As a married woman, I appreciate any alone time I get. When my husband has to go out of town, I relish all the new possibilities my time alone in the house brings. Sure, the possibility of relationship paranoia or an attack by a bearded rapist go up, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take for some quality me time.
I don’t know what it is about being alone, but it’s a time when I feel most grown-up and independent. The notion that I can do whatever I want is intoxicating, even though I tend to do the same things whenever I get a chance to be alone. Here’s my go-to list of favorite alone time activities:
- Get really good at Guitar Hero. One of my favorite things to do is play a fun video game a ton in order to beat my husband when he gets home. It is awesome to watch his confusion over being turned on that I’m good at video games and pissed that I can beat him. Most recently, I’ve been playing Guitar Hero. With Guitar Hero, I get the added bonus that I can play in my underwear and imagine that I look like Heidi Klum.
- Dance to 80s music in the living room. Sharing a space with someone really hinders the dancing comfort zone. When my husband is around, the dancing is usually limited to the bathroom while I put makeup on, but when he’s gone I turn on the Bronski Beat and dance all over the house.
- Masturbate. Partner sex life is great, but solo missions really suffer. I suspect this is more true for women than men, given that if I run out to get a coffee Jason rubs one out. I am not that efficient, and need a lot more time and space. That’s why alone time is a great time to get it on all by yourself.
- Watch movies you want to watch. The remote control battle wages on in many a relationship, so it’s great when you get to wield all that power by yourself and watch whatever you want. I’m actually not as much a sucker for chick flicks as he is, so I use my alone time to indulge whatever mood I’m in. I have a girlfriend that rents every Viggo Mortensen movie with a nude scene when she’s alone (see previous point), and I respect when a woman knows what she wants.
- Listen to Tori Amos. Ok, so it doesn’t have to be Tori Amos, but surely there are just some things you aren’t going to agree with your man on when it comes to music. In our house, I’m not allowed to listen to anything from Radiohead after Kid A, and he isn’t allowed to blast Slayer. So take advantage of your alone time and listen to whatever you like.
- Eat whatever you like. Bake a cake and eat it for all three meals. Order a pizza for breakfast. Put cake on the pizza at 3 a.m. just to see what it’s like. Stir your martini with a Slim Jim. Anything goes. Alone time isn’t necessarily time to sabotage your health, but it is a time when you can satisfy weird cravings without explaining or compromising.
- Sleep in the bed diagonally. While it’s nice to snuggle up with your partner and get all nice and warm, it’s also a pain to play tug-of-war with the blankets. Take advantage of being alone by taking up as much space as you like, cocooning yourself in all the blankets, and using his pillows.
