Dealing with Disappointment

Updated 9/13/2010 9:09 am PST: There were a couple ideas I forgot to put in yesterday, so I added them today!

Despite having an incredible job and great friends in my new home. I have had a good deal of disappointment to deal with lately. The transition here was tough in a lot of ways and recently, I have had a series of situations that have ranged from mildly annoying to heartbreaking. For the sake of not driving you and me into a deep depression, we will focus almost solely on this week. First off, I have been dealing with a chronic injury that began about three weeks ago. I suffered a pretty serious quadriceps pull while losing at indoor soccer. I had gotten into a pretty good routine of running and riding my bikes here and was feeling good about it and this pull laid me up for a solid week and half. Even since that time, I have gotten to start exercising again, but I have to be very careful and can never put in 100% effort for fear of further injury. Having my progress interrupted has been discouraging. Next, I had to say goodbye to the beautiful S/I 2.0. As if this wasn't bad enough, I had to witness this heartbreaker in the same day. Then, on my first run since my injury, I took off a little later than usual, and ended up running in the dark. Not a big deal until my apartment key fell out of my arm strap and I was unable to find it, thus leaving me locked out of my apartment with no phone to call for help. Finally, the week was wrapped up with and awful, ugly, poo smelling bow with this disaster. I thought I said I wasn't going to get us depressed. I need a prozac.

Given this clearly traumatic and heartbreaking week, the likes of which I'm sure most of you have never had to confront, I came up with some coping mechanisms to deal with disappointment. I can't guarantee that these will always help you in your situation, all I can guarantee is that these were the ideas I came up with in a matter of minutes when I determined that my post today would be rather irreverent. Seriously, though, give them a try. Who knows? They might work.

1. Pretend whatever happened that upset you, never really happened at all. I employed this strategy most successfully following a Virginia Tech game that didn't happen in 2007. We were not completely embarrassed in a season opening game against LSU. I was not distraught and at a loss for what to do for several weeks afterward. I have no recollection of any of these things happening therefore they did not happen. It was all fabricated. Any game footage you try to use to prove otherwise was clearly doctored.

2. Do Something really sweet to get your mind off things. Eating something really sweet helps, too. For example, following the Boise State loss, I went to a baseball game. Not that special. Until I saw Heath Bell's (The Padres' Closer) entrance. I was speechless. Actually, I had a lot to say, as I am rarely speechless. I understand if you've never been to a Padres game and don't understand the Heath Bell phenomenon. My strong advice is if you live in the San Diego area or visit, do not miss seeing Heath close for the Padres. Incredible. Next, we were treated to a postgame fireworks spectacular at Petco Park. There is nothing more spectacular and Amurrican than a fireworks spectacular. Except for maybe frozen yogurt. Frozen yogurt with fresh strawberries and kiwi and dark chocolate chips. Which I ate after the fireworks. Spectacular. Potentially horrible night salvaged. Mission accomplished.

3. Visit the Flavins. So, Thursday night I was locked out of my apartment with no cell phone, nowhere to go and my roommate possibly not coming home that night. What did I do? Naturally, I imposed upon the hospitality of fairly new friends that think I'm kind of weird. You would think the same if I came to your door all sweaty in my running getup that always includes a bandana and flourescent green shoes. (Best. Running. Shoes. Ever.) I've worked with the Flavins at Amor and they are absolutely awesome people. I have been quoted in the office as saying I'm not sure which of them I have a bigger crush on. You might think this is strange. I maintain it is not, as you have no idea how cool the Flavins are. They let me hang out at their place for a couple of hours and even offered me a bed in the event that I wasn't able to get in touch with my roommate, Drew. The bad news for the Flavins: They just moved down the street from me a couple of weeks ago and I have already shown up at their door needing a favor. Good luck, Flavins, I'm sorry you found such a great apartment that was so close to me.

4. Both of our losses are out of conference, so we can still win the ACC and get a decent bowl game, right? Right‽

5. If the bummer you're dealing with involves a loss, replace whatever it is that you lost. This works well for two reasons. First, you now have that thing that you lost. That's really what replacing something is, look it up, it works out great. Second, the new thing that you get will be newer and shinier than that old thing you lost. I love new, shiny stuff. You'll probably forget all about that old thing. I think most people do. More on the specific application of this mechanism to my life in a later post.

6. Have a Tasty Beer. Hey, it is what it is. Please skip this step if you are under 21 and refer to the next step instead (The next step still applies to adults as well.)

7. Have some s'mores. I cannot put enough emphasis on the fact that if you eat just one, it is not a s'more. S'more stands for "some more." Don't worry about the calories, just crush as many of these things as you can until your stomach hurts. Remember, graham crackers are good for you, you're supposed to have chocolate daily, and marshmallows are made of nothing but clouds. Delicious, wonderful clouds that brown slightly when you put them over a flame. S'mores are the best over a campfire, but if you don't have a campfire you can still eat them. Cook them over a gas stove. If you don't have a gas stove, use a large lighter. It will be worth it. I could write a whole post on s'mores. Maybe I will.

8. When life gives you lemons, just trash the lemons and bail. Noone wanted fresh squeezed lemonade. Country Time is just fine. Your time is too valuable to be spent squeezing lemons. Go do something fun. Go for a bike ride.

9. Go for a bike ride. I understand that not everyone likes riding bikes, but you should. They're great. You can use them to get from point a to point b without using fossil fuels. They are super fun to just ride for recreation. There are many different types. Types for riding on the road, types for trails, I even heard they're working on some flying ones. It's true. Find one that works for you. Ride it. You will have fun. If you don't, it's because you did it wrong.

10. Complain incessantly to friends. Misery loves company. That's what friends are for. They surely won't grow tired of you and stop hanging out with you.

11. Do not, under any circumstances, listen to Glycerine by Bush. While beautifully performed and written, this song can send you to a dark, dark place in a hurry. For me, that place is often the rejection I felt as I was passed over by so many young ladies in middle school. It is like P12 Sandpaper for emotional wounds.


12. Grow a beard. Beards are awesome. They are great for so many things. They cover up your ugly mug. They catch food so that it can be enjoyed at a later date. When they get crazy long, they serve as a conversation piece. They also preoccupy you with constant thoughts of whether they have gotten to the point where they just need to be shaved or not. I love mine because I think I look like a Mexican pirate. Many ladies think that this step doesn't apply to them, but their are hormones that can take care of your inability to grow a beard, so you have no excuse. Beards and bikes are dragonsauce.

13. Be thankful for what you've got. Oooh, I'm getting serious on you with this one. After a long time of thinking the opposite, I'm learning that life is about what you have, not what you don't. I would wager that noone reading this blog will go without food or a roof over your head tonight. Chances are, you were born in the U.S. with a tremendous amount of opportunity to be provided for and provide for yourself. You did nothing to deserve this, you are blessed. I'm willing to bet you've got a couple of friends that will put up with you using #9. If you've got a little faith to top it all off, then you've got about all you need. Even if your alma mater is terrible at football this year. Give thanks.

Got anymore ideas for legitimate or hilarious coping mechanisms in the face of disaster? Give me a call or leave a comment below. I would learn them.

*Beard Update*

I have not cut my hair since I left Virginia. I have not shaved my goatee since mid June. I have not shaved the rest of my face in about three or four weeks. This is the result. I've gone native and we're going to see how long this lasts. This may or may not become a regular feature of the blog.

(I know.)

Adelante!

-Clint