My Life in Bags ~ I have a Bag for Almost Everything!

Are you a parent like me? Are you active and involved in many endeavors, and do you organize your life by assigning a "home" to everything?

I do! That is one way for me to keep my home and my life manageable.

Sometimes things need to leave their homes and come with us, though. They get bored and need some fresh air, so we need to take them out for walks and day trips. I often oblige by taking each bag with me to a special destination, at least once each week.

The picture to the right is my Brownie Leader bag, in which I carry the books and supplies that prepare me for leading a girl scout meeting for my daughter and her Brownie sisters. Our meetings usually occur every other Friday afternoon. Since we are members of a multi-level home-schooling troop, so it is convenient for us to meet mid-afternoon, instead of later in the day when other troops meet.

After checking in and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, Girl Scout Promise, and Girl Scout Law, each level separates to work together on completing a journey, which usually involves learning a skill and conducting a public service project.

I am a text-reader for National Braille Press. I read the text for standardized tests that are transcribed into braille, and a braille proofreader makes sure that the braille matches the print.

I travel in to work in Boston on Mondays because that is one of my husband's "weekend" days off. That is my day to be there, so I am the one who is called first for any tests that need to be proofread on a Monday. I am usually there for eight hours. Since I park at a train station and commute to Boston, I usually carry in my bag the reading I like to do on the train, a folder of art work made for me by my daughter, and the lunch/snacks that keep me going throughout the day.

Since I love reading for a living, I also take a book home with me to text-read. I create audio files online, which I send to my boss when they are completed. The books I bring home vary, ranging from young readers' chapter books to adult novels. They are transcribed into braille by a trained braille transcriber, and my audio files are used to proofread the braille.

Most Tuesdays between September and May will find my daughter and I at our home-schooling cooperative. This is where students form study groups around subjects of interest, guided by two adults.

Though we have been involved in a variety of activities with the founders of this co-op, this is the first year of the co-op's formal operation in its present form and we are thrilled to be part of it. The bag pictured to the right lives in the trunk of my car, so that it is there for me to grab on Tuesdays. My daughter's basic supply box lives in it, as well as a Twister game and a few books and magazines. I usually bring additional things out to the car to put in it as they are needed.

I usually assist one of the adult study group guides while my daughter enjoys exploring the subjects she loves best. Sometimes we overlap, but often we do not. Some of the study groups in which she has participated include: cooking the fall harvest, Leonardo DaVinci as both artist and scientist, Camp Half-Blood (Greek Mythology popularized by Rick Riordan's books), and board game design.

"Without music life would be a mistake." ~ Friedrich Nietzche

My life would not be complete without music. Since sheet music is often made of paper, it needs protection from the elements, so I have a bag to carry my music in. That music is often kept in a folder for extra protection.

On Wednesday evenings I usually attend choir rehearsal. I often play flute in various ensembles for special occasions, and those rehearsals are often held on Wednesdays, too ~ luckily in the same place.

I love to sing and play instruments. Besides flute, I also play mandolin and guitar. The place that I sing and play most is my UU church. I also perform at open mics. I also love to participate in local drumming circles.

What better way to hold all of my music than a bag of my own design? The picture of the tulip is an original photograph that I took over 5 years ago, and through Cafe Press I have a store titled "Karen's Creative Images." A link to that store is provided under the image of the bag, by clicking on my name. Perhaps you will see a design there that you will love. You are invited to take a look.

* This bag does double duty as my writer's bag. In it I usually keep a pad and pens to jot down ideas for hubs, poems, stories, etc.

On Thursday afternoons, our local public library hosts a knitting circle for the youth in our community who want to learn to knit. A couple of ladies who are veteran knitters, and who host a knitting circle for adults on Wednesday mornings, guide the young people in the steps to creating a knitted item, whether it be a baby blanket or a doll's scarf. Hot cocoa and a treat are provided to the participants by our children's librarian.

This is another way that my daughter enjoys both expressing herself artistically and getting together with other children around her age. I usually bring my own bag of knitting to practice off to the side while she participates in the group. I also bring the bag to her room in the evenings while she reads to me her bedtime story.

Finally, I present to you the bag that holds articles of clothing in need of mending. Needles and thread of many colors live in the bag, as well as a small teddy bear's overalls, a shirt, and a pair of pants. I take this bag to the common house and sit by the fire to stitch the holes closed with loving care. When I have worked my way through all of the clothes in my bag, and the overflow basket in my bedroom, I will begin embroidering unique patterns on the pockets of my husband's work shirts.

My daughter made this bag at an art camp in Virginia two summers ago. My mother arranged for her to attend this camp while my daughter visited with her that summer.