When You're In Control...

While online setting myself up to conquer this bucket list item, which I'd been getting excited about for over a year, I met some people who were able to well advise me. I received suggestions on how to dress for the hike, what to take to eat, & when to be eating it.

At first it was because I was looking for someone with which to make the hike; I didn't think it would be all that great to hike solo; it really wasn't all that bad. After putting in the time & effort for several weeks to track down someone who'd want to make this hike and want to [read: be able to] make this hike on the same day as I did, I relented & began setting myself up.

When you're in control, you make it happen.

Maybe it was a "control" thing. I'd be able to set up my flight, as well as my rental vehicle knowing that whatever plans I did make were all mine & I wouldn't be inconveniencing anyone except me (in the case that I fouled up some part of the planning! 😎😂).

The first thing I knew I'd need to be packing: these.

Which also brought me to the discovery that I'd need to have checked baggage. These are on the TSA unacceptable-onboard-a-plane list. So be it.

I'd stick this, which I'd used in July into another luggage bag (one I had which was on wheels) so that I'd be able to get by with checking just one bag. These, even when completely collapsed, weren't short enough to fit inside this & also be able to shut it. I then began cooking up more brilliance with what all I would pack in & around the bag inside the bag.

So as not to take up unnecessary, additional spacing, I figured, even though they'd be a slight inconvenience to take off, etc. through airport security, their not being packed, rather, worn would make for maximum additional space-still-available-to-pack-other-things. So be it.

I untied & removed these through the airport security process & then sat comfortable aboard the plane knowing that in wearing these versus these, (remember this post?), no matter the plane's temperature, my feet were bound to be kept cozy.

And they do say if, in being the extremes from the main part of your body, your hands & feet are comfortable & cozy, then the rest of you is sure to be too!

I would then have maximum space to fill in & around with appropriate food, beverage, & even some clothes... 😉

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It's Smelling a Little Bit Productive

Back in town I was ready to focus on the important things in life. Correcting the remainder of my storage unit (from here & here), setting up plans to check another item off my bucket list, & this, this, & this...especially this & this! After spending nearly a solid month creating dirty laundry, these are the things which make me smile.

Being able to function as an independent, decisive, adult member of society has its rewards. I'd just taken control & polished off a few goals during the previous month. Now I was setting myself up to conquer one more. With my birthday around the corner logic prevailed & I began the "homework" process to know what was most important for me to do in order to properly prepare in order to keep on placing checkmarks within the metaphorical boxes lining the left-hand side of my ever-growing bucket list. 😏

With clean garments sprawled across the carpeted floor after lining the dowel rods of this to maximum capacity, I began searching online for all the pertinent information on what I needed to know for a successful trip & finally hike the Grand Canyon.

Knowing exactly what day I planned to hike made setting up my flight & rental vehicle easiest. Thanks to mapping apps I could confirm the logistics of where I'd need to be & the reality of whether it'd be possible. Based on needing to board a flight about twelve hours sooner than I thought would be practical, I soon learned that the additional hours would be just the right amount that I'd need in order to finish setting myself up for the main event.

First, though, I had roughly a month to gather the best information & make the necessary connections in order to make the most of the long-awaited experience.

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That's a Lot of Friendship

With a subtitle of: Sleeping Sitting Up 😊

After an accidental small "win" during my next-to-last overnight Greyhound Bus trip [read: sleeping time] where, because I happened to be sitting in one of the last seats toward the bus's back end, I sprawled out over both of the seats on the side of the bus where I'd been sitting. I curled up &, since I had this packed in my carry-on, & therefore accessible & out, I had it wrapping me up - for an added bonus, I also tossed it over my face & head enough to block out the lighting the bus offered, especially when it would stop for its few short breaks.

I learned, from a nearby passenger, that whenever our bus would reach a stop at a station & pick up one or two more passengers, & they'd walk all the way to the back of the bus & see me (& there was one other passenger who'd done the same as I did right behind me), they'd turn & pick to sit with the next passenger over who didn't have someone sitting immediately next to them; essentially the two of us sleeping curled up, taking up two seats each, were left alone to continue our slumber.

This was an immense win & total turn of events from my near frozen-first-night post (click here). To top it off, the following night, when I realized the final overnight bus ride would be a full load of passengers, & that there'd be no way to replicate my previous night's curled-up-slumber.

A gregarious one, I chatted with a few passengers also waiting for their bus while at the final station as there was a nearly forty-five minute layover. In doing so, a highly anxious female inquired with me about her ticket. She was certain that her next bus, because her next layover was one in the same with my final destination, that we would be riding on the same bus. I couldn't confirm that & highly encouraged her to speak with a station associate. Somewhere in that process another passenger got her even more anxious.

