18 July 2026
Sharing Saturday - Post-vacation?
What’s the first thing you do when you get home from a trip?
First, a share. Last week, DMang and Jen Todd (and Mr. Jen) met up at Hooked on Harry’s in Lakeland, Florida. DMang wrote: “Spent over 3 hours out on the patio getting to know each other. Had a really great time. It was all possible because of JiP, so thank you.”
When I was a child, we went to Colorado twice a year to visit my favorite aunt, my dad’s sister Dorothy. These days, according to Google, that trip would be just over 8 hours. It was longer back then, because there was very little freeway involved—mostly two-lane highway over winding mountain passes, in a ’67 Chevy pickup with a camper on the back.
There was a traditional ritual when we returned home, late in the evening. My dad would make oyster soup, from canned oysters and milk. It was a soothing late dinner before heading off to bed. My parents must have unpacked either after I went to bed or early in the morning before I got up.
As an adult, for many years, I had the bad habit of leaving the unpacking for later when we returned from a trip (not that we took a great many). I would come home and just collapse. The unpacking would be left to hang over my head until I had the energy to deal with it.
It’s only been in recent years that I have made a habit of unpacking completely as soon as we get home. In fact, my mentality has changed to the point that the trip (and the energy I have to expend on it) is not over until I’ve gotten everything put away. Then I can collapse in true relief, knowing that I have nothing hanging over my head.
What do you do when you get home after a vacation?
It's terrific to see more pics of JIPers! So glad you were able to connect and share. These days I feel like stocking up at the grocery store is a major trip and I try hard to unpack as soon as I get home so I don't have to face it in the morning.
Nice to see some faces to go with some names!
The first thing I do when I get back from a trip is unpack and CLEAN THE LITTER BOXES. A certain someone cannot get himself to do this, even though one of the litter boxes is in his man cave. Perhaps this is why the cat is practically hurling the door open to greet me. Help! I've been wading in my own waste matter for days! HELP!
I enjoy unpacking, especially if I've been gone for a while.
There is a certain feeling of getting home after a trip that I enjoy very much. Your post reminds me of the simple joy in my childhood of returning home in the back of the big blue station wagon on a cold winter night. The porch light on, along with the one lamp inside to make it appear as if someone was home. The family wading into the silent house and making it noisy again. Since I was just on a road trip to retrieve the old family photos / my mother's papers etc, I've been wading in sentiment.
I wrote my mother's obituary the other night: https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/chicago-il/lenore-lev-12959820?fbclid=IwY2xjawTIQcFleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMRkJjcjJ4a2gwQkFQUm00c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHrGmUcvLA5qLBN_UgPREgJRAOs8XIX6lK1rSRghVlWLKLo4hvygNBmgkKdsK_aem_MaCUZxSRKi8CVxadBDUIew