
am certain that it was far less dramatic than that in real life. The giant white light
illuminated Tommy and the girls as they ran towards where our trucks were parked.
Another light spotted me alone still on top of mountain.
Obviously, I panicked because I was surely about to be murdered in a refinery. I thought
to myself that I certainly had no time to make it to my truck before I would be caught so I
ran with all my might away from the lights and towards the dark edge of the refinery
yard. I jumped off the edge of that dune as if I was Arnold Schwarzenegger jumping out
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of a helicopter just before it exploded. I did not have time to enjoy the descent because I
was too worried that there would be cops and militia and a lynch mob and the National
Guard waiting for me at the end of the ride. When I was finally off the gravel I hit the
ground running towards the dark woods that surrounded the yard. I could not see a thing
in front of me but I ran hard anyways.
Not 30 feet from the yard I stumbled into an unseen creek and cut myself in many various
areas. After another 30 feet I climbed out of the woods bleeding, dirty, and partially wet.
I recognized the street that I was on so I began walking towards my house because I had
no idea what else to do. I noticed a sprinkler watering the grass in one of the yards I
passed so I began to walk towards the water to try to clean myself up a little bit. I got a
few steps into the yard when a man sitting in a chair on his porch watching me the whole
time bellowed, “Get outta here!” I was already quite jittery so the man’s voice frightened
me like a little girl in a haunted house. I ran about a block before I figured I was safe.
About 45 minutes had passed when I realized that I was across the street from the gravel
road entrance to the refinery. My fear was overcome by my desire to just get home so I
decided to sneak back in to get my truck and get out of there. I could have been mistaken
for a super spy as I tiptoed back into the yard. As I turned the corner I was shocked to
see Tommy’s truck still present and accounted for while mine was missing. I later found
out that Tommy had taken my truck because it was 1. at least fifteen feet closer and 2.
mine was an automatic transmission and he knew that, in his terror, he would surely stall
the engine of his truck. I had never driven a manual transmission before so I stalled
several times before I actually made it out of the refinery. I never made it out of second
gear as I drove through town looking for my truck. I decided that Tommy might have
called it a night and gone home so I headed that way all the while looking for angry men
with guns who might want to capture me. On the way to Tommy’s house I noticed my
truck parked at Denny’s restaurant.
I began to walk towards the entrance of the restaurant when I noticed that Tommy was
still in my truck grinning like a fool; he must have thought I looked pretty funny trying to
park a stick shift. I opened the door and punched him in the arm while we shared a laugh
about how close we came to being in some serious trouble. We went into Denny’s and
ordered some of their world famous Grand Slam Breakfast meals while lying to each
other about how we were never really scared. It seemed like the night was going to have
a happy ending until we saw a police patrol car pull into the parking lot. The police
cruiser rolled slowly past our two trucks and came to a stop right in front of the entrance,
which was also our only exit.
Our false bravery wore off quickly as Tommy and I tensed up and asked each other what
we were going to do now. We decided to do what any logical person would do when
confronted by the police: we ran to the bathroom and hid in a couple of the stalls. As I
was standing on the toilet while trying squat so that my head was not visible over the
door I realized that I really had to go to the bathroom; I remember that even though I was
frightened out of my mind I thought it was humorous that I was in a bathroom and I had
to use said bathroom, but I could not for fear of incarceration.
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We could not have spent more than ten minutes hiding in our stalls when we both came
to the realization that hiding in the bathroom was not going to get us out of trouble so we
decided to try to out run the cops. We walked out the front door and saw the restaurant
manager talking to the police officer. Tommy and I kept our heads down and walked at a
brisk pace past the conversation to my truck. I had just opened the door and started to get
in when I heard a voice yell in our direction that made my heart sink down to the soles of
my shoes. Tommy and I were once again thrown into a terrified panic so we both jumped
into my truck and slammed the doors as if they would protect us from the outside world.
I watched silently as the manager walked up to the driver side and tapped on my window.
I rolled it down trying in vain to hide my wide-eyed terror. The manager looked at me as
though he had done this type of thing before, as if the cops tracked down two outlaws at
his restaurant every week. He then spoke in a low tone that almost hid all of his
annoyance, “You forgot to pay your bill”. Tommy and I whipped out our wallets and
shoved some cash into the man’s hand; we tipped our waitress about $15 in our haste and
excitement.
It was then that I watched the cop drive away with his take-out breakfast that he probably
got every single time he worked the late shift and I began to understand just exactly how
badly we had over-reacted. Tommy and I, although more relieved than anything else,
began to finally see the humor in everything that had happened that night. We had acted
like complete idiots because we wanted to do something that scared us and excited us at
the same time. The whole experience was really nothing more than a really scary roller
coaster: it had ups and downs and moments that made you think that you were headed for
certain death, but when you look back on the ride you can see that it really was not as
dramatic as you thought it was and the whole thing is actually quite humorous.
