Concentrated Domesticity

For 50 weeks out of the year, I’m running at top speed, trying to manage a crazy day job, a writing career, a demanding martial arts hobby, and my connections to friends and family. Dishes stack up in the sink, faucets leak, dust collects under the bed, doctors go unseen… I’m sure most of you know exactly what I’m talking about.

And then, for two weeks around Christmas, hiatus.

Apparently, hiatus means I will try to cram a year’s worth of domesticity into a few days. Last year, I embarked on the Great Painting Project. This year, I seem bent on cooking, baking, and plumbing. (I actually tried to fix a bento lunch for Chris to take to work yesterday, and freaked him out. I believe the concept of “body snatchers” was floated.)

Of course, when you’re only domestic for a few days a year, you really don’t get any better at it. It’s a huge range of skills that each require practice, just like anything else. Yet, I still managed to get hopelessly frustrated standing in front of a wall of plumbing supplies at Home Depot yesterday. Was I supposed to magically understand how to fix my leaky faucet and faulty diverter? Something in my brain said “Yes!” Reality was far less optimistic.

But you see, deep down, I want to be good at this stuff. I want to be able to cook dinner and not stress out and hunt for recipes for three hours first. I want to be able to fix the leak in my tub. I want the house to sparkle. What I have to ask myself is, do I want these things enough to sacrifice time from my other passions and hobbies?

Um…no. I would rather swing a broadsword badly than whip up a great cake. I would rather write a new chapter than install a new microwave in my kitchen. (But oh, god, how I need a new microwave!!)

So I guess, in the end, I’m going to continue to over-indulge in domesticity during hiatus, condemned to a permanent state of rookie-dom. I’m one of those “weekend warriors” whose weekends only fall once or twice a year.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go call a plumber. I’ll leave you with pictures of yesterday’s food experiment, a Spinach Quinoa Quiche — which would have tasted great with a less healthy but more traditional crust.

From Food and Drink

From Food and Drink