I sooo needed to read this terrific piece this morning. Right now, I'm hanging out in my renovated shuttle bus camper, waiting for clock to strike 8 a.m. so that I can call my mechanic (who is an hour away). After a few days in the woods, I tried to start her up yesterday (Easter) to go home and join family for dinner; she didn't start. Long story short, I will be having her towed home this morning to the tune of $$$. I share all of this because, somehow, I'm feeling okay this morning. Reading your piece only solidified that feeling. This is fine. Thanks!
Been there! I have a converted 40-ft school bus and the $$$ breakdowns are real! You're doing great and truly, this is fine! 🙏🏼 A day stuck in the woods is always better than a day stuck at work!! Much love my travelling friend!
I really hope the tow went smoothly and you finally made it back home safe and sound to relax! Here’s hoping you get that 'make-up' dinner with your family soon, and that your mechanic finds a quick (and hopefully cheap!) fix to get you back on the road for more pleasant adventures
The only thing I can think of that is kind of like this but not really was the time I booked a dinner for a corporate board on the wrong day. The servers and the food showed up but no one else did. Good sign that I needed to move on to a different role.
We have a small (350 seat) community theatre in our town. There was a sold out show held recently, and in the middle section, four rows up, were four empty seats. It was so very obvious, I was wondering what happened that the people couldn’t show up. It was very obvious from the stage as well, so I wondered what the performers thought. Again, not the same but it’s Monday and that’s all I can think of.
Having trod the local boards myself for a brief time in my early life, I can assure you the actors probably never noticed the gap. You’ve got too much else to worry or think about AND you’re trained to not look at the audience but to make sure the little lady in the back row can hear you. Hope that helps.
I say some rendition of "this is fine" probably 100x a day. A male coworker actually asked me about it once and said, "I thought when a woman said 'fine' it meant it wasn't fine." I told him he was very wise and that he was also correct but that if I declared the stressful situation was 'fine' eventually my brain would believe it and then my heart would follow suit and it would be, in fact, fine!! It really is the best attitude adjuster! When bad things are out of your control, the best thing to do is to simply say "IT'S FINE!" Thanks for the reminder, Bill! I love that meme!
I believe Rob Henderson had a similar story, & now he's quite successful! I bought his book.
His book, Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class (2024), he faced notable difficulty getting it properly recognized after publication, including being omitted from the New York Times Bestseller List despite selling enough copies to qualify
The Economist investigated political bias in the New York Times Bestseller List and found that Henderson’s book sold enough copies to rank at least #4, yet it was excluded from the list.
The "Man in the Arena" comes to mind here. I am a believer that humanity is overall, good and kind. The story of Chelsea Banning is both confirming of that and heartwarming.
Some people would never even put themselves in that situation for fear of failure (aka, low or no turnout). Those people will never know the feeling of having people line up in anticipation of a quick word, a compliment and a keepsake with your name in it.
I work in community health so my staff was always having public/educational meetings. We had great cookies as refreshments. If no one came, the next day the responsible staff person would say “it was just me and the cookies”. And everyone knew exactly what that meant. Then we got to eat the great cookies.
It happens to most everyone, but you just have to keep on doing it. ❤️
I sooo needed to read this terrific piece this morning. Right now, I'm hanging out in my renovated shuttle bus camper, waiting for clock to strike 8 a.m. so that I can call my mechanic (who is an hour away). After a few days in the woods, I tried to start her up yesterday (Easter) to go home and join family for dinner; she didn't start. Long story short, I will be having her towed home this morning to the tune of $$$. I share all of this because, somehow, I'm feeling okay this morning. Reading your piece only solidified that feeling. This is fine. Thanks!
Been there! I have a converted 40-ft school bus and the $$$ breakdowns are real! You're doing great and truly, this is fine! 🙏🏼 A day stuck in the woods is always better than a day stuck at work!! Much love my travelling friend!
Amen, and thank you!! 😊
"somehow, I'm feeling okay this morning. Reading your piece only solidified that feeling. This is fine."
So glad that's how you're feeling!!
Me, too! Thanks!
I really hope the tow went smoothly and you finally made it back home safe and sound to relax! Here’s hoping you get that 'make-up' dinner with your family soon, and that your mechanic finds a quick (and hopefully cheap!) fix to get you back on the road for more pleasant adventures
Thank you!!
Hope you had a wonderful time away.
The only thing I can think of that is kind of like this but not really was the time I booked a dinner for a corporate board on the wrong day. The servers and the food showed up but no one else did. Good sign that I needed to move on to a different role.
We have a small (350 seat) community theatre in our town. There was a sold out show held recently, and in the middle section, four rows up, were four empty seats. It was so very obvious, I was wondering what happened that the people couldn’t show up. It was very obvious from the stage as well, so I wondered what the performers thought. Again, not the same but it’s Monday and that’s all I can think of.
Having trod the local boards myself for a brief time in my early life, I can assure you the actors probably never noticed the gap. You’ve got too much else to worry or think about AND you’re trained to not look at the audience but to make sure the little lady in the back row can hear you. Hope that helps.
I say some rendition of "this is fine" probably 100x a day. A male coworker actually asked me about it once and said, "I thought when a woman said 'fine' it meant it wasn't fine." I told him he was very wise and that he was also correct but that if I declared the stressful situation was 'fine' eventually my brain would believe it and then my heart would follow suit and it would be, in fact, fine!! It really is the best attitude adjuster! When bad things are out of your control, the best thing to do is to simply say "IT'S FINE!" Thanks for the reminder, Bill! I love that meme!
I believe Rob Henderson had a similar story, & now he's quite successful! I bought his book.
His book, Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class (2024), he faced notable difficulty getting it properly recognized after publication, including being omitted from the New York Times Bestseller List despite selling enough copies to qualify
The Economist investigated political bias in the New York Times Bestseller List and found that Henderson’s book sold enough copies to rank at least #4, yet it was excluded from the list.
The "Man in the Arena" comes to mind here. I am a believer that humanity is overall, good and kind. The story of Chelsea Banning is both confirming of that and heartwarming.
Some people would never even put themselves in that situation for fear of failure (aka, low or no turnout). Those people will never know the feeling of having people line up in anticipation of a quick word, a compliment and a keepsake with your name in it.
I work in community health so my staff was always having public/educational meetings. We had great cookies as refreshments. If no one came, the next day the responsible staff person would say “it was just me and the cookies”. And everyone knew exactly what that meant. Then we got to eat the great cookies.
It happens to most everyone, but you just have to keep on doing it. ❤️
THANK YOU, THANK YOU....I needed a good belly laugh!