Thursday, June 12, 2008

off to Greece/Italy

so in less than a couple hours i will be on my way to the airport to jump on a plane heading towards Greece/Italy. needless to say time is passing by a little slow right now. i keep hoping that i haven't forgotten to pack anything, especially since i feel a bit like i underpacked since i have heaps of space left. i plan on wearing everything i packed 2-3 times (over a 15 day period and yes i have some laundry soap to wash them in a sink), this means for clothes i have:
-4 pairs of shorts (not counting the ones i'm currently wearing)
-2 pairs of pants (1 of which zips off into another pair of shorts)
-1 button-down shirt (in case i feel like kinda dressing up for dinner)
-5 t-shirts
-4 sleeveless shirts
-2 long sleeve shirts
-1 light/rain jacket
-running/swimming shorts
-1 pair of shoes (plus the teva sandals i'm currently wearing)
-4 pairs of socks (i plan on wearing my tevas most the time)
-6 pairs of underwear (i could always go commando right??? :-P )
-and i think that's about it for clothes.

other things i have packed include:
-passport (this is probably the most important thing to pack)
-the typical toiletry stuff (ie toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo/conditioner, etc)
-laundry soap
-wrinkle release spray stuff (which i also got in case i don't have a chance to wash clothes when i need them as the spray has a 'fresh' smell to it so it won't smell like dirty clothes)
-baby powder (yeah, i was a slightly baffled with this item as well, but they said to pack it for use on sweaty areas and for possible chafing, ie on/near the feet)
-mini first aid kit
-2 chapsticks
-sunscreen
-sunglasses (and a hat)
-2 books to read
-travel journal (really should have started a travel journal on my first trip to Europe in '01, but oh well)
-iPod (with charger)
-power converter/adapter
-2 hangers
-watch (i'm surprised the thing still works as i think i've had it since elementary school, did need a new battery which was a pain in the a** to get out).
-and i'm sure there's some more random things i packed that i can't think of, but i can't think of anything i might have missed.

really hope i do have everything eventhough my bag has space in it. positive side though of having lots of space (like i said in an earlier post) is that it means i'll be able to buy lots of stuff and not have to worry about being able to fit it into my bag.

well i'm going to go look thru my bags to make sure (for like the 5th time) that i have packed everything listed above. not sure if i'll have another post within the next 2 weeks or not, so laters, and i'll let you know how everything was when i get back. ciao

Thursday, June 05, 2008

caffeine/energy drinks

so, was rather bored earlier and came across articles about how energy drinks are unhealthy for teens and can be 'red flags' for risky behaviors. to that i just say DUH!!!

granted i'm not one to say people shouldn't drink them, since i do, but now that i will theoretically have time to eat and sleep i fully intend to wean myself off of them. actually i'm going to try to cut down on my caffeine intake i general. however, i am going to be naive and believe that chocolate does not have caffeine in it because not having chocolate is just wrong to me :-P

anyways, some of the people's comments on the article were rather valid. the main idea behind most of them was moderation. many were saying that the energy drinks caused many health issues with people they knew. however the people they knew had several energy drinks a day, and i know on the cans it says the recommended amounts. one person also said that their child almost ended up (or did i forget) in the hospital after having and energy drink because their child was sensitive to caffeine (another 'DUH' moment to me). i just don't think people should really be blaming the energy drinks for 'causing' health problems when they actually do have warnings on the cans and do say what a serving size is.

and for the 'red flag' for risky behaviors, i'd would like to know what things really aren't considered red flags for teenagers in regard to risky behaviors. hello, they're teenagers. i do agree with one of the comments as the person i believe quoted somebody else who had said (lots of he said she said stuff i know :-P) they hope their child doesn't do the same things they did because it was sometimes just luck that they survived, but also hopes that they do do the same things as thats what growing up is about. granted there's probably a more philosophical and thought provoking way of saying that, but the idea still gets across.

anyways, that's it for now. tomorrow i'm leaving for middle of no-where SD, well it's a little east of middle, tomorrow morning for the weekend and then to greece and italy in a week (i can't wait!!). so if i don't write again for another month or so it's not 'cause i don't care, it's just that i will have better things to do (to put it blatantly).

ciao