How to Have Fun When Everything is Going Wrong

Rule #1) Everything is an adventure.

Really. Sort of like when you were five years old and the bathtub was an ocean and your duckie was the Loch Ness Monster. 

Have to walk a few miles? You're Frodo Baggins going up Mount Doom.  Bad food? You're Harry Potter trying to eat Hagrid's rock cakes.  Sleeping rough? You're Jason Bourne. Stranded? You're the Doctor without his TARDIS.  Run out of money? You're the Prince living as a pauper. Or Eugenides as the Queen's Thief, if you are a person of particularly shaky moral standing.

The Domain of Moo does not condone illegal action and claims no responsibility for your prison sentence.  Sorry about your life.

Rule #2) Be in a good mood.

Enthusiasm is key. Enthusiasm for anything. Enthusiasm for airplanes, enthusiasm for different languages, enthusiasm for bugs in your food.  You need a glass-half-full perspective, and an eagerness to have experiences. Laugh in incredulity at good things and bad things.

Be willing to fly by the seat of your pants, and excited to discover if you can weather the things life throws at you. It's an enthralling experiment. And remember, if you don't laugh, you will definitely cry.

Rule #3) Be prepared for it all to go sideways.

Make plans. Do. Research, write down, double-check, pack extra underpants. 

But sometimes, you get lost. Sometimes, bus schedules are wrong. Sometimes, your ATM card stops working.

If you are prepared for this, then when it's late at night in the freezing cold and no one speaks English and you just missed the last train - the train that lead to your pre-paid hotel at the next stop on your very tight schedule - if you are prepared for this, then maybe you won't wail and cry and poo yourself in front of startled Japanese commuters.

Rule #4) Have an awesome friend.

You can sleep on each other during long trips, for one thing.  You can keep each others' spirits up, and talk and sing and dance and take stupid photos. 

And when you get lost for hours trying to find the local museum, and finally get there only find it closed, you will have someone to laugh hysterically with.

Rule #5)  Take comfort in small things.

Like chocolate, for example. Cute animals. Blue skies.

The Domain of Moo does not condone underage drinking and claims no responsibility for your angry parents.  Don't be a twat.