20 pounds is a lot

9/21/2015. Looks like this didn't post earlier. 

Good news - bad news. This morning I couldn't take not knowing how much my luggage weighs and I dug out our old family scale from the back corner if the basement. You know it's old when it's avocado green. 

And I weighed my bag. From what I can tell its about ten pounds. I thought it would be a lot more. Granted there is still some stuff I haven't packed that I'm still using but it also included the stuff if be wearing. 

So good news is that I'm not over yet. Bad news I'm starting to think of things to add back in. Knowing there was a strict weight limit really forced me to evaluate every little thing down to the bobby pin. Do I really need this?  Will I really use this?

My Copenhagen Apartment

I was initially interested at staying at the posh Hotel D'Angleterre

Beautiful, isn't it?  But at over $1,700 per day - it is a bit above my lodging allowance. 

After scouring the internet choking out a million options and going back and forth between hotel room or renting a flat I finally pulled the trigger and yesterday my booking went through for my very own scandanavian apartment for my trip. 

Only about $80/day which is half what most decent hotels are priced and lower then any of the budget hotels. 

It's in the posh neighborhood of Frederiksberg that has nice shopping, food and green space. And not too touristy I hope. Another chance to live like a local. 

This will be my first airbnb experience. Still need to coordinate how to pick up the keys and everything. But just went through the same thing with my Paris trip, renting an apartment from an agency and it was pretty easy. 

One thing I did find looking through all the airbnb options, I did notice a trend. The flats I gravitated towards were those being rented out by women mostly. It all came down to style. The guys would have nice flats too but would decorate them differently - bike hanging on the wall, more function and less stylish. Not unexpected but the difference was amplified on the airbnb site going through dozens of postings. 

I also did a little research yesterday and found out more about luggage on my flight. With only about 20 pounds allowance, I was thinking of ways to maximize. Specifically, wearing a ton of layers (ie, most of my clothes) and packing my pockets with the heavy stuff like converters and chargers - all the electronic accoutrements. But was worried they would make you take off jackets and extra layers and then I'd be stuck with being over the limit. 

I found out that they just weigh the bag and you leave on your jacket.  Apparently you can also add weight from purchases on the other side of security and bring a bag from duty free too. Which is good because they serve nothing free on the plane - not even water. So will need to buy my food and water at the airport which can get heavy. 

Also, there were a couple postings of travelers who weighed their luggage prior to arriving at the airport and when it was officially weighed, the scale was different and they were over. Apparently they are more lax in Europe and allow for a little over, but in boston, if you're over, your screwed - you are paying more. 

Lots of new travel experiences already!  Between the airbnb, renting out someone's personal apartment and the super budget travel were there are no extras. A far cry from my days traveling business class over seas with reclining seats, patte served on china and a glass of champaign handed out when you board. 

Traveling with Nick

Means we are the first ones at the gate!

Which is the opposite of how I usually travel. I now have an hour and a half to explore the Columbus airport after a Labor Day weekend visit with mom. 

Travel Prep

First I have to share that going into work this morning, I stole a bicycle spot. The bike racks were full so I was biking over to a railing. As I was coming from one direction this fellow was coming from the other and there was only one real spot left. I quickly snagged it and he had to drive by. You'd think there would be less bicyclists with the shorter days but there seems to be more. Everyone is back from summer vacations. 

In other news I'm excited about my up coming trip to Copenhagen!  I got this sweet promotional deal on the flight for $360. Only catch was they charged you separately for everything. I paid to get a non-middle seat for each leg - worth the extra $40. But I went cheap on the amount of luggage. I think it's something like 12 kg. I didn't really have a sense of what that related to and it basically means I'm bringing almost nothing. Just a backpack with a few essentials. It's amazing how much I've pared down. I'm still up in the air if I go all in and only bring the one pair of pants and shoes I'd be wearing. Too risky?  

The part I thought might be hard was packing for a different temperature. Not too long ago this was the weather here and there:

 Such a difference between 90 and 60. But luckily the early mornings have been in the 60s which means I've gotten rid of the sweater and cardigan. Too risky?  My thinking is that I love Scandinavian style so if I find I need something I can buy it there. 

And this morning I finally made up my mind and booked where I'm staying. I was all over the place and finally settled on an apartment on Airbnb in this cute neighborhood. I'll share pictures later. It's my first time doing airbnb but I did my research and decided to play it safe and not go for a private room but an entire flat to myself- no sharing. And it's so cheap compared to hotels. Only $567 for the week!  So that means this trip is still under $1000. How sweet is that?!

It looks like I can't check in until the afternoon but that's the nice part - because I'm forced to pack so light I'm not luging  a suitcase around - just me and my backpack. 

