My Backpack

Since I'm planning on traveling quite a bit with my newfound freedom, I've decided to get rid of the majority of my stuff and live out of a backpack. That's right, a backpack. Granted, I'm cheating a little and leaving some of my stuff in my parent's basement, my day to day stuff is actually crammed in to one little backpack. Here's a list of all that I have on me:

Clothes – By far the most cumbersome.

• 5 shirts (one I'm wearing)
• 1 pair of pants – Yes, that's right. One pair.
• Sleeping shorts – I wear these when I'm washing my pants. Also when I sleep.
• Socks/Undies – It's enough to hold me over for about 2 weeks so I have plenty of time to find a place to get them washed.
• One pair of shoes – I found an amazing pair of converse that are leatherbound and have foot support so I can wear them in the city AND take them hiking! They weren't cheap, but they're worth it in order to prevent carrying around 2 pairs of shoes
• Plastic Bag for dirty laundry

Toiletries

• Toothbrush + Toothpaste
• Floss
• Comb
• Deodorant
• Tweezers
• Fingernail Clippers
• Razors

Did you notice I didn't bring any soap? That's because I'm trying out the soap-less lifestyle. So far it's been great! I've gone about a month so far and I haven't stunk (according to others) and although my hair was rather greasy at first, it's now very soft and looks much better than it did with soap. I also don't have to carry around the extra weight of soap and if I ever have to take a plane I won't have to invoke the wrath of the TSA. I did fail the underarm test, though, so I still carry around a travel stick of deodorant.

Electronics

• My Netbook + Power Cord
• Cell Phone + Charger
• Portable Flash Light

I didn't bring a camera because my cell phone has one built in to it. If you have money to spend, it's a great idea to get gadgets that have multiple functions so you won't have to carry around as much.

Other Stuff

• Games – I brought a deck of cards, a portable chess set, and dice
• Notepad - For jotting down notes, addresses, names, etc.
• Checkbook - I'm pretty much 100% digital these days but sometimes I need a checkbook
• Wallet
• Utensil Swiss Army Knife – Comes with a spoon, fork, knife, and corkscrew.
• First Aid Kit – Filled with band-aids and alcohol wipes
• Passport – I'm going to Portland but I want to check out Canada sometime and you need one to get in.

Although I feel like I could carry around less than this, this is going to be my first trip traveling alone and my funds are somewhat limited. In the future I'm hoping that I can figure out ways to carry around even less while still having the same functionality that most of these items bring.