I have the purse from Hell. I'm embarrassed to go through it here, but I'm opening it up and posting a quick snapshot.
Most of it is junk. Receipts, old coupons, loose change, extra napkins. . . Junk.
Whenever I need something out of it I am forced to dig. My cash/card purse constantly springs open in this chaos, spilling everywhere and making me desperate to ensure that I can account for all of my credit cards. Getting money out of it at the checkout is a total embarrassment. Forget answering the cellphone when it rings, I always have to call people back.
This has got to change.
Enter the Buxton Bag from those television infomercials.
My kid saw this on television and carried on so much about how perfect this bag would be for me that I broke down late last year and purchased it. I used it for a little while, but after deciding that it was too small to hold everything I handed it down to my daughter, who has been playing with it ever since.
I've been thinking. When I used that little bag not once did I have to hunt for anything that I needed. It was always easy to locate and put away anything. I was never unhappy about locating things in this little bag - I was simply unhappy about how much it held.
Really though - how much stuff does one person need to carry? There are some people carrying a single ID and some cash - and they are perfectly happy. Why can't I cut down then?
We're going to try this. I am going to sort through this giant bag, reducing to the point where I can fit all that I need inside that Buxton Bag without having to open the expanding zippers. By not opening the zippers I will have some extra space just in case it is needed.
Some things I would like to keep:
Identification
Insurance cards
credit card
cash
sanitizer
lotion
cellphone
ink pen
notepad(?)
aspirin for headaches, etc.
breath mints or gum
I don't carry makeup because I rarely wear the stuff. When I wear it, I'll carry some powder. If there is room I may add a small vial of perfume to the bag. Books will be digital in the smartphone, as will most all of my notes.
Oh my! I found $50 in the bottom of my bag! Whoo Hoo!
I am happy to report that I fit everything I needed with total success!
I ended up with:
checkbook
ID and papers
deodorant
keys
perfume
carmex
jump drive
hand sanitizer
map
bus route and schedule
bus tickets
money
spare keys
ink pen
smartphone (not shown - Used to take picture)
pack of gum
collapsible fan
All of this fit with room to spare! I was delighted!
Eventually I plan to go with a smaller thing of deodorant (yes, I'm strange), and I hope to either locate or replace my travel size lotion bottle. The map will be transferred to the van the next time I go anywhere. I'm also thinking of removing the checkbook since I so rarely write checks, opting instead to keep track of purchases on a spreadsheet in the smartphone. For deposits I can just carry a couple of deposit slips...
I not only managed to streamline my bag, but also my keys as well. Almost half of the keys on my keychain were unnecessary anymore!
Life is truly good.