How To Pack Fragile And Liquid Items: Where's the packaging?

Problems
1 You want to pack a fragile item (such as the mirror for a self-portrait mentioned in previous post).
2 You want to pack liquids such as a bottle of vodka for yourself or a present.
Where do you store packaging? How do you find it when you need it?
Why bother? Why not buy new?

Answers
First - why bother saving packaging?
1 If it's raining or snowing you'd rather fold, stack and store an item and its packaging than take a trip to the bin.
2 It takes time to visit the tip. Some councils charge for removing large items.
3 Have you seen the price of packaging!
4 Do your bit for recycling.

1 SAVE PACKAGING
Save the original packing for your fragile item.

2 CUT CLUTTER.
STORAGE
Keep packing boxes and bubble wrap from packages sent by Amazon stored out of the way.
Pick somewhere where nobody else more tidy-minded will find it and throw it away!

LOCATIONS FOR STORAGE
(In an old suitcase. High hat cupboard in hall. Your wardrobe. In America in a closet. Above a cupboard in kitchen, scullery, coat storage area. But if you are concerned about fire do not keep papers and plastics in the kitchen near the hob.

The attic. The basement. Consider all options.
If it's a high cupboard or attic up a ladder, will you or the person who needs it be able to retrieve it easily and safely?)

Always keep packaging in one place, the same place, such as a closet in the USA. (We had a walk in closet when we lived in Rockville Maryland.)

Later in a condo in Singapore we kept a small windowless box room for suitcases and packaging.  If everybody knows where the suitcases and packaging are kept, you all know where to look when packing for a trip. If you employ a maid of cleaner and run out of things to do, get the suitcases and boxes out and the cupboard cleaned from insects, everything stacked like a pyramid, or nested like Russian dolls with a large label with big felt tip writing on the front, or all sides.

SUITABLE STORAGE SITES AND PREVENTING WATER DAMAGE
In another condo we had what in the UK in the old days would be called a scullery and back balcony. Unfortunately the scullery area (containing a second sink and overhead pulley for hanging washing) was open to the elements on one side. The cardboard boxes for large speakers were left on the window side on and below a shelf. During the spring thunderstorms, rain came in.  Eventually the cardboard was waterlogged, mouldy, and warped.

The boxes had to be brought into the kitchen or front balcony in the sun, lifted off the floor, dried in the sun. Once dry, the sides were taped with duct tape for reinforcement. The boxes looked awful, but served the purpose for transporting damaged goods (old speakers overseas warped in humidity) for an estimate for repair or re-sale.

The morals are:
1 STORE Carefully.
Keep cardboard away from windows, leaking pipes, wash basins.

2 COVER Everything Including Covers!
Protect cardboard with protective plastic.

3 INSPECT regularly.
Check whether storage area is safe from damage by termites and mould. Remove insects. Change or start using plastic covering. Throw out packaging beyond repair. Dry out and repair items packaging needed for moving home or taking on trips.

3 MAKE A LABEL / SIGN.
It should be where you can find easily.
Make sure you know where packaging is kept. Write instructions in your diary for the date of your next pre-booked event or trip. For example, if you have gifts for Xmas, ski trips, summer camping, store in an obvious place. Put Xmas wrapping paper, or but Xmas advertisements from Xmas time magazines to use as labels or edging for labels or to wrap the box. Cut out seaside pictures for labels and tags, showing seaside scenes for a box or suitcase containing swimsuits, beach bags, electric fans for gifts.

For example, I buy a revolving magnifying mirror for only £1 from Tanna's chemist (called pharmacy and drug store for in America) in Hatch End, London, England. I save the box inside a suitcase. I have more than one suitcase.

STORAGE REMINDER LABEL
So I send myself an email called Where is it - magnifying mirror box - in small red suitcase labelled one of more of the following: 'For Xmas/Easter/Summer/ Ski trip/UK/USA/Canada/Russia/France/Spain/South Africa/Romania/Singapore/Hong Kong/Cambodia/camping/swimming/hiking/art holiday/'.

STORAGE REMINDER EMAIL MESSAGES
EMAIL
Email yourself a message.
CALENDAR
Mark your calendar with a packing and place where items are kept.
ALARM
Set a timer or alarm with the place to look. For example, for a week before your Xmas holiday trip.

