Party Planning

Well, here it is, mid-July. That means the big three-day Crimson Moon party is only two weeks away. Having known since the last CM July party that we would be attending this year, why does it feel like Cigi and I have waited until the last minute to get things together? Oh, I don't mean we've waited until the last minute to pay our party fee (we did that two months ago) or book our hotel room (that's already taken care of, too). I'm talking about trying to figure out what to take and what to leave behind. Now I know that before the last party I posted an entry where I described the things I cannot possibly be without at a party. I'm talking about non-necessary items. Three of us (me, Cigi and Purple Angel) will be travelling together so there are the logistics of trying to figure out how three women are going to fit their luggage into the economy car we're renting for the trip up. Since there are two of us (me and Cigi) we will have two bags plus a toy bag. We have been doing this for over five years and have not been able to pare down the essentials that a woman must have to make it through a four-day trip. Cigi and I are planning on bringing our canes this time, too so room will need to be made for them. But because of the outrageous gas prices in our area, we couldn't rent the big boat we wanted LOL. We were forced to rent a small car that gets good highway gas mileage. Cigi and I have always done our best to economize at these parties. Like for instance, instead of going out to eat for every meal, we have always brought Lean Cuisine meals from home and heated them up in our room. Sharing a hotel room helps keep the cost down, too.
What I'm really stressing about is what to wear. Since I'm not the youngest lady in the group, I tossed out the notion of dressing in sexy clothes and went for cute and spankable. After all, what spanking girl doesn't take being called spankable as a compliment? Summer used to be a time when I worked on my tan religiously (even on my bottom) and went to the parties with wonderful color. I looked good in just about everything back then (or so I thought). Now I really can't sunbathe the way I used to because I don't have the privacy required to get my buns nice and tan. And I will not go to a tanning salon. Why pay huge amounts of money to lay in a tanning bed when the sun is free? So now I'm white as a sheet and I just don't think summer clothes look the same on me. So I'm stressing. And zero hour approaches. You would think having five years' worth of experience, I would get better at this. But it happens before almost every party. And it looks like my work schedule is going to make it hard to get those last minute things done. Hopefully, I won't have to work late the night before we leave. By late I mean 11:30 PM. I've always secretly envied people who can just toss stuff into a suitcase and say "let's go!" I'm a Capricorn and so being practical and a careful planner is sort of hard wired into my thought process. Although I envy those sorts, I just can't bring myself to toss stuff into a suitcase and say "let's go!" Not ever going to happen, folks. I try to prepare for whatever can possibly happen at these parties. I've been stuck a long way from the hotel front door in a downpour without an umbrella, so even if there's not a cloud in the sky, my umbrella now makes the trip. And, since my favorite soda is never included when the Crimson Crew gets the drinks together, a 12-pack of Mountain Dew also makes the trip. Back in March, when I thought Cigi and I had overdone it, one of the ladies we were sharing a room with said 'There's two of you and that's all you brought?' With that comment, she indicated that we had packed lightly for a weekend. And I thought we'd brought way too much. Of course, that was until I saw all of her stuff. She looked like she was running away from home.
So the question of what to bring and what to leave behind is weighing kind of heavily on me today. I've had four months to get ready for this party and, once again, a party day is going to dawn with me running around my apartment like a chicken with its head off. Ah well...I guess that's part of the fun.