Why Does It Take Men So Long To Pack?
ByRecently Husband was making his annual foray into the garage to unpack (only to repack) all the camping gear for the big fly-in convention at Oshkosh. It looked as if a camping store had exploded in our living room.
He was going to be camping with 15,000 other pilots in the woods for about 10 days, so apparently this required a lot of stuff. Which brings me to my question: why does it take men five days to pack to go away for just over a week? I can pack in under two hours no matter the duration or destination of any trip. Husband says this is because I just pack everything. He is more judicious about what makes the cut. Only select items go into his duffel bag.
Of course, camping gear is another matter, he says. Hence, the five day packing rigamarole. Husband was an Eagle Scout back in the younger days, so he was bound and determined to be prepared for anything. (Apparently, it actually dipped to below 40 degrees in Wisconsin during one of his July trips to this flying convention. He had to buy a winter coat en route. So, he’s not getting caught again.)
One thing I can say for Husband. It may take him forever to pack, but when we travel, I do not have to worry about the following things: terrorism, bad weather, or lack of electricity or water. (Notice I did not write “heat.” This is because Husband never gets cold. See posts on temperature wars for reference.) Of course, I’ll still have to rough it. But, we won’t die. I am supposed to be comforted by this fact.
So, for a one-week stay, a mini-van or SUV is packed to the gills with camping equipment I didn’t even know existed in our tiny garage.
Here’s the thing about getting married older – you inherit all kinds of stuff. I did not realize when I got married that I also married a camping store. I have blogged before about all the not-always-working electronics we house. What went unmentioned is the other side of the garage – the one housing all the folding chairs, sleeping bags, lanterns, cook stoves and plastic bins containing ropes, spikes, tents, and things I couldn’t name in a police line-up.
For the record, I grew up camping. Our family summer trips were always a week or two in the Adirondack mountains by a lake. Every night I washed the dishes after dinner in plastic tub full of water and we slept in sleeping bags on the ground with no padding. So, I’m no camping sissy. But, five of us squeezed into our existing car with all our stuff, so you see my perplexity around the need for a mini-van for two people. Even if you are preparing for a potential Hurricane.
Naturally, I am grateful once I get there. I have a chair to sit in, a tarp over my head for those sudden Wisconsin skybursts, and padding under my sleeping bag. And, last year, I flew in for just a few days. I sent my stuff with Husband, so I could just show up. Oh, the benefits of an advance team – even one that takes over my living room for five days to prepare.
1 Comments
July 23rd, 2009 at 9:37 pm
Oh, how well I remember those camping forays. Your first one was at the Outer Banks when you were only 2! You didn’t tell about the time we were washing dishes and the chipmunks ran over our feet. How I loved Lewey Lake.