Man, I gotta tell you, last Tuesday was brutal. Woke up feeling off downstairs if you know what I mean, and then the coffee machine broke. Just flipped my lid completely. Was pacing around the kitchen like a caged animal, honestly ready to punch a wall. Totally useless feeling. Then I remembered those three quick fixes Jim mentioned at the gym last week – figured what the heck, nothing to lose. Let me walk you through what I actually did.
Fix #1: The Weird Breathing Thing
First one sounded kinda dumb, but I was desperate. Stood right there by the busted coffee pot. Closed my eyes real tight – felt stupid, honestly. Then sucked in air real deep through my nose, like I was smelling something amazing. Held it for a second, felt my chest puff out. Then blew it all out slow through my mouth, like I was trying to fog up a window. Made a whooshing sound. Did this like, five times? Honestly lost count after three. Focused real hard on just the breathing and nothing else. Weirdly, after the last big whoosh out, my shoulders weren’t up around my ears anymore. Still ticked about the coffee, but less like exploding.
Fix #2: Shaking It Out
Next one seemed weirder. Jim said “shake out the rage.” Okay? Looked around, saw my wife’s favorite vase – nah, not touching that. Went into the living room instead. Just stood there kinda loose. Then started shaking my hands, real fast, like I just washed ’em and no towel. Like a little kid. Felt silly, honestly smirked at myself. Then did my arms, flopping ’em around like wet noodles. Finally wiggled my whole body – hips, shoulders, legs. Like a bad dancer. Did it for maybe 30 seconds? Took a breath. Noticed my jaw wasn’t clenched like a vise anymore. Still annoyed, but felt… looser. Like my body dumped a little of that tightness.
Fix #3: The Cold Shock
Last one sounded simple. Cold water. Still mad enough to try anything. Trudged to the bathroom sink. Cupped my hands under the faucet, cranked it all the way to cold. Like ice cold. Splashed that freezing water right on my face. Gasped! Felt like a bucket of cold reality. Did it three times real quick. Blinked the water outta my eyes. Stared at my soaked face in the mirror. Something shifted. That hot, buzzing anger feeling behind my eyes? Just… dimmed. Like someone turned down the dial. Still bummed about the coffee, but the edge was gone. Felt clear-headed enough to actually think about fixing the dang machine.
So yeah. Tuesday morning disaster. Used all three tricks back-to-back-to-back. Took maybe five minutes total? Did they fix everything? Nah. Coffee machine still needed work. But the rage? The pure, useless fury boiling inside me? Significantly dialed back. Went from “wall-punching fury” down to “seriously annoyed but functional.” Got the toolbox out for the coffeemaker instead of my fist. Worth a shot next time you feel that anger taking over, especially if things downstairs are adding fuel to the fire. Simple, kinda dumb-looking, but man did it take the edge off.