Heart and Seoul

"I shall make that trip.  I shall go to Korea." ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower

As I am finishing (read: STARTING) my laundry for my California trip and thinking about the best way to pack for a conference and erratic California temperatures without taking my whole closet, I have found myself reminiscing about other journeys I have taken.  I have had the opportunity to traverse the US several times, I have traveled from practically one end of Canada to another by train, I have even tolerated a jaunt to France (never again), but no trek I have ever taken compares to the one I took in October 2007.

In October 2007, we got a call from our adoption agency in Colorado that our agency in Korea had finalized, submitted and had received approval on all the paperwork it took to bring our son, Spidey, home.  In a matter of hours, we dropped off our kids and dog with friends and hopped a flight to Seoul, South Korea.

It drove me crazy when we got to Korea, because we could only see our son twice before we could get on a plane to bring him home.  That means just TWO 45 minute visits, on two different days....and we were in Korea for EIGHT days!  What do you do for the other 6 days?  Well, we distracted ourselves with a lot of sightseeing.  And in the course of those trips, we met a lot of fantastic people!

Going to Korea to bring Spidey home was one of the most amazing experiences of my life.  But besides the enormous blessing of my son, there was this incredible vacation that Kahuna and I got to experience.  Korea is the most fabulous place I have been.  I would go back in a heartbeat!  We had an amazing time, met amazing people, saw amazing things and were just...well...amazed the whole time we were there!  I HIGHLY encourage everyone to consider taking a trip there.

Korean National Treasure:  The North Gate (before it burned down)

Still need convincing?  Here are some of the top observations I made while there in 2007...(added notes from today in red)


1. Seoul REALLY reminds me of San Francisco....only A LOT bigger!
2. My husband no longer stands out in the crowd.....thereby making it a lot harder to keep track of him. If your spouse is Asian...consider bringing neon clothes for them.
3. Bibimbop is manna from Heaven! Everyone should try it. I ate it EVERY single day we were in Korea and now know how to make it at home!  I even have the stone bowls in which to prepare it!
4. Korea smells different than the US. It smells like garlic with a little underscent of cabbage. Yummy!
5. Everyone uses mass transit, all the time, all day long, everywhere you go......it is crowded.
6. Cleanest subways I have ever seen!   
7. Aussies are VERY fun to hang out with!! If you are traveling to Korea, I hope some are here to share time with.  There were a lot of Australians in Korea when we were there and we had a wonderful time hanging out with them...which leads me to believe somewhere in my future is a vacation in the Land Down Under.
8. I have yet to see one letter of graffiti anywhere!!!
9. Everyone is dressed like they are going to church.  I felt underdressed everywhere we went...but I was assured that the Koreans understood that we "are just Americans"?!!
10. Knee socks and high heels....together.....BIG fashion here!  And somehow they pulled it off magnificently!
11. Favorite accessory in Korea.....Ipod. (some things seem to be similar with the US!)
12. If you stop and look confused, people will try to help you.  The people in Korea were SO nice and willing to talk with you and help in any way!  This was a huge plus, considering how my trip to France was the ABSOLUTE, complete opposite.  Did I mention I am never, ever, ever going back to France?
13. Kimchi pancakes....also manna from Heaven! Gotta have it!  Glad I had them, they ended up being Spidey's favorite dish (still is).
14. Soju is extremely overrated. Pass.  Definitely pass.
15. Hyundais are pretty good looking cars.  Though, it was kind of hard to tell for sure when they came  speeding AT you at 70 mph!
16. Samsung makes everything...electronics, cars, ships, the list goes on and on.
17. In 1975, most houses in Korea still had thatched rooves!
18. I have not seen one homeless person yet.
19. Instant coffee tastes better the more caffeine withdrawal you go through!
20. We love Seoul!!! It is beautiful, the people are wonderful, the guests at the guest house where we are staying are so much fun and we are so thankful for the opportunity to be here!  I want to go back so badly!

