Friday night Dude and I had tickets to see Austrailian Pink Floyd. When Dude bought the tickets I told him it was a gamble because of my chemo schedule. In fact, I rearranged my chemo schedule so we could go to the concert. I had no idea I’d be starting a new regimen though.
By late Friday afternoon I was very tired but I sucked it up and got dressed for the show. Dude took the girls over to my mom’s house because they were spending the weekend. We really needed the break and to spend some time together. Besides, I knew I’d be pretty sick the remainder of the weekend. It’s really hard for Dude to take care of the girls and me at the same time.
The show started at 8:00 pm so when we decided to leave at 6:00 pm we thought we’d have PLENTY of time to get there. Neither of us banked on the fact that Dude would make a serious error when he missed the turn for the Schuykill Expressway that landed us on the Pennsylvania Turnpike heading towards the wrong direction. It was a series of memory lapses for the two of us trying to figure out how to get going in the right direction.
The traffic report on the radio was a disaster. Both the Schuykill Expressway and Rt. 476 were seriously backed up by 7:30 pm when we were still over an hour away from the Tower Theater. Our tempers were seriously overwrought by then too. I was tired and just wanted to go home and Dude was pissed about the entire situation. It left us screaming at each other in the car. The final decision was to head home.
I fell asleep and before I knew it, it was 9:30 pm and we were in front of the house. Dude and I had spent three and half hours in the car but at least we were together. And that was my whole argument the entire ride. Even if we didn’t get to the concert at least we had time together and that’s what it’s all about right now…getting time with just the two of us.
Once we were in the house Dude apologized for his behavior in the car, because he threw a tantrum like a five year old and I apologized for being an evil bitch. With all the stress we’ve been under we made simple mistakes on the road and missed where we needed to turn which just lead into a huge clusterfook.
We decided to put the Rolling Stones “Shine A Light” on and watch a 2 hour concert on the big screen T.V. in surround sound. Sure it wasn’t the concert we had planned to go but it made up for it in a small way. Besides, I just love the Rolling Stones…and so does Dude. It was an excellent show.
I’m so glad that Dude and I were able to put aside the disaster of missing Australian Pink Floyd away so quickly and see what was really important. In the past something like that could have festered and ruined our entire weekend.
How do you handle when plans suddenly change? Or if something you were looking forward to so much falls through? Have you ever been so lost that you’ve just scrapped your plans and gone home?
{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }
Lord knows I don’t have grace under pressure when it comes to plans going awry. I usually get very upset……must be the perfectionist in me that just won’ t let me enjoy stuff if it doesn’t come off perfectly.
Blondefabulouss last blog post..Ba Ba badubidubi Yum Yum!
I used to let changed plans ruin my entire day. Now plans change here by the minute, so I just roll with it.
If I’m hungry or PMSing… that’s a different story. Then I turn into an evil bitch.
Poppys last blog post..Happy anniversary, M&M!!!!!!
Rolling with it is a requirement living with me… because as Poppy already pointed out, plans change here in a second. When things fall through… well… I just look to trying to make up for it with something else along the cool scale.
NYCWDs last blog post..Sunday Smorgashboard Edition 76
blondefabulous: Ah, a perfectionist. That will leave you with high expectations so it makes sense that you would get upset when plans fall through.
Poppy: I think it’s great that you’ve learned to roll with it and adjust to a more relaxed way…except for those PMSing days. Does Dawg get a warning on those days?
NYCWD: I think that’s the best way to live life. You never know when you’ll be thrown a curve ball.
Lisa, I’m so sorry that your evening’s plans didn’t come to fruitation, but I am glad that you are able to have a weekend with you and your husband and you were able to have some quality time anyway. I’m betting that you enjoyed your evening far more than if you were at the concert anyway…..seriously.
The Schuykill Expressway is just pure evil. We have to travel it when we take Hope to Shriner’s Hospital and I just close my eyes and go to my happy place every time. My lucky (poor?) dh is going to take two of our four to see a concert at the Wachovia Center on Nov 1st and I don’t envy him ONE bit.