DIARY
Note in a hand-written diary where items are kept and when to check them and retrieve them.

WARDROBE PACKING LIST
You can also keep a packing list on the back of the door of your wardrobe or closet.
A duplicate can be pasted inside your suitcase for packing to go on your holiday, and to check you have retrieved all items.
(Not left behind the skis on the balcony or behind the back door, nor swimsuits drying on a balcony, not clothes in the washing machine, baby items in the dishwasher, nor slippers under the bed, nor night clothes under the pillow, nor baby toys inside the borrowed cot, nor maps in the hire car.)

FRAGILE ITEMS
1 Cover with bubble wrap.
2 Double wrap all liquids with plastic or solid packaging.
3 Pack inside boots and shoes.
4 Pack against the reinforced edges of suitcases and boxes.
5 Keep liquids upright.
6 To avoid staining, store coloured goods in same colour wrapping. For example, water can be wrapped in a white towel or shirt or blanket. But brown rum needs to be wrapped in brown shoes, brown socks, and brown towels or blankets. Similarly, red juice or red nail varnish is better wrapped in red wrapping paper, red towels.

FOOD
Do not wrap items such as leftover vegetables inside a dark blue or black table napkin! Place immediately in a proper Tupperware brand or similar click shut box. For inexpensive and throw away at destination packaging, save Philadelphia cream cheese boxes.

Author

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

How To Use Your Phone Calendar When Travelling, Remember Your Phone, Meet Up

This week two people I know have had problems with phones. A girlfriend in Singapore left her phone containing her calendar diary at work. Her husband was collecting her from a meeting to take her to a late Valentine's Dinner. He could not contact her because she had left her phone at work.

Not the first time. So he was parked outside the venue to collect her. She sighed, "He will be cross with me!"

Over in London, England, a relative has had to travel to the other side of London to collect his phone from a passer by who picked it up when he dropped it in central London when getting out of the car.


The good news is, I was shown how to use the calendar in my phone. And I have the solution to my two friends' problems.

PROBLEMS
Where was I supposed to be today?
What's the name of my friend?
What's the name of the hotel and restaurant?
Which is the nearest station?

What time does the meeting or play start?
What was that food and wine I wanted to try?
Where's my phone?
How do I stop my phone getting roaming charges?
How do I stop my phone running out of battery?

ANSWERS
Meetings and directions can all go into your phone calendar.
If you are using two phones, one for home and one for overseas, your calendar can go into 'the cloud' storage and download and transfer your calendar and contact details to whatever phone or internet connection you are using in an office or café.

Alternatively, add your plans to your local phone when you get the phone switched on. Use the calendar phone on arrival in a new country.

STORIES
Notebooks
I was using a hand-written list on an A4 sheet, needing a clipboard to keep it flat and quickly found. I also wrote notes in a diary whose daily section was too small for more than listing three meetings.

I found a new red clipboard was available in Singapore from Fairprice supermarket. (A branch by the MRT, ground level forecourt at Toa Payoh). Huge stationers and bookshops also stock such items as diaries and clipboards and notebooks.

TIPS
Notebooks
I buy a set of notebooks from Poundland in London, England. I write the year and month and page number at the top of every page.

Diaries
Inexpensive diaries are sold by St Luke's charity shop in London. Discount stores also stock diaries. Some supermarkets such as Morrisons stock diaries. The bigger the branch, the bigger the stationery department. Some branches are 24 hours. Check online. You might also be able to search for diaries on line.

Phone Calendars
A FIND THE CALENDAR
You will find a calendar pre-loaded on your phone. If you are lucky all your aps are loaded in alphabetical order. If not, you can probably move them into alphabetical layout, so you look for C for Calendar. Alternatively put calendar amongst the four favourites which appear at the start. You can sort the aps by

1 Ask in the shop when you buy a new phone, or go back to the shop.
2 In a large meeting call out, does anybody have a Sony/Apple (your brand of phone). Or call out, "Any phone expert here who can help me find a calendar. Or ask the Chairperson who is their IT expert.
3 Go online and type in 'where is calendar for (+your phone brand)'.

B CLICK ON THE CALENDAR
You can open the calendar by year, month or date by clicking on a symbol such as a row of dots or lines or a question mark or a cogwheel for settings at the top of the screen. Click on all the symbols until you find one which changes the calendar layout.

