Member-only story

The Seemingly Pointless Activity Saving My Sanity

It may be an exercise in futility but I’m doing it anyway.

Vanessa Torre
4 min readAug 1, 2020
Photo by Porapak Apichodilok via Pexels

Today, I had a wonderful time planned. I would have woken up in Chicago for the first time in my life, on a solo vacation I booked and paid for nine months ago when I found out that the largest Frida Kahlo exhibit in 40 years would be in Chicago.

I found an amazing deal on a hotel and made a schedule to hit every touristy thing on my bucket list. When you travel alone, it doesn’t matter how geeky things are that you want to do. Who’s to judge you? My geekiness involved a Cubs game at Wrigley and a show at Second City.

Then the world shut down.

I canceled my flight last week. Part of me held out hope that the world would return to normal soon enough. But then the exhibit canceled. And then baseball closed to the public. I’m starting to feel like comedy clubs are something we’ll tell our grandchildren about.

I love to travel but there are two parts to me that anyone who has been on vacation with me gets to understand quickly. There is Vanessa Who Plans Vacations and then there is Vacation Vanessa.

--

--

Vanessa Torre
Vanessa Torre

Written by Vanessa Torre

Top 10 feminist writer. Writing, coaching, and relentlessly hyping women in midilfe. linktr.ee/Vanessaltorre Email: vanessa@vanessatorre.com

Responses (3)