Another day at home

Baby Olaf is going to be a "happy snowman" tomorrow. There was no room for him in the freezer. Too many bags of berries and salmon filets in there.

The skylights on "my yoga studio". I practiced Barre 3 and Zumba techniques while the rest of my family tried out the sledding conditions. I loved having time to hone my craft.

My extroverted man couldn't stand another full day at home, so he volunteered to brave the icy roads and pick up the groceries. He came home with a great many of the items and only commented, "Never again!"

I was content to stay in so long as my people were settled. I like being involved in all the things that make up our lives, but I also love to stay right where I am and get my ducks in a row. I have a strong need to grow, learn, and improve, and it's hard to improve when most of your time is replacing toilet paper rolls or trying to remember to eat up the leftovers before they turn slimy in the back of the fridge.

When I have the opportunity to be at home all day and not running around in carpool circles, I am often more tired than on a regular day. My learn-something, tidy-something, make progress genes come alive and I am a hurricane in my own house, bustling about from project to project. I suddenly notice the mildew on the back porch or the dust on the air vents. Cabinets that I haven't opened in six years suddenly call for organization and purging. I'm not sure why. I wonder if I will hustle and bustle around like this when I am sixty and my children have moved on. Is it a stage of life, or personality at work here? Hmm. Part of me cautions, "Isn't this when we should all be playing a board game together around the kitchen table?" And then I think, "Why mess up a good thing? Kids are happy. Mama's happy. They don't need you to entertain them right now. Get some work done while you can." Hooray for the apple t.v. upstairs so that I can live in my quiet bubble a little longer down below.

Some of my projects are truly work. But, some are just quirky compulsions. Like the journal I have expressly for recording interesting words. I have no idea what makes me want to write them down. I started as a kid jotting down colorful phrases my pastor would use in his sermons. I can't even listen to an audiobook while driving without jotting (without looking!) useful phrases on the clipboard that lives between the front seats of my minivan. I like to save words in case I ever have a chance to use them. Sounds crazy (even to me). Then someone comes along and makes a study and I feel better about my idiosyncrasies. Maybe they're not all that odd. Maybe, there's even a subtle advantage to being wired a little quirkier than many?

 

This article came to my inbox today. It helps explain introversion to more extroverted ones. If you have a moment, pop over and see what you think.

Love for quiet in a noisy world. Down time with tea and a stack of magazines sounds like a great evening. Married to an extrovert. Writer. Love for thought-provoking books and movies. Attention to detail. Would rather give a talk to a crowd of 500 than make small talk at a cocktail party about nothing important. Sounds like home.

 

http://huff.to/1d2j6xt

The Huffington Post | By Carolyn Gregoire

Posted: 08/20/2013 8:36 am EDT | Updated: 09/23/2013 12:31 pm EDT