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I can’t travel without my kit of essentials.

I’m not a huge fan of air travel. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not afraid of flying. Fear of being in the sky is at the absolute bottom of my list of grievances. I dislike air travel because it’s cramped, occasionally loud, occasionally smelly, and overall, dreadfully boring. If my choices were to take a long flight to somewhere cool or stay home and do nothing, I would lean heavily toward stay home and do nothing just so I don’t have to get on a plane. But you can’t spend your whole life in one spot, so sooner or later you’re going to have to take a long flight. When that time comes, you need to be prepared with a suite of annoyance-fighting tools.

Let’s start with what everyone usually carries on them, electronics. Modern phones are a treasure trove of time wasters, of course, but a little clicker game won’t kill twelve hours. You need a full media package. I’m talking music, movies, shows, books, the works. And to accompany that packed phone, you’ll definitely want a portable charger and a good pair of noise-cancelling headphones. Most modern planes have USB plugs you can charge your phone with, which is helpful, but it never hurts to be prepared. Headphones should be an obvious choice; you can’t really enjoy that Netflix movie you downloaded when you’re sitting next to a baby/snoring person/snoring baby.

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Next, to ensure comfort, you want a good neck pillow. Cheap neck pillows always lose their stuffing in one end after a while, and then you’re just leaning on your shoulder. Get a quality one, preferably memory foam, that won’t deflate immediately. Speaking of long-lasting things, get a big bottle of water and a value-size pack of gum in the terminal before you take off (obviously, you can’t bring your own). Water is sometimes free on flights, but it’s annoying to have to call an attendant every time you’re thirsty. Just bring a big bottle and nurse it over the course of the flight. Gum is also handy, not just from stopping your ears from popping, but also to help tide you over between meal and snack times.

The actual act of travelling is, ironically, one of the least pleasant parts of travelling, but as long as you prepare adequately, you can get through it with your sanity intact.