Yes, I packed already. What of it?

The first time I traveled internationally, I overpacked by... well, by a ton. My grandfather had given me an enormous soft-sided piece of luggage (part of a set, actually) when I graduated from high school. The largest bag was... huge. I could have fit two dead bodies in there and had room for more stuff. The use it had seen in the ten years since high school was just as a convenient way to pack my wardrobe when I moved from one house to another. But then came my chance: I was heading to China for a few weeks.

Weeks? Oh my. What about clean laundry? What about... oh, there were so many possibilities and I tried to plan for all of them - which meant that I packed my entire wardrobe. Seriously. My *entire* wardrobe. What did I wear out of that? Well, I did wear quite a few things but the hotel had one-day laundry service for really cheap. I could have packed two pairs of shorts, a few shirts, some nice clothes and would have been fine. Instead, I practically needed a forklift to lift the bag I took.

Since then, I've learned how to pack. 

Currently, I'm preparing for a fourteen day trip to India and Nepal. It's going to be in the 100's in India and in the 80's in Nepal. I've managed to pack a decent wardrobe into my carry-on wheelie bag - and still have room for all the 'extras' like the universal electric converter, the microbacterial water filter and bottle, a pair of fit-flops (world's most comfy flipflops), and my toiletries. I have come a really long way.

What am I taking? Will I look like a bum?

I hope I won't look slovenly. That'd be terrible.

But I'm taking two pairs of shorts, six shirts, a couple of tank tops (for under the shirts), one pair of pants, one dress. Yup. Fourteen days on just that. It'll be good!

In the Beginning...

A new blog. Oo, boy.

Why am I doing a blog? Couple of reasons: one, a friend asked me to blog about my cats. Technically, that'd be three reasons - I have three cats. But... a blog focused on my cats? Really? *glances at the two who are nearby* Yeeaaahhh... I like my cats and they will be mentioned here, possibly often enough that this blog maybe should be called something creative like... oh, I don't know... "*CATS!* In Real Life!" or something equally catchy. But, really? Cats sleep fourteen hours a day or ...at least in my household, twenty hours a day, and that'd make for a boring blog. ("Day Thirteen: Little Timmy woke Bug up from his nap just so that Bug would snuggle with him while they both napped." Not happening, folks.)

So, yeah, I rather dismissed that friend's request (sorry, dear friend: I love my cats, but not quite that much; that doesn't mean I don't value your friendship!) but then my co-workers, who are quite a fabulous bunch of people, said that I should do a blog based on my travels. I haven't really been many places but I'm heading somewhere quite 'scary' and 'exotic' (by some people's standards) in a few weeks. Several folks claim to be eager to hear about my adventures and see the photos I take. This is the suggestion that is getting me off my duff to start a blog.

Another suggestion was also made: that I blog about weight loss. *sigh* Weight loss... that's the baggage I carry around. I like food, lots. Many of my travel adventures will be about the food I encounter (for example, in Paris, there was this really divine.... oh, that's a story for later, nevermind). I didn't grow up with a healthy relationship with food and now I'm working to set it right. Some of the entries here will be about food, health, diet. Those terrible things that often sidetrack us from being happy with ourselves and living our lives.  Don't worry, I'll warn you when the post is about weight loss. (And on that note: I lost 3.2 pounds this week! Yay!)

So, we'll see how long this lasts and whether I ever figure out how to post pictures or post from the iPhone or from wherever my travels take me.