Packing woes

 Nanette

Will it all fit and be the right weight?

Oh, woe is me!  I've been gathering up "essential" clothing and other items for this trip. The plan is to pack my stuff in a smallish roll-along suitcase (seen on the far right with a backpack to carry on the plane), pack that in a larger expandable suitcase and then pile things in until the weight is right.
 We are bringing stuff for a family that Eileen knows so we could do with a lot more weight allowance. Today I did my trial packing and ended up with 52.8 pounds!  That's 2.8 pounds too much!!!!  They can be pretty strict about luggage weights   (we have been caught unpacking and rearranging right there at the check-in counter) so I unpacked and took out a few things I may be able to do without.

Packing is a tough job for me to begin with.  Having been a girl guide for a year or two as a youngster, I have taken the "Be Prepared" motto to heart.  50 pounds of luggage only allows a certain amount of preparedness.

_Hours later_
Ha!  I've done it, but not before having to totally unpack to look for my passport, which was found at the bottom of my little suitcase.

If you followed our trip to Columbia, this suitcase is the very same one that fell out of the bus to be rescued by a passing motorcyclist. Notice the prudent use of duct tape.