Routines of Adulthood – The Weekly Update

I’m not entirely sure how I got through the last week without a single post here.

I think its because I got so busy just “doing” things that I never got to it.  And that’s okay.  Sometimes the routines of adulthood take precedence and we find ourselves on the sofa at 10 pm, still grinding on a spreadsheet that is due ASAP wondering “where did my day go”?  And then you remember that in the last 15 hours, you’ve done several conference calls, run to the post office, run to the dry cleaners, prepared yourself three meals, done two loads of laundry, and cleaned out a drawer (while on one of the conference calls).

It’s exhausting.  And yet satisfying to know that you are “getting stuff done”.  I have had a longer than normal list of things that need to “get done” this year.  A lot of it can be attributed to my change in work.  Closing a firm I’ve owned for ten years and managed for longer than that means that there is lots (and lots) of bookkeeping and loose ends to tie up.  Moving out of 3,000+ square feet of offices (plus a storage unit) has meant coordinating lots of donations – and dealing with almost every room in my house harboring boxes of “stuff” still to be dealt with.  And then there is the diving headfirst into new project work at a new firm.  All while keeping up the same normal commitments (volunteer work with my sorority and YMCA Youth & Government, family stuff, friendships, house things).

Let’s just say, I’ve more than earned the vacation I’m going on next week.

Next week today, I’ll be traveling from London to Barcelona.  My usual Sunday at home will be carried out in the Concorde Room.  My dinner will be al fresco somewhere off La Rambla (after, no doubt, a long arrival nap) – I’m already craving pa amb tomaquet and calcotadas.

I’m really excited as well about the day long food walk we are doing the next morning with Culinary Backstreets.  I’ve wanted to tour with this company for quite some time but unfortunately couldn’t make it work with either of my Istanbul stops last year (the Kebab Krawl is still on my “going to do one day” list though!)

But that’s next week.

This week I’m still grinding through my usual routines of adulthood.  One of those has evolved to be my normal “Sunday morning” routine.  I’m not a late sleeper (although today I made past 9 am… highly unusual) so Sunday mornings provide a nice break for me to relax a bit.  I’ve decreed Sunday mornings my “rest” time so I take the time to cook myself breakfast, something I don’t usually do during the week.  Today it was gluten-free blueberry waffles – last week it was a cheese omelet.  I like to read (and write) on Sunday mornings so I forgo the normal background noise of the television and instead either pop a few CDs into the changer or tune to Pandora on the Roku.  My music of choice is usually something from my youth (think ’80s or early ’90s).  I’ve even created my own station on Pandora (Retro Jetsetter) so that my favorites are always on hand.

Once I hit noon, sometimes I’m off for Sunday Funday brunch with friends or I do volunteer work.  Today, it’s catching up on a couple of appointments from yesterday that got rescheduled, doing several loads of laundry, and preparing to travel for work tomorrow.

It’s a bit stressful to think about traveling for work this week and then getting ready for a 17 day vacation quickly upon my return.  I’m trying to start that process today so that I’m not wildly flinging items into my suitcase come Saturday morning.  Packing is another of those routines of adulthood that I’ve somehow mastered for my usual 1-4 day trips but still struggle with for longer trips.

This time around, I’m going to do what I did on the Indonesian Adventure last year and splurge on laundry service midway through the cruise.  It makes it easier to think about packing.  I’m also excited that we’ll be on a more casual ship than Seabourn.  Don’t get me wrong… I adore Seabourn and love the dress up dinners every night in the main dining room.  But this particular cruise is so jam packed with busy port itineraries that I will want to relax in the evenings and not have to worry about throwing on a dress and heels.  I’m excited to be able to get by in a casual sundress and sandals.

One of the other challenges for me is shoes.  I struggle with joint degeneration from rheumatoid arthritis so any trip with a ton of walking (especially on older cobblestone streets) requires careful thought to footwear.  I took a nasty fall this week outside my hotel (tripped on a paved part of the entrance that wasn’t even) and landed squarely on both knees, catching myself with my hands.  This is one place where my yoga practice lately paid off… all those chaturangas had me prepared to rebalance my body weight when I fell.  I’m sore though so I’m going to be extra careful about the chance of getting injured while walking about.

I picked up another pair of Crocs sandals yesterday.  I hated the original ugly rubber Crocs, but their sandals are actually sturdy and very comfortable for walking.  I’ll likely alternate with my Tieks and throw in a pair of solid black sneakers for good measure.

Once I have packing out of the way, I’ll be happier.  I met with my housesitter yesterday so everything is in order to keep the homestead safe while I’m away.

I’m going to be trying to keep my daily trip updates flowing via social media while I’m gone.  I’m not sure how often I will blog so I’d encourage you to follow me on Instagram and Twitter if you want the regular updates from the daily port stops – Barcelona, Provence, Florence/Pisa, Rome, Naples, Mykonos, Istanbul, Kusadasi, Athens, and Venice – I’ll be posting my usual mix of sights and food porn.

For now, its back to the routines of adulthood… and hopefully another great week all around.

xoxo