Lullabye of Suburbia

It's Day 9 of the great Lyme Disease Marathon, and as with days 1 - 8, I'm spending day 9 at the ancestral home in Barnegat, NJ. I would have assumed, had someone told me I was about to embark on an 9 day visit to mom and dad's house after only packing for 3 days, that I'd be clawing my eyes out with boredom and frustration right about now. But the fact is I feel rather soothed into submission. Unlike DC, where most of the time my brain is going, "You know, there really should be a good restaurant around here," in Barnegat, well, there really shouldn't be a good restaurant around here. The old hometown is what it is. And while I don't think I could live here full-time, this removal of expectations makes for a quite a relaxing visit. Especially being sick, it's real easy to just sit back, read my book, wait for 6pm, turn the computer off, watch some TV, read some more, take my horse pills, and hit the sack. Sometimes there's a bit of excitement, like when my mom brings home the leftover Salt and Vinegar chips from a classroom party, or when my dad decides he's going out to the garage for a root beer and wonders whether I'd like one (yes, please). But otherwise I'm just going with the flow, chillin' in my recliner, padding over to the dinner table for barbecue. I can kinda see why people hit the burbs. I haven't had to walk five feet in a week. There's no sense that you're missing something if you stay inside (you're totally not). The hardest decision you ever face is whether to shop at BJs or Costco. I like it!