Better him than me, though!
Maggies last blog post..Queen of Procrastination and Fun Weekend Stuff!
Lisa; your post made me think about a quote from Maya Angelou. She says, “I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he or she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights”. Maybe getting lost on the way to a concert in heavy traffic should be added to the list! I think you both turned this around and made lemonade out of lemons. Good job.
As for me, I’d probably fret and fuss about it all but I am really working on trying to go with the flow on these annoyances. I think people who master this are amazing.
Kates last blog post..Passing the Bar Exam
Maggie: I actually did enjoy the evening much more. I think the night would have been too long for me.
The Schuykll is harrowing that’s for sure.
Kate: I think it makes life so much easier if you can let things like this go.
You guys sound like Mike and I. Plan changes are okay, I can deal with that, but I don’t deal well with either of us being pissy about it.
AmyDs last blog post..Aspiration and Inspiration
I think you did exactly the right thing. Instead of letting the night be ruined, you focused on the important part which was spending some quality time together. I’d like to think Aaron and I would do the very same thing!
I just wanted to tell you I have been thinking a lot about you lately, and I continued to be totally blown away by how strong and brave you are. I know you probably don’t always feel that way, but I think you’re amazing.
Heathers last blog post..Mondays and Milestones
AmyD: Being pissy about it does nothing but bring out the ugly, right? I find it totally unnecessary. However, it happens sometimes. It’s good when you can move beyond it and Dude and I have gotten better at it over the years.
Heather: You are really to kind. I’m just taking it one day at a time. Some days are good…others bad. I’m sure you completely understand.
As I don’t have a lot of control in my life right now, I would have to say that I get pretty unglued when well-thought out plans go south.
I’m always trying to learn, though, through watching how others take change and completely own it, and make it work for them.
You are an excellent teacher, Lisa. Thank you so much.
2 BTW’s: 1) Didn’t Jack White look like he was having the time of his life up there
w/Mick? and 2) I noticed you took your “Jewellry” tab down - are you waiting for more beads?
Baroness von Bloggenschterns last blog post..How is it Possible?
how i handle changing plans depends on my hunger level. seriously. in vegas last monday i would have punched any number of coworkers and just about quit my job, but it was 9:30 pm and the fuckers wouldn’t let me just go get a simple meal…had to do the big formal company dinner which entailed waiting for everyone’s schedules to clear. before and after that day i was never about to eat my own fist and i rolled with whatever was thrown at me. so ummm, the answer is usually to keep me not starving and i’ll happily go with the flow.
but back to you. glad you and dude were able to snuggle up with mick and hte boys, forgetting the earlier frustration. yay!
hello haha narfs last blog post..Picking Up Strangers in Vegas
It depends on how bad I want to go and how far away from D-Day we are. F’rinstance, I knew the PS was working on low amounts of bux but was still up for taking me to the Renaissance Festival–meaning up for $30 or more in tickets, $20 each for a t-shirt, $15 for the big King mugs I use as coffee mugs plus whatever else we’d spend on food and goodies that I like to find since there’s always scentmongers at a RenFest. I wouldn’t expect him to fund my scent fetish, but he’s the guy who would insist on buying the rest. So I sat him down (in the car on the freeway; where he couldn’t get away) and brought it up–can “we” really afford this? Sure we’ll be missing a blasty-blast with our anime club’s bunch which would suck, but not making the rent and bills sucks worse and can land your ass in your van down by a river. So we cancelled the trip (oh, forgot–the closest one was about a 3 hour drive from here and we were planning a hotel stay too, at the cost of another approx. $100).
