I imagine that most of us spend a fair amount of time in our cars. My commute is only 25 minutes but that’s still almost an hour a day. Plus there is all that time spent driving around running errands, meeting up with friends, going to the gym – it all means that our cars are an extension of our homes. Since I bought my new car last year I have tried to keep it neat and tidy and I have mostly succeeded. Still, there are things I like to have in my car for convenience and that leads me to this week’s Ten on Tuesday topic: 10 Things You Always Have In Your Car. Let’s go!
- My registration, owner’s manual and all that jazz. I actually refer to that owner’s manual now and again. Shocking, I know.
- Reusable grocery bags. I have about 10 and I use them every week and then put them right back into the car so that they are then when I need them.
- A flashlight. Actually, I think I have a couple. One is crank operated so the batteries never wear out and the other is a small one that Dale got me for Christmas.
- Blistex. I keep it in the little compartment in the middle of the console so that I don’t have to rummage through my purse for it when I’m driving.
- A USB connector for my iPhone. It’s how I listen to my favorite tunes while I’m driving.
- Deposit slips from my bank. And a pen. Self explanatory, right?
- An extra pair of mittens – just in case I don’t have a pair in my coat pocket.
- Sunglasses. I don’t wear them very often but they are especially handy in the winter when there’s snow glare.
- My Garmin GPS. I know some people use their phone for this but I prefer, as my friend calls it, the bitch in the box.
- Windshield scraper. I avoid scraping my own windshield whenever possible but sometimes even I can’t avoid it.
And there you have it, the things I like to have when I’m driving around in my car. Click the link below to add your list and don’t forget that you can sign up for Ten on Tuesday notices by clicking here.
you do keep a tidy car! …I’m very glad I don’t need to have that windshield scraper or the extra pair of mittens (although there is right now but more because I keep forgetting to take them inside than that I’d need them!)
I always have sunglasses and an umbrella.
I don’t know about you, but when I was putting together my list, I was thinking about how different my list looked back when I was carting kids all over the place! 🙂 My car is so much neater now!
Love the idea of an extra pair of mittens! Time to get those out of the drawer and into my car 🙂
No computer time yesterday, so I’ll confess here. Used water bottles, reusable grocery sacks (a dozen or so), a hat, a few CDs, and an ice scraper. I like the idea of extra mittens or gloves. My car is a mess, my compute about 10 minutes, and I have nothing techi. 😉
I don’t know how to drive, and we don’t even own a car, so I will see you all next week for the next 10Tuesday.
We don’t own a car these days as we live in Manhattan, but we rent them mostly to visit our daughter in Providence (she’s in Scotland this semester, though). So I’ve gotten out of the groove of driving and prefer that my husband do it. As a passenger and the navigator, I pack knitting that doesn’t require charts, as well as maps, snacks, and CDs. And I’m seriously considering getting one of those knitting lights that you hang around your neck for knitting at night.
Great subject this week Carole! And I cannot remember to put those bags back in my car for the life of me! 🙂
I have a blanket for beach and picnics, one of those tri-fold knitting estimator in case I am shopping without a pattern in mind and a folding stool to watch grand kids soccer games.
I have reusable grocery bags but I forget them all the time! Great list :o)
My first thought after reading your list was that you can tell you don’t have little children, haha! Add to your items (which are pretty much all in my car) – a blanket or two (in case of breakdowns with said little ones), notebooks and paper (for those long ‘are-we-there-yet-car-rides’), and cleaning wipes (for the inevitable child-messes)!
I also carry an umbrella and a quilt
I always keep a simple hat in progress for charity in the car. It’s there in case I get stuck in traffic or snow, or have a dr’s appt, and forgot to bring the current WIP with me.
I forgot about the deposit slips! I always have a stockpile of them in my center compartment.
One thing that I don’t see mentioned in the posts yet are feminine products. I have some in my car, and to his horror, my husband’s car. They have come in handy a few times. Great topic!
I covet the day I have my “own” car. My car still is the family car so we always have an assortment of lunch bags, jackets, missing gloves, stale and forgotten waffles or toast half eaten on the way to school, stray earrings, hair brushes and elastics, paperbacks, and my few necessary items (flashlight, yoga mat, umbrella). Someday I will have a nice car. Someday.
Two things we have in common. One is the mittens–I always have a pair of extra warm ones in the car. Also, we call the Garmin ” bitch in the box.’. But. I do like her better than using the phone. My phone doesn’t talk, so it can b distracting! The tidiness, not so much. My car is a giant purse!
Definitely hand sanitizer. I just can’t deal with pumping gas and not using it!
I have a lot of the same stuff in my car plus a whole lot more. I wish it wasn’t so. I cannot recall the last time I saw a deposit slip. Most stuff these days is direct deposit and when I deposit actual checks they just handle it at the teller window. My bank doesn’t even seem to have them.
Oh, dear. I really hope everyone also has jumper cables in their car. (Or did you just mean inside the passenger compartment and not what’s in the trunk?)
I guess I’m into emergency preparedness, but I’d recommend also having a shovel, a first-aid kit, a few Israeli battle dressings (see Amazon), and an extra blanket or two, plus some granola bars or other non-perishable snacks, just in case.