Packing

It is about ten days before we are supposed to leave. We still need a couple of things before we leave:

1. visas (we paid extra for overnight shipping, SIX WEEKS AGO)
2. plane tickets (we gave the company our dates, two and half months ago)
3. passports (visa people holding them hostage)

Nice. Indian beauracracy is starting early. Portentous clouds, indeed.

However, I know it will work out. Because it has to. And they need us to show up, so they will have to buy our tickets in order for us to get there.

It is just as well. I dont know what day of the week it is and we have been packing for days. It seems to take about twelve hours to pack one suitcase. There are a couple of reasons for this:

1. Zazie keeps jumping in the suitcase and taking everything in them out so she can be turned into a delightful package. We have to close the suitcase, pretend the UPS truck delivered her, open the suitcase and act surprised each time she jumps out. It is cute, but it slows the already interminably slow process down.
2. Everything I place in the suitcase, Zazie needs to play with immediately. "Buuuuuuut I loooooooooooooove Daddy's special sweet baby socks. I neeeeeeeeeeed to cuddle them, they are my sweet baby cuddly socks. I love them. My sweet sock, sweet, sweet, baby sock. Now I throw you, little sock. Run, little sock. I am going to hide the socks in the library. You'll never find my sweet little socks." She is right.
3. Because there are a million micro-decisions to be made. Tossing everything into a big truck would make everything much easier, but unfortunately, we can't drive to India. How many sweaters? It is apparently not hotter than hell in India, but only because there is less humidity. Two sweaters. But I am not 4'10" and 97 pounds. If it gets cold will I even be able to buy a sweater? Three sweaters. But what if we go to Jammu-Kashmir or the Hill District. Okay, down jacket. Okay that is ridiculous. I DO NOT need a down jacket in India. Do I? I just don't know. Start Over.
4. I really, really just want to go swimming instead.

So the glamorous world of international travel begins.