Cranky Schmanky

Some days, despite my best intentions, I find myself feeling cranky. On those days, anything and everything can be an irritant. This morning I felt a little cranky, which got me to thinking about what makes me cranky.

The following list is not intended to be exhaustive, but it includes some of the things that make me cranky:

• Not getting enough sleep.
• Having someone act like a jackass in one moment and then ask for a favor in the next.
• Dirty dishes in the kitchen sink.
• Being so hot that sweat forms in my nooks and crannies.
• Missing an easy shot when I play racquetball.
• People who hold conversations in the middle of the aisle in a market or store, seemingly oblivious to everything and everyone around them.
• Being in the bathroom and realizing there is no toilet paper.
• Tangled Christmas lights - ho, ho, frickin' ho!
• Having my computer act wonky and not being able to figure out why.
• Being on time and waiting for the person who isn't, especially if said person is perpetually late.
• Being late for the movies, church, a party, a wedding, etc. (Work--not so much.)
• Spending too much time with a narcissist.
• Worse, being in a personal crisis and talking with a narcissist.
• Paying for something at the store, getting home and then realizing I don't have that item in my bag.
• Stepping in gum.
• Car trouble, of any kind. Not knowing a do-hicky from a whatzit to a thingamajig doesn't help.
• Dog poop in the house. Bad dog!
• Having a bad hair day.
• Being cranky with someone I care about and then feeling like crap because I acted like a jerk.

I suppose that is a sufficient list of my crankiness. My son told me today that when I am cranky, I should take a breath and think before I say anything. Good advice, but it didn't make me feel less cranky!