I already posted the answer to the actual QOTW (What ODD things do you carry around)
but just to jump on the bandwagon, I checked out the contents of my purse (I mean handbag, sorry!) and have the following:
-as well as the mini stun gun and Buck knife (the mace is in my car) -

3 pound coins and a fifty pence piece
$5.74 in shrapnel
My passport
My best friends expired driving license - although why that is in there I have no idea!
My "new hire" letter for the job I started last week
1 bottle of Juniper Breeze hand cream
1 bottle of Juniper Breeze hand sanitizer
Various receipts.
Several notes (varying between $1 and $20)
Yesterday's driving test results (passed, with only 1 error out of an allowable 15 which makes me eligible to be a Driving Examiner for the DMV apparently. Woo! 1st driving license ever at the grand old age of 31!)
Oh yeah, and a pack of Marlboro lights, 3 lighters and my money purse (which contains various cards, my new drivers license - go me! - and a $20 bill).
And a 'nude' lipstick, lip balm, and a "you've won a free Coke" bottle cap in one of the side pockets.

I also carry anti-emetics. I have emetophobia (fear of vomit), and do not go anywhere without them. They actually come in handy as I hand them out to friends from time to time if they're feeling ill or something :D
( Batshitmentalist is sane for once, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 6:31, Reply)

Never leave without
A safety pin (or two or three) and a paper clip. It's the 007 in me I suppose. And a house key. Rather embarrassing to be caught breaking into your own home.
(Boxer_Babee, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 6:24, Reply)

hehehe im a nerd
i carry a TI 83 + calculator at all times
even when not in school
had the thing for more than 3 years now and its always been in that left pocket
same one
i havent changed me pants
also carry a matchbook thats run out, was my grandpa's before he died
wallet w/ no $s
2 D20s (i dont even plan D&D)
KISS (the band) belt buckle (like the one in detroit rock city if youve ever seen it)
dogchain around left or right leg
lotsa more shtuff but not digging through pockets right now
( Arsonade is saving up for a new box of hummus, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 5:21, Reply)

1 Regular Condom and 1 Water Based Lubricant
Expiry 03/09
(riedacher_bertram, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 5:14, Reply)

In the event of flood/fire/act of god/ my handbag will save humanity
too much stuff, too many pockets and all of it totally neccasary to the survival of my family and relatives!

The reason men can carry only a wallet and pair of car keys is because usually their mum or girl freind carries all their other crap for them.

Example, I went out to see a show the other day, and who get's stuck with all the tickets and mobile phones and programs and train timetables in their hand bag.

I hear it get's worse when you have kids cause then you have to carry like a whole family's worth of crap with you.

And as for those womens who only carry a wallet and a stick of lip gloss, they are obviously not taking responsibility for anybody ealse in their life. Meaning they are usually teenage girls, divorcees or freindless whores.
(rattus, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 4:55, Reply)

Kevlar Beanie
In case I ever visit London and am running late for a train...
(Pleiades, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 4:07, Reply)

The usual
Keys, phone, wallet, mp3 player, student ID (oh the wonders of integrated bus pass), swiss army knife, water bottle, a bajillion pens/pencils/highlighters (student life), a book of some sort, a plastic spoon, usually a giant stack of textbooks.

I do however never leave the house without my four-leaf clover necklace. I have some sort of feeling it keeps me from getting hit by busses.
(chaoticmatter, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 4:00, Reply)

Oh tonnes of shite!!
before i leave the house i have to ensure i have the following items.

wallet, complete with money, condoms, cards, various contact details..
keys: to house, bike, boat, cash tin, unknown
maglite torch: possibly with spare batteries if its been a while
phone: never been switched off in around 3 years
mints: energy giving, removes early morning beer fuzzyness
cough sweets, just in case
matches/lighter:i dont smoke, just passes the time
chewing gum: keep buying it, never eat it. just need it there
diary: i have a crap memory, this has been a life saver
pen, always a "clicky" one
other, smaller maglite, in case the other gives out
other pen, as above. being prepared
chocolate bar, in case food is too far away. only eaten in extreme emergencies, and then replaced
sugary sweets of some sort, as above
at least enough small change for any eventuality, approx £5 in small denominations
scrap paper

if i have my bag with me:
a book,
magasine, for places a book would look out of place
water, though more for washing/firefighting than drinking
crisps, removes empty stomach aches when mints dont quite cut it
spare t-shirt, for warmth
string, just...because..
pliers (you have no idea how useful)
screwdriver + set of heads, always being asked to fix things.

im not overly paranoid, just happen to spend a lot of time drunk and need to know that when i wake up i have the stuff to find home/ survive on a park bench for a few days.

i really should get myself checked out by a shrink or something, this much crap has really worried me!!....
(whelks chance No two people are not on fire, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 3:02, Reply)

