Adjusting to home

After living as a nomad for over a year, there are certain luxuries that cause us problems now that we are home. These are generally things we have not had access to for the last 16 months, and so we forgot how they work. I thought I would share a few of these interesting re-adjusting foibles with you.

Our first adjustment is to having a real stove. This means we can use multiple elements to cook, and that we can cook meals that require simmering. Our campstove was loud – it sounded like a jet engine when it was on – making it impossible to forget about. Our home stove is electric, providing silent and invisible heat. Both of us have been caught forgetting to turn the stove off or forgetting that something was simmering only to be reminded when the house smells of burnt food. We have had to institute a rule: any time you are cooking and leave the kitchen with the stove on, you must set the stove alarm – even if it is only for a minute or two!

Our second adjustment is to having regular access to laundry facilities. We find ourselves unsure how many times we should be wearing the same clothing article before it should be laundered. We wonder if we are washing our pants and shirts way to frequently, as we seem to be doing laundry every day. Of course, our lack of clothing also contributes to the frequency in which we need to do laundry – but we still wonder if we are washing things too soon or too late. If you think we smell, please let us know!

Finally, we (especially Becky) have found it really disconcerting to be a passenger in a car. The whole idea of moving at such high speeds without any control is downright scary. Interestingly, driving doesn’t pose such a problem – although driving requires more mental energy than it used to.  I’m sure with a little more time in vehicles we will re-adjust.