Monday, September 6, 2010

Meltdown Spaces

So, I have an idea for a new kind of business. I used the term business pretty loosely as I have no clue how you could actually make money from this idea, but I'm sure that can all be worked out later.

Have you ever noticed that when you're having a really bad day, and you get to absolute meltdown point, there is nowhere you can go and have your meltdown other your own home? I discovered this the other day. Things were not going well, I was in a lot of pain, really tired and sick and I had like a million (read three) things to do. All I really wanted to do was go home, go to bed and eat masses of chocolate. Instead I found myself limping down Courtenay Place on my way to get a blood test. On a good day I'm not that keen on blood tests so on a bad day it just put me over the edge.

I burst into tears on my way out of the building. There was no where I could go to cry in private other than Reading Courtenay bathrooms, which are by no means an ideal meltdown space. The stalls are pretty claustrophobia, and since there were other people in the bathroom, I was forced to have a very quiet meltdown, which is just not as cathartic as a noisy one.

I've heard from other people that they've had similar experinces, having meltdowns in banks, the middle of the street etc. They've all said they would all like a nice, comfortable, private place to go and cry where no one would judge you, or try to make you feel better (preferably with copious amounts of chocolate and tissues available.)

So this is my idea: I set up a chain of "Meltdown Spaces." I'm thinking I may petition John Key for some funding. He's clearly overlooked this vitial need in our community.

If I can figure out how to do it, I'm going to attach a video of some people who clearly needed a Meltdown Space. Also, the song on this video is by Rob Thomas who's wife Marisol has an autoimmune disorder. He wrote the songs "Her Diamonds" and "Ever the Same" about her experiences with it... OK, so it seems I don't know how to attach the actual video, but here's the link to it on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crKS_fMTRJo

It's my absolute favourite video.

Little Miss Autoimmune

4 comments:

  1. Love it! For some reason when I first read this, I thought you meant you were going to attach a video with your petition to John Key. I thought you meant you were going to film a video yourself of people who needed meltdown spaces. In which case I was going to offer my services ;)

    I was trying to think of other songs that make me think of meltdowns, and one that immediately springs to mind is 'Monkey Wrench' by The Foo Fighters, specifically the part where he spazzs out towards the end. "One last thing before I quit I never wanted anymore than I could fit into my head..." Classic meltdown material! =)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hmm... yes I can see how you got there. I was not particularly clear. For anyone reading, I did not make this video, I believe it is the official music video for this song, although I may have made that up and it might just be a fan video...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hey ... just found your site & am catching up on the past few years ... considering I just had a far-too-public meltdown the other day, I wish there was a space for it!

    BTW - I had no idea about Rob Thomas/those songs ... of course I had to look up the lyrics & watch the videos for both, and now I can't stop bawling thinking about what my poor husband is going through as I deal with this disease.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey Kerry - I'm discovering big sunglasses are an essentially for bad days. They go a long way to finding meltdowns :P
      Re: Rob Thomas - I'd been a big fan of him and Matchbox 20 for years before I found out that's what was behind those songs. Makes me cry every time I hear them too! Thanks for reading. Little Miss Autoimmune :-)

      Delete