Your calendar probably offers three layouts. The one for the month will enable you to click on today's date. Each morning remind yourself of the day of the week. February is easy because you can remember Feb 14 is Tuesday. If today is Feb 14 it's Tuesday. If yesterday was Valentine's Day, today is the 15th.

You can recall the day by checking first thing in the morning and putting a sign on your desk. (Or make yourself a rolling calendar.)

In each day you will find the word EVENT. Click on this and type in the event such as Meeting with Bank, Contest at YMCA. Add the time, nearest station, postcode or directions, name and phone of business contact, relative or friend.

TIMER/REMINDER
You can set a reminder ten minutes earlier, an hour earlier, a day earlier if you need to put items in your bag or briefcase the night before.

At your destination, if you click on the address you may be able to bring up a map, for example in Google maps. (But you might bring up the map of where you are standing the week before when you are typing in the directions.) You can enlarge the map by placing your finger on it and expanding. Practise doing this, expanding the map, contracting the map, closing the map and going back to the address.

REMEMBERING THE PHONE
Remembering to take phones
The phone calendar is not much use if you have left your phone behind at work, on the table in a restaurant, dropped on the floor. At home or in a hotel bedroom we place a post it note or tape note saying TAKE YOUR PHONE on the back of the front door so we see it as we leave.

THE PRIEST'S 4-POINT CROSS CHECK
You may remember the joke about the Catholic priest. Why does he make the sign of the cross as he leaves the building? He touches his forehead to remember to check he has his hat. He checks his left hand breast pocket to check for his wallet and money.

He touches his right hand breast pocket to check for his handkerchief or tissues and pen. He touches his waist to check his buttons are done up. He looks down as if nodding to the almighty to check his socks match, his shoe laces are done up and that he has not dropped his glasses and keys.

You can do a five point check on everything you need, including your lunch and umbrella, tickets and passport. This check works on whatever you need daily or for a special occasion such as a meeting or wedding. The same goes for a ski slope, or a sunny day. You could do a double check, the first for clothes, the second for accessories.

You could even do a triple check. The third one would be for grooming and cosmetics: comb hair, clean teeth, file nails. Add: umbrella, hat, reading glasses. Or add: toothbrush, comb, lipstick, lip balm, moisturiser, mosquito repellent, stick relief, suncream, sunglasses, sticking plaster. Or add food: lunch; snack; water bottle, cup, plastic knife and fork.

CALENDAR
Lastly, calendar: address, phone number, name of business, personal name of contact, second contact or phone number, meeting point, meeting time.

SECOND WAITING AND MEETING POINT
You don't want somebody waiting forever on a station platform with no internet connection if you are delayed indefinitely by public transport.

You might also have an afterwards or alternative meeting point. Make a cut-off point. For example, "I'll wait on the platform for half an hour. If you have not arrived by then, I'll still wait, but I'll go to the station cafe up on the ground floor and wait reading my book."

I always like to have my destination even if I am travelling with somebody who has the destination. If we get separated getting into a lift (elevator) or train, if I have the restaurant or office or hotel address I can still continue on the journey alone. If the person I am travelling with falls ill, I can still contact the restaurant or business contact.

Meeting Points
Another system is to have an 'afterwards' meeting point. If one of you is likely to be late, arrange to meet at a nearby café or pub after the meeting. If you arrange a meeting point in a cafe2, if one of you is late, you can phone the cafe and ask them to pass on the message, or call your contact to a phone to speak to you.

How to Avoid Losing Your Phone
Check every time you leave a venue or form of transport. Check you have not left something behind on your chair. A pen or phone or pair of reading glasses or sunglasses can slide off under your seat or in a theatre under the seat in front.

Maybe your phone is safe inside your zipped jacket pocket. But don't lose the jacket!

JACKET SAFETY
Check your chair before you leave. Do not leave coats on the back of a chair or under a desk.

Last month I left a blue jacket on a chair. I chased after somebody who was leaving, then walked with them to the station.

It took numerous phone calls to retrieve my jacket which was passed from one person to another. Then the person who had my jacket went away for Chinese New Year. I phoned somebody who had the same name as the person who had the jacket.

Now I fold my jacket inside my tote bag. I keep my tote bag over my shoulder. No chance of my leaving without my jacket. No chance of the room being locked with my jacket inside.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer author and speaker.

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