30 May 2017

What’s in My Bag, 2017


My travel bag that goes with me whenever I go on a trip.

Patagonia Chacabuco Backpack 32L – Large enough for a 17” laptop and others too. A movable office for me. Always enough space at the bottom for ‘just one more’ item. Usual Patagonia super-quality, would never break like other bags. Lotta guys can get away with smaller, Bay area-ish bags – not me. I need to be able to live out of my bag for a day or two sometimes.

Lenovo T61 laptop [maybe 6 years old or more]  with 14” screen, upgraded with 16 GB memory AND a 512 GB SSD harddrive. Very fast and reliable and the BEST keyboard.

Lihit Pencil case – perfect to organize my small items

         and inside
        


         Perfect for underlining WITH STRAIGHT LINES. Cork back keeps ruler away from paper for using pen ink without smudging.

Since 1761. Wallet set of 4 nib pens in black. Pigmented Ink is acid-free and archival. Smudge-proof - water resistant when dry. Perfect for sketched journals cartooning- sketching- and fine ink drawing.

Clairefontaine Wirebound Book 4.25X6.75 Ruled I go through these periodically, depending on my activity level. All my useful information is in here like passwords, super important stuff, etc. Ideal for travel - I just chronically write pretty much everything in here. I wish I had my old notebooks as reminders of what I was up to. My current one has been in use for about 15 years, so my activity level is down some. This 11 cm x 17 cm size fits nicely into the breast packet of my current travel and hiking shirts that I wear daily here in Florida.

The smooth, high quality paper of these notebooks is perfect for writing and does not bleed thru. I use the larger Clairefontaine notebooks for journaling.

Schmidt Capless Rollerball Pen, Stainless Steel – This rollerball slips into the wire spirals of the Clairefontaine notebook. The only drawback is the ink smudges if it gets wet. They used to do a lovely titanium version which I still have.

Jandd ditty bags – The best for organizing small items. The next step up from plastic freezer bags. In my small one are my two passports, copies of my birth certificate so if I ever get to Ecuador I can apply for dual [duel] citizenship, bags and stuff I use for $100s and sheaves of rupees, binder clips.
Note these ditty bags are made in mesh also. Ideal for cosmetics. Larger sizes are great for books and large papers. Jandd, in general, is a great resource, especially some sale items.

Patagonia Men's Houdini® Jacket – I don’t go anywhere without this! I’ve been using these and the predecessor, the Dragonfly, since they first came out about 1992 and cost $150, which I did not have but scrounged up as the jacket was so useful. My current Houdini saved my life the first time I wore it. I had it in my pocket when I cycled up Tioga Pass on the backside of Yosemite, a 5000’ elevation gain in about 12 miles. Five miles into the climb it began to hail and rain. I stopped and put my Houdini on as the temperature dropped 30 or more degrees. I resumed pedaling uphill in the hail and rain. Cars were pulled to the turnoffs as the visibility was so low but as the drivers saw me pedaling uphill they got their cameras and ran and photographed and videoed me as I went by. I made it all the way to the top of the grade by Ellery Lake then turned and whizzed downhill, saved from hypothermia by my brand new Houdini. At the bottom of the grade at the Whoa Nellie Deli it was in the 80’s again.
I once walked for about 7 miles in a snowstorm in the Himalayas carrying a large 40 lb. backpack with only a Houdini as my outer layer. With appropriate under layers I’d wear a Houdini as my outer layer up to 20,000’.
I carry this with me on every hike here in Florida, even in the warmest weather. Who knows when it might rain or you might have to spend the night out in the bush, or you walk into the market all sweated up and the A/C is set to 72. Houdini time.

Apple iPad Pro 9.7-inch – with the keyboard. Actually, I don’t have one of these YET, but want one. Microsoft has released Office for free on tablets with a smaller than 10” screen, so it’s possible to create, read, and edit Word documents and Excel spreadsheets. Uses the iPencil.

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