EDC Part 2: What I Actually Carry

Part one of this series was about the system. This is the system's inventory.

Over thirteen years I have spent more than I should chasing the perfect travel kit. Influenced by influencers, drawn to bright shiny things, and occasionally convinced that the right gear would make travel feel like something other than work. Some of those purchases earned their place. Most didn't survive a month. What follows is what's left after that sorting process, offered with one condition: the parenthetical that covers everything. This works for me. Your version may look similar or nothing like it at all. What I hope is that my trial and error saves you some of yours.

One thing I've learned that no gear review will tell you: what performs well for a week may completely fall apart at week ten. Dance with the one that brung you long enough to actually know whether it works. Buy once cry once is my general philosophy, though that's less about spending freely and more about not buying the same thing twice.

POWER

The decision to carry two laptops introduces a second problem immediately: tangled cords. The Apple ecosystem handles this more gracefully than most, USB-C across the board, but the out-of-box chargers still can't keep up with the wattage demands of a laptop and a phone running simultaneously. The Dell situation is worse. The two-piece charging cable that ships with most Windows laptops begins its transformation into a Medusa-like ball somewhere around month three.

For these reasons I moved into the aftermarket charging world early. Satechi and Anker show up consistently and I've used both long enough to trust them. My current carry is a 67w Anker with two USB-C ports and one USB-A. Enough to keep a phone charged and prevent a laptop from losing ground while I'm working. The Satechi 100w lives at the client site for the duration of each assignment, enough wattage to run two laptops, charge overnight, and start every morning with a full battery on both machines.

The honest reason I've tried as many chargers as I have: I keep leaving them on planes. Unplanned field testing, but field testing nonetheless. My current upgrade target is a 200w UGreen, at which point the Anker 67w gets relegated to home or a backup bag.

For longer trips the Baseus Blade 100w 20,000mAh goes into the bag. The slim profile is the reason it survived four iterations of portable battery purchases. It slides in and out cleanly without reorganizing everything around it.

What took longer to figure out was when it actually earns its place. Short domestic routes don't need it. Better outlets in coffee shops, airport lounges, and hotels have improved enough that showing up fully charged and managing it through the day is usually sufficient. Cross country flights and international are a different problem. That's where the Blade stays.

TECH

I am all in on Apple. Have been for long enough that the commitment stopped feeling like a choice and started feeling like just what you do. I am not a tinkerer. Apple limits what you can change and adjust, and while that frustrates others, it is exactly what I need. That lockdown on tinkering produces a more stable platform. It also produces fewer headaches at 6am in a hotel room in Houston.

The ecosystem is the real reason. I can snap a receipt with my iPhone and drag it directly into my company's travel reimbursement software on the MacBook. The Windows alternative involves emailing the image to myself, saving it to a desktop, and occasionally standing on my head. Documents started on my Mac at home show up on the iPad or MacBook on the road without a second thought. It just works, which is the only endorsement that matters after thirteen years of travel.

The devices divide the work cleanly. The MacBook is the editing machine, full keyboard, better monitor, where anything requiring real concentration gets done. My age and my patience both lean toward a proper keyboard for serious writing or work. The iPad handles the medium tasks: reviewing documents, email, texting, and anything that doesn't require production. Movie in the hotel, browsing, music before bed. The iPhone stays in my pocket. Same access to everything but built for movement, the Lyft to the airport, the walk between gates, a quick check during a morning workout.

The Apple Watch, AirPods, and over-ear headphones round out the ecosystem. The Watch keeps notifications off my phone screen when I need focus. AirPods handle domestic flights and daily movement. The over-ear headphones come out for international, where noise cancellation stops being a preference and becomes a necessity.

CONNECTIVITY

Keeping devices powered and connected is the unglamorous work that makes everything else function. I have never been in the situation of plugging directly into a wall outlet just to request a ride or make a call. The system prevents it. Part of that is the multiport brick, which creates an unexpected benefit in shared spaces. When I've taken the only available outlet on a plane or in an airport, a spare USB-C slot is easy enough to offer. It costs nothing and occasionally makes someone's day.

I have moved entirely to USB-C. Every device I carry supports it and the cable management improvement alone justifies the transition.

Storage for those cables lives in the Orbit Key 2-in-1 pouch system. Two pouches, divided by where I'll need them. The larger pouch comes out in the office and hotel room. It holds the Satechi 100w brick, multiple USB-C cables including the UGreen right-angle cable, the Mophie 3-in-1 charging stand, and the mouse. The right-angle cable deserves its own mention. The Dell charges from the left side only. The MacBook is more flexible, but the right-angle cable keeps the setup consistent regardless of which machine I'm on. As a left-handed mouse user, a standard cable running across my workspace creates constant interference. The right-angle connector solves that cleanly.

The Mophie 3-in-1 stand goes on the nightstand. Every time, every hotel. Phone, AirPods, and Apple Watch all charge in the same spot overnight. It is part of the unpacking ritual.

The smaller Orbit Key pouch travels with me on the plane and through the airport. More cables, the Anker 67w brick, and a backup set of Bose earbuds, a Hilton Lifetime Diamond achievement gift, so not entirely free, but close enough.

