Totin' Tour de France

Lisa Earle McLeod: Forget Perfect, Finding Grace when you can't even find clean underwear

Elizabeth and Alex take Paris by storm

Lisa Recommends:

Europe Through the Back Door from Rick Steves

If you think Europe has to be expensive think again,

OK, it's never cheap, but Rick Steve's shows you how to live like a local abroad.

www.RickSteves.com

Watch Video

Quick Links

ForgetPerfect.com

Schedule

Meeting Planner Kit

Store

Contact

Click here to contact us

Coming Next Week

Awful Moments in Money

December 8, 2008

Forget Perfect Monday Minute

The Totin' Tour de France

Four Clueless Americans in France, Part Duex

"The night before you leave is when you finally come to grips with the fact that you can't wear the same black pants for two weeks, no matter what that guy on the travel channel tells you."

I swear we tried to cull down our stuff. I even told the kids that they should turn their underwear inside out for the second week of our trip.

But there we were, lurching through the streets of Paris, six huge bags in tow - my husband dragging the two largest - as we tried to flag down a taxi.

It seemed like a good idea at the time - haul the bags down to the street and hail a cab. But as one after another of the petite Peugeot cabs sped past us with a mocking Frenchman at the wheel, alternately shaking their heads or laughing at the pitiful Americans surrounded by a sea of Samsonite, I began to think that perhaps we had brought too much stuff.

It's a common problem, and I've noticed it's a bigger problem for us women.

The idea of whisking yourself off to a foreign land with a chic leather overnighter slung over your shoulder sounds positively spontaneous. But wait until you get close to the departure time.

The night before you leave is when you finally come to grips with the fact that you can't wear the same black pants for two weeks, no matter what that guy on the travel channel tells you.

Personally I think I should be so rich that I have clothes and toiletries scattered around the world, so all I have to do is show up and my handmaidens will have lined up a whole wardrobe of seasonally appropriate clothes and lighted the candles around my bath.

Don't laugh; some people actually live like this.

But seeing as how I am neither rich, nor practical, my luggage is a bit heavier than Elton John, who has a home in Nice and probably shows up with nothing more than a sheaf of sheet music. Or travel expert Rick Steves, who survives a three-week trip to France with two pairs of khakis and some swim trunks.

No offense Rick. Love your books, love your show and love your "travel like a local" philosophy, but I haven't quite mastered "the sweet freedom of true mobility."

So I haul the bags or, more accurately, my husband does. Yes, I carry the little black rolling thing, and the kids carry their canvas duffels, but my husband manages the two big mammas - two large faux-tweed suitcases overflowing with feminine gobbledy-gook (belonging to me and my two stuff-addicted daughters) that my ever-patient man has hauled all over France.

He maneuvered them up a tiny circular train staircase; he stuffed them into a port-a-potty sized elevator in Paris; and he brought them back down six days later to run valiantly down the rue de Courcelles in search of a cab, just so his women would have their stuff.

I know there's more to being a husband and father than toting the bags.

But I also know that a lot of men have hauled a lot of stuff hither and yon for their families and have probably not been adequately thanked for it.

So, on behalf of all high maintenance, over-packing females everywhere, let me just say thank you.

No, we probably don't really need all that stuff. But we sure appreciate you toting it for us.

Welcome, European Council of International Schools

Lisa was delighted to have the opportunity to speak to such a diverse global community. They came from far and wide, Germany, Spain, Russia, Greece, Africa, Brazil, and yes, even one group from Atlanta Georgia. 2,000 International Educators all convened in Nice, France for three days of education, entertainment and networking.

Fortunately for Lisa, the attendees' English was better than her French, German, Spanish or Russian, so she was able to address the crowd in her "native" tongue.

In addition to her keynote, Lisa did two breakout sessions:

Love, Leadership and Learning

How to ignite minds by infusing love into your classroom

Turning Talkers Into Writers

How to turn your class yacker into a prolific writer

Special thanks to all those who attended. The future of the global community is in better hands than we ever dreamed.

Photo above: Lisa and ECIS member Karen Ekman-Baur of StudyHorizons

Special thanks to Karen for connecting us with ECIS.

After several years working in schools as a career and college advisor, Karen is launching out on her own to work independently with students and their families to help them choose the best colleges. Go Karen!