what will the weekend bring

My partner is out of town this weekend for work-related reasons. Fri-Tues makes it the longest time she's been away since we've been together. I've had to go out of town for longer spells, and her work schedule last summer meant that we only saw each other for an hour or two a day, which is almost like being out of town, but not exactly. So we've been apart before, but it's different for me to be the one alone in the house. Not entirely alone, of course -- the dogs are happy to snuggle in bed with me, especially since the weather has turned colder.

Before we moved in together, I lived alone for many years. I'm good at being alone. Or at least I was. It was a huge adjustment for both of us to live with someone else. And, frankly, for me to live with a dog (we had just one at first, before we adopted the puppy). I didn't know that I loved dogs -- I'd grown up with cats, who have a completely different way of being in the world. J, our older dog, deserves all the credit for teaching me the wonders of dogs. Seriously, she really changed my life. But when you live with dogs, you're never really alone. They want to be with you all the time, they're delighted when you walk in the door, they give you lots of attention. The first six months we lived together, I actually found it kind of overwhelming, being the introvert that I am. Now I find it comforting, and can't imagine living without the dogs.

But it will be interesting to be on my own for a few days.