Sometimes, I wonder if Korea was all a dream.  Spidey has been with us so long and is such a Yuen, that I can hardly remember that there was a time he wasn't with us.  I wonder if I have such an attachment to Korea because of the reason I was there.  I know that has to be part of it.  But, while reading over this list that I made 6 years ago, I remember that it wasn't just Spidey.  Korea is beautiful and the people are wonderful.  In some ways, it WAS a dream...a lovely one.  And one I can't wait to relive one day.

SPIDEY!!!  Wasn't he cute????

Because I went there and because I had such a connection to Seoul and the people there, I can't help but be extremely saddened by the escalating tension between North Korea and South Korea.  I continue to pray for both nations and for peace of mind for the South Koreans especially.  Please join me.

And while I am praying for them, I will be digging out all my bermuda shorts and washing everything else so I can go to California.  So...pray for me, too.  I hate laundry.

Gotta Mosey!

Packing with Butterfly

Woot!  Today, Gotta Mosey welcomes its first Guest Blogger!!!  This is an exciting moment for the blog!  So with no further ado, enjoy learning to how to pack as instructed by my daughter, Butterfly!

“As long as I’m not living out of a suitcase, I’m happy.” - Jacquelyn Jablonski

My life is a big trip. Since 2009, I’ve been out of my homestate over twenty times, culminating in what is easily the biggest road trip of my life - my five-month stint as a touring intern with the Institute for Cultural Communicators! This trip was five months in an unpredictable van with three pieces of luggage - a duffel bag, a garment bag and a purse. If that doesn’t teach you how to be a great packer, nothing else will! Before my tour, I used to stress for days about how to bring all the stuff I was positive I would need (read: I like to prepare for the worst by bringing absolutely everything I would possibly need, which comes in handy when it isn’t being a giant pain as it comes to packing). Now, I’ve discovered the perfect system for how to be an excellent packer and I come to share my extensive (cough, or something, cough) experience and knowledge of packing with the adventurous travelers of Gotta Mosey!

Here are a few probable packing problems you may encounter.

Scenario: Your trip is taking you from the land of Sun and Spring to the desolate wilderness of winter. Umm, how is all your cold weather gear supposed to fit in that suitcase?

Solution: First of all, why in the world are you leaving your springtime paradise?! If you don’t like the warmth, you could always send it here! (One of the many reasons I am SO excited to be headed to California in a couple weeks! SUNSHINE. NO BLIZZARDS.) If you decide that you still want, for some unavoidable reason, to travel to the land of frostbite, here are a few packing tips.

• Wear your thickest items on the plane. Poofy sweaters, clunky boots, and your winter coat are all good items to NOT pack. If you layer right, you won’t  even have to wear it all for the whole flight - a coat or sweater can come off and be stowed under your seat.
• Roll clothes tightly (you can even use a strip of blue painters’ tape to keep things tightly rolled) and fit those into the bottom of the suitcase. The heavier things can weight them down and make it possible to get your suitcase shut all the way.
  
  
  
  
  

Scenario: Your shoes are all made out of brick, you had to bring four gold bars and a small elephant in your suitcase. Fifty pounds? Not gonna touch that.

Solution: As unlikely as it is that you’ll be packing gold bars and elephants, suitcase weight is a trouble for all of us uber-prepared (read: frightfully overprepared) packers. So before you despair of needing a forklift for your suitcase, try these tips:

• Start with a smaller suitcase. You’ll be surprised how much you can fit in, and a compact space means less likelihood of running over your weight limit.
• Consider how much heavy material you’ll need to pack. If you need three pairs of shoes, a full bottle of shampoo instead of a travel size, and a canister of lemonade powder (don’t laugh - this is a true story and the lemonade almost put me over my weight limit), you’ll want to consider how to pack your other heavy things. Can you put some of them in a carry-on? Bring lighter weight clothes? Pick some of it up when you arrive?
• Fifty pounds is a LOT. I traveled for five months and my suitcase was only forty-five pounds. You can do it. It’s very possible.
  
  
  
  
  

Scenario: Uh-oh. Split zipper. Clothes everywhere. Not. Good.

