“Frankly, I am people-ed out,” she said after having traveling after 5+ weeks. “I just want to drink coffee and read the news.”

She had said those words as we were sitting around in a late night pub in Dublin, Ireland. We had all met after the conference, finding fellow conference goers to tour around the city and hang out. She downed another Guinness after that, regaling us stories of her weeks in Thailand, Bali and Singapore.

Today I can officially say I am people-ed out. It has been only since the 30th of January…I am on my 14th day abroad. Soon, I will surpass the longest time that I have been away traveling. This morning, it wasn’t quite homesickness that I woke up to. I don’t miss the everyday patter. I miss the familiarity of people—that I don’t need to present myself all over again every day to someone new. I miss having a constant person who knows why I do the things that I do and why I say the things that I say. That is comforting.

Every other day, I wake up somewhere new. A hotel room. A small room in the in-law unit of a flat. A shared dormitory. A large English living room complete with gold-plated mirrors and multiple Ikea lamps. And tomorrow morning, a bedroom with orange painted walls.

I look forward to a day of mindless wandering alone. To be without the desires of another. To decide at a whim yes, I will go there or declare I am tired and in need of a drink. I decide. But I know for several moments, I would wish to have someone share the experiences with me. For now, Toad is my companion.