Unpolished Packing Problems: What Shoe Are You?

I love to travel. But I hate to pack. Actually, that’s not true. I don’t mind the act of packing; at least not at first. You see, I try to have the packing properly thought out ahead of time in an effort to stay organized. I attempt to plan what outfits I want to wear and when I want to wear them so I don’t end up overpacking. In theory the plan is a good one but in reality the plan never works!

Overpacking the forty-two different outfits I inevitably won’t wear isn’t the main problem. The bigger issue lies in packing the shoes. Packing the shoes is a big, unpolished problem. Very big. Massive.

For starters, the shoes take up so much room in the suitcase. However, if you’re traveling for an extensive period of time, packing a lot of shoes can be justified. The longer you’re away, the bigger suitcase you can use. The bigger suitcase you can use means the more shoes you can pack.

Longer trip + Bigger suitcase + More Shoes + Checking Luggage =  Problem Solved.  

The chances of wearing all the shoes you’ve packed is still slim to none but who cares? It’s about the options!

Things become hairy when the trips are quick, little two day-ers. How can you possibly bring all the shoes you want if you’re trying to avoid checking your bag? Herein lies the real conundrum. Nobody wants to waste a second at baggage claim when you’re only on a forty-eight hour turnaround. Time is of the essence!

So now what?

Don’t you need comfortable shoes if you plan to walk countless city blocks? Shouldn’t the shoes still be stylish? Sometimes comfortable and stylish do not go foot in foot hand in hand so basically that’s two pairs of shoes right off the bat.

Don’t you need sneakers if you plan to go to the gym while you’re away? That’s a third pair. The fact you won’t actually go to the gym once you’ve arrived is completely irrelevant while in the process of packing!

What if you’re attending a work conference? You can’t show up for the meeting sporting Asics Gel-Noosas while your business attire is on strictly because you were trying to save space in the suitcase! Of course neither the stylish nor the comfortable shoes you chose for walking the countless city blocks look right with the suit you picked to wear so you should probably think about throwing in a fourth pair.

What if the Fall weather kicks in while you’re en route? It would be a shame to miss the opportunity to wear those new boots, huh? I’d pack ’em! But then again, what if Indian summer is still lurking?  Wearing the new boots would be a fashion fail if the weather doesn’t cooperate.

Speaking of the weather not cooperating, what if it rains?  OMG if it rains you’re royally screwed. How the hell are my polka-dotted rubber galoshes gonna fit in the suitcase if I refuse to check my bag? If I bring them with, it probably won’t rain.  But if I don’t bring them……..  Damn Murphy’s Law!

And what happens after dark? What if you wanna get a little unpolished and kick it up a few notches in the stilettos? Ohhh the stiletto! That’s easily three more pairs.  At least!

So many options. So little time! What to do? What to do? Wedges for height? Cushion for comfort? Laces for support? Heels for everything else? What to take? What to leave? Help please!

These are definitely my unpolished packing problems! I wish I knew what to do! You too? What shoe are you?

JUST TO LET YOU KNOW… If you think figuring out the shoes isn’t enough of a pain in the unpolished ass, how about the other unpolished packing problem……The toiletries!