I've always liked the fact that I could make people laugh at crazy stuff that has happened to me. If it makes you feel better at me falling down the stairs...then I'm going to do it.
Sherri ShepherdI do a lot of stairs, a lot of planks, a lot of squats, a lot of treadmill, a lot of screaming - and I do it four times a week.
Sherri ShepherdI love the honesty of New Yorkers. When a New Yorker says 'let's do lunch,' they actually mean it. In L.A., when they say 'let's do lunch,' they're just trying to say good-bye.
Sherri ShepherdRealizing that the majority of kids that get molested feel that it is their fault, along with shame, those kids have no idea what to say or do to try to report anything, and add that with the lack of education, it is a complete recipe for disaster that leads to non-reporting of molestation.
Sherri ShepherdI've always been a strong believer that you were born with the hair you've got, but have the ability to get the hair you want.
Sherri ShepherdI am a type-2 diabetic, and they took me off medication simply because I ate right and exercised. Diabetes is not like a cancer, where you go in for chemo and radiation. You can change a lot through a basic changing of habits.
Sherri ShepherdMy father was and is a great father. My father always wanted to do stand-up. He wanted to be an actor. But instead he did two jobs. He did customer service at a hospital and he worked as a waiter at night. He pretty much sacrificed everything for his daughters.
Sherri ShepherdA lot of people say it's cathartic to cook, and I'm like, 'How is it cathartic washing all these dishes?'
Sherri ShepherdMy priority is my son and my husband, and I have a lot of spinning plates, so I try to make sure they're not one of them.
Sherri ShepherdWhen I go back to family reunions everybody goes, 'Hey cousin! Hey Auntie!' And I'm like, 'Okay I don't know you, I have no idea who you are.' I am auntie and cousin for so many and even the ones in prison call me collect. And I'll be like, 'Which of my family members are giving you this phone number?'
Sherri ShepherdWigs have always been a part of my life and have become a staple accessory in my closet. I can remember being a little girl and hearing all the commotion in my house from my mom, aunts and grandmother when picking out their wigs for the day. It was such a good time for them and part of their everyday beauty routine.
Sherri ShepherdMy grandmother taught me that accomplishments meant less than what you left behind. I started to ask myself what impact my comedy would have on people's lives. And that changed my act. I got cleaner. I stopped talking about generic stuff like airplane peanuts and started speaking the truth about my gift.
Sherri ShepherdFor my first wedding, I cried all the way down the aisle. My fake eyelash came off. My nose was red. My eyes were swollen. I'm not one of those pretty criers.
Sherri ShepherdWhen I was little I went to a Baptist Church with my grandmother. My earliest memories were of her falling out in the middle of the floor and they had to cover her with a white sheet. Every time we went to church it was scary. The music would start playing, and then everybody would start running and shouting and hollering and screaming.
Sherri ShepherdI burn a lot of stuff. My son, bless his heart, eats it anyway. But he makes a face!
Sherri ShepherdI think it's harder to forgive ourselves for mistakes that we made because we keep dwelling on it. We want to know how it affects other people, if they liked us for it, if they didn't like us. I think we stress over it, we replay it in our mind. It becomes an old tape that years later we continue to play it in our mind.
Sherri ShepherdI worked at Sears in the Woodfield Mall as a gift wrapper. I'm actually a great gift wrapper, and the customers were so nice to me. I was only 16, and eventually Sears put me in customer service because I was so friendly.
Sherri ShepherdWhen I first started wearing wigs, I didn't know you had to anchor them down with bobby pins. I walked out during a windy day and my wig blew off and got stuck to a branch. I was walking while my wig was hanging! If that's not the most embarrassing thing... but you have to use bobby pins.
Sherri ShepherdThe thing I want to really say is that I still mess up. I still go out there and say things on TV that I know the Lord is like, 'Sherri what are you doing?' but I know I can go back and get on my knees and say, 'Lord forgive me.' I know he will never leave me nor forsake me. The wonderful thing is He answers my prayers in spite of me.
Sherri ShepherdI can't swim and I'm terrified of drowning, but I still love being by water - just not in it.
Sherri ShepherdI believe in Jesus Christ as my Lord and savior. I believe that Jesus died for my sins, and rose again, and that's my belief. I still don't know what 'Christian' means. I'm a follower of Christ, but I keep making a whole bunch of mistakes. And I thank God for forgiveness.
