Our Shared Shelf discussion

Between the thread on "Why do you read?" and the statement in the fashion chapter that what you put into your handbag is much more important than what it looks like, I thought I'd ask everyone, "What's in your handbag?"

As for me, I never leave the house without a book in my bag. I'm much more likely to forget my cell phone.

Heh, I'd rather forget my sunscreen and sunglasses. And there's the wallet, phone and a bag for groceries. I never forget my lip balm, that's my norm.

I don't have a purse unless I'm going out for the night and its somewhere straight from my car to the place I'm going. If I want to have a purse and I have to walk a bit then I make sure I have the purse in a tote bag when I'm walking or the tote bag in the purse when I'm in the building of wherever I'm going to be for the night. I find it's best avoided to have a purse while walking alone so that I can minimize being pickpocketted or straight up getting mugged. (A lesson learned while walking alone in Anchorage that I never ever forgot.)

I do bring a small tote bag with me everywhere (its prob 1.5" L x 1" W). It has my wallet, sunglasses, keys, a book or two, my cell phone and if I'm lucky enough to have remembered, coupons.

Oh, my "handbag" is more like a briefcase than a purse. I lug around too much junk.

I bring a tote bag which typically contain the following (on a weekday, going to work):
Phone, keys, wallet, papertowels (is that the right term? Those small paper-thingies you use to blow your nose or whipe your kid), sunglasses, regular glasses and at the moment a beanie (it is pretty cold in Denmark at the moment and I easily get earpain if my ears get cold).
I also carry a small purse in my tote with a lipbalm, a lipstick, handcreme, earplugs and my traincard.
And these days my laptop.

If I go out I bring a purse with a lipstick, phone, papertowels and a credit card. If I'm not with my husband I also bring keys. If he is with me, he has keys (and pockets to put them in).

Oh, and I used to bring books everywhere, but at the moment I listen to podcasts in stead.

Henriette wrote: "Oh, and I used to bring books everywhere, but at the moment I listen to podcasts in stead."

I do that at work. (I've got a boring job.) What are your favorites? I love all the NPR and Gimlet shows. I also love the Hollywood history of "You Must Remember this Podcast."

At any given time, my purse contains my wallet, keys, phone, kleenex, lotion, a compact mirror, ear bud headphones, feminine products, a compact folded grocery bag, and, if I'm lucky, lip balm. On any given day, there might be other delights added to it, such as sunglasses, gloves, and/or a small knitting project, such as a pair of socks. Occasionally I'll throw in a book.

That being said, I think my purse is a bit big to be able to carry all this around with me, and it may be time to look for something a bit smaller. Right now it's about the size of a small messenger bag, and I love it, but I have lost keys in there on more than one occasion.

Henriette wrote: "I bring a tote bag which typically contain the following (on a weekday, going to work):
Phone, keys, wallet, papertowels (is that the right term? Those small paper-thingies you use to blow your nos..."

You might be referring to tissues. These are paper towels.

Figured I'd post visuals since you asked. :) I'd love to learn Danish one day. I hear its not too bad grammatically but hard to replicate the sounds.

@Kressel - I love NPR as well!
I regularly listen to: This American Life (I'm not American, but I love the stories - and Ira Glass!), TED radio hour, the moth, strangers, serial (I also heard 'Undisclosed' on the Adnan Sayed-case) and Someone Knows Something.

I've just started trying out Modern Love and Story Collider.

And then I listen to my favorite shows from the danish public radio (mostly shows on literature (we have a show dedicated to fiction and one to non-fiction), films and a show called 'Eksistens' which covers philosophy, religion and the likes).

Jodi wrote: "At any given time, my purse contains my wallet, keys, phone, kleenex, lotion, a compact mirror, ear bud headphones, feminine products, a compact folded grocery bag, and, if I'm lucky, lip balm. On ..."

Usually I keep my keys clipped to one of the handles but have them facing inside that bag so I don't always lose them. I buy cheap carabiner type clips from the dollar store.

@Luella - thank you. And you are right!
Since danish is my native language I'm not able to say whether it is hard to learn. Our grammar is a bit tricky, I think, and then we have the æ, ø and å-wovels which are really hard to pronounce to non-native speakers.