Solution: True story. The first time I traveled out of state my zipper split early in the trip and I carried around a messy suitcase for two weeks. Bad news and so embarrassing. While it is a trick to deal with a split zipper, here are a few ways to work with a broken suitcase:

• Carry safety pins and pin shut the opening to your suitcase. Use many pins!
• Repack your suitcase so that it’s less full and it doesn’t push the zipper out too much.
  
  
  
  
  

Scenario: You need to pack a jar of vinegar/live marmoset/dozen bottles of pills/bee hive and now your bag is sloshy/squealing/rattling/buzzing. You’re starting to get worried that you’re going to get kicked out of the airplane. Forcibly. While in the air. Unkindly.

Solution: Hey, we don’t judge here. If you need to pack something totally bizarre, that’s okay. We understand that. I’ve possibly packed weirder. Try these things to pack your strange luggage:

• If it makes noise, package it in socks, or if it is too large, a piece of clothing. This will lessen suspicion in your odd luggage.
• If it’s drippy or breakable, wrap it in a plastic bag, and try to lay it in an additional layer that you don’t mind getting a little messy (a towel, pillowcase, or inner pocket work well.)
• If it’s alive... um... Sorry. I really have no help for you there. If it’s alive, make sure I’m not sitting next to you on this plane!

And there you have it, adventurers! Butterfly’s foolproof plan to excellent packing. Keep practicing, and someday, you too may be able to pack like a boss! What are your best packing tips, tricks or terrors? Share them in the comments, because I’m always up to learn more about packing. In the meantime, it’s time to get packing because I

Gotta Mosey!

Airport Antics

"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?

San Francisco Bay Bridge following the Loma Prieta Earthquake 1989

The Great Quake of 1908

Bet your state doesn't even HAVE an Earthquake Authority!

This is what my whole child looked like.  DUCK and COVER!

California has approximately 37,000 earthquakes a year!  Roughly 10,000 of them occur in Southern California, where they are well deserved.  But the rest happen in the other parts of the state.  We will be in Northern California where some of those other TWENTY SEVEN THOUSAND quakes shake it!  Fat chance on avoiding natural disasters!

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

Surprise Party!

"Not all who wander are lost.  Some have just had their train cancelled." ~ JRR Tolkien, revised

Yesterday, I wrote about the adventures of train travel.  It is definitely a unique experience.  Traveling by train offers you an opportunity to navigate situations and characters not easily afforded by other modes of transportation.  But there is one other journey method that comes really, REALLY close.  And our little band of travelers got to experience it just one short week after our train adventure to Virginia.

We had taken the train to attend a conference in Virginia Beach. The evening before we were to leave to come home, we returned, exhausted, to our room.  As we got on Facebook (because one is never too exhausted for Facebook!), I noticed that Amtrak's page mentioned that some of the trains in the midwest were being cancelled due to flooding on the Great Plains.  The California Zephyr, our ride home, was one of the trains.  We went to Amtrak's website and confirmed it and began to plan our escape travels home.

Since we had about a thousand pounds of luggage, and also numerous, huge display boards, flying was out of the question.  What are girls to do?

You guessed it.  We rented a car.  And so ensues the Great Road Trip West.

Did you know it takes THREE days of CONSTANT driving to get from Virginia Beach, VA to Colorado Springs, CO???

It does.

For those of you who find yourself on an unexpected road trip (which is probably half of all train travelers), please heed the following advice:  Attitude is everything!  Our gang decided not to get bent out of shape.  What else could we do?  We decided to enjoy the ride.  And what a fun ride it was!

Here are my observations from the road.  If you plan to make a trip by Amtrak, you may want to bookmark this post as a resource page!

*He who holds the keys...holds the power.  I did NOT want to stop at Colonial Williamsburg on the way home because I love history and knew we didn't have time to get out.  Unfortunately, I was not driving and found our car hijacked by Blondie.  Do you know how it KILLS a history lover to DRIVE through Colonial Williamsburg??? Who DRIVES through Williamsburg?  Oh yeah....us.  Good thing I grabbed the wheel before she could get to Jamestown!!

*If you are stuck on an unexpected road trip...enjoy the scenery. There is nothing greener than the Appalachian Mountains....or ALL of West Virginia, for that matter.  What beautiful country.  Blessed is the person who's surprise adventure includes this state.

