My EDC for 2023
Introduction
This year I have decided to carry more items with me as opposed to going outside with almost nothing. This means that I will be able to be prepared for more situations, such as emergencies or generally any unforeseen events. Preparing for simple upcoming events is part of my “prepared for everything” goal.
I will carry things in two places - on my person (pockets, belt & wrists) or in my bag. I want the most important items on me at all times, whereas less important items can be put in my bag.
On my Person
Sometimes I won’t need to go out with my bag, so I need to be prepared with just the items on my person. Therefore I keep the most important and quickly accessible items on my person.
Keys
My keys are extremely important - and I must not lose them. That’s why I have an AirTag on them so I know if I’ve left them behind somewhere or lost them. I also have put a beautiful Lotus badge on them so I know they are mine, and a sim card ejector tool as a small pin is incredibly useful as I’ve found myself needing it in many situations where I don’t have one. It can be used to reset devices, eject sim card trays (of course), and get dirt out of annoying tiny holes. Carrying an actual set of keys is very useful, as I’ve been locked out so many times now.
Watch
I am very reliant on the time, its like how I know where I am in the universe. Therefore I have the most reliable and strongest watch possible, a G-Shock. It’s a perfect watch that stays perfectly in sync with the time due to it’s Multi Band 6 feature, and will work forever as it recharges by sunlight. For me, its definitely the perfect watch. It’s also great for travelling abroad as it can easily change timezone and has the ability to view other time zones with the World Time feature. I wear this day and night on my left wrist, and I absolutely love it.
Swiss Tool
I love carrying a multi-tool - and this one has all the tools I need. I tend to keep this on my belt, which allows quick access at any time and keeps it strongly attached to me. I opted for a Swiss Tool over an Swiss Army Knife as I needed the pliers, which are extremely handy in my daily life. It’s brilliant quality and should last for the rest of my life - I’ll replace the components as and when they break. If you’re wondering - it’s just a Victorinox Swiss Tool.
Other Multi-Tool
I carry this other multi-tool in my back pocket, just because it’s really simple and easy to use and I don’t care if it gets damaged as much. I want to get use out of my swiss tool, but I want it to last for a long time and not get unnecessarily damaged. Therefore this is what I use when I want to open boxes and such with the small blade.
Torch
I like to carry a torch, as I could find myself staying away from home for a while, meaning I would have to be present at night time for some amount of time. The torch I use is a Troika Eco Beam, which is a small however decently powerful torch. It recharges via micro-usb, which is somewhat annoying as replaceable batteries are much more useful when camping, or I would have preferred USB-C. However, the power in the torch is amazing especially for the compact and small yet rugged design. It is also magnetic, which means it’s especially suited for dark work on boilers, or anywhere where pipes are available. I will typically attach this to my belt if I’m wearing one, as it has a clip on the back of the torch which is great for attaching to a belt. However, I would really like to get an extremely powerful torch if I was to go properly camping or on some expedition, as this torch is great for day-to-day use but not that great for very long distance or extremely dark conditions.
Phones
I typically carry two phones on me - an iPhone 11 and a Google Pixel 7 Pro. I much prefer the Pixel, however due to my use of a MacBook Pro for college I find myself doing quick things on the iPhone. If I was to go out without the need to be productive, i.e. on a camping trip or a meetup with friends where I don’t need my Mac, I wouldn’t bother taking my iPhone. I find the Pixel much more reliable, although it has a worse battery life. I installed GrapheneOS, the private operating system to try and reduce the tracking that’s done on me - although I still do not trust it fully (as it still connects to cell phone towers and such.) I try to use it only for emergencies on trips and meet-ups, or as a communication device through SMS/Phone calls or on my own self-hosted Matrix home-server.
If I don’t want to be tracked or don’t need my iPhone, I won’t take it with me. So its a completely optional part of my EDC that isn’t a requirement.
Earbuds
Listening to music is something I do constantly, so I like the ease of use of wireless earbuds. Using Bluetooth for everything is also great, as I can use these earbuds on any device such as my desktop computer, MacBook Pro and both of my phones. These are the best sounding Bluetooth earbuds, and they really make the music I listen to sound amazing. I use these every day and from their constant use I have realised that these really are a massive improvement from my previous AirPods Gen 2. Although they don’t sound any where near as good as over ear headphones, they are the best you can get for wireless, and they really are great. The use of USB-C is very important for me, as almost all of my devices now have it. In my opinion, they are much better than any AirPods available (even the AirPods Pro model.)
Music Player
Whilst I listen to music on my phones through my earbuds, I also like to bring a music player with me, typically an iPod Shuffle as seen above. It’s a brilliant simple music player which I load my favourite songs onto before going out. It has a great battery life and is ideal for listening with using a decent pair of headphones, such as my pair of DT 990 Pros which I keep in my bag. If I don’t have any AUX headphones with me then I won’t need to bring it with me, so this item is quite optional.
Wallet
Some people no longer carry wallets, as they completely rely on their phones to store their cards and passes. However, I much prefer a wallet, as there are just situations where phones cannot do the same for me. Phones can run out of battery, but cards can’t, so I always can get the train, or buy things in an emergency. I also carry my provisional driving licence, which is my ID, and other ID cards (in the back of the wallet) for places such as shopping centres and member’s cards. There is also an RFID blocker card, which I don’t think really works but is there to fill the space at the moment. I also carry some cash in-case my card declines or card isn’t accepted. I would prefer to use cash more often to prevent tracking however I wouldn’t like to lose any cash or carry so much around with me.
