What are you carrying? Year End 2020 Special Edition

[G42]

Hello Forum Friends!

@melminimalist noticed we haven't done one of these in a while, probably because @MatthewR & everyone else at TB is hopin' - trying to get masks and bags designed/manufactured/donated/shipped whilst staying socially distanced and safe.
I'm sure you've all experienced that sense of time telescoping - like March was both yesterday AND years ago.

So here we go, with some 2020 modifications -

1. What bag/accessories are you carrying (items + colors, pics always welcome)? Favorite in-house item works too!
2. What are you reading?
3. What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?
4. What are you listening to?
5. What are you cooking/baking/drinking?
6. What are you making/creating/doing?
7. What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?

Bonus question:
What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition?

[PaulT00]

1. What bag/accessories are you carrying (items + colors, pics always welcome)? Favorite in-house item works too!

The items I've used most this year are my Travel Trays. I've lost count of how many I have, but I know there are a couple in the upstairs bedroom holding socks, one on the dressing table holding miscellaneous bits and pieces, a couple in the bedside drawer holding medication...

2. What are you reading?

Between books at the moment, sorta-kinda re-reading Charles Stross' The Nightmare Stacks, having recently finished his latest novel Dead Lies Dreaming.

3. What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?

Recently finished Star Trek: Picard on Amazon, and Star Trek: Discovery on Netflix. Plus the omnipresent Christmas TV at this time of year.

4. What are you listening to?

Mostly vintage electronica - Jarre, Vangelis, that kind of thing.

5. What are you cooking/baking/drinking?

The Christmas Ham is baking in the oven as I type this (we'll eat that later this evening with mashed potatoes, peas and parsley sauce - it's a tradition thing). Drinking lots of tea, plus the more-than-occasional gin and tonic - current favourite mix is 1:3 Number 3 gin diluted with Fever Tree Mediterranean Tonic... add ice and a slice of lemon: refreshment in a glass. And there's a nice bottle of aged tawny port waiting to sip after Christmas lunch tomorrow. Hic!

6. What are you making/creating/doing?

Enjoying a break from work - I've been working, remotely, all through the madness of 2020, and if anything have been busier than ever. Most recently I've been designing improvements to media rights availability reporting software for $employer (a large media company) - it's been a bit full-on and all-consuming: definitely time to take a break when you find yourself - literally! - dreaming about an improved algorithm for determining the next available date for a piece of media content!

7. What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?

Rivendell would be nice this time of year, one imagines...

Bonus question:
What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition?

Christmas Eve always finds us tucked up nice and warm indoors, fire going, dogs all curled up around the room; we always seem to pull up the (metaphorical) drawbridge and drop the portcullis, and block the world out for a few days over Christmas Day, Boxing Day and a few days after that. It's kind of like a shutdown and reboot at the darkest part of the year.

[gqb]

1. What bag/accessories are you carrying (items + colors, pics always welcome)? Favorite in-house item works too!

Small cafe bag in wilderness/cloud with a size 1 stuff sack in cloud for my buff and gloves. On office days I'm carrying an aubergine/wasabi smart alec I bought from @Ilkyway .
Favourite in home items are alphaviolet pick up truck as house purse and Sitka large travel tray as nightstand

2. What are you reading?

Super trashy festive regency romances with titles like " the duke's Yule tide blessing "

3. What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?

Die Hard

4. What are you listening to?

Lots of up beat pop e.g. dua lipa

5. What are you cooking/baking/drinking?

Just made a chocolate courgette (zucchini) loaf cake with boozy chocolate topping. And risotto. Very comforting stuff, risotto.

6. What are you making/creating/doing?

I am organising my recipe collection electronically!

7. What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?

Atlantis.

Bonus question:

What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition?

I must have a mince pie topped with clotted cream on Christmas morning.

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[OverDriver]

1. What bag/accessories are you carrying

an old red and steel Tom Bihn Id messenger bag and brain cell that I think goes back to the early 2000s. I've carried this bag everywhere and it still looks brand new. It holds an older MacBook Pro in the brain cell (my personal computer) and a newer Dell laptop in the main compartment (my work computer). In the pockets I keep chargers, a Leatherman multi tool, pens, a power brick, etc. Also carrying around a ratty beat up gym bag that I keep papers, books, sweatshirt, hat, and other things in that I need every day at work. This bag looks the opposite of new and I'm thinking about which Tom Bihn bag I will be getting to replace it. Leaning towards a backpack, but maybe something else.

2. What are you reading?

Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline, and The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman.

