At some point it’s bound to happen: As you are rushing around to check out of your hotel room, you leave your iPod behind.  Or, while you’re reaching into your briefcase, it tips over and you don’t notice that you cell phone has spilled out.  Or, you reach for your credit card and can’t find it, then realize you left it at the restaurant the night before.  Or, when you get home, you reach for your camera to download those photos, and can’t find in anywhere. Ever happen to you?  If so, you know the feeling of sheer panic that runs through you as you try to backtrack your movements to figure out where to start looking for your gadgets.  Did you leave something in your hotel room?  Did it get left behind on the plane or in a cab?  Is […]

Jewelry can make an outfit, no doubt about it, and what’s not to like about diamonds, gold, and other precious gems and metals?!  If you want to bring your jewelry when you’re traveling, however, you’re going to need give some thought to how you’re going to keep your items safe. My first recommendation is simple:  leave the good stuff at home.  Whether it’s expensive gold and stones, or heirloom pieces, there are too many risks of it going missing:  losing it, having it stolen from a hotel room, or becoming a target for muggers by flaunting a little too much bling.  Plus, when traveling in parts of the world where the cost of those diamond earrings would feed a family for five years, I think it shows an incredible lack of sensitivity and consideration to flash your jewels.  Don’t get me […]

As I sit in my hotel room on Maui, watching the sun come up on this island paradise, I think about how fortunate I am to have the type of job that allows me to leave the rain (and occasional snow) of Seattle.  I get to wear shorts, read by the pool, and sit on my deck with a morning coffee.  I can look out my balcony at some lovely grounds (I don’t have an ocean view), and hear the waves in the distance.  Later this morning I might go for a walk and then have my favorite macadamia french toast for breakfast.  Life seems pretty darn good! But what I rarely talk about are the side effects to flying.  From frequent time zone changes, inconsistent sleep patterns, injuries from pushing carts and lifting bags, poor eating habits, and exposure […]