How to properly flatter a stranger

I'm stressed. It's no secret. Read anything I've written/posted on any public networking forum in the past few weeks. Hell, listen to the tone of my voice and it's pretty evident. For an even better demonstration, go ahead and be the bearer of bad news and see how I react toward you (With the possible exception of Amber who has an uncanny knack of delivering it with flair, assumedly because she's so well versed in the art.)

I feel like I have no release valve up here on my own and see myself cracking at the slightest provocation. For example, I practically burst into tears this afternoon when Josh's excuse for ignoring my blatant text appeal for an 'I love you' was simply the fact that he was busy working. Under normal circumstances, such a scenario would not evoke so strong of an emotional response. Today, it absolutely did.

Not long after that I found myself walking in a ghetto industrial area of Denver (If you're familiar, Evans between Monaco and 25. Sadly that's not nearly close to the worst place I've been streetside in the past couple weeks) looking for the body shop where I could retrieve my car when a motorcyclist flew by me yelling 'OWWWW BABY!'

My first reaction was to give him the one finger salute and reply with a solid "F&#* YOU AND THE HORSE (or bike as the case may be) YOU RODE IN ON!"

Seeing as I was completely unarmed I refrained, but was seriously irked. I got the car, gave it some gas and headed home. Finally. On the brighter side of things, the cherry limeade that the accident splashed all over the interior had been completely detailed away.

Anyhow, two lights away from my destination (read: snacks couch and TV) a silver car pulled up next to me with a goofy freckled high school kid holding up a napkin with the words 'Can I have your number?' scratched in barely legible print. He rolled his window down and yelled 'how are you!?' We had a nice little exchange where I thanked him for the compliment and we went our separate ways. And just like that, my day got a whole lot better.

Now if only I knew where the office staff delivered the package containing my replacement cell phone, cause it definitely isn't in this apartment. *sigh*