My official transformation has begun, and no it’s not becoming a woman. I officially left my last day at Amazon on Monday and I started my first day at my new job yesterday. Things haven’t gone entirely smoothly or at least the way that I expected. The recent weather has thrown a monkey wrench into delivery services like Amazon and Fed-Ex to name a few.

I have been waiting for my computer to get started since Friday of last week. The tracking site has literally not change in over a week. So, in lieu of working right now I am am going to shift my day later and work later. That means I can do this right now.

Today, I was thinking about carrying my stuff around. I was thinking about this as I unpacked my work pack and put all my stuff away that I was using while I was a delivery driver. Some things went back to where they were before I was a delivery driver. Some things were specifically for that job and I am not sure if I will ever use them again and trying to figure out how to move on.

The backpack on the left I use to hold my computer. It was company swag. I switched over from a Swiss Army Pack because I thought that it was the right thing to do, showing the colors with the logo. My Swiss Army pack was quickly repurposed by my nephew who needed a new backpack and gone forever. I went along with this pack for probably three years at work.

Let me say, I hated it from the day I switched. The divider arrangements, the overall capacity (volume), the depth of the zipper opening all were not adequate. It was fine for light use and carrying a computer around, but not for carry-on travel or everyday carry (EDC). On some business trips, my backpack would be the only luggage I would take and I didn’t have the room for a book plus toiletries plus a change of clothes.

When I started working at Amazon, I said “I hate this bag but I can make it work because I don’t need to spend extra money right now”. And it is true, there is a bit of first world syndrome in my thinking. I got my lunch and water bottle and raincoat in there. But I could never get out what I wanted without pulling everything out. It was crammed and difficult to close. When I wanted to clock out, I had to carefully repack everything and squeeze. I couldn’t just stuff and dash to get home.

I started immediately dreaming about what I would want in a daypack. I wanted outside water bottle access, a sunglasses pocket, full access to the inside, one small item organizer compartment and no waist belt. I also didn’t want a huge logo or at least a globally recognized brand. Nothing says tourist or maybe this bag is full of cash like when the entire back says Oakley on it. When I was in China, I had a Dell backpack and I always felt self-conscious like that just added a little extra target on me.

I thought about life after Amazon and how I might use a new pack. Infrequent day trips or family vacations would be the primary mission in the future. I looked at very ‘Tacticool’ packs with concealed carry pockets and gear loops and things. But, I wanted to be the gray man, plus I don’t think that is the best way to carry anyway.

Another thing I have learned is that everything is a compromise. More pockets generally mean less space because everything still has to fit in the same overall volume. Once the bag becomes segmented, it restricts the amount of gear in each pocket in order to retain the integrity or function of the particular pocket. For example, either exterior water bottle takes from interior space for rigidity or it relies on some sort of elastic material to keep the bottle restrained. The latter design ultimately doesn’t hold up to hard use because the elastic stretches out of shape and then your water bottle starts falling out. My hunting pack has that problem.

One last consideration, it is fairly difficult to find a ‘Jack of All Trades’ bag. The hunting bags are camouflaged, the computer bags are made for pens and computers and tablets, the hiking bags are made for overnight trips, the school bags are made for textbooks and such. Stores that are oriented towards particular markets carry items that are oriented toward their customers and market. Online is the best option for model and color.

I found some packs that I almost bought that I would have gotten near lifetime use. Mystery Ranch was my top pick but it was $200 everywhere I looked. If I am going to spend that kind of money, I really want to see what I am buying because it is difficult to visualize the difference between the 24L and the 28L and the 32L sizes. I had some second choices with Patagonia and The North Face, but everything was above $150 that met most of my requirements.

I was very frustrated with my computer bag. After looking at REI and other outdoor stores on the more high end side I went to the discount store Sierra Trading Post and I found this Thule bag for $70. It met most of my requirements, so I bought it. It is 28L and has one compartment. It is sleek and doesn’t have a lot of straps and things to get hung up. It had a removable waist belt and it held all of my stuff I wanted when I was on the road.

It did not have an organizer compartment. But, I have a Maxpedition ‘NeatFreak’ organizer that I carried inside of the bag. I could put my pens, spare batteries, tire gauge, charging cables, etc into the organizer. Again, everything is a compromise and those things take up space too. But, once I switched over I felt immediately better. Getting to my lunch didn’t require a complete un-pack. I could grab my water bottle on the road. I had cold weather and wet weather gear with me at all times.

One thing I have been guilty in the past has been ‘make due’ attitude. Many times, that is to my advantage (from a financial standpoint at least) but sometimes it is not. I quickly bought quality footwear and then changed my bag and added a few things to make my life better while I was delivering packages. I can confidently say that it was a good decision because then I could focus on doing the work rather than the other perceived distractions.

Admittedly, this was a want more than a need. Consider how mood and attitude effects productivity and outside work activity. I think that it is worth evaluating your situation and making changes that could be relatively inexpensive for those ‘quality of life’ scenarios. Items like quality cookware, a comfortable bed or pillow or items used in your profession for safety and comfort can turn a miserable day into just another day.