What Do You Take When You Travel?

Quote of the day:
"There are sadistic scientists who hurry to hunt down errors instead of establishing the truth."
--Marie Curie

It’s interesting what people take with them on vacation. As with so many other things about humans, we are slightly irrational about it.

Some folks takes lots of clothes, so as to not be seen in the same outfit twice by people they are only going to see once. Also, washing machine technology may not have reached the region where they’re going.

Others take lots of shoes, not knowing the terrain they may find themselves in. Or, they just really like shoes.

Some people take favorite foods, being unsure about the ready availability of these foods at their destination.

Others take a big stack of books that they see themselves finally having time to read. And there will be time, if the vacation is 3 or 4 months long.

Others bring a bag full of gadgets--cellphone, laptop, PDA, Blackberry, iPod, and about a dozen vital accessories. Disconnecting is just too big a risk for them. In fact, maybe they shouldn't even go.

Merrie and I are mildly guilty of the last one. But I have a bigger issue.

When I go on vacation I take a stereo. Not a boom-box or a pair of powered computer speakers, but a full-on hi-fi. Actually, it’s just three pieces--my two favorite small speakers and a tube power amp. We plug one of our laptops or iPhones into it and listen to downloaded music.

I don’t do this if our goal for the trip is sightseeing or doing a lot of driving. And I don’t bring the stereo along if we’re flying somewhere (at least not yet). But most of our vacations are for “being” not “doing.”

Color me crazy. If you haven’t already. I even thought of myself that way the first time I did it. But it is so enriching listening to music in a relaxed setting. It’s fun, and we hear things we haven’t heard before in music we thought was familiar to us.

A side benefit is that I get to amuse, baffle or annoy two separate yet equally important groups. The police who investigate crime, and the district attorneys who prosecute the offenders. These are their stories.

Sorry.

First, I amuse, baffle or annoy those for whom computer speakers or boom-boxes are plenty good enough thank you very much and why would I want to sit around listening to music on vacation when I can do that at home whenever I want anyway and besides I have 990 places left of the 1,000 I need to visit before I die and I don’t have time for music.

Second, I amuse, baffle or annoy audiophiles, whose faces tighten and limbs begin to tremble at the outrageous thought of listening to downloaded music on a good stereo system.

Life is good.