Meditation: Untangle Negative Thoughts, 15 minutes

I’ve been in a bad mood all week. Wallowing doesn’t come naturally to me. I’m uncomfortable in the muck. These past seven days, though, conspired against me. My birthday didn’t feel as I desired or needed. We got real live rain for days. The sun hid from us most of the week. I was unexpectedly burnt out from the pace of the first three months of the year. There was random unwanted work drama. My routine was slightly askew.

So I stewed in the swamp of dark vibes. It’s starting to break, though.

Wednesday night, I cooked new things. Meatballs and beet salad inspired by Persian New Year and the New York Times. Thursday night, I hung with colleagues as we celebrated YouTube milestones and the end of awards season. Friday, I took a personal day and caught up with kick-ass ladies in Jessica Jones and Annihilation and the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament. Yesterday, my haircut session was therapy. My Name is Myiesha was entertaining and thought-provoking.

And then dinner with my mom, my wife, and an old family friend was medicine. Hungry Crowd was a surprising little spot in Toluca Lake with Korean fusion dishes that were better than expected and a conversation that soothed whatever was ailing me.

We laughed throughout, to the point that diners at the table next to us leaned over and joked that we must be having a terrible time. We laughed even louder and engaged for a few minutes, learning they were from London, happened upon the place after being told of a 45-minute wait across the street. She was an actor I recognized. He was a member of BAFTA. They have cats and love LA. They aren’t citizens but found time to March For Our Lives. We apologized for our current President. They countered with a firm belief that he’d be done soon.

This week I’m grateful for this prescription to ending a bad mood:

• Do new things
• Seek unusual knowledge
• Talk to strangers
• Celebrate the little things and the big
• Take a break
• Laugh
• And Laugh
• And Laugh
• And Laugh

Now you’re not stuck in the mud; you’re dancing on it.