My time in the car and what I've learned so far.

After almost three weeks on the road and at least two hours on the road daily (at least one of those in the pitch black on dirt roads), a girl has a lot of time on her hands. Often after a long day of work and very little sleep it can be difficult to stay focused and I have to say I now have a lot more respect for people who drive for a living.

Driving along the CA-14

Luckily my rental car has been a savior. It has sync technology and I have been rocking out to my iPhone's music library through the stereo system since minute one of my first drive. So what albums and artists have gotten me through the long drives? Well my usual go to is something that I can listen to in total and sing along to, so musicals are an obvious choice. Les Miserables, The Book of Mormon, Avenue Q and the Producers are just some of the choices I have been belting out along CA 14. Next up on my short list are my Comedy gods, Monty Python, and favorite bands, the Dixie Chicks, Hootie and the Blowfish, Taylor Swift, Fleetwood Mac, Simon and Garfunkel, Billy Joel and most importantly, No Doubt. Lastly, there is always the fallback of any 90s kid, anything and everything Disney.

I definitely have started to fall back in love with not only my music collection but music in general. It is amazing how a song can be tied to an individual memory and how easily our memory banks pull those thoughts up when we hear that tune play on the radio. It is also astounding how easily humans can retain song lyrics. I love to sing and seem to memorize lyrics without even trying. Sometimes I surprise myself when I find myself singing along to a song I have not heard in 10 years.

So what have I learned from my repetitive weekly drives. 1. Always make sure you have all the right cords with you and in the right location in the car before you start driving (I have definitely had to pull over at least once to dig out my iPhone 5 cord so I can sync up my music); 2. Have water, energy drinks, and good snacks and gum; 3. Know your distances to gas stations (I had one emergency gas situation one day. Luckily a coworker had an emergency gas can on them and helped me out); 4. Have lots of music and lots of variety. You want to be prepared for every mood and musical taste.

When's your next road trip? Is it for business or pleasure?

Happy Pi Day!!

Happy Pi Day to everyone out there! I know, I know. I am going to let my inner nerd flag fly for a few minutes here but its Pi Day and for us engineers it's time to celebrate being a little nerdy. Pi Day is celebrated every March 14th or 3.14 since it equates to the first three digits of the mathematical term Pi.

Now Pi day isn't just for us nerds, everyone is welcome to celebrate with us, mostly because, we celebrate with, you guessed it, PIE! And honestly who doesn't like pie? It is the most American desert there is. I know I am having pie for desert tonight and if I was home I would be making my hubby these delicious mini Frozen Reese's Peanut Butter Pies from the blog Bakers Royale. The only add on I make is to throw some Reese's Pieces on top of each mini pie! Head over to the link above for the recipe ASAP! How will you spend your Pi Day?

Frozen Reese's Peanut Butter Pie
Source: Bakers Royale

What's in my Bag? Field Test Edition

Packing for business travel is already a difficult task. You have to pack for so many facets of your life and before you know it you are taking more stuff with you than originally anticipated. I know I am not the lightest of packers but I try to get everything in one bag come hell or high water. As a result I end up stuffing workout gear, work clothes and after work clothes all into one bag, as well as both my work and personal laptops and multiple chargers and work notebooks.

Because this trip is for field support and we are up and working by 5am outside each day, I needed to pack a bunch of clothes that could be layered for tons of weather conditions. Unfortunately I didn't anticipate how hot it would be by 2pm each day (80+ degrees) so when I am home for 12 hours this weekend, I will be washing my clothes and adding some shorts and tanks to the bag for sure.

So what's really in my bag this first week on the road? Well check it out below:

What's in my Bag? Field Test Business Trip Edition by preppy-lizzy featuring bootcut jeans

Besides all my work and personal technology, I have my workout gear including my Nike Frees, Fuelband and BodyBugg; speedo for laps in the pool; steel toe boots, headlamp, work gloves, Lululemon studio pants and swiftly short sleeve tops for field work, as well as my north face fall jacket, J.Crew puffer vest and Lulu scuba hoodie; and jeans, tees and flip flops for post work dinners. All in all 6 days worth of gear fills up my Vera Bradley Duffel pretty quickly.

I come back each afternoon dusty but with a huge smile on my face, so I guess work is pretty fun at least this week!