Traveling Light

I’m not sure exactly when I became obsessed with the idea of traveling light but I think it had something to do with trying to sling a huge suitcase filled with Christmas presents and a laptop up into an Amtrak train. It was so heavy! So I decided to get with the program and find a way to travel more comfortably. The first thing I did was get rid of the suitcase. I bought a nice, rugged backpack which I use for two-day trips and added a Rollo Travel Bag for longer trips. http://a.co/d/dEZpWrn

Traveling With Tech

Then I had to take a close look at all the tech crap that I carry with me.

I would like to tell you that I love my Mac Book Pro for traveling but I would be lying. Oh, I liked it well enough when I first bought it, although I had only worked on a Mac a few times before so there was a learning curve for me. I bought it refurbished because I generally have good luck with such things on eBay.

My first disillusionment came on a trip that I took to Ventura. You might have read about it here: https://indulgentaging.com/index.php/2018/09/19/a-small-taste-of-karma/ First of all, I paid more for this thing used than I did for brand new laptops of the “other” persuasion. To add to my disgruntlement on this occasion the charger disintegrated and to replace it would have cost me well over $75.00.

I hauled the damn thing home along with the new shiny Acer Chromebook I purchased (and happily used on my trip) and scoured Amazon until I found a relatively inexpensive charger. I was bound and determined to use this thing even though it weighs a lot more than my (now two) Chromebooks.

Tech Trial And Error

Next trip, it goes in the car, gets hauled up the stairs to my room and promptly shuts down with an error message that means my hard drive is bad. Grrr! I don’t even know why I brought the extra Chromebook with me. Maybe I’m psychic and don’t know it? I mean who needs two computers on a road trip? Anyway, the Mac went back down the stairs and into the car to be filed in my mind as a task that I will take care of much later in my life, along with the malfunctioning iPhone that also needs repair.

I think you are catching my drift here and I am sorry to you Apple product users out there who are screaming at me that your stuff is the best. I have pretty much made up my mind at this point that I am sticking with my Dell Desktop (refurbished and cost me $169.00), my LG V20 phone, my Acer Chromebook 11 and yes, I admit it, my Apple iPad Mini, which I love.

It took me a while to get it right but I can now travel light with all of the above (minus the desktop PC) in my purse.

Enter The Purse

Ah, the purse. That holy grail of getting your travel stuff right. I have been a purse hoarder for years. I love to buy them, always looking for just the right size and usability for every occasion. (And no, the one in this photo is not what I am using!)

I used to go for the designer bags at Ross and Nordstrom Rack but I have now graduated to practical over frou-frou. What happened? I discovered that leather bags are heavy especially if you are looking for one to carry a lot of stuff.  So now I mostly stick to lightweight canvas or nylon ones with lots of pockets.

This one is great. It has plenty of pockets. I can fit my iPad mini, my phone and my Chromebook in it along with other assorted stuff. http://a.co/d/8vaOgI7

However, I can’t deny that I still want to have one that looks like this photo. A magic one like a Mary Poppins bag would be a dream come true! Maybe for Christmas???