*Where's the Beef?  It is in Kentucky where it comes in every form....but try to find a KENTUCKY Fried Chicken ANYWHERE in that state and you will be sadly disappointed!!!  Ridiculous!  I think that at the border of KENTUCKY, there should be little white haired men passing out free KENTUCKY Fried Chicken and biscuits!!  Know what you get instead?  A glimpse of Hell.  I hate to belabor a point....but once you enter the state all you see is a maze and tangle of fire breathing, smoking pipes and tubes.  Is that really the first impression you want to give people of your state?? (Apparently it is....Kansas had FOUR fiery refineries!)

*Don't Drink and Drive...Avoid Kentucky.   Indiana has a lot of wineries and a Wine Trail.  Kentucky cuts to the chase, ditching the wine and going straight to the hard stuff with their very own Bourbon Trail!  I might add that the Bourbon Trail is along a beautiful expanse of winding, two lane highway.  Bourbon + Windy Roads = DUH!

*What Did You Just Call Me? Instead of the Bluegrass State, Kentucky should be the We Don't Need No New Fangled Ideas...Like Cities State.  Because don't EVER ask someone in Cattletsburg, KY what CITY you are in.  I took a 10 minute tongue lashing from a WENDY'S employee about how I was NOT in a city, I was in a TOWN. Well, excuuuuuuuuuse me!

*Hitting the Jackpot! Sure the Gateway Arch was impressive....but the best thing about Missouri?  An overnight stay right by a TRADER JOE'S!!!!  I know that this may be a silly thing to get excited about to some of you, but for someone from Colorado, where there are no Trader Joe's, it was like winning the lottery!

*Beware Salina, Kansas.  Oh sure, it  sounds innocent but it is SCARY.  Just one, big truck stop.  In effort to make me feel okay about having to stay there (and yes, we HAD to stay there because there is nothing else in Kansas, anywhere.....ever) my husband cited a study he read saying Salina was supposed to be one of the best places to raise kids.  Really?  I think it depends on what you are raising your kids for.  If it is to drive a semi or a tractor....Salina is awesome!  All others....move to Colorado.

*I See Dead People's Houses: Kansas should not be the Sunflower State, as I never saw one.  BUT...they have a museum every 5 miles.  They should be the Look-at-the-Old-Houses-of-Dead-People-we-have-Here-in-Our-State State.

*Double Shot Espresso - The Patron Saint of all 12 hour day Road Trippers

*Who Needs an App for That?  When you are driving for three days on an unforeseen and unplanned trek, some instincts are acutely honed.  I am pretty sure Blondie and I know every Starbucks from Virginia Beach to Colorado Springs, such was our need for caffeine!

*WHAT?  And Kansas has TWO Starbucks.  ugh!

*Duh!  A state as flat and boring as Kansas needs LOTS of Starbucks!

*There's No Place Like Home.  There's NOTHING like the Rocky Mountains!!

So, all in all.....it was 30 hours of travel by car.  We couldn't see out the back window because we were stuffed to the gills with luggage and display boards!  But, we would do another Surprise Road Trip in a heartbeat...as long as we could plan it first!

Tell me your best Road Trip Tips!  For now, I

Gotta Mosey

Long Train Runnin'

"My heart is warm with the friends I make,

And better friends, I'll not be knowing,

Yet, there isn't a train I wouldn't take,

No matter where it's going."

~ Edna St. Vincent Millay, The Selected Poetry

If you read my early posts, one thing is probably clear to you - I hate flying.  That is a gross understatement.  I mean I REALLY hate to fly. I have never enjoyed it, so a couple of years ago, I decided to do something “fun” instead as I traveled back east.  I decided taking the train would be a better travel choice.  I love to travel by train.  I have done it several times, including a long trip through Canada.  And it has been fun.

Well, if you consider Hell fun, that is.

Oh yes, did you know that is an actual Amtrak stop?  It is!  I have been there.  But perhaps I better back up a bit.

