Grumpy Grumpensteins

You know what really annoys me? Positive, chipper, happy people when I’m feeling anything but positive, chipper and happy. Have you ever just been in a bad mood for no good reason? Maybe you’re annoyed that Friday is taking entirely too long to arrive this week. Maybe you’re having a bad hair day. Maybe you simply hate the smell of the popcorn that is constantly wafting over from the cube next to yours.

It doesn’t matter if your reason for being in a bad mood is legitimate or completely ridiculous. The fact is, you’re in a bad mood, and although you don’t necessarily want to be in a bad mood, you also don’t want another person giving you pointers on how to get out of your bad mood, but inevitably, they will, which will then turn your bad mood into a terrible mood and leave you grumpier than ever.

When someone asks me, “How’s your day?” and I reply with a less than enthusiastic, “Eh, not so good” or a bleak “Same ‘ole, same ‘ole,” this is not an invitation to “fix” my day. I don’t want suggestions on how to spice up my life (“Go for a pedicure on your lunch!”) or lessons in positive thinking (“Set a new goal for yourself today!”). If I wanted to go for a pedicure, I would. If I wanted to set a goal for myself, I would do that, too. But I don’t want to. Why? Because I’m in a bad mood.

I don’t know why it’s such a bad thing to be in a bad mood. We’re human beings. We are fickle, emotional, fluctuating creatures. We have good moods. We have bad moods. It’s all part of life. So why is it that when someone is in a bad mood, everyone in a 50 mile radius suddenly feels like its his or her duty to cheer that person up and haul them out of the funk they’ve gone and sat down in?

I don’t know about you, but that’s the last thing I want when I’m feeling grumpy. Instead, what I’d really like, is someone to hunker down to my level and be grumpy with me. I want to hear a solid, “Ah, I know how you’re feeling,” or maybe a just a simple “I feel ya.” I want to hear stories about how much you hate your boss or loathe the monotony of a 40-hour work week or really, really dislike the outfit you put on today. I want to hear about how your cup of coffee was cold, your dog ate your presentation, your boyfriend’s driving you nuts and your hair needs to be dyed.

Don’t have any terrible stories to share with me? Make something up. Seriously.

In other words, when I’m in a bad mood, all I really want is for you to feel my pain, not erase it. I want to know that other people have bad days, too. I want to feel like someone gets me, and I don’t want to feel like some weirdo whose mood needs to be fixed.

Honestly, people, bad moods aren’t that big of a deal. I’m an emotionally healthy 26-year-old. I’ll bounce back from it, I promise. And in a couple of hours, I’ll probably be positive, chipper and happy again, but for now, be grumpy with me?