Here’s one I got from a second-grader — Lauren in Kentucky — via the miracle of the interwebs!
Dear Mr. James Preller:
How are you today?This year I’ve been reading
your Jigsaw Jones Mystery books and I think
you have been doing a great job on them because
I like Mysteries!
Your fan, Lauren
I replied:
Dear Lauren,
I’m fine today, how are you?
Actually, I’m terrific. Things are really good these days, my three kids are healthy and thriving, my wife is great, I’m writing well, exercising, and I’m happy.
Have you ever seen Carlton’s happy dance? This is me, inside . . .
I’m glad you’ve been reading my books, and relieved (whew!) to hear that you think I’ve been doing a great job. It means a lot to me.
Here’s 90 seconds of joy, a great voice and a great smile, to send you off on the weekend. I can’t wait to show this clip to my daughter. Thank you, Anna from Indiana.
Thank you, director Katie Mauldin, and your four fabulous stars: Brooks, Jay, Lauren, and Greg. You all did an amazing job. You smell Oscar? I sure do!
I love your creativity and spirit. You really brought a smile to my face.
This is one of those amazing viral clips that everybody on the planet absolutely has to see. I assume that some of you saw it already. For those that haven’t, you can thank me later.
Basically: An elderly couple tries to figure out how this crazy thingamawhoosie works, and in the process accidentally record themselves. They make goofy faces, joke around, burp, suck like the dickens on hard candy, and somehow show us exactly what enduring love looks like. These two sweeties, together.
Really, it’s one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen. I get a little weepy watching it. The two of them together makes you want to be old and in love. It makes you want to goof around and sing and casually compliment someone you love. It makes you want your marriage to last — for this, for moments exactly like this. Thank you, internet!
Hat tip to Eliot Glazer of The Best Week Ever (see blogroll, right). This is a guy, Glazer, who is more than just your typical snark on the web (not that there’s anything wrong with snark, exactly, except that it tends to wear on you after a while). Glazer’s got real heart, soul, character . . . as evidenced by his must-see site, My Parents Were Awesome.
Share it with someone today.
UPDATE: Here’s some background info from the Huffington Post’s David Lohr:
A couple from northwestern Oregon who are Internet newbies have found themselves the unwitting subjects of an instant viral video, thanks to a little help from a grandkid.
Bruce Huffman, 86, and his wife, Esther, 79, of the Hillside Retirement Community in McMinnville, recently purchased their first laptop computer –- an aqua colored beauty with a built-in webcam.
Late last month, the couple sat down together and tried to figure out how to make a video with the webcam, something a granddaughter had painstakingly attempted to teach Esther a few days beforehand.
“I was trying to figure out how to do the videos and didn’t know the thing was actually running,” Esther told The Huffington Post. “All the while, Bruce was kind of amusing himself because he was bored. He was being quite an actor.”
The nearly three minute video captures Bruce making funny faces, singing, burping and at one point, during a moment of levity, he got a little flirtatious with his wife. “See how pretty your hair is?” he said. “Just drop your dress a little bit and see your boobies.”
