Those who know me probably have figured out that I am a charter member of clumsy nation. If something can be dropped, burned, spilled, broken, fallen over, lost, shattered or slipped on, I can do it. And most of the time, that is before lunch.

In addition to my own knack for living the messiest life possible, life itself also hands us hardships. It seems that when we are running late or in a hurry, that is when we get behind a large truck filled with hay that is moving slowly along the road with no opportunity to pass.

Same is true when carrying a large basket of laundry and a sock drops out. Then, you bend over to pick up that runaway sock, and suddenly even more pieces of clothing fall out, and it happens again, and so it goes. Then there is the weeklong vacation that has been a year in the planning, and it rains the entire time.

And what about those missing socks that somehow never make it out of the drier or those plastic storage containers always missing lids?

It's all kind of like Alanis Morissette's song, "Ironic," which laments that there is always "rain on your wedding day," "a free ride when you've already paid" and "10,000 spoons when all you need is a knife." I'm not sure this is the true definition of irony, but it does reflect some of life's frustrations.

How many of us have left a steaming cup of coffee (or, in my case, tea) on the top of the car roof when pulling away? Who has searched for their cellphone while using it or tried to locate glasses that are sitting on their head? What about using baking soda in a recipe when it calls for baking powder, or leaving home in a hurry with the TV remote or house phone instead of the cellphone?

I still have yet to explain how the remote control to the TV wound up in our refrigerator. I can tell you, however, some of my own stories like the time I used the restroom at a local convenience store. There were no hooks to hang my handbag, so I placed it in the sink, and of course, it was one of these automatic ones and my purse filled with water. Then there was the time I dropped the hose when pumping gas. It hit the ground and splattered me.

When life becomes like traveling a bumpy road, it is always important to remember that the way to survive is to keep a sense of humor. The ability to laugh and to laugh at oneself is crucial.

So next time you are out with friends, do not bore them with complaints about work or brag about your kids or your pets. Instead, tell them your funny stories. Talk about the coffee cup left on the car roof, the purse that filled with water and how you once wore a gasoline-splattered shirt. It will make them laugh, and it will make you laugh. And we all need that.

There is a video going around on social media that features a little boy who falls off his bike. When he gets up, he shakes himself off and begins to dance. The caption reads, "It's not how you fall; it's how you get up." And that life lesson is not ironic.