Complainasaurous

I am a Complainasaurous. It is, according to Adam, a new species of dinosaur recently discovered on the North American continent.

Really, I just let the little things get me down. I dwell. I hold grudges. I get pissed about things, and then I look for excuses for my bad mood-- and then that just prolongs it. This weekend, my computer broke. I went out a bought a new one. I am lucky enough that this was not a huge problem, but a mild inconvenience. Still, every time I feel myself being bothered, I think, "my computer broke. My phone broke (it did. I have to go back to the Apple store today). I have so many reasons to be in a bad mood."

I googled "How to improve your mood" and it came up with 21 suggestions (some of which seem VERY silly). I found 5 that I'm going to try:

1. Be curious. People who are interested in people and other things are more likely to be happy.

2. Don't dwell on the past. My friend has a motto "forgive yourself, move on." It's better to focus on improving the future than moping over what you should have done. I need to find better coping strategies for so many of my problems, rather than sink down into sadness for what I don't handle well.

3. Act the Part. Apparently, if you pretend to be happy, you'll be happy.

4. Breathe deeply. People who suffer from depression often are shallow breathers.

5. Don't eat junk food. The spike of sugar improves your mood, but once your blood sugar drops, you get really depressed.

Really, I do not have good reasons for being upset. Making excuses doesn't do anybody any good. I know that. I also know that the reason I am falling into a perpetual bad mood is because I am going back. I leave California tomorrow. But, that doesn't mean that I have to give up everything that California means. I can take so much of this with me. I keep telling myself that, at least.