Friday Five on Saturday: 5 Things In My Purse At All Times

5 Fandom Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Nerdy Girlie and Super Space Chick. This week's question is: what do you have in your purse?

I resisted carrying a purse for a long, long time. I guess because as a student (in high school and then in college), I already was carrying a bag with all of my school stuff, so that was enough. But once I was out in the adult world, I realized having a bag for my stuff just made sense. Especially because women's clothing has a troubled relationship with pockets and because I like having a book on hand.

Without further ado, 5 6 things in my purse at all times!

1. A portable whiteboard and all of the attendant accouterments

Right now I have tutoring appointments six days a week, so my whiteboard and its stuff is in my purse more often than not. (It's a large-is purse, there's room!)


2. My little bag of tutoring supplies

So this one isn't in my bag all the time, but close enough! In it I have markers, colored pencils, flashcards of some variety (those green ones are personal pronoun flashcards), a pair of dice, little trolls (great makeshift game pieces), and a deck of playing cards. I can work wonders with this stuff.


3. My melon change purse/wallet from Japan

Ever since I had my wallet lifted two years ago, I've taken to just using this instead. Also, it's super cute! No, I haven't been to Japan, even though JV and I would love to go one day. This was a gift from my friend Breda. She lives in Korea and goes to Japan often enough that she should probably get some kind of customer loyalty bonus card.


4. A notebook and an ungodly amount of pens

A lot of those pens are dead, but I never think to go through them all and throw out the dead ones until I'm out and in desperate need of one that works. I have a bunch of different notebooks, too: there's one with random notes (addresses for Etsy, grocery lists, directions to new students) and then ones with my lesson plans in them. (Different students each have their own notebooks, of course.)


5. My phone

Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons; not my actual phone but the same model

Pretty straightforward, right? I was late on the smartphone train but I'm glad I eventually boarded! I use Google Maps when I'm trying to find a new place; I can carry a dozen books at once (always something to read on public transportation!); I use the timer function in my lessons; I can use Google Image Search and Google Translate to help explain new vocabulary to students; I can check those nagging "ugh what was that movie/who was that guy" questions the moment they turn up in a conversation; I can use it to store songs and listening practice assignments.

6. My MP3 player

Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons; not my actual MP3 player but the same model

I refuse to use my smartphone for a music player, though. Instead I have my beat-up SansaFuze that I just can't quit, even if the battery life is a ghost of its former self. But I bought it in South Korea and I like having that little reminder of my time there with me, no matter how dingy it looks.