farlands | traveling near and far

Finally!  I get to write a bona-fide packing post!  I do, in fact, pack quite often for work trips, but that usually means lists that include phone holders for rental cars and spanx.  Happily my overseas travel list has neither of those items on it. First, Jeff got me my first backpack suitcases. By  Tortuga Backpacks, it is a model that recently was put on sale because a new version came out. I asked him to get me some packing cubes too because I often read about how helpful they are.  And they truly are. Here are the majority of items that will be going into the suitcase: Next is what I plan to wear on the plane -basically I'll be hanging out in this outfit for more than 24 hours, so it has to be crazy comfortable, include tons of layers from going from snowy Wisconsin to near the equator, and a VERY SOFT BRA.  You ladies know what I am talking about, right?  No underwires allowed: I got my toiletries pared down to a very respectab...

My sister sent met a link to an article, and it perfectly summed up what I have been trying to do but didn't realize it until I saw the title of the article:   Make Each Year of Your Life More Interesting than the One Before.     The author, Srinvis Rao, started making lists of all the interesting, new things he had experienced that year.  Since I love making lists(!) I thought I would take a stab at my own list for 2016: Trying out and being in a musical theater performance Taking bikes to another state and riding on a new trail Taking tap dancing lessons Performing on stage in a tap routine (different from the lessons and it was, frankly, quite terrifying) Taking a musical theater class (one of my best experiences this year) Trying out for a dance troupe extra Taking the train into downtown Chicago.  This may seem like a silly one, but I am reminded by efforts like this that doing something in a different way, instead of driving there as I t...

Here in America, vacation time can be fairly limited.  1-2 weeks per year for a starting salaried worker.  Sometimes none, unless you can afford to take unpaid time off. I remember being in Germany and talking with a group of younger working people from Spain, England, Germany and other countries, and their mouths literally fell open when I shared how much (actually little) time off I had.  They averaged 5-6 weeks a year, and could not imagine not having that time to refresh and recharge. I am very fortunate to work at a place that provides time off, and since I have been at my workplace for a number of years I have access to more vacation days. That, and I have been putting aside a few days here and there each year, 'just in case' I had the opportunity to take a major trip like the one we are going on to Kenya in two and a half weeks.  Now I am very glad I did. Just having counted up the consecutive days that I will be away from home, work, and the regular routi...