I want it now!!!
I think it was Woody Allen who said that the only thing wrong with instant gratification is that it takes too long.
I was reminded of this today when I went to get a new mobile phone. It turned out that I could get phone for free if I switched from pay-as-you-go to a monthly contract, so I decided to do that and picked out a really cute one . . . and then!!! . . . the computer was down at the store and they couldn’t process my stuff and they said I’d have to wait until tomorrow. But I had already been really looking forward to playing around with the phone and figuring out how it worked and was even feeling impatient about having to wait the 10 hours while it charged up and so I ended up feeling soooo disappointed that I couldn’t take my new toy home straight away. 
And well okay, I’m over it … honest. No, really. Well, almost. But anyhoodle, this incident reminded me of how crap I often am with having to wait for something I want.
How about you? Are you any good with this delayed gratification thang?
casa azahar 
“Patience is a word invented by silly buggers who can’t think quickly enough.” Spike Milligan
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I am probably one of the most impatient people ever born. But I have learned that sometimes it is worth waiting for what you want. It’s better if you can get it right away, but if you HAVE to wait, then it may be worth it. Maybe.
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I’ve always been pretty bad at waiting for things I really want, but I’ve gotten better over the last few years. If it’s something I plan to use regularly, or if I need to replace something I use frequently, it’s a LOT harder to be patient. Especially if I’m ready to make my purchase and, like in your situation, other people or circumstances beyond my control thwart me. Which they often do.
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Well, adding insult to injury, when I went to pick up the phone today I was told I’d have to wait until the woman I had been dealing with yesterday came in for her shift at 1pm … grrrrrr.
But that was more a grrrrr feeling about general ineptitude – like, when she called yesterday to say I could pick up the phone today she might have mentioned she wouldn’t be in until one o’clock.
Now that I think about it, I reckon a lot of my impatient reactions when having to delay my gratification are often a result of feeling annoyed at whoever caused me to have to wait, combined with wanting it now!!!
I’m actually quite okay at accepting the inevitable.
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Well,incompetence and incomplete information create feelings of impatience that are quite different. Now we are going to go on a wonderful vacation next november, and delaying that gratification is worth it. Besides, we have the component of anticipation and planning for the event the helps alleviate that emotional load.
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I am of two minds on waiting.
I can’t wait for something I really want, frequently wanting to rush out and buy it NOW.
But if it’s also something I can’t afford, I can be very patient and wait indefinitely.
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Yeah, it happens to me just like you said…I’ve made a decision, taken a plunge, on something I’m not 100% sure on, and that’s when it’s the worst.
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The mobile phone saga actually went on and on . . .
Turned out that the very cute one I’d picked out had a very complicated menu and so I went back to the store and happily found a very patient salesclerk who spent about 45 minutes with me working stuff out (she also agreed that it was an unusually complicated menu).
But the next day (after receiving a call from a friend) I also realised the phone had really crap volume … so after all that previous waiting and the extra time spent figuring out the menu, I then had to go back to the store and wait an hour in a queue to exchange it for one that worked.
The end result was good though – I now have a fabulous FREE phone that has a very user-friendly menu, is very attractive and also has a very nice ringtone.
Even though it wasn’t exactly free as it ended up costing me about four hours of my life . . .
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And this one that you’re now happy with is the same new model you wanted, or did you choose a different one, after all that?
I’m still steering clear of the contract phones. They have more features, sure, but they also charge you a major bundle if you have to back out on the contract. I would like a camera phone, though. Someday.
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After all that I switched models. There were about five different models being offered for free – the first one I chose was the only one with a camera. But I much prefer the one I have now.
Contract phones are different from the pay-as-you-go ones in the States? Here any phone can be either.
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