I’ve been carrying quite the arsenal around with me this summer, and it’s proved so helpful I don’t think I’ll stop. I suppose it’s a bit of a carryover from last summer’s trip. In my shorts, I currently have a flashlight, lighter, pocket knife, notepad and pencil, and my cell phone. I could go on and on about the knife, since it has been solely responsible for fixing the bus the last few times it has broken down, but this post is about the flashlight.
It’s kind of an odd tool, and I didn’t realize how often I would use it until I started carrying one around with me. I started keeping one in my pocket last summer to check the flow of the oil as we filtered, and found other uses for it since it was on hand. I bought a better light, and kept it with me this summer. Since it’s a little expensive, I’ve looped the lanyard around my belt loop to keep from losing it if it falls out of my pocket. It’s nice to have it that handy and secure, but a pain to get off the belt loop, and as a result I’ve been doing a lot of illuminating from hip level.
At the craft store the other day, I picked up some snaps. I put the male end on my belt loop, and the female end on the end of the lanyard (it turns out all you need to attach snaps is a hammer). And now my light is quickly connected or disconnected from my hip. My attire is slowly becoming perfectly utilitarian, and I’m pleased.