Holiday Travel

Are you going home for Thanksgiving?  Thanks to a grad school schedule, I actually get a whole week off and Mr. C and I are flying out to Tucson to spend a few days with family.  This is actually the first thanksgiving that Mr. C and I will not be in DC in nearly 6 years.  I'm slightly sad to not be continuing our holiday traditions with our DC "family", but I'm pretty excited about hanging out with my mom and little brother in Tucson.  (I hear it might actually be warm there . . . but I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much). 

As much as I love the holidays and being with family, I'm not the worlds biggest fan of flying.  It's a combination of a fear of heights, some rather unfortunate flying experiences, and that I get really, really bored sitting still for that long.  (I'm that person holding on to the person next to me whenever it gets even slightly turbulent.  It's better for everyone involved when that's Mr. C) To cope, I try to figure out ways to make flying as pleasant as possible. First up? Vodka.  Being comfortable.  For me, that means wearing something as close to pajamas as possible. 

The key to wearing leggings without looking either like you've given up on life or you're on your way to yoga is choosing a top that provides the appropriate amount of coverage.  I like long cozy sweaters like this one from Madewell, but you if you tend to get hot on planes, you could just as easily throw on a simple white T and a long chambray shirt.  Just make sure to bring a pashmina in case it gets chilly and to add a pop of color.  

I like to wear cute sneakers when I travel.  First because they're easy to slip on and off when you're going through security.  Unlike with flats, you can wear socks with them so you're not standing barefoot in the TSA line (I've done that and I try not to think about everyone else's feet). Plus, it's easy to dash through the airport if you're making a tight connection.  

And of course you need a great travel bag (I like this one from Kate Spade Saturday).  After the airlines lost my luggage on three trips in a row, I try to make sure I have a few of the essentials in my carry-on, so I need a bag that's roomy enough for all that and can fit everything I need to remain entertained for a whole flight. 

What are those essentials?  

1. a memory foam neck pillow (don't hate until you've tried it, you'll never go back)

2. Ipad mini (need I say more?).  For this trip, my ipad is full of episodes of Arrow

3. One of my classmates introduced me to Maybelline's Baby Lips and it's perfect for combatting that airplane dehydration. 

4. Hand sanitizer: I always travel with hand sanitizer.  The last thing you want is to pick up something nasty that will ruin your thanksgiving plans.  

* * *

So that's how I cope with traveling.  What are your tips?

Apartment Hunting in NYC

Living in DC, I am used to having to schmooze, charm, and finagle your way into the landlord's good graces so that he/she will deign to rent to you.  I also know something about paying a lot for small spaces.  Or sacrificing comfort (such as slightly lower ceilings in our current place) for location.  That said, New York is a whole other ball game. 

First, there are brokers fees (where you can't rent the apartment without paying someone up to 15% of the annual rent just for the privilege of signing a lease).  There are the bait and switch scams: You see a nice apartment and then find out it's unavailable BUT, the rat infested postage stamp is free for the same amount.  And, of course, there's the whole size issue . . . I'm still flabbergasted by how people live in some of those spaces.  But, of course, it's all worth it to live in the greatest city in the world, right? Right.

I knew that the apartment-finding process was probably going to be frustrating and tedious.  And, I wanted to make sure that I brought the right things to get me through the weekend.  We were going to be on our feet for most of the day, while we explored neighborhoods.  So, comfort was key.  But, we knew we would be meeting up with friends for dinner so we needed to look semi-presentable.  To top it all off, we were trying to pack light since we knew that we might be carrying all of our stuff with us if we went to see apartments on our last day (which actually happened).

This is what we fit into one suit bag and a tote:

(the striped dress I own is actually this one and I highly recommend it)

P.S. we did end up finding the PERFECT apartment at the last minute.  Literally, we saw the apartment at 11, signed all the paperwork by 12 and still managed to navigate our way through the Pride parade in time to make our 1 o'clock bus.  We were a sweaty mess but at least we looked cute :) )