Friday, June 19, 2015

Pocket Dump, Summer of 2015 Edition

Yesterday I was commenting on a post, and wanted to link to my pocket dump when I realized the most recent one I had was from 2013. Yikes! That won't do. Here's what was in my pockets this morning:

Not shown in is my Galaxy S5, with $20 stashed inside the hard case.

Starting in the top left hand corner and going clockwise...

  • CPR essentials - A CPR mask and pair of gloves shmooshed between two business cards. The gloves are pretty handy, and the mask is what we use during CPR training. This is one of the last items I put in my pockets, and I've considered dropping it. But man, what if I needed it? I'd kick myself something fearsome for not having it.
  • Binder Clip Wallet - I started this habit while traveling (assuming that my wallet would be taken, but not these front pocket items) and I've grown to very much like it. Now I can grab this binder clip worth of goodies and my tool keychain, and I've got my essentials covered.
  • Wallet - A sort of dummy wallet. All my real valuables are in the binder clip. The wallet ends up being a proving ground for possible items to carry. Right now it has: a few paper clips, a few small safety pins, a few bandaids, a couple of sheets of toilet paper, a folded up plastic produce bag, a Fresnel lens, a few Spiderman stickers and a (very useful) Ikea paper tape measure. It also contains a few important looking, but totally useless cards. Oh, sometimes it even contains a little cash. Ironically, it's one of the first things I leave at home when I don't have enough pocket space.
  • Notepad - I've been carrying this $1.50 version for years, and expect to do so for years to come.
  • Handkerchief - Thanks to a frequently runny nose, this is my most used item. Seriously, I feel absolutely naked without one in my pocket.
  • Car keys - Car keys and a Res-Q-Me tool. Yet another nod to general preparedness.
  • Pilot G2 Pen
  • Schrade Tactical Pen - My preferred carry-everywhere self defense option.
  • Tool Keychain:
    • Silva Metro Compass - I'd love to have a smaller compass on my keychain, but this one is so responsive that it has earned its place . With smaller compasses I found I'd have to play the tap-tap game to try to make sure it was pointing the right direction. Not so with the Metro; I take it out, look at it, and I'm done.
    • House key - a key on a key chain, what a novel idea?
    • Derma-Safe blade - still my "knife" of choice for carrying every day. Super sharp and goes everywhere.
    • P-51 Can Opener - still my multi-tool of choice. Recent uses: as a screw driver, scraper and as a trinket to leave in a Geocache. Try that with your $90 multi-tool. I've tried various methods for keeping the blade closed on the P-51. My preferred method: slip a large'ish paper clip over the whole can opener. It's not a perfect fit, but it's effective and you get a bonus useful tool: a paper clip.
    • A Titanium Nitcore NWS 10 Whistle - Yes, this was a splurge, but it really is light and compact. I'm a big fan of whistles, so I was confident that I'd want one on my key chain and thought it was a worthy investment.
    • Kingston Mcro SD Card Reader and Spare Micro SD Card - this serves as a thumb drive, document storage, software toolkit, backup memory card for my camera, backup memory card for my cell phone and USB reader for my camera's SD card. For the few bucks this guy costs, he does a heck of a lot. I used to carry the eLargo version, but this Kingston one is a little smaller and more robust. Yes, we live in a network based world, but when that network isn't available, this guy is invaluable.
    • Pill Containers - These hold important meds for me and Shira. So valuable.
    • Photo Microlight - still my favorite little flashlight. It's tiny, bright and reliable.

So there you go, my pocket contents. It's always interesting to see how it's changed and stayed the same.

What's in your pockets these days?

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