In last night’s Coping and Healing group, as people discussed how to cheer the f*ck up during this f*cking pandemic, somebody shared this coloring book:
How do you cheer the f*ck up these days? People in my groups cheer the f*ck up by
practicing mindfulness,
venting,
setting healthy boundaries,
swearing,
crying,
laughing
accepting all feelings, and
realizing they are not alone.
Do any of today’s photos help you cheer the f*ck up?
After a long working day, I cheer the f*ck up with Michael’s cooking.
I find this when I search YouTube for “Cheer the f*ck up” …
Yesterday morning, before the bottom dropped out at the USA Capitol Building in Washington, people in my Coping and Healing group discussed experiences of when the bottom drops out, including how that feels and how to cope. By sharing those experiences of when the bottom drops out and realizing they were not alone, the group members lifted each other up. I suggested that when the bottom drops out again they look down, feel their feet securely on the floor, and realize that the bottom is still there, even if it feels like it has dropped out.
According to an online definition, the bottom drops out “alludes to collapsing deeper than the very lowest point, or bottom.”
Yesterday afternoon, the current inhabitant of the White House collapsed deeper than his previous lowest point/bottom, inciting his followers to violently disrupt the transfer of power in the country I love.
As the whole world watched in horror, the bottom dropped out in the USA yesterday. Those of us who are familiar with malignant narcissists like Trump know that the bottom will drop out even LOWER if he remains in office.
When the bottom drops out, I’m too upset to take many photos, so here are all my recent images from top to bottom:
What do you do when the bottom drops out? When the bottom drops out for me, I reach out for people I love and trust, I anchor myself in the present moment, and I tell myself, “It’s safer than it feels.”
Therefore, I’m going to post, again, the video I shared on this blog yesterday, before the bottom dropped out, of audience members at the Stephen Colbert Show lifting up the late, great U.S. congressman from Georgia, John Lewis, as he crowd-surfed above them.
It makes me cry, here and now, to see how far the bottom has dropped out of my country.
Here is Senator Amy Klobuchar speaking to Stephen Colbert last night about her experience of when the bottom dropped out yesterday:
Here‘s Stephen Colbert showing a lot of feeling in his live monologue last night after the bottom dropped out and before his interview with Senator Klobuchar:
And here‘s his interview with Republican Representative Adam Kinzinger about his experience of when the bottom dropped out.
If you have any thoughts or feelings about when the bottom drops out, please drop a comment, below.
Now that you’ve reached the bottom here, thanks — from the bottom of my heart — to all who help me drop a blog post every day, including you.
In my Coping and Healing groups in the past, present, and future, I have written, I write, and I shall write the important themes on the “Board of Importance.”
I tell my group members that when I write the words “past,” “present,” and “future” on the board I can relax, because I know I’ve captured everything.
At the turn of the year, people seem to think even more about the past, present, and future. Can you see the past, present, and future in the images I captured in the recent past, am sharing with you in the present, and will remember in the future?
There’s the past, present, and future, in one saying: “There is nothing like you, there was nothing like you, and there shall be nothing like you.”.
Now I can relax, because I know I’ve captured everything.
Here‘s a blast from the past: “Past, Present and Future” from The Shangri-Las.
Creating this post is now in the past, I am very grateful in the present, and I look forward to your comments in the future.
On the last day of each year, I put together my personal best and worst lists. In every other year, these have been Top 10 lists. For 2020, both my lists go to 11.
My son Aaron, my husband Michael, my Coping and Healing on-line therapy groups, blogging, my friends, the movie La Fée, surviving COVID, the Biden/Harris victory, walks by the ocean, and cats are on my 2020 best list.
Many deaths are on my 2020 worst list, including the COVID-caused death of a beloved patient, the death of my dear friend Eleanor, the death of my “heart brother” David (a wonderful man who had the same rare heart condition as me), and the death of our amazing kitty Oscar. Powerful and destructive narcissists (who shall remain nameless) are on my worst list, too.
Do you see any evidence of the Best and Worst of 2020 in today’s images?
2020 might be my best New Year’s Eve ever because tonight I’m facilitating a special NYE’s version of my Coping and Healing group!
Here’s my most-listened-to tune for 2020 (no matter what Spotify says!).
