Vacation Day Recap
Long before the new year and long before Christmas till och med, I planned this day, January 7, 2005, as a Vacation Day. One reason was to make the first week back to work after the holidays really short and allow myself a day to finally breathe normally, maybe take in an art gallery or have a liesurely cup of coffee at the internet ready cafe... Another reason, perhaps the real reason, was to catch up with life and get ready for A's birthday party.
Right now there is a homebrewed cup of coffee by my side, the boys are watching that wretched show the Simpsons, and the dishwasher is doing a load of dishes for me in the kitchen. I am taking a break, and I thought I would summarize the day as opposed to melting into the couch becaue if I did, I might not get up the rest of the night. And I still have things to do. When I am doing it all, I always run behind schedule.
Right now there is a homebrewed cup of coffee by my side, the boys are watching that wretched show the Simpsons, and the dishwasher is doing a load of dishes for me in the kitchen. I am taking a break, and I thought I would summarize the day as opposed to melting into the couch becaue if I did, I might not get up the rest of the night. And I still have things to do. When I am doing it all, I always run behind schedule.
My Vacation Day
By Stephanie
By Stephanie
J comes in and rouses me awake so I can help him figure out why the mouse he just plugged into the old PC computer isn't working. You have to reboot, I tell him, smirking secretly because my Daisy Mac would happily honor the plugging in of a mouse without complaining.
Notice the clock, it's 6:58. Wake up the boys.
Pour a cup of coffee, check on the boys.
Tell them I will get dressed before them, and suddenly they are up and the race is on. They get into one of those lovely brotherly arguments that sound worse to my ears than fingernails on a chalkboard.
Make two scrambled egg sandwiches for the boys.
They actually do get dressed before me, and while they are eating I am taming my bangs with a curling iron.
We leave at 7:46 to drop them off at school.
Return home 8 am.
Clean the kitchen.
Fold laundry.
Wash a load of laundry.
Take out the trash.
Make the bed, vacuum.
Bake the cake for the party.
Go in to the boys room to clean it up. Turn around and leave in the same moment. All inspiration to clean up their room left the second I laid eyes on the piles of plastic building sets strewn all over the floor so there is nowhere to walk without a dancers agility, and I can't find the discipline to begin picking all these toys up, or the clean clothes that lay oozing from their drawers, or the everything else piled in the shape of a volcano on their study desk.
I pour 2 hour old coffee and warm it in the microwave and check email and surf a little.
Make a list of my errands and things I need to shop today.
Make a meal plan for January.
Make a list of things I would like to buy, eventually.
Make a list of things I would like to do, eventually.
Decide to begin on the errands list. It's about 11:40 am.
Stop buy the school: Gas up the lunch money accounts, drop off a couple of consent forms, and talk to the guy in charge of the school website and asp and frames and he doesn't like macs, and I beam when I tell him I do. 30 Minutes.
Head to the fire station to pick up the mobile phone J has in his car. 15 Minutes.
Call K and we decide to meet at the art gallery in an hour.
Stop by the bank and take care of a little business. 15 Minutes.
Stop by the University Computer Store and buy the software I ordered. 10 Minutes.
Take a little extra time and browse the computer book section. 20 Minutes.
Head to Hobby Lobby to buy a gift plus few other little things, like foam so I can line a bag I have and use it as a laptop bag. 30 Minutes.
Head to the gallery. I am running late. It's raining. 14 Minute drive.
See K at the gallery, and enjoy the artwork still on the walls at the gallery (the artists were picking them up today.) 30 Minutes.
We decide to get coffee, but there are NO cafe's on the main street in Springdale, so we go to a nearby antique store and walk around very carefully, holding our bags close to our bodies because there is so much stuff in the store there is hardly any room to walk. 30 Minutes.
After that I stop at Target to pick up things for the party. 40 Minutes.
Stop at the grocery store, buy this weeks groceries. 30 Minutes.
Pick up the boys from school.
HOME again. It's 4:45 pm.
Unload the car.
Turn on the oven for dinner.
Start cutting the cake to shape it into a pirate ship.
Put on a kettle of water for tea. The boys are laughing and yee-ing and whoo-hoo-ing as they play with the Slimecano Z got for his birthday yesterday. It's nice when they are getting along, but it can still be really loud.
Put a load of clean laundry into the dryer.
Wince when I pass by the boys room because it still needs to be cleaned up before the party tomorrow.
Tell the boys to start picking up their toys and clothes in their room. They mock me. I simmer, and feel threats welling in my head, precariously close to my voicebox. Summoning patience from Somewhere I remind them that we are a team, and each of us have responsibilities. They argue back and forth "that's not mine," and "I'm only picking these up," and "Ha, ha, the rest is yours." Oh, the beautiful sounds of siblings bickering.
