The perils of packing...

I just finished packing for my trip. Yes, I JUST NOW finished with the packing, even though I started yesterday. I know some people (like my brother, for instance) who seem able to just throw random items into a suitcase and happen to end up with most of what they need for their destination. (I say “most” because I can remember a few occasions where Eric had to run out to buy razors or shampoo or underwear or some other item he’d forgotten to throw into his bag…)

But I’ve never been able to pack so haphazardly. What’s more, I try to pack as little as possible while still having everything I could possibly need. That means that if I’m going away for two weeks, I make sure to pack two weeks’ worth of clothing and underwear – I don’t pack one weeks’ worth in the hopes that I can find a laundromat. However, I also make sure that much of my clothing is of a multi-purpose variety. I bring articles that can be mixed and matched, and worn for casual purposes or more dressy occasions. And I never pack shoes that can only be worn with one outfit – that would be a waste of space.

What I was realizing, as I was finishing up my little packing project this morning, is that I seem to view packing for a trip as some sort of mathematical problem. There’s a kind of logic to it that can spell the difference between over-packing, under-packing, and just right. There’s a way to fit all those clothes and shoes and bottles of shampoo into a suitcase in such a way that the space will be maximized, but sometimes it takes some trial and error to figure it out. Like this morning – I started packing everything into a large gray suitcase, but I realized that things weren’t fitting quite how I wanted them to fit. So I unpacked the gray suitcase, and dragged out a giant blue one (I love my giant blue suitcase – you could fit Rhode Island in that suitcase…). Things were fitting much more nicely, but I realized that between my things and Rick’s things, I’d still need a bit more space. So I found a small black suitcase, unpacked half of what I’d packed into the blue one, and started dividing up the clothing. And then I decided it would make the most sense to divide everything by necessity – when we’re on the road, we won’t need any dressy outfits or nice shoes, only shorts and t-shirts and jeans and sneakers. So finally, after hours of working everything out in my head, it was immensely satisfying to see all articles of clothing and pairs of shoes falling into their temporary suitcase inhabitance like pieces of a large and very strange puzzle.

So now, I am completely certain that my efforts have paid off, and my trip will run more smoothly because of it. Although I have to be honest, sometimes I really envy Eric’s ability to toss-and-go when it comes to packing a suitcase. Maybe some day he’ll be kind enough to give me some lessons in disorganized chaos… :)