Henriette wrote: "@Kressel - I love NPR as well!
I regularly listen to: This American Life (I'm not American, but I love the stories - and Ira Glass!), "

Ira Glass and all the spin-offs he's inspired are AWESOME!

The closest I ever come to a handbag is my backpack for school. :p I mostly have textbooks in it, with my laptop and jacket sometimes included. If I had a real purse, I'd carry some (but not too much) money and a book.

Right now mine contains:
My Kindle, Chapstick, whatever lipstick I'm wearing for the day, usually my phone, keys, sugar free gum, water flavor packets, a nail file, a measuring tape, and apparently a fork which I just removed. In the winter it usually has a small thing of hand lotion as well because I hate having dry hands! But yeah, never go anywhere without my Kindle!

Oh and also my olloclip, which is a four way multi lens for the camera on my iPhone. And a selfie stick. Just in case. I tend to get off on a lot of unplanned adventures!

Stuff that always stays in there - pepper spray, phone charger, earphones, hand sanitizer, hand cream, lip balm and a small hair brush! I can't leave without a book on holiday travel but on a regular day i prefer to have them by my bed side. :)

I'm carrying with me: cellphone, ebook reader (not kindle, a Brazilian one), keys, wallet,a liittle umbrella (is there a name for it? The ones that are tiny and can be... 'Folded'), earphones and usb cable :D

Haha, these days I carry a diaper bag/tote which contains baby supplies, wallet, phone, keys, hand lotion, lip balm and sunglasses.

My purse has a wallet, lip balm, lipstick, keys, cell phone, medicine, sunglasses, and hand sanitizer.

I'm a rare person who's not switched to a smartphone so I generally carry my old Nokia, an mp3 player, an e-reader (Onyx), and recently my dad gave me his old iPhone which I use as a mini-tablet. Also a menstrual cup (Meluna) and a reusable water bottle. While travelling I also use a "proper" camera, and depending on the situation I might choose a small paper book instead of the e-reader. I still have tons of paper books...

Standard for me is:
- Kobo ereader
- 7inch tablet (yes, both. I don't read on the tablet due to the screen)
- iPod (music, podcast)
- Wallet
- Pouch with thumbdrives, nail clippers, hard candies for when my throat gets dry, charger cables, lip balm, allergy/sinus pills just in case, ibuprofen just in case, Kleenex.

Anita wrote: "Haha, these days I carry a diaper bag/tote which contains baby supplies, wallet, phone, keys, hand lotion, lip balm and sunglasses."

I remember when my bag was a diaper bag. I used to keep my wallet in it, along with all the baby stuff. Someone must have seen that because it got stolen on the NYC subway.

I don't use a handbag. Not because I don't like the idea of one, but because I have never found one I actually liked. There may come a day though lol.

Always a book
Water bottle
Wallet, Keys, phone
Lightweight plate
Pouch containing fork & spoon
Pepper Spray
Lighter
Chapstick
Pen

Book (or two)
Chapstick
Pepper Spray
Bag with Hair Pins, Binders, Mascara, Eyeliner, and Lipstick
Keys, Wallet, Phone
Notepad and Pencil
Sunglasses
Snacks

I'm surprised to read that so many carry pepperspray. They are illegal in Denmark. The World really holds so many different realities.

I don't have a purse or a handbag. I like to keep my hands free to carry a waterbottle and open doors. :)

However, whenever I go out I ALWAYS take my backpack with me. It's small, purple, and extremely durable hiker-made one that I've had ever since I was in Kindergarten (wow!) If it's a brief outing then I just put my iPod, cellphone, and some money and tissues in my roomy pockets of my guy pants.

However for a typical outing I'll fill my backpack with this:
-a book (or two)
-my sketchbook w/ pencil
-wallet w/ money and ID
-cellphone
-iPod
-extra batteries for my cochlear implants
-two oat bars for a snack
-two to three full waterbottles (I drain them like nothing else)
-a clipboard that is the stiff spine my backpack lacks (always stays in there for this reason)
-a baggie containing tissues, hand sanitizer, wet wipes, lotion bottle (sometimes I add in nail filer and nail cutters if its a long car trip to a hotel for the night)
-another baggie hidden in a side pocket that's my emergency kit that contains extra tampons, thin pads, and some thick overnight pads and an extra pair of underwear in case of bleed-through.
-hairbands along one of the straps (old habit I kept ever since I used to have long hair and hey, it comes in handy some of the times!)

