Travel is easy…
Loose Ends
Susan Nienow

And it is if I learn a few lessons. I will always pack an outfit and forget the belt, shoes or necklace that goes with it. I will always forget something essential like styling gel for my hair or my eyeliner. One stack of things always gets left on the kitchen counter. If I'm lucky, it is just magazines I planned to read in the car.

My most recent trip was for a wedding. A simple family occasion at a beach. But we had to fly. It has been a few years since we've flown anywhere, and there are new rules. Lots of them. Like the styling gel. It has to go in the checked bag. And to prevent gelled clothes, it has to go in a sealed plastic bag.

So we packed with plastic bags close at hand. My other half finished packing, held up the allowable one-quart plastic bag with three essential gels, pastes and liquids, proclaiming, "That's all."

In the meantime, I am still trying to decide if a lipstick with an applicator is allowed or not. What about eyeliner? It is really a pencil. Is mascara allowed? And my gel pen - where do I pack that? In the end, I stuffed my quart bag with a dozen things, all necessary. My other half just shook his head and said he didn't want to hear about it if the "checker" made me throw half of it away.

By the time we went to bed, I was exhausted. All those decisions about packing. I could only hope that I had enough in my carryon to make it through the wedding in case our checked bag was sent to New Zealand.

I can't stress the following lesson enough. When you are buying an outfit for a beach wedding, wash it first. Just in case it rains on the reception. You wouldn't want to leave a trail of orange dye wherever you went. And tell the bride to insist on lanterns with candles so they don't go out in the rain. Then you have light when the power goes out. It was the first time in 20 years a wedding had been rained out, the wedding planner said.

A flashlight would have been a great wedding present. And an umbrella that wouldn't turn inside out in hurricane force winds. The reception was under a roof, but open on the sides. Not really helpful when it is raining sideways.

Make sure you pick a wedding where the bride can bend with the wind - or go with the flow. Like not noticing the soggy, sandy skirt and train on her wedding dress. Or that when we finally sat down for dinner, it was without tablecloths. When the rain started, we all grabbed our place settings, and ran for cover, but the tablecloths didn't make it.

And only invited guests who appreciate a good mariachi band, no matter when they arrive. One more - a tealight on a beach isn't as bright as a star.