cup o' cheer

today has been exceptionally stressful/rough despite a lack of things going wrong or bringing on stress. sometimes i feel like you just get "the stress bug". where it just takes one thing to irritate or frustrate you and the stress from that one incident, big or small, isolated or on going, just shadows you the entire day. it's a bugger for sure and can easily cause an otherwise okie doke day to go down the poop shoot.

for example, today... woke up after a solid night's rest, got my coffee brewing, checked my email(and twitter, facebook, blogs etc..), changed into jeans and a t-shirt... the usual routine and start of a potentially great day. then i popped some french bread pizza into the microwave and turned on What Not to Wear. when i finished eating i turned down the volume and brought my laptop out to the living room to work on some Stat work (all of which is done on the computer/online). one of the links/sites i need refused to load. and i repeatedly got the screen message that "oops! this link must be broken!" ..what? broken my ass. i checked the web address and refreshed it and then opened another window to do it again there as a back up. still nothing. i tried about 15 different ways to get this darn site to no avail. i wanted to pick up my laptop and shake it like an etch-a-sketch but luckily i was able to regain control and resist the urge. "this link may not exist anymore or may have moved to another location." wtf dude? they didn't leave a change of address card or treasure map? no clue or riddles? how the frack am i supposed to know if/where they moved? since when is an interactive educational software site nomadic? whatever. needless to say, this agitated me to no end and the stress/irritation from this has been derailing my day. good and bad events can each polarize the way i see the rest of the days events. a bad event(s) can rob me of compassion and mercy for the remainder of the day. it magnifies trivial things instead of being able to brush things off (case and point...i nearly had a fit when the elevator wasn't moving fast enough. wtf elevator? you know i have places to go jackass!..) Pessimism becomes my overall attitude/prospective for the day highlighting the negative. The inverse being true of good events (feeling happy, being extra forgiving/friendly, not worrying as much, enjoying things, not letting the little things get you down. seeing the good blah blah).

ANYWAYS. when this happens i've been making a point to actively work to reverse this effect. by indulging in all the things that cheer me up (not to be confused with things that enable self-pity or wallowing). So here are the things that i've assembled to combat this bummer attitude and redeem this ruby tuesday...

Father of the Bride - fab movie, fab soundtrack. ALWAYS leaves me happy

Christmas music - the ultimate mood boost. so cheery and gleeful. the holidays are my favorite and these tunes just can't be beat.

Youtube proposals - i realize i may get mocked for this but as many already know, i love to watch marriage proposals on Youtube. there are tons of them and they are so GREAT. i just love them.

Bloopers/Gag Reels- i could probably spend the entire day from when i wake up to when i go to bed watching bloopers and gag reels from various tv shows and movies. i just love it because it's people having a good time and lots of laughs. what i think is so cathartic about it is that it just shows people not taking themselves too seriously. messing up and being able to laugh about it. great way to be.

Hugs - i'm not an overly affectionate human being who is touchy huggy all the time BUT hugs are great and if you don't like hugs i think you're crazy. i'm not so much talking about the hugs you get when you say hello or goodbye or pass the peace at church. i'm talking about just getting or giving a hug because you just gotta have a hug. because you just love someone so much you just have to squeeze them. because you're so happy words can't describe and a hug is the perfect physical manifestation of your happiness or excitement. when hugs come instinctively that's when they're the best. when someone just hugs you because you're looking a little tired or beaten down. or you just get hugged out of nowhere. not expecting or consciously doing anything that would necessarily call for a hug. i will never get tired of hugs. never ever. hugs are the best thing ever.

that being said. i think i'm going to switch my ipod playlist to christmas music and go hug some people on the way back to my apartment to watch some proposals.

love