And anything else that I put in or take out depending on whatever I'm gonna be doing. Like extra clothing and sunblock if I'm going to an amusement park that has a waterpark area. Sunglasses if I need them and I'm gonna leave the car for a while. My medical forms for going to the doctor's. Sandwiches for a time I may be missing a meal (usually lunch.) Extra art if I'm gonna be meeting with someone to share some of my art with them. My color pencil case with extra book and art folder if I'm gonna be going on a plane or staying overnight somewhere and I want to be able to do more than just grayscale pencil sketches in my sketchbook.

With all the people carrying pepper spray... maybe I should start to do that myself? Good way to protect myself. :3

Invariably my bag contains: my purple wallet, an iPhone, the make-up du jour, toothbrush and paste, a tiny perfume, and one or two hair ties. Sometimes, too, my iPad is in there, with all my books inside. :)

It depends on whether I want to carry a handbag or not. Sometimes, I go without. Handbags weigh you down.

Usually, I just have my cell-phone, my wallet, a water bottle, a lip gloss, a pen, and sometimes a book, hand cream, perfume and a sanitizer. Really, it depends on the size of the bag. If I can fit all of that and if I remember to, I will.

Lol, are you ready for this? Mine always has a book, my wallet, my heart medication, my xanax, my chapstick, my keys, pepperspray, my sunglasses, peptobismol, and of course, good ole marijuana.

In my purse I have:

my keys
a wallet
a few snacks
my cell phone sometimes (other times I put it in my pocket)
small water bottle
essential oils

My purse is very tiny. lol but it fits a lot of space!

I like to go around the city not carrying around too much weight, so I mostly take the essentials: cell phone, an extra thin bag that can be folded in a little packet, keys, personal documents and credit card, hand sanitizer, tissues, transport card, a pen, some money. Sometimes the e-reader.

napkins (here in mexico, there is a dearth of toilet paper)
several i.d.'s - dr. lic., passport
money (whatever i have left till it's time to go to the bank again)
photo of my daughters
debit card, market discount card
lip balm
sunglasses
driving glasses
keys
pen
if i'm traveling, a book of phone #'s
no phone or other gadgets - don't own any

i love purses! i change them w/ the seasons or the event or the situation.

I used to be a small handbag girl, but since I started needing glasses and wearing braces, I find that I keep getting bigger bags to haul all my stuff around, so here is what I have:

- wallet
- cellphone
- keys (on a carabiner like Luella's, so I don't have to dig through the purse to find them)
- sunglasses
- rubber bands and wax for my braces
- earbuds, so I can listen to my audiobooks whenever I get stuck waiting
- tissues
- umbrella
- comb
- hair elastic
- pen and small notebook
- my DivaCup
- and about a million and a half old receipts because I never clean the thing out

I also end up carrying a lot of things for other people in my purse when I am out and about, especially when I am with men.

Henriette wrote: "I'm surprised to read that so many carry pepperspray. They are illegal in Denmark. The World really holds so many different realities."

That is interesting Henriette. This group has really opened my eyes to how different things are in different parts of the world. Its always great to be exposed to different thoughts, ideas, and realities.

i've found exposure therapy to be some of the best there is! not in the traditional sense, necessarily, but like we have here, or thru travel, road trips and the like.

Henriette wrote: "I'm surprised to read that so many carry pepperspray. They are illegal in Denmark. The World really holds so many different realities."

I was thinking exactly the same thing, I live in Australia and it's illegal here as far as I know, I wouldn't ever think to carry something like that anyway, no need for it!

Mine at the moment is pretty big, so I have a lot in there! I do have a smaller one that I use, but it has the main things in it and I carry the rest in a canvas bag.