Not sure how much of this is actually essential...
...but here we go:-

-1 mobile phone (2 if I'm working and on call)

-A wallet containing: money (not much of it), bank cards, National Insurance card (even though I can remember the number off by heart), various loyalty cards, my University ID card, my library card, my Oyster card and my young person's railcard (including about 20-30 old tickets)

-A keychain to which is attached: 2 flat keys (with random landlord's keyring, 3 house keys, a window key, a key to the disabled toilets at the World's End in Camden (my friend nicked it by accident and got me a copy cut as a present before he gave it back), a broken maglite, a swiss army knife, a padlock key (never use the padlock though) and a kubotan (5/6 inch metal stick you can put in the middle of your fist to make it rock solid if you get attacked, nearly had to use it tonight because we thought some scallies were trying to burgle the pub beneath our flat).

-On my wrists/hands: 4 rings, a watch, a Desperados sweatband (badly needs a wash), Arsenal wristband

I also had a mystery key, but whilst writing this post I worked out it was for my window, so there goes another bit of magic from my life...
(Dowbocop, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 2:10, Reply)

Mason's bag.
A mason's bag. Made to hold whatever kind of tools masons use (not very many, compared to cabinetmakers which is what I am). Holds wallet, lunch, tape measure, and whatever else I need. Very very manly and don't you dare call it a purse.
(mortdubois lacks imagination, doesn't play well with others, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 1:39, Reply)

Swiss Army Dinner Set
IE: Pen-knife/fork/spoon/bottle opener/corkscrew...
matches, comb, 2 USB keys, vaseline, pliers(needle&snub), wire snips, craft knife, screws, screwdrivers, old motorbike mirror, 7 keys(1 for a lock I no longer have, 1 I found in th street), and various shards of metal/plastic which used to be things.

I have big pockets.

Fucked if I ever get searched.

Slighty related, in an old bag I recently found a precisely 1-year-old sandwich. Was black.
( TK-421 wasn't at his post on, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 1:38, Reply)

I'm a 22 year old male
and I've had a tampon in my backpack for about 13 months "in case of an emergency". There used to be two in there. There was an emergency.

I also carry expired student discount cards for high street shops if I ever have to open doors Sam Fisher style.
(the_fracturedpope, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 1:36, Reply)

Oh, the things we carry
Such things:

Car keys - to exact revenge on fellow drivers' car doors.

Cell Phone - oh, those useful conversations you could never have at home, with the added bonus of occuring while driving. why not cause a mishap, to add flavor and excitement to life?

Wallet - i love having something important to lose. plastic identity documents that cost money when misplaced or misused induce a chub.
(Drunkendragon, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 1:28, Reply)

voices telling me to KILL KILL KILL KILL
I carry, or at least appear to, "The weight of the world on my shoulders"...apparently... or so people continually tell me. Usually the same people that tell me to "cheer up, it might never happen".

In truth, i carry the usual. However, interestingly enough, i've just learned that i still have a picture of my ex girfriend in my wallet, which i've decided to mutilate to help me sleep tonight.

Good night.
(griffo, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 0:42, Reply)

Ileostomy bag
Comes in handy for carrying crap in. Fnar.
(littlesunshine licked your blinky diodes on, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 0:16, Reply)

Not now but soon.
Stupid bloody photo ID; because I'm not an adult.

I'm lovely and 15, nice and tender... and soft... and succulant... ahem. And of course the envy of all those a few months older than me. 'Why?' I hear you ask. Well to be 15 on London Underground means that I get tickets at less than half price. How pissing delectable. Now I have come across a little problem.

Coming out of school, (a school well known for having children in it) I attempt to buy a ticket. The ticket machines no longer sells child tickets because of those pesky little Japanese tourists bulk buying child tickets. So as always I move over to the miserable old git that sells the tickets, quite a nice bloke really. Have a chat with him, he gives me my £1.40 ticket and says "Oh, by the way, from Jan 2 you'll have to have photo ID." Now already this is getting on my nerves, I have to have photo ID because it's us childrens that are obviously going to bomb London Underground. Now I can see the thing, they need photo ID for me to prove I'm not a 40 year old japanese tourist... yes that's right, looking at ME won't do the job, they need a little piece of paper to look at instead.

