Could I be MORE sick of trying to figure out what to pack for this conference? It’s not GA that’s the issue — it’s trying to figure out how to fit in a week’s worth of vacation duds in the same bag. As George Bush the Elder would say, “NOT GONNA HAPPEN.”
So I’m taking one suitcase and a nice matching rolling duffle.
By request of my colleague, The Lively Tradition, I have to wear vestments for a Communion Service (why can’t I just be the keepin’-it-real, friendly-type co-officiant in civvies, I’d like to know?) so after much thought I’ve decided to pack an alb and stole — all scrinched up to fit in the suitcase, and to be taken out later and given to hotel housekeeping for a dry cleaning and press. It will cost a pretty penny, I’m sure (more like a stupid, wasteful penny) but I’m taking THREE FLIGHTS out to Oregon tomorrow and I’ll be darned if I’m going to drag a garment bag around with me. Scott’s suggestion of shipping it out there seems expensive and complicated, sorry darling.
Also, there is no way I’m going to figure out that One Bag thing, but nice try, sweeties.
PeaceBang is the crankiest girl in town right now. Garumph, garumph, garumph! Upstairs for more packing.
Wait – I missed something – who said you had to take only one bag? I’m sorry you couldn’t get around that three flights deal. That really stinks.
I sympathize with the distress – and I hope you travel well.
Fair warning to everyone if you have not yet left for GA – it is cooler here than I expected from the weather reports. It was about 60 degrees in mid afternoon and quite cloudy. Bring layers!
On the plus side, there is a Starbucks on nearly every corner – and a tasty local burger joint with veggie alternatives and a commitment to use local, seasonal, and sustainable ingredients.
For those in need of a wee moment of retail therapy or some asian food, there is an asian market right across the street from the convention center. And the spouse and I warned them that many of us are about to descend upon them. PB, if you find you need an inexpensive silk patterned purse to brighten your day, this is the place – while they last!
Not expensive or complicated, but probably too late at this point. Well, three-day service would work.
For future reference — and this goes for any time I’m prone to overpack or pack something heavy I’ll use once — just ship it to your hotel. Be sure to include the stub of a roll of packing tape (I save them when they run low.) I prefer FedEx over UPS; not USPS in this case.
In the second line, put “Guest: Scott Wells arr 6/20” if you are, in fact, Scott Wells arriving June 20.
Open the box with a some care, reserve. When you’re ready to ship it — and papers and books and GA tchotchke — you have the tape and box.
As I learned in my last Day Job, many hotels can even arrange the return shipment. And then you can forget about it.
Don’t you have a travel steamer? If not, surely someone at GA — with all those robes — does.
I was planning to drive up after church today, meaning I could throw whatever I wanted into the car — pillow, sneakers, some bottles of wine, paying no heed to 3 oz. limits. But a pastoral crisis emerged Sat night that meant I couldn’t head out right after church. So I changed my plans, and bought a ticket instead. So now I have to pack with intention and get to the airport in the AM. See you in Portland. Prepare for some seriously cool weather.
My 2 cents:
Tell the person who asked you to officiate to find you a robe. Or find one when you get there. Portland is a big city. Lots of folks wear albs, etc. Don’t drag yours around for 2 weeks so you can wear it for an hour.
Ooh, I didn’t mean to imply that only using One Bag was the be-all and end-all. I just was diggin’ on the “wrap around a core” packing technique.
If you need two bags, by all means, go for it.
Is there a reason you couldn’t iron your alb and stole in your hotel room? Most nice hotels include the iron and board in the room and if they don’t, they have one you could borrow. To make it easier, hang them in your bathroom to get good and steamy during your showers. Unless your Communion Service is the very first evening, you should be able to “shower steam” the garments at least once.
If the thought of ironing such a volume of fabric is daunting, though, you may have to pay for pressing. (I Google Mapped the area to see if there was a close dry cleaners, but alas, the nearest is about 10 blocks away.)
My sympathies! As a fellow girl, I get it. I suppose you can’t just bundle the alb around everything else, like a long jacket, and hum Cake’s “Short Skirt Long Jacket” to yourself as you go through the airport?
For the stoles, I would find a way to fit it in my suitcase even if I did ship a few other things- my stoles are too sentimental/valuable to trust to Fed Ex!
Ironing yourself is cheaper, but sometimes, the stress-free worry of hotel dry cleaning is worth the price. I paid 40$ to have my car washed the day before I got married- sometimes it’s worth it to have someone else do that sort of minutiae.
All calm blessings upon you and all who go to General Assembly. I’ll trade you hospital rounds for Portland any day, right now!
scott’s shipping things back from GA idea is a really good one, since you’re vacationing afterwards.
i went on a study abroad trip last summer for 3 weeks to holland and austria, and if i hadn’t sent a box home from holland before heading to vienna i would have been seriously weighed down. it’s a great idea for instances where the weather changes too. the first week of holland was quite chilly and i had to use all the layers i had packed. but then it got a bit warmer, and it was definitely wayyyyy warmer in vienna, so i sent back the jacket and sweater that made my bag bulkier.
have fun at GA!
When I’ve had to travel with alb and stole I would hang it in a steamy bathroom and then pull on the robe to get rid of the wrinkles. Regarding stoles, I’d take one that is not so precious (got lots of stoles from Guatamala $5 each!) fold it in half, then roll it up and put it in my bag. No wrinkles or annoying folds!
Pick the right fabrics, roll (not fold) them, and bring a small bottle of diluted liquid fabric softener. Add the hang-it-in-the bathroom trick and a hotel iron to save yourself a dry cleaning.