Today's blog has nothing to do with Shanghai except that the subject was inspired because we are packing to travel from Shanghai to the US.

This is one of those Venus vs Mars things.

Abi and I have been packing for two days....we are going on a cruise that requires "dressing" for dinner. This is our first experience on a cruise ship so we had to read the "expectations". Dinner attire is described as "Casual", "Informal", and "Formal". None of these include jeans! Hey....we are from the Pacific Northwest..."Casual" and "Informal" are almost synonymous with JEANS! We are going to be on this cruise ship for 7 days....this means....6 dinners...two are "formal" and the rest are "casual" or "informal"...which does not mater because.....you can't wear jeans!!! We really want to pack light because we want to have room in our suit cases to bring "stuff " (like taco seasoning) back to Shanghai......BUT.....I am sure all of you Venuses out there can relate to this scenario....

Fancy dress must have fancy shoes, handbag, and jewelry.
#1 fancy dress is a different color than #2 fancy dress so the first pair of shoes can not be worn with dress #2. Brown pants require brown flat-heel shoes....black pants require black high-heel shoes.....Then.....there is the day wear, the cool weather gear, the exercise wear (which I always have good intentions to use but will probably never get out of the suit case) the sleep wear, and the "oh my gosh...I better pack this just in case" wear.
And....all this "wear" must be tried on to make sure it still fits!!! By the time the "trying on" is over our room looks like a tornado plowed through it.
And finally there is the very important accessories selection process!!! Belts, hose, jewelry, handbags, beige bra, white bra, black bra...etc. All this takes planning and a great deal of thought! Right???

Tim.....Mr. Mars....packed in less than 45 minutes...AND....commented about how long it took! He did not try anything on....He mentioned he would bring his tuxedo and two ties...one for each of the formal nights....and went out the door to play golf!!!!! How can this be?????