Then I checked with a station associate in order to confirm in exactly which boarding line I belonged. I was so excited to board, I at first didn't get into the correct line. 😏😅 Whoops! 😂 I then got myself into the appropriate single-file line & happened to find myself behind a young man headed back to Ireland who'd spent the past three months as the oldest counselor (& definitely the tallest too! He was super tall!) at a kids camp. He'd already aged out as a counselor, yet since it was the final summer he had, post college graduation, he'd been awarded one more final opportunity to be with the camp's kids.

He introduced me to the line-up of these, handmade from these he wore on his lower left forearm. He knew the name of each child who'd made him one, & which one they'd made; he knew each child's story. It was amazing also, because obviously he could've told me anything, made up a likely name for each bracelets creator; he could've even actually just bought these, yet he didn't.

It was genuinely apparent that he did not. That each was made through a process where he made them one, & in turn, they made him one. They may have even picked out the colors & patterns they'd use together. Just like a snowflake, no two could stories, or children, could possibly be the same.

He'd genuinely loved his role as camp counselor & expressed sincere gratitude for spending the additional, final Summertime with his given role.

Sometime after we'd chatted about the purpose of our journeys, we dozed off. Well, he managed to. As tall as he was, over in the window seat, he managed to slouch in such a way that he was out rather quickly. I, on the other hand, overall enjoying the freedom the aisle seat can provide, also had to concern myself with not falling off the seat. That's because the seat my new Irish friend had selected, the one where I'd followed him feeling confident that in sitting next to him, I'd be with good company, happened to be a seat where the aisle's armrest simply wasn't there. So I was comfortable, I just had to pay a different kind of attention whenever the bus moved in certain ways.

After struggling for well over an hour, possibly much longer, I found myself dozing out enough by process of leaning over, my hands & forearms braced on my quadriceps & my head using my hands & forearms as a pillow. It sounds weird, yet it actually worked! And that truly is the most important part!

When we'd woken up due to the driver announcing our arrival in the town (which was my final destination) my Irish seat partner talked about how, when he'd woken for a moment & seen how I was sleeping, he was surprised. I told him I felt the same about how he'd managed to sleep, & so well, being so lengthy & next to the window.

Alas, I was so excited to finally be in my town-of-great-familiarity that I didn't even need help yanking my carry-on from the overhead (the handle on it tended to continue getting caught & be difficult to budge).

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Good Things Happen to Good People Too

When I left for this long Greyhound Bus & rental vehicle trip I packed up everything I'd need & a back up for each item I packed. 😂 Seriously though that's a statement not too far off the actual mark!

I happened to own a few of these. Two were direct for wall outlet use, one only had the USB port to connect directly into a vehicle's intended outlet. Out of what I had brought I knew which ones worked best & which ones weren't as reliable. I knew to bring each of them because there's always the chance that the one I would bring with me would be the one which would stop working & then I'm be bummed with myself thinking how I'd need to go & spend money on another when I already owned a few others "back home".

It was "back home" while growing up that Dad (definitely Dad more so than Mom) emphasized the importance of using items we owned until their bitter end. If it still worked, there was no point in pitching or replacing whatever "it" was. It is for this reason that, even when I'd be using one of these and suddenly realize that it's not working, unless I adjust its input or lean it against a surface somehow, that's exactly what I'll do. And then it'll be working again.

"Common man" would have just gone & bought another. Not me. I had a few where none of them were completely reliable. And I just managed from there. I'd know which one was temperamental for which outlets. And I'd play the game.

Then, while riding the bus back home the inevitable happened. The particular bus we were riding happened to have its outlets on the side panel next to the window seat, not between the window & aisle seats under the legs, nor on the backside of the seat in front of the passenger. The side panel, where the window was, created something of a ledge. For someone who enjoys an ottoman & having one's legs & feet propped up it was only natural that my left foot would slide into place. And that it did.

And I was talking. I was chatting. So a bit of mindlessness was involved. And then my left foot relaxed. And, no, I wasn't paying close attention. And then I heard a crunch. I think I felt it too.

Then I reached down & I pulled the piece, slightly out of sorts, from the socket. And at first I was bummed because I could've been paying better attention. And at the same time I wasn't paying attention because I'd asked another passenger that I'd befriended to sit & talk with me in an effort to calm through the evening/nighttime portion of that day's ride.

Everything was fine. I did still have another charger, I really didn't need to be using my phone [read: everything about my phone except actually using it as a phone - of course! 😜] & I'd officially be back in my home state in less than 24 hours.

I knew it was time to go for it. Time to make it happen. The day I got back I went & got myself one of these & one of these, although the one I got was blue 😊. And I did get it in blue because blue's just a great color, however I quickly came to appreciate its color difference sitting among the similar black cords & knowing which cord I meant to grab for its purpose.