3. What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?

Watching Mandalorian, Queen's Gambit, and lots of classic Christmas Movies. Playing Super Smash Bros., Mario Kart, and Animal Crossing.

4. What are you listening to?

The last movie I saw in an actual theater was Emma, and that soundtrack steered me to a Pandora station made up of English folk music and oddly enough, sea shanties, but I'm loving it! Maddy Prior, June Tabor, Stan Rogers, The Dreadnoughts.

5. What are you cooking/baking/drinking?

So much Diet Coke. Too much.

6. What are you making/creating/doing?

Traveling a lot on business living in hotels (but home for the holidays thank goodness) as I help build out an automated production control room for a TV station and training their crew.

7. What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?

Mos Eisley spaceport for the scum and villainy. Magrathea for the world building.

Bonus question:

What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition?

Drinking champagne at home with my wife on New Years Eve and wondering what all those people in Times Square do when they have to use the bathroom.

[backpack]

1. What bag/accessories are you carrying (items + colors, pics always welcome)? Favorite in-house item works too!

S19, LSB and Swift for items needed for fun indoors activities, Trucks for laundry, most other TB bags assigned to very handy storage use.

Pretty much all travelling accessories have been re-purposed to store everyday items or provide quick access to masks

I stubbornly refuse to remove the miscellaneous travel related items from the Tristar and its main compartment are left empty.


2. What are you reading?

3 reference American History books one chapter at a time. They cross reference events from 3 different perspectives.

I need to find "light" reading that is non-fiction or good and funny comics.


3. What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?

PBS or TCM


4. What are you listening to?

Classical orchestra pieces with great conductors, Classic Latin Jazz 1930's-2000, Great Jazz and R&B singers.


5. What are you cooking/baking/drinking?

Mac and cheese, mushroom burgers with tea earl grey hot or caffeine free fruit teas, trying to stay away from pastries as much as possible.


6. What are you making/creating/doing?

Watercolor or Copic marker coloring.


7. What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?


Bonus question:
What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition?

[KmK]

1. What bag/accessories are you carrying (items + colors, pics always welcome)? Favorite in-house item works too!
It’s winter here in Nova Scotia and I dislike the feeling of a backpack over my winter coat, so for both the upstairs to downstairs commute and any outdoor time, I am sporting a long faithful Brand X satchel (Until, OH PLEASE, a DL version of the Imago??) that is organized by Tom Bihn. All is kept tidy with a Cobalt DL PCSB and an Acuity HLT2.

2. What are you reading?
I have with me Hundreds and Thousands, the journals of Canadian artist Emily Carr. Also have Obama’s memoirs going and Piranisi by Susanna Clarke.

3. What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?

Not much these days...I prefer to listen.

4. What are you listening to?
Natalie Merchant has been singing to me quite a bit of late and Sara Thomsen too; Podcast cycle has been Pop Culture Happy Hour, Home Cooking, Writers and Company, Arts and Ideas... all sorts of things. Am a sucker for the year end wrap up editions of different podcasts that look at the year from unique perspectives/topical analyses.

5. What are you cooking/baking/drinking?

Most recent bit of delicious was left over apple-onion-celery-bread-salt-pepper-summer savory stuffing in a bowl with a big spoonful of freshly simmered black beans that had a pinch of chipotle pepper and button cremini mushrooms that had been crisped up in a cast iron skillet with a bit of olive oil and finished with a splash of red wine vinegar.

6. What are you making/creating/doing?

Blog entries; poetry; photography...all aiming to celebrate the beauty of what IS as it IS.

7. What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?

Does time travel count? I’d love to be inside Shakespeare and Company bookstore in Paris in its heyday. If i’m realistic...I’d simply like to visit my friend of nearly 40 years and not worry that either one of us is running a health risk because of it.

[G42]

1. What bag/accessories are you carrying (items + colors, pics always welcome)? Favorite in-house item works too!
Since I'm fortunate to be able to mostly work from home, I don't have an EDC right now except my Nik's wallet. Out and about, I'm using Original Shop Bags for packing groceries into after carrying them out of the stores in a cart/basket due to Covid restrictions. On my longer walks, my more recent 'new to me' original version Side Effects with the integrated straps (Plum and Indigo) are in heavy rotation. Inside my apartment, my Travel Trays in both sizes, Pop Totes, Trucks, Monster Trucks, and more Original Shop Bags add a lot of organization.
2. What are you reading?
Rereading old favorites - it's like a fuzzy blanket for my brain.
3. What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?
I rarely watch anything (don't even own a TV) but did finally get around to seeing Good Omens.
4. What are you listening to?
Holiday music mix the past couple of weeks.
5. What are you cooking/baking/drinking?
Roasting a lot of root vegetables, tossed with a touch of oil/salt/pepper.
6. What are you making/creating/doing?
Just bought an Etsy embroidery sampler kit - haven't done embroidery since I was a kid - had a random hankering for a fibre craft. My distraction during annoying phone meetings where I can't meaningfully multitask on workwork is colouring... said colouring may be in snarky swearing colouring books, ahem.
7. What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?
Ohhh, Magrathea is tempting, but Discworld is first on my frequent flier wish list.

