Moms. We have to get up pretty early in the morning. It seems that no matter how early I get up, whether it’s 6:15 or 4:45, I end up berating myself for not getting up ten minutes sooner.
But some mornings it’s hard, especially after a late night Netflix or Hulu binge of Korean dramas or 1970s sitcoms like The Bob Newhart Show. (That’s funny stuff. I adore Bob Newhart. May he live forever.)
When I was pregnant with my fourth child, I had to get up early, but I discovered the power of Altoids. I kept a little tin of them on my nightstand. When I absolutely needed to get up in the morning, but my heavy body and my very soul were working against me, I’d reach over, flip open the Altoids tin and take a deep whiff of those “curiously strong” mints. Powerful stuff! It woke me up every time.
Well, lately I’ve been chugging Altoids like there’s no tomorrow since I supposedly gave up candy. (Altoids don’t count. Neither does cold cereal, as you should know by now if you’ve followed this blog at all. Like I say, I have my double standard and I’m sticking to it.) So since I eat them all the time, Altoids have lost some of their power of sense-revival. I needed something new—and I found it:
Being ticked off.
A few months ago I went to a book signing where the small bookstore alerted me at the last minute that my books had not yet come in and would I please bring some from my own stash to sell. “We’ll reimburse you. We’ll give you replacement books as soon as they come in, which could be any day now.”
Sure, I said. After all, it was a booksigning/fundraiser for a good cause, a girl fighting cancer. I was game. And they’d have my books in right away, so no problem.
This was the beginning of November.
Since then, I’ve called, stopped in (a three hour trip–each way!), emailed, called, emailed, asked.
Still no books. Still no payment. This…is bugging me. A lot.
However, in a way, it’s a really cool, useful situation. Why? Because when I hit that off button on my alarm clock at 5:00 a.m., and just ache to go back to sleep for a few hours, I remind myself to let my mind drift to this bookstore. Before I know it, my blood is pumping and I am letting my mouth press into a straight line of “mad,” and I know I won’t be falling back to sleep again with this much annoyance running around in my head.
Voila! Awake!
I’m not thinking that “waking up mad” is going to be a good long-term solution for my life. I don’t actually like being mad very much. There probably are some people who do like being mad. Not me. So I’m either going to have to actually take care of the problem or else I’ll have to just decide to let it go and mentally “give” them the $175 or whatever. Just giving it to them as a present in my mind would probably take care of the whole thing. And I could do that. And I just might.
But for now, it’s a great gift to me and makes me jump out of bed in the morning ready to put on my shoes and get after the day’s challenges.
So, thank you, rude bookstore, for never paying me for my books. (But please pay me for them because I need more sleep.)
I am all kinds of angry for you, Jen. Grrrr…. I’m so sorry about that. But at least it’s getting you out of bed in the morning, right? Even if it is doing dastardly things to your peace of mind, lol.
Oh, I’m not actually letting it do anything to my peace of mind, Megan. It’s fine! But I do appreciate that you’re sharing the angry. Let it go after a few seconds, though. It’s not worth worrying about. What’s $175 these days? A single tank of gas in my beautiful Suburban? Yes. So … whatevs, right?
Loved this post…except not the part about what the bookstore is doing to you…that part stinks.
Thanks, Valerie. Yes, it does stink. I actually only let it bother me first thing in the morning. If I remembered anything about it during the day, I’d probably actually do something to take care of it, haha.
Hahaha! Just having to wake up at all makes me angry 🙂 I can’t believe that bookstore has done that – bad business! We should all start sending them nasty emails.
Thanks for the support, Teri. I have a feeling they don’t read their emails, which is endemic to the problem! But thanks. I’ll eventually work this out. For now, it’s helpful. 🙂
oh wow. good thing i don’t live in the vicinity or i would blacklist that bookstore!
on the flipside, i think we share a common love for sleeping in…or an adversion for getting up. one of the two. either way i’m cool with that common denominator 🙂
Thanks for the solidarity, Amie! We authors must unite! (or whatever.)
I’m totally going to try this, because it’s brilliant. Except I’ll have to find something to be mad about first.
Hmm.
Maybe I’ll try the Altoids thing to start.
My brother just emailed to tell me he keeps cinnamon Altoids on his nightstand, Wendy. If peppermint isn’t your thing, there are many flavors of Altoids to taste or sniff or whatever. It’s your choice! You choose! (as my 12 yo used to say when he was 3 and presenting us with impossible choices.)
Those altoids were incredibly helpful during out trip to the ANWA Conference. May your tin of altoids always be pentiful, and may that rotten book store burn with shame for an eternity.
Muahahaha!