-Phone
-Wallet
-Keys
- Pencil case with pens, highlighters, sticky tabs, lipstick, hearing aid batteries, an extra hearing aid, solid perfume, lipstick, bandaids
-tissues
-another small built in bag/pocket with a sheet of each of my medicines and a prescription sticker for each (some are heavy duty painkillers that could be sold on the black market)
-at least one book
-thermos of tea
-water bottle
-cardigan
-various pens, lippies and other bits and pieces on the bottom!
-phone charger
-diary/notebook

I feel like I have to carry half the world in my bag! Comes with the territory of being a student, chronically ill and having to house-hop a fair bit between mine and my fiance's houses before we move in together! He calls my bag "The Tardis" because he doesn't understand how I manage to pull so many random things out of it!

I am constantly on the go, between nannying and working other various jobs, so I live out of my bag most days of the week. My giant purse contains:

-->keys, wallet, 1 book, reusable water bottle, pepper spray, granola bar/snack, hair ties, sticky notes, a journal, washi tape, mints, extra socks, plus a separate pouch full of pens, pencils, Chapstick, lipstick, hair clips, band aids, Advil, allergy pills, nail polish and change for any unexpected tolls/parking meters.

It is very interesting to read that many of us women have to carry pepper spray. It's unfortunate to feel the need to always be on the defense. It's always good to be prepared and to have a little peace of mind while carrying it around but I still feel irked in my stomach by having to carry it around in the first place.

Wallet with cash (very little!), debit card, store reward cards, ID, medical card, bank account cards, sunglasses, Tylenol, datebook, iPhone, book or 2' lipstick, lip balm, book of random lists, various receipts, work ID, safety button, mirror, pen, two watches that need new battery replacements, hairbrush, eyedrops

Always: wallet with debit, credit, Medicare, library cards, license, maybe cash; sunnies; book or Kindle; earphones; keys; phone. On uni days I lug around a ring binder, notebook, and pens case. And I always pack lunch in a mason jar, sometimes breakfast too.

I used to carry a purse or a tote, but right now I'm using a smallish backpack. It's waterproof, which I find very useful. In my bag I usually have: wallet, my phone (iPhone, currently broken and barely usable), my iPad mini for reading and podcasts), real book (if that's what I'm reading), my DSLR (if I'm going adventuring), journal, pens, writing notebook, scrap paper notebook, 642 tiny things to write about book, The Pocket Scavenger book, anything I need for class, water bottle, keys, headphones, Chapstick, flash drive, and teabags.

I usually don't carry a bag to school, which is the place where I spend most of my time, to be honest. But when I do carry a bag I never forget a book, my wallet, pens, a notebook, my agenda and some water.

Did you folks see Stephen Colbert's routine on what's in Hillary Clinton's purse?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzzJZ...

In my bag I normally have what I have in my pockets. I have ear buds, my phone, Chapstick, and a glasses cleaner cloth. This if I'm wearing something with out pockets, but I might bring it if I need my wallet.

I always carry my wallet with various cards, sanitary napkin and pain killers in case of emergencies and never any cash. A water bottle, and a snack bar are always with me. A small bag with select electronic necessities, like headphones and an emergency charger is almost always with me. And a book often comes too, these days they are mostly feminist ones ^^

I can carry with me half the world if I want to, but I am trying to limit myself and not carry too much. At the same time, I try to ensure that what I carry contains things that I may need in an emergency.

In my bag i ususaly have
- my wallet
-phone
-notebook
- a pen.
-deodorant
- keys
-lipbalm
-sunglasses
- and often a book.

In my bag I carry my reading glasses, notebook, pens (ballpoint, gel, felt tip, black, blue, red, etc...), a book (sometimes two), lip balm, lipstick, sunglasses, keys, bobby pins, hair ties, wallet, and usually a granola or protein bar. My husband says I could likely use my bag (more a satchel/messenger bag than a purse) as a weapon if anyone were to dare an attempt to take it.

These are fun answers. I like seeing how similar we all are.

My bag currently contains:

- wallet
-lipstick (a sensible pink because it's a work day)
- a stack of business cards (because I had a big meeting on Wednesday)
- White Oleander by Janet Fitch
- day planner (I'm old school and keep mine on actual paper)
- cell phone
- some coins because I stopped at Starbucks this morning
- nature valley bar
- apple
- 6 gel pens in various colors