Stress: /strɛs/ – noun – The condition caused when ones mind overrides the body’s natural desire to choke some idiot.
Okay, that’s a somewhat sanitized version of the “traditional” definition of stress. But this blog is PG-rated and I’d like to keep it that way. 
Today I both suffered stress and caused it. For about the last week, I’ve only been getting two or three hours of sleep a night. My normal idiocy has increased exponentially. And when client S needed to be moved from my server ahead of schedule and as a rush job and with a bunch of related work that needed to be done RIGHT NOW, things got quite ugly. Bad enough to be awake, but for pity’s sake don’t expect me to think. I’m not capable at this point.
Now, if it were just that one client, hey, it’s manageable. But in the space of an hour I racked up seven voice mails from other clients. And the reason they were voice mails is I was on the line with client S or his people. Clients T, L, V and J all had things that needed to be dealt with immediately, either scheduled work that was due or past due, or problems that needed to be corrected in a hurry.
Add to all the professional issues a serious personal crisis that, if I had a regular job, would have caused me to call in sick in order to deal with it.
In the midst of that a good friend called to see if I was free. The funny thing is, when you’re that wound up, a kind word can get the tears flowing. And it did. My friend is a believer, and she asked if she could pray for me. Right then. On the phone. Which is a good response to someone in my condition, but does anyone else find it a bit strange and awkward over the phone?
Mind you, I’m very glad she did pray for me. The truth is, I needed prayer to get me back on track. Get my mind focused, get a fresh perspective, and even if I didn’t believe in the efficacy of prayer, it was good just to get a moment to calm down! That was a gift she gave me that I wouldn’t have given myself.
But I do believe in the efficacy of prayer. I don’t think it was a coincidence that the phone stopped ringing – except for one very welcome call that cleared my calendar for tomorrow. And if it felt a bit awkward, I’ll need to get over it.