If you share some personal 2020 bests and/or worsts in the comments section below, that would be the best.
A happier 2021 and I personally thank you for making it through 2020!
During a holiday season when we did not exchange any material gifts, there were still unexpected gifts, including delicious vegetarian manicotti and Christmas cookies from my ex-in-laws.
I also got some unexpected gifts mailed to me from work.
Here’s another unexpected gift: the bitcoin that I won from my wager on the results of the USA Presidential election has already increased by 26%! That is even more of a gift because when I collected my winnings recently from the online betting site I was agonizing over my unexpected inability to figure out how to convert bitcoin into cash. My husband Michael, who is always a gift to me, suggested I just keep the bitcoin and “have fun watching it.” Having fun with the unexpected is always a gift.
Do you see unexpected gifts in these recent images?
Another unexpected gift — I am no longer worrying about pissing people off. That’s because of the gift that keeps on giving: therapy.
When I search YouTube for “unexpected gifts” this comes up first:
Are there any unexpected gifts you would like to share in a comment below?
An expected gift at the end of each of my daily posts is the gift of gratitude, so thanks to all who contributed unexpected gifts today, including YOU!
“What are people thinking?” is something I often ask in my Coping and Healing groups.
“What are people thinking?” is also something I am increasingly asking myself as I look at the news these days.
What are people thinking on Twitter recently?
What are people thinking about the photos I took yesterday?
When I search YouTube for “What are people thinking?” many of the videos focus on what rich people are thinking, which, to my way of thinking, explains a lot. Personally, I don’t care what rich people are thinking. I think people think about rich people way too much.
Here is “The Dangers of Thinking Too Much; And Thinking Too Little” (and what were people thinking punctuating that title like that?)
Here is what one person is thinking about that video:
I think that sometimes I may think too much about thinking too much.. I think.
Now that I’m UP, it’s UP to me to decide how I want to start UP today’s blog post.
Cases of COVID-19 are going UP, UP, UP.
People still haven’t given UP gathering inside and going maskless. It’s UPsetting how stUPid this is.
The number of failed lawsuits in trUmP’s attempts to foul UP the Presidential election is now UP to 50, at least.
Yesterday, I was informed that my stats here were going UP.
I am always UP for a walk, no matter the time or the weather, and yesterday I noticed that Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is now standing UP…
… after being hung UP like this a few days ago:
Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph, and Santa are now all UP for Christmas. Are you?
Yesterday, in my Coping and Healing group, people wanted to make UP a new name for themselves. I held UP this sign with a suggested name:
They were definitely UP for that reframe.
Now it’s time for me to put UP (or shut UP) my other pictures for today. What’s UP in these photos?
The Daily Bitch Calendar always gets me UP.
Today, I feel UP to calling the IRS about my long-delayed tax refund. I looked UP what might happen if identity thieves have stolen it. Cases of identity theft are going UP, and apparently the IRS is still UP to the task of fixing these UPsetting experiences. Also, it’s UP in the air exactly why my refund has been held UP for so long.
I will give you an UPdate about this tomorrow.
When I’m UP and out for a walk, I often listen to “The Way UP” by the Pat Metheny Group.
As always, I am UP for your comments, if you feel UP to leaving one.
I like to end UP every post with gratitude, so thanks to all who help me keep UP this daily blog, including YOU.
Yesterday, when the wonderful hands of Mia from MiAlisa Salon were giving me a hands-down fabulous haircut, Mia told me about a beautiful way she has been self-soothing during these hard times. She holds her own hand.
Mia said that she held and held her mother’s hand in her hand while her mother was dying, and she misses her mother. Now, when she clasps her own two hands together, she feels powerfully comforted, settled, and anchored. Mia said holding hands with herself also helps her fall asleep.
I told Mia that I have been encouraging people in my Coping and Healing groups to give themselves hugs and that I will add clasping their own hands to the self-soothing repertoire.
And I am happy to report, this morning, that holding hands with myself helped me sleep through the night for the first time in months!
My sleep is also being helped by the growing certainty that my country will soon be in better hands. For the past four years, the USA has been in the hands of a toxic narcissist.
Speaking of hands, if anyone wants to see me play the ukulele with my own hands tomorrow evening, please sign up to be in the audience before the end of the day today using this link:
