Before my accident I had always considered myself to be funny. I could always get my friends rolling on the floor with my quick-witted humor. Since my accident, I have not lost my sense of humor. But I found it hard to keep up the quick-witted part of my humor – especially when using an augmentative and alternative communication device. In groups of people, I just couldn’t keep up with the conversation. I would type in the humorous thing that I wanted to say, but people would most of the time keep right on going with the conversation and by the time that I was finished typing, it was so far out of context that they would look at me as if I had three heads. This was discouraging to say the least. 

Luckily for me, I found a way to still be funny. Using my DynaVox V and the Internet I am able to download humorous sound bites and movies quotes, which I can use at appropriate times. For instance, nothing can break the ice better at the doctor’s office than hitting them with Bugs Bunny’s famous line “Aah! What’s up doc?” when he or she walks into the room.  This usually brings a smile to their face. 

When I am playing cards, I have a number of Homer Simpson’s quotes that I like to use. When I get beat in a hand, I usually give them a “Doh” and when I win it’s a “Woohoo”. If someone is not a Simpson’s fan, there are plenty more that I have in my arsenal of one-liners. 

Not only are these funny quotes good for daily life, but such humor can also be a tool. I use a lot of quotes during presentations at conferences. Nothing breaks up the monotony of a long speech than some humor. I always end my presentations in the same way – with Porky Pig saying, “That’s all folks!” This always brings down the house. 

Laughter is the best medicine. Not only does making people laugh break the ice, but I think that it makes people more comfortable.  When people are comfortable they tend to see past your disability and see the real you. For those of you interested in where I get most of my funny quotes, there are two websites that I suggest you check out, http://www.moviewavs.com/ and http://www.wavlist.com/. Here you can search hundreds of movies and TV shows for your favorite quotes and download them for free. I hope that you get as big of a kick out of some of them as I do.