I Can't Make This Up MANDATORY INTRODUCTION This introduction is mandatory. That means you have to read it. You can't just skip ahead to the sex scenes. Because in order to get the most out of this book, there are three important words you're going to need to know and understand. The first word is: "Huh?" It's pronounced short and sharp, as if someone just hit you in the stomach. Typically, it's spoken while pulling your neck back, raising your eyebrows, and quickly scanning the room to make sure everything looks normal and you're not in some weird-ass dream. The dictionary definition of the word is: "Did you just say what I think you said? Because it literally makes no sense and my mind can't process it right now, so I'm going to have to ask you to repeat it." It's the kind of thing you might say when your dad comes home bleeding and tells you that someone hacked him up with an axe. (This really happened, people. I can't make this up.) The second word is: "What?" This is pronounced with a silent "t," and it generally follows a few seconds after a Huh. It's spoken with your mouth contorted into a look of disgust and your forehead creased, while looking at someone like they're batshit crazy. It is short for: "What the hell did you just say? Because I only asked you to repeat the crazy shit you just said, and now you're adding some even crazier shit on top of it. My ears can't believe what they're hearing right now." It's the kind of thing you might say when your dad, whose head is busted open and wrapped in a blood-soaked towel, assures you that he's fine and doesn't need to go to the hospital and just wants to lie down for a little bit. The third word is: "Okay." It's spoken with a shoulder shrug, a side-to-side shake of the head, and a roll of the eyes. It means: "I can't even begin to fathom your reality, but I've decided to just accept it and move on." It's what you say when a Huh and a What have gotten you nowhere, and you're starting to think that maybe you actually are stuck in a dream and shouldn't eat pizza before bedtime anymore. Like when your dad tells you that the reason someone hacked him up with an axe was because he was jealous of his skills as a refrigerator repairman. This all may seem unbelievable to anyone who hasn't met my father, but this is the honest-to-God truth. In life, you can choose to cry about the bullshit that happens to you or you can choose to laugh about it. I chose laughter. These are the stories behind the jokes, and a few lessons I've figured out about life, success, family, and relationships along the way. Actually, I'm still working on the relationships part, but the rest I got down. Excerpted from I Can't Make This Up: Life Lessons by Kevin Hart All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.