Moving Day!

JENN McKINLAY: For the fourth time in five years, the Hooligans are moving. The first couple of moves, Hub and I were all in, helping schlep their worldly possessions up three flights of stairs (why?!) to their new abode. This time, I am conveniently back east and Hub is booked with gigs. 

Huh. Weird how that worked out.

Even though we look forward to retiring and moving "someday" that day is a ways off for me and Hub. We've been in our home for 26 years--Amazing! Before that, I moved eight times. Since we are out of the moving loop, I had to look up stats because that's who I am (librarian!). So here are some interesting things I learned from CT Moving and Storage:

1. The average person will move 11.7 times in their life. 

2. Half of all moves happen between May and September. 

3. Typical household moves contain at least 6,500 pounds worth of moveable items. 

4. Moving is the 3rd most stressful event in a person’s life. 

5. Friday is the most popular moving day. 

6. About 40 million Americans move every year, making up 17% of the US population. 

7. California, Texas, and Florida are the top moving destinations. 

8. The average American home contains over 300,000 items. 

9. The most common item left behind during a move is the shower curtain. 

10.  Packing the kitchen is considered the most time-consuming part of a move. 

For laughs, here's the classic "pivot" scene from Friends:

How about you, Reds and Readers? How many times have you moved and how did it go?

Travel angst, anyone?

 Hallie Ephron: At this time of year, many of us are looking forward to traveling. Somewhere warmer? More festive? With family or friends or solo?

Whether it’s by car or bus or train or plane, the anticipation sometimes lasts longer than the trip itself. For days before, I’m making lists of what to take with me. What to do before I leave. What to arrange for happening while I’m gone. Who to send my itinerary. What to check before I leave the house.

Not to mention printing out maps and time schedules for the places I’ll be going.

And the night before I leave, I sleep awake. Editing my lists. Fretting over whether I’ve set my clock early enough. Double- and triple- checking whether I’ve set it at all.

Do you have an anxious cycle before a trip, too? And do you have any pre-trip routine that calms you down and makes sure that you don’t arrive at your destination (as I have) without a change of underpants and your cell phone charging cord?

LUCY BURDETTE: Always anxious before a trip! I think of things I need to remember weeks and days before I leave–I know I should get better at writing them down instantly.

We are just back from visiting the kids in DC and CA, and I’m glad to have the traveling part over with. Not the visits, just the travel! This trip we had suitcases stuffed with Christmas presents too, and we were in two different climates. This did not do a lot for my wardrobe:).

If it’s a big trip, say Europe or further, I have lots of fun planning where to go and what to eat, but the packing and worrying part is magnified…

RHYS BOWEN: We always do everything we can to prevent anxiety, Hallie. Never cut it too fine with flights. If I’m going on a cruise we fly in the day before. No more tight connections.

I’m a great list maker. When I’m going on a big trip to Europe , or going to a convention or book tour, I plan out all the clothes in advance, hang them in the wardrobe in order and stare at them, worrying whether they will be right.

Whatever I take never seems to be quite right. Always too hot or too cold. I study weather reports. It’s 75 in France. I pack accordingly and when I get there there is a cold snap and I have to buy sweaters.

 I was in New York for the Edgars a couple of years ago and it was freezing. I went into Macys to find a sweater. It was April All summer clothes. Not a sweater in sight.

My granddaughter Meghan went on a big trip around Italy and Greece last summer. She put together outfits for every day and took a picture of them so she knew exactly what to take in a big backpack. Such organization!

Also these days I tell myself I have my passport and a credit card. If I find I’ve left something behind there are shops!

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Rhys, you just reminded me of the time I was in London in the dead of winter and needed better gloves and coat–none to be had! The shops all had spring stock in, no cold weather things at all!

Before a trip, I love planning where to stay and where to eat. Packing, not so much. I try to reduce the anxiety by making lists, trying things on, putting together outfits and laying them out on the bed, then hanging them together until ready to pack. Still, I usually end up needing something, or nothing seems to work quite the way I expected.

And all the electronics we have to pack these days! One trip to London I actually forgot the power brick for my laptop and Rick had to FedEx Next Day it to me!! You can bet I’ll never forget that again. I hope…

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I feel anxious enough traveling for Thanksgiving, I can’t imagine Christmas! (Although if you shop online, you can get your presents delivered to your destination, which certainly helps.)

