Patience. Deep Breaths. Self-Awareness.

I hate cliches.  But sometimes they say it all.  And today I woke up on the wrong side of the bed.  And I can't tell you why.

By the time I got to work, I wanted to kill everyone.  Even nice friendly people.

So.  Drastic measures were required:  an Outlook task reminder that popped up at 9:30 a.m. with nothing more but the subject:

Patience.  Deep Breaths.  Self-Awareness.

And then I changed the reminder for a half-hour later.  And at 10 I refreshed it for a half-hour later.  And I did this until 6 p.m.

I'll tell you that every time I saw that reminder in my browser, I realized that I needed a deep breath to clear my chest, and that my mouth had been turned in a frown....because I could feel the change when I forced myself to smile each time.

You know.  The day went OK in the end.  I'm wondering if I should just leave this reminder on indefinitely.

Update 2/23/12, 12:30 p.m.:  Still refreshing yesterday's Outlook reminder on the half-hour.  Still taking extra deep breaths.  Day progressing smoothly, despite previous late night drinking Maker's Mark and catching up with Justin at Alibi and upon returning home, eating a full pan of pasta and black beans before bed.  Verdict:  Still thumbs-up.