Ladies and gentlemen, start packing your bags

Today I leave for San Diego - Yeah! I've decided that San Diego is a race of "Firsts."

1. First half-marathon
2. First destination race
3. First time running with family cheering me on
4. First time running in weather one would actually describe as "pleasant"
5. First time I try to beat Valerie Bertinelli's half-marathon finish time (watch out Val, I've got your number)

And I can't wait! Now that I've got my bags packed, that is.

I travel fairly often for my job. Not to brag or anything, but I am a pretty good packer. I refuse to check my bags, the airlines always lose them. (Flashback to my honeymoon when the airlines lost our luggage for nearly 5 days. All my pictures in Southern Italy feature me in the same back sweater and khaki pants. The outfit was cute the first day I wore it ...) Now, I can take a week long international trip to a cold location and carry on. Gooo me!

So, when it came to pack for San Diego, I never once thought there would be an issue. Oh how wrong I was. Do you know how much space running stuff takes up? Holy Crap.

I began, as usual, by laying everything I needed out on the bed.

Cute running outfit for race day? Check.
Water bottle? Check.
Running watch, heart rate monitor, and charger? Check.
Ascis Gel Nimbus 10s (my running shoes)? Check.
Strawberry-Banana Gu (my energy booster consumed during the race)? Check.
Special running socks that keep my feet from getting blisters? Check.
ipod shuffle and charger? Check?
Running clothes for the last run I have to do on Friday before the race? Check.

And my suitcase was now full. And I hadn't even packed my normal clothes yet.

Between packing and the thought of the cross-country flight that takes off at 6:50 am (just 6 hours away at this point) I am exhausted. And I haven't even gotten to starting line yet!

However, it is worth it. In a few short (ok, kinda long) hours, I'll be sitting in San Diego, visiting with family and preparing to run my very first half-marathon with them cheering me on. How exciting. How important.

So important in fact that I will admit, although I don't have to, I would have even considered checking.