The LOL disease

It’s time somebody took a stand.  This atrocity has gone on way too long, and someone needs to put a stop to it.  That’s right; I’m talking about the misuse of LOL.  For purposes of this post, we’ll call it LOLing.

Let’s begin with the different variations of LOLing.

·         The basic LOL.  Meaning laughing out loud.  I can see how this can happen. You read a post on Facebook, a tweet or a text message from a clever friend or an old friend reminiscing of fun times.  But let’s be honest folks.  How often in real life do you laugh out loud?  Given the right circumstances, yes it does happen.  But if you are at work, in a meeting, really? You laugh out loud?  Maybe a snicker, a smile or a humph, but not a laugh out loud. 

·         The ROLF.  Aka rolling on the floor laughing.  Now I love a good joke, as I would venture most people do.  But how many times in your life have you actually fallen from your chair, and rolled while laughing?  What … once?  Yea, that’s pushing it.

·         Then there’s the LMOA.  Ok, I know this contains a naughty word.  But it’s ok if you use it as an acronym, right?  But really, I’ve laughed a lot… and my rump is firmly intact. And furthermore, I’ve never seen anyone either lose their tukus or saw said tukus lying around.  Given the fact that someone apparently is laughing so hard, body parts are dropping off of them, there would be evidence of this, right? 

·         Then there’s the variations of each using any number of combinations and use of choice naughty words.  But the same principals apply… how often in actual reality does this happen?  

While I have not conducted a longitudinal study of the effects of laughing, and the laughing out loud per say, I think we would all agree that this is a rarity.

So why then do we constantly add LOL to our short communication methods of the current century?  Let’s examine the abusers.

·         The occasional LOLer uses LOL in appropriate situations. The occasional LOLer has yet to be observed in his natural habitat, but one can assume with a respectable amount of accuracy that the person is indeed laughing out loud. For those armatures hoping to break into big leagues, here is some advice on becoming a master loler.  Occasionally, LOLing can be used to show the intended recipient may be confused that the message is intended to be funny. 

o   Given the limited spacing, sometimes messages that intend on displaying sarcasm or odd humor can be misinterpreted.  The LOL can act as a short prompt  to assist the reader in proper interpretation.

o   Only LOL when you actually do laugh out loud.  Any other use of LOL is just overkill.

·         Peer Pressure LOLing.  This person gives in to the desire to be one of the cool kids, and thus uses LOL at the wrong time and wrong place. It’s blatantly obvious with an LOLer is just trying to fit it.  You will find LOLs randomly tossed into text messages. It’s sad, really. They are the equilivent to the bad “air quotes” guy. 

·         The Overzealous LOLer. Apparently everything’s hilarious, because this abuser LOL’s everything.   “Hi. LOL, how r u? LOL. Can you run to the store? LOL.”   One has to be concerned for the Overzealous LOLer.  This person has allowed their addiction to LOLing to take over their lives. It’s a wonder they are able to maintain jobs and families, given all the laughing.  And what if they are a ROFL LOLer?  There’s physical danger in all that rolling around.  Just sad, really.  These people need a twelve-step program. 

·         And don’t get me started on the LOL overdose.  This is a one-time LOL overuse that makes both the receiver and sender send too many LOLs in one message.  Seek immediate help if this happens to you.

So you may wonder how I know so much about LOLing.  The truth is, I have many close friends and relatives who have fallen victim to this atrocity.  Some are in recovery, but the rate of recitivism is high with this…dare I say… disease. It’s time we take a stand.  We need to stand up to the LOLer and make them admit their problem.  It’s the first step to recovery. 

Stay tuned for the smiley face disease.