Guiding Questions
1. What is one event in your life that stands out as a “roller coaster” moment?
2. In your experiences, is it true that when looking back on dramatic events the
drama fades and humor takes its place? Examples?
3. If the narrator had discovered the refinery alone it is likely that he would not have
done much exploring and the story would have a much less entertaining outcome.
4. Why is this the case?
Since I can remember I have often looked back on myself from a few years prior and
laughed at how seriously the events in my life and I assumed (incorrectly) that I was now
infinitely more mature and I knew what was truly serious in life; I assume that most
people do this same thing. Is there a time limit on laughing at yourself or will an 80 year
old look back on himself/herself when he/she was 70 and think “I was so stupid, I
thought I had it all figured out”?
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Summary
Steve Allen said, “Tragedy+Time=Comedy”. I agree but I would like to add to that
statement when I say that Near Tragedy+Time=Comedy as well. Further, I think it’s
obvious that a person needs even less time to turn a near tragedy into comedy than a real
tragedy into comedy. I remember one July 4th where I let my friends shoot fireworks at
me and one nearly hit me directly in the face when I ducked out of the way at the last
second. I laughed about my near tragedy as soon as I realized that I was not injured but
had that bottle rocket exploded in my face than it definitely would have taken me a little
longer to think the whole thing was funny. The reason situations like my experiences
with fireworks and gravel dunes are funny now can be explained by the superiority theory
of humor as stated by Clouse and Spurgeon: “We perceive a situation humorous when we
feel superior to either our former sense of self, or others. Application of these
phenomena is noted when an action or activity becomes funny in hindsight.” I laugh at
thinking that I was about to be arrested in a bathroom stall now because I realize how
improbable and foolish the situation was when I look back on the experience.
I believe that one of the key components for humor; especially the kind of humor that
occurs as a result of the passing of time is that things are never as serious as you believe
them to be in the moment of their occurrence. Think back to when your “serious” sixth
grade boyfriend or girlfriend broke up with you, it probably felt as though your heart was
broken and that you would never love again. I know that I thought I was falling in love
with a new girl almost every single month when I was 13 but looking back now I am
embarrassed and amused at just how mature I thought I was.
Dr. Morreall talks in chapter five of Humor Works about “mental flexibility”. I like to
consider myself a mentally flexible person and I think that my adventure with the gravel
dunes to be proof of that theory. Tommy and I saw something new, something
potentially exciting in our boring yet familiar town and instead of being intimidated by
the change we took advantage of it and ended up with quite an experience.
I have heard a lot of people talk about “comfort zones”. Some people talk about how, for
example, going to a Latin dance club might put them out of their comfort zone; in that
example the term is used as a negative. However, I have also heard people talk about
getting outside of their comfort zone because being in a rut will only make you sluggish
and you can never improve that way. The latter is an example someone who is mentally
flexible, someone who welcomes challenges and new discoveries because they desire and
thrive off of experience. On the other hand, the people who are scared to leave their
comfort zone desire order and stability; they cannot thrive in an environment of change
because they lack mental flexibility.
Congruently, Morreall states that “When the going gets tough, the smart lighten up” in
chapter 8. Morreall is saying that in almost every bad situation there is humor
somewhere. Similarly, Williams and Clouse discuss how humor can be a “reliever of
stress” in the workplace or other pressure inducing areas. Imagine that you are in a really
tight spot: you have two finals tomorrow and you are dangerously unprepared for both of
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them. A person who does not have a great deal of mental flexibility might study in a
panic and actually retain very little knowledge of what they are studying. There are many
people who perform much better under pressure but they do because they do not allow
themselves to be stressed out when they get down to business. I have found myself in
situations like the one I just mentioned probably a thousand times because I am an
extreme procrastinator at times, but I know that getting stressed out over the situation will
not do any good. I simply relax myself, regroup by convincing myself it is not as bad as I
made it out to be, laugh at myself for worrying over something as trivial as an exam in
one class in college. School, work, and all other parts of life do not exist simply to stress
people out, there is a lot of fun to be found in this world so I try to make it a point to find
that fun.
References
Allen, Steve. How to Be Funny. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1988.
Clouse, R.W. (1998) Intuitive humor: A Leadership style. University Press of America,
Inc. New York.
Clouse, R.W. & Spurgeon, K.L. (1995). Corporate Analysis of Humor. Psychology: A
Journal of Human Behavior, Volume 32, No. 3/4.
Morreall, John. Humor Works. Amherst, MA: HRD Press, Inc, 1997.
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