Why do I sit in my car for twenty minutes after work?

Yesterday I pulled into my apartment complex at 6:12 p.m. and did not get out of the car until 6:34.

I was not finishing a call. I was not listening to anything especially good. The engine was off, my work bag was on the passenger seat, and I was scrolling through the same three apps while the groceries in the trunk slowly became tomorrow's problem.

This has become my unofficial commute after the commute. The drive home is all traffic lights, lane changes and people trying to merge at the last second. When I park, nobody is asking me to move yet. Inside the apartment there will be dinner, dishes, laundry and a cheerful dog who has been waiting all day. I love the dog. I chose the groceries. None of those things are the enemy. Still, opening the car door feels like clocking into a second shift.

The twenty minutes do not leave me restored. Usually they leave me cramped, slightly guilty and annoyed that the evening is shorter. If my partner calls and asks whether I am still at work, I say I just pulled in. Technically true. Emotionally evasive.

I tried making a rule that I had to get out immediately. That lasted two days and made the walk from the parking lot feel like a punishment. I also tried taking the long way home, but extra driving only turned the transition into more traffic. What I seem to want is a small space where work has ended and home has not started demanding anything yet.

The car is currently the only place that provides it, but it may be a poor version of the thing I actually need. I am considering a ten-minute stop at the little park near my building, or a rule that the first fifteen minutes at home are allowed to be useless. Both would require admitting that I need a transition instead of pretending the scrolling is accidental.

Does anyone else have a decompression ritual that works in real life, especially when home is busy? Would you move the pause somewhere more comfortable, shorten it deliberately, or accept the parked-car intermission as a legitimate part of the day?