Yesterday I had to drive to Dallas for the day. As I got in the car at 5:05am, I was feeling pretty good. Tired, but good. I had remembered everything! From the muffin I wanted to eat for breakfast to the plug-your-ipod-into-the-radio thing my husband had found in the shed the day before, I was Prepared. Until I got about an hour down the road, that is, and realized I had forgotten one thing that I couldn’t do without–my makeup bag. I said a few bad words, and then tried to figure out how to fix this. Should I drive back home? No, that would put me two hours behind. Can I find a Sephora? No, they don’t open until 10. Finally I decided the only thing I could do was find a Walgreens or CVS near the office and buy replacements.

It was kind of sad actually–normally makeup shopping is one of my favorite things to do. But I only had ten minutes, and of course there were no samples to play with. So I couldn’t take my normal joy in finding the perfect, most fun colors. Plus I had to wear this new makeup to work, so it couldn’t be too crazy. I tried to take my own advice and find one of those sticks that work on eyes, cheeks, and lips, but no luck. I finally decided on a shimmery pink shadow, and then got the standard powder, blush, and mascara. Did I look my best ever? Probably not. Did I look awake and feel better than I would have? Yep.

I think this just goes to show, again, how tricky it can be when you both fly and drive. If I had flown to Dallas, I would absolutely have packed my makeup. But since I was driving, it just didn’t even occur to me. I have never, in all of my four years of traveling for work, forgotten my makeup. But now I am going to keep mascara and powder in my purse, just in case. And hey, now that I have extras, why not?