Purse-onal belongings

http://www.nataliedee.com/

I envy guys' ability to travel light and stow things in their numerous pants pockets.  I have a few pairs of cargo pants but they are not figure-flattering and I don't usually put things in the extra pockets-- the ones other than the standard three in the front/two on the butt.  It's just not practical for me, doesn't feel comfortable when I walk.

I tend to overpack.  And I'm a klutz.  And I'm a girl, a female.  Wherever I go I carry a purse or backpack with me; sometimes during the winter I'll go sans bag, but only if I'm on an errand and won't be gone long.  I can get away with this during the winter because I use the pockets in my coat, but still I feel lacking if I'm not carrying something with me when I leave. I never leave the house with my MILK essentials: money, ID, lip stuff, and keys (with flashdrive attached).  The bigger the bag, the more stuff I end up putting in it.  The contents of my backpack as of this writing:

- MILK essentials
- Moleskine weekly planner (pricey but worth it)
- pens
- travel-sized Band-Aids packet
- travel-sized Tylenol bottle
- notebooks
- books
- Metro (free newspaper)
- toothbrush
- travel-sized toothpaste
- squashed water bottle
- misc. backpack debris (trash, mustard packets, ticket stubs, Lifesavers)
- travel-sized tissue packets
- Banana Nut Odwall bar

All this is heavy, and it's not unusual for my backpack to have more stuff to add to the weight.  Hey, at least I'm lugging all this in a backpack, where the weight is evenly distributed across my small, sloping shoulders.  I half-cringe, half-groan when I see girls with massive shoulder bags, walking with a hobble to counteract the weight of what must be a small anvil on just one shoulder.  Even trendy backpacks aren't that trendy, I think a slightly hunched forward walk is preferable to the limping gait brought on by carrying the weight of the world on a single shoulder.  Okay, as much as I bash this practice I have to admit that sometimes I do this.  Why? Eh, bad planning, vanity/stupidity.  But sometimes it's better to be prepared and carry all that extra weight so that you're ready for any emergency/"emergency" situation.