Today I packed.
I have a series of overnight bags, as a result of the odd circumstances of my next week. Attend me:
Wednesday: drive to Mom’s house, drop off dogs. Spend the night, because my Mom feeds me more than anyone on the planet, and it induces instant and immediate food coma. Driving 88 miles back does not seem like a good idea, so… spend the night, yeah.
Thursday: drive back from Mom’s. Go home, retrieve bike, and several overnight bags, and other biking gear. Head to Male Person’s house. Retrieve male person, drive to Vancouver, BC. Check into the Fairmont (have I mentioned how massively awesome it is to work for a travel company?), fawn over everything, enjoy the day.
Friday: drop off bike at appropriate spot, pick up ride packet, hit Lee Valley (if you like hardware, that is the place to go), visit the Lush Store, get to bed EARLY.
Saturday, 5am: wake up
Saturday, 5:30am: HEY, WAKE UP!
Saturday, 6am: arrive at Ride Start. Check in my gear bag, check in my food bag, hopefully I’ve had coffee by now or I’m a mess, and other people are likely going to not be happy around me.
Saturday, 6pm: arrive in Mount Vernon, WA. Observe butt calluses.
Sunday, 7am: leave Mount Vernon, WA. Ignore prescription recommendations on the Advil bottle.
Sunday, 5pm: arrive in Marymoor Park (Redmond), WA. Weep with relief and then sign up for next year.
Sunday, 7pm: male person better have my butt home by now.
Monday: work from home, likely standing because said butt is going to be under protest. Call in to 4 meetings. Thank my bosses profusely for the opportunity to do said work from home.
Tuesday: fly to San Francisco (for work)
Wednesday: fly home from San Francisco (for sanity)
Thursday: breathe. Do laundry, oh, and, work.
Did you catch that? I have to create a series of overnight bags:
- for mom’s house, which has nothing to do with my Vancouver requirements
- for Vancouver, which has nothing to do with bike trip requirements
- for bike trip, which has nothing to do with home requirements
- for home, which has nothing to do with bike trip requirements
- for SFO, which has nothing to do with home requirements
My dining room table is awash in clean(ish) laundry, small size travel bottles, and a vigorous debate over where the bottle of wine goes: bag 1 or bag 4. The wet wipes have made it into bag 3, as has the Advil; the reading material long overdue for perusal has made it into bag 2. I am having a fashion debate over bags 1-2, and 4, as well as a debate over which set of bike shorts to wear on day 1 vs day 2. Do I have enough sunscreen packed? Enough disposable bags? Gu/Cliff Bars/shot blocks?
I still haven’t learned how to repair a busted tire. I may have to use the internets for that one.’
Next post: if not from Mom’s, then from the Fairmont in Vancouver.
Bobbie Conti 