The Pile of Smurfs Syndrome

I find it easier to manage serious situations over petty ones. When a real problem comes into my life, I know that it has to be taken care of right away, and there is no avoiding it. Small issues, though, are put to the side and can really pile up and make me feel overwhelmed. It makes some sense, but defies the conventional thinking that:

Small problems are easier to deal with, thus less stressful.
Important problems take more time and energy, which lead to more stress.

This just isn't the case. If I lose my phone, objects are getting thrown through the bedroom window before the end of the commercial break. If I lose my car, I've already picked out a new car online, and worked out the finances before the police can finish telling me they found half of my dashboard.

Our government is the same way. It takes a month of arguing over who really supports children and unemployed farmers when renaming a bridge. If our country is attacked, you can be assured that a B-2 is on its way to bomb the crap out of some foreigners. There is no debate in congress over money or manpower. In those critical situations, we know that a previously unknown country is about to get its 15 minutes of fame, and that 5.7 billion people are reminding the United States of how much they love the Beach Boys and the super savings they get at Wal-Mart.