Bonus question:
What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition?
My mental 'new year' is around September due to the traditional 'back to school' schedule that I grew up with, the change of the seasons, and several times I've switched jobs around that time of year. For traditional end of the calendar year, I love to thoroughly clean my place, pull out anything I haven't used in a year to donate, reorganize, etc.

[Rei]

lot of you make me hungry :d (everyone actually but diet coke)

having champagne/crémant with loved ones is a "end of the year" tradition I like too



1. What bag/accessories are you carrying (items + colors, pics always welcome)? Favorite in-house item works too!

my trustworthy 3DOC (Skookum Dog version) + 5/8 shoulder strap for any going-out : holding wallet (mini OP), mask/make-up (small OP), sometimes tissues, handsanitizer, earphone (micro Skookum OP), etc.

always with Deluxe Spiff Kit next to me at (or someone else's) home : with art stuff as A5 notepad, pens, pencils, sometimes water color, etc.

my cute cubelet : holding my phone while wearing a dress (with no pocket)

Favorite where-ever items : OP small / mini / micro / pen : holding mask, tissue, make-up+meds stuff / sleep stuff (eye-mask and ear-buds), money+ID+cards / earphone / minimal art stuff.

2. What are you reading?

tone of webtoons, too many to count...

3. What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?

rewached recently the Lord of the Rings trilogy

4. What are you listening to?

(G)I-DLE always... comeback coming (really) soon...

5. What are you cooking/baking/drinking?

Galettes de Julienne de Patates Frites or fried galettes of potatoes in Julienne (thin cuts of potatoes), not convinced yet of my result, need to train

6. What are you making/creating/doing?

Drawing (G)I-DLE portraits... yeah I'm quite obsessed
and some ornaments (got a book on that this Christmas)

7. What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?

The Shire and Fondcombes


Bonus question:
What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition?

Having (French) Christmas/New Year mealS with my family

[AHesting]

What bag/accessories are you carrying
Office Carry: DLBP (Original Halcyon), PUT (Dawn), SE w/ wrist strap (various depending on mood)
Ordinary Carry: SE or Icon (Ursa/Island)
Knitting Bags: Swift (Verde/UV) and Truckasana (Ursa/UV)

What are you reading?
The Feeling Good Handbook

What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?
Playing: Dominoes
Watching: Bridgerton, Sanditon and my favorite knitting/making video podcasts

What are you listening to?
NPR

What are you cooking/baking/drinking?
Whiskey or IPA's

What are you making/creating/doing?
Knitting: 1 sweater, 2 blankets, 2 pairs of socks (at the moment)

What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?
Hogwarts

Bonus question:
What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition?
Candlelight service on Christmas Eve (this year via Zoom and surprisingly still lovely and moving)

[Chicagoan]

What bag/accessories are you carrying?
Everyday Carry: EC, because I can wear it crossbody over a slippery, synthetic puffy coat and not have it slide off my shoulder like the L15 does when I want to be a reckless one-strapper. Winter, for this very reason, is not backpack season here in the Chicago suburbs. Crossbody bags are what I tend to grab when we go out.

What are you reading?
“Appetites: A Cookbook” by Anthony Bourdain, primarily to help find a dinner recipe for an upcoming weekend trip, but also because this dude writes such an entertaining cookbook I don’t mind reading recipes for dishes I don’t ever plan on making. If ever you pass someone laughing out loud while reading a cookbook - it’s probably one of his.

What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?
Playing: A surf green Fender Telecaster. Five years ago I sold my guitars, and while I didn’t miss all of them, I did miss having one, period, and decided half a decade was long enough to go without having a musical instrument around the apartment.
Watching: YouTube tutorials, because of the aforementioned lapse in practice.

What are you listening to?
The Beatles. I first learned to play guitar by teaching myself chords and playing along to their music, which reminds me just how much I love their songs and how, every time I come back to them, I like them more than I did prior.

What are you cooking/baking/drinking?
A refrigerator full of tuna and chicken salad, thanks to oral surgery this week. Pro tip: your local Target store has a much larger variety of salad options than you would think.

