Anyone who knows me knows I rarely fly. It’s not that I’m scared of flying, it’s that it’s such a hassle. We live 80 miles from the nearest big airport and that airport isn’t a hub for anyone anymore so it seems we always have to fly somewhere else before we get to our destination. Plus the TSA and the expense. It’s just not worth it. I’d rather drive.

But, when I have been invited somewhere to present about math, teaching, or teaching math, and I can’t drive there in less than eight hours, then I have to fly. So today is that day. I am flying to Washington D.C. I haven’t walked those streets since I was in high school. Hopefully it won’t rain too much and I’ll get to do a lot of pavement pounding. Even if it does rain, I did pack my umbrella. But it is NOT in my carry on bag.

I just finished packing my two bags. The big one I will check has clothes and toiletries. It also has a lot of space and is fairly light. Lighter than my carry on bag. My carry on bag has the stuff in the above list. Plus the true essentials I never leave home without. Wallet. Phone. Phone charger. Graphing calculator. Notebook. Lip stuff. Pencil case. Gum. I also have a book to read on the plane and my preprinted name badge in there. Whew.

Hope to see you in D.C.! My session is at 9:45 am on Friday but the conference starts tonight!