Sherri ShepherdRun towards that very thing that you fear, because there's amazing blessings on the other side.
Sherri ShepherdWorking with Tracy Morgan on '30 Rock' is really great. I love Tracy. He's wonderful. Well, until his fish tank caught fire - his apartment burned up and flooded my apartment. We live in the same building, but I'm eight floors below him and we had to evacuate.
Sherri ShepherdI take the subway all the time here in New York. I love people watching and trying to figure out everybody's background, especially teenagers - they're so uninhibited when they display puppy love. I concoct stories in my mind: 'Are you guys like Romeo and Juliet?'
Sherri ShepherdAs the oldest I was a daddys girl and loved him with all my heart. My daddy had holes in his shoes so that he could pay for my photography classes, you know what I mean.
Sherri ShepherdOh my goodness, I'm in love with Channing Tatum, although I think I'm too old to play his love interest. They'd probably cast me as his grandmomma's friend or something like that, but anything to be in a movie with Channing.
Sherri ShepherdMy dad worked two jobs and moved us to the suburbs, and just being a black person, I went through a lot of racism and being called names and being bullied every single day. And it was hard. I didn't have any friends.
Sherri ShepherdMy husband, Sal, and I put date nights on the calendar once a week. I know that doesn't sound romantic, but otherwise it won't get done.
Sherri ShepherdMy dad has been married to his wife for 15 years and wherever he goes there better be a seat for her. I like real couples that tell you how to get through on Wednesdays when you're just at the end of your rope - the ones who really know how to make it through. We have to stop looking at Hollywood couples because you're going to get disappointed.
Sherri ShepherdI am on the power toothbrush train and I'm asking people to try to using an Oral B power toothbrush. I just started using one and I cannot believe that I waited this long to use a power toothbrush. It's so much easier than using a manual toothbrush.
Sherri ShepherdI have hair that I audition with, my sitcom hair which is a curly wig. I have my long chic hair that I wear to my son's school so they know I'm not playing around. I always tell people that my husband gets a different woman every night when I come home from 'The View.' Hair makes you feel a certain way, like putting a power suit on.
Sherri ShepherdThe best piece of advice someone has ever given me was 'do it scared.' And no matter if you're scared, just go ahead and do it anyway because you might as well do it scared, so it will get done and you will feel so much better if you step out of your comfort zone.
Sherri ShepherdWith me being in so many pain from when you have a betrayal from your best friend - who was my husband - and the girl got pregnant, I couldn't even get out of bed. The only thing that saved me was my stand-up. I would get on stage and just talk about stuff, and I made people laugh. A lot of women e-mail me and say, 'How do you smile? How do you laugh at something like this?' That's how I do it. I laugh because that's how I get through pain.
Sherri ShepherdI was taught not to confront and interrupt people, but that's what I do every day on 'The View.'
Sherri ShepherdI was homeless for a little bit. I was on people's couches, but it was an amazing journey. I got to make people laugh all the way.
Sherri ShepherdWhen I planned my wedding the first time, my ex-husband and I, we were both struggling comics. I had a TV show that had gotten cancelled. Basically, I rented a wedding gown; the reception hall smelled like feet.
Sherri ShepherdMy sisters have been baptized and my dad is a deacon at his church now. Sadly my mother passed away but what I can say is that the Jehovah Witnesses took very good care of her up until she died.
Sherri ShepherdI get along very well with the cast of '30 Rock.' I guess I bring a certain quirkiness to the show as well. I'm just thankful they keep asking me. I didn't think I was going to be asked back so every time they say, 'We want you back,' I'm screaming. I'm jumping up and down and screaming.
Sherri ShepherdAnybody who knows about having a premature baby, it's horrific. He was part of a twin, and I lost his sister.
Sherri ShepherdMy mom passed away at 41 from diabetes. And I'm 42, thank you. I didn't want to do that to my son. So any time I was at the gym, that thing that helped me do that last squat was my son calling some other woman mommy. And that would just give me that extra oomph to do that last squat. I want to be around for him.
Sherri ShepherdGo to a wig store with your girlfriends, never by yourself. You need someone to say, 'Girl that looks good!' You need someone to encourage you to try pieces on. Try to purchase a wig close to your natural hair color as possible, don't come in with brown hair and try to leave as a redhead unless you are fine with that!
Sherri Shepherd