It’s summer, which means that it is prime traveling time. There are family reunions to attend, camps to go to, theme parks to adventure, and gatherings of all different types. Whether it’s California to Texas, New York to Florida, or Hawai’i to Louisiana… There is one thing in common. Traveling, whether it’s boat, bus, train or plane, requires packing. I hate packing with a strong vengeance but it is inescapable for those of us who want to see the world (or at least the United States). To celebrate the joys of traveling, here are the eleven stages of packing that every person must get through before being able to enjoy their time.
1. Realizing you have to do laundry if you want to have clothes on this trip.
2. Trying to calculate just how long you’ll be gone and how many outfits you’ll need.
3. Deciding to bring ten more outfits than what you calculated because who knows, maybe you’ll need an extra four pairs of jeans during your trip to the beach.
4. Googling the weather to find out weather-appropriate clothes and being confused as to how it could be 95 one day and 62 the next.
5. Looking at the piles of clothes around you and deciding it’s just too much hassle and you’d rather not go.
6. Making the decision to only bring carry-ons to save money.
7. Realizing that that’s not going to happen with the amount of stuff you’re bringing and decide to just painfully hand over the $25 for a checked bag.
8. Remembering that now you can bring more than 3 ounces of one liquid and grabbing all of your shampoo, conditioner, body wash, etc.
9. Looking at your three suitcases and realizing that you still don’t have room for everything.
10. Taking everything out and just staring at it hoping it’ll all organize itself.
