I Believe the Term You're Looking for Is "Sucker Punch"

I am determined to have one good day this week, and I actually thought it would be today. Things were looking good, my work was progressing, if not at the speed I wanted, but least everything was under control and life was moving in the right direction.

Then I checked my e-mail and realized, no, actually, today we will continue our descent into the Land of Suck. The pair of tens I'd been holding suddenly looked pretty paltry compared to the full house the guy to my left had. Mother. Fucker.

It wouldn't be so bad, except that it's pretty bad, and yet, I know we haven't hit rock bottom yet. You see, I've visited the Land of Suck before, and there is plenty lower to go, my friend. The Land of Suck Visitors' Bureau does a lovely job making sure everyone gets a full tour of the place, and I've only just begun.

A visual representation for you:


where the solid blue line represents the last couple of weeks, the dashed blue line is where we have left to go, and the level at which I'd prefer to be functioning lies somewhere north of the chart, um, up near the title of this post.

Still, one good thing was going to happen today, if it killed me, dammit! And, lo, driving back from the pharmacy (because what else could salvage a crappy day like the chance to deal with a medical bureaucracy?) I noticed that the seatbelt alert light, the one that flashes at me constantly despite my being solidly buckled in and I have just gotten used to its presence because I'm not paying someone to open up the entire dashboard for a silly little light (though if it dinged at me constantly, that would be an entirely different matter), why, the light was magically off! And it stayed off, even when I unbuckled my seatbelt while the car was moving! There you have it: my one good thing today, and it really is gonna kill me.

I should know better than to have high hopes for the weekend, but, ever the optimist, I do. I'm headed to Monterey and Carmel-by-the-Sea, where there will be wine and beaches and wine and visiting with Danielle and wine and pretty scenery and wine and local vineyard tours where maybe they will serve us some wine. I'll let you know how their hospitality stacks up to that of the Land of Suck.