Packing Plans

Next week we're leaving for seven days out of town -- to visit our friends from Tennessee who have moved to San Francisco, and to go to our other friends' wedding in Colorado.

As I start to contemplate the realities of the trip, I'm realizing that we'll have to make some concessions for our travel. Carry-on luggage is a thing of the past, so there's no particular reason to not take stuff. But I still prefer to travel light. There's going to be a wedding, so that means looking nice for at least one day. And we'll be spending some time in San Francisco, so that means at least one outfit that is reasonably warm. Warm clothing and dressy clothing are bulky.

Shoes are particularly annoying. They take up a lot of space in a suitcase. Normally, I'd prefer to have a single pair of shoes and wear them all the time. But for this trip, I need good shoes to wear to the wedding and I also need very comfortable shoes for San Francisco and all the walking up and down hills that a trip there implies. So that's at least one pair of shoes I have to pack.

With no online class to teach, I could leave the computer at home. But chances are that no, that won't happen. Both The Wife and I will want to check our e-mail, handle pictures, blog, and otherwise use the thing. And I may need to tap in to the office once or twice, vacation or no.

We still need to make lodging arrangements for a night in the wine country, which is a pleasant prospect, but that's not nailed down yet. Much of everything else is -- we found a good kennel for the critters, which charges a reasonable rate and will do an "exit groom" so they come home clean and shaven. That's right, shaven -- we'll have them take off lots of hair from the animals. We've both been sneezing up a storm with all the shedding the animals have been doing, thanks to the height-of-summer high temperatures one gets here in the desert. So the fur comes off and next year, we'll shave them again in April.

For now, I'm looking forward to a week off work. I haven't taken any vacation for a year, and some time away every now and then is important. After a few intense weeks, I've got things to a point where that's a possibility. Spending some time away from work of any sort and with my wife and old friends will be a very good thing. And we'll have a chance to explore Colorado, somewhere new for both of us, and I'll make good on my promise to show my wife San Francisco at last. Two days of urban tourism there should be enough, I would think.