I have discovered the secret to staying calm: hang out with someone who is losing it. This dawned on me when I watched a person literally curse out a computer. Suddenly, I felt amazingly composed and relaxed even though I'd been having a Bad Day.
This is not how things typically go when I'm with my husband, Dave, who is exceptionally calm (except for the one time he got all agitated when I had a kidney stone pass while we were at a deli—it kind of feels like childbirth, but worse—and I made him leave for the hospital before he'd gotten his pastrami sandwich and he asked, as I was standing there gasping in pain and turning bright red, if we could at least get it to go, not that I hold a grudge, you know). When I get overexcited about something, Dave remains exceptionally calm, which gets me over-overexcited.
Some other stuff that keeps me sane: playing hide-and-go-seek with the kids (they are so amused by this game each and every time that it is impossible to not be amused, too); reading The Onion; going out for coffee and carrot cake with Dave; actually calling friends instead of e-mailing; watching practically anything on HGTV (except Simply Quilts); blogging (hi, blog!); looking through old photos of the kids; going for a walk-trot around our neighborhood; methodically rubbing out stains on my clothing with a Tide To Go stick, very Zen.
What works for you?
