Everyday Carry of a Librarian

Amanda Mae
3 min readAug 30, 2022

A musician friend of mine wrote a song called “Curses on Purses” that she said was inspired from the days when she lived in New York City and was a busking musician. When she left for the day, she left for the day and had to have her instrument, her purse, maybe a pack lunch, and even a change of clothes. And on the subway and about town she’d see women who only needed a small purse for their essentials and didn’t need to lug around bags of supplies.

I think of that song and that song’s story often when I get ready for the day. Can I get away with just a small purse or a few things tucked into pockets? Or do I need a bigger bag? But generally for my workday, I have a set bag and items that I have on me.

Photo by author

Manhattan Portage shoulder bag. I got a larger version of this bag in college that held my notebooks and folders for class, but years later I got this smaller one when I took a trip to England. It’s been the perfect size for me! It has a main compartment, a smaller front compartment for pens, keys, and other small items, and a sleeve in the back of the main compartment that fits my iPad. It closes with two…

Create an account to read the full story.

The author made this story available to Medium members only.
If you’re new to Medium, create a new account to read this story on us.

Or, continue in mobile web

Already have an account? Sign in

Amanda Mae
Amanda Mae

Written by Amanda Mae

Amanda Mae is a librarian who has lived in too many states and enjoys anything involving books, history, and productivity.

No responses yet

What are your thoughts?