Tomorrow something unusual is going to happen. I am going to have an evening to myself.
We are staying in London, but not going out together and I’m so spoilt for choice of what to do and who to see, that I’ve decided I can’t decide. So I’m going to finish work and then I’m going to sit in the hairdressers for two hours getting my hair coloured, without having to worry about where I need to be or what I should be doing. I can just sit there talking nonsense with my hairdresser and reading trashy mags. And then, when I emerge with newly coloured roots and a spring in my step, I’m going to go out for dinner and a glass or two of wine, with only a book and a notebook for company.
For about a week I have toyed with the idea that I could have made plans, could have met friends or gone to an event or seen a show, or done just about anything that involved making an arrangement. But the most luxurious thing I was drawn to doing was to buy myself dinner and spend some time not talking or listening to anyone else. Just a tiny little bit of time.
I wonder if the ability to find solitude is harder today, with so much bustle and connection, and it’s odd that spending time alone seems such a treat. I’m sure too, that people will assume that a woman dining alone is doing so because she has to, or is lonely, or has no friends. However, according to my basic online research, seeking and achieving even small amounts of solitude has many physical and psychological benefits.
Psychology Today magazine reports that periods of solitude allow you to reboot your brain and unwind, can improve concentration and increase productivity. Funny how the idea of sitting somewhere quietly with your thoughts and a book seems so alien that there are pages and pages of stuff about how to do it online. Anyway, I’m looking forward to experiencing something I haven’t done for ages and it’ll be interesting to see how long I can stay off my phone.
Now I just need to decide where to go.