So let's get to the point, today (well yesterday really) I'm attempting to get home from some godforsaken end of the universe (the universe if from zone 6 north to the river). Now there's this lovely little jobsworth behind the desk thing, obviously masturbating to the power she's been given. I go up:
"I'd like a child single to **** please."
'Who's it for?'
"Uhm..." Now there are three Italian men standing behind me, getting their money ready so they can pay for their own tickets, they are essentially the only other people in the station. "me."
'Do you have photo ID?'
"Uhm, I don't need it until Jan 2, no?"
'Do you have photo ID?'
"No, can I have the ticket now please?"
'Can't give it to you.'
"Uhm... and?"
'£3.80'
"GAH? I'm a child, look at me, short and pasty, I came out here to your world, the world where the magic day star shines and now you tax me for it?"
'Don't care, 3 pounds eighty pennies.'
"I was told that I wouldn't need photo ID until Jan 2."
'No, you need it now.'
So I pay the money. And I take my overpriced piece of sodding paper and I swear alot to myself and partially to the hag who again, masturbates to the power that she's been given.

So let's look at this situation.
1. I was in NO WAY informed that I'd need that ID today, I was told on January the fucking 2nd, by more than one person.
2. The idea of public transport is that it's transport for the public. I need photo ID to be part of the public? Surely that's restricted transport, it's not public at all. What would someone from sunny Glasgow do? They'd have to smile and pay that bloody £3.80.
In conclusion today I was robbed by London underground. They suddenly change what they said to me previously with the sole intent of getting money out of me. Also this now 'public transport' is no longer public unless you're willing to pay more than you are obliged to. It says 'If you are under 16 you are obliged to cheaper tickets.' Well where the fuck are they then?

All in all I was robbed today for £2.40. I might take action, I might... WRITE A LETTER!

So the silly thing I have to carry is photo ID for no apparent reason, and only because I'm a child... fuck off.
(Frozen_Banana Shaved against the grain; thoroughly unrewarding., Fri 28 Oct 2005, 0:12, Reply)

Bottle opener (of course)
mini torch (so useful for finding glasses when pissed), 2 mini karabiners for clipping keys to belt, matches (don't smoke, just keep picking them up from bars).
( Labmonkey last thought about having another coffee on, Fri 28 Oct 2005, 0:04, Reply)

I always carry
a very spiffy corkscrew, because I sell wine, beer and whisky and may need it at any time, a lighter, baccy and papers, a baseball cap in case it rains, a carrier bag, an old lottery entry form, several receipts and a couple of feathers in my wallet for luck.
( S tr app y, Thu 27 Oct 2005, 23:50, Reply)

Stupid crap
Flyers from the last 2 months, bits of wire and string, a leather strap, the obligatory chewing gum...

and about 20 lighters.

It's great during winter. Hands cold while waiting for the train? Get the lighters out and start BURNING them. I learnt this handy tip after nearly freezing to death one cold lonely winters night when I missed the last train. Your skin isn't suppossed to turn blue...
(Calantyr, Thu 27 Oct 2005, 23:35, Reply)

My trysty six year old rucksack is now perhamantly inhabited by
I have a spoon, three nutmegs, a chain of 2" long paperclips, three packs of oddly shaped cards, a broken pair of earphones, 6p, a fingerless glove and a pocker on the front that's been jammed just for the last two years that i suspect may still contain a sandwich.
( Yeknom. Incontinence and Premature ejaculation? Easy come, easy go., Thu 27 Oct 2005, 23:11, Reply)

Must have!
A Condom

cos you never know when its going to rain and your ciggarettes will need umbrellas!
(clarkson4sheephahaha, Thu 27 Oct 2005, 23:07, Reply)

I once carried
crabs. for a while.
(mittymutu, Thu 27 Oct 2005, 23:03, Reply)

A bottle opener.
I mean, how many times have you had to lever the top of a bottle with a lighter. And I don't smoke any more so a bottle opener is now an essential. Comes in handy for opening boxes too. And I got it free in a christmas cracker. so there. It would be better if it had a corkscrew on it.
( MrHeed, Thu 27 Oct 2005, 23:00, Reply)

Bat Belt

A few years ago I was playing a gig somewhere in Surrey. The other guitarist in the band had a problem with his instrument (ahem) and jokingly asked the audience if anyone had a screwdriver. A bloke we knew jumped forward, hand flying to his belt, demanding, "What size?"

Genius
(tree hugger putting the "semen" in "basement"..., Thu 27 Oct 2005, 22:43, Reply)

not me but vince
When i lived in Luton which i avoid at all lengths now i often ventured into the Arndale Centre a shopping experience from hell (remember Mr.Byryte). The Arndale was a fav haunt of vince the bagman he was a bit of a hippie throwback. Vince always carried a hold-all , whatever was in it only God and vince knows because every word he muttered was unintellgiable so there was no point asking him. I came to the conclusion it was some sort of balancing device to keep him upright.
So i guess the bag itself was essential not what was in it.It wasnt his laundry though im sure cos he had a slight whiff about him.
(jaffacakes, Thu 27 Oct 2005, 22:25, Reply)

Essential Items?
Well, clothes of course.
(richard pye, Thu 27 Oct 2005, 22:12, Reply)