Two years ago I wrote a blog about how I preferred the kind-hearted flower-leaving-behind ding-dong-ditch holiday of May Day to the mean-spirited assholery that April Fool’s Day has become. Particularly, in the wake of the internet.
I also commented about how funny it must have been for my ol’ friend (were we really friends? Maybe not, but she was and remains one of my favorite people in existence – so take that and smoke it) Hasalyn “Hassie” Modine, neé Harris’ parents to call around some thirty-whatever-years ago, telling their loved ones that their daughter had arrived… yes, on April Fool’s Day.
This year, I’m thinking more about the slew of trickery, faux stories, screamers, fake pregnancies, fake ‘coming out’ stories, fake suicides, and so on that will be washing over the interwebs like a tsunami. Ill-intentioned. Mean-spirited. Jerkbeniness. Ugh.
Maybe I’m just getting old and cranky. Maybe I don’t have a sense of humor. Maybe we’re all too thin-skinned these days, like Hillary Clinton and Donald Drumpf seem to be. *bites tongue lest she devolve into political wrangling*
I just don’t like April Fool’s Day.
I just don’t think pranks are cool.
I just don’t want to be involved.
That being said – if you love pranks and jokes all that jazz, enjoy your holiday! No kink shaming from me. But maybe you could please, as a society at large, just… stop being dicks on April Fool’s Day. Please?
Rick-roll everyone you know!
(rather than send screamers)
Post fake life event news like – OMG GUYS I INVENTED UNICORN POOP PERFUME!
(rather than fake pregnancy or fake suicide stories)
Post funny satire articles!
(rather than shockers and slander/libel/smear pieces)
And if – like me – you’d rather avoid the whole Fool part of the modern American celebration of the day, and just find some entirely other reason to mark the occasion – go login to your Twitter account (I know you have one, they’re almost as ubiquitous as Facebook these days) and say Happy Birthday to @hasalynmodine, because she’s a cool chick (even if she does support Clinton, tee-hee).
Note: Image is “clown” by (vidici) from SXC.hu