Before you read on:
This is an article about SHIT. Any kind of shit. The good, the bad and the ugly.
So if you are sensitive to it (language or any other wise), please move out of the way immediately.
But if you have had shit (crap, troubles, merde, problems, desperation,…….) hit your fan, please do read on.
This is not a pill to clean your pile of shit. It’s just my two cents worth of it…
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About a year ago, I had some shit hitting my fan. Well, I’ve had a shit hitting year really. And it affected my creativity, so I wrote about it.
Now that the shit has climaxed, and my fan is totally out of order, people keep asking me how the hell I handle it all and keep smiling.
Let me first tell you this: there is no ‘handling it all’. There are many facets to wading through a pile of it. Sometimes you just fall flat on your face right into it and it’s hard to get up. Sometimes it’s actually quite fun to realize that ‘the only way is up‘ (yes, I grew up in the 80ies…).
But it did get me thinking. About what you’re supposed to do when shit does hit your fan. Whether there are any do’s and don’ts.
So here is my attempt at that.
But then again, shit is not shit. Your shit is not my shit. But hey, I did warn you about reading on…
What do you do?
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You duck.
First gut reaction to anything ‘attacking you’.
No matter how fast you are or how low you stoop though, you will get splattered.
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You try to outrun it.
But usually running away from one fan, just means you’ll meet another around the corner. Until you try number 3.
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You try to find the power source to turn it off.
This is tough. Cause the muck is deep and thick. And you’re not throwing it. So you are wading, you get lost. And even if you find the plug, you may not be able to pull it out. But it does help you in getting to know your shit. And that’s a first step towards getting out of it.
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You get help.
From friends who know shit. From an electrician. From some other fans. You talk about your shit – to trust worthy shit-experts.
And the more you talk about it, the more you realise that everybody has a pile of shit. And that is a great realisation. It creates bonds. Which make the shit appear less threatening.
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You feel/taste it.
You cry a lot (cleans your face). You get angry a lot (i.e. you vent, which creates some vent’ilation of its own, which is a good method to fight the shitty wind). You just sit in it and feel sorry for yourself. Because some days you just can’t deal with any of the numbers on this list. Forgive yourself for it. It’s okay to feel like crap. As long as you know how to move on to number 6.
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You face it.
And get dirty. You dig in. It goes with number 3. And you know what? Facing shit is not all that bad. It’s scary. It makes you vulnerable. But it also allows you to analyse the pile of crap and the thrower. So that next time you may have another step to add to this list.
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You clean it.
You know where it’s coming from and you are cleaning it up. The shit keeps coming (more or less abundantly), but you’re doing a great job of sweeping, ‘eau de javel’ling and lavender spraying.
This is a great start. But not enough. It eventually has to move to number 7.
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You stop it.
This usually does not mean unplugging the fan (like in number 3). Because you liked that fan! And it offers a nice breeze when it’s hot. So keep the fan. But stop the shit throwing.
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You move.
When all of the above has been done and did not work, you move into another room, house, country.
But to avoid that same shit hitting your fan again, you must have at least covered some of the steps above.
Shit is not nice. It hurts. It’s smelly. It’s yukkie. It makes you feel like, well, shit.
It’s also very much a part of life. And life seems to be set up in a way that no one can avoid it.
So the sooner you learn to deal with it, the better you are equipped.
And if you bump into me: I’d love to hear about your pile of crap! 