scattered

there are two times when i travel that cause super-stress, leaving the house and leaving the destination.

i am a multitasker. my brain is always running in a million directions. somehow, i still manage to simultaneously focus and be efficient when i know my priorities. on travel days, focus escapes me. {lack of focus also caused by hungry-brain but that's for another day}

the departure day of this last vacation was no exception. i awoke at 4 am, grabbed the flat of blueberries from the fridge and dove into my morning routine before finishing the remaining packing. {if i'm so scattered the morning of why have i not finished the packing well before? because i think one should look presentable when traveling and that leaves beauty goodies to be stowed...and my packing system creates a bit of a protective puzzle. so, there's always last minute work to be done.} as i move into final packing mode, i recite everything i've packed, hoping mr. travel mate picks up on anything i may have forgotten.

though the house is far from the condition i like to leave it {clean, so we can return to a sparkly happy home}, we do our final goodbye checks (windows closed, things switched off, nothing out that will attract bugs, etc.). on my way to the fridge to stow my remain bluebs, i realize i haven't watered the herbs - and we have to leave. now. i switch gears, put the berries on the counter and grab the liquid measuring cup {conveniently, the watering pale is empty}. i run back and forth between the plants and the sink in my wood-heeled boots until i have the slightest hope the herbs will survive our week of absence. {all the while mr. travel mate begging me to clack around as he doesn't want to disturb the neighbors} that's it. we're off.

a half hour into our drive to the airport, and already running late, i see the blueberries sitting on the counter {photographic memory}. more stress ensues. i debate emailing our leasing office to have someone put them in the fridge so they don't go bad/attract bugs. i decide against it - no one can see the way we left the house. mr. travel mate tells me to put it out of my mind. so i do. kind of. i only brought it up aloud a {full} handful of times whilst abroad.

and the results of my forgetfulness? i returned home to a horrible smell. and a seriously, unbearably warm and humid apartment. and some soft, slightly moldy blueberries on the kitchen counter. can blueberries smell that much? this a big place {i call it the warehouse}. 

uh-oh. the apples. the apples {from our honeycrisp outing} were not a result of the travel scatter. the apples were a calculated decision. they have always survived just fine without refrigeration. i immediately dove into the bag and found some of the ginger golds completely soft, not leaking any moisture, but stomach turning nonetheless. no flies. thank goodness, no maggots {i would have died}. i continue pulling out every apple, feeling each along the way. everything else seemed okay. somewhere i missed the part where the AC was switched off, creating less than ideal conditions for apple survival. {i'm glad to report we've each had positive experiences with our subsequent apple consumption}

and the result of the herbs, the cause of the last-minute scatter? they looked hopeless. after giving them a little shake, the pictured pile resulted. mr. travel mate resigned to no more home-grown herbs this season. three days of watering later and the leaves look perfectly well tended.