To Pack Heavy or to Pack Light

Monday, November 13, 2006

Collette decided that one of the goals of that Monday should be to suggest to Rose that she go through a trial pack for her eleven days abroad. Rose hadn’t yet been quite convinced that she could pack everything that she needed over eleven days into Dad’s backpack, the same he had brought with him to Europe. So far, Collette’s suggestions had been largely unheeded.

“You’ll want to bring a money belt…”

“Eeeeew. I’m not wearing one of those things. That’s gross.”

“Rose, many people wear money belts. It’s pretty much the safest place to keep your money.”

“I’m not wearing one.”

“Well then, where are you going to put your money?”

“In my pocket.”

“Rose, I was pick-pocketed in Hungary, and I didn’t even know it at first. I think there’s more risk of you being pick-pocketed in Egypt.”

“Then I’ll keep it in my shoe.”

“You can’t pay people out of your shoe. No one’s going to want to touch it.”

“They won’t care. My feet don’t stink that much.”

“But what about your passport? You need to keep that with you at all times, even when you’re sleeping.”

“I’m not bringing that thing with me. I’ll lock it in my room.”

It seemed a hopeless case, not to mention, that Rose wanted to bring a large bag on wheels instead of the backpack. Collette tried to warn her that she wouldn’t use half of what she packed if she brought that much, but Rose wasn’t buying that idea either.

“I’ll sweat so much, I’m going to need a lot of clothes.”

“I hope you’re not sweating when the high is 73 degrees.”

Rose hadn’t considered that even Egypt could be cooler in December.

But before Rose could leave, she still had to wait for the arrival of their passports (which could be a tight squeeze), two or three more CLEP exams, finals, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Collette hoped there would be time for her to even think about Egypt before the plane took off.

Back on the ranch that Monday morning, Rose had already locked Linnea out of their room. There was a constant thumping as Linnea knocked on the door.

“I am not a worm,” Linnea said grumpily, in reply to whatever Rose had told her from the other side of the door.

Meanwhile, Pumpkin was running around looking even fatter than usual, because Rose had fastened a foam Statue of Liberty hat around her neck. She looked like a very blue star.

In other news, Carrie was refusing to celebrate her 20th birthday that Saturday, claiming that birthdays were the worst days of her life.

During Rose’s literature studies that afternoon, she came across several Rose-like quotes, which she laughingly added to her notebook.

“So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.”
– Lewis Carroll, Jabberwocky

“And give the mankin three sound legs for one,
Or pluck the other off, leave him like an egg.”
– Robert Browning, Caliban on Setebos

“‘Am strong myself compared to yonder crabs
That march now from the mountain to the sea.”
– Robert Browning, Caliban on Setebos

She had also returned from the college (early, as her professor was ill) after dropping by the ceramics lab for her latest completed creation – a cock-eyed puffer fish bowl.

On the way home, they noted the peculiar stench of a skunk along the road.

As the conversation turned to skunks, Mom laughed, “Rose, if you were an animal, you’d be a skunk.”

“Yup,” Rose agreed.

“Either that, or a stink bug.”

“I’d come out every morning, squirt everything, and march back in. I should tell a skunk to give me some stink juice. That would be fun.”