I’m also a listmaker, because with my adult ADD, it’s the only thing that keeps me from packing clothing for four days but no underwear. Which I actually did once, to a conference! I find having certain always-ready items helps me enormously. My toiletries kit is always packed with everything I need (in 3-oz bottles, of course) and I have a Knomo organizer that serves as a purse and corrals my phone, pad and chargers.

I also have the perfect weekender bag that fits under the seat in front of me, and if I’m not traveling for work, I use that. It feels like the fewer things I bring, the more relaxed I am.

It’s not uncommon for me to forget something - no surprise to anyone who knows me! - but I reason I’m not traveling to the Kalahari; there will be pharmacies and stores wherever I go. (I haven’t run into Debs’ problem of needing ant out-of-season clothing, though!

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: I am super super organized, and like most of us, I have a rack where I hang the clothes pre-trip, and make a list that says, for instance: Thurs AM, x, y, z, belt, boots, tights, slip. Thurs PM, black dress, tights, little shoes. And so on.

I give myself points for the fewest things I can pack, and I NEVER check a bag. If it doesn't fit in above my seat, it doesn't go.

Another list says: phone charger, laptop, laptop charger, bookmarks,teaching material, speech, handouts.

In my underseat fabulous bag, I carry my laptop and my purse, which I put into the underseat so it looks like only one bag.

I have a flat iron that I keep in my suitcase, and toiletries in a kit that I never take out. I have backup underwear, still in original packaging, that I just leave there, always, and never unpack. A pair of backup new black tights, too. And flatl white waffle slippers. They, too, just live in my bag.

I also have a list every day: which I create backwards: planes leaves X:xx, boards X:xx, leave hotel x:xx, wake up x:xx.

Works for me.

JENN McKINLAY: I’m not an anxious traveler. I don’t make lists (weird, since I’m a plotter).

Once I book a trip, I enter what I call Travel Zen, where I accept that everything is out of my control. Hotel lost our reservation? Bummer, I guess we’ll suffer in a comped suite. Missed a plane in Munich–whateves–we caught the next one. Waitress returned the wrong credit card and gave mine to someone else who left the restaurant and I’m flying out tomorrow? Cancel the card and enjoy the free meal. It is what it is.

I just try to keep things simple. I only travel with a carryon, I assume the hotel will have the toiletries I need, and I only pack three colors – for example, when I went to Italy for nine days, I packed only black, red and white clothes which made mixing and matching and multiple outfits very easy. Everything always works out and sometimes a bigger adventure is to be had with the eventual mishaps.

HALLIE: You have to admit, the answers to this question are a bit of a Rorschach. And I do wish Jenn could bottle some of that "travel Zen" and share it with me.

What about the rest of you? Do you organiz, go Zen, or zone out when you're about to go on a trip, and what do you think it says about you?

I Feel Pretty

 By the time you read this I should have. been flying home from a cruise in the Caribbean. This was the same cruise that I had booked in March 2020, then tried March 2021, then March 2022 and now finally hoped to take it, only to be struck down with a horrible respiratory virus two days before..

When I caught the virus I was in the middle of packing. I received a list of packing recommendations that said 3-4 pairs of shorts, 2-3 sundresses, 2 evening outfits….. This is a seven day cruise, folks. How can one get through three to four pairs of shorts in seven days? Do people really worry that other passengers are going to whisper “Oh look, she’s wearing the same shorts she wore yesterday?” At very worst there is a laundry on board.  So my packing is always minimal. Things I can wash out in the sink if necessary. One fancy jacket for formal occasions. 

But when I was packing I suddenly thought JEWELRY! I should take jewelry to wear at dinner. Now I have to confess that I love jewelry. John loves buying me jewelry. I actually love buying jewelry when I’m traveling. I like looking at it in the jewelry case and thinking “oh this is so pretty!” But wearing it? Not so much. I had a friend (now passed away) who wore matching jewelry with every outfit. Every time I saw her she had earrings, necklace, bracelet, ring all in coordinating colors with the outfit she was wearing.  (And my mother had a closet full of handbags that she changed with her outfit).  Me? I wear the same gold necklace, the same little diamond earrings and gold bracelet for several months before I change them for similar items. If I have to attend the Edgars I wear a statement piece and enjoy it, but it never occurs to me, when I get up in the morning, to think what piece of jewelry goes with what I’m wearing today. Okay, it’s normally sweats. But I did think what a slouch I was when I was meeting a writer friend for lunch and realized I could have worn a nice necklace.

