How girls pack a suitcase
True confessions: this is me.
You never know when you might need…:
On my last flight, my suitcase weighed exactly and precisely 50 pounds. Whew. And that doesn’t count the box of things I sent ahead of me.
The New Neo
A blog about political change, among other things
That’s me, too.
Upon retirement, my parents packed up and traveled the world for a year, and their suitcases weighed less than 20 lbs each.
When they travel, women (as a gender) are susceptible to the impulse to take “the nest” with them. It’s a biological imperative that the ‘nest’ must be protected at all costs and being prepared for any eventuality is, at best prudent and, at worst a bit neurotic.
Four million years of genetic coding and biological conditioning is not easily resisted.
OMG! LOL! Where, WHERE!!??, have I seen that before. Men see an SUV and think “Off-Road.” Women see an SUV and think, “Suitcase!”
And…. when delving into the strange but recognizable female universe that is Jenna Marbles, don’t forget to take in her killer tutorial:
“How to trick people into thinking you’re good looking”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYpwAtnywTk&feature=plcp
44 Million views and going UP!
Geoffrey Britain: thank you for giving me ammunition the next time I am teased about this. I’ll have to remember that.
vanderleun: ah, but I wrote that book on that one, long before Jenna Marbles was a mere gleam in her father’s eye.
My wife defies the genetic female traits for bringing along the all our possessions. She packs our stuff whenever we travel and we never have to worry about airline weight limits. When you’re going from the tropics to the antarctic in the same trip, it’s not easy to pull off. She’s a master of mix and match, accessorizing, layering, and making do. We used to travel Euriope for weeks at a time with Rick Steves back packs with 25 pounds each in them. I’m a lucky man.
My rule of thumb for packing: if I can’t carry it in my left (non-dominate) hand for at least 100 feet, the it is too heavy.
“When they travel, women (as a gender) are susceptible to the impulse to take “the nest” with them.”
Yes, I came to that conclusion many years ago, having thought at first it was just a quirk of my wife, then hearing remarks about it from other husbands. I think the theory often applies to women’s cars, too. I don’t want anything extraneous in my car; my wife doesn’t want hers to be without anything she might possibly need. A few years ago, en route to lunch with three female co-workers in the car of one of them, who apologized for all the stuff in the car, I ventured to remark that “For a lot of women, their car seems to be an extension of their house.” All three laughed and agreed.
My wife fits the stereotype but my sister and her husband sail. At one point, they lived on their sailboat for a year. They were building a house, so they weren’t on a leisurely cruise, but going to work every day and getting through a Jersey winter. To this day she travels light and stows everything perfectly away!
Now I finally understand the 100% differential between the weight of my bag and my wife’s. I really did think, for literally decades, it was just her. At least now I know it’s not. LOL
My sister always talks about the importance of being prepared for the zombie apocalypse.
My wife is a careful packer and never takes on excess cargo. But if its a long trip, say a month in France, it takes her nearly a month of prepare. My daughter can do a few weeks away from home with a 20 lb. bag. My sister takes everything except the kitchen sink.
She’s unbelievably cute! Take the second suitcase.
uhhhhhhhh
Four million years of genetic coding and biological conditioning is not easily resisted.
Sure they are; just ask her to carry her own luggage and watch four millions years of evolution melt away (!).
Actually, I’m with J.J. My wife is a prudent, indeed, parsimonious packer, and I too am lucky.
My wife fits the stereotype and then some. A separate suitcase is reserved for all of her cosmetics and hair equipment. Yes, I get to lug it all.
That 10 pound .357 takes up 1/5 of my wife’s allotment.
Oh, well.
If not for this mindset, we never would have needed to invent the Boeing 747.
Necessity is a mother.
It can extend beyond traveling and cars. Women’s very large purses qualify as well.
When a woman gets dressed up with a stylish clutch purse, the minimum needed is revealed. Anything larger qualifies under the “you never know what you might need” rubric.
How many men have looked on in astonishment, as their girlfriend or wife, trying to find a lost object, has pulled a seemingly endless series of ‘stuff’ out of their purse as they work toward the bottom, vainly seeking the misplaced item?
When my wife and I travel we always end up transferring some stuff from her overweight suitcase to my underweight suitcase. We look like the Joad family truck when we travel.
When I would travel to Europe on business, I wore a suit, packed a pair of slacks, a sport coat, three dress shirts, 3 ties, socks & underwear and a pair of casual shoes in my carryon suit bag. Of course I used hotel laundry every other day.
I’ve finally convinced her that she doesn’t need to pack three changes of clothes for each day we’re traveling. It doesn’t matter if she wears the same outfit on Thursday that she wore on Monday.
She’s getting better… Not perfect….but better
I’ve finally convinced her that she doesn’t need to pack three changes of clothes for each day we’re traveling.
Also, it’s unlikely you’ll be meeting the Queen, a realization that can simplify packing quite a bit.
Let’s see, two pairs of blue jeans (wear one, pack one), one pair of khakis in case I have to look more presentable, four sport shirts, four t-shirts, one dress shirt, eight pairs of undershorts, eight pairs of socks, maybe a blazer (worn on the plane), maybe a tie, two pairs of shoes (wear one, pack one) and toiletries. Figure on having laundry done on the weekend (or on doing it myself), and I’m good for two weeks. Total weight, including lightweight spinner suitcase, less than 25lbs. Take a little more or a little less, depending on the weather. If it’s a business trip where I’ll be wearing suits and dress shirts, those go in a separate garment bag. Even with the second bag, I’ll have under 50lbs. to check. The only time I’m over is when I take my golf clubs, which I usually have to pay for anyway, as oversized sports equipment. If I’m driving instead of flying, no problem.
Why do people believe it’s necessary to take the entire contents of one’s closet and dresser? (I’ve seen men do it, too, although less frequently than I have women). Unless you’re off on some wilderness trek, needed items can usually be obtained at the destination.
It always makes me wonder, what if a woman were in charge of the Normandy Invasion…would we STILL be packing?
There is a reason for the existence of stereotypes. In many instances- if not all instances- stereotypes give accurate descriptions.
For a five month backpacking tour of South America, fifteen pounds sufficed. One consequence was that I had to hand wash clothes every 2-3 days instead of weekly. When I hiked for five days in a solitary stretch of the Peruvian Andes, the backpack weighed considerably more, because I had to bring five days worth of food.
At the end of my trip, the backpack weighed more because of the goods I had purchased.
OMG! She forgot the curling ironing, the hair dryer, the Costco sized advil bottle & emergency chocolate (for that time!), her pillow, three choices of bikini, two – no, better go with three designer sunglasses, suntan lotion, spare snacks and spare drinks (for sharing, ya know). And her iPad!
What was she THINKING! 😀
What was she THINKING!
“I’ll travel light this time.”
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It might be cleaver and worth watching if you weren’t such a scurrilous troll.
John Rokket: even then, I don’t think it would be especially cleaver.