Seanan McGuire (seanan_mcguire) wrote,
Seanan McGuire
seanan_mcguire
  • Mood: anxious
  • Music: Katy Perry, "Pearl."

Packing to flee the country, one bag at a time.

Well, here we go: I am now officially 90% of the way packed for my trip to Australia. My suitcases zip with relative ease. I still need to load up my thumb drive, since The Big Laptop isn't making the journey with me, and I have a few CDs scheduled to be delivered later this week that I'm really hoping to get onto my iPod before I fly, but that's about it. It's all dumping out my purse and finding my spare laptop battery from here.

It's weird to sit here and realize that in forty-eight short hours, I will be on a plane, about to land in Los Angeles, where I'll get on a second plane and begin the long journey to Melbourne. Because it's a night flight, I'll probably sleep for the first five or so hours, then wake up, blink groggily, and start working. That's just what I do on planes. (You think I'm kidding. I point to Exhibit A, Chasing St. Margaret. It's a romantic comedy. About jetlag. I wrote it, primarily, on my flight from San Francisco to London, and finished it on the flight from London to San Francisco. Because I am bitchin' productive when I'm several thousand feet up in the air.)

I have wanted to visit Australia since I knew there was an Australia to visit. To be quite honest, for a long time, I wanted to move there, until I realized a) my friends would miss me, b) quarantine would be hell on the cats, and c) Australia's immigration laws mean I couldn't move anyway. So visiting will have to be enough. I'm a little scared and a little excited and a little totally ready to be on my way, because seriously, I have no attention span and no brain left. It's sad, except for the part where it's funny for people who aren't me.

I will come back with wonderful stories and probably a sunburn, souvenirs, memories, and the strong desire to sleep for a week. Hey, who knows—maybe I'll even come back with a tiara. That'd sure make my mother happy.

Two days to Australia. That's too soon; that's nowhere near soon enough.
Tags: australia makes you die, con prep, in the wild, travel, wild adventures
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  • 49 comments

starmalachite

August 26 2010, 04:41:33 UTC 6 years ago

Enjoy! & please to tell us all about it when you get back.

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 16:51:05 UTC 6 years ago

Of course.

notalwaysweak

August 26 2010, 04:42:12 UTC 6 years ago

Our current torrents of rain laugh at your 'probably a sunburn'.

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 16:51:18 UTC 6 years ago

Dude, I got fried.

ceitfianna

August 26 2010, 04:51:31 UTC 6 years ago

Have a wonderful time, that part of the world is amazing.

I don't have an Australia icon but a New Zealand one since I lived there.

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 16:51:27 UTC 6 years ago

It was incredible.

georgiamagnolia

August 26 2010, 05:29:51 UTC 6 years ago

Yay! Good luck on catching a tiara and have a safe trip and I am really sad that I just now realized that I should have made you a "St. Sully of the Hudson" talisman for your flight. I take mine (made by a friend from work) with me on flights, it's amusing if nothing else.

Travel safe and have fun and take lots of pictures to show us when you get back! (hey, I like vacation slide shows, what're ya lookin' at me like that for?)

ladyfox7oaks

August 26 2010, 18:03:44 UTC 6 years ago

"St Sully of the Hudson" talisman... THAT sounds entirely too cool! Any chance of pics?

georgiamagnolia

6 years ago

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ladyfox7oaks

6 years ago

  • New comment

seanan_mcguire

6 years ago

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themysteriousg

August 26 2010, 05:33:22 UTC 6 years ago

Have the very best time. Get a tiara--I think it makes a great accessory to your brain.

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 16:52:02 UTC 6 years ago

Totally.

obsessivewoman

August 26 2010, 05:45:34 UTC 6 years ago

Have fun! I look forward to your stories, my dear... and, of coarse, a chance to see the tiara.

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 16:52:11 UTC 6 years ago

It's soooooooooooo pretty.

Cats and Quarantines

mythusmage

August 26 2010, 06:00:55 UTC 6 years ago

Ask Dave Freer about it. he recently moved to Australia and took his wildlife with him. The cats came through pretty much okay, but the dogs are still getting over it.

Re: Cats and Quarantines

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 16:52:25 UTC 6 years ago

My cats are uniquely co-dependent and clingy.

Re: Cats and Quarantines

mythusmage

6 years ago

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seabhac_mhor

August 26 2010, 06:12:18 UTC 6 years ago

I am in deep awe / envy of your trip to Australia; perhaps one day I'll actually leave this silly country of ours for some kind of trip.

Then again, tomorrow I drive north to Seattle to visit friends, which is a first for me. Gotta start somewhere!

Have fun, don't die, and I look forward to seeing you in tiara flagrante.

tibicina

August 26 2010, 11:49:24 UTC 6 years ago

You know, if you have a passport, Canada is really only a few hours from Seattle. (And they have good candy and real sugar in their soda. Also Tim Hortons donuts.)

seabhac_mhor

6 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

6 years ago

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angel_vixen

August 26 2010, 06:44:19 UTC 6 years ago

Safe travels, and may your time there be all you hope and more!

