So This is the Way It's Gonna Be, Is It?
I came home to an empty house today -- a veritable black hole of an empty house! Aleks and Kat and a bunch of friends headed to the Seattle Arboretum because it's a beautiful summer afternoon in Seattle and what better place to be on a day like today than the Arboretum?! Peter's... well, we all know where Peter is. And Elisabeth has had her own place for two years now, so I don't expect her to be home for dinner.
I guess I better get used to coming home to a quiet, empty house. There was a time in my life when I longed for some peace and quiet and I thought the day would never come that it'd be the norm.
Yet here it is. It's a bit unnerving because it's such a dramatic and sudden change but, as people remind me constantly, it's not like they're all abandoning us... they'll be home with their laundry baskets and growling tummies all the time! I have a feeling they will.
The thing is, they haven't even all moved out yet... and listen to me whine! On Wednesday we'll probably sign papers for Kat to rent a room in a townhouse near UW with very nice couple who she already spent some time with and a professional photographer (all under 23) who she hasn't met yet. She'll live there and take the bus to the local community college where she'll get some nursing prerequisites out of the way. That rental agreement starts on September 1st.
Then Aleks will move into Theta Chi, the UW fraternity to which he's pledged, on September 15th. And on September 16th I'll try to resist the urge to go into all three empty rooms and turn them into guest and sewing and scrapbooking rooms. My mom did that when I went to college and it had a huge, negative impact on me.
Nope, these guys need to clean their rooms and make them guest-ready -- but I WON'T take over and claim those rooms back. That would be cruel!
And as of October 1st, I will plan to make Sunday dinner weekly. Whoever shows up gets fed!
Humor me, my friends. For a few weeks (or months), I just might need to blab about all this sudden nest emptying. Thanks in advance.
5 comments:
10 years later (YIKES!), "my" room at my parent's house is still mine-- in spite of the changes.
I think the first 6 months are the hardest. When I went off to WSU, my mother went a little insane until my first vacation back home (Thanksgiving). Her co-workers said that she was depressed until the first of November then was excited all month anticipating my return. After that, she was fine.
So - hang in there, you'll get over this first hurdle!
And, very wise of you to keep their rooms intact. I remember I needed that sort of "grounding" and a feel that I still had a home for about 2-3 years at least! Once I got my own place and moved my childhood bedroom set in, then I was ready to relinquish the room back to the folks.
I can't even imagine it. Lovely photos on the Pullman trip - I've just been too crazed to comment.
you know what...I'll try to fill the black hole with fun posts at my blog to distract you? Would that work?
That would SO work, Goofball! Now I just need to make time to read my favorite blogs -- and yours is definitely one -- regularly!
Carol
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