Traveling Alone
A Practical Guide for Business Women
North
1979
If you want an example of outdated advice this is the book. It is full of technology references and advice that would probably be unknown to anyone under the age of 40. Although safety in travel is an excellent topic, this one doesn’t even come close to today’s reality. This was before any rolling suitcases were popular, tighter airport security, not to mention the amount of technology changes since 1979. Some highlights of the advice:
Things to pack:
- First aid kit
- Manicure set
- craft projects
- 8 track tapes or cassette tape player
- Diaphragm
- golf clubs
- disco dress
Other advice includes strategies for avoiding sexual harassment, using a travel agent, getting hotel reservations, etc. I think this book was probably edgy and helpful in 1979 (edgy, because women could go out alone and travel by themselves!). This book probably was outdated by the late 1980s.
I really want Holly to write a travel guide for airplane travel. If given the chance, I think she would love to grab the microphone while people are taking seats on an airplane and yell at people about proper luggage stowing. Without fail, there is always some guy putting his hat and raincoat in the overhead bin and I have watched her struggle not to shout at the guy for wasting overhead luggage space.
Happy travel everyone.
Mary
My travel advice for anyone in this day and age is to just stay home and let your mind wander.
All by myself
Don’t wanna travel
All by myself
Anymore
All by myself
Don’t wanna trek
Don’t wanna tour
Don’t wanna voyage
By myself, by myself
Anymore
By myself
Anymore
I like your songs, Henri.
Wigs? Bath oil? Electric handwarmers? I’ve never seen those on a list of things to bring if you’ve got room to spare in your luggage.
8-tracks were already going out of style in 1979, even. I was a teen then, so I know whereof I speak. Props for the diaphragm, although it also says don’t take men to your room?
Golf clubs?! I know luggage allowance was much better then, but c’mon — rent them when you get there rather than lugging them cross-country. Bring another suitcase full of useful stuff instead.
Professional women in 1979 needed to bring *all* the nylons they could carry. They always rip, and in a strange city at odd hours, you aren’t going to be able to find the right color/size in time for that important meeting or disco outing. That’s probably in the book somewhere.
And you must safely stay in your room and sew for your friends and family in the evenings.
Bletch.
Oh yes save save face by not saying anything when your creep coworker forces themselves on you so they can try it with the next person ♀️
I traveled for work from 2010 to 2017. The original firm I worked for told me I couldn’t do the job because it wasn’t safe for women to travel alone. They must have read this book. I lived. I can’t say I ever packed a disco dress. But I did have some funny incidents with room key mix ups so book is correct. Chain your door.
That Wikipedia article needs editing — the major drawback was that it would fade out in the middle of songs, you’d miss a few notes before it faded back in. Really annoying. Cassette tapes were smaller and didn’t do that, and neither did 33 1/3. Plus you mostly couldn’t record on 8-track.
I had several portable cassette players/recorders and still have a tape deck and turntable. No 8-track for me ever.
The face-saving advice???
BBBBBAAAARRRFFFFF!!!!!
Now, the advice is to make a scene so Handsy the Creep will get the unwanted attention instead of you and slither away.
I want to know if _all_ auditors _are_ weird. (Bonus for data on controllers/comptrollers being more or less sexually offensive than average.)