We went to Geek.Kon instead–the drive was 1 hour to our host’s house (for 2 nights–free, even tho we offered to help with fud, which wasn’t accepted but the pop we brought along was) then 1 hour to Madison, no charge to get in (I pre-registered us–I don’t know if there was a walk-in charge at the door), small charges for some games if we’d played them but otherwise the only money we spent was for a t-shirt for me, a couple of books I wanted, and a much lower gas tab due to traveling half the distance from home.
It didn’t hurt that the extra bux went into replacing the printer of mine that was so old that XP laughed at me when I tried to install it. And we still didn’t come anywhere near the budget-buster we’d planned. And I got glomped ~grins~ No one at this college-age or so convention minded the “old” lady wandering around with buddies who were all dressed funny asking to take their pictures, then pouncing on her with big group hugs when they found out it was her birthday and this was the “party” she wanted.
THAT kind of plan change I can deal with–finding out 15 minutes before we’re supposed to leave for somewhere incredible that we’re not going is a bit harder for me to be gracious about.
PandoraWildes last blog post..A sack full of WHAT? Oh my hell!
Sounds like you two were able to turn the night into something pleasant, and that’s what is important. Sometimes and more often than not I’ve noticed, plans go way off the track of what was expected…and I don’t usually handle it the way I should. I get into a stupid fight with my fiance and we end up venting our frustration on each other instead of trying to make jokes or be silly to diffuse the situation. And yeah, sometimes you just need to know when to say goodbye to the night’s plans because things go wrong. But like I said, you did things right by changing things into a positive situation….we’d all be happier if we could do that when faced with tension.
I have not always handle it well when plans change,
but I am getting better at it.
What really bugs me is when I make plans that I was unsure of to begin with,
then something goes wrong, because.. then I start thinking “I shoulda listened
to my instincts in the first place and not made these plans.”
I haven’t recently had plans go bad though..
the last time was over a year ago..
I talked to a friend of mine cuz Martina McBride was coming to town
for a concert.. and my friend wanted to go. So, we got tickets.
Well she did not enjoy the concert at all - was too loud for her
and there were people next to us who were drunk and spilling their
drinks…
I was upset that we had wasted money and time - and she didn’t enjoy it.
We agreed she is not the type of person to go to concerts.
So now if I go I invite someone else.
Hmmm. Sometimes I freak…But mostly I try to figure out a way around it. The “master’ hates crowds. I don’t care and if I Gotta, I will. Like the Genesis tour 2years ago. Hellfire and brimstone if I didn’t get there(DC) from NC with minutes to spare before the start! But I made it. That said, I am a total baby and whiner, if I cannot make it happen. I usually do, though, ha. Much to the chagrin of others, sometimes.
I am sorry it didn’t work out for you. I’m sure it took alot outta you to get the gumption up. Maybe they’ll do a DVD set and you can watch it, eventually?
I get so mad, when I get lost driving, and it makes me late or miss something! I am sorry you all took a wrong turn, but, at least you had some nice quality time with the Stones. I hope that the rest of your weekend got better.
It is so easy to get turned around the wrong way on that turnpike, it you are not paying close attention- some of those exits are poorly marked! And, if there is traffic, and all, it can really mess you up!
Christines last blog post..This year we get to experience “Team Teaching”
It seems nothing ever goes the “real” way I want it to, and I’m starting to get used to it. Just seems easier to have a few plans for action rather than one, that way I don’t get too pissed off (these days, I’m always pissed about something - comes with being knocked up, lol).
This weekend, though, my husband and I have been invited to an annual fundraising party, complete with free food (I’m SO there!!!!) and drinks (not much use to me these days), but I don’t let myself get too excited just in case something screws it up. It’s “our” only time out without the kids overnight (how exciting) and I hope it stays that way.
We’ll see what happens.
Ashley Hasts last blog post..Spelling bad words? Not a great idea.
Sorry you missed the concert but, as you said, you were able to spend time together.
As I’ve gotten older I take driving mistakes (and others) a bit better. I’ve likely made the same mistake before and the world didn’t end then — it likely won’t this time.
delmers last blog post..I know you miss these