Do you ever have one of those days when you just aren’t fit to be around people?
You have a stinkin’ rotten attitude, and you know it, and quite honestly, you just don’t care.
Yeah…I was having one of those days…
First of all, I didn’t feel like teaching the writing class for homeschool kids that I had signed up to teach. I’ve been running around all week, and really just wanted to stay home.
Was that a good reason to be a crank?
No, but the sky was gray, the weather had gotten chilly, and I guess I decided to let the weather dictate my attitude for the day.
{autumn morning on a country road}
I taught the class, got back in my Jeep, turned on the radio, and listened to depressing reports about the recent campus shootings.
Has the world gone crazy?, I fumed. The thought of college kids getting shot by someone with an ax to grind or a mental disorder made me sick. Those could have been MY kids.
I listened to reports of the flood victims evacuated from their homes, and there just didn’t seem to be one ounce of good news.
All I wanted to do was pick up dinner, get back home, and hide away from the world.
I went through the fast food drive-up window and placed my order for a burger and a chicken sandwich with only mayo on it.
When I opened my sandwich down the road…
….there was everything on my chicken sandwich.
My stinkin’ rotten attitude was in full swing by then, and I felt fully justified in having it.
I fussed and ranted (out loud) to myself for the next 5 miles down the road.
“Would I have said mayo only if I wanted everything on it?”
“Can’t they read the ticket?”
“Why is everyone driving like idiots?”
And then it hit me.
Did I really have a right to have such a lousy attitude?
The problem wasn’t the world, the problem was ME.
I admit, I didn’t shake my attitude right away, but I asked God to forgive me for my ungrateful heart, and asked him to be patient with me, and help me go home, play a game of marbles with my mom, go to bed, and wake up with a new attitude tomorrow.
{repurposed cable spool table}
I am too blessed to gripe and complain…
way too blessed.
{it is well with my soul printable}
What helps you get over a bad attitude?
it’s my bad mood time of the year….I love fall….but I get in a really bad mood mid October….then by the beginning of November I am usually fine…..and it doesn’t matter what state I live in….sunny Calif. or AZ….now N CO….so I really look for ways to look on the bright side and keep my mouth clamped at my husband…..he isn’t the issue…I am…so I here you…..and this iOS 9.02 update is driving me up the wall…lol…..or do I really type those odd words….proofread is a must….lol
Sorry your day started out rough. Hard keeping positive when the weather gets gloomy. I find that, just like you did, if I ask God to help me look at my life a tad cheerier, I can usually change my outlook.
God Bless,
Renee
And…thank you for the beautiful printable. One of my favorite songs and verses.
I enjoyed this post so much! I do what you did…be thankful. When my morning begins to sour I thank God for the wonderful hot water l had for my shower, when many don’t have water to drink. Then I pray He gives them the blessing of water, and so on, throughout the day. It works everytime and gives me the opportunity to ask for God’s intervention in many situations I wouldn’t normally pray about.
Donna, that is a great reminder that starting the day with a thankful heart can shape the whole day.
Its all about perspective. When I become too down, I compare my life against all those awful things happening and realize that I have been given many gifts, most of all good health and a good life. It helps.
That is so true, Eileen!
Thank you for sharing. I thought I was the only one experiencing that attitude. I find that if I go out for a walk all by myself and meditate in His word. And hear the birds sing, is so calming to my spirit. By the end of my walk I too am praising the Lord. And have for gotten what I was upset about. Blessings
Thank you for sharing . It is nice to know I am not the only one. I am notorious for ranting about (not at) other drivers until I had a close call while doing so….shut me right up. I think God working through us to help us is really the only way to improve and reading things like your post are to me just another reminder from Him
Thank you, Wendy!
We all have those days, Angie…and you’ve had a lot on your plate with life right now. I, too, try hard to remember to have a grateful heart and to give thanks. Sometimes relaxing for a few minutes with a good cup of coffee and a favorite magazine can calm me…and sometimes I just need a little cry to balance me out. Going outdoors for a few moments to silently take in nature, and thanking God for it, always puts my mind at rest. And I have learned to say no sometimes, so I don’t get overwhelmed doing things I don’t want to do, or have time to do. Hope you are having a much better weekend…take some time for you…xoxo
Thanks so much, Linda. I do think feeling overwhelmed with things I “need” to do plays a big part when I’m feeling like such a grouch and can’t see the good side of anything.