I suppose it’s because I don’t go out that much these days. Since Covid I’m out of the habit. We’ve entertained several friends and I haven’t dressed up. I did put on a good outfit for Debs’s launch at the Poisoned Pen, but apart from that it’s writer’s uniform. sweats. 

So I’m interested to hear from other Reds: do you wear much jewelry? Change your earrings regularly? Should I be enjoying mine more? Making an effort to wear those pieces sitting in my jewelry box?

JENN McKINLAY: I love this post, Rhys! I am the exact same way. I think I like looking at jewelry more than I like wearing it. And I do love looking at it but, yes, I work in jeans and T-shirts so not really jewelry worthy. It is a dilemma! Also, your post now has the song “I Feel Pretty” from West Side Story (Hank fixed my first guess at the musical) playing in my head. 

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: At some point during this interminable pandemic, I realized I hadn’t put on anything but earrings for well over a year, and decided to change that. So now I frequently add a necklace to my look, even if (usually) I’m the only person who will see me. I like looking in the mirror and thinking, “Sharp!”

I still only wear bracelets and rings when I’m going out, and even then rarely. It’s way too fiddly to work with anything attached to my hands. I also have way too many pieces, as I got the bulk of my mom’s jewelry (she had the same New England style as I, while my sister is New York and my sister in law is sporty.) I have no idea what’s going to happen to most of my stuff, since neither of my daughters had pierced ears. In fact, the Millennials and Gen Z kids that I know are not at all into jewelry, which means there will be a lot of good pieces hitting second hand stores in another few decades!

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Ah, I wear the same rings all the time, I cannot imagine changing. And I don’t have pierced ears, so I have to be really careful about losing earrings.  For when I am on the road,  I have actually purchased several pairs of the same ones because I’m destined to lose them and might as well have backups. Necklaces have become more important on Zoom..I always have an eye out for zoom necklaces, because I always (as you may have noticed) we one of my billion black Petit Bateau t-shirts on Zoom because they always look nice and safe, and different necklaces make them, um, different.  

My darling husband always wants to give me jewelry, but I usually say no. I don’t really need it,  I’m happy with what I have, and how much can anyone actually use? I guess–I know the right thing when I see it.

RHYS: Hank, John always wants to buy me jewelry but I say "I only have one neck. How many necklaces can I wear?  I think he'd like me to be like Indian woman and wear my wealth in gold bangles!

HALLIE: Most of my jewelry was somebody else’s- my mother’s earrings or my grandmother’s wedding band… or stuff I picked up at yard sales. And I cherish my opal engagement ring but rarely wear it. I do love nice jewelry… just not for me.

DEBORAH CROMBIE: I like good artsy jewelry but I don't wear anything but my wedding ring at home, and I went so long without wearing earrings in the pandemic that my pierced ears half closed up. Add that to my metal allergies and putting in earrings even for an event is a challenge, but I did give in to temptation and bought a beautiful pair of silver hoops from my favorite jewelry stall at Sky Harbor Airport on my trip to Phoenix! 

RHYS: Debs, my ears closed up during the pandemic but I suffered agonies to re-open them and now keep my earrings in all the time.

So what about you, ladies? Who actually changes her jewelry with every outfit? Who loves to buy jewelry?

Bouchercon '15 and Reds in Raleigh

SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: The other night I was watching a television show, and a woman was packing for a trip. Or, rather, her maid was doing the packing, carefully laying the woman's garments in lavender-scented tissue paper, before placing them in the (gorgeous) luggage.

That, ahem, is not how my suitcase gets packed.

Raleigh, NC

As Bouchercon 2015 in Raleigh, NC, approaches (yay!), I'm starting to think of packing. And after a few years of author travel, I think I have a better idea of what's needed. For example, for my first Bouchercon, I wore really pretty shoes. Did I mention they were pretty? Soooo pretty. And painful. Seriously painful. I actually lost a toenail from my insistence on pretty shoes in Albany.

So, lesson learned — comfy shoes. (Hank can get away with high heels, I'm still not sure how she does this, but witchery and sacrifices to Anna Wintour come to mind...)

I'm tired of figuring out what to pack, clothes-wise. So I've decided to embrace my New Yorker identity and wear only (well, mostly) black. It's great. Everything matches! 

And this year — workout clothes. Yes, after four rounds of pneumonia, I'm taking my health seriously. So yoga pants and sneakers, for sure.

