Take a BATH!!!

No, that wasn't a comment on your personal hygiene - the Internet's good, but not that good yet. Thank heavens.

I'm talking about soaking in an honest-to-God tub full of hot bubbly water!!! In this day of rapid fire conversation, sound bites and instant everything, we tend to "grab a shower" more often than not. In, lather, rinse, repeat and out. We're clean, but are we soothed?

Right now Mondays are hectic, crammed with last minute holiday stuff and your shower is probably even quicker than usual. So here's my suggestion for surviving Monday this week.

Hit your local drug store, fork out four bucks for a tube of something flowery and fragrant in the way of shower/bath gel (lavender is lovely - and so is jasmine!) and then treat yourself to something fun - a foot care brush with scrubber or something. Don't spend over nine or ten dollars total. This isn't about lazing around with champagne and candles and your lover. If you've got the time and the cash, great. If you've got a lover with that kind of time to spare, even better - and more power to you. Most of us haven't.

So - you've got your little treats. All you need is ten minutes!!! Turn on the tub and put a good dollop of your gel under the water. While the tub is filling with fragrant bubbles, clean the sink, change the towels and do those bathroom chores you always do. Why waste time waiting for the tub to fill? It's about multitasking these days. When the tub is ready for you, get your hair out of the way and sink in, letting that warm scented air fill your lungs as you do so.

Now....wash. Just the same as if you were in the shower. You may not be lingering, but you ARE relaxing. Grab your foot care gizmo and lather your feet - then treat them to exfoliation, stimulation, a good scrub and a wee bit of massage. Combined with the soothing sensation of warm water cradling your body and a pair of feet that have been tenderly nurtured...well, hell, girl - you're ready for anything!!!! (If you've overdone the bubbles, drain the tub and then turn on the shower briefly just to rinse them away. Er..make sure you stand back a bit in case the shower water is cooler than the bath water. That falls under the heading of "eeek"!!)

See? Ten minutes - not much longer than that shower - and you have a clean bathroom, fresh towels and best of all... a mind and body that are calm, relaxed and ready to embrace whatever the day may bring. At the very least, you'll be soothed enough not to kill anything. Given the demands of the holiday season, I think that state of mind is a good thing!!

If anyone needs me, I'll be in the tub. I might just stay there until Spring!!! (grin)