“Knowing that the God’s Goodness is always there in everything so if all you see is the garbage of the situation, you aren’t looking hard enough to see the Goodness ” this phrase is one I came up with a few years ago and I’ve used it countless times since and it’s made all the difference. So it and realizing that we ALL make mistakes and we ALL have bad days allows others to screw up drive-thru orders without me grumbling about them. Your photos, especially the early morning one, bless my heart!!! Thank you!!
Boy do i know that feeling! I’ve been married 38 years and it’s been everything i never wanted or expected it to be. Sorry to say my “stinking rotten” attitude rears it’s ugly head ALOT. Sometimes baking or trying a new recipe calms an evil spirit. Other times just spending time with a friend or 1 of my sisters or 1 of my sons helps. The best fix is talking to God. He knows me and loves me right where i am. Sorry you had a bad day.
I have those days. Fall is one of my favorite seasons. The cold means I can snuggle with my grandkids. The garden is full of things I can use for baking and decorating with. The colors are gods beautiful canvas for us to enjoy. Just breathe.
lets just say im glad you are “real” and to share these thots makes me not feel so dang crummy abt myself when i hit a BLUE spot for a day/hour !..i dislike it and feel crappy abt it, but to know that i can get over the hump and have a better day tomorrow and know im not the only one, makes me feel better…thanx Angie !
I know what you mean and some days its all we can do to pray for forgiveness and peace to enter our souls. At least I know that is how it is for me. It does seem its as the weather turns for me too. I love your posts and all that you do here. You are a wonderful inspiration for many people like myself. Its in the little things that make us feel better better about things and the reminders that we aren’t alone in this great big world as long as we are well with our soul.
Seems like i read something or maybe God has to hit me on the head,anyway what ever works i thank God for all i have,i was able to get out of bed on my own and had food to eat and a car to drive,then of course some precious bird will sing and i hear it and that make me smile.God is so good.Thanks for being like me Angie,human! lol
oh angie, there are those days even in sunny Cali!! =) i think being aware of it and having the desire to rise out of it is the best we can do at the heat of the moment! you did great!!! xx
Like most of the comments, I just try to get to a point where I try to think of positives in my life … and most times, that list is much longer than the negatives of my mood or day. And when Hubs and I get griped with each other … we remind ourselves that it’s good being home now (retired) … much better together than being alone! Sometimes, when I’m fuming, I just start cleaning stuff. Figure I’ll wear off the anger by wearing myself out, working. Hey, it works … usually!
Its another hot crappy day in Arizona, being stuck inside my house instead of working on my crafts outside. I just want to scream. But reading about everybody’s crappy days……I’m really thankful for my coffee to be awake right now and for the wine i will enjoy tonight, hoping for a cooler (below 100) day tomorrow.
LOL – I don’t think we got even a single 100 degree day in Illinois this summer, Tina! Hope it cools off for you!
We all have these kind of days. If we can stop and give thanks for the good things in our lives that can help change our attitudes. Sometime you just have to say thank you Lord that I was able to wake up today. If you try to make a list of all the things you are grateful for, then the bad doesn’t seem so bad any more. Some days it might be a stretch to make a list of things you are thankful for but just start by thanking our Heavenly Father for the nature around us. Hope this weekend showers you with blessings.
Hugs, Dianne
What a great christian witness this was, we are not perfect but God will get all his children thru all those imperfect times. Some bloggers want to make everything honey and roses, and that is not real. Glad your day got better.
Blessing to you
Tonia
I was feeling like that last night, Angie. And I didn’t know why. I think it was just stress. I’m not usually in a bad mood. But I was impatient and grouchy. I got over it a little later. **** There’s a fast food place in our small town that we frequent a LOT. But 98% of the time, our orders are incorrect, and since we always do drive-through, we don’t know it until we get home. We have to turn around and go back. Really makes hubby mad. I’ve talked to manager after manager and they don’t seem to care. The reason they say is high turn-over. Well, gee, why don’t you TEACH these kids the right way? ugh. **** and okay…. I gotta ask…. you play MARBLES with your mom ???
