One order of Calm, coming up

Yesterday we drove home from New York. It’s a shorter drive than it was outbound, as going to Massachusetts requires both going further east and going through NYC in some way (we took the Bronx Expressway, which is always entertaining). But we did it in a single day, departing at about 6:40 in the morning and rolling into our driveway at 8:33 last night. That included three stops for gas/bathrooms/food, so I was pleased with the time we made. And only once did I have to order a child to lay down its head and take a nap before I would need to come back there and EAT IT, so, really, I call the drive a complete success.

I climbed into my own bed by about 9:05 last night, and promptly fell asleep and slept the sleep of the dead for twelve full hours. This morning I am a new woman. Or at least a much less cranky version of the old one.

This trip taught me a lot about my own internal tolerances and needs, and also gave me ample time to do some serious reflection on our priorities for 2009.

So I got up this morning and sat down at the computer and ordered a tub faucet for the master bathroom; we’re been “meaning to do it” ever since buying the house eighteen months ago, and then I saw how much tub faucets cost and came up with 100 excuses about why we didn’t need one. Well, now it’s done, and just thinking about how many nice, long soaks I’ll need to take to justify the cost has made me positively giddy.

2009: The Year of Calm. And pruney toes.

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24 Responses to “One order of Calm, coming up”

  1. 1
    Barbara January 3, 2009 at 11:23 am #

    Here’s to pruney toes!

    Welcome home, Mir.

  2. 2
    exile on mom street January 3, 2009 at 11:24 am #

    Glad you’re home safe and sound!

  3. 3
    Damsel January 3, 2009 at 12:03 pm #

    Three cheers for sleeping in your own bed!

  4. 4
    Flea January 3, 2009 at 12:03 pm #

    Mmm. I like that – the Year of Pruney Toes. A good moniker in a recession.

  5. 5
    Gem January 3, 2009 at 12:57 pm #

    I guess there is a reason why they say Home, Sweet Home! (I kill myself with my originality)

  6. 6
    Chuck January 3, 2009 at 1:52 pm #

    Glad you made it home safely. I’ve never had the joy of a long-haul car trip with kids in the back seat…I’m sure it makes for a fun day. My longest day ever driving was St. Louis to Dallas. TOO long. Enjoy the new tub faucet!

  7. 7
    Half Assed Kitchen January 3, 2009 at 2:11 pm #

    So what are your priorities for 09?

  8. 8
    daysgoby January 3, 2009 at 3:17 pm #

    Oh, I’ll bet your Dad’s house seems so empty right now….

  9. 9
    margie January 3, 2009 at 4:00 pm #

    good good good. glad you are home.

  10. 10
    Leandra January 3, 2009 at 4:07 pm #

    There’s nothing like a good long soak (and a glass of wine — or two) to relax frazzled nerves.

    My goal for 2009? Inner poise. Or something like it. Here’s to a calmer 2009!

    Welcome home. Glad everybody made it home in one piece — especially the kids! ;)

  11. 11
    cheryl January 3, 2009 at 5:19 pm #

    Only 3 gas/food/bathroom stops in 15 hours? I’m impressed.

  12. 12
    O.G. January 3, 2009 at 6:48 pm #

    That line about telling a child to put it’s head down or you would eat it…classic!

  13. 13
    FringeGirl January 3, 2009 at 7:51 pm #

    The year of pruny toes should be quite the year! Glad you travels were safe.
    -FringeGirl

  14. 14
    Keyona January 3, 2009 at 11:01 pm #

    A hot bath makes EVERYTHING better!

  15. 15
    Brigitte January 4, 2009 at 7:32 am #

    Now I’m picturing one of those shelves that go right across the tub (like in the famous “Death of Marat” painting, http://www.vidarholen.net/contents/junk/marat.html) so you could be on your laptop without fear of electrocution or drowned computers AT THE SAME TIME as getting all pruney-toed!

  16. 16
    Daisy January 4, 2009 at 10:13 am #

    Calm is good. Welcome home!

  17. 17
    Cele January 4, 2009 at 3:06 pm #

    Here’s to pruney toes, hot water, and long soaks. You guys need a hot tub. Welcome home.

  18. 18
    sheila January 4, 2009 at 5:56 pm #

    Nothin like a longggg drive to clear your head. (unless you’re driving with my hubby then you are only thinking of arriving intact.).

    Let us know how the new faucet goes. I’ve gotta replace mine too. Not a job I want to start either.

  19. 19
    Jenny January 4, 2009 at 11:45 pm #

    Happy 2009, Mir! Yay for new faucets!

  20. 20
    Stephanie January 5, 2009 at 7:10 am #

    Glad everyone made it home, safe and sound. I must say, I’m envious of your bathtub faucet. Our one and only bathtub (we have two shower stalls, so we CAN clean ourselves LOL) does have a faucet, but no hot water heater. UGGGGG! When we bought this house, about 18 mos ago…strange…we had a solar panel on the roof. We were forced to replace the roof by our insurance company, so the solar panel had to be removed. The solar company that removed it told us it was obsolete. I don’t know if that was fact, or if they just wanted to be able throw it off the roof, rather than remove it carefully. But, I digress…. We replaced the roof, but then things turned south for us, financially, so we were unable to replace the solar panel, which we discovered AFTER it’s removal, that is was the SOLE source of heat for the upstairs bathroom which contains…you guessed it…our one and only bathtub!

    I wish someone would give me a hot water heater for my 60th birthday, this week, but I don’t see it happening.

    Enjoy a soak for me, will you? :-)

    Stephanie

  21. 21
    Stephanie January 5, 2009 at 7:13 am #

    ohhhh! I typed SIXTY and not FIFTY! ARGH!!! I will ONLY be FIFTY this week! I have an entire TEN years to go before I’m 60!!!! Talk about a freudian slip!

  22. 22
    StephLove January 5, 2009 at 8:09 am #

    Completely off-topic, but this made me think of you, Mir

    http://www.mcphee.com/items/11871.html

    Do you think you would find them calming?

  23. 23
    Aimee January 5, 2009 at 10:54 am #

    Welcome home! And yes, nothing beats a hot soak.

  24. 24
    Debbi January 6, 2009 at 1:03 pm #

    Ha! I always need a drink after the cross bronx expressway! Glad you are doing better.

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