Don’t Leave Home Without Them…

Don’t Leave Home Without Them…

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Thanks to Jake for tagging me on this particular assignment. It is particularly apropos as I have been commuting back and forth to DC for the last 5 weeks and have become an expert packer. Here are the items that always make the cut:

Cash – I know, I know, its old fashioned, but there are still some situations that simply require cash and I don’t want to be the person trying to convince the cabbie to take plastic.

Bose On-Ear Noise Canceling Headphones – whether you want to listen to music, drown jet noise, watch a movie or just say “don’t talk to me” to the person sitting next to you, these do the trick. These were a wonderful “first day of new job” gift from my husband.

Magazine-I-Would-Not-Be-Caught-Dead-Subscribing-to – The mental equivalent of comfort food, trashy magazines are my travel indulgence. If you encounter me on the road, chances are there is an OK!, People, or Life & Style hidden somewhere in my bags. When not traveling, I get my fix via Jen whose motto is “I read US Weekly so you don’t have to”.

pashminaPashmina Shawl – The pashmina is the world’s perfect accessory. Made of a cashmere wool derived from goats in the high Himalayas, these shawls are very warm while also being very thin & light. It can be easily stowed in a purse or laptop bag and emerge to serve as a scarf with your winter coat, a shawl over evening wear, or a pillow or blanket for the freezing plane. They are expensive, but pennies a use.

St. John Knit clothes – These are well covered on the blog but appear here, because I don’t ever want to iron in a hotel room again. Ever.

Reservation for a Kimpton Hotel – If a city has one, you can bet I am trying to stay there. I am in their “Inner Circle” and today the front office manager of the Rouge greeted me as if I was a rockstar and had the room waiting with the snacks and bottled water I requested when I strolled in at 9pm. They know that what frequent travelers want is to be welcomed home and they overdeliver every time.

John? Spike? Minjae? What’s in your bags?

3 Replies to “Don’t Leave Home Without Them…”

  1. You’ve traveled with me so much you could probably answer that question yourself…

    Patagonia bags:
    Well, everything gets packed into my MLC (Maximum Legal Carry-on) and my Vertical Mass Shoulder Bag. These two beauties have more miles on them than my 1964 Ford Falcon did in high school and have never ripped, thrown a zipper or let me down as I’m dashing to catch that next flight. I’m still amazed how much I can stuff into the MLC every time I pack.

    Reading material:
    I always have a GOOD Magazine, a Fast Company and a book with me – all three which I got a long time ago and just haven’t got around to reading.

    Apples:
    The Gen 3 40GB ipod is still rockin’, so it always has a special spot in my bag along with the Shure E3s. If the battery dies sooner than expected, the iPhone is a nice back-up. And then if it’s a long flight, I’ll download a movie or two from iTunes and watch it on the MacBook Pro, which I also have so I can do work on as a last resort.

    Misc:
    I’ve started carrying my Olympus FE-280 8.0 Megapixel camera with me, too. It’s so tiny that it hardly takes up any space and I can pull it out in an instant. And then there’s the video camera – whichever one isn’t being used by someone else in the office. As you well know, VeeDub, I carry it for no other reason than to capture those random moments for others to take a look inside this place we call Brains on Fire.

    That’s pretty much it, unless you can think of something and call me out on it…

  2. My travel needs simple …
    I ALWAYS carry along protein bars (Met-Rx Big 100) as snacks and as my breakfast food. I leave the snazzy briefcase at home in favor of an all-purpose Swiss Army Backpack. At least three biz books are with me (currently with me include: THE MYTHS OF INNOVATION and THE OPEN BRAND). Music is a must–for my most recent trip I loaded up my iPod with the newest Blind Boys from Alabama CD. And, the Priority Pass which gets me into lots of those airline clubs, a must-have for international travel.

  3. I can’t believe I am JUST getting to commenting on this. As you know, I own many bags, but what goes in them are pretty much uniform: my Marc by Marc Jacobs wallet stuffed with George Castanza-esque pile of receipts, keys, phone, etc. all packed in, my bright pink day book, the CrackBerry, my glasses case, and Aquaphor.

    For more fun look at other people’s bags an what’s in them, check out the Flickr group “What’s In Your Bag (http://www.flickr.com/groups/52241283780@N01/pool/)” and InStyle’s In Your Blog (http://inyourbag.instyle.com/).

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