My friend Blondie, her daughter, JJ, my daughter, Jef and I began our adventure back in Denver.  Amtrak spares no expense at keeping things rip-roaring "fun"  from the very beginning.

I had been so excited to travel from the historic Union Station in Denver and became quite disappointed to find out that it was being overhauled and we had to leave from a temporary station instead.  

Which also happens to be invisible.

Yeah, I know….what?  But after following directions from MapQuest (this was before we owned Darth TomTom), and Blondie's iPhone’s GPS app AND  Kahuna's  surprisingly good sense of direction, we drove all around Coors Field without being able to find the train station.  After wandering aimlessly, we finally happened upon the station.  The station with parking for Mini Coopers only.

After 15 minutes of trying to maneuver our Durango into VW Clown Parking Only, we were able to park and get our luggage out and check in just in time to be late!  And to find out that the GIGANTIC suitcases we packed for checked baggage, could not be checked! 

The fun continued as we had to run, wheeling our GIGANTO-BAGS and lugging ALL of our carry on luggage (which consisted of at least 2 twenty-five pound bags of snacks) ACROSS THE STREET (because what sense does it make to build a temporary train station NEAR the train itself?), up the stairs to the platform and then onto the second story of the train.  (I am just saying….workout for the week was done at that point)

As we stowed our luggage and found our seats, we settled in and SAT on the track for an hour.  Sure am glad we rushed to get to that train!

Finally we got moving, made some PB&J sandwiches, washed up and went to sleep.  Thankfully, we slept through Kansas and awoke to a beautiful sunrise in Nebraska with sights set on getting to Chicago that afternoon where we would endure a FOUR hour lay-over before hopping our next train, the Capitol Limited, to Washington, DC.

Our first night of sleep was a little restless, but we were having fun.  REAL fun this time.  On the California Zephyr (the first train we were on), the snack bar was run by a phenomenal guy named, Frank!  He kept things light and funny.  He also used to do hair, and couldn’t keep his hands off Jef's “GREAT hair cut”.  Jef has HUGE personal space, so you can imagine how this was NOT a fun part of the trip for her!

We traveled on, enjoying Frank’s antics and the ride, but slowly, we became acutely aware of “the smell”.  Oh yes, it was not pleasant for any of us, but Blondie sprayed a whole bottle of Bath and Body Works Sanitizer Spray all over the train car to try to get rid of it.  She even threatened to throw up…but I am still not clear if it was because of the putrid bathroom smell, or the overdose of Brown Sugar Vanilla spray she was inundating us with!  

No matter, we would be in Chicago soon and onto a different train.

But WAIT!  There was more Amtrak fun to come…..

Unbeknownst to us, but apparently known to everyone else, including Amtrak employees, there had been a DERAILMENT involving an Amtrak train in Chicago’s Union Station that morning.  Not good.  Not for the train involved or any other trains trying to get in and out of Chicago that day.  The rail authorities were not letting any trains depart or arrive at Union Station.  Our Zephyr staff actually suggested we get off BEFORE Chicago (actually in IOWA) since we didn’t know when in the world they would actually let us into the station.

As it turned out, after all that panic, we got right into the station.  Union Station in Chicago is actually a stop in Hell.  Once you get off your train, you get boxed into a small space between two fire breathing engines and stand.  And Stand.  AND STAND!  Sweating, stinking, parching and STANDING!  Hot, sulfurous…I am telling you…dark and steamy….it was HELL! Finally, they let us out and into the Big Mess in the Great Hall of historic Chicago Union Station, where we got some FAB pictures. The Big Mess took a lot of sorting and we stood in line for a long time waiting for boarding instructions.  But, Amtrak must have a Disney mindset.  You know…make sure your visitors have something fun to watch/do so they won’t notice the wait.

Our in-station entertainment included, but was not limited to the following events:

*The Mad Dash – This event consisted of Amtrak employees telling you that you have to get out of the boarding area because you will not be boarding for a looooong time.  And then waiting for to hear through the grapevine that, indeed, you now DO need to be in the boarding area because you will be boarding at any moment.  The Mad Dash ensues.

*The Great Wait – This event follows the Mad Dash and is what you do for the next  two hours while you wait to board the train.

