Meltdown
Excepting all of those days wherein something truly tragic or meaningful happened, yesterday was the worst day of my life. I suppose it was the worst day of my life in which nothing really bad happened. But, be that as it may, it was pretty fuckin' bad.
In May, I had my car inspected. It did not pass because I needed two new tires. Quoth the repairman, "Just get the tires and bring it back, and we'll put on a sticker. It'll only take five minutes." So, I got my new tires, and went back yesterday for my sticker. Not only had they lost all records of my previous inspection, but they had also mislaid any paperwork which proved that I PAID for this inspection already. Add to that, they were insistent that they did not have time to re-inspect my car. I calmly explained that this was my first real day off in ten weeks, and that I was not likely to have another for three weeks, and then I was leaving for the beach. Conversation ensued. I got him to agree to fit me in, but alas, I did not have my owner's card or my insurance card on hand. He said he definitely could not do anything for me. Long story short, I went to AAA to get a copy of my owner's card. I took it back to the dealer. He said, "I'm sorry, this is for your Ford truck." The AAA lady gave me the wrong card. I went back to AAA to get the right one, and she said she couldn't do it without my insurance, which I had faxed to the dealer, and which was now with them. I went back to the dealer and got that. Came back to AAA (for the third time) and was told that I needed an old owner's card to show. I promptly started to cry. For real. I had no idea where it came from, but I can only guess that it was a combination of sheer, government-induced frustration, 92 degree heat, some hormonal issues, and pure, unadulterated hatred of "the system". I could tell that the poor Auto Club ladies were utterly flummoxed, and had no idea what to do with me. I felt like Diane Keaton in Baby Boom, crying to the vet. I was so embarrassed, but could not manage to shut down the tears. I'm an Aquarian, for heaven's sake. We do NOT cry. I kept apologizing to the Auto Club ladies, and they clearly thought I was insane. But they also felt sorry for me, because they gave me a new owner's card without the last, vital piece of paperwork. I took it back to the dealer, and got my car inspected, feeling, at this point, like I had been run over by a truck. I called my mom and cried to her, telling her I had no idea why I was getting so emotional over something so stupid. She assured me that it was all over now, and I could go home, and forget about this day.
But my "five minute" sticker acquisition turned into five hours. I had no time left for my other chores.
So I went home, got a nice cool glass of iced tea, sat down to check my email, only to find that my desktop had been utterly demolished by a virus which came to me in the form of an email from a friend marked "Beach Pictures." One click, and I had an instant porn machine, no email, and no ability to back up my files. There seemed no hope. I calmly shut down the modem and went and took an ice cold shower. I felt totally cursed. I decided I had to put on my big-girl panties now, and handle it. This really would've been the perfect time for my hot pirate boyfriend to sail in, assure me that he was about to take me away from all this, and hand me a glass of Bordeaux. I looked out the window for him, but all I saw was my irritating neighbor turning her compost heap. Perfect. With an overly dramatic sigh and a huge heap of pathetic self-pity, I began to work on the computer. I spent the better part of the evening re-partitioning my hard drive to isolate my data, and then doing a factory re-install on drive c, losing all of my software in the process. There was no other way. The virus had, before it did anything else, nullified my Norton Antivirus. I was screwed. At 1 am, I went to bed, convinced that I was paying some sort of karmic debt, defeated, and made plans to address the state legislature about government interference in our lives, particularly as relating to vehicular paperwork.
I woke this morning, and decided that I really needed to do something positive before I opened the store. I had to start on a happy note, or the day was doomed. So, I did two of the 16 things guaranteed to make me feel better. I went to Starbuck's and got a HUGE decaf mocha on ice, then I went to Pat Catan's and felt, smelled, ogled, and purchased art supplies. A full set of professional quality watercolors, which I had been wanting very badly. I had a coupon, and got a $50 set for $15. Happy now.
It seems, today, that the curse has been lifted, because good things are happening. I have a large group coming in tomorrow, ensuring that I'll make June's rent. My giant fake palm tree has arrived, giving the place its last little bit of tropical flair, my mocha was good, and the phone has been ringing with people who've seen my ad and have questions. I need to get me a good bag o' juju, to ward against EVER having another day like yesterday. Yesterday sucked.
