I’m back from Staycation. When people use that word, they usually mean they have accomplished great home decorating feats, or landscaping projects, or something equally worthy.

For the past month, while also job searching, I have accomplished the following:

1. Swimming 5-6 times a week for an hour

2. Watching every minute of the Olympics, mostly on the streaming option NBC provided

3. Hanging out with friends and family

4. That’s it

Besides returning to my roots in the pool, I have done little that would stack up against the Staycations you read about on Facebook. Yes, the swimming is a good thing, but it is more therapeutic than goal-oriented. Nothing calms me like the black line at the bottom of a 50 meter outdoor pool.

It has been great. This Olympics was the best I’ve ever watched, and I’ve spent an enormous amount of time watching Summer Olympic games since 1984 (remember the USA vs. West Germany 4 x 200 swimming relay? I do). One Olympic year, I took vacation and stayed at home glued to the TV.

Really, I’ve loved it. But life beckons. Like bills and looming college tuition. So I am back to job hunting as my priority (though the swimming will remain; it’s just too good for me and my mental state to stop).

By the way, if you are in Olympic withdrawal, watch the USA v. West Germany relay, starring “the Albratross” Michael Gross. It is one of the best relays ever, though not in the way you might think.