Confessions of a last-minute packer ...

Confessions of a last-minute packer

In our relationship, I’m the one with the spreadsheet and travel documents and arrive at the airport way too early (but, heaven knows, there have been a few occasions when that has been a good thing), while Grant pays no attention to the details.

But when it comes to packing, the situation is reversed. He loves nothing better than a good discussion about packing weeks, if not months before we go away, with a practice pack taking place at least a week in advance. I, on the other hand, am the ultimate last-minute packer.

The worst example of this was the first time I had to go to Hong Kong for business. It was a last-minute decision (I found out on Friday and was leaving on Monday). We were having our kitchen pulled out during the following week, so as well as making sure Sarah was covered for all her school stuff in my absence, I had to empty out the kitchen over the weekend. Plus, I had a 3000-word article due for Wellbeing Astrology that was due while I was away and that I hadn’t started.

Monday morning came and I was still writing. When my boss called to let me know he was just leaving his house (a 20-30-minute drive at that time of the day), I hit send on the article and pulled the suitcase out.

When he lifted the suitcase, he looked at me and said, ‘You just zipped that up, didn’t you?’ I shrugged.

These days, I’m not nearly as bad. If we have an early morning departure, I'll pack the night before.

It helps that I’m a light traveller, I guess, but over the years I have it down to a fine art and don’t tend to forget anything #famouslastwords. Besides, I’ve booked Air BNBs with laundry facilities, so the longest we’ll be going without a washing machine is four days - I don’t need to take a lot of clothes.

In the past, though, I usually worked until I left. The last time we went to the UK, I logged on at 4 a.m. to finish the project plan for an office move that wasn’t supposed to happen but was foisted on me weeks before I was due to leave. I worried about it the whole time I was away. Spoiler alert: It went fine.

This time, though, I don’t have to move the Melbourne office, cover the HR role, or rush to onboard new starters at the last minute. I don’t even have a book due while I’m away. As a result, I already have (some) clothes ready for the suitcase. Now I’m wondering whether I’m a last-minute packer because I’m a last-minute packer or whether it was because I’d committed to too much when I was in the day job. I suspect it’s a little of both.

Having said that, I suspect I’ll need a tad more than a puffer jacket, a scarf and a beanie for five weeks away … but I have started, so that’s something, right? Besides, we’re not leaving until 5 am on Friday. I have HEAPS of time.