bag problem
No, not like shanna’s. I carry too much stuff with me and am having a problem finding the bag that best fits my needs. is anyone surprised?
I’m putting most of this after a jump, mostly b/c I doubt most people really want to read this.
I am trying very hard to not carry too much extraneous stuff every day. I’ve slowly been whittling down what I schlep, but I must have inherited the gene that requires me to carry extra stuff everywhere. I have fought it as best I can and have been known to pack a small duffle for a week-long adventure, but find the “daily bag” difficult to pack.
This article and surfing through the flickr pool off and on has me thinking that now is a good time to try to streamline more.
I originally had a long rant as to what I carry and then decided that was silly. Here is a link to the flickr photo (with notes, many of them obvious, but I had fun) of what is generally in my bag.
That said, when I go to London, I will look and see if there is a filofax which both fits my needs and is slightly smaller. I already know that the slimline (with it’s 7/16th ” rings) is too small — I received one as a gift from my husband two years ago. After trying it for a year I gave it to him to use and bought my Lyndhurst zip (with 1″ rings). At the time I was using a very day-centric calendar and needed a large ring size. I have now revised this to use a method similar to week with notes. My version is from Kinokinuya because I needed monthly tabs. The disadvantage to going this route was that I had to maunally write in all dates and holidays. So, 1″ rings are a bit overkill now. I like the zip but think I could live with a snap again. I don’t want a zip pocket. Two pen holders would be wonderful for my blue pencil and a purple/brown pilot hi-tec-c. I’m eyeing a few and heard that they are much less expensive in London. We’ll see. I spent a bundle on the Lyndhurst and don’t want to abandon it without due cause.
I’ve gone through several siddurim until I found one I’m happy with (as the size decreases the type-size decreases a LOT, finding one I could read was a challenge). I’d love a smaller digital camera but as I found this one for $10 I doubt I’ll change soon. I miss my camera-phone but that’s a whole saga in itself. This camera doesn’t have an LCD but that’s ok, I’ll survive.
My goal is to be able to have ONE BAG that does everything, so I’m not constantly transfering things and forgetting my office keys in the wrong bag. A small bag for when I run errands and have it expand as I need it to hold some groceries or library books or shrink when I don’t have to carry so much. I don’t want to carry extra weight or bulk. I want to be able to wear it on my shoulder or slung across my back leaving both hands free. I want easy (but secure) access to my wallet. I don’t want it to be covered in brands yet I want it to stand up to abuse. I HATE VELCRO. I want it to be able to take a bit of time in a rain storm (it doesn’t have to put up with a massive deluge but that would be nice). I’d like the strap to be wide (at least 2″) as I find that more comfortable. I’d like it to have an open slot in the back for that random stuff I am a magnet for. I also don’t want to spend $100. My husband is pretty patient with my bag problem, but I don’t want to push my luck. Oh, it needs to be easy to clean if I have a food explosion.
I have LOTS of bags as I search for the perfect one. There are a few I like to rely on for certain tasks. I want to be able to carry magazines and other letter-sized papers. BUT I don’t want to let myself carry these all the time. I have a very nice folio I use [as seen in the flickr photo] (which will be nicer when I figure out how to add a shoulder strap) for those papers and think that is a solution. ARG. I recently (on my birthday) purchased a bag which sort of meets my criteria but as it easily fits letter sized things I am beginning to find I fill it up very quickly and that it’s a bit too big. I’m happy to report that I haven’t purchased a new bag since then. I bought a non-brand and it’s nice but the strap isn’t as smooth as I need and it is a problem when I wear a sweater. I’d love for it to hold my newton-tablet I’m desiring which doesn’t exist yet. I’d like for it to be usable in both casual and professional settings. I’m tired of searching for the perfect bag.
Any suggestions are welcome.