I'm thinking I'll get the 5-day pass for the city. It was great in Paris - probably a wash on savings but just made things easier. Lots of museums and free transportation.  Still need to do some more planning before I leave, especially since I don't think I'll be bringing the iPad. Its a little easier to plan now since I did finally decide to keep this trip to just exploring the city and maybe a day trip. I had been thinking of spending half the time biking around the country but will save that for another trip. Too much to squeeze in as it is. 

Can't wait!  Only wished I had more time between now and when I leave. I'm booked solid between my garage sale, a birthday bash and work commitments. Only proves I need the vacation!

Almost forgot - I did squeeze in a visit to get my haircut. I feel so much more European with the shorter do. 

Bicycling Year Round?

For the last several summers I've been fairly consistent and pull the old bike out and skip the bus part of my commute. Instead biking along the beautiful bike path, and a little bit of busy streets, to get to the subway. 

For about two weeks I had to forgo the bike and take the bus because my bike was needing some help. My rear tire wouldn't stay inflated. I'd be fine in the morning but come evening I would be limping along on a flat tire. Even joggers would pass me. 

On my hiatus from my bike I noticed that not only did I miss the ride but I was less healthy on two fronts. Frankly it's the most exercise I get each day. So without it all I had was walking and some stairs at work. 

But more importantly it was the mental. This summer I stopped listening to podcasts while biking and enjoyed the time with my thoughts and enjoying the beautiful scenery. It's a really pretty path and well used but not too crowded. Good people watching. 

Well, I got my bike back and O...M...G.  I had asked to fix the tire situation and figured I'd get a tune up while I was at it. Having not ever had one. I got back a new bike!  Turns out the tire was fine. The air pressure was low. They fixed things I'd forgotten needed fixing like my squeaky handlebars and fixed things I don't even know about. 

My ride is so much easier and yet I think I get a better work out. My theory was that even if things were sluggish it offered more resistance so more work out. Apparently not. 

My first day back on the path I was flying. Not only was I passing all the joggers I even passed some cyclists too. 

I should have gotten the tune up ages ago but am glad it's now. Because Labor Day is about when I switch back. It's dark biking back, it's colder and the lightness of summer on the path is gone. But now I'm on a roll, got myself a new bike light and am planning on giving it a go. Biking year round. So far, so good. 

Actually, Friday, I finally saw a bit of town night. In the past I'd enjoy the fireworks from afar (not a fan) either on the bus tie home or snuggled up at home. This time, I got to catch all the festivities, hosted on the baseball field off the path. Tons of activity with horse rides and food and games. A nice little pocket of enjoyment I'd have missed on my regular commute home. 

End of Summer

I can’t believe how fast the summer has flown by.  I had a little hiatus from riding my bike this last week since my back tire wasn’t holding the air.  I started taking the bus again while the bike was out of commission. Good timing since I was in the middle of reading the Hunger Games trilogy finally.  Talk about a book that is hard to put down.  I blew through all three in under two weeks - just reading during my commute.  But I did realize I really get something from the bike riding.  Not only a little exercise, but also some thinking time apparently.  I just picked up my bike from the repair shop yesterday where I also had them do a tune-up and what a difference.  It definitely helps having better tires but everything just runs so smoothly.  I guess you don’t notice the decline when it’s gradual.   The ride in this morning was so easy and carefree.  I knew I was working a bit harder earlier, before the tune-up.  Being passed by a jogger might have been one give away.  I was that slow, but figured I was getting a work-out - more resistance and everything.  Now I’m making a mental note to bring the bike up in for a tune-up at the start of each summer.

I’m also trying to figure out if I can ride my bike further into the fall/winter season.  I usually stop riding when I find I’m commuting home in the dark.  There’s something different about riding your bike in a fresh summer evening with tons of people out walking their dogs, hanging out by the pond and playing in the fields beside the bike path and general merriment, versus the evening when it’s really dark on the bike path - the trees block the moon and there are no bike path lights.  I did figure out the other night, a new way to bike home parallel to the bike path on a side street/parking lot, which limited the bike path riding to just a small stretch.  And I did pick up a new bike light which hopefully will last a little longer than the last lamp.  I’m almost wondering if I can ride my bike year round.  I may be too eager since in the winters the bike path can be out of commission most days and biking on the busy streets are not my cup of tea.  For now, I’ll just enjoy my nice bike rides in the remaining summer evenings.  And figure out the rest as I go along.  It’s nice having the bike back and better than ever.

