Given that I just packed 180 lbs+ (Ethiopian Air wasn’t too strict with its weight requirements) worth of clothing, toiletries, and food for my year in Rwanda, I think that a blog detailing my extensive packing list might get a little repetitive. So instead, I’m going to focus on what did NOT make the cut:
- Books. Way too heavy. One book is the equivalent of a week of clothing…so I’m instead going to rely on my Kindle and my audiobooks (plug for Audible?). Unfortunately, Isabelle Schless (there ya go. If anybody else would like an individual shout out in the blog, cook me dinner.) never provided me with a list of quality books worth reading, so I’m stuck with the kindle freebies (The Last Song: The Script), my mother’s past downloads (How to Raise a Puppy), and the shortest Audible downloads (Oh! The Places You’ll Go!, 7 minutes)…because I was a little too pressed for time to download anything of worth.
- My hairbrush and sunglasses. Forgotten at the hotel. Along with hair elastics. Am now planning on cutting my hair ~immediately after landing.
- Shorts. Not entirely socially acceptable in this conservative country. Also not entirely necessary. I’m going to be in the mountainous region where it is apparently 70 degrees (F) and gorgeous every single day. Even during the rainy season, it pours for half an hour each day and then is lovely sunlight again. The sun also rises/sets at 6am/6pm every single day of the year because it’s so close to the equator. Might go insane.
- Set of 5lb weights. They’ve served as great doorstops throughout the years, but now that weight matters…they did not make the cut.
- Camera. I know I knowwwwwwww. BUT I also know WHY I do not have a camera…and it is because I invested in 3 cameras in the past 4 years, and I think was lent 2 others…all of them have ended up lost or broken. Two of them in Africa. (You might remember my birthday blog from a year ago when I drunkenly tried to use my camera to seduce some hyenas to come closer to the viewing area.) So I have honestly just accepted that I am not good with cameras, and am hoping that I will be surrounded by more responsible people who will be willing to take pictures of me in amazing places. Or maybe I’ll just hire Jen Argote (there’s yours) to come be my personal photographer.
- Bud Light Lime. Let’s not talk about it. Not sure how I’m going to survive the year w/o my BL*squared (kinda like Little Lohse…but better), but I have packed vodka, gin, and whisky, so hopefully I’ll figure it out.
- European outlet adaptors. Oops.
- Anything that could remind me how to speak French...even though most people in Rwanda speak French as a second language. I am an obsessive saver of academic material. While cleaning out my room last week, I found my notes from my Freshman English class…and I only threw them out after I realized I also had SPS notes for Raisin in the Sun. However, I could not find a single French note or text on my entire bookshelf filled with materials from high school. I can only surmise that I was so excited to be done with French FOREVER after my junior year (sorry…fifth form…) that I threw away EVERYTHING. Silly choices. (Please note that while cleaning my room, I decided to get rid of everything Spanish…because that is a language that I CERTAINLY will not be revisiting.)
- Get Well Card signed by entire HHS football team. No idea why this would have/should have made the cut. But I mostly wanted to point out that I found it while cleaning my closet.
- More than 3 lbs of cheese. There just wasn’t the room for any more than that. And I’m a little scared the 3lb brick isn’t going to get me through the first week. (Hey…remember when I didn’t eat cheese? That was funny.)
Actually…now that I’m looking this over…I might be overly underprepared. Whoops…I guess that’s what happens when you prioritize saying goodbye and throwing/attending goodbye parties rather than packing. Not that I have any regrets…but…if you’re ever in the mood to make my day and send me a care package to make up for this unpreparedness, my address is:
Elizabeth Mitchell, 011-250-78224-68532
c/o CCHIPS
BP 69 Musanze
Northern Province, Rwanda
- Books. Way too heavy. One book is the equivalent of a week of clothing…so I’m instead going to rely on my Kindle and my audiobooks (plug for Audible?). Unfortunately, Isabelle Schless (there ya go. If anybody else would like an individual shout out in the blog, cook me dinner.) never provided me with a list of quality books worth reading, so I’m stuck with the kindle freebies (The Last Song: The Script), my mother’s past downloads (How to Raise a Puppy), and the shortest Audible downloads (Oh! The Places You’ll Go!, 7 minutes)…because I was a little too pressed for time to download anything of worth.
- My hairbrush and sunglasses. Forgotten at the hotel. Along with hair elastics. Am now planning on cutting my hair ~immediately after landing.
- Shorts. Not entirely socially acceptable in this conservative country. Also not entirely necessary. I’m going to be in the mountainous region where it is apparently 70 degrees (F) and gorgeous every single day. Even during the rainy season, it pours for half an hour each day and then is lovely sunlight again. The sun also rises/sets at 6am/6pm every single day of the year because it’s so close to the equator. Might go insane.
- Set of 5lb weights. They’ve served as great doorstops throughout the years, but now that weight matters…they did not make the cut.
- Camera. I know I knowwwwwwww. BUT I also know WHY I do not have a camera…and it is because I invested in 3 cameras in the past 4 years, and I think was lent 2 others…all of them have ended up lost or broken. Two of them in Africa. (You might remember my birthday blog from a year ago when I drunkenly tried to use my camera to seduce some hyenas to come closer to the viewing area.) So I have honestly just accepted that I am not good with cameras, and am hoping that I will be surrounded by more responsible people who will be willing to take pictures of me in amazing places. Or maybe I’ll just hire Jen Argote (there’s yours) to come be my personal photographer.
- Bud Light Lime. Let’s not talk about it. Not sure how I’m going to survive the year w/o my BL*squared (kinda like Little Lohse…but better), but I have packed vodka, gin, and whisky, so hopefully I’ll figure it out.
- European outlet adaptors. Oops.
- Anything that could remind me how to speak French...even though most people in Rwanda speak French as a second language. I am an obsessive saver of academic material. While cleaning out my room last week, I found my notes from my Freshman English class…and I only threw them out after I realized I also had SPS notes for Raisin in the Sun. However, I could not find a single French note or text on my entire bookshelf filled with materials from high school. I can only surmise that I was so excited to be done with French FOREVER after my junior year (sorry…fifth form…) that I threw away EVERYTHING. Silly choices. (Please note that while cleaning my room, I decided to get rid of everything Spanish…because that is a language that I CERTAINLY will not be revisiting.)
- Get Well Card signed by entire HHS football team. No idea why this would have/should have made the cut. But I mostly wanted to point out that I found it while cleaning my closet.
- More than 3 lbs of cheese. There just wasn’t the room for any more than that. And I’m a little scared the 3lb brick isn’t going to get me through the first week. (Hey…remember when I didn’t eat cheese? That was funny.)
Actually…now that I’m looking this over…I might be overly underprepared. Whoops…I guess that’s what happens when you prioritize saying goodbye and throwing/attending goodbye parties rather than packing. Not that I have any regrets…but…if you’re ever in the mood to make my day and send me a care package to make up for this unpreparedness, my address is:
Elizabeth Mitchell, 011-250-78224-68532
c/o CCHIPS
BP 69 Musanze
Northern Province, Rwanda
1 comment:
just send me a ticket and I'm down!
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