Monday, May 11, 2009

Packing


There are endless ways to compare the differences between the sexes in nearly every situation. Last week Lori had a comment asking if I had packed some extra clothing for my wife and I did not.

When I travel alone I can pack for myself in three minutes; a couple things from this drawer and a couple things from that drawer; roll up three shirts and a couple pants, stuff it into a gym bag and off I go. I usually stay in hotels that have irons if something became wrinkled in transit I can fix it before I go out in public.

This is not the case when I don’t travel alone. My packing is taken apart and shirts and pants are hung in a clothing bag with her clothing. It is carefully folded into the suit case and buttoned into place. When we get to the hotel it comes out of the bag and gets hung in the armoire and incidentals go into the drawers.

I always pack enough, not too much nor too little. It has always worked for me. My wife on the other hand packs way too much. This time she expected a warmer climate and was surprised by the snow so she packed a lot of inappropriate clothing. Rather than going on a major shopping spree we visited a thrift store to get her something warmer to wear; so crisis was averted.

The funny thing about thrift shops is that they are a museum of sorts of the local culture. I could tell I was in horse country because this thrift store sold horse tack in their sporting good section. I like that.

9 Comments:

Blogger Beth said...

I honest-to-god try to pack only the essentials but never succeed.
It’s the “What ifs?” that do me in.

5:47 AM  
Blogger Auntie said...

It has taken me many years (and watching my mother packing 20 outfits for a 3 day trip) to realize that in regards to preparing for a trip, less is more.

Its less stressful because you aren't thinking ahead of your trip for weeks on "what to bring". Like you said, its just a few minutes (for me, the night before) a few things rolled up and go.

If I need something along the way, thrift stores work great, or if you are going to a foreign country, it can be fun to buy clothes as souvenirs for yourself and bring them home!

Besides, who wants to pack all that extra shit around? It's heavy!

5:55 AM  
Blogger JustRex said...

I'm glad my OCD is fairly mild. But I still tend to worry and overthink and overpack. I always bring too much and then there's always something I have forgotten. I wonder if it's an unconscious want to go to the thrift stores? Heck, I go there even if I don't need anything. It's like going through someone else's closet. If I ever bought an RV and went on the road, I'd have to get the biggest one made because I would soon have it packed to the gills like a gypsy caravan. I really need to work on that, I think.

6:44 AM  
Blogger dalia said...

i always pack too much and i'm okay with that. *shrug*

i always get unexpected invites and parties and think "see? if i hadn't packed my versace gown studded with swarovski crystals and my pewter-encrusted jimmy choos, i'd have had NOTHING to wear..."

LOL

9:24 AM  
Blogger Tango's Going Ons said...

I've had years of practive in packing light due to not having a backseat, nor a trunk. Everything had to fit between the laptop stand and the passenger seat. I can be packed up and ready to go in 20 minutes. lol...I could probably pack up my entire home in 3 hours.

4:33 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

When we went to New Orleans we packed for the weather predicted, they ended up having one of the worst cold snaps they'd had in 20 yrs.

We ended up shipping a box of clothes back home and hitting several discount stores for sweatshirts and socks.

8:47 PM  
Blogger The Guy Who Writes This said...

Beth, it should be a required class in University.

Auntie, I know people that pack an extra empty suitcase just for bringing clothing home.

Darev, funny, I was just offered a free RV, and after thinking of it as more stuff I turned it down.

Dalia, I bet I couldn't afford you.

Tango, you are the queen of down sizing.

Anon, Not at all what one would expect from New Orleans. I have never been cold anywhere south of Georgia, though climate change does swing both ways.

5:18 AM  
Blogger Me. Here. Right now. said...

Dunno Guy - might have thrown something in the back of the car if I knew and she didn't. But, thrift shop works too I guess...

12:03 PM  
Blogger Guy said...

I had no idea what was packed.

9:34 PM  

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