Traveling

The last week has been rather full, not the least because we’re about to travel. You can tell instantly that I’m not really used to leaving the house, when you recall my preparations for just going to a rehearsal. Now imagine the effort that goes into the preparation for a ten day trip. By train, which puts a limit on baggage, and to three different locations, which requires a little planning.

In the olden days ‘d have spent the last two or three weeks thinking about what to take with me, what to wear and how to organize. So, I’m quite pleased with myself, because I’ve started thinking about it just today in the morning.

Actually, I thought about clothes and found something astonishing: I don’t have to think about them. I only own one pair of fitting pants due to my attempts on normal/healthy eating, about ten Tees (and four of those are only suitable for high summer temperatures (and since we had to dig out the long johns again, this would be August)), two fitting bras, socks aplenty, and only one jacket fit for travel, my three-in-one gore-tex jacket. So, I don’t have to think, I just try to wash everything on time and put any clean garment into my backpack. Voilà!

My son’s wardrobe requires a little more thought, rubber boots or sandals? rain pants? Mittens? sun screen? You see, we’re dealing with uncertain weather here. We had 20 ° just ten days ago, shorts, tank tops, no socks, and we’re having about 8° right now, fleece shirt, long johns, rain gear.

And nobody seems to know how the weather will be next week.

But the main thing is not the clothing. The main thing is the cosmetics, the food, the diapers, the gadgets (extra bag for electrical, digital gadgets, even though we don’t own a laptop yet), the books, the magazines, the toys, the essential CDs, the guitar (of course you have to bring a guitar). Unfortunately I can’t bring my piano.

So, for our family traveling is hard. As musicians we depend on our equipment which we can’t take with us.

But then I talked to my mother and me MIL, two women who really try to take everything with them on a trip, my mother told me how she packed the wrong clothes for her last trip and lugged an enormous suitcase around and then only used half of what she brought, my mother-in-law told the same tale, my brain went ballistic with detail, and so I felled a decision. Again.

Packing is supposed to be finished in approximately half an hour. Everything else isn’t worth it.

How do I do this? Today I spent half an hour buying a second pair of jeans. In black and based on an overtly optimistic view that I’m going to loose another pound or two. Tomorrow I’ll spent about half an hour putting everything I need on the bed in the guest room. And on Saturday I’ll clean out the fridge and the garbage, wash the breakfast dishes, pack the things we couldn’t pack before, like toothbrushes, cosmetics, teddy bear and baby alarm, and that’s it.

If we’ll forget something, we’ll do without or buy another one on the road. I solemnly refuse to be ruled by packing for two days.

Now I’m going to watch a DVD and play a little guitar (one after the other). Then to bed.

I can’t promise to keep on blogging while on the road, since my parents only have dial-up. I’ll post as soon as I can.