Every Day Carry

Before I leave the castle, and step out into the world, or skip, and look up at the sky, I like to be sure I have everything, my Every Day Carry.

First in my case, because I’ll need to write, an A5 notebook, hard covers, plain black or red, white paper, unlined, and the stub of a Blackwing 602 pencil, and a Staedler School pencil, a pencil sharpener, and a black and red Sharpie.

I write every day, it’s like an addiction, but to cover my actual addictions, I take a vape, coconut or banana or anything apart from Pink Lemonade, cigarettes and a lighter, my Zippo with a coin, if it’s working, a slim airtight cigar tube, and some Starbucks espresso tubes, in case I’m somewhere the coffee is not too great, or worse, there’s only decaf. Not that I would like you to think I’m precious.

Whatever the gig for the day, I always do some magic, so I’ll pack a red Bicycle deck of cards, five Tarot cards, a metal cup, a silver Morgan dollar, an ever so slightly gimmicked key ring, a miniature pot of jam, a fire wallet, flash paper, a lemon, my Las Vegas ring, a close up pad, and a bright yellow small plastic duck.

There will also be my little, perfect, paper white Kindle, driving licence, passport, hand cream, mobile and, as a kind of nod to my dad, Fisherman’s Friends. All of this goes in my small Peli flight case, and sometimes I’ll also have a black dancing cane, silver topped and tipped, partly for balance, mostly because I’m just a little showy, I think.

Then I take a few minutes to take care of the more important part of my EDC, me. It’s what I put in my head and heart that matters most, a whole lot more than all the stuff I toss in my case.

I have a small piece of paper, my Day Guide, and I look at the symbols on it, to set myself straight.

A little heart is a reminder to treat everyone I meet with love; even when I don’t succeed in this, I’m always happy I’m trying to be who I want to be, not just reacting to the world, trying to give something to it.

Next there’s a scribbled question mark, and I think of who I’m meeting, and what questions I’ll ask them, and remember to listen a lot more than I talk. I’m at my best when I’m curious.

Then a plus sign, and a decision to be positive, come what may, and an eye, a trigger to be super alert, to notice everything, to look for the good, and lastly an arrow, pointing up, so I think about action, and what I want to make happen in the day.

Finally, and this all only takes a few minutes, I take a moment to meditate, imagining I’m caught in a beam of bright golden light, and I defy anyone to do this and not feel pretty good about themselves.

And then I’m all set, good for the day. 

What about you, what’s your EDC? Dear Reader, take a few moments to get yourself shiny every morning, it’ll make your day, even if you leave your case, or bag sitting on your kitchen table.

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