Twelve Hours Later and I'm Just Taking A Shower

Apparently the sound of my phone vibrating has a greater effect on my ability to wake up in the wee hours of the morning versus the piercing noise of my alarm.

The plan was to get up around 3:15/3:30AM and get to my first stop by 4:45AM at the latest. This allowed me ample time to sneak in a few extra minutes of post alarm sleep, get showered and all put together. However, in reality what woke me up was a phone call from my friend at 4:30AM asking where I was. OH SHIT!!! That's when I decided that no one at our intended destination would mind that I wasn't even showered. And if they did - well, that was their problem.

So what got me up at that crazy-ass hour? A sale that was taking place from 6 - 7AM. I insisted that we get there early because I wanted to get a good space in line. My friend thought I was silly to think there would be a line. Guess what . . . there was a line by the time we got there after 5AM. It wasn't a long one, but it started to grow not too long after we had acquired our respective caffeine beverages. Of course I had to take a picture of those that had come before us . . .



As the 6AM hour drew near, more came to join the fun. About 10 minutes to 6AM the owner of the shop came out and gave us shopping bags and a pink post-it note. The coveted pink post-it was our ticket to the greatest discount possible should we checkout past the 7AM hour. I was so loopy from my minimal sleep that I had one of my friends that joined us take this picture:



We were trying to decide how much said post-it would be worth if we tried selling on the second-hand market to those just joining the fun after 7AM, but finally agreed it wouldn't be a profitable venture.

As for the sale - It was MADNESS. It was the second time in my lifetime I've ever felt so claustrophobic I was ready to pass out. (The first time being the NYC subway on a Saturday evening.) Unfortunately, I had specific items to be purchased and I was sure the store owner would not be too keen on me leaving without paying for my items.

The rest of the day was spent taking care of some necessary business and having fun (you can't forget to do that).

So, here it is . . . twelve hours later and I am finally ready to face the world. Or, at least those other than my friends who accept me openly - shower or no shower.

Until later . . .

Perspective

This past weekend I did a major unpacking/clean-up in the new place. The result was amazing. It turned out exactly how I imagined it would once everything was in its place. It definitely changed my perspective on the place.

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When I'm evaluating a situation, I try to look at all perspectives of the those involved. Most people I know think this is an asset and a great thing to do. There have been situations when my friends have thought I was silly for considering the perspective of those involved - I just said that was their way of looking at it and not mine.

One of my friends recently pointed out when this approach can be considered a mark against me. I acknowledged their thoughts and agreed. However, from my perspective I could think of a lot worse things to be a mark against me then being able to see all sides of a given situation.

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I use to to complain - A LOT! I didn't really see how much I complained until I was handed a lofty dose of perspective. I'm thankful for this because now I see how I was letting the littlest things get to me when in the big picture they weren't so critical. It really changed my sense of what is and isn't worth getting upset about.

Don't get me wrong, I still complain, but not to the degree that I use too. Thank goodness for perspective.

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Quote This!

"Our most important thoughts are those which contradict our emotions." - Paul Valery

"The greater intellect one has, the more originality one finds in men. Ordinary persons find no difference between men." - Blaise Pascal

"Do not fear to be eccentric in opinion, for every opinion now accepted was once eccentric." - Bertrand Russell

"If a friend is in trouble, don't annoy him by asking if there is anything you can do. Think up something appropriate and do it." - Edgar Howe

"If you hate a person, you hate something in him that is part of yourself. What isn't part of ourselves doesn't disturb us." - Herman Hesse

(I don't know about the last quote as I was taught by my parents not to "hate." When I was younger, and would say I hated someone or something, my father would asked me how strongly I felt about that and told me not to use the word unless I felt THAT strongly about things.

Since then, even when I've had all the right in the world to use the word to describe my emotions towards someone or something I have refrained from using it as I know I didn't feel THAT strongly. However, I'm adding the quote into the list because I think it presents an interesting perspective.)

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If things in your life seem bad, just think, you could be this little guy. It's all about perspective!



Until later . . .