Wednesday, December 21, 2011

It's that time of year.

The skies are gray. The days are short. I'm far from home. There are a million things I'm forgetting. I'm behind with work, both work-type work and housework. I'm snarling and snapping at friends, saying and writing things I shouldn't. I'm being unreasonable. I want to stay curled up under the blankets.

If you're one of the dozen or two people I've pissed off in the last week or two, I'm really sorry.

Maybe I need to take a communication sabbatical and spend a few days sitting in front of a UV lamp and mainlining vitamin D.


Carteach0 said...

Beer helps. Good beer, with solid flavor.

Also, gunsmoke is a natural mood lifter during the dark months.

Tarb said...

I'm sorry you're not feeling at your best, Tam. If you need to stay in bed and chill, hey, everyone needs a break from time to time! Jump under your happy lamp for a bit, and hopefully you'll start feeling better soon. Or, you're welcome to come visit Australia, we need more people like you here, even just visiting!

Tango Juliet said...

Ask Santa for one of those happy lights.

New Jovian Thunderbolt said...

Ask Santa for some of that happy tobbacky.


Farmmom said...

Come see me. I promise plenty of peace and quiet. Or if you prefer a range all to your lonesome.

Other than that just take a bit of time for yourself and do anything you damn well please.

Desertrat said...

Ehh, the season is still open, here, for deer and quail. It's sunny and mild. Christmas is coming, and the little kids are all big-eyed over Santy Claus' arrival. What's not to like?

Reno Sepulveda said...

Hope things look better soon. Take a break, the blog will still be here when you get back.

Borepatch said...

It was strange when we moved from Georgia to Massachusetts, and the Missus had a little black cloud of gloom following her around all winter. Never had happened before.

One of the nice things about being back in Georgia is that the cloud is gone - the days are just a little bit longer, we're at the western edge of the time zone (it stays light a little later in the day), and it's warm enough that we're always out.

Good luck. We didn't have a lot of luck with light boxes and that sort of thing, but I hope they work out for you.

Anonymous said...

Hang in there, kid.
SAD is bad, but its not forever.

Anonymous said...

Take as long as you need to sort it all out and adjust your mood. It's always worth the wait to get the pearls of wisdom and diamonds of snark that magically appear on my screen when I visit VFTP.

Rob J

Sport Pilot said...

This too shall pass Tam. Some years I get a touch of the winter doldrums as well .

TJIC said...


Jeez, you've only pissed off 1 or 2 dozen this past week?

The weather really ** IS ** affecting you!


John_in_Nashville said...

Maybe this will help,..

for your library I have heard you mention the Savage 1907

some light e-reading under your lamps


Brad K. said...

Sleep yourself out, lots of warm comfort foods, hot green tea with honey, herb tea with honey (I like Honey Lemon Ginseng and Country Peach Passion from Celestial Seasonings).

Chicken soup. And not the 'low fat' kind. Real, full octane stuff.

Buy a pair or light inner socks to wear under the cotton socks. Wear cotton socks to bed, they keep the feet warmer, improving circulation in the legs and feet and reducing the load on the heart.

Use a light dose of melatonin at night, keep the lights and activity on a strict schedule, as in "lights on in the morning, lights off at night", and make sure the "lights off" part is at least nine hours, and the same times every day. We use winter lights to keep chickens laying eggs all winter, and their timers stay set at 12 on, 12 off. Same with bringing horses back into reproductive cycles to to prevent a heavy winter coat (for protected show horses), 12 on, 12 off, on a timer that stays constant for on and off times.

Lots of warm and hot liquids, like hot tea and hot water, hot soup and broth, help to thin the mucous to help clear the aftereffects of colds and such. Use the neti pot or saline nasal mist, regular. It helps keep the sinuses moist and comfortable, and to shed buildup and crud. Lots of fiber to keep things rolling on through. No sh*t!

Blessed be, to you and yours.

Larry said...

I'm in Iowa. It's in the 30's. My son called from North Carolina. It's in the 70's and my daughter wants to drive the convertible to work.
I understand completely.

Panamared said...

Living in Florida and reading the comments, I'm begging to understand snowbirds.

Nowayoutbutup said...

In the winter those of us from colder climes tend to neglect exercise.
When we all lived in Alaska my brother and I would go out just to get a few miles on the trails,even if it had to be at night.
Does the heart and head well!

Mark Alger said...

Seems this hits you this time o' year every year. You know what to do; do it. Take care of yourself. Don't be messing around. Hope you feel better soon.


Gewehr98 said...

Today is the winter solstice.

I dialed in a couple extra minutes of time this morning for my SAD light in celebration of the sun setting at 4:25 this afternoon...

Hang in there, days are getting longer beginning tomorrow!

Jeff said...

You need to come to NV for a bit, its really nice and sunny here, a bit cold but nothing like IN.

I thought being depressed all winter was a fact of life until I moved out here. So much better than NW IN and I can see snow on the mountains on my way to work everyday.

Maybe a good excuse to come to the SHOT show?

the pawnbroker said...

"I'm far from home."

Yup...Seasonal Separation Disorder.

Don't know if that's a real thing or not, but it sounds good and it's an accurate diagnosis.

At the risk of adding to the list of those who have pissed *you* off rather than vice versa (because I've said this a time or three before)...

Hie thee home for Christmas. There's magic in your Mama's arms.

Don M said...

Eggnog helps. The Vitamin D in the milk helps.

And you have to add enough Rum to get rid of the egg-y taste.

My brother got a checkup, and they decided he had a vitamin D deficiency. Such things happen. Be safe.

The Pygmy Rattler said...

Or just come to Florida; we have the world's best seafood. It's warm here, so bring your suit. Best of all-gunshows all over, and WMAs full of deer, turkey, hog and GATORS!

Grayson said...

If I may offer some suggestions, Tam?

1)Get some sunshine on your face.Every chance you get.

2)Get some recoil therapy in your hands. I think Jay G. might be with me on this.

3) If all else fails, then, on the next Friday, go over to your local watering hole and declare POETS Corner open for business. ;)

John B said...

If you aren't pissing someone off, then you're not living! I admit that I was alarmed when Breda and Yourself were snarling at each other. I hoped it would stop short of pugil sticks on a slack wire.

Sunlamp? Vitamin D?
New Bikini Shot?

Justthisguy said...

No need to apologize, Ma'am. If you weren't at least somewhat grumpy, you wouldn't be Our Tam, and an intervention might be necessary.

The thing I like the most about your famous "yachting" pic is not so much yer good-lookin' body, but that magnificently grumpy expression on your face.

Justthisguy said...

Maybe we should deputize Roberta to manage your moods. If you are feeling too grumpy and gloomy, she hoicks you over under the bright lights and pours chocolate emulsions into you.

If you are too mellow and thinking goody-goody Pollyanna thoughts, she gets to knock you down, hold your nose, and pour a half-pint of Jaegermeister into you, chased with an equal amount of absinthe.