The former, I intentionally got because it's a bit shorter & has its practical goodness in not taking up as much space, yet being available & useable on the occasion of potentially mere desperation. Hence, I stow it in the front pocket of this. Remember this post?

The latter I selected because, well, we all need some cord length from time to time. 😏😉😊 Kind of like the conveniences with having an extra long cord on one of these. 😎😄😜 S-t-r-e-t-c-h from the wall outlet, whether it be one of these, or one of these. 😏

I initially wasn't crazy about the cords being designed as separate from the outlet portion although I now realize the brilliance (likely a cost production strategy as well) that the cables can be changed out to be inserted directly into a USB port or, essentially adapt for a wall outlet.


So the initial "accident" that someone might say wasn't a good thing, technically happened rather conveniently. I knew, without a doubt, that the most logical solution to the overall situation was to toss what I had (&, I'm a "keeper" so the "tossing" was a "big moment" for me!) & not be trying to use any of this to repair them & continue on with their use.

It did become a good thing that my foot slipped, the break did happen & I needed it to...I needed to break away from continuing to rely on essentially broken items...broken pieces. Now inserting the charging cable's port into the base of my phone & feeling it snapping in tight...there's such peace & security...a serenity in that. And my phone seems to charge more quickly too.

All because instead of getting frustrated that something I owned got a little bit messed up, I embraced that it was just as well & I was probably all the better of a person for it! (As soon as my foot came smashing down on that plastic!)

It's a "good thing" that it happened after all! 😁

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While Sitting Back & Relaxing

Yesterday I wrote about these & these. It was my original intention to focus on the brilliance of the former. Well, I technically did do that. And, at the same time, I realized hours later that I didn't address one of the bigger "awesome" qualities about it & why I intentionally had it "packed" & at easy access.

I used quotes because it essentially wasn't packed. Being a jumbo clip (versus a medium-sized clip or the smaller ones typically used just for hair deco - envision these tiny things) it fits adequately around the strap on my shoulder bag, so it was with me, just not necessarily packed. 😂

One detriment to using any of these, especially where they sit directly on the backside of the scalp, is that the wearer is essentially unable to relax their head; they cannot "lean back" or sit straight up (maintain good posture) in a high-back chair while wearing one of these. These yes, these no. 😂

However, with the convenience of being able to twist my long, thick, wavy curly hair up & put it in place in one, quick, flawless gesture, as well as squeeze the claw's grip at any moment, allowing the same mane to fall back down against the nape of my neck & beyond, & still look just the same! Very nice! & Sharp too!!

That's the brilliance & top selling point for this. After all, when you're riding a Greyhound Bus (or whatever similar activity there may be) & wish to look presentable, being able to quickly & flawlessly switch between a comfortable "up-do" & leaning one's head back against a transportation seat's headrest - whenever - is a rather welcome option.

This also goes back to why these weren't necessarily the most adequate for this task. This is why I mentioned the "crimping" they cause at the folds of the hair (especially when sweat's built up & there's more of the hair's natural oil within the strands than might otherwise be the case [i.e., when one's been traveling on a Greyhound for 36+ hours or when one's recently been running or been otherwise extensively active]).

They are great & I did find my way to them by happenchance. I essentially needed a hair tie to pull back a ponytail, where one of these wouldn't do; it's not big & expansive enough for hair as long & thick as mine (with all of the excessive winding around mine tends to need in order to be completely up & out of the way), so I reached for one of these which I'd had on hand for whenever I might want to keep the wisps of hair from falling across my head's frontal section (which I've never actually done).

Instead rather, I, not doubled it over, I "tripled" it over &, because of it's -particular elasticity (it is an elastic headband 😄), it could wrap around & over, with great success & without concern of excessive wear & tear or damage (like these would). Essentially the added thickness of this elastic seems to take away from it's long-term general durability & therefore, also the effectiveness & longevity in use, in comparison to these.

It's the plastic of the claw which makes it so difficult to wear while allowing one's neck to relax. It's not being able to pull this flawlessly out of the long locks it's wrapping up & has the ends tucked within gracefully & eloquently leaving the wearer looking simultaneously presentable.

Then again, as beauty is in the eye of the beholder, one's presentation is of personal opinion as well as a relative one. 😏😉😊

So sit back & relax (to the tip-top of your head) & watch the butterflies fly on by. 😏😄

Disclaimer: The person's head in the image in the top left is not mine, although we are similar as brunettes.

These links are affiliate links to Amazon as well as the image link in the top left.

If you'd like to shop my general Amazon Store, click here. By clicking any of these links to get to Amazon's site I may get a small share of the sale. Thank You!