A good laugh is all we need nowadays, besides with all of the challenges we are faced with in life is cause for laughter. Whether it is the financial crisis, economic meltdown, lack of credit in the credit markets, or the increase price in food and energy, we have plenty to cry about.

My recommendation is for us to stop crying in our beer, instead laugh until it hurts. Having a healthy sense of humor is all about changing our emotional state.

Comedians are joking their way to the bank because they know who to touch your emotions. In a recent Mens Health Magazine article, researchers from the University of Maryland, stated, "Watching 15 minutes of funny video can improve blood flow to your heart by 50 percent." The article goes on to say, "This may reduce blood-clot formation, cholesterol deposition, and inflammation."

Wow. I bet you never thought laughter was this powerful. Think about it a little longer, in other words think of the funniest joke you have ever heard or a funny movie you have seen.

One of the funniest things that ever happened to me was going on a date. I had been in the military for over 20 years and wore a uniform throughout my military career.

Over the years I had purchased nice clothing, however after retiring I put on a few extra pounds. I made a date with a very attractive lady I had met and it was too late to change the date.

After rummaging through my closet I discovered my pants were a little bit tighter than usual. I tried the pants on and they were really tight, but it was late in the dating game to call off the date with the attractive lady I had met.

I hurried and put my pants on, nice shirt, and blazer to go out on my date. I ran for my car and as I attempted to get in, I felt a gentle breeze riding up my back field in motion. That is correct, I split my pants.

It was not a large split, so I made a command decision to go on the date, but be very careful how I walked, sat down and everything else. I hastily drove to pick up my date and we went to dinner at a very nice restaurant.

After ordering dinner, I excused myself and went to the bathroom in the restaurant to assess the damage to my slacks. It was still small but I had to be very careful. I returned to our table for what was going to be great conversation, good food and little movement.

After dinner we walked back to my car, I opened the door for my date and walked around my car to get in. As I approached the drivers side door, I dropped my car keys.

As I bent over to pick up my keys, I heard a loud ripping sound. It sound like this, rip, rip. This was not good, the small rip ended up being a large rip and I had more fresh air go up my back field in motion than I wanted or needed.

By the time I sat down in my car seat, I had a funny look on my face. My date asked me, "Is everything alright?' I smiled and said, absolutely and drove her to her house as fast as the law allowed.

It was tough driving home because I was trying to keep my two legs as close as possible. The rip had made the rounds from my back field in motion, to the front of my slacks.

Trust me, I did not turn on the lights in my car . After walking my date to her front door, I said thank you for a great evening and as I departed I was walking backwards because I did not want her to see my slacks ripped from back to front.

There is one redeeming value that took place on that date, I lost five pounds from perspiring so much. I will never ever take that kind of risk again in my life.

I hope you enjoyed this real life story and that you take more laugh breaks. The more laughter you have in your life, the longer you will live.

Paul Lawrence Vann is a professional speaker, author, and radio host. He delivers stellar speeches to corporations, associations and at colleges throughout the U.S. and Canada. Learn more about Paul at http://www.paullawrencevann.com - http://www.blogtalkradio.com/paullawrencevann