*The Strip-Tease – This entertainment seemed to be just for the stripper, as I didn’t see anyone else enjoying it, especially the sweet little Amish women who had a front row a seat.  The Stripper danced a jaunty jig, while unbuttoning his leopard-print shirt and then REMOVING his pants and slowly (way too slowly for me and the Amish gals) putting on a new pair.  He continued with his dancing for the next hour, much to the bonnet clad women’s horror. Absolutely, TRUE STORY.

*Pot Stumping – During the Great Wait and after the Strip Tease came the Pot Stumping.  This involved a very small, little, “different” (think Deliverance) man eyeing our girls up and down and expounding on the benefits of marijuana while showing us the lovely tattoo of the pot leaf on his arm.  He freaked us out a bit.

After all the lively entertainment, we finally boarded the train.  And this train was GREAT!  Lots of leg room…no invasive, offending odors, just a comfy, cozy ride. 

And good thing too.  It is good to be relaxed when Amtrak tells you that they have brake problems on your train and you will not make your connecting train but will be in Washington DC possibly overnight.

Fun. (still beats driving a roundabout any day!)

Well, I

Gotta Mosey!

California Dreamin'

"The attraction and superiority of California are in its days." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

In just a little more than four weeks, I will be trekking to the "Nation's Salad Bowl"; Fresno, CA.   The Raisin Capitol of the World!   A land so fertile that they not only provide most of the nation's produce, but their soil is so rich gardens and trees even grow underground!  I am headed to the Golden State to head up a communications conference, but plan on spending some extra time to enjoy friends, family and warmth...and also to celebrate my daughter's college graduation.

Since I will be in California over a week, and need to pack both professional and casual clothes, AND because I need to leave one of my suitcases empty so I can load up on Trader Joe's goodies while I am there, I need to really think about just which essentials should be honored with space in my suitcase.  To that end, I have done some research and think I have narrowed my list down.  See if you agree.

Reef Stash Sandals - The Find

When you plan a trip to California in April where the average temperatures are in the 70's and you are leaving a place like Colorado where it averages somewhere between 30 and 58 degrees in April, the most liberating act one can do is ditch their Timberland snow boots for California beach flip flops.  As I stated, I am trying to pack light because missing from Colorado presently is Trader Joe's...so I need all the luggage space I can get away with to stash as many Sea Salt and Chocolate Covered Almonds as possible.  These fashionable sandals will allow me to get rid of my clunky snow shoes AND my purse!  I can see me now, dancing down the sands singing, "She's Got Diamonds on the Soles of her Feet"!

The Pillowig - Geekologie

Try to get past the prison bed camouflage motif and consider the brilliance of this piece of travel genius!  I was reading Readers Digest online that one of the travel items you should never pack, in order to save space, is your pillow.  They recommended wearing a hoodie instead to cushion your head.  But the sheer beauty and perfection of the Pillowig, is that it is both pillow and hoodie!  (For personal reasons, I find this an essential item to own if I want to go to a bowling alley ever again.  My friends and communications students know exactly what I am talking about!)  Yes, I once got my head stuck in a bowling machine (I know...you're shocked right?) and so this Pillowig has value beyond travel purposes for me.

The Samsonite Scootcase - Cnet

This travel accessory is beyond Einstein-type genius!  This "Scootcase" is small enough to fit in the overhead bin as a carry on, but it converts to a scooter (!!!!!) once you are off the plane.  The YouTube video here recommends it for making it to closely booked flights that are far from each other in big airports, like LAX.  But, all I can see is the fun factor of this unique and incredible device!!!  Everything I need and a joyride, too!  I do think it lacks one accessory, however.  It should come equipped with one of these

The only other shortfall I see with the Scootcase, is that the reviewer wore a helmet.  What do you pack THAT in?  Because I am sure not wearing it on the airplane.

Oh wait!  I just thought of another use for the Pillowig!  I need to place a Skymall order!  

I still have a few more weeks until I actually pack, so please leave a comment and let me know your ideas for more efficient travel!  I'll be looking for them, but now, I 

Gotta Mosey!