The Logitech MX Anywhere 3 Compact Performance Mouse lives in the larger pouch. It connects to three devices via Bluetooth, mirrors the mouse on my desk at home, and never has to be remembered because it never leaves the bag.

TRACKING

Bag security is one of those things that should never require active thought. AirTags make that possible. One lives in my checked bag, one in my carry-on, and one in my backpack. The use case is straightforward: if my bag isn't on the belt at baggage claim, I'm checking Find My before I'm talking to an agent. It tells me whether the bag is still at the origin city, took a wrong turn somewhere in between, or is simply delayed on the ramp. That information changes the conversation with the baggage claim agent considerably. It also means I occasionally know my bag has arrived before the belt starts moving, which has a way of improving your position in the crowd.

I am also starting to file Delta's 20-minute bag guarantee when it applies. That is a post for another day.

The UGreen wallet card handles a different problem. My wallet runs lean, mostly cards, minimal cash. The slim tracker keeps that minimalist approach intact without adding bulk. If the wallet gets left somewhere, Find My has it covered the same way it covers the bags.

HEALTH AND COMFORT

Health needs change over thirteen years of full time travel. The carry evolves with them.

The weekly pill minder got its send-off in part one of this series. What replaced it is a compact pill case from Amazon, under five dollars, durable enough that I've run the same two for nearly two years. The added benefit is a sheet of label stickers that let me designate compartments for as-needed medications separately from the daily regimen. Simple upgrade, significant improvement.

Lip balm is not a glamorous addition to any gear list. Burt's Bees is my go-to, plain as a rule, vanilla if I'm feeling adventurous. Changing climates and recycled cabin air make it a non-negotiable.

First aid stays minimal. A couple of bandages, Tylenol, Advil, melatonin, and something for cold symptoms cover the majority of situations. All over the counter, all easy to source if I run out.

The one prescription item I always carry is Zofran. I do not want to be hours from home or mid-flight when nausea sets in without something to address it. Zofran curtails nausea and vomiting effectively when I need it. That said, this is a conversation to have with your own physician. Everyone's health history is different and what makes sense for my travel routine may not make sense for yours. My doctor agreed that having a dose available while traveling was reasonable. Yours may too.

CLIMATE

I hate umbrellas. At 6'3" they cover my shoulders and above on a good day. I lose them, leave them, and break them. I hate umbrellas.

What lives in the bag instead is a stuff-able Marmot rain jacket. Ultralight in spring and summer, heavier with room for layers underneath in fall and winter. My lower half is going to get wet regardless. Full coverage on top is the best available outcome.

A hoodie lives with it. I rotate a few in and out for variety, ranging from lightweight to medium weight. No sweatshirts, too much bulk. No sun hoodies, not enough substance when something pillow-adjacent is called for on a long flight. One is always in the bag.

Merino wool has earned a permanent spot in the rotation. Unbound Merino and Kuhl are my current carries, with a Paka hoodie on my radar for the next addition. The odor resistance of merino is real and useful for a bag that moves every four days. The care instructions require some patience. Merino prefers a drying rack over a tumble dry. I split the difference and give it the first ten minutes before the dryer heats up enough to shrink it down to my high school size rather than what I need today.

FOOTWEAR

My feet have special needs. Neuropathy and thirteen years of full time travel will do that. I walk more than the average person on any given day and the shoes that carry me through it deserve more consideration than most gear decisions I make.

I bring two pairs on every trip. The first is a comfortable athletic shoe. I have worked through most of the notable options, OnCloud, New Balance, Asics, and a handful of others. These handle morning workouts, evening walks, and airport runs when the timing works out.

The work pair has landed on Johnston and Murphy. They produce a dress sneaker that is comfortable enough to survive a full day on a hospital floor and presentable enough for whatever comes after. The blend of workplace sensibility and genuine comfort is harder to find than it should be. For those who haven't come across them in an airport store, Johnston and Murphy ships directly to your home. Worth knowing if you find yourself between pairs mid-trip.

Spend money on your shoes. You only have one pair of feet and on travel days they are working harder than the rest of you.

THE BAG

Most of what you just read lives in a North Face Overhaul 40. A bag that has been discontinued long enough that my replacement came from the women's line at half the price. That replacement is now aging and the search for what comes next is genuinely open.

My requirements are specific. One main compartment large enough for the tech, cables, and daily carry. A separate pocket large enough to contain a hoodie and a rain layer without competing for space with everything else. Structure enough to stay upright and accessible without becoming a project to get into.

What I have not found yet is a bag that solves that organizational problem without adding unnecessary bulk or abandoning the simplicity that made the Overhaul work for several hundred thousand miles.

This is where you come in. If you are a repeat traveler who has solved this problem, I want to know what you are carrying and why. Not what looks good in a YouTube review. What has actually survived a month of weekly travel and still works on week ten. Specific constraints, specific solutions. That is the only kind of recommendation worth making.

Note: This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase through them I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. I only link to items I actually carry.