Brew tea.
Load the dishwasher, turn it on.
The boys have migrated to livingroom and are watching TV.
I Sit down with Daisy Mac and write this recap, enjoying tea.
Now I am going to install the software I bought, and then:
Finish the Pirate Ship Cake
Draw the Treasure Map
Make eye patches
Make paper towel roll spy glasses
Make red Kool-Aid ice cubes
And that is how I spent my Vacation Day.
Tomorrow afternoon is the birthday party and then I will be working as a "roaming photographer" at a wedding in the evening.
Notice the clock, it's 6:58. Wake up the boys.
Pour a cup of coffee, check on the boys.
Tell them I will get dressed before them, and suddenly they are up and the race is on. They get into one of those lovely brotherly arguments that sound worse to my ears than fingernails on a chalkboard.
Make two scrambled egg sandwiches for the boys.
They actually do get dressed before me, and while they are eating I am taming my bangs with a curling iron.
We leave at 7:46 to drop them off at school.
Return home 8 am.
Clean the kitchen.
Fold laundry.
Wash a load of laundry.
Take out the trash.
Make the bed, vacuum.
Bake the cake for the party.
Go in to the boys room to clean it up. Turn around and leave in the same moment. All inspiration to clean up their room left the second I laid eyes on the piles of plastic building sets strewn all over the floor so there is nowhere to walk without a dancers agility, and I can't find the discipline to begin picking all these toys up, or the clean clothes that lay oozing from their drawers, or the everything else piled in the shape of a volcano on their study desk.
I pour 2 hour old coffee and warm it in the microwave and check email and surf a little.
Make a list of my errands and things I need to shop today.
Make a meal plan for January.
Make a list of things I would like to buy, eventually.
Make a list of things I would like to do, eventually.
Decide to begin on the errands list. It's about 11:40 am.
Stop buy the school: Gas up the lunch money accounts, drop off a couple of consent forms, and talk to the guy in charge of the school website and asp and frames and he doesn't like macs, and I beam when I tell him I do. 30 Minutes.
Head to the fire station to pick up the mobile phone J has in his car. 15 Minutes.
Call K and we decide to meet at the art gallery in an hour.
Stop by the bank and take care of a little business. 15 Minutes.
Stop by the University Computer Store and buy the software I ordered. 10 Minutes.
Take a little extra time and browse the computer book section. 20 Minutes.
Head to Hobby Lobby to buy a gift plus few other little things, like foam so I can line a bag I have and use it as a laptop bag. 30 Minutes.
Head to the gallery. I am running late. It's raining. 14 Minute drive.
See K at the gallery, and enjoy the artwork still on the walls at the gallery (the artists were picking them up today.) 30 Minutes.
We decide to get coffee, but there are NO cafe's on the main street in Springdale, so we go to a nearby antique store and walk around very carefully, holding our bags close to our bodies because there is so much stuff in the store there is hardly any room to walk. 30 Minutes.
After that I stop at Target to pick up things for the party. 40 Minutes.
Stop at the grocery store, buy this weeks groceries. 30 Minutes.
Pick up the boys from school.
HOME again. It's 4:45 pm.
Unload the car.
Turn on the oven for dinner.
Start cutting the cake to shape it into a pirate ship.
Put on a kettle of water for tea. The boys are laughing and yee-ing and whoo-hoo-ing as they play with the Slimecano Z got for his birthday yesterday. It's nice when they are getting along, but it can still be really loud.
Put a load of clean laundry into the dryer.
Wince when I pass by the boys room because it still needs to be cleaned up before the party tomorrow.
Tell the boys to start picking up their toys and clothes in their room. They mock me. I simmer, and feel threats welling in my head, precariously close to my voicebox. Summoning patience from Somewhere I remind them that we are a team, and each of us have responsibilities. They argue back and forth "that's not mine," and "I'm only picking these up," and "Ha, ha, the rest is yours." Oh, the beautiful sounds of siblings bickering.
Brew tea.
Load the dishwasher, turn it on.
The boys have migrated to livingroom and are watching TV.
I Sit down with Daisy Mac and write this recap, enjoying tea.
Now I am going to install the software I bought, and then:
Finish the Pirate Ship Cake
Draw the Treasure Map
Make eye patches
Make paper towel roll spy glasses
Make red Kool-Aid ice cubes
And that is how I spent my Vacation Day.
Tomorrow afternoon is the birthday party and then I will be working as a "roaming photographer" at a wedding in the evening.
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