Freakin' Out, Shamu Style

Ok, so this was like 2 weeks ago already. But I just have to blog about this because I wonder if any of you out there have humiliated yourself in such a fashion.

I showed you some fun pictures of Sea World, but it was "fun" in a stressful sort of way. It's called "eustress", the opposite of distress. (I learned that in college and it's one of the few things I retained). It's stress that comes from a positive event, like a wedding, Christmas, or dragging 4 tired children around an amusement park after spending 3 days in the car.

So, yes, it was an enjoyable day. But there were moments - like when 2 of my children fought with me during the entire Shamu show, trying to get control of the camera so they could take pictures, even though I repeatedly told them that I would get some good pics and that they should just enjoy the show - that I really felt like my brain was going to explode out of my ears, because although we were at a really cool place for a fun-filled day, some people were insistent on finding ways to dampen the fun.

And then there was the time when we went to find something to eat (which is a stressful endeavor in and of itself because of the ridiculous prices and the horrendous crowds), and some people under the age of 18 had to tell me - repeatedly - what they wanted to eat, as we waited and waited and waited, winding through the very warm restaurant area, until we finally reached the place where we got our trays and ordered our food. The 5-year-old insisted on carrying a gigantic tray for his own food, a feat he clearly wasn't capable of doing, but insisted on doing anyway. And in the process of doing so, he held up the entire food line for an eternity (well, it was probably more like 2 minutes, but it sure felt like forever with a tantruming kid and a mile-long line behind us). By the time we actually procured our food, paid for it, and sat down, I. was. finished. No more patience. No more sympathy. No more trying to have a good time.

I sat down with my tray with my kids, who were fighting about who got to sit by me, and I lost control. In front of my parents, my brother, my 15-year-old nephew, my sister, my husband & kids, and approximately 318 strangers, I burst into LOUD, SOBBING, CRIES for about 5 minutes, which again, seemed like an eternity as I struggled to get control of myself.

Embarrassing. The kids all felt some slight remorse, but everyone else struggled to eat their $12 hamburgers in spite of the awkwardness of me sitting there crying like a baby.

In my defense, I had just endured 3 days of being confined to a small vehicle with 5 other people and stuff piled up in every nook and cranny, and very limited internet access. And I was, ahem, hormonal.

But even so, I pretty much humiliated myself. Anyone want to compete with that?

Bring it on.