Cumulative Stress

Not easy to talk about but, I've been getting angry with myself over the simple little clumsy moves that I have always been good at. Knocked my bicycle over and broke the handlebar end...almost caught it before it slammed to the ground...so mad that I didn't. Trying to fix a leaky faucet yesterday in my bathroom, put it off for a couple of months because I feared an ugly scenario, sure enough...water everywhere, hot water, just because I didn't turn a valve off tight enough. It wouldn't fix...need a new one. So far, I haven't taken it out on the dog or wife but I do beat myself up over my mishaps...and yes, these are minor mishaps. I sought counseling on the internet and found important stories about people suffering from "cumulative stress". Could I possibly be a candidate for this diagnosis? Death and illness in the family, sickness and disease closing in...even right down into your neighborhood? Catastrophic events resulting in death and loss in your region? Ending a career of work that you enjoyed and performed well? Evacuation from your home due to weather events or loss of utilities resulting in unsafe conditions? Well shit, I qualify for all of the causes! One article says, "Take a couple of days off, read a good book."

Happy New Year...Trying Not To Worry

My mother called me a "Worry Wort" decades ago...When I figured out that wort is a barley/hops tea before it's allowed to ferment, I felt much better about this particular criticism. I leave the brewing and fermentation tasks to my old buddy Kenny and his crew down at the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company in Chico. I pay full price for his product and consume at least one a day. I've figured out the wort part but, I haven't been able to shake the worry. Some days the 'worry cloud' hovers directly above me and I have a hard time shaking it. I worry about the business gamble I entered into nearly 30 years ago, I worry about my offspring and I worry about my incredible soulmate of forty-six years. Fermentation of the brain is not the answer...I remind myself to appreciate the incredible experiences and phenomenal health I've been blessed with over the last 72 years. The sun is coming up every morning and water is still the healthiest drink that I enjoy each day... I take my vitamins, give out hugs and laugh about the funny little incidents that happen every day. I think we're going to be good in 2022...as my 96 year old friend Jack W says, "You just have to keep moving forward."