“Jane! Stop this crazy thing!”
George Jetson ~ The Jetsons Animated TV Show
October 11, 2018
Los Angeles, CA
www.mymobileadventure.com
In the closing credits of the TV show The Jetsons, George takes his dog Astro for a walk on a gravity-suspended treadmill. Astro begins chasing a cat that jumps on it, forcing it to go faster and faster. Astro and the cat jump off but George is trapped, going around and around the treadmill yelling, “Jane! Stop this crazy thing!”
That’s how I feel about this Mobile Adventure right now. “Universe! Get me off this crazy mobile life!”
I returned from Portugal a week ago, traveled to see my college son, then flew out to San Francisco to catch a flight to New Zealand. I got the last seat from Dulles to San Fran, and then waited until 11:00 pm (2:00 am body-clock time) to get a seat to Sydney Australia. Then I would book a flight to New Zealand.
I didn’t get on the flight.
Slumped in my seat, I watched other stranded standbys bury themselves into their laptops. I stared out the window at nothing. My legs were filled with lead; my head with cotton candy.
“I can’t do this anymore. I’m tired. What was I thinking? I want to go home.”
“@#(*#!” I have no home to go home to.
When feeling disappointment:
- Call a friend. Express what’s inside you and get it out. It’s uncomfortable to be so vulnerable, but getting it out means it doesn’t stay inside you and come back for processing later, at a worse time, and mess up the next situation.
- Talk back to your inner critic. When the inner critic speaks up and says, “See, you got too big for your britches and the Universe showed you! You’re so stupid! What were you thinking? Stop being selfish.” Reply, “I know you are disappointed and I will do everything possible to correct this. I hear you are scared, and I will handle this situation.” It’s cheesy, but it works.
- Find acceptance. This is hard to do. You want to hide, blame others, and be afraid. Instead, practice acceptance. You don’t have to like the situation, the feelings, and the uncertainty. Acceptance is a choice. Just like working out to build muscles is a choice, learning to accept that disappointing events happen throughout life is a choice too.
I used my remaining strength to book a hotel room and drag myself outside to a waiting taxi. I called my friends Liz and Kathy and asked them to listen to my H.A.L.T. – Hungry, Angry, Lonely, and Tired.
After a decent night’s sleep, I decided to fly to Los Angeles where I have friends and clients and I can easily fill my mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual tanks.
I’ll try to get on the flight to Australia/New Zealand in a week.
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Treat yourself compassionately when you are disappointed. It helps you move through it faster.
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