In May, I had my car inspected. It did not pass because I needed two new tires. Quoth the repairman, "Just get the tires and bring it back, and we'll put on a sticker. It'll only take five minutes." So, I got my new tires, and went back yesterday for my sticker. Not only had they lost all records of my previous inspection, but they had also mislaid any paperwork which proved that I PAID for this inspection already. Add to that, they were insistent that they did not have time to re-inspect my car. I calmly explained that this was my first real day off in ten weeks, and that I was not likely to have another for three weeks, and then I was leaving for the beach. Conversation ensued. I got him to agree to fit me in, but alas, I did not have my owner's card or my insurance card on hand. He said he definitely could not do anything for me. Long story short, I went to AAA to get a copy of my owner's card. I took it back to the dealer. He said, "I'm sorry, this is for your Ford truck." The AAA lady gave me the wrong card. I went back to AAA to get the right one, and she said she couldn't do it without my insurance, which I had faxed to the dealer, and which was now with them. I went back to the dealer and got that. Came back to AAA (for the third time) and was told that I needed an old owner's card to show. I promptly started to cry. For real. I had no idea where it came from, but I can only guess that it was a combination of sheer, government-induced frustration, 92 degree heat, some hormonal issues, and pure, unadulterated hatred of "the system". I could tell that the poor Auto Club ladies were utterly flummoxed, and had no idea what to do with me. I felt like Diane Keaton in Baby Boom, crying to the vet. I was so embarrassed, but could not manage to shut down the tears. I'm an Aquarian, for heaven's sake. We do NOT cry. I kept apologizing to the Auto Club ladies, and they clearly thought I was insane. But they also felt sorry for me, because they gave me a new owner's card without the last, vital piece of paperwork. I took it back to the dealer, and got my car inspected, feeling, at this point, like I had been run over by a truck. I called my mom and cried to her, telling her I had no idea why I was getting so emotional over something so stupid. She assured me that it was all over now, and I could go home, and forget about this day.
But my "five minute" sticker acquisition turned into five hours. I had no time left for my other chores.
So I went home, got a nice cool glass of iced tea, sat down to check my email, only to find that my desktop had been utterly demolished by a virus which came to me in the form of an email from a friend marked "Beach Pictures." One click, and I had an instant porn machine, no email, and no ability to back up my files. There seemed no hope. I calmly shut down the modem and went and took an ice cold shower. I felt totally cursed. I decided I had to put on my big-girl panties now, and handle it. This really would've been the perfect time for my hot pirate boyfriend to sail in, assure me that he was about to take me away from all this, and hand me a glass of Bordeaux. I looked out the window for him, but all I saw was my irritating neighbor turning her compost heap. Perfect. With an overly dramatic sigh and a huge heap of pathetic self-pity, I began to work on the computer. I spent the better part of the evening re-partitioning my hard drive to isolate my data, and then doing a factory re-install on drive c, losing all of my software in the process. There was no other way. The virus had, before it did anything else, nullified my Norton Antivirus. I was screwed. At 1 am, I went to bed, convinced that I was paying some sort of karmic debt, defeated, and made plans to address the state legislature about government interference in our lives, particularly as relating to vehicular paperwork.
I woke this morning, and decided that I really needed to do something positive before I opened the store. I had to start on a happy note, or the day was doomed. So, I did two of the 16 things guaranteed to make me feel better. I went to Starbuck's and got a HUGE decaf mocha on ice, then I went to Pat Catan's and felt, smelled, ogled, and purchased art supplies. A full set of professional quality watercolors, which I had been wanting very badly. I had a coupon, and got a $50 set for $15. Happy now.
It seems, today, that the curse has been lifted, because good things are happening. I have a large group coming in tomorrow, ensuring that I'll make June's rent. My giant fake palm tree has arrived, giving the place its last little bit of tropical flair, my mocha was good, and the phone has been ringing with people who've seen my ad and have questions. I need to get me a good bag o' juju, to ward against EVER having another day like yesterday. Yesterday sucked.
posted by Kristine at 10:40 AM
3 Comments:
Yesterday may have sucked, but at least yesterday is over! ;)
You have my sympathy, my friend.
What a horrid day. I felt like crying a little just reading about the inspection. And then to get a virus on your computer. I would've needed a lot more then a large iced mocha to get myself feeling better.
So glad today is better!
sorry about your crappy day---I would have melted down and/or gone postal with the auto club,but tears seem to have worked for you. Always go with what works, I say. However, the fact that you posted again made this day a good one for me.
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