"Travel is only glamorous in retrospect." ~ Paul Theroux
I am a couple of days short of four weeks until Butterfly and I leave for California. As I prepare to fly back to my home state, I have had to think a lot about packing. Usually, we drive and I have lots of room for multiple suitcases and ice chests for two days' worth of snacks. Now that Butterfly and I are traveling by plane, I am having to plan much more strategically. This planning is beginning to spill over into the other areas of my trip.
Part of the time we are in California, we will be working. The rest of the time is leisure time with friends and family to enjoy Butterfly's new life as a college grad. So, I want to make sure we make the most of our time. I don't want to get sick. I don't want to miss my flight. I don't want any travel disasters to overtake us. Therefore, I have been researching all kinds of things to avoid when I travel so that my trip remains productive, orderly and enjoyable.
According to BootsNAll, the #1 travel pitfall to avoid is an area prone to natural disasters. Ummmm...did I mention we are going to CALIFORNIA?
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| San Francisco Bay Bridge following the Loma Prieta Earthquake 1989 |
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| The Great Quake of 1908 |
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| Bet your state doesn't even HAVE an Earthquake Authority! |
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| This is what my whole child looked like. DUCK and COVER! |
The next pitfall to avoid says, Readers Digest, is being seated next to a drunk passenger on your flight. During a recent international flight, a man drank a whole bottle of duty-free alcohol and became unruly and out of control. Ya think? The flight attendants took care of the situation with a roll of duct tape. Yes, they strapped him to his seat with duct tape to the point that he was unable to break free! This must be why Magellan's travel goods site sells travel size duct tape - just in case the stewardesses need help. Think my neighbors will mind if I practice on their cat?
Another travel nightmare to try to circumvent is losing your luggage. I have pretty much resigned myself to the fact that my bags will be lost. I am coming from a state dumb enough to legalize recreational marijuana use to a state that desperately WANTS legalized recreational pot. You know some of those guys are gonna take off with my bag in hopes for a little Rocky Mountain High. Won't they be sorry when they find out I am not that kind of girl! Sorry enough to ditch my luggage, I bet! I am thinking that this suitcase might make those airport guys stay away from my bag. I like it in green. What do you think?
Of course my biggest travel woe to be concerned with is the one that I have spent countless childhood hours being asked to solve already: "A 555 mile, 5 hour plane trip was flown at two speeds. For the first part of the trip, the plane flew at 105 mph. Then a tailwind picked up and the plane flew the rest of the way at 115 mph. For how long did the plane fly at each speed?" This travel anxiety provided courtesy of Purple Math. Fortunately, all those years of word problems in school helped me with this answer.
Solution: Who cares? As long as I am ON the plane!
See you on the ground. Right now, I
Gotta Mosey
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