LNR Smartcard
In addition to my wallet, I sometimes carry a LNR smartcard, which allows me to load season tickets onto when I’m travelling by train a lot. Its very useful, however not required all the time as I wouldn’t make use of it if I was doing a single journey, going out with friends, or camping. I keep it in a taped together ID card holder to keep it safe as it’s flimsy, and I have attached it to lots of things in the past.
In my Bag
My bag is the place for items that I want with me but don’t belong on my person, either because they wouldn’t fit or they aren’t important enough. My choice of bag is a small north face bag, that I got whilst out shopping once, as it’s a very weatherproof bag which is a compact size with a decent amount of pockets for me.
Paper Sleeve
I store paper in this simple sleeve in my bag to keep it more protected and more weatherproof. It’s great for things that I cannot switch to an iPad for, or for any bits of paper which I need to scan in or deal with later. It fits great in my bag and gives it some extra support and shape.
My MacBook Pro
My laptop of choice is the 2022 MacBook Pro with 16GB of RAM, and it is a brilliant machine. Although it is not a private or tracker-less machine, it works brilliantly and is brilliant for my productivity. The battery life is also amazing for doing my work, meaning I can use it as a battery bank for my other devices, and get work done outside with genuinely 2 days of battery life when I manage it correctly. The continuity between the Mac and my iPad is also amazing, making it super easy to get work done quickly. The machine also never turns it’s fans on, which is brilliant for when I’m working with others. I keep it in a sleeve from tomtoc, which protects it in my bag even more, especially so it isn’t scratched. It also provides the laptop with extra cushioning.
My iPad
I use an iPad for all my work, just by using the iOS Notes app with a few shortcuts I have programmed to make working on it easier. It is a somewhat older iPad, and I have been hoping to replace it soon as it’s way too glitchy and slow (and sometimes keeps deleting my work.) I enjoy using it over paper as I know I won’t loose my work as easier (however it does like deleting some, but not enough to warrant using paper) and it is much easier to take around as it has all of my textbooks and work I need to do, without carrying 3 different folders around.
A Map
I always carry a good map when I’m travelling, as it could definitely be a life saver. These maps also show you the paths and trails for brilliant walks which you would never find on map apps on your phone as they are more focused on getting the most important things on there. Therefore I carry an Ordnance Survey map on me for the area I’m travelling around for the duration of the time I’m there.
Stationary
I will make a proper post about my stationary sometime, however I wanted to mention it quickly here. I have selected the perfect stationary for myself, which consists of mechanical pencils and pens. I don’t carry my fountain pen in here, as it wouldn’t fit and is too risky to carry every day with me. The main highlights of my stationary are a Rotring 600 and a Pilot V5 Cartidge pen. Those are my favourite tools as they’re the easiest and best feeling for writing and drawing.
I typically do all my work on my iPad, however sometimes when I’m writing personal documents I prefer paper as I don’t need the ability to sort through all my notes. I don’t really get much use out of my stationary anymore since I switched to the iPad for my work, but knowing that my stationary is in one compact tin is great.
Journal
I like writing in a physical journal sometimes as its a much nicer experience compared to typing a lot of the time. Getting use out of my stationary is also enjoyable, and I love getting away from technology sometimes, so I take this notebook with me wherever I go. Personally, I believe that the LEUCHTTURM1917 is the best notebook out there, with all of it’s great features and extraordinary paper quality. I would like to get more use out of my journal especially on camping trips where it would be brilliant in nature.
Original Schott’s Miscellany
I carry with me one of the greatest books of all time, a Schott’s Miscellany. It provides so many useful and useless facts, and is just an all-round useful thing to have. Most of the facts and information are actually very useful and come quite in hand - so I really need to get more use out of it. I really do love this book.
Silicone Straw
Paper straws are extremely annoying - and nonsensical when they don’t even get recycled by the companies which enforce them. I have to suffer with a silly paper straw whilst the rich people in the world fly on private jets constantly spewing out carbon dioxide whilst I’m suffering. No longer will I suffer, as now I take around with me this straw. I love using it when I can, and it’s really small and compact so it fits in my back perfectly.
Games Console
I like to carry a dedicated small console for playing games rather than playing games on one of my phones or MacBook Pro, as it takes any stress or addiction away from playing games but keeps them fun. I like just playing simple single player games or puzzle related games when I don’t have much else to do, i.e. I need to kill a few hours on a journey or I’m waiting for someone to get back to me. I typically take this GameBoy Color, as it is a brilliant simple little console which I enjoy and love learning about the low-level aspects of it such as the hardware and assembly. At some point I hope to make a little game for this GameBoy.
Calculators
I carry calculators with me everywhere, either for when I’m doing work or when I really need to do a proper calculation. They are brilliant calculators which I make use of all the time. In their hard cases they are kept securely in my bag so that they don’t get too damaged or lost, and I can keep the manuals with them so I can always look something up if I need to.
USB Hub
I like to take my MacBook Pro with me travelling, and being able to plug into different devices such as monitors is extremely useful. I also use a lot of SD cards with my Raspberry Pis and cameras, so this is very useful to have when I’m on the go. I also have some devices where they need USB-A, so the 2 USB-A ports on this hub is definitely useful for me.
Hairbrush
I really can’t stand annoying, greasy and messy (in a bad way) hair. So I’m constantly brushing my hair trying to keep it perfect. I use a Tangle Teezer as it’s incredibly effective at getting rid of tangles and knots in my hair. It’s also portable and really quick at getting my hair nice.
Conclusion
Some of the items in my EDC will change over time, but for now this is what I have decided I like the best. I enjoy knowing all of the items that I have on me and being more organised has helped me be more prepared for unforeseen events. I am very happy with how this adventure has turned out and I’m grateful for everything that I am able to carry with me, every day.