To Australia

Well, I'm beginning my flight out to Australia in six hours, and I've finally let myself experience that "I'm about to see a new place" thrill. Much of this week (like it usually is for me before traveling) was the whir of trying to get a list of things accomplished before leaving, so I haven't had time to contemplate the actual trip much.

The poster for the conference I'm attending (ISBA 2008) was job one of course, but also this week I finished off a paper I've been working on for the last three months, and hopefully have completed the data work for another.

I'm also flying in a foreign country for the first time, which brings along with it its own set of challenges. Domestic and International flights have different restrictions on carry-on and checked luggage, and Qantas has different size levels than US airlines do. I bought a new piece of luggage, the Eagle Creek Tarmac 25, to meet their restrictions. I've only had it a few days, but I already love it. I'd long been a user of Eagle Creek's "pack-it" system of containers. They are expensive, but very helpful in organizing different types of clothes, and I've been collecting them since graduate school so I have quite a few.

The pack-it system works with any suitcase, but the Tarmac was designed with the system in mind. Which means that pockets are exactly the right size to hold their "cubes", and there isn't an inch (or cm in Australia) of wasted space. It is very nice, and even staring at it now I find it hard to believe that I was able to fit so much into a suitcase that nominally is much smaller than my old one. And it handles well--at least on carpet in my apartment. Definitely my new favorite suitcase for now.

So now I'm just doing the last minute things that I do when I find myself with a few extra hours before a flight. Checking my DVR so see if I can clear anything recorded for more space; updating the playlists on my mp3 player; throwing out the perishables in my refrigerator. I know--most people do that even when they aren't leaving for three weeks.