Tom had made the following comment:

As you can see from her previous posts, Sarah copes with separation the same way I do – by staying really busy. At least when I’m on travel, I’ve got lots of work to do to keep busy – Sarah has to be creative, and she’s better at being creative than I am.

I’m busy as it is – why the need for creativity?

Tom’s work requires that he keep his mind alert and engaged the whole time he is at the job site.

Housework, to contrast, I can do in my sleep.

My fingers are familiar with every dish in my cupboard. Washing them doesn’t require that I concentrate on every inch of a dish or look at it through a microscope to know that it is clean. I just put my hands in the water and wash.

The same thing can be said about folding laundry (As I was doing laundry, I found a wooden spoon in the leg of someone’s pants today… hmm.. wonder why it’s hiding in there?), vacuuming (minus the occasional crisis when Lego men endanger themselves by exploring the inner workings of my Dirt Devil canister), emptying trash (no, not even dark-roast coffee grinds mask the smell of dirty diapers), shoveling snow and de-icing the steps (been doing a lot of this lately), etc.

Cooking requires a little more consideration – reading recipes, adjusting salt, sweet or spice levels to taste, etc.

So does tending for houseplants.

Most housework, though, requires more elbow grease than brain cells.

As I work on the everyday tasks, I find myself daydreaming and missing Tom.

Things that deviate from rote housework require planning, imagination, and concentration. The more I think about what I am doing, the less opportunities my mind has to throw a pity party.

This is why creativity is so important. It keeps the mind busy.