– Home Alone – 

November 22, 2004 – I have to admit, I knew it was coming. My husband left me today. What could be worse? Well, a few things, I suppose.

From now on, it's just me and Merlin – plus our three cats. Home alone. For three whole weeks. After almost 25 years of being married to a research scientist, I should be used to my husband's absences while he goes gallivanting off to exotic places. During the first decade of our marriage, I often accompanied him. But as we got older and life became more complicated, it was harder to get away. I'm sure you know how it is.

This time Billy has gone to South America. More specifically, Brazil. Even more specifically, the Patos Lagoon in southern Brazil.

Patos Lagoon
180 miles long and 40 miles wide, Patos Lagoon is one of the largest coastal lagoons in the entire world. The lagoon's water is almost completely blocked from the Atlantic Ocean by a 20-mile-wide sandy barrier. For reasons I won't get into, the presence of the barrier makes for a very unusual marine environment with complex interactions occurring between the lagoon and the ocean. My husband will be collaborating with a team of American and Brazilian scientists to study the seepage of the Patos Lagoon water through the sandy barrier into the Atlantic Ocean. Although they'll be working along one of the world's longest uninterrupted white-sand beaches, I'm afraid it won't be much of a vacation. Most of their time will be spent drilling holes and pumping water. So now you know why I stayed home.

While the Cat's Away, the Mouse Does Play
I've always loved that old saying. My husband, on the other hand, has learned to fear it. He has his reasons. Whenever Billy goes away for more than a couple of weeks, I view his absence as a Golden Opportunity. Early in our marriage, he might return from a trip to find the living room completely rearranged, the dining room or bedroom painted a bright new color, or an ambitious new piece of furniture. Nothing too radical, just enough to get his attention and remind him that "things can happen" while he is gone.

Over the years, I became more bold. A 20-gallon fish tank with a population of 30 small fish suddenly became a 50-gallon fish tank inhabited by many more personalities. (Bigger and brighter, of course.) Once, Billy was welcomed home by a large flock of geese in the driveway. They even chased his car – but only because they hadn't met him yet. A few years ago, Billy came home to find two new cats lounging in our bedroom. "I thought we weren't going to get any more cats," he might of said. And I might have answered, "But I was lonely."

What to Do?
Another Golden Opportunity, and I can't quite decide what to do this time around. Maybe I'll get three more Great Danes, assuming Merlin agrees. That's a new Dane for every week Billy is gone. I don't know, though. Maybe that's a bit excessive. How about a goat? I've always wanted a goat. I wonder if Merlin would like a goat. Then again, an emu might be nice.

I suppose the most radical thing I could do – the thing that might shock Billy more than anything else I've done so far – would be to clean out my art studio. Mind you, "cleaning out" is quite different from "cleaning up." Frankly, I'm not sure three weeks would be enough time to short through twenty-five years of accumulated possessions. Billy calls it my JUNK. I call it my ART STUFF. Whatever.

Anyway, I've decided I don't like that idea. Too much work. Guess I need to keep on thinking about it, huh?