The list

When I pack for anything, I make a detailed list of what I need before I start packing. Then I usually call my mom, read it to her, and ask her what I forgot. (Hi, I'm 25 years old, and I can't pack without my mother's help... so what?) I check things off as I physically put them in the suitcase. Then I pack the list itself so that I can make sure that I come home with everything that I took. I do this whether I'm going somewhere for 2 days or 2 months. I am the least obsessive-compulsive type person you will ever meet, and the only reason I go through this ritual is because it is necessary. I'm a terrible packer. Too many times I've gone to the beach without a bathing suit or to camp without a hairbrush. I don't know what my problem is. I can remember minute factoids about obscure diseases, but I can't always remember to pack my toothbrush.

After we got home from our wedding and honeymoon, I found a list that Matt had made before the wedding. I think it's hilarious. The simplicity of his list bewilders me. What is the point of such a list? "Travel?" What? See, under "Wednesday," I would have written "shorts, flip-flops, tshirt, sunglasses, white shorts and blue halter top to wear for dinner, light brown sandals, pillow/blanket for car, car charger for phone....." You get the point. He writes, "travel." Then Friday is also funny. Just in case he would forget that Friday night was our rehearsal dinner, he wrote that down. However, the best part of the list is Saturday's section. It perfectly illustrates who Matt Newman is. He doesn't write "wedding." (I guess he decided he could remember that on his own.) He does write down that he needs to bring an Alabama polo to wear that morning while watching the game with his buddies. Typical.

Of note, turns out the Sunday "swim" was a bust. Something about a tropical storm...

PS: I did not marry Matt for his spelling abilities. His math skills are much better.