Patty, see my answer to Mary about the marbles game – it isn’t shooter marbles! 🙂
Just like Patty, I have to know more about the “playing marbles with your Mom”!
I’m trying to picture you and your Mom on the floor or ground shooting marbles like little boys used to play. Please tell us more. Glad you made it through and are feeling better.
LOL – no, we don’t play shooter marbles! We play a board game called aggravation that uses marbles. My kids all hate playing it, but I’ve been playing it since I was a young kid, and my mom likes it too. My dad made me a wooden board several years ago as a Christmas gift (much to my kid’s dismay!)
Ok Angie! My husband and I stopped watching ALL news! Local and national Two years ago and it has been the very. BEST WE EVER DID !!!!!! The news media wants to scare everyone and they LOOOOVE to give every little gory detail when ther are tragidys! Soooo hers my great advice! Have fun with your friends and family and animals! I live on a farm in Idaho and we are sooo blessed ! Have fun! Live in the moment and think great thoughts ! God is watching out for us! By the way! I’m the one who bought your your burlap flour mill runner and I LOVE it! Thanks! Take care,Cindy
I don’t watch the news very often, Cindy, and when I do, I usually wish I hadn’t! So glad to hear you like the burlap runner. One of these days I plan to make more of them. 🙂
Oh, do I ever have days like these…all too many, really…I am a redhead so I can tend to be a bit tempestuous at times. Like you and the other posters, I need to actively stop and think about how very fortunate I am as compared to millions of others who really have stuff to complain about. Also, I find that getting outside with my furboys helps lift my mood…even if it is raining, I make the effort to take them out for very short walks…seeing them happy automatically makes me happy. Additionally, doing something nice for someone always boosts my spirits, like randomly picking up the bill for the person behind me in the checkout line at the grocery store or offering an elderly person help in some way. My theory as to why this works is that maybe it helps me to feel that I am helping to make the world a better place…even if just a tiny bit?
I don’t think you have too much to worry about, Angie, this is obviously not a habit with you and you are self-aware enough to catch it before it becomes a huge problem…not to mention, you are just naturally very sweet and wonderful, so this sort of thing is a very rare exception! Even at your worst, you are still a gazillion times better than most!
Raindrops on roses & whiskers on kittens.{ La la la la la, da da da da daddah…}
Brown paper pkgs tied up w/ string… ?
Some days are just like that! When I have one, I often just give up and go to bed! Sort of blot it out of my mind and look toward tomorrow. And I have gotten to the point that I NEVER listen to or watch the news anymore. I read my local Sunday paper, but that is all. And that’s only for the ads and to see what’s going on locally. It’s all so unbalanced–the reporting, I mean. So focused on all the negative things in the whole world. Overwhelming. I don’t deny there is suffering and awful destructive forces in the world, but I choose to not focus on all the things I cannot affect. I can do a lot of good close to home and sometimes support a more distant cause, but I don’t need to take in all the sadness and suffering in the world. That just paralyzes me and keeps me from doing anything helpful. No daily news for me.
I have a question, Angie. How can I find a place to subscribe to American Farmhouse Style Magazine? I have googled it, but none of the sites seem to have a subscription option. It is a real paper magazine, isn’t it? Not just an on-line one? I keep seeing covers of various issues and it looks really yummy. But I”ve never seen it on any of my local news stands or magazine sections in local stores.
Naomi, I found this by searching for the magazine:
http://engagedmediamags.com/homes/magazine-specials/special-issues/american-farmhouse-style
looks like you can subscribe to it through the media company.
Give yourself permission to feel stinkin’ rotten when things really are stinkin’ rotten and don’t feel guilty about it. I see nothing wrong with that. This year has been one of the worst of my own life and one of the worst in the world. About the only thing good I can see is that I love this time of year despite everything, the weather in my locale is gorgeous, I’m still strong physically and mentally at 71 and I’m able to take one day at a time.
You are okay. We are ALL human and have days like this. God bless you and your family.
Hi Angie – God made us human, and don’t beat yourself up about having a bad day, they happen. I do allow myself a little woe is me when I’m in a funk, but then try to get out of it quickly and back to normal. Hugs, Holly