Have you ever had one of those days when everything seems to be coming at you at once and no matter how hard you try to keep up, you just can’t, and no amount of coffee will stimulate enough brain cells to get your mind functioning at optimal performance levels and people just keep asking you the stupidest questions ever until you just want to erect a “no talking” zone around you that goes three feet in every direction but instead you have to smile and explain one more time that yes, the copier IS the freakin’ printer - it’s the 21^st century, people, and we have machines that freakin’ multitask! - and instead of reading the morning headlines you get stuck on ONE headline because that headline is telling you that a Very Important Person is going to be on base today and all you can think about is how you’re not going to be able to drive to the lake for your daily lunch/sanity break because security on base is going to be an absolute nightmare and then, to top it all off, the computers decide to get all wonky and not let you log in and get to your email or IM system that tie you to reality and you just have to keep rebooting and re-trying until you want to “accidentally” hack your computer to pieces with the decorative axe that you have hanging on your cubicle as a symbol of the Halloween season - but instead, you just pour yourself another cup of coffee and grab a piece of chocolate out of your emergency reserve (the bowl that you keep on your desk for the students) and take deep, cleansing breaths and wish you had remembered to come up with that mantra because right now you could really use one and then you finally get into your email and the first one that you see is from your husband and it has no subject line and you take an even deeper, more cleansing breath and start reading….

And suddenly everything’s all better, because he just wanted to let me know how much he loves me and can’t wait to see me when I get home tonight.