The Albany Pottering Sabbatical

Currently I'm down in Albany for a few days R&R. I drove down on Monday and am going back tomorrow. It's been a great trip. Too short but just what I needed.

Weeks ago I told Duncan over the phone that I wanted to take a one-week sabbatical. I just felt like I needed to take some time out by myself and he understood. It wasn't that I didn't wanted to spend time with him (he couldn't come down during the week anyway) but I just needed to spend some time 'pottering'. Female readers, I can see you nodding.

Some men don't understand women's need to potter. But us women need to do it. I needed to take some time to chop things off my 'to do' list because life gets so cluttered with work, commitments and 'busyness' (especially in the city) that I don't have time to get little jobs done. One of workmates recently took some leave and she told me she had a week of pottering and reading Harry Potter. I was jealous ;)

I've been asked what is 'pottering'? What do women do when they potter? Well it's just like doing little chores and errands that you don't normally get time to do. My original plan was to take a week off but stay in Perth and potter. I planned to tell no-one (except Duncan) that I wasn't at work because otherwise I'd get sucked into socialising during my pottering time. I scrapped that plan because I wanted to save some of my leave so I decided to have a shorter pottering sabbatical and spend it in Albany. That way I was away from the busyness of Perth and could spend some time with family and friends down here as well.

Over the past few days I have:

• Mended my clothes that had holes in them.
• Written and post thank you notes to people who have sent Duncan and I engagement presents.
• Watched some TV shows I'd recorded because I didn't have time weeks earlier.
• Went op shopping for costumes for a 30th birthday that Duncan and I are going to on Saturday night (that was an unfruitful quest).
• Shopped for new sneakers (also an unfruitful quest).
• Got a haircut.
• Had my car serviced.

These are things that I would have delayed for weeks had I not taken my pottering holiday. One may ask 'isn't resting the whole point of a sabbatical?'. But it has been restful. I haven't been stressed at all. I've got stuff done and had a great time catching up with people.

I highly recommend all women take a pottering sabbatical if they possibly can.