Confessions of a Rio-bound over-packer

I leave for Rio de Janeiroon Sunday.

This is not my first Olympic games nor my first major sports tournament as a reporter. Professionally,I am experienced and confident that everything will be fine. And,yes, I've read EVERYTHING about Zika and Brazilian politics.

My packing skills, on the other hand, are, well, lacking.

Enter the SuitcaseWhisperer

Enter my cousin, best friend, confidant, ex-colleague and partner in crime since we were born:Romilla, a documentary producer in the U.S.A.

Before every long foreign assignment, she helps me "edit" my suitcase.I secretly (okay, now the secret's out) call her the SuitcaseWhisperer.

I tend to err on the side of caution, which results in over-packing.Here's how I get into trouble:

Do I need to bring every single pair of cargo pants I own? Probably.

Aside from our Olympic shirts, how many other shirts do I really need to bring? 15? 20?

Sure, I love my hairdryer, and I really want to bring it, but I can probably find one where I'm staying. Problem, isI don't like any other hair dryers!

What theWhisperer says

Romi has helped me streamline much of what I need to bring.

She sent me a care package for this trip thanks, cuz!with things I'll need: a multi-use balm, an RFID credit card protector and a bug repellent with a scent that won'trepel humans as well.

The balm? "You can mainly use it for hair frizz when you're on TV,"Romi told me.

The repellent? "The whole Zika thing," she explained.

And the card protector? "That one was half-joking, half maybe not so much," Romi said.

She also usually gets me little packets of laundry detergent so I can do a small load of washing in my sink, wherever I'm staying. I'll take along my bar of laundry soap as well.

The other essentials

Since I'm not packing for a vacation, there are certain bits of equipment that willhave to come with me everywhere I go: laptop, adapters, radio recording equipment, earpiece for TV, headphones, makeup and hair products for TV, production manuals andportable phone chargers.

More than one portable charger, actually,since the days are long and sometimesaccess to outlets is limited.

I've divvied up my personal care itemsinto clear bags so that some will stay in my residence, while others will be in my backpack when I'm at a sporting event.

I will probably alsoget some energy bars or drink powders to take with me so that I can have a snack when I'm working a very long shift.

But as I finish packing, the question I have to remember to keep asking myself is: Do I really need that?