Peace of mind…priceless!

Our business cards arrived a few days ago.

Now, when asked by an interested party to write down our blog address, we can simply pull out a card, avoiding the task of finding a pen, paper and writing out our of our lengthy web address in our illegible handwriting.

Please note the change in both of our email addresses as indicated on the card. We gladly share these with our readers.  Of course, we welcome email messages as well as comments on our blog. We will promptly respond to all comments and questions as soon as possible.

Over the past few days, we’ve made a few necessary, albeit boring, purchases. We bought two RFID blocking passport wallets at Identity Stronghold, one for each of us.  

The special metal guard implanted into the leather of the wallets reduces the risk of identity theft by scammers usually lurking in airports, hotels and malls preventing them from being able to scan our identity from our credit cards, driver’s licenses and passports while in our pockets or handbag!  They can illegally purchase a $100 scanning device to be “in business” leaving us in a potential disastrous situation.  

As we sucked the air from the Space Bags with the little vacuum (please see prior post from 9/3) placing three vacuum sealed bags into each of my three large suitcases on Sunday, I contemplated the wrinkles in my clothes. 


Many of our clothes are wrinkle free, not all. We love cotton for its natural fiber, cool absorbency and long wear, although the wrinkly look is not appealing to either of us. With a wide array of clothing, mostly casual, some dressy, and a few in the mid-range for travel days, we will have some wrinkle resistant items.

I like to iron, always have. I iron my everyday tee shirts, most of which are 95% cotton and with 5% spandex which adds to their durability, ability to retain shape and provide a comfortable feel. I iron Tom’s casual shirts for weekend wear, not his work shirts. I don’t iron sheets, jeans or underwear! OK? I’m not totally obsessive!

Upon reading, which items may be confiscated on cruises, irons fell into the same category as bottles of alcoholic beverages; not allowed. No alcoholic beverage aboard ship to allow the cruise lines to make money and, no irons to avoid a fire aboard ship. I appreciate the iron policy. The booze policy, not so much. End result, we needed to bring along a travel steamer (which is allowed).

Yes, I know, take a shower and hang the clothes in the steamy bathroom. Alas, wrinkles are gone. I have tried this dozens of times to no avail. The wrinkles may be gone in the main body of the item. but remain in the collar, sleeves and button tabs. Not good enough. We bought a steamer.

BTW, I researched eBay for these items. I hesitated on these items fearing they’d be “knock-offs” presenting a huge risk. As for the steamer, after reading dozens a reviews I noticed more complaints on eBay than on other sites, indicating the steamers may be “seconds,” “refurbished” or returns. It wasn’t worth the risk to save a few dollars.

The third purchase we made in the past few days, again, not that interesting, but necessary was compression stockings. Here again, this is an item I didn’t feel safe purchasing from eBay. Deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a serious consideration when sitting on an airplane for extended periods, can be a concern for travelers of any age. Our extensive research suggested wearing compression stockings to minimize this risk and, of course, getting up and walking around every hour.

Here’s our purchase from Discount Surgical Stockings the unisex version, two pairs khaki, one black, one white, all in size medium to fit both of us. Tom suggested we buy two pairs each in the event we leave a sock behind in a dryer. Great idea.

$11.95 As low as $10.95
  • Medium 15-20mm Hg Support
  • Closed Toe
  • Casual Sock
  • Extra Cushioning
  • Moisture Wicking
  • Black
  • White
  • Tan
  • Brown

All of these items may be instrumental in reducing the risks or, not. If nothing else, our minds are at ease regarding these concerns, allowing us to focus on any unknown risks that we’ll surely face in the future.

Now, on to a vigorous hour long walk with my neighbors, more packing in preparation for shipping a few boxes of memorabilia to son Richard in Henderson, NV who’s roomy alarm protected, air conditioned house and garage allows us additional peace of mind in safely storing valuables with no risk of water damage, humidity or tornadoes.

Ah, peace of mind…can’t get enough of it!