AngelVixen :-)

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:02:26 UTC 6 years ago

It was wonderful.

tezmillertm

August 26 2010, 07:17:53 UTC 6 years ago

I have no attention span and no brain left

We Australians don't have attention spans or brains, either, so you'll be among kindred spirits ;-)

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:02:35 UTC 6 years ago

Hooray!

fluffworld

August 26 2010, 07:40:52 UTC 6 years ago

Melbourne may well be coldish that time of year, so pack some warm things as well. I'm the girl who moved to Australia from Ireland with nothing but shorts and tees, and nearly had a heart failure the first time the mercury dropped below 10C.

Melbourne is wonderful. Ask someone to take you to Coco Blacks for a hot chocolate, if you have time, and check out Brunswick St in Fitzroy some night for its cooler-than-cool cafes and bizzare pubs (especially Bimbos, which has a giant neon glowing baby outside) and wonderful little book shops.

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:02:46 UTC 6 years ago

I was toasty and warm, and it was lovely.

aliciaaudrey

August 26 2010, 11:38:13 UTC 6 years ago

That's got to be a heck of a flight. I used to fly coast to coast on a regularish basis (we were living in California but all my family is in New England) and I thought that was pretty bad (7 hours). 15 hours?...yeek. Thankfully that gives you LOTS of time to be productive!

Safe flight!

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:02:56 UTC 6 years ago

Seventeen hour flight. Iiiieee.

bardling

August 26 2010, 12:05:05 UTC 6 years ago

*sneaks a bunch of compressed hugs into your luggage & hand luggage*
They'll inflate back to normal size when you take them out...

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:03:03 UTC 6 years ago

Thank you!

princess_kessie

August 26 2010, 12:43:09 UTC 6 years ago

Melbourne is expecting daily highs in the low to high 60's this week, and I don't suppose next week will be significantly different. Pack layers - lots of them, and a waterproof jacket. Melbourne is known for its rain (and the city funnels the wind really well, rendering umbrellas all-but useless on many days), and the speed with which a day can change from bright sunshine to rain to almost-sleet right back to sunshine again is truly astonishing. I've seen it happen too many times, and it still catches me by surprise.

Most, if not all hotel rooms have individually controlled air conditioning which can be switched from cool (about 65) through to melt (80 or thereabouts) or any level of comfort in between.

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:03:18 UTC 6 years ago

It was a lovely variety of weather.

ceosanna

August 26 2010, 12:57:16 UTC 6 years ago

I'm so excited for you and already can't wait to hear about the trip!

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:03:24 UTC 6 years ago

Glee.

cleothyla

August 26 2010, 15:37:31 UTC 6 years ago

Have a safe journey and hope all your expectations are realized! :)

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:03:31 UTC 6 years ago

Thank you!

kyburg

August 26 2010, 16:45:55 UTC 6 years ago

Don't hesitate to buy luggage when you get there. Mean it.

Quantas flies over my head on my way to work every day. Will be thinking of you.

And if all else fails, you can call to scream in my ear if nobody else picks up the phone. ^^

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:03:41 UTC 6 years ago

My luggage arrived safely.

ladyfox7oaks

August 26 2010, 18:00:28 UTC 6 years ago

May I follow you on Twitter? And will you be tweeting on your trip?

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:03:53 UTC 6 years ago

You can, but I didn't; there was no Internet.

ladyfox7oaks

6 years ago

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snowcoma

August 27 2010, 05:37:54 UTC 6 years ago

Just remember, the taipan does not want to cuddle; it has a headache. Always make sure your poking stick is at least a foot longer than the reach of the critter being poked.

And remember that I love you, and I will be wearing orange and green victory stripes on my face the day of the Hugo/Cambell award ceremony. I even have a clock set to Australian time (thanks to a BFF living there), so I will apply my stripes even if it's the middle of the night.

Have fun, sweetie!

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:04:04 UTC 6 years ago

The taipan was beautiful.

tintiger

August 27 2010, 14:33:10 UTC 6 years ago

Have a wonderful trip and return home safely.

From insatiable curiosity, I have to ask "Is Mira Grant eligible for the John W Campbell Award 2010?"

Or does each person only get one chance at the tiara?

Will be thinking of you, and following the events in Melbourne ...

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:04:13 UTC 6 years ago

She is not, sadly.

baka_kit

August 27 2010, 16:05:55 UTC 6 years ago

For lo, I have dreamed powerful dreams. In my dreams, I have seen you dressed in fine raiment and crowned with the Tiara of Wonderment, striding across Australia. And the parade of your followers will stretch from Melbourne to Sydney, and it will be the birth of a new era.

seanan_mcguire

September 14 2010, 17:04:26 UTC 6 years ago

You're a prophet!