One of the first things I did after I got home from Australia — after repeatedly hugging every family member and racing from room to room like a puppy — was to unpack.

This was something I learned from my husband.

When I was younger, I followed the “unpack as necessary” approach. I’d leave my suitcase open on the floor, and take out things as I needed them, or when I felt like putting a few things away. It took a few days to empty the suitcase.

But over the years, I learned that this approach drove my husband nuts. It bugged him to see that open, half empty suitcase.

So  a while back, I decided that I could unpack immediately, out of love for him.

And I quickly realized that this approach was much better. So, although I didn’t feel like unpacking within the first hour of getting home, I did — and it was a huge relief to have that task accomplished. Unpacking isn’t hard, but it feels hard.

Also, what a relief to have everything put away. I reminded myself, yet again, of that Secret of Adulthood:

Outer order contributes to inner calm. @gretchenrubin (Click to Tweet!)

(More, really, than it should).

It was funny, about this trip. I was gone for a week, and although I’ve been away from home for longer stretches, this felt much longer.  Partly, it was the fact that I was so far away; not just traveling around the United States, but on the other side of the world.

But I didn’t anticipate how jarring it would be to cross the international date line. Even though I rationally understand it, of course, there really is something deeply disconcerting about traveling into tomorrow, and then back again into yesterday.

Apparently, it’s not true that people rioted in England in 1750, when the country adopted the Gregorian calendar, to demand that their “eleven days” be restored. But even if they didn’t actually riot, I understand why they might have felt like rioting. It was very weird to see the calendar jerk forward and back, even though I knew that my life was rolling ahead as usual.

Gretchen Rubin is the author of the #1 New York Times Bestseller The Happiness Project—an account of the year she spent test-driving the wisdom of the ages, current scientific studies, and lessons from popular culture about how to be happier—and the recently released Happier at Home and Better Than Before. On her popular blog, The Happiness Project, she reports on her daily adventures in the pursuit of happiness. For more doses of happiness and other happenings, follow Gretchen on Facebook and Twitter.

Image courtesy of Angelina Litvin.