Signs I’ve been at this too long?

This week I head to West Africa, in order to gather photos and stories about the amazing things God is doing there through New Tribes Mission. But as I finished packing, and ran out for a couple of last-minute things, it occured to me that some things I take for granted may mark me as weird.

OK, even weirder than you thought.

For instance:

An eight-hour flight doesn’t seem that long. The leg of our trip from the USA to Europe takes about eight hours. But after longer flights on the way to Asia — including one of the longest regularly scheduled flights of any airline — that sounds like a piece of cake.

I have a favorite long-flight travel accessory: noise-canceling headphones. The headphones themselves aren’t that odd. I imagine a lot of travelers would list them as a favorite. What’s odd is, I actually have a favorite accessory for long flights. And yes, even though eight hours doesn’t seem that long to me, it’s long enough for noise-canceling headphones.

Tropical diseases? Yeah, I know. I spent something like $600 on preventatives and inoculations, and didn’t flinch when the doctor started talking about long sleeves and pants (even though the temperature is supposed to top 100 degrees F) and bug repellant because of the all the diseases for which there are no inoculations (and in some cases, no cure).

Two-weeks-plus, no checked bags. I’m taking a carry-on and a “personal item.” And within that is a camera with two lenses, a computer and a stereo digital recorder. My headphones are actually one of the bulkiest things I’m taking, now that I’ve switched to a Surface Pro as my computer. (And I’m loving it, by the way.)

I’m lamenting the lack of a new goofy hat. For my first four trips overseas with NTM, I wore a different goofy hat each time. But I’ve worn the same one for the last four trips. I suppose that means I’ve found something that works: It’s crushable, has a chin strap and a full brim, and I can snap either or both sides up. Still, I couldn’t help but look at the tacky souvenir shops when we were in Tampa a few weeks back.

Oh well. I’ll let you know if it gets any weirder.