Checking Things off the To Do List
Making a list and checking it twice. Cross one thing off – add two more. However, we are getting down to smaller and smaller things that still need to be done.
One piece of advice, don’t plan your trip so that you arrive home on Tax Day! Somewhere along the way I am going to have to spend a few hours when we have a secure internet connection doing them online. And those times are not very frequent. If I was sure we were going to get a refund, I could file for an extension, but apparently that takes just as long as actually doing your taxes. And, besides, I don’t think we will be getting a refund. The good news is that, in this age of technology, most of our tax statements will be available on line, and I can always file an amendment after we get home if I am missing some information.
We got our international driver’s licenses at the AAA office – a quick and painless procedure. Basically, it is just a document that translates the information on your license into several common languages. It does not divulge the fact that you have never driven on the left side of the road in your life.
We also found out at AAA that Traveler’s Checks are a relic of the pre-technology past. Instead, we will be getting some pre-paid Visa cards to convert into cash as needed. And, of course, our trusty charge cards will be accepted most places. Which reminds me, I need to call and notify the banks of our travel plans so that the fraud alert folks don’t start denying our efforts to pay for things as we move around the globe. We’ve already had that happen a few times as we paid deposits on various reservations. For some reason, they thought that charges showing up in Botswana and Tahiti on the same day was a little suspicious.
Other things still on the To Do List:
· Get 5-month supply of all my medications
· Stock up on cat food
· Tell the vet the names and contact info of the pet sitters (I left a credit card on file at the office so they can charge expenses)
· Train the pet sitters on giving insulin shots to a diabetic cat
· Confirm my frequent flyer number
· Register with the US embassies at their website: https://step.state.gov/step/
· Download some ebooks and audiobooks
· Find those earphones I bought last time I was traveling
· Get a haircut
· Bottle the wine that is brewing in the closet
· Clean the grease out of the hood above the range (don’t want a kitchen fire while we’re gone)
· Leave a calendar, itinerary and photocopies of important documents with our son
· Finish entering all important information onto the spreadsheet (can’t take that big binder with us)
· Pack
· Say a fond farewell to home, garden and family
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