So last night I worked a miracle… I know, I know, you’re not supposed to cast your pearls before swine, but this one is just too good not to blog about.
Yesterday I mentioned that I will be leaving for vacation. Well, last night when I was packing I got this wild, hair-brained idea… Could I — just could I — pack everything into one carry on? Business travelers do it all of the time, so why can’t I? If I am ever to travel for business, I’ll need to master this art anyway…
So I went to Wal-Mart (the only store open at 11pm) to get a bag that was exactly 45 linear inches (the FAA regulation… thanks TLS for looking that up for me after I got to the store), and then proceeded to roll, fold, compress, and otherwise destroy five days worth of carefully planned clothing ensembles into it.
I realized that the key is not to feel bad about dressing down for things. You are on vacation. Who says you can’t wear loafers to church or shorts to a theatrical event? This is America for pity’s sake, and we have the freedom to roam around in jeans whereever we so desire!
The real saving grace, though, was that it is now summertime, and shorts and swimwear are FAR less bulky than sweaters, coats, and mittens. So, after about an hour of wrangling with cotton, poly, and denim I had accomplished the impossible. (and even have a 6th day’s set of clothes if you count the ones that will be on my back).
Now to the second difficulty… toiletries. Ever since the gels ban, I have checked all my toiletries in my bag, so today will be the first time I will try to get them through security. At first, I thought I would just forego taking my own stuff and buy it when I arrived, but then realized that I would have to spend about $15 at my destination to replace all my stuff… which kinds of defeats the purpose of saving the $30 tariff to check a bag. So after further examination I realized most of my stuff was under 3oz! Woo hoo! In fact, toothpaste was the sole offender… booooo…
So here I go off into the wild blue yonder with my 45 linear inches, 3-1-1, and 3 cubic feet of leg room… hopefully it will last me through 10 days of bliss!
You packed 5 days of clothes for a 10 day trip…oh, I forgot. Boys don’t care. They can wear the same shirt 5 days in a row and not think twice about it. Okay, nevermind. Have fun!
To clarify — I could only accomplish this grand feat because there will be WASHERS and DRYERS everywhere I am going. I’m not going to wear dirty clothes… EWWWWWWW!
I would have just checked my luggage…
Liar. You would have worn the same shirts over again, washer or no washer. I mean, if you’re coming clean with us, you might as well come all the way clean. (no pun intended although now that I reread it, I’m quite amused by it and wish it had been intentional.)
Nice job! You’ll remember your record. I do. Mine is 15 days in a carry on – business then pleasure trip too = two wardrobes! Looks like you’re figuring out some of the “tricks” on your own, so I’ll keep mine to myself 😉 Have fun in CA!
Are you calling us all swine?