Routines are the things that keep us in kilter: if you have a system, then you can feel like you’re clawing back a semblance of order. And, God, in 2017, don’t we all feel ripe for the idea of wresting back some control?
I was away from home recently, and even as I packed a suitcase, I knew the jet lag and exhaustion to come would wreck me. Luckily, I have a “leaving town” routine, perfected over years of travel, and designed to keep me sane and rested. Now, unsolicited, I will share it with you. Remember: most of it is to be implemented before leaving town.
1. Do the dishes. It seems like a small thing, but you know what you don’t want to see upon dragging your body back across the threshold? A stack of dirty plates and pots, now with concrete-like caked-on food. Wipe down the sink, friend.
2. Change your sheets before you go. I assure you that, post-customs and immigration as well as underground mass transit, you will want nothing more than to slide beneath a fluffed and clean duvet. Whatever you do, don’t strip the bed and leave it bare – there is no rage like that which bubbles up when you return to an unmade bed.
3. Bleach the loo. Do you realise how rarely you get to leave the toilet undisturbed for days? Apply the pine-scented cleaner of your choice, flush on your return, and feel like a domestic goddess.
4. For the love of God, empty the bin. Fruit flies don’t pay the mortgage!
5. Pick up some milk on the way home. Imagine having a cup of tea all ready, only to find the milk in the fridge has gone off. Infuriating.
That’s it. Do you know, I might write a book on this.
