Get Out of the House…

Growing up, the perk and puffing of the old Faberware electric coffee pot meant only one thing – my grandmother had returned home from her travels!  Souvenirs in hand, she would mesmerize us with her memories of the shops of NYC, the streets of San Francisco, the deserts of Arizona, or the beaches of Hawaii.

Once home, she kicked off her heels, hung up her Chanel suit, peeled off her heavy gold jewelry and slipped into a housedress and a full-coverage apron suitable for cooking, cleaning and caring for her grandchildren.

As a child, I wondered why anyone would stay home if they could travel the seven seas. Now I realize my grandmother loved being home because she left home from time to time to explore the world outside it. Home is never sweeter, more inviting, more welcoming than when returning from a vacation, a business trip or an extended stay with relatives.

If we are NEVER home, we might think wishfully, how wonderful it would be to stay there forever! Think about this for a second; how many of us would honestly enjoy staying home all of the time if we didn’t leave it once in awhile. Not many of us. We would likely switch gears and complain about being bored.

So now that the kinder and gentler spring season is here, we can heed the advice of my worldly Nana who said (when she was home, that is) GET OUT OF THE HOUSE!

Once on the other side of your front door, here are some suggestions, inspired by my Nana:

Play Dress Up. Put on your grown up clothes, your big life pants and take yourself to lunch. Try a new restaurant. Spend time with yourself out in the world – alone. Pretend. Be whoever you want to be. Don’t worry. The old YOU will be waiting for you when you get home.

Take a Walk. Think simple stroll. Not cardio workout. Dilly dally, lolly gag, stop-and-go, look up, look down, pick up that penny, smell that rose, stare at that thingamajig in the street. Just don’t wipe germy your hands on face.

Go to the Movies. Out of all the Academy Award winners this year, you’ve only seen one – and it starred talking rats and penguins. Go to the movies in the middle of the day! You are Ferris Bueller… a cinematic rebel with armed with box of popcorn and juicy fruits.

Help an Old Person Across the Street. Do some good in the world. Stop being so self-centered. Stop complaining about the world and do something about it. It’ll be good for your soul.

Weed the Garden. Pick up the yard. Paint the fence. Or talk someone else into doing it. How about “ask someone to join you’ instead; last sentence defeats the purpose of getting out if someone does it for you.

Play Ball. Go get one of those balls out of the shed you just HAD to have – the football, volleyball, tennis ball, basketball, whatever and bounce it, hit it, or throw it. Bang on your neighbor’s door. Get your friends out of the house for game or two. Make up your own rules if you don’t know any.

Ride your Bike. Go to the store. Buy some junk food, a couple of comic books and a sugary soda. Then find the nicest lawn in the neighborhood to plop down on and enjoy – until they come home for work. Then beat a speedy retreat on your bike.

Walk the dog. The fact that you don’t have a dog would not have stopped my Nan. Borrow a dog, she’d say, find a stray, use your brother or sister, cut out a picture of a dog and glue to a stick or string…

Get Some Fresh Air. Broaden those horizons. Learn for yourself – as that runaway from the Midwest found out only after a day with the charming and challenging inhabitants of OZ – there is no place like home.