On other fronts, I’ve got tons of travel in the works.  Work has calmed down - so not too much travel although I will have some coming up this fall.  I also have my wonderful deal I bought last year coming up this fall - Copenhagen for only $350 round trip.  Crazy right!  I was one of the lucky few that got in on the promotional deal.  And then just got another promotional deal for Amsterdam pop up this summer so booked that for this spring.  Not quite as good but still under $600 which is hard to find.  And I just was notified of a new deal that popped up for Oslo that is under $600 and fits in with my plans to explore the Nordic/Scandinavian countries.  But am having to be good and not book anything.  Partly for expense and partly for time. Having two vacations within a 6 month period taxes the vacation days and budget.  Also in the mix is a potential trip with mom and Nick that I didn’t realize was wanting to be end of spring next year too.  It’s hard when you want to travel and can’t find any good flight deals and then other times when you all of a sudden stumble upon a bunch but can’t take advantage of them.  

On the home front, I’m slowly making progress of updating the place, one project at a time.  I reupholstered my living room chairs with new blue velvet seats.  Fairly simple to do compared to other upholstery projects I have on the list.  I got all the chairs done in a weekend.  The one thing of note for future self is to make sure to put the velvet facing the same way for each chair.  The original chairs had velvet material that was put on in two different directions and it didn’t seem to matter.  But with the blue velvet, sitting next to each other, you can tell the different shades.  Minor detail since most of the time they are not next to each other and are under the table hidden away.  I also had Dad and Barbro, during their visit this weekend, help me move the giant mirror that was in my bedroom.  I think this is a New England thing since I’ve seen a bunch of places have this - a big 4’ x6’ piece of mirror (or bigger) hung up on a wall.  The aim is to make the room look bigger and brighter.  In my place, when you looked into my bedroom, it seemed bigger because of where the mirror was.  Only it really doesn’t fit in with the design I’ve been working out and I am getting close to finalizing paint color and want to clear the walls for painting.  So I moved it to my living room, along the wall that I would like to knock down eventually.  It gives me a preview of what the room will look like bigger.  It really changes the room, but in a good way which is nice.

The big annoyance right now is that I’m in the process of going through everything I own and figuring out if I should keep it or finally let it go which means a lot of stuff is getting pulled out and taking up more space under foot.  I’m aiming to finally have a garage sale in a few weeks, which means pushing forward with making piles of stuff to sell.  And I’m running out of storage space - the basement is pretty full and my enclosed back porch, so now it’s bleeding into the other rooms.  It doesn’t seem like that much stuff, but it does take up room.  It will be nice to down size and I imagine it will take several cycles of going through and weeding out.  It’s amazing how little clothing I have now.  The process really made me take stock of what really works for me style wise and what looks good. And what I really wear.  It’s making getting dressed and put together so much easier when there aren’t a million options and combinations.  So much so that I’m not inclined to go clothes shopping much anymore.  That’s a first for me in 30+ years. 

 And of course, I’m leaving out all the fun get togethers and visits of the summer but will save that for another post, if I get to it.

Refinanced!

Success!  I just closed today on refinancing my mortgage.  I was thinking about locking in a lower interest rate back at Christmas and am kicking myself I didn’t start the paperwork in February when the rates were really good.  But still better late than never.  I still locked in a nice low rate, even though my place isn’t that old.  It took a bit longer than I thought it would - considering it was just refinancing.  I figured the paperwork would be easier.  Not really - still tons.  But apparently it’s about to get worse in the next month with new regulation on mortgages.  Glad I missed that headache.

I’m really excited, because I paid off a bit of my mortgage and with the new lower rate, I’m paying the same amount per month as I was before and just went from having 28 years left on my mortgage to 15.  It’s nice to know I’ll have my place paid off before I hit retirement age.  Granted I don’t move, of course.  It was interesting as I’ve been soliciting more financial advice from folks in high up “paying-off-the-mortgage-early-was-one-of-the-best-things-I-did” came up a lot.

 

Also nice to hear was the appraisal.  The guy who came out shared that my town is really solid - it was one of the few that maintained house value during the real estate hit a few years back.  And the market is doing really well.  It was nice to see that the value went up pretty nicely.  A very different feel than what I had back with my place in Michigan - where I bought high and sold low. 

I had to pick up a bank check yesterday in preparation.  I thought I’d be one of the first into the bank when it opened at 9 am, but a bunch of people were ahead of me.  And they all had something in common.  They were older (i.e. retired/senior).  It was the thing to do I guess.  One woman just came in to ask about her balance on her account.  But the other three people were getting money and all asked for big bills - $100 bills.  Very strange since I was just talking with Nick last month about how $100 bills apparently are used more internationally than nationally.  Which seems right since I hardly ever come across a $100 or see someone use one.  And US currency is used for transactions where paper money is needed, especially in developing countries.  So strange to suddenly see a bunch of people asking for the big bills.  I started envisioning some underworld organization thing that the senior folks were working in.  Not money laundering but something like that.

Needless to say, I was happy to pass the check on today.  I don’t like having that much money on me that could possible go missing.  My checking account feels awfully barren right now.  I keep reminding myself it will be in good shape soon.