Weekend 2: Home Alone

This weekend my mom and sister went up north to our cabin, leaving my dad and I to hold down the fort and the business (and the two dogs) while they were away.

Let me tell you - I have never appreciated my mother more. Ever.

To say it simply, perhaps bluntly: she must really love him.

Well, so do I, but I only got a small taste of what it is she is responsible for.

First, I had to make sure the house (read: kitchen) stayed clean. Normally this wouldn't be a big deal. I don't ever see myself filling the role of housewife in the traditional sense, but I can handle reheating meals, working the appliances, and unloading/loading the dishwasher. Mmm, yeah, not my dad. In the time that I had been away from the house (approx. 7 hours) for a wedding, the island in the kitchen was covered in newspapers, fliers, a few empty glasses and a few half-full with water and droplets condensing on the sides, bbq beef remnants in tupperware containers in the sink, an ice cream sandwich wrapper and cookie crumbs on the cutting board...you get the point. I was getting so frustrated, but in my mind I just repeated: He works hard, he doesn't have time to do this, he's working hard because he loves his family, he doesn't realize the mess he's making. What would have taken seconds to put away as soon as he was done eating now took more time scrubbing, rinsing, and organizing. How my mom manages to keep the kitchen as clean as she does amazes me. It's as if she's a broom sweeping up everything messy in sight before it reaches her children's eyes. I knew this trait about my dad before this weekend, but now I know why my mom was so adament about buying paper/plastic cups, plates and utensils for the sole purpose of her few much needed days away.

Second, the phone calls. Oh, the phone calls. I just get done cleaning the kitchen, finishing the bookwork, taking the dog out for a walk so he can do his stuff (sorry Monica and Jacki, I didn't take my camera with me to capture that beauty), and I settle into the recliner and turn on the t.v. Just as I'm about to relax, the phone rings.

Me: "Hello, John Christian Landscaping and Lawn Mowing"

Them: "John there?"

Me: "No he's not, can I take a message?"

This process repeats itself another handful of times before I realize I've watched the beginning and end of Friends with nothing in between. This was just in a two-hour period. It's no wonder when I call home from school my mom picks up on the first ring -- she's almost literally got the phone in her hands at all times. Bless her, she does everything without complaint.

My dad is not all that bad, though. And it's not like either of those things are really that aweful. They aren't, but I could see how it would get tiring for my mom after a while. It's just the in-house stuff that really gets me going, which is why I needed to escape our light blue beauty and venture into the man's land: my dad's garage/work area. Quite fittingly, it's a mess. But instead of getting at all upset, I looked at everything differently while the sun filtered in. Instead of tossed jackets, tangled cords and grass clippings I saw everything that the light touched, almost as if it was spotlighting each object, resurrecting it from its common place. I really understand where Jacki was coming from in her last post, or how Mary has found that exploring light and color can be invigorating and show you new things every time, which is why I tried looking for just light and color in the last two photos.

So how is it that someone's traits in one part of their life affect people differently than the same traits in other parts of their life do? Am I a different person when I'm at school, when I'm with my family, friends, my boyfriend, community members, people at work? Most of my traits carry through to every aspect of my life, but they are perceived differently with each person I come into contact with. Do you think you are a different person depending on who you are with or where you are? That's a question I want to explore within myself as well as my parents.

Feedback on the photos would be great :) Keep posting!