Packing Light on Memory Lane

I had a fun little blast from the past this morning. In my first job out of college, I worked for a medical school, and I still freelance for that school. Today I had a meeting to touch base with the people I deal with, since there's been a lot of turnover and some of the people who deal with my project didn't even know I existed. It wasn't a total trip down memory lane because the office has moved from my time. I used to get serious flashbacks whenever I went on campus, but they're now in a different office, in a different building, on a different part of the campus, and I hardly recognized the campus because they've gone on a building spree. There are still a few people there from my time, and it was fun catching up. I also found out I've been getting byline credit in a magazine because they repurpose some of the stuff I write for them. I guess if I ever had to resort to going back to a regular job again, I wouldn't mind working there, but I wouldn't enjoy going back to commuting. The drive alone was enough to motivate me to get home and do some writing, and it wasn't even rush hour. I've gotten out of the habit of driving much beyond my neighborhood.

But I won't be getting any writing done today because I'm off to ArmadilloCon tomorrow, and I have a ton and a half of stuff to do. I've finished the sample chapters and now need to develop a synopsis, so the plan is that I can brainstorm during the drive and then maybe do some pen-and-paper thinking in my hotel room before the con gets started. Today is for laundry, packing, a few errands, some preparation work and then maybe trying to get my house into some kind of order so I don't cringe upon returning home.

I planned my wardrobe based on the scorching heat we've been having, but now things will be different and I'll have to rethink. Then again, I probably won't leave the hotel too often, so it's not as though it makes a big difference. I'm going to indulge myself and take the huge suitcase. Ever since I had an Australian boss who mocked us if we took more than a small tote bag for a business trip of less than a week (he was the sort of person who could spend a year traveling around the world with just a small backpack), I've tried to pack as lightly as possible, and that's paid off since the airlines started charging baggage fees. Now it feels utterly decadent to take a large suitcase with full-size bottles of toiletries. Since I'm driving, I might as well, and the idea is that I can fit everything into the one bag, including my computer bag, and I can even put the stuff I have with me in the car into that bag to carry it inside the hotel and not have to worry about hauling around multiple bags. So, I may look as though I've packed a steamer trunk for a four-day weekend (I'm staying an extra day as my summer vacation), but really, I'm just being efficient.

Now I need to put together a good road trip CD for the drive.