What are you making/creating/doing?
Travel plans. My fiancee and I can’t be gone from home longer than a weekend at a time, so instead of one long vacation, we usually take several weekend trips throughout the year. This year will include some old favorites (Washington Island, WI and Shipshewana, IN), new traditions (Harbor Country, MI), as well as first experiences (a treehouse stay in the Shawnee National Forest).

What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?
The past. Way too many people I would like to meet that I missed or never had the chance to - like Tony Bourdain.

Bonus question:
What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition? I asked my fiancee if she would be my New Year’s Eve date five years ago, now, so every December 31st we celebrate by sharing a nice dinner at a local supper club. It’s a tradition, and regardless of how well or not the year went, it’s something to look forward to, and a way to bookend the year on a high note.


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[bxvr]

1. What bag/accessories are you carrying (items + colors, pics always welcome)? Favorite in-house item works too!

Medium Cafe bag, generally with a planner, keys, ghost whale organizer pouches with lotion, hand sanitizer etc, masks and electronics

2. What are you reading?

The Recognitions by William Gaddis

3. What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?

I’ve been rewatching early seasons of the Simpsons, primarily. Waiting on a tabletop rpg called Fiasco to come in the mail so I can play that with family.

4. What are you listening to?

A lot of MF DOOM (RIP) and The National

5. What are you cooking/baking/drinking?

I’m off alcohol entirely and most baked goods due to a recent diabetes diagnosis but I did just pick up Veganomicon which is a vegan cookbook!

6. What are you making/creating/doing?

I have been working on some creative writing but I’m also waiting for an embroidery starter kit to arrive so I can work on that.

7. What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?

I think someone answered this upthread but the lost city of Atlantis probably?

Bonus question:
What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition?

Way past year end now but it used to be a South Indian coconut duck curry my mother would make. Divine! Couldn’t have that this year for obvious reasons. Maybe next year!

[Denises]

1. What bag/accessories are you carrying (items + colors, pics always welcome)? Favorite in-house item works too!
I’m currently using my cloud/viridian SK as my EDC.

2. What are you reading?
The Bells of Old Tokyo by Anna Sherman – it’s a great reminder of places I’ve visited in Tokyo, and inspiration for future visits when travel is possible again.

3. What are you playing or watching (movies, theatre, video games, etc.)?
The two most recent movies I’ve seen were Nomadland and Blithe Spirit. Nomadland seemed very real and showed some beautiful parts of the United States. Blithe Spirit was fun, and mostly set in a really splendid Art Deco mansion.

4. What are you listening to?

5. What are you cooking/baking/drinking?
Lots of salads, including some with vegetables and herbs that I’ve grown.

6. What are you making/creating/doing?
I’ve been doing some brainstorming for article ideas to pitch (answering these questions is a displacement activity).

7. What mythical/imaginary travel destination would you love to visit?
Somewhere like Brideshead or Downton Abbey.

Bonus question:
What's your favorite year end (not necessarily holiday) tradition?
It’s summer here in New Zealand, so eating pavlova with berries on top is something I do a lot at this time of year. The photo below shows the most splendid example this summer, with strawberries, raspberry coulis, lemon curd and rose jelly.

[bxvr]

@Denises ; that dish is beautiful! Your comment set me off to finding a good pavlova recipe I can maybe occasionally indulge in. Seems straightforward to make!

[Denises]

@Denises ; that dish is beautiful! Your comment set me off to finding a good pavlova recipe I can maybe occasionally indulge in. Seems straightforward to make!

The ingredients are very simple, but it's all in the baking. Most recipes tell you to turn off the oven and leave the pavlova in the oven. The pavlova will complete baking as the oven cools, so avoid opening the oven door as much as possible. A couple of reliable New Zealand recipes are:-

Edmonds cookbook - this is the classic New Zealand cookbook.

Annabel Langbein - she also provides some useful tips for making the perfect pavlova.

The photo above is an individual mini pavlova. If you want to try making those, the baking time is a bit different. See this recipe.

[bxvr]

The ingredients are very simple, but it's all in the baking. Most recipes tell you to turn off the oven and leave the pavlova in the oven. The pavlova will complete baking as the oven cools, so avoid opening the oven door as much as possible. A couple of reliable New Zealand recipes are:-

Edmonds cookbook - this is the classic New Zealand cookbook.

Annabel Langbein - she also provides some useful tips for making the perfect pavlova.

The photo above is an individual mini pavlova. If you want to try making those, the baking time is a bit different. See this recipe.

Thank you so much!