Packing for 2 years...

As most of you can imagine, the most daunting part of this Peace Corps preparation is not all the paperwork I needed to fill out (although that was a pain to keep organized) or the language exercises that I struggled through, but it's from the PACKING.

The rational and logical part of me says not to worry too much about it; I will be able to make do with what I have or find a way to buy it when I'm there. No problem. The other part of me, the part that can keep me up at night (and can annoy some of you who know me well) can't stop making lists, over-thinking everything and in general, second-guessing each thing I've already put into massive piles around my room.

Instead of boring you with everything that is making up the 80lbs of stuff I'm bringing, I thought I'd share a few things that I wouldn't have expected to pack.

- A world map (not sure if this will be to show people where I'm from or to decorate my walls- but I suppose it could do both);
- Index cards (apparently my love for flash cards will come in handy during training);
- Lots of games- thanks to generous family members- I'm on track to be the most popular big sister with my host family;
- Plastic screening for me to hang in windows if necessary;
- Lots of travel sized kleenex (for those who have been in places with no toilet paper, you know how much of a godsend these little guys are);
- An Audubon Society Field Guide to the Night Sky- so I can check out those stars on the other side of the world;
- A can opener and vegetable peeler (although I wonder if my dollar store purchases will be any better than the kitchen tools I could buy there);
- A calendar of New England pictures (thanks for the idea Camia!) courtesy of my Grandmother and SmithCo Oil.

The rest of bags are filled with what you might expect: clothes for both hot and cold temperatures, a few pairs of shoes, a hat, lots of books, photo album, a sleeping sack, etc.

I bet one of my first posts from Botswana will be about how much unnecessary stuff I brought. I should probably take some clothes out and put more kleenex in...