I’ve noticed one thing I don’t like about vacations and trips. The end.
I don’t mean this in the way you probably expect (that the vacation is over and it is time to return to my regular schedule). What do I mean? Near the end of any time spent away from home, I get very homesick. This is as true of a four day trip to Wisconsin as it is of the two week trip we took to Europe. I’ve never really been a homebody, but the comforts of home call to me as my vacation wanes. So close to being home, yet still not there.
Here are the 5 things I miss about being home when I’m away, in no particular order:
Going to Mass at our church on Sunday.
Visiting new churches is one of my favorite activities during vacation, but there is nothing like my regular, home parish. Friendly faces, a priest who consistently gives homilies that speak to my heart – I know I’m blessed to have found such a great church.
Preparing my own meals.
I enjoy cooking, and I like knowing exactly what goes into everything I eat. I occasionally enjoy eating out, but I always suspect they use an unlisted ingredient, prepare it unhealthily or worse, don’t hold themselves to the same standard of cleanliness I would.
For example, I ordered steamed spinach as a side one evening while on a trip to California for work, thinking it was one of the healthiest options on the menu. What did I get? Spinach drenched in butter. It definitely gave me a mild stomach ache, though the halibut it came with was delish.
Being barefoot.
When I travel, I almost always have covered feet. I know how little the carpets get cleaned in hotel rooms and obviously being barefoot in public is out of the question for the same reasons.
My electric toothbrush.
The dentist was not kidding when she said I would notice a difference when I started using an electric toothbrush. I usually take a manual one on trips because it is more portable and I’m too afraid I’ll leave the electric one behind. (Those things are expensive!) Now that I’ve been spoiled using the electric toothbrush, my teeth never feel as clean with the manual brush, despite the extra time I spend brushing.
My bed.
My pillow. My blankets. Oh, and not having to check the bed compulsively for bed bugs. Thank you evening news for making me extremely paranoid about this even in the swankiest hotels.
All that being said, I really do enjoy vacations, work trips and traveling in general. My sister-in-law and I are secretly plotting a trip to Ireland and trying to figure out how to convince our husbands it is affordable and reasonable to do so.
What do you miss most when you are away from home?
Aside from you (of course), I miss having the option to eat at home. Eating out when away sounds awesome because everything is made and done for you (no preparing, no dishes!), but you’re right, even the ‘healthy’ options are scarily less healthy than most options at home.
I also miss not being able to see friends / family. Even though it may not happen very often, when you’re travelling for work / pleasure, you’re secluded away from familiar faces.
Great post as always!
Agree with Mark…great post. Guess that trip to ireland is no longer a secret. HA HA
And that whole “bed bug” thing really does put a damper on vacations!