Here's the thing: there's scientific proof that if you act like you're happy, it actually produces chemical changes in your body (specifically, it ups the old dopamine supply) that make you happy! I know, I know. You've heard that one before: "Put on a happy face," "Smile when you're feeling blue," "Don't worry; be happy," etc., etc., and anyway, you'd rather hoist a Jack Daniels or three when the going gets rough. Besides which, as we all know, it's a lot more fun to blame other people, places and things (especially other people) when we're miserable. Still, it's a lot more fun to be happy. So why not give it a whirl, Citizen?

Don't believe the scientists? Want a little practical proof that we can actually 'make' happiness? Okay. Strange but true: there was this busdriver who would actually wait when he saw a passenger running toward him down the block. And then, when his passengers boarded the bus, he'd smile and say good morning. To everybody. And pretty soon, everybody was smiling at everybody else. That is to say, the guy had created a happy bus! And the best part is, you kind of had the thought that, when they got off the bus, those passengers would go right on passing out the happy.

Then, too, there's that old chestnut about the reverse proving a statement. It's like, if you're tall, you're not short and, conversely, if you're short, you're not tall. Get it? Anyway, in this case, the idea is that if we can prove unhappiness is something we can create, the reverse - that we are also capable of happiness manufacture - should also be true, no? Well, then. As we all also know from an experience or two, stuff happens, especially where happiness maintenance is concerned. For example, when you sprint down the block, late as usual, only to have the bus driver slam the door in your face, you tend to become . . . well, not happy. And it's a safe bet that someone is going to pay for your negative mood swing. As soon as possible. Co-worker. Mate. Guy at the newsstand. Next person who breathes on you. So, dopamine notwithstanding, it's quite obvious that unhappiness tends to be a prime producer of more of the same.

Never met a friendly busdriver? Then take a look a little closer to home. Let's say you wake up in a fantastic mood. The sun is shining. The sky is blue. It's Saturday. As the commercial says, it doesn't get any better than this. Until - your wife, husband, girlfriend, boyfriend, parent, guardian, sibling, offspring, roommate, co-habitor, whoever, starts picking on you. "Why were you out so late last night?" "Who was that brunette Cousin Leslie saw you with?" "You forgot to take out the garbage. Again." "Yesterday was our anniversary." "Where did that dent in the fender come from?" "It was your turn to pick up the milk, and now we can't have our cornflakes this morning." "I'm filing for divorce." Stuff like that. Now, you haven't done anything but get up and scrub your teeth . . . but already, you've made the move from happy to unhappy. That is to say, your dopamine has dipped. "But, eBobb!" I can hear you whine. "No cornflakes?!" And, yes: eBobb certainly does acknowledge the harrowing challenge to your mental well-being. But now you know that the ball is in your court. You are not a helpless victim. So get to it! Raise that dopamine level! Smile! Laugh! Do a little jig! Skip (bet you haven't done that in while)! Plant a big wet one on the complainer!

But if you still can't quite bring yourself to make the happiness turn around, and planting a big wet one on the complainer only has appeal if it's a big wet boxing glove with a horseshoe inside, there is another option. The scientific community has also discovered that chocolate (especially the dark variety) works as a mood elevator. Now, isn't that good news?! So, when you're out of milk, the garbage is overflowing, Cousin Leslie has ratted you out, you get served with those divorce papers, the body shop's quadruple-digit bill for the dented fender arrives in the mail, and your smiling mechanism seems to have shut down more or less permanently, just grab a Hershey bar or two. Pretty soon, you'll forget all about the cornflakes.

copyright © 2004 eBobb. All rights reserved

Visit eBobb - poet, entrepreneur, balladeer, and all-around virtual personality - for more self-help tips . . . or perhaps a sonnet and a love song to make up for that forgotten anniversary. And, of course, free samples, because eBobb is always there, just for you. www.eBobb.com.