I'll also be multitasking — just got the edits of Maggie Hope, #6, THE QUEEN'S CONSPIRATOR, and they're due in early November. So I'm bringing the laptop and notes. Maybe I can get some work done in the early morning? We'll see....

Reds, what have you learned to pack — or not to pack — after years on the road? And who will be at Bouchercon this year? What panels will you be on? Where can folks find you to say hi?

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN:  Oh, the tyranny of the shoes!  Yes, how did you know about the sacrificial offerings (burning  issues of Harpers and other competitors of Anna) ?

Anyway, yes, actually I am so used to heels after all these years that I can get away with it longer than usual..but I have to admit I always carry little fold-up flats with me, so if I have to walk long distances, I just change shoes.

(I keep saying to myself: NO ONE CARES.)

I use tissue paper to pack and I really believe in it. I pack my carry-on suitcase, and what I can fit in there goes, and what doesn't, doesn't.  

Yes, Susan, we will be twins in black. And I am also planning to hide a bit, I must say, I have SO much to do. And I am thinking that everyone will think (if they care!) that I am somewhere else.  

My panels are amazing! I am moderating Koryta, Housewright, Gaylin and Lawrence Block on Saturday AM, and then at the librarians tea, I am moderating  Slaughter, John Hart, Maron and Reichs. SO I have a LOT of prep work to do!

And TRUTH BE TOLD is up for an Anthony!

SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: Congratulations on your nomination, Hank! We're all rooting for you!

LUCY BURDETTE: Oh boo-hoo, I'm not headed to Bouchercon this time. I will miss schmoozing with the Reds and many other friends. I don't wear high heels anymore either. Can't do it with my chronic plantar fasciitis. And I am big on black mix and match too, though not tissue paper LOL. Totally agree Hank, if it doesn't fit into the carry-on and my small backpack, it doesn't go. Good luck ladies and have a wonderful time!

RHYS BOWEN: I've become quite good at packing, after years of bringing the wrong things... like going to New York wearing pastels and feeling like a creature from another planet. But I don't wear black unless I really have to (editor and marketing meeting in NY) because with my Celtic skintone I look like a zombie in black. And high heels? Never. Can't do it. Am amazed and totally impressed by Hank and her four inch heels. The most I manage is a neat little two inch wedge on comfortable sandals. Or boots. I have boots with a nifty little heel but I figure Raleigh is too warm for boots. 

I do know how to pack really lightly with just a carry on and one basic color and scarves and jewelry to change up the look. However this time I am travelling with my dear husband who always takes enough to accompany Marco Polo. And he never wears half of it. So I'll be fuming by the luggage carousel waiting for his suitcase.

My panels? Not so much. A strange one on protagonists and antagonists... what do I know about antagonists? And one of cozy mysteries being comfort reads. I really miss my Jungle Red game show! Next year in New Orleans or Malice???

DEBORAH CROMBIE: No heels here, either, but I've found some great flats from Clark's and I swear I'm going to buy them in all four color options! And, yes, I'm going to Raleigh! But not packed. I always have such good intentions... Although I have made a list of all my activities to help me figure out what to take. We'll see how well that works... Hank, tissue paper, really? I just roll stuff, and try not to pack things that wrinkle.

Really looking forward to see those REDS who can make it, but the schedule is bonkers. We need some kind of a plan. And, Rhys, yes, miss our JRW game show panel!

HALLIE EPHRON: I am so sorry to be missing Bouchercon, too. Cheering from the sidelines!

I'm just back from a weekend giving a writing workshop for the Heart of Denver Romance Writers (waving!) and it took me 30 seconds to unpack, as I've learned to bring less and less... 1 pair of walking shoes and 1 pair of presenting shoes (flat), black dress, black skirt, yoga pants and a t-shirt, and something to travel in (pants and a top). And that's it. The underwear takes up more room than the clothes. I keep travel cosmetics packed.

I just applied to TSA for pre-check, which will speed my travel even further.

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I have the same standards lots of you do - two pairs of shoes, one flat and comfy, one low-heeled and comfy (ish.) I layer and roll my clothes in the rollerboard and I never check (unless it's at the gate.) Like Rhys, I'm a big believer in accessories (scarves and high-impact necklaces) to dress up simple outfits. 

I don't usually do all-black; also of Anglo-celtic descent, too much around my face makes me look like I've been improperly embalmed. Instead, my clothing secret it to take two or three colors that mix and match: Brown, beige and red, say, or Black, white and gray.
  
