Week in and week out of speaking to upset Americans is bringing me down. I am calm and rational on the phone, and more often than not, truly understanding when customers vent at me.  Yeah, life's a bitch, especially when you drop your newly purchased Blackberry in a mud puddle. It's even worse when you know that trying to save 5 bucks a month has now prevented you from filing an insurance claim that you never thought you'd need because you take such good care of your belongings.

But, mygod, my sympathy drops to zero pretty quickly the minute someone starts including me in on their pity party. I keep it nice and civil by speaking slowly and in a low tone of voice. It's exactly like calming a child, but exactly.  And like a child, some people react accordingly to it. Whiners, screamers, and those that just clue in to the futileness of further complaint. It's pretty damn hard to ignore your own stupidity, when someone else is there to point it out, matter-of-factly.

My girl's all emotional, these days, too.

It's the hormones a talkin' and I'm in for some lovely times, I know. I'm trying to deal, but my lip's cracked and blistered from biting down too hard.  She understands how she's acting, but sometimes being rational just ain't no cure for the summer time blues.

In our dark days, we load up on bottled water and popcorn. We plug in the music, and play board games or arcade games, battling wits and eye-to-hand coordination. We just try to escape from it all, and sometimes it works, and other times it doesn't.  Sometimes we just let go and cry. Sometimes, you just gotta.

I don't know if its because winter's been endless, but I feel that with the low temperatures come the low moods.

I'm waiting for spring.