One Step Forward, One Step Back

     Lately I have been playing a fair amount of Pokemon GO (or trying to play; with all of the bugs and server issues it's nigh impossible to play the game as it was intended).  When the game is working correctly, it gives me a reason to get out of the house and helps alleviate my anxiety by giving me something to focus on.  I've mostly been sticking to my neighborhood and campus for my hunts, but since Pokemon vary based on location, I've been trying to visit some other places as well.
     On Monday I wanted to check out downtown Orono, so Brian suggested going to Pat's Pizza for dinner.  I love Pat's, so I agreed, despite a nagging anxiety.  Sit down restaurants are a little hard for me sometimes because while I'm waiting for my food, I can't really go anywhere.  I feel trapped, and any time I feel trapped, that fans the flames of my anxiety.  By the time we got down to Pat's, I didn't think I could make it through the meal.
     As we were heading inside, we noticed that the clouds above had turned a dark, dark gray, like it was about to start pouring at any moment.  We walked in and sat down at a bench.  We were told that a server would be with us shortly, unless we wanted to order our food to go.  Brian and I agreed that take out would be the best option, making some excuse about the weather, but really it was because of my anxiety.
     Not long after we had placed out order, the storm began in earnest.  Water poured down from the sky as thunder sounded in the distance, accompanied by an occasional flicker of lightning.  As soon as the storm started, I became so intent on photographing it with my new phone's camera that I forgot to be anxious.  The time it took to get our pizza passed quickly enough and soon we were back at home enjoying our dinner.  The trip was a partial success.  I may not have made it through a sit down restaurant dinner, but I did manage to make it through the wait to get our food.

The sky before the storm.

Selfie at Pat's.

The rain coming down.