More lil bit o this, lil bit o that

Life seems to be moving so quickly now...

M and I have both been swamped. I consider myself fairly proficient at time management, so although I could probably do even better, I feel like I have time scheduled fairly well. Wish I had more of it.

Random thoughts:

I've been thinking of places I've been lately. Wistfully? Not so sure, but I have appreciated them. And the good thing about memory is that I can appreciate them again. A few things that have been in my head include, of course, Redondo. I loved it there. The job interview there in 2012 was cool. It was a great place to live and maybe some day... Fayetteville, I now have memories of this place at two very different times in my life. There were different places. That's kind of odd, I wonder if Redondo will wind up the same?

I also have been reflecting on some of my oldest friends. Ricky, I miss you. Dale, you too. Becky... Happy Birthday, wherever you are...

Moose has been sick. He's epileptic and had a very rough couple of days. I know he's just a dog, but if you have a dog... they aren't just dogs. I probably owe Harrell an apology, because I was kind of not very nice to him about his dog.

Which kind of leads to the real reason I wanted to sit down and punch out a few thoughts...

I'm a cynic and a wise-ass. It's easy to be snarky, because most of us share common views about the worst parts of the human condition.

I had a really awful end of my work week a while back. The day was filled with stupid stuff; institutional things that are unlikely to change. But I didn't handle it as well as I should have and spent the next few days rehashing things. I determined that when I went back to work, I would make sure and understand that some things simply lend themselves to frustration. You've probably heard this before: Control what you can, and that starts with your attitude.

I made up my mind to let the stuff roll off my back, do as good a job as I could possibly do, and if a frustrating situation came up, I vowed to handle it with grace.

It worked.

All of it.

When the institutional problem surfaced again, I understood it, and realized the best approach was not to ratchet up my own anxiety. And it played out without difficulty. In fact, people around me were starting to melt down a little, and instead of falling in with them, I tried to alleviate their stress and make the situation better.

It felt great -- not just to be able to be a positive part of it, but in not letting my own head get cluttered.

This isn't my strong suit. I'm one of those "wear the heart on the sleeve" types. Being passionate is great up to the point that it clouds your big picture.

I'm not sure if I'll be able to maintain this level head, but the good feeling it created for me is something I am trying to replicate.