I've done *a lot* of moving and traveling in the past 3 or so years. That's a lot of inventory, a lot of yard sales, a lot of packing, a lot deciding what's really important.
There's the old cliche that your belongings are just "stuff" and what really matters is the people in your life. Well, duh, but I've come to know that there are a few items in my "stuff" that really matter in making my life much, much less stressful. They're little things, fairly simple things, but they really make the cogs of my life run smoother. Of all the little possessions and gadgets I pack up and unpack every few months I have boiled down my top five. These are the five things I miss the most before the shipment arrives and the things I am sure to pack as close to the top as possible. I carried two of them with me all those weeks of travel this summer, and the other three I will be sure to put in the suitcase next time around.
1. Diplomatic Passport. This is, hands down, the most valuable and important thing I own. I get twitchy when I don't have it with me. I had to send it in to D.C. from Florida to get our Indonesian visas and I felt utterly impotent on the 2 flights I had to make without it. I've come to feel for its comfort every time I see a police officer nearby in a foreign country. It's my ticket out of literally anything legal (or illegal). For example, I once used it to get away from an officer who was hounding my agent and 3 other models as we were on our way home from a job. He thought we were hookers. One glimpse of my passport and we were home free. I don't have my passport right now because it's with the GOI for our KITAS. I won't feel fully whole until it's back in my possession.
2. Kindle. John will gloat over this because he bought me that Kindle despite my protests. I use it all the time. It's awesome on airplanes and it houses my Bible so I don't have to carry my massive study bible in my already weighed down suitcase. I used it for hours every plane ride and I still use it to read in Jakarta traffic.
3. Apron. I know, I know. But seriously, I'm a pretty intense cook. My hands get very dirty cooking with coconut oil, bacon grease, and as much butter as I can stuff in a recipe. I use unconventional flours, grind nuts, and work with honey. I *need* my apron. I've ruined more shirts than I care to count from lack of apron. I also spend a lot of time in my kitchen because my kids eat 5 times a day and I make just about everything from scratch, from honey roasted cashews to bread to grinding my own flour. I've ruined many, many hand towels as I wait for my aprons to arrive in UAB. That goes in the suitcase next time.
4. Ninja Blender. I MISS MY BLENDER!!!! I used that bad boy at least 3 times a day. It made protein shakes, smoothies, ground coffee and nuts, minced garlic, onion, and herbs, and crushed ice. It is my most used cooking utensil and I am just itching to pull my precious out of UAB.
5. Mixer. Yes, it goes hand in hand with the blender, but this is what I use second most in my kitchen. As stated before I make everything from scratch. Imagine how difficult it is to mix bread by hand. Gluten free bread at that. Gluten free, egg free bread! It's arm-destroying. Add this to mashed potatoes, cupcakes (we're in full cake season!), frosting, etc. and this is a much needed and missed item.
So there you have it, my top 5 most loved/used possessions. My life feels somewhat incomplete without them. Yes, they would make the modern career woman cringe, but cringe away, because I make a mean gluten free vegan donut with my blender in hand. UAB can't come fast enough!
There's the old cliche that your belongings are just "stuff" and what really matters is the people in your life. Well, duh, but I've come to know that there are a few items in my "stuff" that really matter in making my life much, much less stressful. They're little things, fairly simple things, but they really make the cogs of my life run smoother. Of all the little possessions and gadgets I pack up and unpack every few months I have boiled down my top five. These are the five things I miss the most before the shipment arrives and the things I am sure to pack as close to the top as possible. I carried two of them with me all those weeks of travel this summer, and the other three I will be sure to put in the suitcase next time around.
1. Diplomatic Passport. This is, hands down, the most valuable and important thing I own. I get twitchy when I don't have it with me. I had to send it in to D.C. from Florida to get our Indonesian visas and I felt utterly impotent on the 2 flights I had to make without it. I've come to feel for its comfort every time I see a police officer nearby in a foreign country. It's my ticket out of literally anything legal (or illegal). For example, I once used it to get away from an officer who was hounding my agent and 3 other models as we were on our way home from a job. He thought we were hookers. One glimpse of my passport and we were home free. I don't have my passport right now because it's with the GOI for our KITAS. I won't feel fully whole until it's back in my possession.
2. Kindle. John will gloat over this because he bought me that Kindle despite my protests. I use it all the time. It's awesome on airplanes and it houses my Bible so I don't have to carry my massive study bible in my already weighed down suitcase. I used it for hours every plane ride and I still use it to read in Jakarta traffic.
3. Apron. I know, I know. But seriously, I'm a pretty intense cook. My hands get very dirty cooking with coconut oil, bacon grease, and as much butter as I can stuff in a recipe. I use unconventional flours, grind nuts, and work with honey. I *need* my apron. I've ruined more shirts than I care to count from lack of apron. I also spend a lot of time in my kitchen because my kids eat 5 times a day and I make just about everything from scratch, from honey roasted cashews to bread to grinding my own flour. I've ruined many, many hand towels as I wait for my aprons to arrive in UAB. That goes in the suitcase next time.
4. Ninja Blender. I MISS MY BLENDER!!!! I used that bad boy at least 3 times a day. It made protein shakes, smoothies, ground coffee and nuts, minced garlic, onion, and herbs, and crushed ice. It is my most used cooking utensil and I am just itching to pull my precious out of UAB.
5. Mixer. Yes, it goes hand in hand with the blender, but this is what I use second most in my kitchen. As stated before I make everything from scratch. Imagine how difficult it is to mix bread by hand. Gluten free bread at that. Gluten free, egg free bread! It's arm-destroying. Add this to mashed potatoes, cupcakes (we're in full cake season!), frosting, etc. and this is a much needed and missed item.
So there you have it, my top 5 most loved/used possessions. My life feels somewhat incomplete without them. Yes, they would make the modern career woman cringe, but cringe away, because I make a mean gluten free vegan donut with my blender in hand. UAB can't come fast enough!
1 comment:
This made me smile. There is so much we take for granted until it is not there. I have to admit that when we went to Nepal I was keenly aware of that handy dandy black passport in your pack and I kept more of an eye on that than my own! Glad you are settling in.
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