Another thing I've been doing for the past few years is Rent The Runway! I love this service for events where I have a big dress-up night: the Edgars, the Agatha Awards, a high-value cocktail party. They have designer dresses in every size from 0 to 22, and jewelry and clutches and wraps. You get two sizes of the dress you want with your rental (the back-up size is free) and shipping both ways is included.

I have the dress (and maybe fancy earrings or a necklace) delivered straight to my hotel. I wear it, I get compliments, then I stuff it into the included UPS bag and drop it at the desk to be mailed on my way out the door. Such a stress-free way to look fabulous. No tissue paper needed!

SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: Lovely readers, do you pack with tissue-paper or are you more of a throw-stuff-in-the-bag-at-the-last-minute traveler? And will we see you at Bouchercon? I'll be on the panel Political Espionage Thrillers: Pre- and Post-Edward Snowden on Thursday, October 8th, at 2:30 p.m. and would love to see you there!

Please tell us your thoughts in the comments!

Don't Leave Home Without It!

RHYS BOWEN:Several Reds, including me, have been on trips to exotic places recently, so I thought we might assemble words of wisdom on some of the essentials we always take with us on trips. I am a good packer. I travel as light as possible and base my wardrobe around a neutral color. But there are certain things I can't do without:
A pashmina in my carry on as I always freeze on aircraft. Also makes plain outfits look fashionable.
A flashlight which I place beside my pillow every night. Having been on the 75th floor of a hotel when the power went out, I've decided never to be without it.
I also take one of those super absorbent towels that divers use. It's only about a foot square but it can dry me off if I want an impromptu swim, or get rained on, or even spill water over myself.
Zip lock bags. I keep all my toiletries in several zip locks. Ditto dirty laundry, camera batteries, anything that might get ruined by being left on the tarmac in the rain. They weigh nothing and I can see instantly what's in them. And if anything leaks at 35,000 feet, I'm safe.
Garbage ties to secure my suitcase when I can't use locks. A few teabags for my English cuppa in case the hotel has none. And my Kindle, loaded with books I've been dying to read.
So Reds, which items can you not do without?

LUCY BURDETTE: Rhys, you are an expert--you should teach a class on the Jungle Red method! I thought I was a good packer, but I stumbled over this last trip--twelve days involving family occasions, two days visiting old haunts, and a book tour. I took too much stuff. And picked up extra books along the way, a fatal weakness. By the flight home, I'd broken my own rule: Don't pack more than you can lift into the overhead bin. Because not everyone feels sorry for you if your suitcase is a little oversize and too darn heavy. So now I'm in the market for a smaller bag that I can't possibly overstuff:).

Must haves: tiny purse that I can sling over my chest, books, phone charger, sandwich for the plane...

HALLIE EPHRON: I'm a carry-on only traveler, no matter how long the trip, and I admit I have never packed a towel. I always bring a long colorful scarf to dress up my black sleeveless jersey dress or black jersey pants and cardigan. And lately I've had to carry bungee cords just in case my suitcase dies. I do NOT recommend Ricardo brand luggage, unless you're into harvesting broken zippers and busted handles. Hoping my new TravelPro proves to be sturdier.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Almonds. I am always between food and starving, and almonds are good and healthy any time of day. I've had 'em for breakfast, I've had 'em for dinner.

A pashmina, me, too A black, cozy pashmina. Can be used at night as a wrap, on on the plane as a blanket.
Definitely tea bags. Phone charger--must have. Internet hotspot. Lucy, a sandwich for the plane--me, too! Just in cases. Rhys, yup, ziplocks.
And I only take a carryon suitcase, no matter for how long. AND, shhhh..I put my Longchamps purse inside a tote bag, so I can have two items in one place.

ROSEMARY HARRIS: I do the purse in tote thing too...so that I can really have 3 carryons. Rhys has got most of my basic items covered. Ziplock baggies, scarf, check. I'd add flipflops. Lord knows when they last cleaned the rugs in your hotel.

RHYS: I'm currently writing about a sea voyage in the 1930s when everyone took several trunks with them as there were porters everywhere. When I was a child there were porters at every local station. And a maid to press the clothes, of course.
And I've just remembered another thing I can't travel without: a tiny international hair dryer. Having been caught twice with a hair dryer that died in my hotel room right before I had an important speaking engagement I'm now covered.

Does anyone else have a brilliant suggestion to share?