...and now for something a little bit different

The Out of Office Assistant is on again. 
Tomorrow I'm off to Fiji!

So what's different about me taking off again you ask? 
Well,  first I'm only going for 6 days. 
Secondly, this will be my first dive trip.

Yep, I'm going away for 6 days with a bunch of strangers so that we can hang out underwater with...sharks! COOL! 
...ok, just the shark part is cool.

I got the flyer from my dive club while I was in Paris, and I told myself that I had to go - I mean who DOESN'T want to go diving with sharks? 
Am I right??
Sharks...and FIJI! 
Ken A*

I'm told that the place we're staying has computers and internet access, so I shall endeavour to bring you all with me to paradise. I don't have an underwater camera, but most of the people I'll be going with do, so hopefully I can get some of their great shots.

I started thinking about packing about a week ago, trying to jam a bunch of dive gear into a carry-on; my usual M.O. 

I quickly learned that that was not going to fly (heh heh see what I did there?)

The 3 small piles at the upper left are the only clothes I'm bringing

...there's A LOT of stuff involved in diving. And it ain't small stuff. And it weighs a hell of a lot more than the 7kgs allowed for carry-on.

Okay, so I would have to check my bag. Problem is this stuff wouldn't fit in my backpack, and I don't own a suitcase. 

We have a little wheeled,  hard-sided, carry-on at work that was donated a few years back...perhaps I could borrow that. 

Nope. Still too small.

Dang it.

I ended up borrowing Steve's suitcase. It turns out to be the perfect size for all my stuff. But I gotta say that I'm a little bit mortified that I'm bringing this relative monster for a 6 day trip!

On the left, suitcase for 6 day dive trip.
On the right, pack for 2 months in South America

The alarm is set for 3am. It's 9:30pm. I'm going to bed now. 
Tomorrow I'll be in Fiji.
:D
 ...if it makes you feel any better, there's rain in the forecast 

*hybrid Canuck/Aussie slang combining Fuckin' A (Canada) and Fuckin' Oath aka 'ken oath (Australia).