Things To Do Before I Go

There's always too much to do before I leave. I make ambitious lists, knowing they are bound to fail. No matter how calm work has been, how organized I think I am, there is always a flurry of e-mails about things that have to be taken care of right away. I suppose I could do them while away if I travelled with a cell or laptop. But I have no desire to be as industrious as my fellow passengers whose work toys have to be wrestled away during take off. 
I'm so busy the moment I book my ticket, that the only thing I want to be doing while onboard is to read the magazines I've carefully picked just for that purpose: the New Yorker and the Christmas issue of Oprah. They're in my carry-on, which I carefully mended with ducttape (to cover where my exuberant Sophie chewed on the return from my last trip). I did buy a new bag which I loved but brought back (egged on by my mantra "money I can spend in Paris"). Tucked inside are TicTacs, toothbrush, the inevitable Immodium--which I almost fainted on buying: $10.00 now for 6. Six!--socks and travel journal, camera and converter.
I agonize over packing a second camera and a sketchpad. The suitcase is packed a full week ahead so I can start to unpack  the night before leaving. I resist extra shoes and take out the sweaters; I've shopped specially for this trip, tried on every outfit, shortened pants and mended gloves.
I've written the list for Sophie's sitter, changed the bedsheets, scrubbed the bathroom, cleared both dining and coffee tables of their usual piles of books and paper and emptied the recycling. I paid the bills, got haircuts for both me and Sophie and bought presents for the staff at my hotel.
I've stocked my fridge (which I also cleaned), posted one last blog and  I think I'm ready to go. I try not to think of things I should have done--I have a shelf still in its box, bought at the Pottery Barn last May while my bike, resting on flat tires on the balcony, will no doubt be covered in snow by the time I get back. They'll have to be added to the list I've already begun--Things To Do When I Return.  

See you in the City of Lights!