Yarn or Underwear (and other Packing Dilemmas)

When it comes to travel, knitting is both a blessing and a curse. It's great to have something to do during long plane flights (or long layovers), road trips, and train rides.

However, as I realized last night while packing for my trip to Seattle and Portland, knitting seriously complicates packing. Not only do I need to make sure I have enough yarn, the right needles, patterns, etc., I also need to plan ahead to find the best yarn stores in whatever locale I'm visiting. Then, of course, I need to allow enough room in my suitcase for the inevitable yarn purchases at said shops. The result? I think I now spend twice as much time packing (or planning to pack) as I did PK (pre-knitting). What's a girl to do?

That being said, I'm excited that now that I've gotten into this whole sock knitting thing, I finally understand how great they are for traveling. I suspect that my Sockapaloooza socks will keep me busy for the whole trip, but even with all that knitting, they won't take up more room in my suitcase than any other pair of socks. Yay! Of course, I have to bring along another project (or two) *just* in case I finish . . . But I think I did manage to get in all the essentials (underwear, pajamas, raincoat) plus my emergency stash of yarn.

I decided at the last minute to pack my laptop for the trip, so I may post updates if I get a good Internet connection on my travels.